Fu Shifeng

Chapter 10
The most convenient way to travel eastward from Quzhi City to the Central Plains is to go through Tiemen Pass, pass through West, Yi, Sha, Gua and other Longyou prefectures, and arrive at Yumen Pass. road.

These four prefectures are also the westernmost prefectures and counties of the Great Xia court. However, compared to Quzhi City, which is located at the southern foot of Tianshan Mountain and has abundant water and grass, although these four prefectures and counties have water oases, they are not fertile and vast.

Passing merchants often see a few isolated cities and military towns standing in the endless sandy sea and Gobi, and they can't help but feel the vastness of the world.

"My lord, there is an inn ahead!"

After leaving Quzhi City, the camel caravan of Maocai Society headed eastwards, passed Tiemenguan, Yanqi Township, and arrived at the boundary of Xizhou. They stopped in Gaochang and Puchang for one night respectively, and then continued eastward.

Although the two states of West and Iraq are adjacent to each other, there is a sea of ​​sand five hundred miles apart between the two states. Although there are Shouzhuojun towns and post offices, they are still far away from each other, and it is difficult to find a place to rest.

In order to ensure that no accidents occurred in escorting Manizhu, Wu Maocai brought more than 200 people under his command, including the corresponding horses and camels.

However, apart from a few horse thieves wandering around, Wu Maocai and the others did not encounter any enemies along the way.

Anyway, there are more than 200 warriors with thugs, bows and horses, and there is also a Mr. Changqing who is proficient in Taoism. This kind of formation is definitely not something that horse thieves from the Western Regions can challenge.

"Sir, how about spending the night in this inn tonight?" Wu Maocai was cautious along the way, and did not dare to waste the strength of his people and horses just to hurry. People move forward.

In addition to scouting, Wu Maocai also relied heavily on Mr. Changqing, and asked him for advice on almost everything.

Mr. Chang Qing, who looked like a scholar in white, rode a green horse, and said with a calm smile, "It's not a good person to open an inn in such a barren place. If you want to go, my son, don't use the inn for food and drink."

"The camel team has enough food, don't worry, sir." Wu Maocai made up his mind, and said to the left and right: "We will rest at the inn tonight, arrange people to watch the night in turn, be careful!"

Just as the camel caravan set off again, Mr. Changqing suddenly reined in the horses, turned around and looked around, with doubts on his brows.

"What did you find, sir?" Wu Maocai stepped forward and asked.

"Someone has been following us for the past few days." Mr. Changqing raised his hand to make a tactic, muttering something in his mouth, a few points of light on his fingertips spun like stars, and then he waved his hand and flew away.

Although Wu Maocai couldn't see the subtlety of the spell, he still vaguely felt an invisible and intangible ripple rippling along the ground.

After a while, there was no abnormality around, Mr. Changqing frowned and pondered: "It's strange, why is there no response?"

"What's wrong?" Wu Maocai asked with concern.

"My lord, you can know that those of us who practice Taoism are especially concerned with refining the gods. If the skill is deep, you can penetrate the subtleties of the cave, the unexpected signs, and sense things that ordinary people can't detect, and even predict things before they happen. , Unpredictable Prophet." Mr. Changqing explained: "Just now I vaguely sensed a hostile gaze, staring at it, so I used the solitude method to try to find out the hidden enemy. Hear the echo."

Wu Maocai raised his eyes and saw that the surroundings were either Gobi rocks or rolling sand dunes. From the perspective of marching and fighting, there were indeed suitable places to hide.

"Do you need me to send scouts to investigate again?" Wu Maocai's tone was cautious, lest Mr. Changqing feel that he doubted his magic skills.

"No need." Mr. Changqing just smiled lightly: "Since we left Quzhi City, there have been more than one group of people secretly eyeing us, so there is no need to make a fuss. I will make a little arrangement tonight, and the intruders will definitely suffer from frustration! "

Wu Maocai praised repeatedly, and Mr. Changqing rode forward amidst compliments. Although he didn't say anything, he felt a little uneasy because of the ineffective spell.

However, the more this is the case, the less it can be shown. Mr. Changqing can only comfort himself. It is nothing more than because the mountains and rivers are different and the weather is different, resulting in the failure of divination, and other spells will not go wrong.

……

Cheng Sanwu pulled out his head that was half buried in the sand dune, with his face covered in sand, he cursed viciously at Afu:

"Stinky bitch, hag, what are you doing?!"

"You were almost exposed, I was saving you just now."

Afu was still dressed in red. She didn't seem to like the sun. She was wearing a veil and a headscarf at the moment, which was unique. She looked down slightly at her hands, and her green eyes were full of pride.

"Then do you need to push my head into the ground?" Cheng Sanwu cursed and slapped the sand off his face.

