Zepu Road.
Ever since the Zhengtong Emperor left Youlan Prefecture, he had traveled north along Zepu Road, wanting to cross the Luoxiao River and head straight for Yunzhou in the northern frontier.
Along the way, although there were 20,000 elite troops, there was only 1 Martial Saint, and there were only 4 Profound Manifestation experts. In the Eastern Divine Continent, where cultivators ran rampant, this could almost be called extremely weak combat power.
"Report!"
A lieutenant general rode a fast horse and caught up to the column. "Your Majesty, terrible news! After Zhang Jingwu led Shengyun Sect cultivators and 20,000 troops to seize Youlan Prefecture, he came straight after us!"
"Quick!"
Minister of War — Ming Qingfeng said, "Take the eastern route through Green Vine Valley!"
The 20,000 elite troops immediately changed direction.
Along the way, any city they passed would also have its spiritual grain uprooted.
This was Upstream Haichang's idea.
"Traitors and wicked officials hold sway in Chang'an!"
"His Majesty the Zhengtong Emperor has been persecuted by rebellious ministers and bandits!"
"King of Northern Liang Chen Sanshi rose in arms at His Majesty the Zhengtong Emperor's instruction, to execute immortals and purge treachery!"
There were countless such claims.
What they meant to express was nothing more than this: His Majesty was wise and sagely. It was only because there was first an emperor that there could be a King of Northern Liang's uprising.
Moreover, every time they passed a place, the Zhengtong Emperor would personally kill 2 corrupt local officials, then go into the fields and personally pull out the spiritual grain. It became known to everyone. By later on, there were even commoners weeping as they came to welcome him, and quite a few people voluntarily joined the escorting ranks.
"Upstream Lord's move is truly brilliant!"
Minister of Works — Fan Shikui praised without end.
"His Majesty's sacred virtue should naturally be shown to all under heaven."
Upstream Haichang sighed with emotion. "If we can pacify the realm, His Majesty should roam the four quarters like a dragon to reclaim the people's hearts. He who wins the people's hearts wins the realm!"
"Upstream Lord truly has the talent of a grand chancellor, only it's a pity…"
Fan Shikui sighed. "The new dynasty has only just been established, yet it's met such a catastrophe. Our futures are still uncertain!"
None of the accompanying officials did anything but sigh and lament.
They were either families that had served as officials for 4 generations, or clans with 200 years of accumulated foundation. They had finally made up their minds to come out and gamble once—only to seemingly lose everything!
"Bad news!"
"Up—up ahead, 3 enemy forces have been spotted!"
A scout rode back on a fast horse and, in his panic, tumbled straight off his mount. "My lords, we can't cross the river!"
East, west, south, and north—pursuers everywhere!
"Minister Ming!"
The Zhengtong Emperor Cao Huan turned deathly pale, nearly falling out of the carriage. "Th-this, what are we to do?! Where is Minister Fang? Quickly invite Minister Fang over to think of a solution!"
After the new dynasty was founded,
Phoenix Chick — Fang Qingyun, due to poor health, was no longer suited to long journeys and campaigning across the land, so he remained in the Youlan capital as an official. This time, with the capital fleeing, they naturally brought him along as well.
"Master Fang took medicine not long ago and is still asleep!"
"Your Majesty, don't rush. Allow this minister to see whether there's any place we can temporarily hold!"
Minister of War — Ming Qingfeng ordered his men to bring a map. He quickly chose a destination from it. "Quick! Go to Peizhou Prefecture! At the very least, we can hold for another 20 days!"
The Zhengtong Emperor asked, "20 days later, then what?"
"After 20 days, there should be other troops nearby coming to rescue the imperial carriage."
The more Ming Qingfeng spoke, the weaker his voice became.
Everyone knew very well.
The court's high-realm commanders and Guiyuan Sect Immortal Masters were all at Chibi. Without these people, no matter how many troops were dispatched, they would still collapse at a single touch.
In other words,
if the entire army at Chibi was wiped out, then the next stop—Peizhou Prefecture—would be the burial place of His Majesty the Zhengtong Emperor and all civil and military officials.
"Minister Chen, ah, Minister Chen!"
Cao Huan beat his chest and stamped his feet. "If you had listened to me back then, how could we have suffered such a defeat?!"
"Exactly!"
"If Chen Sanshi hadn't defied the imperial decree, how would things have fallen to this state today!"
"Saying this now is useless!"
Ming Qingfeng urged, "Your Majesty, everyone—hurry to Peizhou Prefecture!"
Boom—
Just at that moment,
a thunderous crash sounded overhead. The clear sky turned grim and heavy with yin in the blink of an eye, and a storm like icy arrows poured down from the clouds.
