Master Zongheng fell down on the steps. After Huo Qubing came in, Qu Jun stepped forward to check his breathing and heartbeat, which had stopped.
"People are dead."
Qu Jun unveiled the bronze mask on the face of Zongheng Taoist Master.
There are many mantras engraved on this mask, which has been passed down for a long time in Zonghengdao.
Under the mask, there is a pale face, with a tall and slightly curved nose bridge, a sinister expression of majesty, and wide-eyed eyes.
Huo Qubing turned around and looked at the cave. It had an arc-shaped roof and an internal space in a ring shape. In addition to the entrance, there were two passages at the back that continued deep into the mountain.
Huo Qubing's thoughts spread, and he sensed the arrangements and... secrets deep in the cave.
Under his powerful perception, it is difficult to hide any secrets. This is actually a special cave. According to ancient legends, the place where immortals once emerged was occupied by Zonghengdao and then expanded to form a settlement.
There are other mysteries hidden in the heart of this mountain!
Huo Qubing leaned over and took off the waist bag of Taoist Zongheng, holding it in his hand for inspection.
"The dead Master Zongheng... was a substitute."
When Huo Qubing spoke, he put the power gained from practicing the seven Yin Fu techniques of this scripture into the bronze mask.
The incantation engraved on the mask gave off an imperceptible halo, creating a trace of energy connection with the rock wall on one side.
Huo Qubing winked.
Qu Jun and Yue Rao were both good at detectives. They immediately stepped forward and groped carefully on the rock wall.
"You don't have to look for it..."
An old voice sounded.
The rock wall slid silently, revealing another hidden space behind the rock wall. The area inside was not large and could be seen at a glance.
There was a low mat inside, and sitting behind the low mat was an old man with white beard and hair, and a weak look.
The old man had a long and thin face, high cheekbones, and a tall body. He was still very imposing as he sat there. He looked at Huo Qubing with a pair of gloomy eyes: "How did you tell that he was a stand-in? I don't think there is anything wrong with him."
Huo Qubing, followed by Song Ran and Qu Jun who looked surprised, came to the entrance of the hidden cave and thought for a while before giving a response:
"His cultivation is too weak. He probably took a shortcut with your help and barely reached the realm of gods and humans. He can only stay at the initial realm of the realm of gods and humans for the rest of his life, and his strength is far less than what he obtained through his own cultivation.
As a sect with a long history, the leader should not be so weak.
What's more important is that I am leading my army to attack... Once you are defeated, Zonghengdao will be completely destroyed.
A good leader will not block everything like this and lead the crowd to fight against the steward without hesitation. It doesn't matter if you win, you will only be suppressed by a stronger force.
If you are so reckless, you can block the fate of the entire sect, and Zonghengdao will not survive until now.
There are many similar flaws. For example, he has nothing but this mask.
Putting all these things together, the Zonghengdao master who showed up in public is either stupid enough, or there is another reason."
"If I guess correctly, this should not be the entire power of the vertical and horizontal path, but a component of the vertical and horizontal path."
The old man sitting in the secret space said in a deep voice:
"You haven't said anything yet. You can use the Seven Yin Talisman Techniques of this Sutra to sense some changes in the energy in this cave. This is the most important thing.
I didn't expect to meet a person who has practiced this scripture and could see through my plan to use this fight to hide in the dark again just by his aura."
"It's a pity... you're late."
The old man's breath suddenly weakened, and there was no longer any color on his face.
He opened his chest on his own, and there was a small penetrating wound in his chest, which had killed his life, and blood began to ooze from the center of his eyebrow.
"The person behind you found out that the vertical and horizontal corridor was exposed and wanted to kill you?"
Huo Qubing said in a deep voice: "Who are they?"
"This is at least half of my Zonghengdao foundation, and it will be destroyed by you."
The old man said sadly: "I won't tell you anything. I believe that you will die soon and be buried with me in Zonghengdao."
The corners of his mouth also began to bleed: "My things will be done for me..."
Qu Jun strode forward, looked back and said, "Shizhong Huo, this one is also dead."
I just found the hidden part of the cave and found this old man. I thought there would be a breakthrough, but I didn't expect it to fail again in the blink of an eye.
The sword energy derived from the soul that Liu Qing sacrificed approached the cave first, but when I entered, the sword energy was gone... Huo Qubing thought.
"Huo Shizhong, did you find out later that this is the master of Zonghengdao?" Song Ran was a little out of his mind and couldn't help but ask.
"It should be, but he has become an abandoned child." Huo Qubing said calmly.
Chang'an.
Liu Che had been watching the process of Huo Qubing leading his troops to raid the Zongheng Road through the Sheji Map.
When the Han army broke through the Zonghengdao mountain gate and Huo Qubing stationed his horse on the hill, Liu Che looked happy.
He looked at Huo Qubing as if he were looking at his seventeen-year-old self, high-spirited and sharp.
To a certain extent, the appearance of Huo Qubing made up for his regret that as an emperor, he could not fight on the battlefield.
In a daze, I have been on the throne for seventeen years. Looking back, how many of the ambitions I made back then have been realized... Liu Che asked himself in his heart.
When Huo Qubing entered the mountain, he stretched out his hand and wiped away the picture of the Sheji Map.
Anyone can see that the outcome is decided.
Huo Qubing commanded two hundred troops and swept across the Zonghengdao.
