All the cavalry in the military camp were gathered together and handed over to the leadership of Zhou Qing, who was sent out to pursue them.
Then some troops who were on duty were also summoned, and they gathered more than two thousand people and chased after the cavalry.
Some soldiers who were sleeping and resting in the back were also called up, and 3,000 men from the Sixth Battalion were assembled as the third wave of pursuit team.
The remaining ten thousand soldiers and horses continued to stay in the camp and wait for dawn.
And wait until everything is deployed.
A massive pursuit began.
The Seven Star Gate rebels had only escaped more than ten miles away when they were overtaken by the cavalry who were the first to pursue them.
The rebels, who were fleeing without formation, could not withstand the cavalry attack. After being charged for a while, they dispersed immediately.
A large number of rebels asked to surrender, and some fled into the wilderness and ran into the mountains, unable to pursue them in the dark.
The cavalry ignored these requests to surrender.
After dispersing several groups of thieves behind them, they continued to pursue them.
These surrendered people are left to the infantry who follow behind to gather them slowly.
The cavalrymen galloped forward, beating and scattering the thieves who were at the forefront.
When they got to the rear, they became too anxious to pursue them, forcing them to join the team of the core figures of the Seven Star Sect. They simply didn't want to run away, and instead stayed to fight with the cavalry for a while.
These martial arts masters, with their strong martial arts, killed more than a hundred cavalry and only caught the chasing cavalry by surprise.
After losing a large number of men and horses, Zhou Qing did not dare to pursue too closely, so he slowly adjusted his strategy and hung back, looking for other soft persimmons to bite, and did not dare to rush into the teams of those martial arts masters.
As a result, some of the evacuated bandits without the masters of the Seven Star Sect were in great trouble.
They were targeted by the cavalry. Facing the powerful momentum of thousands of troops and horses, coupled with the panic when fleeing for their lives, they often couldn't hold on for a while, and were killed and defeated, crying for surrender and begging for mercy.
And relying on these cushions, the core team of the Seven Star Sect quickly fled south.
Gradually, the pursuers were left behind.
The huge pursuit lasted for three days.
The troops sent out by Lu Yuan to pursue him went straight from Changning County to Pingyang County in Luyang Prefecture, covering a distance of more than 300 miles.
In the two small counties of Luyang Prefecture passing by, after hearing the news that the frontline army was defeated and the enemy army was killed, the wealthy gangs in the city started an uprising and killed the thieves who stayed behind at the Qixing Gate. Kaicheng welcomed the king's division.
Counting Pingyang County, there were ten counties in Luyang Prefecture. Three counties were recovered in one day.
But by this time, the pursuing army could no longer catch up.
Nearly half of the cavalry's horses were killed, and the infantrymen who followed were lagging far behind. The number of people who arrived at Pingyang County at the front was less than a thousand.
Now that they have penetrated deep into Luyang Mansion and entered the Seven Star Gate's lair, even though these rebels have been defeated, the remaining strength in the local area cannot be underestimated.
Therefore, for the sake of safety, Zhou Qing chose to stay in Pingyang County, collecting the rebels who surrendered in the county and waiting for the arrival of the follow-up army.
…
While Zhou Qing's side was making rapid progress, Lu Yuan's main army of tens of thousands of people was slowly moving towards the border of Luyang Mansion.
However, compared to the pursuing vanguard, the speed of his main force was much slower.
Still traveling at the same speed as before, only traveling thirty to fifty miles a day, focusing on being steady.
The results of this pursuit have been reported one after another.
After chasing for a whole night and a day, a total of more than 6,000 Seven Star Gate thieves were captured.
These prisoners, together with the more than two thousand rebels captured half a month ago, were gathered together by Lu Yuan and organized into the first camp again.
The next step is to enter Luyang Mansion.
That is the home base of the Seven Star Sect, and there are countless local forces that are intertwined with these rebels.
Even though the Seven Star Sect suffered a disastrous defeat and lost 20,000 soldiers and horses, even so, it is not that easy to capture the Luyang Mansion.
According to the information currently available, there are about 10,000 troops left behind by the Seven Star Sect in Luyang Mansion.
Five thousand of the main forces gathered in Luyang Fucheng.
With these soldiers and horses here, the Seven Star Gate will not collapse so easily.
In the end, siege warfare is indispensable.
At that time, a large amount of cannon fodder will be needed to fill the line, and these 8,000 prisoners are just right.
In addition to the prisoners, there are more than a thousand rebels who fled into the local wilderness last night and need to be hunted down slowly.
In response, Lu Yuan sent an official letter asking the Hengyang Mansion to mobilize more Qianren Mansion soldiers to clean up the remnants of these traitors.
