Refining the Mountains and Rivers

This was the most intense battle between the West Desolate and the Western Barbarian Land in a thousand years. It erupted without any warning and both sides no longer retreated and avoided each other. The weakened West Barbarians chose to fight to their death and were unwilling to retreat.

The deal was now termed the 'ignitor' and it was rumored that one of the well respected West Barbarians was tricked by a scheme from the West Desolate. This was the trigger for many tribes and the tension boiled over to a war where they demanded that the West Desolate must pay an equally painful price!

The soldiers faced off against each other in fiery battles. Numerous strong cultivators' fights unleashed overwhelming auras that shook the earth. It disrupted the flow of energy in the world and caused the skies to turn dark. All auras and energy were covered.

Things were very chaotic during a war and many lives were lost at each instant. Five teams from the great army of the West Desolate sneaked away from the battlefield and breached the defenses of the army camp of the West Barbarians. Before the West Barbarians could react, they had already infiltrated deep within the Western Barbarian Land.

Like a fish in the deep sea, they swam quickly and disappeared from the sights of everyone.

……

The leader of the five teams was a powerful cultivator at the peak of the Ruler realm. The leader of the team that Qin Yu was in was General Ye Qin of the Old Ye Family.

The group hurried along without any sound and they concealed their aura to cover up their tracks. Because everyone sprinted quickly, the group seemed like a blurry shadow from afar.

Qin Yu was positioned at the back of the team. His face was hidden by his black robe and he frowned as his eyes swept across the team and a look of worry crossed his face.

The plan by West Desolate was not that simple. It would be reasonable if they had divided the entire West Desolate army into five and sneaked away without being noticed by West Barbarians.

However, it was really suspicious that the five teams could run off in different directions and be overlooked.

Qin Yu did not believe that the Barbarian King would construct five separate tombs for himself.

No one was a fool here and each of the cultivators were personally selected to participate in the mission. It would not be an exaggeration to say that these men were the best from the crowd.

There was something wrong and Qin Yu was very confident of this fact!

However, as mentioned before, no one was a fool here. Despite noticing that something was amiss, no one appeared to mention anything.

They left the main camp of West Barbarian and had successfully entered the territory of the Barbarian Clan. Ignoring everything else, the leader, Ye Qin had the ability to make the team 'disappear'.

Western Barbarian Land was vast and it had a low population density. Most of the land was an open stretch that had nothing but wild winds and dust.

There was a natural protection for the group because the army was stretched thin now and most of the West Barbarians were transferred to the frontlines. The internal surveillance was low and there was not much protection being done.

With Ye Qin covering the aura of the group, the entire process of infiltrating Western Barbarian Land proceeded very smoothly.

Under the black robe, Qin Yu stealthily observed General Ye Qin who led the group.

He knew that Ye Qin could very easily avoid the tribes that were scattered across Western Barbarian Land if he was willing.

He took on such a risky task of 'sneaking below their eyes' on purpose.

Perhaps, he was trying to seek something out…this echoed what Qin Yu was suspicious of previously and he found that things were more strange.

On the fifth day of entering Western Barbarian Land, Ye Qin finally found a target he was satisfied with after observing more than a dozen other tribes.

He stood between the tall grass. Raising his hand, he said, "Go on. I want every living thing in this tribe dead within fifteen minutes."

The group bowed and accepted his command. No one questioned his orders and they did not feel troubled at all. After all, the grudge between the West Desolate and West Barbarians had lasted many generations!

The massacre began.

The targeted tribe did not take a large area and this also implied that it was weak.

With the group of Saints attacking it, there was no question about the outcome.

Qin Yu observed the blood flow like a river through the tribe. Old folks, women and young kids were not spared either and their eyes were filled with hatred right before they died.

There was no fear and no one begged.

The elder in the Barbarian Clan tribe was a Saint and he tried to send the news to others. However, right before the glow of blood light could leave his body, there was a 'bam' and his body exploded into dust.

Ye Qin flipped his robe over the elder's body and it was flung away like a broken cloth bag. The corpse landed on the ground without a sound.

