Qi Ning was thinking in his heart that although the Eight Gangs and Sixteen Factions were intimidated by the power of the Shenhou Mansion and did not dare to disobey the Iron Blood Wen, and Judu sent people to gather in Xichuan, the scene just now immediately highlighted one of the consequences of this operation. Achilles' heel.
Jianghu gangs have entangled interests, grievances, and hatreds, and they are more or less hostile to each other. This time, thousands of people came to attack the Black Lotus Sect of Qianwu Peak. On the surface, it looks huge, but there are also contradictions inside. It's heavy, but not as majestic as it seems on the surface.
The vendetta between the Five Poison Palace and the Sky Eagle Castle is just the tip of the iceberg. No one can tell how many grievances there are among these thousands of people.
Although the Shenhou Mansion's orders were strict, it was hard for Qining to imagine that these people would really obey the arrangements of the Shenhou Mansion.
Qianwu Peak is located in the western border and is the nest of the Black Lotus Sect. The Black Lotus Sect is naturally familiar with the mountains and terrain here.
It is said that the time and place are favorable and the people are in the right place. Before the two sides have fought, the Black Lotus Sect has already occupied the right time and place.
Under this situation, if there are internal disputes among the eight gangs and sixteen factions, it may not be as easy as imagined to successfully capture Qianwu Peak.
In addition, what Qi Ning paid the most attention to was Ximen Wuhen's thoughts.
Qi Ning knew very well that the epidemic in the capital was spreading. Many signs showed that although the golden silkworm poison did come from the No. 1 Poison King of Bashu, Zhuo Qianyi, the real mastermind of the epidemic in the capital probably had nothing to do with the Black Lotus Sect. relation.
But taking this opportunity, many forces want to kill the Black Lotus.
Needless to say, King Huainan, what Qining did not expect at first was that Ximen Wuhen of Shenhou Mansion also seemed to want to kill the Black Lotus Sect.
With Ximen Wuhen's insight, he could not fail to see the strangeness in the epidemic in the capital, and he had even realized that it had no direct relationship with the Black Lotus Sect.
But then Ximen Wuhen obviously wanted to prove the Black Lotus Sect's crime, and even set up a trap in the Shenhou Mansion to lure Zhu Qianyi into the trap. The ultimate goal was to destroy the Black Lotus Sect.
It was difficult for Qining to figure out why Ximen Wuhen deliberately wanted to achieve this goal.
Qi Ning is actually not very interested in the grudges and grudges of the Black Lotus Sect. He has personally seen one of the four Black Lotus envoys, Poison Master Swing Yi, who is sinister, so he doesn't have much favorable impressions of the Black Lotus Sect. , Qining himself does not care whether the Black Lotus Religion is alive or dead.
The little emperor asked him to participate in this matter, and he was obviously vaguely aware of something. Qining thought that since the emperor had a purpose, he could just take the opportunity to escape from Chengdu.
Wei Shutong, the governor of Xichuan, and Li Hongxin, the king of Shu, must be fighting to the death. The situation in Chengdu is extremely serious. Of course, Qining hopes to stay in Chengdu and get involved. It is of course the best choice to stay on the sidelines and watch with a cold eye.
Ximen Zhanying only saw Qining thinking deeply along the way, but naturally he didn't know what Qining was thinking.
It was approaching dusk that day. From a distance, he saw a dense mist in the sky in the distance, as misty as clouds. Xuanyuan Po slowed down his horse and turned around and said, "Master Marquis, over there is Qianwu Peak."
Qining raised his head and looked around, and suddenly understood why this place was called Qianwu Peak.
Clouds and mist surround the mountains, and the rolling Cangshan Mountains are like a giant curtain stretching across the horizon. Although the dusk Cangshan Mountains are seen in the clouds and mist from a distance, it is obviously still far away from Qianwu Peak at this moment. Only the outline of the rolling mountains can be seen. Among them, many peaks can be seen towering like sharp swords, pointing towards the sky, surrounded by dense mist, hidden in it.