Escorted by 20,000 elite troops, the Zhengtong Emperor Cao Huan entered the pitch-black Peizhou Prefecture, like walking into a coffin.
Chibi.
Eastern Han Lake.
The Grand Commander, the White Robe, was not stationed here.
Thus, not only did the new dynasty's naval fleet retreat again and again, it also failed repeatedly to break through. In the end, they had no choice but to enter this lake, preparing to flee from Eastern Han Lake's easternmost outlet.
Very soon,
scouts sent to probe the water routes returned in small skiffs, bringing extremely dire news.
"Chief Strategist!"
"Terrible news, Chief Strategist!"
"The e-east, the outlet of Eastern Han Lake has already been blocked with huge boulders. If the ships keep going, we'll crash straight into them!"
Eastern Han Lake's outlet was narrow, only wide enough for a single large ship to pass. The lakewater also wasn't very deep—if cultivators made a move, they could block the exit in a short time.
Hearing this,
the many generals all turned ashen.
Now Eastern Han Lake was like a gigantic jar, stuffing all of them tightly inside, with no retreat at all. It truly was "catching turtles in a jar."
"Where's the Grand Commander?!"
At this critical moment, many of the court's martial generals fell into panic.
Ever since half a month ago, Chen Sanshi had vanished without a trace. It was only a few days ago that they finally received news that the Grand Commander had actually led 3,000 light cavalry along Ziwu Valley, fighting all the way to the capital, Chang'an.
But this was clearly…
not a wise choice.
Not to mention the court still had vast armies and a second-tier formation master.
Even if there was hope…
what about them?
Wasn't this the same as Chen Sanshi tossing them here and leaving them to live or die?
"Sima brother."
Guiyuan Sect cultivator Qian Qiren asked, "You said the bitter flesh stratagem was something you discussed with Chen Sanshi. If Ziwu Valley doesn't go smoothly, how are we supposed to respond? Did he tell you?"
Sima Yao stood with his blade planted on the deck, gazing toward the distant river surface, saying nothing.
"Xu Wencai."
Qian Qiren went to the strategist in feather fan and gauze cap. "After Chen Sanshi left, you've been the one holding the commander's seal and directing everything. Could it be he didn't tell us how to break out?!"
Xu Wencai stood in the cold wind, slowly pointing his feather fan to the rear, and loudly issued the order: "Since we can't get away, then don't try to run anymore. All warships, turn around and prepare to fight the enemy to the death!"
Fight to the death!
"Have you lost your mind too?"
Qian Qiren's face was full of confusion. "They have a second-tier grand array—just ramming us could smash our fleet apart. With what are we going to fight? Why not break out?!"
"Yeah, knowing full well we can't win, and still forcing ourselves to charge up—doesn't that just mean going to our deaths?"
The Guiyuan Sect cultivators and some of the generals all talked at once.
There were even quite a few cultivators who had already made plans to ditch the army and run for their lives.
"Those who disobey orders—"
Xu Wencai drew out the last word. "Behead!"
Military orders were as heavy as mountains.
For the Northern Liang troops, they would naturally obey without the slightest dissent.
The court's troops also knew they had long since lost any retreat, and could only tighten their grips on their weapons, preparing to gamble everything on this last fight.
Only the cultivators hesitated, leaning even more toward fleeing outright.
"Sir Xu."
Yan Wang — Cao Zhi walked up and asked, "You and my elder brother—do you have some strange stratagem?"
By his understanding, it was actually unlikely that the White Robe would ignore everyone's lives and insist on going to Ziwu Valley.
But the situation now had clearly reached a dead end, and he truly couldn't figure out what they were trying to do.
"Your Highness, what strange stratagem is there?"
Xu Wencai replied blandly, neither cold nor warm. "With no road behind us, aren't we left with nothing but fighting to the death?"
"Fine."
Yan Wang — Cao Zhi was half convinced and half doubtful. He naturally understood the principle that 'if a plan isn't kept secret, it leaks,' and felt that perhaps it simply couldn't be spoken aloud. So he tried to hold the cultivators back instead: "Fellow Daoists of the Guiyuan Sect, victory and defeat hinge on this single move—how can you so easily speak of retreat?"
"Cao Daoist, I'm afraid it won't be that easy for us to retreat even if we want to."
A Guiyuan Sect cultivator looked up at the sky and suddenly spoke.
Sure enough.
Right above their heads, the Shengyun Sect cultivators had completely sealed the airspace, forming battle formations with each other. They clearly had no intention of letting a single person escape—including the Guiyuan Sect cultivators!