Therefore, after a night of pursuit, only about 2,000 rebels were able to escape in the end.
There were more than 20,000 soldiers and horses when they went north, but when they fled back, only 2,000 were left.
This time the Seven Star Sect's attack on Hengyang Mansion could be said to have been a disastrous defeat.
It even becomes a question whether we can hold on and how long we can hold on.
…
On the wide official road, the army stretched for several miles, winding its way south.
"After this great victory, my reputation in Dongting County should become even louder."
Sitting in a spacious and comfortable carriage, Lu Yuan looked through the battle reports and smiled helplessly: "But this way, the probability of me being targeted by the Five Poisons Cult will be even greater."
He has not broken through the innateness, and the threat of the Five Poison Sect to him has always been with him.
That's it.
Although they were marching in a hurry, Lu Yuan had arranged three carriages of the same type as the one he was sitting on at this time.
The purpose is to confuse outsiders and avoid assassination.
For the sake of being cautious, living is indeed a bit tiring.
But there is no other way. For the sake of my life, I can only work hard on myself.
"But these are only temporary. After I complete the practice of Chiyang Divine Skill and practice this skill to the highest level, I will reach the top of the first-class, and by then I will be only one step away from innateness.
As long as I can break through the innateness, let alone the Five Poisons Sect, the world is big and I can come and go freely without any restrictions. "
Lu Yuan's mood these days is actually quite good.
This is not only because he led the army to win a battle, but also because just the day before yesterday, after more than a month of practice, he completed the cultivation of another meridian.
At this point, with only the last meridian left, Lu Yuan can complete the cultivation technique.
"It will take more than a month to complete the transformation of the remaining meridian. Maybe I will destroy the Seven Star Gate by then."
Under the current trend of great victory, Lu Yuan had no doubts about whether he could defeat the Seven Star Sect and was full of confidence: "I heard that the sacred blood variant inherited by the Seven Star Sect is called the Pure Water Black Bull. This bull has longevity and can Live a hundred and fifty years.
Tsk tsk, I don’t know who is more powerful than this cow or the blood jade centipede. "
At this time, Lu Yuan had already begun to think about what he had gained after destroying the Seven Star Gate.
The reason why he attacked these rebels so hard this time was because of the Pure Water Black Bull. Prepare to use the sacred blood of this cow to help you quickly break through the last three meridians of the Chiyang Divine Art.
Among the six magical sutras in the first-class realm, Lu Yuan has now mastered three.
For the remaining three strange scriptures, if he only relied on his own hard work, even with the help of the spirit-boosting pill, it would take at least more than a year.
But if you have the Pure Water Black Ox, then maybe you can be promoted to the top in just a few days.
You can imagine how much time this saves and how much it helps improve your strength.
“I even heard that the divine blood variant is of great help in breaking through the innate.
Those Xiantian sects also inherited a peerless divine elixir, which was refined from the divine blood of several different species.
After taking this elixir, it can help warriors open up the Rendu and Du meridians and step into the innate world.
The Emperor of Western Shu, Li Xiong, was the divine blood mutant who conquered the top ten martial arts forces in Xichuan. He finally refined a peerless divine elixir and achieved a breakthrough in innateness. "
Lu Yuan's heart felt hot when he thought of a rumor he had collected and heard over the past few years.
For him right now, what he wants most is to break through his innate abilities.
But the gap between innate and first-class is like a chasm, which is basically unbridgeable.
It is basically impossible for Lu Yuan to rely on his own ability to obtain peerless divine elixirs or innate techniques from those innate sects.
Even if it were possible, it would still involve taking huge risks.
Therefore, this road is basically dead for him.
On the contrary, it is more feasible to learn from Li Xiong, eradicate those first-class martial arts forces, seize the divine blood alien species in the opponent's hands, and then refine the divine elixir to break through the innate.
Now Lu Yuan is working hard in this direction.
…
The army walked south for twenty miles and soon came to a barren mountain.
There is not even a village for several miles near the barren mountain. But what is surprising is that there seems to be a small house on the mountainside, which seems to be inhabited.
When he arrived here, Lu Yuan asked people to stop, and then led his own soldiers towards the mountains.
That's right, this barren mountain is where Qingyun Temple is located.
Lu Yuan has not been here for several years since he followed Sun Siwen to take office in Wugang County.
This time I returned to Changning and revisited my old place. When I passed by this place, I suddenly felt emotional and wanted to see my fellow Taoist Qi Yun.
Lu Yuan had great respect for this fellow Taoist who was both his teacher and friend. After all, it was the other party who pulled him into the path of Taoism and taught him the complete Taoist classics.
