plumnovel Chapter 5 The Fall of Jiangdu
Chapter 5 The Fall of Jiangdu
Zhang Guangze's memories are filled with too many dangerous moments. A cultivator's divine sense can scan an area of dozens of miles, the gaze of a strong person can penetrate disguise, and beings above the Dao Embryo Realm can even sense the soul fluctuations of others.
Su Qinghe touched his head. There was a Wheel of Rebirth hidden there, a giant wheel formed from the souls of 100,000 people, its light shimmering like a galaxy.
Such a thing would probably be as blinding as a torch in the dark to the powerful in the cultivation world.
"If I went there in person," Su Qinghe muttered to himself, "I probably wouldn't survive more than three days."
Su Qinghe doesn't want to die, at least not now.
But after witnessing such a vast world, Su Qinghe could no longer return to his old ways. He was already tired of Lin'an City, and he had seen dozens of rebels like Zhu Zi. Performing the same drama a hundred times would only make it more boring.
Su Qinghe needed something new—a new cultivation method, a new soul, a new stimulus—to dilute the ever-deepening darkness in his heart.
Su Qinghe turned around, walked back to the center of the main hall, sat cross-legged on the rosewood couch, and once again unfolded the "Heavenly Ghost and Underworld God Demon Codex" and the "Thousand Star Chart" in his mind.
He still couldn't understand it, but fortunately, he had a hundred thousand versions of himself.
Su Qinghe opened his eyes, a slight smile playing on his lips.
"It's alright," Su Qinghe said softly. "I can try slowly."
Su Qinghe has 100,000 avatars, each of which can be used for trial and error. If this meridian is blocked, then try another one. If this acupoint is wrong, then try another one. It doesn't matter if they die. There are 100,000 people in Lin'an City, tens of thousands more outside the city, tens of thousands of cities inhabited by mortals, and the number of mortals is countless. He has ample resources to experiment slowly.
He currently only has 100,000 versions of himself. Is 100,000 enough?
Su Qinghe tapped his fingers on the edge of the couch, his gaze passing through the open palace door, over the banana leaves in the courtyard, and towards the northwest.
In that direction, there is a city even larger than Lin'an.
Jiangdu City.
Su Qinghe once swallowed the memories of the people of Jiangdu. This city was fifty miles in circumference, with city walls three zhang high. There were wealthy merchants, officials, garrison troops, workshops, teahouses and taverns in the city. The total population, including the surrounding villages, was about 300,000.
More than 300,000 ordinary people, more than 300,000 Su Qinghes.
Su Qinghe licked his lips.
In that instant, faces throughout Lin'an City rose up, all turning to look northwest.
He was going to Jiangdu City, but this time it was different from Qingming Mountain. He had sent 130 avatars to Qingming Mountain, but he was going to Jiangdu City himself. It wasn't because Jiangdu City was more dangerous, but because only his true body could turn mortals into avatars. The avatars could cultivate for him, fight for him, and die for him, but they couldn't expand his avatars.
Only he can touch, only he can devour, only he can bestow.
Su Qinghe stood up, the hem of his white robe trailing on the jade bricks, and took his first step. This was the first time in six years that he had stepped out of the palace, and the first time he had left Lin'an City.
He was going to Jiangdu City to turn those 300,000-plus people into himself, and then he would have 400,000 people to test his mistakes, cultivate for him, and explore this vast world called Tianyuan Realm for him.
He himself will stay in this hall and not go anywhere else.
Jiangdu City is located northwest of Lin'an City, about two hundred li away.
Su Qinghe led two hundred avatars and traveled for four days. It wasn't that he couldn't go faster, but he wasn't in a hurry. Along the way, he passed through more than a dozen villages, each with dozens to hundreds of mortals, and he didn't let a single one of them go.
Four days later, the outline of Jiangdu City appeared on the horizon.
The city wall was much higher than that of Lin'an. The bluish-gray bricks gleamed coldly in the afternoon sun. The city gate was wide open, and pedestrians came and went in an endless stream. People carrying loads, leading donkeys, and driving horse-drawn carriages were coming and going, creating a lively scene. Two rows of soldiers stood at the city gate, leaning lazily against the wall, occasionally questioning anyone who looked suspicious.
Su Qinghe straightened his collar, patted the dust off his robe, and stepped down the earthen slope.
Two hundred incarnations were scattered around him, some carrying loads, some leading donkeys, and some empty-handed, naturally blending into the crowd of people entering the city.
When Su Qinghe reached the city gate, two soldiers guarding the city glanced at him and then looked away. A young man dressed in a coarse white robe, nothing special, walked between them and stepped barefoot onto the bluestone road of Jiangdu City.
The streets of Jiangdu were much wider and more bustling than those of Lin'an. Shops lined both sides of the street, selling cloth, grain, medicine, and groceries. Their signs swayed in the wind, and pedestrians jostled shoulder to shoulder. Sedan chairs, horse-drawn carriages, and donkey carts crowded the streets, with the shouts of drivers rising and falling.
Su Qinghe walked among the crowd, like a drop of water falling into a river.
He found an inn to stay in and asked for a superior room. The innkeeper was a chubby middle-aged man with a big smile on his face. He said, "Please come in, sir." When Su Qinghe took the room card, his fingers touched the back of the innkeeper's hand.
The shopkeeper's smile froze for a moment before returning to normal. He turned around to greet the next customer, still smiling, but the curve of his smile was slightly different from before.
Su Qinghe went upstairs, pushed open the door, went inside, and closed the door.
Standing by the window, Su Qinghe looked at the bustling crowd on the street below, a slight smile playing on his lips.
Jiangdu City has a population of over 300,000. He doesn't need to approach each person individually; he only needs to meet the right ones, and the rest will come to him on their own.
The prefect of Jiangdu City was Wang Zhiyuan, who was over fifty years old and worldly-wise; the garrison commander was Zhou Meng, who was in his early forties and came from a military background; the wealthy merchants were led by Chen Wanguan, who ran pawnshops and grain shops and had connections in both the legitimate and criminal worlds.
Su Qinghe met with these three people separately over three days.
On the evening of the third day, Chen Wanguan came out of the City God Temple after offering incense. On the steps, a young man bumped into his shoulder. Just as he was about to get angry, the young man had already walked away.
Chen Wanguan paused for a moment, then shook his head, got into the sedan chair, and as the curtain was lowered, a smile appeared on Chen Wanguan's face that was completely inconsistent with his status—shallow, indifferent, and fleeting.
On the fifth day, while Wang Zhiyuan was reviewing official documents in the government office, a servant came in to serve tea. Wang Zhiyuan took the teacup, and his fingers touched the servant's hand.
After the servants left, Wang Zhiyuan put down his teacup and continued reviewing official documents. His handwriting remained perfectly neat, but for a fleeting moment when he lowered his head, the corner of his mouth curved slightly.
On the sixth day, while Zhou Meng was inspecting the military camp, a soldier handed him an official document. Zhou Meng took it, unfolded it casually, glanced at it, and then closed it again.
The soldiers had already gone far away. Zhou Meng tucked the official document into his pocket and continued walking forward with steady steps, his eyes fixed straight ahead, and a smile on his face.