"Going too far!"
Qian Qiren said angrily, "Junior brothers, since the Shengyun Sect won't leave us a way to live, then we can only fight them to the death!"
With Seeking Immortals Tower and the Guiyuan Sect cultivators unable to retreat, they could only accept the military order in fury.
And so,
the warships of 200,000 troops—large and small—turned their bows around, aimed at the entrance of Eastern Han Lake. Then they deployed their naval battle formations, standing in strict array, waiting for the final moment.
Luoxiao River.
The Jiangnan navy.
Rear army.
Prince of Qi and Prince of Qin rode a mengchong warship in the opposite direction from the main fleet. They docked at the pier, and after waiting about 4 hours, they saw tall sails rise in the distance. One grain-transport horse ship after another rapidly approached, then slowly reduced speed near the dock.
On the deck of the foremost horse ship stood a middle-aged man in a long robe, brimming with scholarly air. He cupped his fists from afar in salute and respectfully called toward the prince in python robe, "This subject, Shan Qunyu, pays respects to His Highness Prince of Qi of the Great Sheng Dynasty!"
"Heh, General Shan, no need for such ceremony!"
Prince of Qi went straight to the point. "The amount of provisions is fine, yes? This concerns whether our army lives or dies."
"Your Highness, rest assured."
Shan Qunyu guaranteed, "These provisions are enough for the court's 400,000-strong navy for 40 days of consumption!"
"Oh? That's actually a bit more than expected."
Prince of Qi waved a hand, signaling his soldiers to go up and take inventory.
After confirming that the provisions were sufficient, he couldn't help but beam with delight. "Good! With General Shan's provisions, the bandit scum can be crushed with a flick of the finger!"
"Your Highness."
Shan Qunyu cupped his fists. "The provisions have been delivered. I wonder what arrangements there are for this subordinate and the others?"
"Do you even need to ask?"
Prince of Qi said without hesitation. "Naturally you'll be merged into the navy!"
Not long ago, they had split off part of their troops to pursue the fleeing Jin Prince on land. They could just use this Liangshan contingent to fill the vacancy.
Shan Qunyu and the others, in order to deliver provisions as fast as possible, hadn't sailed warships—what came were basically all horse ships meant for transport. So they were assigned across the various warships.
"General Shan!"
Prince of Qi patted his shoulder. "Truly, arriving early isn't as good as arriving at the perfect time. The army is about to fight a decisive battle—your men must seize the chance to earn merits."
"This subject, Shan Qunyu, is willing to go through blades and seas of fire for the court!"
Shan Qunyu's voice rang like metal.
"Good, good!"
Prince of Qi was overjoyed. "Within the Great Sheng Dynasty, we have loyal and righteous clans like Young Lord Zhou, and beyond it, we have valiant men like General Shan. How could we fear that our dynasty will not endure for a thousand autumns and ten thousand generations? Quickly, board the ships!"
"Brothers!"
"It is time to repay the court!"
"Board the ships!"
Shan Qunyu shouted.
They had originally come from a naval background at Liangshan Marsh. Some of them were even expert divers. They did not need training at all; they could be thrown straight into battle.
Nearly 20,000 Liangshan heroes boarded the "Feiyun" and "Gaihai" tower ships wherever there were still vacancies.
"Young Lord Zhou!"
"Everything is ready!"
"Provisions and manpower are both sufficient!"
On the eve of the decisive battle, Zhou Rong completely abandoned his usual manner. He no longer drank and amused himself, no longer lounged at ease. Instead, he went without sleep day and night, and even ate almost no grain.
He asked, "Where is Chen Sanshi?"
"The last time he showed himself was at Zuixian Prefecture."
Yan Hongyuan counted on his fingers. "If you go by the days, he should be able to rush to just outside the capital in these 2 days. But just as you predicted before, Immortal Master Shan has long since been stationed in the capital, and Ling Kui of the Ling family will arrive as well. With both together, Chen Sanshi leading 3,000 light cavalry trying to charge through is basically suicide."
"Truly a perfect time."
The aged Zeng Ren swung his fist. "With Chen Sanshi absent, the bandits' will to resist should drop to rock bottom! This is exactly the time to advance!"
"Wrong."
Zhou Rong's face was grim as he said in a deep voice, "After the Ziwu Valley stratagem hits a wall, Chen Sanshi will not stay there. He should return."
Sure enough.
Only 1 hour later,
intelligence from the capital arrived.
"Chen Sanshi has withdrawn!"
"Ever since their raid on Zuixian Prefecture, there has been no further movement."
"So Immortal Master Shan dispatched a detachment to probe, and they discovered the city was empty!"
