In the private room of an inn, Ji Yuan nodded slightly with a thoughtful expression as he listened to Zheng Zhiwei's deductions.
The other party's analysis was logical and indeed fit the current situation in Chongyuan Prefecture. As he had said, the rebels' best option was to concentrate their forces and attack the prefecture capital.
Otherwise, no matter where the rebels attacked, they would inevitably face attacks from other directions.
Rather than being attacked from the rear and passively enduring assaults from the prefecture capital and the Shenxuan Sect, it was better to concentrate all their strength and directly decide the outcome head-on.
"It seems we need to hurry and find Zhao Yuansong and the others before the rebels make any moves, and then take them home," Ji Yuan said solemnly.
As for what would happen in Chongyuan Prefecture afterwards, that was not something they needed to worry about.
If they possessed the cultivation of great powers, immense magical power, and divine abilities, then they could naturally care about the world and its people.
But with only a cultivation of the second or third realm, harboring unrealistic ambitions would be rather overestimating their own capabilities.
The next morning, Ji Yuan and the others, after resting for half a day and a night, quietly left the county town.
They completely abandoned their horses, traversing mountains and crossing rivers, not hesitating to expend their own magical power, heading towards the central part of Fengming Commandery.
Meanwhile, Zhao Yuansong and his group, having successfully entered Fengming Commandery aboard a smuggler's cargo ship.
They were currently disguised as laborers, transporting goods from the ship's hold to the warehouses on the dock.
They spent the entire day doing all sorts of heavy labor. Several times they tried to find an opportunity to escape, but this place seemed to be a rebel stronghold, with cultivators and martial artists patrolling everywhere.
Zhao Yuansong and the others even sensed powerful auras above the third realm in multiple directions.
This made the five of them hesitant to act rashly, and they could only do their best to play their disguised roles, becoming one of the hundreds of laborers.
It wasn't until near dusk that a group of laborers finished their work and walked out of the dock in large numbers.
Zhao Yuansong and the others naturally mingled with the crowd, suppressing all their auras and magical power, making them appear like ordinary mortals.
After leaving the dock, they did not immediately break away from the group but instead went with some laborers they had gotten acquainted with to a nearby town for drinks and meat.
When the moon hung high in the sky and all the laborers had returned to their lodgings to sleep, the divine sense that had been enveloping everyone quietly withdrew.
After another half an incense stick's worth of time, Zhao Yuansong finally got up from the communal bed and signaled the other four to leave together under the cover of night.
Along the way, they dared not walk on the main roads, hiding as much as possible in the mountains and forests, only occasionally approaching towns to gather information.
However, no matter how careful they were, their whereabouts were still discovered. After confirming that they were not cultivators from Fengming Commandery and did not belong to the Rebirth Tower, a battle was inevitably fought.
Although the enemies' cultivation realms were inferior to theirs, their current state made it difficult to deal with them.
Their magical power had not fully recovered, they had lost their respective magical artifacts, and each of them was injured. In the end, they were unable to eliminate all their enemies.
As a result, Zhao Yuansong and the others' whereabouts were transmitted to the Rebirth Tower and the rebels, who treated them as spies dispatched by the imperial court and launched a pursuit and encirclement.
In such a situation, they could only fight and flee. Zhao Yuansong even found an opportunity to pay a heavy price to acquire more resources from the enemies they killed.
It was precisely with the help of the limited number of pills, spirit stones, and other items that they were able to barely persevere, yet two disciples still tragically perished during their escape.
In the dead of night, hiding in a dilapidated abandoned village, the three finally found a moment of respite.
"Junior Brother Zhao, you shouldn't worry about us anymore," a disciple suddenly said, a hint of helplessness appearing on his haggard face.
Another person by the campfire also said after a moment of thought, "We know you must have obtained the遗物 (yíwù -遗物) of Daoist Chixin, and are the one with the greatest fortune among us all."
"For the path ahead, please forgive us for not being able to accompany you."
"Without the two of us as burdens, your chances of returning alive alone are greater!"
The two inner disciples exchanged glances. They had already discussed their thoughts and were willing to stay behind to divert the pursuers' attention, giving Zhao Yuansong a greater chance to escape.
The situation was now very clear. Their injuries were getting worse, and their magical power was only about twenty to thirty percent.
They lacked pills and other spiritual items for healing and restoring magical power, nor did they have magical artifacts to protect themselves or fight enemies. They were all relying on Zhao Yuansong's desperate protection.
However, if this continued, in the end, no one would be able to escape, and they would all be caught by the cultivators of the Rebirth Tower and the rebels.
In that case, it would be better to stay and hold off the enemy, divert the pursuers' attention, and allow Zhao Yuansong, who had obtained the treasures of Daoist Chixin and received greater fortune, to escape.
This was the most beneficial choice for them and would bring the greatest benefit to the sect behind them.
"I am not a saint, and I also fear death," Zhao Yuansong said slowly and in a deep voice, looking at the campfire in front of him. "But to abandon my fellow disciples and escape alone..."
"I cannot do it!"
"We live together, or we die together!"
He looked up at the two, his eyes revealing his resolve.
Upon hearing this, the eyes of the two disciples welled up, and their hearts were filled with mixed emotions.
"Good!"
Finally, they nodded heavily. Since that was the case, they would live and die together!
Just as their voices fell, Zhao Yuansong's expression suddenly changed, and he immediately turned his head to look into the distance.
At the same time, the other two struck out with their magical power, extinguishing the campfire on the ground and stirring up the surrounding sand to cover it.
Then they quietly hid in the abandoned houses, concealed in the dark corners, casting their vigilant gazes towards the village entrance in the distance.
A troop of people was slowly approaching, most of them wearing crude leather armor. They should be rebels from a nearby town.
Seeing this, one of the disciples looked over, asking if they should kill them all.
Although the three of them were in a very poor state, killing a troop of less than twenty ordinary soldiers would not be too difficult.
And on these rebels, although there would be no elixirs, there would be basic wound medicine, which could somewhat alleviate their injuries.
Moreover, food and water were also very important for the three of them.
However, Zhao Yuansong shook his head. While it would not be difficult to eliminate this troop of soldiers at this moment, the disappearance of a troop would surely attract the attention of other rebels.
At that time, their whereabouts would naturally be exposed as a result.
For the sake of a little wound medicine, food, and water, exposing their whereabouts was simply not worth the trouble.