Near dawn, Ten Miles of River Han.
"Good morning, Chief Inspector."
"Good morning. How did you find so much food?"
"You have to eat to have the strength to fight."
"Yo! Why does this fish have legs too? "
"That's our Exorcism Division's boss, Zhao Zilong."
"…"
The cold wind in the room was bleak. "Crash!" The Carp Demon was thrown into a wooden basin filled with crushed ice.
"So cold!" The Carp Demon instantly jumped up and tried to crawl out, but it was poked back by a wooden stick.
"Do you still remember me?" A woman's voice said faintly.
"Wah — a ghost —" The Carp Demon looked over and was scared out of its wits. A woman dressed in white with a face full of blood was staring at the Carp Demon with a ferocious expression.
Fish had no eyelids, so it couldn't close its eyes. The Carp Demon tried to crawl into the basin, but the water was so cold that it couldn't stop shivering.
"You, you, you … Who are you?" The Carp Demon asked with a trembling voice.
"Your rebel army invaded Luoyang City and caused the deaths of my family of four. My husband's blood essence was sucked dry by your monster race. He died a horrible death …" The woman whose face was covered in blood slowly walked forward. The carp monster was already scared out of his wits. He jumped out of the wooden basin and knelt down in front of the woman, begging for mercy, "Auntie! Auntie Female Ghost! It has nothing to do with me —! I was also captured by them! "
"Who are you calling Auntie!" The female ghost suddenly screamed.
"Big Sister! Big Sister! " The Carp Demon shivered. There were still ice cubes on its leg hair. "I really don't eat humans!"
"I want to take revenge on An Lushan —"
"Go, go!" The Carp Demon shouted, "I support you! An Lushan is already rotten! He's rotten from the inside out! "
"Why did he kill my husband?"
"He wants to become a demon!" The Carp Demon said, "To become a demon, he needs to absorb evil energy! First, it eats the dead, then the living … You have to be careful of Liang Danhuo. Liang Danhuo is a painted demon that can turn into a mortal. And Chao Yun! Chao Yun is good! He had never killed anyone! That grizzly bear is the hardest to deal with! "
"Also, their demons haven't all come in yet! The humans will take the lead while the demons will eat the humans from behind. The good stuff will go to Liang Danhuo and the others. The generals will pick first and leave after picking. Only then will it be the small ones' turn … "
"How many have come …"
"Just a little over a hundred!" The Carp Demon said. "No, no! Less than a hundred! They're all small fries! Every day, for two hours, An Lushan would have Li Pig bathe him. Noon! None of the generals were there at that time! "
The Carp Demon did not wait for the female ghost to interrogate him. With a few words, he revealed An Lushan's military arrangements. He said, "They said that the exorcists have come to Luoyang. He even set up a trap in the Ming Hall, waiting to capture Li Jinglong … No, Li Jinglong?"
When the Carp Demon said this, he suddenly vaguely realized something.
The female ghost wiped her face and said gently, "Is this okay?"
"It's okay." Li Jinglong said from behind the screen.
When the Carp Demon heard this voice, he was even more shocked and instantly shouted, "Second Brother!"
The female ghost wiped the blood off her face. It was the peony flower demon Xiang Yu. She walked to the side and sat down. The Carp Demon looked at Li Jinglong in a daze and said, "Second Brother, it's really you …"
Although the Carp Demon was always carefree, he was not stupid. Back then, when Hongjun went down the mountain, it was all thanks to its guidance that he understood the ways of the world. After entering Luoyang, the Carp Demon was always anxious. It only wanted to inform the Exorcism Division that An Lushan had set a trap for Li Jinglong and the others. After it was captured, it suddenly saw the female ghost in front of it and forgot about this matter for a moment. After slowly recalling it, it connected it to Li Jinglong.
Li Jinglong's original intention was to get information out of it. It was not that he did not believe this fellow, but it had learned its lesson. If he and Hongjun came forward and the Carp Demon exaggerated in order to return to the Exorcism Division, it would affect his judgment. Therefore, he let Xiang Yu come forward to interrogate it first.
"That's right," Li Jinglong said casually. "It's been a long time."
