This Sword Cultivator is Somewhat Dependable

Beneath Zhenjiang City lay a bizarre, unknowable area of distortion.

A massive assembly of cultivators gathered, each emanating a distinct aura, but all mixed with a chilling air.

If any outsider had witnessed this scene, they would have been utterly terrified.

Because the gathered crowd of over a hundred were all Golden Core Stage cultivators.

What a horrifying concept!

Just to illustrate, the Lu Family, with merely three Golden Core cultivators, could rank among the middle tier of Zhenjiang's thirty-six major cultivator families.

All these Golden Core cultivators were respectfully gazing at the burly cultivator leading them.

This large-framed cultivator was none other than the 'Asura', who commanded all Underworld members in the prefectural region of Zhenjiang City — under his command were a hundred Golden Core Stage Hall Masters, thousands of Underworld Demon Cultivators, always a thorn in the side of Zhenjiang Tower.

Rakshasa respectfully approached Asura, "Reporting to Lord Asura, all 108 Hall Masters of Zhenjiang Underworld, four Yaksha Lords, and two Lords of the Impermanence have arrived, not a single absence."

"Good!" the imposing Asura began, his voice thundering, "I have summoned you here today to have you immediately prepare and enter combat readiness, awaiting further instructions.

Soon, we will initiate the Corpse Puppet Chaos, establish the Asura Blood Formation, and welcome the birth of the Demon Child."

Instantly, the eyes of the surrounding cultivators lit up with fervor.

"After years of keeping a low profile, perhaps Zhenjiang Tower thinks we Underworld will only back down continuously. It's time to show them what we're made of!"

To welcome the Demon Child, they had been planning for too long.

Over the years, for the sake of their grand plan, they had made countless concessions, avoiding conflict with Zhenjiang Tower as much as possible, causing the naturally violent Underworld Demon Cultivators to fume with repressed anger.

Now that Asura was preparing to unleash the Corpse Puppet Chaos and slaughter throughout Zhenjiang, they felt like warriors who finally see the clearing skies after persistent gloom.

"But, Lord Asura, isn't the originally scheduled time still three months away?"

Among the fervent stares, a gray-robed cultivator stepped forward, hesitantly asking, "Why start earlier...."

"Hm?" Asura's gaze was electric as he swept over the gray-robed cultivator.

"Your subordinate obeys." Under Asura's hawk-like, sharp gaze, the gray-robed cultivator felt a chill in his heart, no longer daring to question, he respectfully responded.

"Move out!"

With Asura's command,

all the Hall Masters quickly flashed into the distorted area, which immediately began to show enigmatic Formation Patterns.

Spiritual Light radiated, and those who entered the distorted area turned into shadows, gradually disappearing.

Meanwhile, all 107 prefecture cities under the jurisdiction of Zhenjiang, excluding Yuanshan City, contained unknown secret places.

The figures of the Underworld cultivators who had vanished beneath Zhenjiang City began to reappear gradually.

The distorted area was actually a high-level Teleportation Array set up long ago, connecting Zhenjiang City to its 108 subordinate prefecture cities.

The Underworld Hall Masters, upon returning to their respective halls within each prefecture city, did not delay. They swiftly sent out Spirit Messages, mobilizing and organizing their forces.

Undercurrents surged, a storm was silently brewing.

Rakshasa watched as the Hall Masters disappeared into the Teleportation Array, but his mind was replaying his earlier conversation with Lord Asura.

...

Tap! Tap!

Chess pieces scattered across the ground, rolling about.

Rakshasa felt his heart leap, "Is the master preparing?"

The light in Asura's eyes burst forth fiercely, his tone grim, "Zhenjiang Tower is planning to swallow our pieces one by one.

So far, their moves in Yuanshan City have resulted in our complete loss of those pieces.

This time, they seem to have subtly touched upon the secret of the Corpse Puppets.

But it's too late, 20 years too late, as we have already set up our killing game."

And for him to devour our pieces, he needed time.