"Master Marquis, the mountains over there are covered with clouds and mist all year round, as if they will never clear up in a thousand years, so they are called Thousand Mist Peaks." Xuanyuan Po still respected Qing Ning very much in terms of face: "So far , we still don’t know the specific topography of Qianwu Peak, but we only have a general understanding of the nearby environment.”
Qi Ning said: "Know yourself and the enemy, and you will be safe in a hundred battles. Colonel Xuanyuan, we don't understand the terrain of Qianwu Peak, how can we attack here?"
Xuanyuan Po said with a smile: "Don't worry, Lord Hou, this time people from all walks of life have gathered here, there are many people, and many of them are capable people and strangers. As reported last time, the Five Elements Sect has sent people to sneak into the mountains to explore the terrain, the Five Elements Sect He is best at understanding the terrain, and can still grasp some situations." After a pause, "As far as we know, the main altar of the Black Lotus Sect is located on the Kirigakure Peak. As long as we can attack the Kirigakure Peak, we will be done."
Qi Ning saw the mist in the distance. It was really difficult to determine where the Hidden Hidden Peak was. He asked, "Colonel Xuanyuan, how many followers does the Black Lotus Sect have?"
Xuanyuan Po shook his head and said: "The exact number of people is not known yet, but the number must be much less than us. In terms of numbers, we have an absolute advantage."
Qi Ning thought to himself that so far, the Shenhou Mansion obviously knew very little about the Black Lotus Sect.
The Shenhou Mansion cannot do this if you know yourself and the other side, and you can win a hundred battles. On the other hand, the Black Lotus Sect knows the situation of the eight gangs and sixteen sects very well.
Could it be that the Shenhou Mansion just relied on the strength of the crowd to give it a try
Although he could already see the outline of Qianwu Ridge from a distance at dusk, when he arrived at the foot of Qianwu Ridge, it was already dark. There was still some distance to go before Qining saw bonfires everywhere in the wilderness at the foot of the mountain. Many tents were erected.
Between the bonfires, figures were flashing, some were drinking and singing, others were laughing loudly, and others were competing in martial arts.
All I saw was that the camp was scattered, completely different from the orderliness of the military camp, and seemed extremely random.
But the camp was filled with flags. Under the night wind, many flags were fluttering and making noises in the wind. These flags were of various shapes and sizes.
Qining only looked at a few flags and knew that these flags were the flags of various gangs. At first glance, there were at least forty or fifty flags in the camp.
This time the Shenhou Mansion issued the Iron-Blooded Inscription, the eight gangs and sixteen factions were only representatives of Jianghu, and other large and small gangs from various sects also gathered here.
From the height and size of the flags, we can actually see the status of each sect in the world.
The flag in the center not only has the highest flagpole, but also the largest flag. Among all the flags, it has a feeling of standing out from the crowd.
Qining could see clearly by the light of the bonfire. On the flag were written the words "Golden Sword Alliance", with dragons and phoenixes flying in the handwriting, which was very heroic.
Xuanyuan Po rode his horse and arrived at the edge of the camp. Several people had already come towards him with weapons in hand, and said sternly: "Who are they?"
Xuanyuan Po had already shown his token and said in a deep voice: "Xuan Yuan Po of Shenhou Mansion!"
Those people immediately put away their weapons, cupped their hands and said, "I've seen Colonel Xuanyuan."
Xuanyuan Po nodded slightly, got off his horse, and looked back at Qi Ning. Qin Ning knew what he meant, and knew that once he entered the camp, it would be difficult to reveal his identity as the Marquis, and Xuanyuan Po would not be able to call himself the Marquis anymore. .
Several people entered the camp. As soon as the officials from the Shenhou Mansion appeared, everyone around them became quieter. Wherever Xuanyuan Po and the others passed by, everyone bowed their hands and saluted.
Qi Ning saw that all the powerful people in the world were respectful and respectful, and he thought to himself, this Shenhou Mansion is really majestic, no wonder there are so many people who want to become officials of Shenhou Mansion.
In the middle of the camp, under the flag of the Golden Sword Alliance, there is a huge tent, which is very elegant.
Although each gang came here under the order of the Shenhou Mansion, privately they all showed their power and showed their status in the world in various ways.