"Chen Sanshi and his 3,000 light cavalry have long since vanished without a trace!"
Yan Hongyuan snorted coldly. "Looks like he backed off when he realized it was too hard!"
"It is unlikely he would abandon his subordinates at Chibi. If the Northern Liang army is wiped out, then afterward he would be nothing but a commander with no troops, with no chance to rise again. So most likely, as Young Lord Zhou said, he will return."
Zeng Ren analyzed, "The greatest gain from this surprise attack was burning our provisions at Fuyu Prefecture. Unfortunately for them, they cannot drag it out until our provisions run dry."
A narrow victory!
Even with 400,000 troops, countless "Feiyun" and "Gaihai" ships, plus the second-tier Water-Controlling Grand Array, they had still been deadlocked until now with the Northern Liang army, which had never had naval battle experience, and even had their provisions burned.
If it had dragged on for another 2 months,
the situation might have reversed. A collapse like a landslide was not impossible!
Even with victory already decided, thinking about it still made their hearts pound in lingering fear.
Chen Sanshi truly could not be left alive any longer!
"Young Lord Zhou, you need not worry."
Qiu Xin of the Shengyun Sect said, "Even if Chen Sanshi returns alone, it will not help."
"Immortal Master Qiu is mistaken."
Nie Yuan spoke. "Do you think Young Lord Zhou is worried about my junior brother returning? Quite the opposite. If he kept attacking Chang'an, then we would need to be wary. But withdrawing from Zuixian Prefecture proves that he has no more moves left. He can only come back and fight us at Chibi."
Just as he said,
after all the intelligence had been finally organized and consolidated, Zhou Rong - the sole surviving heir of the Zhou family, the first seat of Qilin Pavilion of the Great Sheng Dynasty - rose abruptly from the command seat without the slightest remaining concern, his voice ringing like iron:
"Pass the order to the three armies!
"Within 8 days, arrive at Eastern Han Lake!
"Slay the rebels!"
With provisions delivered and soldiers complete,
the 400,000-strong navy no longer needed to wait for anything. Under the chained iron cables, one waterborne fortress after another began to advance, setting out toward the direction the rebel army had fled.
The Battle of Chibi, which had lasted a full 3 months, finally reached its last moment.
Eastern Han Lake.
The new dynasty's navy had been trapped here for 9 days already. Though they had provisions aboard their ships, they could not move. They could only brace themselves against the already sealed exit, facing the entrance to the great lake - like prey driven into a corner by hunters with no way to retreat, able only, at death's door, to bare not-so-sharp claws and fangs and prepare a final resistance.
"Boom!"
Lightning interwove as thunder roared, and torrential rain poured down. The Luoxiao River's water level kept surging, and even the surface of Eastern Han Lake was stirred into raging waves, as if it were an endless ocean with a tsunami about to erupt.
"Strategist!"
"The enemy has already entered Eastern Han Lake from the mouth of the lake. In at most 2 hours, they will crash into us head-on!"
On the central command ship,
Xu Wencai, Cao Zhi, and the other high-ranking generals and cultivators gathered on the violently rocking deck. Hearing the scouts deliver the final "ultimatum," they fell into dead silence.
In their view, they could see one pitch-black giant beast after another emerge from the distant water, swimming toward them while brandishing claws and fangs. With each movement, the beasts churned up towering waves, twisted the heavens and earth into a different color, and seemed to nearly overturn Eastern Han Lake itself!
When the distance had closed to about 5 kilometers, one "Feiyun" and "Gaihai" tower ship after another, flying the "Great Sheng" banners and the "Zhou" command flag, began to blaze with spiritual light. Arc-shaped water walls rose across their surfaces. The pelting rain struck them and immediately merged into them, once again boosting the already unbreakable second-tier formation's power. From afar, the water walls had already turned into waterfalls.
The court's fleet of giant beasts crawled forward behind the waterfalls.
They were not fast, but they were exceptionally steady. In the raging waves, they did not sway in the slightest. Wherever they passed, even the fish, shrimp, turtles, and crabs on the lakebed were ground up and slaughtered to nothing.
Above the curtain of night,
a deep-blue heavenly thunderbolt cut across, lighting up the boundless darkness and the lake bristling with killing intent, illuminating Xu Wencai's figure with feather fan and gauze cap. Under the gaze of the myriad soldiers, his black-and-white feather fan lifted high - then slammed down.
"Thump thump thump!"
War drums thundered, battle banners danced.
In the end, the prey trapped in Eastern Han Lake still charged first toward the pitch-black giant beasts, waging a true cornered-beast struggle.
"Voom!"
Mana and spiritual light flared one after another.