The Carp Demon opened its mouth, wanting to ask Hongjun, but Hongjun said behind it, "Zhao Zilong, I'm here."
The Carp Demon suddenly turned its head. Hongjun had been sitting on the second floor of the tavern, on the railing in the darkness, quietly looking at the Carp Demon from behind.
The Carp Demon immediately howled, "Hongjun —!"
Hongjun's emotions were extremely complicated. There were too many things he wanted to say, but he couldn't say them. He turned his head away as tears rolled down his eyes. He did not want the Carp Demon to see him cry.
"Hongjun … I'm sorry," the Carp Demon said.
When these words came out of his mouth, Hongjun recalled the time when the Carp Demon had played chess with him, caught grasshoppers, swam in the clear spring under the snowy mountains, explored the karst caves … and so on.
He had always been used to having it by his side. It was as if as long as it was around, those memories would never disappear.
"If you want to apologize, say it later," Li Jinglong said in a low voice. "Tell me everything about An Lushan's arrangements."
The Carp Demon had been waiting for this moment. In fact, a year ago, it had taken the initiative to surrender to Lu Xu and Mo Rigen. Its only wish was to return to the Exorcism Division. For an entire year, it had been condemned by its conscience and felt extremely guilty. Every night, when it looked at the moon in the pool, it couldn't help but think of Hongjun and its companions in the Exorcism Division.
The Carp Demon took the pen from Li Jinglong and marked a few places on the map based on its memory. At this moment, the sky outside was already bright. Atay and the others woke up one after another. They yawned as they came down. When they saw the Carp Demon, they said, "Ah? Boss is back? "
The Carp Demon was even more guilty and uneasy. It was extremely nervous, and the hand holding the pen was trembling. It thought that when it saw its companions again, they would put it in a cloth bag and hit it on the head with a rolling pin. Unexpectedly, no one cared about the betrayal. They just greeted it and went about their own business. Atay helped Trandol cook, and Ashina Chong squatted outside to wash up.
"Are you sure their marching route is here?" Li Jinglong asked.
"Very sure!" The Carp Demon grabbed the pen and said to Li Jinglong, "I've been accompanying Liang Danhuo. I heard everything they were discussing in the residence."
Mo Rigen and Lu Xu also woke up. Everyone started eating breakfast. Because of the chaos of war, the people had fled with their families. After a little searching, they found that there was a lot of food left behind. Last night, Mo Rigen and Lu Xu went out to search. Trandol made a table full of dishes: bacon, eggs, fish, duck, chicken, goose, pig, sheep …
In the dead of winter, there was so much food. It was enough to last for almost half a month. After it was served, the Carp Demon said, "Are you celebrating the New Year?"
Li Jinglong wanted to say that this was their last meal. In the afternoon, they were going to kill An Lushan. However, saying that would be inauspicious, so he stopped and said, "Let's have a drink to celebrate Zhao Zilong's return to the team."
If it wasn't for the fact that the carp monster didn't have tears, his eyes would definitely be brimming with tears at this moment. When he heard this, he hurriedly picked up his wine bowl and jumped onto the table, saying, "I've really let everyone down these days.
"Okay, okay." Mo Rigen said, "Don't spoil the mood. Hurry up and eat."
Hongjun finally couldn't help but laugh. The atmosphere at the table relaxed a lot.
"How did you live after that?" Trandol couldn't help but tease. In the past, the Carp Demon was the chief chef of the Exorcism Division. It often ordered Trandol to do this and that, and it also took care of Hongjun's favorite dishes. The man and the fish were more familiar with each other. Trandol rarely went out with everyone. He didn't feel the same way about the Carp Demon's betrayal. Seeing it return, he was very happy.
The Carp Demon thought for a moment and said, "It's good, it's good."
Although the Carp Demon had betrayed the Exorcism Division, everyone had already seen it. Instead, they used it. If it killed someone, it would definitely be unforgivable. However, the past couldn't be completely blamed on it. There wasn't much blood feud left. The rest would depend on Hongjun.
Everyone ate and drank to their hearts' content. Mo Rigen said, "I suddenly don't want to fight anymore."
Li Jinglong said, "Let's fight. After the fight, we'll eat good food every day."
