Talismans were categorized into many forms based on their appearance. Usually, those resembling a piece of yellow paper were the most basic talismans, or the least powerful within the same tier.

Whereas scroll-like talismans were all above the fourth-tier in grade, and within the same grade, scroll-formed talismans were generally the most powerful.

Of course, this was just a general scenario.

If you happened to have a piece of the second layer of abdominal skin from a True Dragon and casually crafted a talisman from it, it would undoubtedly be stronger than other forms of talismans of the same tier.

The Void Escape Talisman, especially in scroll form, could only be crafted by a handful of highly skilled and powerful individuals in Daqian.

Moreover, they had never been openly sold, and anyone who possessed one for self-defense held a status high enough that even princes without sufficient standing didn't have it.

Uncle Fu, naturally, couldn't have imagined that a high-level member of the Evil Dao would have such vast divine abilities as to acquire a Void Escape Scroll.

Upon recognizing this item, he immediately abandoned the chase.

Escaping into the void, it allowed one to traverse thousands of miles in mere breaths.

Most importantly, even the user wouldn't know where they would be teleported to.

This item was purely for saving one's life, and its drawbacks sometimes turned into advantages.

Afu waited less than an incense stick's time before seeing several Flying Boats arriving from the sky.

The Western Desolation General stood at the bow, laughing heartily.

"Afu, I was just thinking, sensing some Demonic Qi rising, wondering if you couldn't resist making a move... um..."

The Western Desolation General hadn't finished his sentence when he saw the ground covered with scattered remains.

Looking at Afu again, seeing him calm and composed, with no trace of Demonic Qi about him and a genial demeanor, it clearly didn't resemble the state of being Devilic.

"These people might have known of your arrival in advance, fled upon hearing the wind, and tried to silence me, so I was forced to take action and slay them. Unfortunately, one of the Evil Dao managed to escape..."

"No matter, no matter..." The Western Desolation General laughed awkwardly, shaking his head repeatedly.

Given that Afu could maintain such a demeanor after acting, either the rumors were false, or Afu's injuries had recovered.

He felt the latter possibility was evidently much higher.

Regardless, he didn't want to bother over who had taken a few lives.

His achievements this time were already more than abundant, substantial.

The West Desolate Army had deployed a few Flying Boats to carry troops, specifically to speed up the operation and prevent the apparent target from escaping.

Otherwise, it wouldn't seem credible to have seized the territory without wiping out the White Sun Evil Dao's base.

This was of utmost importance. Afu had been monitoring here all this time, fearing these people would relocate their base.

Letting a few people escape wasn't a concern; overturning the main camp was most crucial.

"Advance!"

"For any resistance, kill without mercy!"

The soldiers descended from the Flying Boats and surrounded the White Sun Evil Cult's base from all sides. The Flying Boats scattered, patrolling the distance to ensure the Evil Dao found no other exits to flee.

Faced with the descending soldiers, the resistance from the White Sun Evil Cult was fierce, with the mesmerizing chanting turning to mumbling whispers, eroding the will of the soldiers in an attempt to confuse them.

However, all the soldiers brought by the Western Desolation General were Hundred Battle Elite Soldiers, exuding intense Weapon Killing qi-blood, each one having crawled out from piles of corpses, their accumulated evil spirits surging to the sky.

The determination of these Hundred Battle Soldiers was overwhelmingly dominant over most cultivators.

Even if the White Sun Holy Mother personally acted to brainwash and confuse, it wouldn't work.

Without their most adept means, the outcome was inevitable.

Blood splattered; the screams were incessant.

Liu Xin had already fled, and all his confidants had perished miserably. The remaining in the base were just some priests or lower-level Evil Dao members, many of whom were somewhat brainwashed.

Or for those hesitant to surrender, they died miserably.

The soldiers didn't hesitate; any signs of resistance, without immediate submission, were instantly slain.

An hour later, not a single Evil Dao remained standing in the vast mountain-belly space.

A large number of brainwashed mortal believers were escorted out, but only half survived from a month ago.

Some had been ruined by the Evil Dao, including those who had witnessed the backlash against the White Sun Holy Mother or knew her plight—they were all silenced in advance.

Some had completely lost themselves, attacking the West Desolate Army's soldiers in madness, only to be killed on the spot.

Now, even with just half left, there remained nearly ten thousand.

The task took an hour purely because of these mortals.

A mere glance at the dense crowd of mortals gave the West Desolate Army a headache, prompting a quick wave to their personal soldiers standing nearby.

"Quick, call our Assistant Minister over. My part is done; the rest is his problem."

"Did you find that White Sun Demoness?"

"My Lord, she wasn't found. Perhaps, she escaped," the personal soldiers promptly replied.