"Your eyes are so vicious that the fake Taoist noticed it." Afu stretched out two fingers and met Cheng Sanwu's eyes.

"What's the matter?" At this moment, Su Wangting came on horseback, and there were forty or fifty riders behind him, all of whom were seconded from the Gaochang City Bow and Knife Club.

A few days ago, when they learned that the Maocai Society had left Quzhi City with Manizhu, Cheng and the others secretly followed them all the way, and when they passed through Gaochang City in Xizhou, they joined the hands of the Bow and Knife Society.

However, there were more than 200 camel teams in the Maocai Society, and Su Wangting did not dare to take the risk of robbing them, so he could only follow them all the way secretly, waiting for the opportunity.

Cheng Sanwu and the others also discovered that besides them and their party, there are other forces that have been watching and following them. They have never met each other, but all parties have maintained a wonderful tacit understanding, and they seem to be waiting for others to take the lead, so that they can take advantage of themselves .

"The people from the Maocai Club should be going to the Huluo Inn." Because of Cheng Sanwu and Afu's superb martial arts skills, Su Wangting arranged for them to follow the Maocai Club closely and keep an eye on the movement.

"This is... this stinky bitch, who is always disturbing me, just now when I wasn't paying attention, she directly pressed my head into the sand!" Cheng Sanwu was extremely dissatisfied, pointing at Afu and said: "Get her away quickly, I can't do anything with her around!"

There was no anger on Su Wangting's face, he knew Cheng Sanwu's temperament very well, and when he got excited, he often did things regardless of other people's ideas, but Afu was an unpredictable woman, so it was naturally difficult for the two to get along.

"Miss Afu, what happened?" Su Wangting asked.

"I should have said before that there is a fake Taoist priest who is proficient in spells in Maocai Club, right?" Afu's tone was a bit speculative: "Just now Cheng Sanwu pretended to be smart and saw the camel caravan of Maocai Club not stop. He moved and insisted on taking a closer look, but he was noticed by the fake Taoist priest. I had no choice but to stop him, and that’s how it happened.”

Su Wangting didn't speak, but just looked at Cheng Sanwu silently.

"What are you looking at me for?" Cheng Sanwu retorted: "It's not that I haven't dealt with these monks and priests before. Their spells are somewhat capable, but they are by no means omnipotent. If he dares to come alone, I still have way to deal with it."

"Don't be careless." Su Wangting shook his head cautiously: "When I faced Wu Maocai, I didn't expect him to be defeated because of the blessing of magic. The journey of magic is unpredictable, and it is difficult for outsiders to predict. What kind of means... Miss Afu has something to say?"

Seeing the pensive look in Afu's eyes, Su Wangting said to the dialect: "Actually, the fake Taoist priest did cast a spell just now, trying to find the two of us. But for some reason, the spell couldn't exert its due effect."

Su Wangting got off his horse, let the others rest for a while, and then took the initiative to ask: "What does this mean?"

"I can't tell." Afu looked at the sun in the sky with some disgust: "I suspect that the Zoroastrians have tampered with it, making it impossible for pagan magic to be tolerated in the Western Regions."

"Zoroastrianism has such strength?" Even Su Wangting, who is as knowledgeable as Su Wangting, couldn't help but change color after hearing this.

"What's so strange about this? Whether the magic is effective or not, and how effective it is, is related to the region where it is." Afu looked to the east: "Taoism originated in the Central Plains, and all kinds of Taoism are generally inseparable from the mountains and rivers of the Central Plains. It's normal. Not only are the scenery and weather in the Western Regions very different from those in the Central Plains, but the customs and customs are also completely different, so Taoist spells are naturally not very effective."

"No, it's still not right." Su Wangting shook his head again and again: "I have made friends with several Taoist priests who accompanied the army in the past, and they also said similar things, but most of the Taoist methods are still unimpeded. Besides Zoroastrianism, there are Garan Buddhist temples all over the Western Regions. If you really want to study it carefully, Zoroastrianism may not be considered the largest sect in the Western Regions."

"So I said, it might be that the Zoroastrianism used some other method." Afu looked at his palm and clenched his fist tentatively: "I can vaguely feel a suppression, although it is subtle and difficult to detect, it is very vast. It seems to cover the entire Western Region...Cheng Sanwu, don't you feel it?"

Faced with Afu's doubts, Cheng Sanwu spread his hands together: "No, I ate well and slept well, and I didn't feel anything else."

"Interesting, the method of Zoroastrianism is interesting, you are also very interesting, it is rare to arouse my appetite." Afu looked at Cheng Sanwu, the look in his eyes was the hunger to find the prey.

"I feel it now." Cheng Sanwu shuddered: "You hag, you really aren't a good bird."