Cultivators on both sides each brought out their own artifacts. They rose into the air and reached the cloud-choked skies above Eastern Han Lake. Before the two armies truly clashed, they began dueling spells first.
Seeking Immortals Tower's master, Cui Zichen, possessed a heavenly-grade earth spiritual root. Relying on the supreme treasure within Seeking Immortals Tower, he had long since cultivated to Qi Refining perfection stage. Without ever taking a Foundation Establishment Pill, he had reached the same Qi Refining 16th layer realm as Li family's Li He.
He hovered steady in midair, about 330 meters up, looking down at the chaos on the river's surface. His hands moved as he formed seals, and an orange-yellow formation seal appeared before his chest. His natal flying sword floated within it, constantly drawing in its master's mana. Only when it accumulated to a critical threshold did it suddenly erupt and shoot out.
And its target was the Shengyun Sect cultivator Qiu Xin.
Qiu Xin had just exchanged a blow with a Guiyuan Sect cultivator when he sensed a sneak attack blasting in from the flank. He hurriedly rechanneled his mana, controlling his natal magic treasure, the Hunyuan Mace, to smash out and try to knock the flying sword aside.
But Cui Zichen's flying sword, though it looked slender, contained mountain-like force. Its mana was deep and inexhaustible, and Qiu Xin was defending in haste. Almost in an instant, he lost control of his artifact. Under the tremendous impact, he spat a mouthful of blood, and his body plunged straight down into the lake.
Just as Cui Zichen was about to press his advantage, he saw martial cultivators on the lake's surface—each clearly wearing long robes and holding flexible swords—stepping across the water as they came. Their bodies were light as swallows, like dragonflies touching the surface.
Every one of them was a True Force Early Stage martial artist. Not a single one grew careless just because they had numbers. As they sprinted, they formed an eerie formation, and every move and every stance could draw upon the power of great rivers and vast waters.
Especially the woman at the formation's core—one casual sword swing of hers raised towering waves over 30 meters high. The True Force within them was like a flood dragon bursting from the sea, crushing down toward Seeking Immortals Tower's master.
Cui Zichen condensed mana and drove his flying sword to stab into the water dragon. At first it split the flow like a hot knife through butter, but after only a brief moment, the thick-earth mana coating the sword dimmed to nothing. Then he lost control of it; it spun away 100 paces and embedded itself into the deck of a warship.
The water dragon surged forward without slowing.
He hurriedly used spells, talismans, and artifacts to form 3 barriers before him, yet before the water dragon they only held for a short time before shattering like glass, exploding layer by layer.
After all, there were 7 True Force martial artists!
In terms of raw combat power, True Force Early Stage was equivalent to late-stage or perfection-stage Qi Refining, not to mention that 7 people joining together in formation could be said to have no equal below Foundation Establishment.
Even though Cui Zichen cultivated the Thick Earth Art, and his mana should have restrained water-attribute power, he could not hold under the encirclement. His back slammed hard onto the water's surface, as solid as rock. Blood seeped from the corner of his mouth. He hurriedly pinched seals and cast spells, unleashing several life-saving trump cards. Only at the last instant—just before the Ling family martial cultivators' flexible swords came to claim his life—did he abruptly accelerate, shooting back into the sky. He was clearly already badly wounded.
And it was not only him.
The other Guiyuan Sect and Seeking Immortals Tower disciples, and even martial artists like Sima Yao, were all mired in bitter combat as well.
Meanwhile, the giant warships pushing the Water-Controlling Grand Array were drawing closer and closer to their fleet. From high above, it looked like a boulder crashing into an egg, as though one could already picture the latter breaking apart.
"Break out!"
Qian Qiren came up beside him. "Daoist Cui, the defeat is set! If we perfection-stage cultivators join forces, maybe 2 or 3 of us can still cut our way out alive!"
Cui Zichen wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth with his rain-soaked right hand, then flew back to the central command ship, preparing to bring Prince Cao Zhi with him in a breakout escape.
But at that moment, Sima Yao—bathing in blood as he fought atop a sea-hawk skiff, like a feral wolf-demon—lifted his blade and shouted, "The Commander has returned! The enemy is defeated! Why would you retreat?!"
The enemy is defeated?!
"Sima Yao?!"
Cui Zichen reacted at once. "What exactly have you been hiding from us?!"
"Daoist Cui, do not blame me!"
Sima Yao, in his old-wolf-like form, bared a mouthful of fangs. "If a matter is not kept tight, it will leak!"
"Commander!"
"The Commander really came back!"
"Look!"
Tens of thousands of soldiers tilted their faces to the sky.
