Cangbei County is an inconspicuous border county in the northern border of Daxu. However, due to the military conflict with the Jin Kingdom, this place name occasionally appears in Di Bao.
This is also the greatest understanding that Neizhou scholars have about Cangbei County. Well, it is limited to place names.
However, in other counties in Dingzhou, especially for the people of Bei'an County, which is only separated by a mountain, the information about Cangbei County is not only well-known to every household, but also most of the gentry and elites know about it.
There are one county and five counties. The land is vast but less developed. The people in the county survive by combining farming and nomadic herding.
Without Cangshan Mountain to block the white-haired wind, the climate is much colder than that of Bei'an, and many people's living habits are closer to those of the Jin people.
Except for the county town, which has more than 200,000 residents, the other five counties are all lower counties with a population of just over 100,000.
Moreover, during the turmoil in recent years, the population has decreased sharply, and it is possible that no county can still meet the standard of a lower county. This is also the essential reason why the court lost control of Cangbei County.
In the forty-sixth year of Xiangxing's reign, a once-in-a-century white-haired disaster swept across the grassland. Snow and wind ravaged the grassland, and people died of hunger thousands of miles away.
The Jin army was forced to move south, and the originally very strong border defense line was easily broken.
Heavy snow blocked the roads and the imperial supplies were blocked, resulting in the border troops being short of food and clothing and unable to fight. This was certainly the direct cause.
But the Cangbei County behind the border army has insufficient population, its logistics capabilities cannot keep up, and it is fundamental that it cannot be self-sufficient.
You must know that when Daxu's national power was at its peak, as soon as Cangbei County was established on the border, more than one million people moved, and countless fertile fields could produce enough food.
However, in recent decades, the remaining land has been gradually depleted, fertile farmland has been converted into pasture, and the population has been greatly reduced. Naturally, it is no longer possible to rely on the power of one county to support the existence of the border army.
In the past, the role of the border troops was not to defend, but to continuously expand border territories and strive for survival space for the central dynasty.
Linyuan County, the northernmost county in Cangbei County, is the dividing point between nomadic and agricultural civilizations.
To the north are all grasslands, while to the south you can still see scattered abandoned farmland. The remaining wheat straw under the ice and snow shows that it has not been completely deserted for a long time.
The sky and earth were gloomy, cold and desolate, and the whistling white-haired wind froze all life.
In the wilderness, all that can be seen is a lonely ghost town, where ghosts gather, wreaking havoc in this vast world.
It's strange to say that it's obviously the Yang world, but here there is a lot of Yin energy, just like ghosts.
The heavy snow has stopped for a long time, and there is still no sunlight in the sky, as if blocked by some mysterious force.
Ten miles further north, a group of armored cavalry surrounded several black-robed shamans, looking at the ghost town from a distance.
The weak sunlight penetrated the clouds and shone on them, and moving forward seemed to be another world, only darkness without a trace of sunlight.
Their expressions were uncertain, some were angry, some were frightened, and some were full of joy...
When the shamans spoke, all the cavalry automatically spread out. They formed a circle and stood in a position where the voices could not be heard.
These cavalry are well-equipped, physically strong, and decisive and experienced in their actions, making them the elite of the Jin Army.
But in front of the shaman with extraordinary power, they can only act as human shields and serve them carefully with caution in words and deeds.
As big shots, the shamans are naturally divided into different levels. For a long time, the Jin Kingdom family has mastered quite powerful shamanic power.
Therefore, within the Kingdom of Jin, there is great emphasis on superiority and inferiority, and the distinction between levels is very simple and straightforward.
Shamans in pure black robes are first-level monks, black robes with silver edging on the cuffs and collars are second-level monks, and gold-edged shamans are third-level monks.
As for going up further, in the realm of Yangshen, there must be old vassal states with a long history, but such existences will no longer be bound by any robes.
A black-robed shaman respectfully asked the silver-bordered shaman in the middle: "Qiyan Shaman, do you want to go in to check the situation? The two thousand households trapped inside are protecting the young master of the Anyuanhou family. I’m afraid I’ll have to give an explanation later.”
Qiyan frowned, looking at the strange and gloomy Cangbei County area, and remained silent for a long time.
At this time, another black-robed shaman saw this and could only remind him in a low voice: "Sir, Marquis Anyuan is a confidant of the king, and I heard that he is related to a Phnom Penh shaman. We'd better not offend him."
"No, if you go in now, you will die. The Ghost King doesn't care whether we are Jin people or Daxu people. The monk's flesh and blood soaked in spiritual energy will be a great tonic for him."
"I'll go and say it myself, Marquis Anyuan. He's not the eldest son. Besides, the king has treated us a lot recently. How can we pay back in the north..." Qi Yan didn't say it clearly, but several of his subordinates still didn't understand.
