Chapter 134: Searching the World

The real body of Zhong Shan was rushing towards the Da Yin Dynasty. After the court meeting in the Longevity Hall, Zhong Shan headed directly to a palace within the imperial palace.

Outside this palace, there were numerous guards on the perimeter, preventing anyone but the emperor from entering. Zhong Shan's face was full of anger as he quickly approached this place, now renamed the 'Wolf God Palace.' Following him were Wei Taizhong, Yinglan, Zhong Zheng, and Lin Xiao.

The four of them were puzzled by Zhong Shan's haste but kept their questions to themselves. Each wore a furrowed brow and their eyes were filled with doubts. What had happened to make the emperor lose his composure so?

When they reached the Wolf God Palace, the guards all saluted, and no one dared to stop them. In this palace, no, in this Da Yin Dynasty, Zhong Shan was like the sky.

The doors of the Wolf God Palace were tightly closed, and no one knew what was inside.

"Taizhong, have the perimeter guards withdraw," Zhong Shan said.

"Yes," Wei Taizhong immediately bowed. He quickly ordered the guards to leave the courtyard. Once they were gone, he returned to stand behind Zhong Shan, watching him.

Zhong Shan took a deep breath, suppressing his anger, and then pushed open the doors. "Boom, boom, boom" – the doors slowly opened, allowing sunlight to flood in.

The four behind Zhong Shan watched curiously. Inside, there were numerous spirit stones arranged in a peculiar web-like formation. At the center of this array sat a man in a green robe, who appeared normal except for a pair of green wolf ears.

Seeing this person, the four behind Zhong Shan felt a sudden tension. What was this? A human? A demon?

Inside was the Qingyun Wolf General, who guarded the Da Yin Dynasty. As Zhong Shan pushed the doors open, the Qingyun Wolf General opened his eyes. He raised an eyebrow and stood up, looking at Zhong Shan with some surprise.

"Are you summoning the wolves?" the Qingyun Wolf General asked.

"Qingyun, I need your help," Zhong Shan said immediately.

"Oh?" Qingyun looked at Zhong Shan with confusion.

"Summon all the wolves you can to search for Lei Ting, the one who almost harmed Xianxian last time," Zhong Shan said, clenching his fist.

"You want to find him? To kill him?" Qingyun narrowed his eyes at Zhong Shan.

"That's right, I want to tear him to pieces," Zhong Shan admitted without hesitation.

Looking at Zhong Shan, Qingyun said, "The Supreme has already spoken. We will not pursue the matter from last time. I cannot help you."

Upon hearing this, the four behind Zhong Shan were all furious. They glared at Qingyun but said nothing.

"You don't need to take action. I just need Lei Ting's location. I will kill him myself," Zhong Shan insisted.

"Why do you want to kill him?" Qingyun asked sternly.

Staring at Qingyun, Zhong Shan took a deep breath and said, "He almost killed someone very dear to me. This enmity is irreconcilable. I only ask you one question: will you help or not?"

Zhong Shan's gaze was intense, without any hint of supplication. He was determined. If Qingyun refused, Zhong Shan knew he had other ways to force him to help, though it would not be a situation either of them desired. Lowering himself? Zhong Shan would never do that. Though his cultivation was low, he knew that when he signed the contract with the wolf tribe, his status was on par with the Wolf Sovereign, Di Xuan Sha.

Would Di Xuan Sha humble himself before Qingyun Wolf General?

Staring at Zhong Shan, Qingyun Wolf General felt a formidable presence. Despite Zhong Shan's cultivation level being merely at the innate stage, this dominance was unusually eerie, making Qingyun feel inexplicably pressured.

After observing Zhong Shan for a while, Qingyun Wolf General remained silent before finally speaking, "I will only help you locate him. I will not take action."

"Thank you," Zhong Shan replied.

"Hmm," Qingyun Wolf General nodded.

"Inform me as soon as you have any news," Zhong Shan added.

"Alright," Qingyun Wolf General nodded again.

"These four are my trusted aides. Let them be the first to contact the wolves as they arrive," Zhong Shan said once more.

Zhong Zheng, Yinglan, Wei Taizhong, and Lin Xiao looked curiously at the green-robed figure, who seemed to be both human and demon.

Qingyun merely nodded lightly.

"This is Qingyun Wolf General," Zhong Shan introduced him to the four.

"Zhong Zheng, at your service, Qingyun Wolf General," Zhong Zheng quickly said.

"Lin Xiao, at your service, Qingyun Wolf General."

"Yinglan, at your service, Qingyun Wolf General."

"Wei Taizhong, at your service, Qingyun Wolf General."

"Hmm," Qingyun Wolf General nodded slightly.

After that, Zhong Shan led his group back, remaining completely silent along the way, and none of the four spoke either.

It wasn't until they returned to the Longevity Hall that Zhong Shan took out a token and handed it to Lin Xiao. "Lin Xiao, this is the highest token of the Zhao family of the Song Kingdom. With this token, the Zhao family will obey you, including their army. Within six months, pacify the Song Kingdom."

Lin Xiao's eyes widened as he looked at the token. The Zhao family? The Zhao family of the Song Kingdom? They commanded nearly a third of the Song Kingdom's army. If this token was truly as the emperor said, it wouldn't take six months to conquer the Song Kingdom; two months would suffice.

"Yes," Lin Xiao immediately responded.

"Good," Zhong Shan nodded.

"Yinglan, how is your Eight Gates Golden Lock Formation coming along?" Zhong Shan asked.