Within the pitch-black clouds, a fiery arc wreathed in rolling blue smoke rushed in. In just a few blinks, it reached the skies above Eastern Han Lake—a figure in black armor holding a flame-wreathed long spear.
Who else could it be but Chen Sanshi?
"Chen the Hunter!"
On the Jiangnan navy's great ship, Prince of Qi hid behind the Water-Controlling Grand Array and spat curses as he pointed at the shadow in the sky. "You really dare to come back! Why not submit to death on your own? The court might, for the sake of your past merits, spare your family's lives! Otherwise, if you insist on going your own way, your 9 clans will surely be exterminated!"
Within the clouds, Chen Sanshi treated his words as if he had not heard. He spoke slowly. The voice that came from beneath his ferocious mask drowned out thunder and crushed over the roaring waves.
"Brothers from Jiangnan!
"I, Chen Sanshi, do not like slaughter!
"Nor am I a war-mad man!
"Now your defeat is already set!
"So hurry and shut down the Water-Controlling Grand Array, disembark, and surrender—so that Chibi will not be drenched in blood!"
Does not like slaughter?
Hurry and surrender?!
After just those few lines, the Jiangnan navy's soldiers felt dazed, utterly unable to understand what he was even saying.
A total reversal of heaven and earth!
Right now, was it not the 200,000 rebels who were at the end of the road, about to be ground to dust? How could the white-robed commander be telling them to surrender instead?
"Hahahahaha—"
Prince of Qi roared with laughter. "Chen the Hunter! Do you think this prince and these soldiers were frightened into adulthood? You are cornered, and you still want to bluff?!"
"Chen Sanshi!"
Zhou Rong stood with one hand behind his back, looking up at the black clouds as he called out loudly. "Since things have come to this, you still insist on dragging the Northern Liang army to be buried with you? Why not bear the responsibility yourself? Then I might respect you a little more!"
"Young Lord Zhou."
Chen Sanshi held his spear as he hovered in midair, flames coiling around him. The rain poured down, yet before it even touched his armor it evaporated completely. His voice was unhurried. "You possess great talent. Why sell your life for a benighted court? Better to abandon darkness for light and come under my Northern Liang army's banner. Together, we will restore this world to clear, bright order."
"Heh."
Zhou Rong sneered. "Chen Sanshi, rebellion is rebellion. Why dress it up in such grand and righteous words!"
As they spoke, the warships of both armies did not stop advancing.
Thunder rolled and winds and waves raged, nearly deafening—yet in this instant, everything in the world seemed to fall into utter silence, like a living ancient painting.
Only a single sigh rang through heaven and earth.
"Enough.
"Your lives—Chen will take them."
Over 33.3 kilometers up in the air.
"Army, form the formation!"
Chen Sanshi enunciated each word. "Eight Gates Xun Wind Forest-Bone Formation—"
With that order, on the Northern Liang army's ships, one green banner after another was raised. The great ships did not move, holding their original formation. The medium and small warships, however, began to shift positions with agility. On every small boat, each soldier had a small banner tucked behind the neck or at the waist.
Before the battle at Chibi began, the navy had already drilled many different formations in advance, naturally including Heavenly Book formations.
And rapid formation deployment, adapting on the fly, had long since become the most basic quality of the Northern Liang army.
What was more, before the fighting started, Xu Wencai had already arranged the formation's general layout according to the "Eight Gates Xun Wind Forest-Bone Formation." At this moment it was only a minor adjustment, and it was completed in almost 15 minutes.
The cultivators in the sky only needed to lower their heads to see that on Eastern Han Lake's storm-lashed surface, an Eight Gates formation made of ship after ship had appeared. Green banners whipped and danced, like a precisely engineered Eight Trigrams mechanism.
Threads of mysterious qi poured out from the Mystic Pearl, then turned into wisps of clear wind that fell with perfect accuracy onto every warship.
In an instant, the wind stopped.
Eastern Han Lake's surface, which had been churning with wind and waves, suddenly became unnaturally calm, as if everything had snapped to a halt. The waves above collapsed straight down, the torrential rain no longer swayed, and every ship—from the massive "Feiyun" tower ships to the smallest "skiff" boats—stopped shaking entirely, as though all were moored on dead water.
The lake's calm lasted for about 10 breaths before a cold wind finally rose again. Only, the wind's direction had changed—from the original northwest wind to an east wind!
Like how a martial artist must store power before delivering a full-force strike, the lake's brief stillness seemed to be preparation for a greater tempest. Everything became even more violent.
A gale
burst forth!
Waves
rose to the heavens!