Since the leader is willing to take responsibility, as shamans, there is no need for them to worry too much.
There is no need to risk going in, the shamans are also interested in making comments.
"How many years have passed, the ghost king appears again in the Yang world, and it is still within the territory of the Central Dynasty. It is incredible."
"Ghost King, if you gather a crowd to become king at worst, you have the strength of three realms. Breaking through the county is just a matter of course."
"Cangbei County's border troops have withdrawn, and we don't know how long the county can hold on."
Linyuan County has no life, only swarms of ghosts. This is not an isolated case, the other four counties have also gradually fallen.
Nowadays, the entire north and south of Cangshan Mountain have been blocked from traffic, which is why Zhou Bai has to step in to deal with it.
A buffer zone between the two countries can also turn into a mess, forcing the general's business routes to find another way out.
Yes, Chao Qu asked his night messengers to bring him a distress message, which described the situation in Cangbei County very straightforwardly.
Ghosts are everywhere, and there is no place for living people to stand.
The county town is the last hope of the entire Cangbei County and the shelter for 300,000 living people.
Such a huge breath of life naturally attracted an unimaginable army of ghosts. All kinds of evil ghosts and fierce ghosts emerged in endlessly. I felt that this was a real ghost town in the underworld.
During the day, when Yang Qi is at its strongest and ghosts are at their lowest, the intensity of the attack on the city will be much smaller.
Therefore, the county and city are often handed over to the first-level monks of the Taoist corps and combined with a large number of troops to defend. Most of the second-level and real people in charge seize the time to restore their mana and cultivate their spirits.
At night, the real ghosts siege the city. Their tireless attacks would make even a real person half dead from exhaustion.
However, the superiors among the ghosts in the siege did not care about the life and death of ordinary little ghosts, and they still drove some little ghosts to die during the day.
This will prevent the main force of the Taoist priests from resting peacefully, and the speed of repairing the county's legal network during the day will also be greatly reduced.
In the endless tide of ghosts, in an inconspicuous place, there is a living person who is calm and composed surrounded by numerous evil ghosts.
Although the ghosts around them could not suppress their bloodthirsty and greedy expressions, they did not dare to make any rash move. Instead, from the corner of their eyes, they glanced at a strong ghost next to the living person.
This majestic ghost is the Ghost King Youtu, and millions of ghost troops obey him. They have been beheading real people in the city for many days with ease.
"What the devil, what's so good about this living skin? Why not choose a noble prince? I'm really not afraid that my group of hungry sons and gentlemen won't be able to hold back someday." You Tu seemed to be a little dissatisfied with the man in front of him, his tone The ridicule in it was palpable.
"How many times have I said that my name is Mo Le, and I am the third rank of Heavenly Demon in the Qingxu Holy Realm." The living being was not used to being called Heavenly Demon, and he released a burst of coercion that scared the ghosts to tremble, and then corrected him.
Later, perhaps because of his cooperative relationship with You Tu, Mo Le explained: "What do you ghosts in the underworld know? My body is the son of Marquis Anyuan."
"When I help you destroy this county and temporarily solidify this place into the underworld, I can use this identity to get close to the top brass of the Jin Kingdom, and even gain the authority to control the country's political affairs."
"At that time, the second batch of the main fleet has invaded the mortal world, and the inside and outside should be coordinated. It is logical that the Kingdom of Jin will return to the holy world, and I will also make immortal contributions..."
How could Youtu have so much patience? Hearing Mo Le brag here, he quickly interrupted: "Okay, let's ignore the monks in the city for now. They will also be exhausted. But what's going on with the City God?"
"How many times have I told you to use your power to get rid of him and his gods? How come it's almost half a month and the city god is still descending to the underworld to harass."
Upon hearing this accusation, Mo Le's face darkened: "The County God is the God of the Golden Rule. Even if the current structure of Cangbei County cannot support him to exert the power of the Golden Rule, how can I stop him from traveling to and from the underworld according to his priestly duties."
"You have been living in the underworld for many years anyway, don't you know better than me, a demon?"
"In order for the Yin World of the Tianyuan Realm to return to the Yang World, the Holy World has exhausted all the layout power of the Great Thousand Yin Worlds. Moreover, there are really not ordinary creatures that can intervene there."
Youtu knew that Mo Le was right, but he was upset in his heart. The majestic ghost energy suppressed in his body suddenly burst out, and an angry shout resounded throughout the countryside.
Many ghost generals knew that the Ghost King was angry, so they drove the cannon fodder to launch a big offensive regardless of the ghosts' sluggishness during the day.
"There are countless flesh and blood in the city. If the city is broken and the sword is not sealed, come to me!"
"Erase the law and the living will be lambs to be slaughtered!"