"It's taking shape. It's invincible against mortal armies," Yinglan said confidently.

"Very good. I assign you the task of conquering the Xun Kingdom within six months. The Xun Kingdom is relatively weak among the six kingdoms, with no formidable generals. Once you take the Xun Kingdom, our Da Yin Dynasty will control half of the human territories. Then we will cease hostilities for a period to train the wolf cavalry and subsequently take the remaining three kingdoms in one fell swoop," Zhong Shan said seriously.

"Understood," Yinglan immediately responded.

"Zhong Zheng," Zhong Shan called out.

"I am here," Zhong Zheng immediately answered.

"Handle logistics, take over the cities, and select capable officials for me to review," Zhong Shan ordered.

"Yes," Zhong Zheng immediately complied.

"Taizhong," Zhong Shan called to Wei Taizhong.

"I am here," Wei Taizhong promptly replied.

"I will give you instructions shortly. You will assist me in preparing to slaughter Lei Ting," Zhong Shan said fiercely.

"Yes," Wei Taizhong immediately agreed.

"Good," Zhong Shan nodded.

After that, the real Zhong Shan secluded himself in a villa within the Da Yin Dynasty to focus on cultivation. Increasing his strength would enhance his ability to exact revenge. Qingyun Wolf General had already sent out a large number of wolves to search. As long as General Lei Ting remained on Tianlang Island, the wolves would be everywhere. However, there had been no news of General Lei Ting so far.

It was clear that General Lei Ting had been severely injured last time, having been struck by a powerful Shoushan Palm. He must have gone into hiding to heal.

Qingyun Wolf General also dispatched many wolves to monitor the Yinyue Dynasty to the north of Tianlang Island, but there was no sign of General Lei Ting there either. This indicated he had not returned to the dynasty for healing, and he was likely somewhere on Tianlang Island.

Days passed one by one. General Lei Ting's injuries would undoubtedly heal over time, but Zhong Shan wasn't worried. He had already devised a way to deal with him. Even with mundane methods, Zhong Shan could handle him. Moreover, he could summon a powerful wolf at the Jindan stage.

In the deep mountains where demonic wolves roamed, mortal armies could not set foot. Only the wolves could search the depths of the mountains.

Under the leadership of Lin Xiao and Yinglan, the Da Yin Dynasty's army was also killing relentlessly, causing many casualties. However, Zhong Shan's power was growing ever stronger.

Six months had passed. In that time, both the Song Kingdom and the Xun Kingdom were completely conquered. The Da Yin Dynasty's influence was now unrivaled and unprecedentedly powerful. The remaining three kingdoms quickly formed an alliance, but none dared to raise an army against the Da Yin Dynasty.

This gave the Da Yin Dynasty ample time to rest its soldiers and govern the people. After all, conquering a realm was easy, but ruling it was difficult. Pacifying and controlling the newly acquired cities required a long time.

During this period, Yinglan, Lin Xiao, Zhong Zheng, and Wei Taizhong each tamed a large wolf, a wolf that could be ridden.

Lin Xiao and Yinglan also selected some deeply trusted subordinates and tasked them with taming wolves to form a true cavalry of wolf riders.

While the real Zhong Shan stayed in Xuanying, overseeing the kingdom, his hidden self practiced diligently, advancing to the seventh level of the innate stage. Yet he continued to push his acupoints day and night.

Since copying all the materials from the Qizhen Pavilion, Zhong Shan spread numerous illustrations of low-level spirit fruits across the land, resulting in frequent tributes of various spirit fruits.

Though there were no supreme spirit fruits, the myriad fruits still greatly benefited Zhong Shan.

However, Zhong Shan's natural aptitude remained poor. Despite the many spirit fruits and the kingdom's fortune enhancing him, after nearly six months, he had only reached the peak of the seventh level of the innate stage. Breaking through was exceedingly difficult. Only two acupoints remained to reach the eighth level, but they seemed completely blocked, resisting all attempts to open them.

After several days of no progress, the real Zhong Shan swiftly returned to the Da Yin Dynasty's palace.

Merging with his hidden self, he immediately headed to the Wolf God Hall.

This time, Zhong Shan came alone. Inside the hall, Qingyun was still meditating. Seeing Zhong Shan arrive, he looked slightly puzzled.

"Have you found Lei Ting?" Zhong Shan asked.

"No news yet," Qingyun replied, shaking his head.

"Then, I need you to do me a favor," Zhong Shan said.

"Huh?" Qingyun asked, puzzled.

"Use your powerful aura to pressure me, helping me break through my acupoints," Zhong Shan requested earnestly.

"Oh? Using aura pressure to cultivate?" Qingyun said in surprise.

"Yes, I have felt the oppression of a strong presence before. I know it works for me," Zhong Shan explained seriously, recalling the overwhelming aura of Nie Qingqing.

"Alright, let's give it a try," Qingyun agreed with a smile, clearly intrigued to see how aura pressure could help someone break through.

Zhong Shan quickly sat down cross-legged as Qingyun's aura suddenly unleashed, pressing down on him—

On Tianlang Island, atop a mountain peak, a massive two-meter-tall azure wolf suddenly fixed its gaze downward. Its normally expressionless eyes abruptly narrowed, as if it had discovered something significant. The wolf turned and swiftly departed.

In the valley below, there were two individuals. One was General Lei Ting, who had been injured over half a year ago and now appeared fully recovered, brimming with energy. The other was the mysterious Mr. Corpse.