Between heaven and earth, a terrifying hurricane suddenly howled. If the whole Eastern Han Lake were a bowl, then at this moment it was almost as if the bowl were being tipped over. The enormous waves rose higher and higher, until they blotted out the sky!
Against the wind, even with the Water-Controlling Grand Array's support, the Jiangnan navy's fleet suddenly slowed by half!
In contrast, the Northern Liang navy now had the wind at its back. Pushed forward by a raging gale laced with mysterious qi, their soldiers no longer needed to row at all—relying solely on sails, they could burst forth with astonishing speed.
And because the wind was so fierce, all the torrential rain, before it could even fall, was blown into one wind-water arrow after another, blanketing the sky as it hammered toward the Jiangnan navy's fleet.
"Another Heavenly Book formation!"
Zeng Ren felt the ships' speed noticeably slow. Watching the gigantic waves slam against the hulls, he said with both shock and fury, "Good thing our army has the Water-Controlling Grand Array, and with the chained ships minimizing the impact—otherwise we really might have capsized and died!"
"Just a trifling demon wind—what is there to fear?!"
Prince of Qi personally strode to the deck's edge and pounded the war drum heavily, his voice thunderously loud. "Kill the rebels, kill the rebels!!!"
"An east wind…"
Amid the chaos, Zhou Rong watched the rain-arrows, driven by the gale, strike the Water-Controlling Grand Array without end. A nameless unease rose in his chest. "Why an east wind?"
"For Zhou Grand Governor to say that—"
Yan Hongyuan spoke as if it were obvious. "If the rebels want to use demon wind against us, of course they'll make us sail into it. But it doesn't mean much. Our army isn't afraid at all. They're just making a final struggle. Everything is over."
"That is exactly the problem. This wind is fierce, but it has extremely limited effect on our navy. If it's useless, then why do this at all?"
Zhou Rong rubbed the jade thumb ring on his thumb, his brows locked tight and his expression grave.
Under this east wind, if a great fire were ignited, the consequences would be unthinkable!
And recalling what Chen Sanshi had said earlier, it did not look like mere bluster no matter how one looked at it.
Could it be… they still intended to use fire attack?!
"Quick!"
Zhou Rong felt more and more that something was wrong. He shouted toward the lake, "What are you all standing around for?! Kill Chen Sanshi! Kill him!!!"
In truth, the Ling family's martial cultivators had already struck.
They took out a large quantity of spirit stones provided by Shengyun Sect. With the heaven-sent downpour, the Guishui Demon-Slaying Formation's power increased by another 20%. One after another, murky water tornadoes wrapped with silt and sand—driven by the swing of flexible swords—turned into vicious flood-dragons that swept in from all directions.
Only to see Chen Sanshi hovering above the water. His Dragon Gall Bright Silver Spear became a fire dragon circling around him. Behind him spread a dense carpet of purple sword-blades, while thick-earth shields radiating spiritual light surrounded him.
And in his hand, there was an additional heavy, unsharpened broad saber. Residual baleful aura clung to its surface, entwined with continuously gathering fire-aspect True Force, constantly evaporating the water vapor in the air. He swept it sideways behind him by half a body-length. With True Force condensed, the blade trembled and hummed without ceasing, almost like a dragon's roar. He stayed perfectly still like that, until the vicious flood-dragons were only inches from him—then he savagely chopped out with a single strike.
One slash fell, carving a violent arc of flame across the dim lake surface, directly cleaving every vicious flood-dragon to nothing.
"Rumble—!"
As the two currents of True Force collided, enormous waves surged up centered on them. Lake water blasted into the sky, forming a massive wall of water stretched across the lake's surface.
Before Ling family's senior sister Ling Ling could move on her own, she saw a spark of fire faintly flare behind the murky wall of water. Then the surroundings abruptly became scorching hot, as if in an instant they had gone from deep winter to blazing summer, or as if standing at a volcano's mouth. Below was no longer cold lake water, but searing magma. When she raised her eyes again, she saw a mountain-like giant blade already only a single step away from her!
A water-aspect breathing method was unleashed. The spirit power stored within her body circulated through her meridians layer upon layer, then through the Jingshen Shrine within her body, transforming into water-aspect True Force. It merged with this torrential rain, and with the Guishui Demon-Slaying Formation.
Ling Ling lifted her sword—and yet, with that lift, she raised the whole Eastern Han Lake and smashed it together with raging flames.
"Boom!"
The muffled impact rang out at the same time as the thunder in the sky.
With a single exchange,
Chen Sanshi retreated more than 100 meters.
Ling Ling, meanwhile, only stabilized her body after being blasted back nearly 330 meters. On her glistening, water-beaded face, her expression grew ever more solemn.