Woosh woosh -

The wind blowing through the area started to become more chilling as it picked up the thick scent of blood and delivered it to the noses of the crowd

There was dead silence in the entire tribe and death was the only present thing there. There wasn't a single lifeform left…yes, even the 'Jie' that were bred as livestock were killed.

This was the command of General Ye Qin, nothing shall be spared!

He stepped into the tent of the elder. After tearing down the seal marked on a cloth, Ye Qin quickly found the entrance to an underground path.

At the entrance to the underground path, Ye Qin was surprised by a blood-colored skeleton head that flew towards the door at a surprising speed.

"Hmmph!"

Ye Qin stomped down. The skeleton head that pounced towards him shrieked before it was crushed.

He headed into the pathway first before the rest of the group. The path headed deep down in the earth where there was a simple altar at the end of it.

It was truly a very simple altar and the stone platform had obvious markings that revealed that it was manmade. A black stone statue was carved on the altar and it was evident that this was a statue of a warrior of the Barbarian Clan. This warrior was burly and tall but aside from that, his features could not be seen.

At that moment, Qin Yu's heart clenched. He could feel a strong suppressing feeling from this stone statue.

It did not have a powerful energy but it felt more like a certain level of suppression… This felt similar to a ranking on the food chain.

The reason why Qin Yu's heart clenched was because of his relationship with the Divine Nation.

If Qin Yu did not know about the details about the Tomb of the Barbarian King and the use of the treasure of the Barbarian Clan, he would not have linked the two with each other.

However, a simple thought popped into his mind and Qin Yu's eyes brightened - This was a statue of the great Barbarian King!

Once he put this together, he understood why Ye Qin led the team through numerous tribes.

He was finding the tribe who continued to worship the dead Barbarian King… This was definitely related to the tomb. What happened after that confirmed Qin Yu's suspicions.

Ye Qin stepped onto the platform and retrieved an object hidden in his robe. With his back facing the group, he dipped a finger into the object and placed a dot of the red substance on the forehead of the statue.

Kaboom!

There was a deep rumble that started from within the stone statue. It sounded like the roar of a starving wolf.

Streaks upon streaks of redness started to seep out from the forehead of the statue. It quickly spread and soon, it covered the entire body of the statue.

The redness spread downwards and entered the altar. The rumble from the statue started to grow louder and much more high-pitched.

As wild winds howled, numerous corpses of West Barbarians from the tribe started to shrivel.

It felt like an invisible devil had forced its way into their bodies and was sucking in all their blood and flesh.

In a short while, all the corpses of the West Barbarians had shriveled up. By the time there was only a little water left in their bodies, their skins had turned purple and wrapped around their bones tightly.

All their muscles and flesh were gone and even the blood that dyed the ground previously was sucked away.

This was to the extent that the blood scent that permeated the air was gone.

In the space near the altar, the thick blood from different sources converged from each blood vessel and formed a giant mess of flesh and blood that surrounded the entire altar.

It continued to vibrate endlessly like it was a living creature. It felt like a terrifying beast would dig its way out of the ball at any moment.

However, everyone knew that the thing within the ball of blood was the stone statue that was carved haphazardly.

Ye Qin wore a serious look and he stared intently at the ball of blood. A few moments later, he sighed in a manner that felt like he had confirmed something.

The first step was completed.

He carefully sensed his surroundings and confirmed that nothing was wrong. In a calm voice, he turned to face the crowd and said, "I know that you must have many things that you are puzzled about. However, there are some things that you do not have the privilege of knowing…now, I will give you a new mission."

He scanned the crowd, his gaze stopping at Qin Yu for a moment. Ye Qin's voice deepened and he said, "Next, three of you will be picked by drawing lots. The three picked individuals will follow me to leave this place. Everyone else, your mission will be to stay here and protect this place."

"Remember, nothing can go wrong here. Even if you have to pay the price of your life this altar must be kept in perfect condition. Otherwise, you will be exiled forever and will never be able to return to West Desolate."

The crowd felt a chill run down their spine and they sensed the seriousness and coldness in Ye Qin's eyes. They nodded in understanding.