"The Golden Sword Alliance is one of the eight gangs and sixteen factions." Xuanyuan Po knew that Qining knew very little about Jianghu affairs, so he explained: "The Golden Sword Alliance has existed in Jianghu for more than seventy years. Compared with many gangs in Jianghu, it has a deeper background. Much weaker, it was built by Zhuge Cangxiong. Zhuge Cangxiong's sword technique of killing all enemies was once invincible in the world. He first created the Golden Sword Sect, claiming that there were no swordsmen outside the Golden Sword Sect, and forced all swordsmen in the world to abandon their swords, otherwise So I have to throw myself under the Golden Sword Sect. Apart from these two ways, the only way is to destroy people with the sword."
"There are no swordsmen outside the Golden Sword Sect?" Ximen Zhanying couldn't help but sneered: "What a big statement."
"The tone is indeed not small, but Zhuge Cangxiong's swordsmanship back then was indeed outstanding." Xuanyuan Po smiled and said: "Of course you have all heard of the top ten famous swords. The Golden Phoenix Sword in Zhuge Cangxiong's hand was later rated as one of the top ten famous swords. One, ranked seventh.”
Qi Ning thought it turned out that the Golden Sword Sect also had one of the top ten famous swords.
"Ranked seventh?" Ximen Zhanying said, "That's not considered great."
Xuanyuan Po shook his head and said: "Little Junior Sister, you can't say that. Zhuge Cangxiong held the Golden Phoenix Sword more than seventy years ago and traversed the world with a set of ten thousand-kill sword techniques. The top ten famous swords were only evaluated fifty years ago. When Zhuge Cangxiong came out, the Golden Phoenix Sword was passed on to his eldest son Zhuge Tianying. Compared with Zhuge Cangxiong, Zhuge Tianying's swordsmanship was greatly reduced and much weaker. If the sword is evaluated, Zhuge Cangxiong Still alive, even if the Golden Phoenix Sword cannot be ranked in the top three, it is still enough to enter the top five. In the hands of Zhuge Tianying, the Golden Phoenix Sword can still be ranked seventh, which is already quite remarkable."
Ximen Zhanying nodded slightly and asked: "Elder brother, didn't you say that Zhuge Cangxiong founded the Golden Sword Sect, why is it now called the Golden Sword Alliance?"
"Zhuge Cangxiong indeed founded the Golden Sword Sect, but at that time he roamed the world and forced many sword sects to either abandon their swords or join the Golden Sword Sect. After a bloody storm, many sword sects were subjugated by the Golden Sword Sect. Destroyed." Xuanyuan Po is worthy of being the chief disciple of the Shenhou Mansion, and he knows all the anecdotes about the world: "Zhuge Cangxiong's Golden Sword Sect was very powerful in the world for a while, and many sword sects had to succumb to it in order to survive, but What the Jianghu people want is face, so some people proposed to change the Golden Sword Sect to the Golden Sword League. If other sword sects submit to the Golden Sword League, it is equivalent to making Zhuge Cangxiong the leader of all sword sects. Zhuge Cangxiong dominates the Jianghu. Over the years, as I got older, I naturally understood that it was not a good thing for the Golden Sword Sect to have too much hatred, so I formed the Golden Sword Alliance with the eleven sword sects."
Qining was immediately interested in these past events and said with a smile: "These sword sects have been in alliance for decades, and they are quite reliable."
Xuanyuan said: "Zhuge Tianying's swordsmanship is not as good as his father's, but his skills are much better. After many years of digestion, the sword sects that joined the Golden Sword Alliance have actually been completely integrated into the Golden Sword Alliance, and are completely controlled by the Zhuge clan. Control, the current leader of the Golden Sword Alliance, Zhuge Changting, is better than his father in swordsmanship, and his skills are not weak. He can be said to be both civil and military. Therefore, when the Iron-Blooded Treaty was signed, the Golden Sword Alliance became one of the eight gangs and sixteen factions. Now its sphere of influence covers Jingzhou. The northern area should not be underestimated." After a pause, he said: "The eight gangs and sixteen factions are not ordinary people."