The overwhelming ghost tide surged up suddenly, frightening all the talismans from the city head to fly. Waves of talisman arrows and rockets contaminated with talisman water were also thrown out mercilessly.
The ghost group suffered heavy losses for a while, and countless ghosts were wiped out in wailing. This death meant that there was no reincarnation and no ghost action.
However, in this situation, Youtu grinned and was in a good mood.
He was happy to use cannon fodder to consume the city's killing methods. Once all the basic talismans were used up, the city's destruction would not be far away.
"Who knew you were so wrong? Not even a single warship landed in Cangbei. By the way, are you sure that the Daxu court will not come for reinforcements?" You Tu breathed out and was in the mood to continue talking.
"I'm sure we have people from the Ministry of War and the Daolu Department in the capital. The imperial court now only wants to protect the elite areas. All Cangbei County's border troops have withdrawn. Do you want them to continue?"
"The last group of Taoist priests who came here were sent by the governor of Dingzhou, and they only picked up important people such as the county governor."
"Three hundred thousand Guizhou heads have been abandoned by default. How can such a barbaric civilization not be the master of the Holy Realm?!" Mo Le said, bragging about the Qingxu Realm with feverish eyes.
Youtu curled his lips and complained silently in his heart, are you the good guys? Without your help, how could they, these vicious ghosts in the underworld, be able to rebel against Yin and Yang.
Of course, he didn't dare to say it out loud, because most of the flesh and blood of living people ended up in his own ghost's belly.
…
On the other side, Zhou Bai led 3,000 demon-subduing troops. As soon as they reached Kukou Pass and crossed Cangshan Mountain, they ordered the advance to stop.
Because at this time, he had seen the latest news about "Ghosts" from the Yuling Heavenly Disk. Similar situations in Cangbei County had occurred in more than a dozen major states in the east, west, north and south.
The places where these ghosts appear are all border counties of large states. They are rarely governed by human beings and gods, and their scope covers several counties or even one county.
Whether it is a powerful world like the Tianyuan Realm or the Qingxu Realm, or the Dazhen World or the Ghost World that Zhou Bai once visited, there will always be yin and yang.
The underworld of the underworld exists in every world, and according to the heavenly court, the underworld of all worlds are connected together and are the real great thousand underworlds.
The Qingxu Realm is planning in advance in the underworld, detonating it at the right time, and then causing hundreds of ghosts to wreak havoc on the world at night, working together to weaken and disrupt more vitality in the mortal world.
Now the Heavenly Court has begun to repair the loopholes in the rules of the underworld in this world, but before repairing it, the official recommendation is to seal off the ghost underworld and classify it as a restricted area, so that no living being can enter.
Lest the ghost group inside grow stronger and rush out to cause more harm to more places.
In addition, what Tianjue only knows with his authority is that the peak of the first wave of spiritual energy is approaching, and in half a year at the latest, there will be an eruption of spiritual energy in the mortal world.
Everyone in the Qingxu Realm can be like a dragon, and the same can be said in the Tianyuan Realm. The lives of ordinary people may undergo a transformation.
This is a big change, and whoever fails to seize the opportunity will fall behind.
An idea immediately emerged in Zhou Bai's mind, that is, it would be best to unify Bei'an County within half a year, and then carry out military deployment throughout the county under the operation of a complete county and dynasty system.
The seeds of the Taoist priest group are greatly expanded, and the demon-suppressing army will also take the first step to become a true demon-suppressing army.
But let's not mention these for now, I still go to see Chao Qu to see what he can do in Cangbei County.
It seemed too dangerous to lead the demon-suppressing army deep into Cangbei County. Zhou Bai observed the vast sea of ghost energy and did not dare to lead such a conspicuous army of flesh and blood forward.
"Instructions are given for the entire army to camp along Cangshan Mountain and search and rescue living people and supplies in small teams."
That night, in the Cangshan camp, Zhou Bai went out for a night tour.
In the underworld of the underworld, he was like a fish in water. The negative substances in his body outweighed the positive substances. Ordinary ghosts would think that they were some big ghosts when they encountered him.
Just like Zhou Bai's experience in the ghost world, the underworld of that small world had just extended past, and it gave him an idea of how to get around in the underworld.
There is no Yangshi army to lead, but there is an army of heroic spirits. If you just bring it with you, it may have miraculous effects.
Zhou Bai stepped on the land of Cangshan Mountain and placed himself within the territory of the General's Mansion, and then relied on the connection in his soul to call.
"The evil ghosts are rampant in the Yang world, please call upon the heroic spirits to help!"
In no time, a group of heroic troops marching in a hurry appeared behind Zhou Bai.
Two hundred and forty-four heroic spirits, wearing armor and holding swords, followed him silently to the county where the ghost spirit was strongest.
(End of chapter)