The sharp, swift, and invincible attack power displayed by the Han army still makes people's pores stand up, with a strong sense of throbbing and resonance.
Having such troops and generals makes people feel inexplicably reassured.
Zhou Ping calmly lowered his head and glanced at his forearms, where the goosebumps had not yet subsided.
There was a moment of silence in the study, with no sound at all.
Only Liu Che could predict the outcome before the battle began.
It's a little regrettable that the idea is not finished, and the Zonghengdao is obviously not enough to stimulate Huo Qubing's full combat power.
Liu Che scanned the crowd. Princess Pingyang's face was expressionless, while Zhou Ping's eyes were slightly narrowed, thoughtfully.
Only Zhang Xiaoyuan City Mansion was slightly worse, and the look of shock on his face had just subsided.
He was still in shock from the battle just now... Zhang Xiaoyuan didn't think there was anything wrong with his previous analysis.
Huo Qubing clearly went on an expedition. His opponent had the advantage of location and numbers, but the result was completely different.
Zhang Xiaoyuan quickly outlined and deduced the previous process in his mind, and came to the conclusion that anyone who encountered Huo Qubing's sharp offensive just now would be quickly defeated under the impact of the cavalry at that speed.
Unless the Han army's charge process can be contained and the troops of the same quality can fight against it, the outcome can be changed.
"Our Han army's fine cavalry is indeed strong enough." Princess Pingyang said.
She did not deny that the Han army was powerful, but she did not mention Huo Qubing's leadership. In other words, she felt that other generals could have won this battle.
Zhang Xiaoyuan looked respectful and humble: "Congratulations, Your Majesty, the strength of our Han army is far beyond my expectation. Just now, I lacked understanding of the strength of our Han army.
With such a strong army, we will certainly be able to exaggerate the might of our great Han Dynasty, and my subordinates will not make the same mistake again in the future."
"You are still a citizen, not a minister."
Liu Che said calmly: "Just now Qubing led his troops to attack the enemy's position. At that time, the fighter plane was fleeting. As long as he hesitated for a moment, the opponent would react and activate defense methods. Our army's consumption would inevitably increase greatly.
Qu Bing's grasp of the war situation and fighter opportunities at that time seemed simple, but in fact he was exquisite. His cohesion among his troops made everyone willing to follow him to launch an attack after a long-distance attack, and they worked together as one.
Are these things that ordinary generals can do?
Didn't anyone notice it?"
Zhou Ping lowered his head in silence, while Zhang Xiaoyuan had already knelt down, his head lowered.
Princess Pingyang held the cup in her hand and took a sip of hot tea.
"I still have something to do, please wait."
Liu Che didn't mention a word about the candidate to replace Huo Qubing, and he was obviously dissatisfied with Zhang Xiaoyuan's performance.
Zhang Xiaoyuan's face was slumped, which was in stark contrast to his excitement just now.
Who would have thought that when his opponent had all the advantages, he would be defeated so easily by Huo Qubing.
It wasn't until Princess Pingyang and Zhou Ping bowed to say goodbye that Zhang Xiaoyuan stood up.
Princess Pingyang left the palace along the road, and before boarding the chariot, she looked back at Zhang Xiaoyuan: "I thought you really knew about military affairs, but it seems you want to continue studying hard!"
After saying that, he got in the car and left.
Today's change was originally an agreement between her and Zhou Ping to jointly recommend Zhang Xiaoyuan in front of Liu Che to facilitate this matter.
Unexpectedly, things changed far from what was expected.
What just happened also made Princess Pingyang wake up. She wanted to beat Huo Qubing and his aunt.
When Wei Zifu became the queen, he lost his usual courtesy towards her, and to a certain extent, he took away her influence on Liu Che, which made her very uncomfortable.
But Princess Pingyang didn't want to stand completely opposite to them.
She sat in the carriage and remained silent for a long time.
On the other side, Zhou Ping said to Zhang Xiaoyuan: "What happened today is not that you performed poorly, but that Huo Qubing was too outstanding. I never thought that he could defeat the enemy so quickly."
Zhang Xiaoyuan clenched his fist secretly: "I really didn't expect that our Han army is so strong. If I were given a chance, I believe I would not do worse than Huo Qubing."
Zhou Ping curled up his lips and said, "Okay, there will always be a chance in the future, so just go."
————
Lujiang County.
Huo Qubing came out of the cave and saw Xiong San sitting at the top of the city, eating the big cake he had brought with him in his luggage, looking quite relaxed.
This shows that the battle between the two sides has come to an end.
"Huo Shizhong, after destroying Zonghengdao, is it time to return to Chang'an?"
Qu Jun looked respectful: "I have always heard of Huo Shizhong's talent in the art of war. To be able to come with him today and see our Han army's offensive in person is like coming and going like the wind.
Huo Shizhong leads the troops and defeats the enemy like lightning, which is amazing!"
Huo Qubing said: "The real blitzkrieg means not only fighting fast enough and running far enough, but also being able to solve core strategic problems. Do you think I came all the way to Lujiang just for a vertical and horizontal road?"
Qu Jun was stunned for a moment, is there something else?
At this time, the big cat ran over from the side, holding a big eagle-like bird in its mouth. It was very proud and rubbed Huo Qubing's leg as if taking credit for it.
Huo Qubing reached out and patted the cat's head and glanced at the bird.
The bird was already dead, its throat bitten open by the big cat.