High Martial: I Can Copy All Root Bones!

"Mansion Master! Please wake up, quickly!"

Hong Ying was roused from his bed in the middle of the night.

He had been at the Prince’s Mansion earlier that evening. To celebrate their victory at the Martial Arts tournament, Hong Ying had gotten completely drunk.

It was just a shame that two of the nine heroes had died, and two others, Lu Changfeng and Bai Yimeng—both Martial Arts fanatics—had left early.

Still, with the company of the five other heroes like Guo Xiaotian and Yuann Kong, Hong Ying had had a wonderful time drinking.

It was rare for him to be so happy, and he hadn’t even bothered to sober up before bed, simply letting the alcohol lull him into a peaceful sleep.

Being awakened after such a short time, he was initially furious.

But then Hong Ying remembered his own rule: no one was to disturb his sleep unless it was for an imminent and urgent matter.

’It’s been so long since I was woken up in the middle of the night that I almost forgot about that rule.’

At this thought, Hong Ying immediately circulated his True Energy. Wisps of alcohol vapor rose from his body, and his eyes regained their clarity.

"Elder Jiangg, has something major happened?" Hong Ying asked, looking at the silver-haired old man by his bed as he got dressed and walked toward the table.

"Mansion Master, an hour ago, the Saint Demon Sect Master led his people and wiped out the entire Daliang Mission."

"Not a single body from the Daliang Mission could be found at the scene. We suspect they were captured alive by the Dark Buddha Demon Sect to be refined into Buddha Heart Pills," Elder Jiangg said, his pace unhurried.

PFFT! Upon hearing this, Hong Ying, who had just reached the table and taken a sip of tea to clear his head, spat it all out.

"What? The Daliang Mission was completely wiped out?"

"What in the world is that Saint Demon Sect Master playing at!"

Hong Ying stood up and paced back and forth, a clear sign of his inner turmoil.

"Mansion Master, do not worry. Two hours ago, the Prince’s Mansion received an urgent secret report from a Daliang spy, delivered by a divine eagle."

"Before the Martial Arts tournament, Daliang Country had asked the Astrology Saint Master of the Astrology Sect, Daliang’s First Sect, to perform a divination."

"The divination said that if they won the Martial Arts tournament, they could launch a full-scale assault on Jiangnan Prefecture. If they lost, it meant the time was not yet right."

"Since you were resting, Mansion Master, I held off on telling you this news."

Hearing this, Hong Ying’s furrowed brow relaxed slightly. "You mean to say, since we won the Martial Arts tournament, Daliang Country will definitely not choose to invade Jiangnan Prefecture and start a war."

Elder Jiangg nodded. "Yes. It’s said the Daliang King has absolute faith in the Astrology Saint Master’s divinations. He practically treats them as the gospel."

"In that case, even though the Saint Demon Sect has gone too far, Daliang Country is unlikely to mobilize its army over this."

"However, the annihilation of their mission is still a major incident."

"Mansion Master, you can simply push all the blame onto the Saint Demon Sect. Besides, it’s the truth. Daliang Country must have spies in Jiangzhou, so it won’t be difficult for them to verify that our official story is the truth."

Hong Ying considered this for a moment, then nodded. "We’ll do as you say."

"Elder Jiangg, we have to find a way to contact the Saint Demon Sect Master," Hong Ying said. "Otherwise, he’ll keep acting so unpredictably. It’s impossible to deal with."

Elder Jiangg nodded slightly. "I will do my best to find the Saint Master. You can rest assured, Mansion Master."

"Mansion Master, how should we handle the propaganda within the prefecture regarding the Saint Demon Sect’s actions..." Elder Jiangg began.

Hong Ying thought for a moment. "The official statement, of course, will be to condemn the Saint Demon Sect’s actions. However, we can also subtly use the power of public opinion to guide the populace, slightly glorifying what they did. Consider it a favor to the Saint Master."

Up to this point, Hong Ying still felt the Saint Demon Sect Master was someone worth befriending.

’Figures from the Demon Dao, once you get to know them, can be quite useful if handled correctly.’

Hong Ying took out a brush and paper. "First, I’ll work out the right tone and draft a letter to the Daliang King."

Hong Ying then drew upon his considerable literary skill to write through the night. After finishing the letter, he dispatched a messenger to Daliang Country.

Keeping up appearances was essential. In the letter, Hong Ying admitted the Prefectural Yamen’s failure in defense, but he also cited the incidents with Xuansha and Lin Ye to emphasize that the Saint Demon Sect was indeed beyond the Yamen’s control—it was the most infamous Demon Dao influence in all of Song Country.

Of course, Daliang Country had already received reports from its own spies long before the messenger from Jiangnan Prefecture arrived.

As expected, the Daliang King truly did place great trust in the Astrology Saint Master’s divination.

A few days later, aside from a strong condemnation, the Daliang King chose not to take action against Jiangnan Prefecture.

He merely declared that the Saint Demon Sect had been added to Daliang Country’s kill-on-sight list.

This was meaningless, as all of the Saint Demon Sect’s forces were currently within the borders of Song Country.

Only after receiving the Daliang King’s reply did Hong Ying finally breathe a true sigh of relief.

The matter was, for the time being, concluded.

...

The next day, the citizens of Jiangzhou City awoke to explosive headline news!

The Saint Demon Sect Master led his followers and wiped out the Daliang Mission! They were refined into Buddha Heart Pills!

This should have been seen as an act of extreme, brutal slaughter.

But under the guidance of interested parties, half the people in Jiangzhou came to see it as an immensely satisfying event.

This was because the tactics used by the Daliang contestants in the Martial Arts tournament were considered too despicable. Killing with skill was one thing, but to use an external object like the Heaven-shaking Thunder to secure a cheap victory was another.

Added to that, Daliang was a foreign country, which the people of Jiangzhou naturally detested.

It is as the saying goes: a good person who does one bad thing is forever a villain, whereas a villain steeped in evil need only lay down his cleaver to become a Buddha on the spot.

With this final act capping off the Martial Arts tournament, the Saint Demon Sect left a deep impression on the people of Jiangnan Prefecture.

...

In the blink of an eye, ten days had passed since the Mid-Autumn Festival.

Within Jiangzhou City, the buzz surrounding the news of the Martial Arts tournament had not died down and continued to spread.

The reputations of the nine contestants who participated were elevated higher and higher, until they were finally granted the title of the Nine Heroes of Jiangnan.