They had nearly overturned every stone, leaving no corner unchecked, validating every living being with the magical treasures they brought.

None matched the features of the White Sun Holy Mother.

Any slightly attractive woman, even mortals, was validated thrice.

Every Evil Dao corpse was thoroughly picked out for validation.

"Previously, I encountered a high-level from the Evil Cult with a Void Escape Talisman," Afu added beside him.

Since even an Evil Dao priest had it, the White Sun Holy Mother naturally should have it, or even superior life-saving techniques.

The Western Desolation General didn't pay too much attention, as the escape of a White Sun Holy Mother wasn't much of a threat. Her foundation was entirely uprooted, and she'd die if she showed herself.

His mission this time was already perfect.

Though the Western Desolation General didn't care much, Afu couldn't help but harbor a bit of concern, slightly regretting not taking a bit of risk, going all out to capture or kill the White Sun Holy Mother alive.

A day later, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue with a group arrived leisurely.

These mortals surely had to be settled.

As usual, those willing to work and comply with arrangements would have food; those who preferred starving whilst continuing to chant and defy arrangements had the freedom to do so.

After a day of fear, freezing, and starvation, it was enough for these believers to regain some reason.

Nearly ten thousand were then dispersed and assigned to nearby small towns.

They would be allocated land, food, and seeds, and after the spring would be directed to begin agricultural activities.

Among the mortals, a grotesque figure in a long robe and hood, one hand supporting an elderly woman, trudged painstakingly through the snow with the crowd.

No matter what people might think, they couldn't fathom that the White Sun Holy Mother was nothing like the records.

One was of unparalleled beauty, born with a mesmerizing allure, every move like that of a deity-descended celestial maiden, a formidable practitioner.

Another was a man marred with poisonous sores, exuding stench, a gravely ill mortal.

The White Sun Holy Mother cast a cold glance backward.

Liu Xin fled with his men, and among the remaining believers, all who knew of his situation were diehard loyalists.

Diehards would never surrender, and now they were all dead.

Even those commoners who had cared for him, who knew the truth, were all wiped out.

His current appearance was the most perfect disguise, allowing him to leave here easily without having to flee desperately with Liu Xin.

Being relegated back to a mortal existence wasn't without benefits; now he could slowly rebuild from the very base and tread paths he hadn't walked in ages.

...

"Uncle Fu, you went out for procurement negotiations, did you settle them?"

"Settled. Found a few new places for materials. Although the price was a bit high, considering Dazhen's civil strife, it's actually pretty decent."

Uncle Fu replied cheerily.

Yu Ziqing quietly curled his lips. Uncle Fu's return meant that the White Sun Evil Cult's emergence had been squashed.

It made sense; the White Sun Evil Cult wielded greater influence and followers in the west, and the West Desolate Army had entered Dazhen from the west.

Now, in Xinyu City, in the east where he resided, it had already been firmly secured by Dali; it was no wonder that the White Sun Evil Cult was doomed.

The two chatted casually as they walked toward the study.

Once in the study, Uncle Fu sighed softly.

"The Western Desolation General personally led the troops, so there's surely no issue. The White Sun Evil Cult's bases were entirely uprooted.

However, in the end, the White Sun Holy Mother wasn't found, and a priest escaped, later confirmed to be a High Priest.

Ultimately, there were some flaws."

"It's actually quite good. Without offerings, the White Sun Holy Mother can't stir up any waves; conversely, not dying makes her circumstances potentially harder," Yu Ziqing reassured.

He could tell that Uncle Fu truly detested those Evil Dao practitioners.

Those of Dali were more inclined to care more about military achievements and territories...

At this stage, Dali's goals were essentially accomplished.

Subsequent pursuit tasks would supposedly fall onto the Shadow Department.

This land had already become Dali's territory. To completely assimilate it, there would certainly be a large number of Shadow Department spies active here for some time.

And Su Li, should also be going back.

The traitors within the Shadow Department wouldn't allow Su Li to keep operating here.

Indeed, the following day, Su Li came to bid farewell to Yu Ziqing.

"Brother Qing, I have to go back.

Quite a few from the Shadow Department have arrived, I also reported the previous matters, saying I have been healing at Gu Family's Zhenxing Trading Company.

Today, I received an order to return and report."

Yu Ziqing glanced at Su Li's shoulder, which was empty, yet new flesh had begun to grow. To re-grow an arm, it would take quite some time indeed.

"Go back, just remember to take care.

As long as you're alive, there's everything else; dead, there's nothing left.

You'd best find a fundamental Body Refinement Dharma Method that suits you, practice a bit, even just getting started, to build some Qi-blood, you'd recover a bit faster.

As for the rest, I won't say it. You obviously know more than I do."

"Brother Qing, take care! For anything, just send a message through someone."