Li Jinglong spread out the map and began to plan. According to the Carp Demon's information, An Lushan's army was divided into three main troops.
"The vanguard is Shi Siming and An Qingxu's troops." Li Jinglong said, "They're all mortals. They're in charge of attacking the city."
"Yes." Mo Rigen muttered, "If he mobilizes the demons to massacre the city, he'll probably attract the wrath of the heavens. It's indeed much safer for him to have mortals kill each other."
The night before, Luoyang was broken. Shi Siming and An Qingxu's troops rested for a moment before leaving Luoyang and rushing to the next city. Immediately after, An Lushan led the vanguard troops into the captured city to take over. When they took over, they would absorb the evil energy produced by the massacre of the city and strengthen their own demonic energy. Along the way, An Lushan's Tianma power would increase by a bit with every city they passed.
After An Lushan had absorbed enough evil energy, they would leave and head to the next city. Only then would the remaining demon troops arrive. What followed was a wild dance of demons.
"Where's the next destination?" Atay frowned and asked.
"Hangu Pass." Li Jinglong muttered, "The rebel army left in large numbers last night. It's already too late to go there now."
"To catch bandits, first catch the ringleader." Lu Xu said, "Once An Lushan dies, the rebel army will naturally scatter like birds and beasts."
"But you have to be careful." Mo Rigen said, "Don't let the enemy catch the ringleader first."
Li Jinglong said, "Right now, they're already approaching Hangu Pass. There are only two thousand guards at Hangu Pass. They're no match for Shi Siming's fifty thousand cavalrymen. In my opinion, the final battlefield of the mortal war can only be here." As he spoke, Li Jinglong drew a circle around Tong Pass.
Tong Pass was the western gate of Chang 'an. Since ancient times, it had been known as the "Number One Pass in the World". It was surrounded by lofty mountains and precipitous ridges, bordering the Yellow River as a natural barrier. The waves were turbulent and birds flew everywhere. It was impossible for a mortal army to capture it in ten days.
"Right now, they still don't know about Luoyang's situation." Hongjun said, "We have to send a letter over."
Previously, the commoners that the Luoyang Guards had brought out had already been sent to Hangu Pass. However, after much consideration, Li Jinglong still felt that it wasn't safe. However, the grand plan was imminent. At this moment, every fighting force was extremely precious. Sending Lu Xu to deliver the letter was definitely not worth the loss.
"The two of you." Li Jinglong considered it for a long time. Then, he said to Xiang Yu and Wen Bin, "I'll have to trouble the two of you to deliver the letter. Is that okay?"
Xiang Yu and Wen Bin had been stationed in Luoyang for a long time. Hongjun had even saved Wen Bin's life before. In these few short years, the two of them had been stationed in Luoyang and had long regarded themselves as members of the Exorcism Division. After the rebel army had attacked the city the night before, Li Jinglong wasn't worried about the two's safety. After all, Xiang Yu was still a demon. He should have the ability to protect himself.
Sure enough, after the outside temporarily calmed down, the two of them settled down Xiang Yu's Peony sisters. Then, on their own, they went to Shili Hehan to take refuge.
"Ride our fastest horse," Mo Rigen said to the two of them. "Without sleep or rest, it'll take two days and one night to reach Tong Pass."
"You can go on behalf of the Marquis." Xiang Yu thought for a moment, then said to Wen Bin.
"Alright." Wen Bin said, "I'll go right away."
Li Jinglong said to Xiang Yu, "You go too."
"I'll stay." Xiang Yu replied, "With more people, there'll always be more ways. Since I can't help you fight, running errands for you is also good."
Li Jinglong didn't force him. He wrote a letter and handed it to Wen Bin, ordering him to rush to Tong Pass at top speed and explain the situation to Feng Changqing.
"Next," Li Jinglong said to everyone, "is to guard the Earth Vein Array."
As he spoke, Li Jinglong spread out a map of Luoyang City.
"Longmen Mountain's Heavenly Tower, the deepest part of Shili Hehan, Heavenly Street under Dingding Gate, Yintian Gate, Tianjin Bridge, Songde Stele's Heavenly Pivot, Tongtian Buddha Heaven, and An Lushan's Heavenly Palace." Li Jinglong pointed to these areas and said, "Yongsi didn't come, so we have seven people."