"Let's not talk about that for now." Seeing this, Su Wangting interrupted the two of them: "The people from the Maocai Society will be staying at the inn tonight. They must be well-prepared, and I'm afraid it will be difficult to strike again."

"I don't think so." Cheng Sanwu smiled: "I also stayed in the Huluo Inn they went to. It's a proper black shop. The shop can make steamed human meat... Oh, they can also make wine, you Do you want to try it?"

Cheng Sanwu's last sentence was obviously addressed to Afu.

"Since it's a black shop, why did you come out intact?" Afu was not angry either.

"I thought the drugged wine had a strange smell, so I smashed the wine bowl on the spot and kicked the shopkeeper's leg." Cheng Sanwu made no secret of his past behavior.

Afu chuckled, and Su Wangting said helplessly: "Okay, make full preparations tonight. This kind of black shop in the desert usually also has collusion with horse thieves and bandits. Maybe some forces can't sit still and plan to do it tonight. We Maybe we can take advantage of the chaos of the battle between the two sides to take back the Mani Pearl!"

……

When Wu Maocai came to the Huluo Inn with all the people under his command, a shopkeeper with inconvenient legs hurried forward to warmly entertain him.

"Hey, there are so many guest officials, the small shop is afraid that there are not enough rooms, and the hospitality is not good!" The shopkeeper complained repeatedly.

"Don't worry about it, we'll take care of it ourselves." Xu Yan, who was still injured on his face, threw a bag of coins directly to the shopkeeper: "Don't entertain other guests at your inn tonight, we'll take care of it!"

"Definitely, definitely!" The shopkeeper smiled all over his face: "By the way, the shop makes good steamed cakes, plus a few sheep were newly slaughtered today, and they will be served later. There is still good wine in the cellar. Don't you moisten the throats of the guest officials first?"

"No need, you don't need to send anything, just clean the guest room." Xu Yan waved his hand impatiently. He has been walking in the Western Regions for many years, and he has always distrusted these inns on the edge of the desert. Can the food and wine sold here be fine? Touch or don't touch.

Seeing Wu Maocai and others carrying swords and bows, the shopkeeper dared not say anything, and ordered someone to clean the guest room.Wu Maocai took a rough look inside and outside, thinking about how to arrange manpower to guard against it. Mr. Changqing smiled lightly and said, "It's a Shura field where death is popular and resentful souls linger. No wonder people in the Western Regions believe in Hujiao. It turns out that they are murderers. After committing evil, you should seek God Hu to pray for protection."

When Mr. Changqing said this, there was no concealment, and the nearby shopkeepers who smiled also heard it, and the smile on their faces froze immediately.

Wu Maocai didn't have much to say. He knew that Mr. Changqing had always been aloof.

Seeing that the atmosphere fell into silence at the moment, Wu Maocai also understood the situation of this inn. Seeing that the shopkeeper with handicapped legs still wanted to talk, he waved his hands and said, "The shopkeeper is busy on his own, and there is no need to wait on him."

The innkeeper made a bow, turned and left, Wu Maocai immediately gestured to Xu Yan, who nodded slightly, followed the innkeeper quietly with a few good hands.

After a while, there was a sound of fighting and fighting in the inn, and the kitchen pots and pans were overturned and smashed.

Not long after, Xu Yan came back and reported: "My lord, there are 18 people in the inn. There are several armed thieves hidden in the back kitchen, and they have all been killed."

"The body is buried in a hidden place, and it will be burned down before leaving tomorrow." Wu Maocai ordered decisively.

"Yes." Xu Yan turned and left.

"As expected, the journey was not peaceful." Wu Maocai couldn't help but sigh with emotion.

"My lord, don't worry, I'm sure there will be criminals coming tonight." Mr. Changqing took out a stack of talisman papers from his bosom: "And order someone to paste the doors and windows, so that you can guard against arrow stones."

Wu Maocai didn't dare to be negligent, and immediately handed it over to his subordinates. Afterwards, Mr. Changqing took out two talisman papers and swiped them lightly with his finger to make them spontaneously ignite without fire. Following his prayers in a low voice, he guided several wisps of green smoke to swirl around Wu Maocai's body.

"What kind of spell is this?" Wu Maocai felt different from before.

"In addition to the Wubing Pinyan technique, there is another ingenious terma technique." Mr. Changqing said with a smile on his sleeves: "Young master said that when he fought with Su Wangting last time, he accidentally tripped him, and now he is blessed by this technique." , can keep the five bodies in balance, neither topple nor topple."

"There is such a profound thaumaturgy in the world?" Wu Maocai was shocked again: "With the blessing of this technique, wouldn't it be the first to fall into the invincible position?"

Mr. Changqing raised his head proudly: "Those ignorant warriors will hardly reach such a state in their whole life. Tonight, you can let go and do whatever you want!"

(End of this chapter)