Now that his practice is so smooth, Qi Yun's help is indispensable.
"I have read through the Taoist scriptures over the years, and I have gained a lot of insights into the method of meditating to change the mind. This time, I may have a discussion with fellow Taoist Qi Yun." Lu Yuan couldn't help but smile as he thought of the past.
Over the years, he has studied the Taoist scriptures and accumulated a lot of insights and confusions in his mind. This time when he met with fellow Taoists, he decided to talk about Taoism again and express his inner understanding.
And this time.
A large number of soldiers coming from the bottom of the mountain also attracted the attention of the lay people in the temple.
"Master, it's bad, a large group of officers and soldiers came down the mountain."
Inside Qingyun Temple, a little Taoist boy, about twelve or thirteen years old, hurried in from outside the temple and shouted loudly as he entered the courtyard.
"In such a panic, how could you behave like this? Have you forgotten the meditation technique taught to you by your master?"
In the main hall of the courtyard, Taoist Qi Yun, who was offering incense to the Patriarch, came out and scolded the Taoist boy.
Then he walked out of the view and looked down the mountain. He immediately saw a large number of soldiers walking towards the mountain, and his heart suddenly tightened.
"Where did so many officers and soldiers come from in these barren mountains and wild mountains? And looking at them, could it be that they are coming for my Taoist temple?" Taoist Qi Yun felt a little uneasy as he looked at the endless stream of officers and soldiers.
In today's troubled times, soldiers and bandits are rampant.
Soldiers are bandits, and bandits are soldiers. There is no big difference between the two.
Although he also has martial arts skills, he is still only second-rate so far. But looking at the soldiers at the foot of the mountain, they probably numbered in the thousands.
A second-rate master can only handle a hundred soldiers even if he holds his head high. The number of officers and soldiers entering the mountain is far beyond what Taoist Qi Yun can handle.
Although he is a monk, he has seen and heard about chaos and tragedies in the outside world in the past few years. When he encounters it now, he will naturally be afraid and jealous.
"I heard that a group of Qixingmen rebels came near Changning County recently. Are these officers and soldiers here to suppress the rebellion? I hope they have no ill intentions towards me." Taoist Qi Yun prayed in his heart.
Then he looked at the group of officers and soldiers who had arrived at the gate of the temple. He forced a smile and went up to them: "God has given me a blessing. You military masters, why are you here at Xiaoguan today?"
"There is nothing wrong with them coming to the temple. The main reason is that I want to see fellow Taoist Qi Yun, so I came here specifically to disturb him."
At this time, hearty laughter came from behind the officers and soldiers.
Then I saw the officers and soldiers in front of me suddenly making way, and then a familiar figure appeared in front of Qi Yun.
"Friend Lu Dao?"
Qi Yun looked at Lu Yuan who was dressed as a general in front of him. He was startled for a moment, then smiled and said: "It turns out that fellow Taoist is here. I thought something happened today, but when I saw it was fellow Taoist, I felt relieved." .”
After saying that, Qi Yun glanced at Lu Yuan dissatisfied and said angrily: "I was shocked by fellow Taoist today."
"Ha ha!"
Listening to this familiar voice and those casual words from the past, Lu Yuan suddenly felt like he was back a few years ago. He couldn't help laughing twice, and then he repeatedly accused: "Don't blame me, fellow Taoist. It's just the people who have been offended by the poor Taoist in these years." A little more, it has to be for safety reasons.”
"Alas, the world of mortals is indeed easily contaminated by cause and effect, causing disasters."
After listening to Lu Yuan's words, Qi Yun seemed to have thought of something, sighed, and then let the door open: "Fellow Taoist has been here for a long time, please follow me into the temple first. The temple is simple, I hope you don't dislike it now."
"Fellow Taoist, I used to be used to eating and living here, and now I am naturally used to eating and living here." Lu Yuan laughed, expressed his intention a little, and then stopped the soldiers who wanted to follow him into the observation area, and let them After waiting outside, I went in alone to observe.
There are not many people in the world who can trust him.
Doctor Zhou who has passed away is like this, Sun Siwen and Zhou Qing are like this, and so is fellow Taoist Qi Yun in front of me.
After discussing Taoism for several years, Lu Yuan and Qi Yun had already known each other's nature and became Taoist friends and confidants.
In this kind of friendship, the other party would never harm him.
Lu Yuan has his own confidence in looking at people.
Of course, with his current strength, Qi Yun is no longer his opponent.
As for those personal soldiers guarding the inside and outside of the temple, the effect is actually the same.
Anyway, what we are guarding against is the possible assassination by the Five Poison Sect. If we stay outside, we will have a better view and may be more effective.