"Then I'll simply flip the chessboard and not give him that time. What use are the talents of Zhenjiang Tower if it can't defend against this?"

"But hasn't Lord Wuchang's arrangements on his side still not been fully prepared?" Rakshasa spoke cautiously.

"We can't wait any longer!"

Asura spoke firmly, "Where in the world is there a sure-win strategy in chess? As long as the odds of winning exceed fifty percent, it is enough to make a move.

Moreover, even we are not fully prepared yet, so what preparations could Zhenjiang Tower have?

With years of planning, even if I launch the Corpse Puppet Chaos prematurely, how could the odds of winning be just fifty percent?

You go and send out the Spirit Message, summon all the Hall Masters!"

Since Asura had already made a decision, how could Rakshasa dare to question? He respectfully said, "Understood, my lord!"

...

Zhenjiang Tower.

The interrogation work by the Prison Warden Office cultivators was proceeding smoothly.

The cultivators captured by the Zhenjiang guards were different from the Underworld cultivators.

Underworld cultivators have the Heart Demon Gu implanted in their Divine Souls, limited by the Heart Demon Gu, it was extremely difficult to extract any useful information from them.

But with these cultivators, just a few techniques were needed. Apart from extremely rare cases like True Person Xuan Ming, usually, it wasn't hard to obtain the required intelligence.

Chu He, the Tower Master of Zhenjiang Tower, looked at the intelligence reported by the Prison Warden Office, furrowed his brows lightly, and asked a steward cultivator in charge of the Black Ice Platform below.

"Are you saying that the identities used by these Evil Cultivators to communicate with the Underworld cultivators were all fake, so currently we still can't trace these people's origins?"

The steward of the Black Ice Platform explained, "The Underworld Office is meticulous in its actions; they always use disguise before making contact with the Evil Cultivators.

Thus, the portraits of Underworld cultivators drawn based on the descriptions from the Evil Cultivators do not match any of the cultivators in Zhenjiang City.

However, even if these Underworld cultivators have disguised themselves, there are still traces to follow; we just need some time to investigate."

Chu He tapped the desk lightly with his finger, "How much time is needed?"

The steward cultivator stretched out his right palm and said emphatically, "Five days! Within five days, we will definitely have some leads."

The wrinkles on Chu He's aged face were clearly visible. After pondering for a moment, he finally said decisively, "Alright, then give you five days!"

"Then, I shall take my leave first!" The steward cultivator bowed respectfully and then exited the room.

"What are your thoughts?" Chu He turned his head and asked the two deputy tower masters standing beside him.

As the more senior deputy tower master, Gao Tian spoke first, "Underworld cultivators are definitely disguised in various identities, infiltrating Zhenjiang City.

With the caution of the Underworld, once they receive news of our actions against these Evil Cultivators, they might very likely withdraw silently from Prefectural City.

So I have already sent a message to City Lord Lin, asking him to send cultivators to strictly inspect any cultivator leaving the city."

Chu He nodded, saying approvingly, "That is appropriate."

Dantai Qingrun furrowed his brow tightly, "From the current situation, the Underworld has spent huge resources over the years, creating countless Corpse Puppets.

Combined with what Supervisor Qi reported, he saw blood light spread from Prefecture City to the entire Prefectural City in the Heavenly Secret Mirror.

The primary purpose of these Corpse Puppets is most likely to compensate for their lack of manpower and to make a move against our Prefectural City.

Such grand movements from the Underworld suggest a well-thought-out plan with great confidence.

Although we have made some gains, I still have a bad feeling. To be on the safe side, I propose we send a Spirit Message again to the Qing State main tower, asking them to dispatch a large number of elite cultivators to aid us in Prefectural City."

Dantai Qingrun's words plunged Chu He and Gao Tian into deep thought.

After a moment, Chu He rubbed the bridge of his nose and said decisively, "Indeed, we must not take Supervisor Qi's words lightly.

Let's follow Deputy Tower Master Dantai Qingrun's suggestion and request assistance from the Qing State main tower again!"