Mo Rigen arranged all the talismans. Li Jinglong said, "I'm in charge of the Ming Hall's Earth Vein Array. I'll take it first."
As he spoke, Li Jinglong took the talismans from the Ming Hall.
Atay, Mo Rigen, Trandol, and Ashina Chong each took one.
"I'll choose one that's closer to you." Lu Xu said to Hongjun, "It'll be convenient for us to support you if anything happens."
"It's okay, I'll accompany Hongjun!" The Carp Demon said again.
"Sister-in-law, are you okay?" Li Jinglong asked Trandol.
"No problem." Trandol smiled.
Trandol had been gifted since she was young. She was once seen as the next High Priest candidate by the Zoroastrianism Saintess. However, her father was unwilling to send her to the Holy Temple to study magic, so she gave up in the end. Atay said, "Leave it to us, don't worry."
Li Jinglong looked at Hongjun again. Hongjun still couldn't truly let go. He wanted to personally help his companions to draw out the energy from the Earth Vein Array and then inject it into Li Jinglong's body to let Li Jinglong get rid of An Lushan. Then, he watched as Li Jinglong's meridians were all broken, his cultivation burned, and he became a cripple from then on. How could it be "okay"?
"Don't forget what we said last night." Li Jinglong said.
Hongjun nodded and took the last Talisman.
Mo Rigen poured wine and said, "I'll toast to Elder Shi."
"To Elder Shi!" Everyone said.
"To you." Li Jinglong smiled at Hongjun.
Hongjun raised his head and drank. Li Jinglong said, "Let's follow the plan. Everyone, let's do it!"
Everyone stood up. Mo Rigen said to the Carp Demon again, "Zhao Zilong, I'll ask you one last time today."
At the exit of the Shili River, everyone surrounded the Carp Demon. Mo Rigen asked, "Does An Lushan know about the Earth Vein Array?"
The Carp Demon was both a curse and an oath. An Lushan had never been to Luoyang, so how could he know?
However, Mo Rigen was still vaguely worried. After all, Bi Sichen had seen the two of them at the Ming Hall. He was afraid that he would leak the information to An Lushan. If that happened, all their previous efforts would be wasted. It was also because of this that Mo Rigen and Ashina Chong finally decided to kill Bi Sichen, who had surrendered to the enemy, at the city gate.
"You really wanted to launch a sneak attack." The Carp Demon said, "You shouldn't have appeared that day."
"Bi Sichen must have confessed." Ashina Chong said, "Even the city guard has surrendered. How could he hide it?"
In reality, the Exorcism Division's plan was flawless. However, no matter how much they calculated, they could not have predicted that Tang would surrender. Therefore, Li Jinglong decided not to hide anymore and decided to bring his subordinates to participate in the battle. Otherwise, according to his plan, this ambush of An Lushan would have been a sure success.
"Forget it." Mo Rigen said, "Man proposes, God disposes. Let's take the risk."
Everyone left the Shili River and arrived at the Heavenly Street. According to Li Jinglong's plan, the first step was to pretend that the ambush had failed and that An Lushan had captured him. The next day, they would begin the second step of the plan. If An Lushan did not know that the exorcists were in the city, he would be careless after being ambushed and captured by Li Jinglong.
In front of the Heavenly Street, everyone was ready for the decisive battle.
Hongjun and Li Jinglong stood face to face without saying a word.
Li Jinglong reached out and touched Hongjun's face.
Hongjun said, "Promise me …"
Li Jinglong said, "Shh … don't talk."
He lowered his head and kissed Hongjun's lips. When their lips parted, Li Jinglong looked into Hongjun's eyes intently.
"After you come back," Hongjun said in a low voice, "I will take care of you for the rest of my life."
"I will definitely come back." Li Jinglong looked at Hongjun with a hint of heartache in his eyes. He suddenly said, "Do you think Kun Shen will live to see this day?"
Hongjun did not understand what Li Jinglong was saying. He thought about it, nodded, and then shook his head.
"I love you." Li Jinglong said, "Let's do it."