White Robe…
He had gotten stronger again!
Ever since the Battle of Chibi began,
every time they clashed,
Chen Sanshi would fight them head-on.
Yet the Ling family could do nothing to him.
On the contrary, by the end, this fellow was treating them completely as sparring partners—his cultivation improving faster with each passing day!
But even knowing that, Ling Ling still had no choice but to roll up lake water again, maintain the formation's structure, and continue the unending siege with her clansmen, surrounding and attacking White Robe.
On the lake surface amid wind and waves, Chen Sanshi, clad in ancient, austere black armor, stood atop a flying artifact. Spear in one hand and saber in the other, he responded methodically to the siege of a full 7 opponents. The crisp clang of colliding weapons and the explosive booms of clashing True Force rang without end.
Their exchanges grew faster and faster until, in the end, they became afterimages. Even Qi Refining Perfection cultivators could barely see their movements clearly—only able to make out, within layer upon layer of giant waves and rolling blue-black smoke, the constant interlacing flashes of river-spanning swordlight and flame.
In the midst of it, on the right side of Chen Sanshi's spine, a mass of white light grew brighter and brighter, until it was like a blazing white sun!
Right Kidney God!
It bore no other form-name, its name was Xiang Tawu, its courtesy name Daoyu, 11.7 centimeters in length, wearing white or black!
[Technique: Dragon Scripture (True Force Early Stage)]
[Progress: 437/500]
[Middle Eight Mirror Gods—7 opened!]
"Boom!"
Another saber strike fell.
This time,
it directly smashed Ling family's senior sister Ling Ling down into the lake. Only after 2 breaths did she step on a whirlpool and rise back to the surface.
Everyone present was a martial cultivator.
How could they not understand?
This man had opened another Mirror God in the middle of battle.
He was truly using them to cultivate!
It was nothing short of a colossal humiliation!
For a moment, every Ling family member was furious, each bursting out with the limits of their entire life.
Yet even so… it was futile!
After he opened another Mirror God, they could clearly feel White Robe's True Force grow markedly stronger.
Even with the Guishui Demon-Slaying Formation's reinforcement, it was no longer the Ling family suppressing him… but him alone suppressing all 7 of them!
"Boom! Boom!"
With every saber falling, with every spear thrusting out, his True Force grew a notch more flourishing!
After 10 rounds, the Ling family's protective True Force was all shattered, and searing flames had already scorched great swaths of their flesh.
"Hold on!"
Fourth Uncle Ling Qia endured the agonizing pain from half his face, charred and blistered. Watching the two armies' warships about to smash into each other, he said with forced calm, "Once the other daoist friends free up their hands and we form the complete 'Guishui Demon-Slaying Formation,' we can still kill him!"
When the two fleets collided, the Jiangnan navy, backed by the Water-Controlling Grand Array, practically didn't need to do anything—just crashing into them would win the battle!
"You won't need to wait anymore."
Chen Sanshi naturally saw what they were planning. His tone was calm, as if stating something that had already happened. "From this day on, there will no longer be an Eastern Han Lake on the map."
"What did you say?!"
Under the effects of the "Eight Gates Xun Wind Forest-Bone Formation," the Jiangnan navy's upwind advance became more and more arduous, but the Northern Liang army's vessels—large and small alike—became as nimble as swimming fish.
To the killing drumbeats, both sides were about to collide.
On the central command ship, the vast majority of commanders had already left the Water-Controlling Grand Array's protection and gone out to fight.
Commander Zhou Rong and Prince of Qi remained to direct the battle. Aboard the ship, most were ordinary soldiers—especially archers—who were continuously loosing arrows outward. Every arrow that passed through the Water-Controlling Grand Array gained a slight boost of water-aspect power, enough to pierce armor.
With the formation's reinforcement, even ordinary soldiers had a chance to kill a Meridian-Connecting Lieutenant General.
"Zhou Grand Governor, why the long face?!"
Prince of Qi held a bow, battle intent surging.
"East wind!"
"Fire attack!"
To deal with their army, there was only one path—fire attack.
From the very beginning, it was an open hand.
Zhou Rong understood that as well, so he had long since made all kinds of preventative measures. He had thought it foolproof, yet the east wind now blowing made him restless.
To ignite this fire, it not only had to be lit from within, it had to "bloom everywhere"—all ships catching at once in an instant, leaving them no chance to separate the vessels.
So… how would this fire be lit?
While he was lost in thought, a strange face holding a steel trident appeared at the edge of his vision. With a casual motion, the man tossed a torch onto the deck. The orange-yellow flame, upon touching a silver needle, abruptly turned crimson red.