"Very good!" Ye Qin said, "Rest assured. West Desolate will take note of all your contributions. As long as the mission is successful, everyone will be rewarded. This task is not that dangerous and if nothing goes wrong, it can be completed within three to five days."

Just three to five days? Some people started to smile.

This team had nine men and that meant that most of the people would remain here. They would be in charge of protecting the blood-drenched altar.

Most people in the Western Barbarian Land were scattered. Furthermore, this was a warring time and most of the tribes were left alone. If they were lucky, it would be a piece of cake for them to protect this place.

Qin Yu frowned to himself and he stared at the ball of blood hiding the altar. Even though he was not sure what it was, he had a feeling that this was very dangerous.

Staying here to protect the altar was not as easy as Ye Qin claimed!

The process of drawing lots was simple. Ye Qin created nine balls of light and everyone picked one.

Those whose light ball had an inner color of red will remain here.

Qin Yu's…red!

His eyes swept across the three who were chosen by Ye Qin. Qin Yu could not help frowning as a flash of coldness crossed his eyes.

The reason why he said the three were chosen was because this method of drawing lots was a joke.

The balls of light were formed by Ye Qin and he would easily be able to manipulate the inside color. Would you believe it if he made all the inner colors of the light balls red?

It would take a fool to think that the main general of the Guard Division in the capital was fair and just. What a joke!

Qin Yu knew clearly that others will be able to come to the same conclusion.

However, like before, the others remained silent like how they acted when they entered Western Barbarian Land.

There was silence in the space containing the altar.

No one made an objection.

Ye Qin said, "Very well. The three of you, prepare yourselves. We will head off tomorrow."

He turned and left.

Qin Yu did not know whether his luck was good or bad but Blood Flag and Ye Wangu were not in his team.

The three who were chosen by Ye Qin were also strangers to Qin Yu… Of course, although he was a stranger to these three men, he knew them well from the 'identity confirmation' at the capital.

It was not an exaggeration to say that he knew them well. Because of his understanding of these three men, Qin Yu had a greater scope of control.

Qin Yu had not expected things to become so drastic… It was not possible to remain here. Not only did he sense danger here, he needed to complete the Ruler's mission.

What should he do?

Qin Yu thought quickly and the outline of a plan slowly took shape.

The next day, Ye Qin led the three men away. They moved fast and quickly disappeared into the distance.

The six people finally did not need to keep things to themselves and they could express their real thoughts. Their expressions were dark.

"It seems that all of us were already excluded from the real mission from the start." One of the Saints from West Desolate gritted his teeth as he spoke.

"There is no use lamenting about this now. We cannot speculate about General Ye Qin's thoughts… Furthermore, the arrangement probably came from higher ups."

"I just hope that things will be as General Ye Qin said and we can guard this place for three to five days and return to West Desolate smoothly…we can get rewards without doing much."

The group discussed among themselves. Occasionally, they would sneak glances at the black-robed man sitting silently in the corner. A strange look would cross their faces.

The reason why they did this was simple. The Darkness Ruler's background was no secret, he was the last hope for the Sixth Prince, Li Zhouyi…now, it seems that there was no hope left.

Being excluded from the main mission meant that there was no way for him to help Li Zhouyi regain his honor.

Even if he returned to the capital, the Darkness Ruler would not be in a good place. There was the crazy Blood Flag and possibly arrows hidden in the dark waiting to ambush him.

Qin Yu could sense what the group was thinking but he maintained a calm expression and did not reveal his feelings.

After the team allocated their duties, they separated.

It was Qin Yu's turn to patrol around the tribe. He calmly walked down the altar and walked straight, quickly disappearing in the wilderness.

Everyone had thought about doing their own things…but no one dared to do it.

However, Qin Yu did not care about that. The identity of the Darkness Ruler was fake to begin with. It was just his pass to enter West Desolate.

If there was a need, he could always change his appearance and assume the identity of a new person.

At the tribe, once the group of Saints from the West Desolate realized that the Darkness Ruler was missing, they screamed in anger. Qin Yu headed north, following the direction of the aura.

His expression was calm but there was a glow in his eyes.