Chapter 338. Zhuge Shengji (1)

Zhou Xuchuan gathered the leaders of the Guizhou Army and explained the mechanism. Gao Hun from the Gold Will Merchants assisted him.

As the troops reorganized and resupplied, Zhou Xuchuan spent his spare time cultivating.

"Senior Brother, I can’t believe you’re training with your fists instead of your sword... It’s been a while. Are you practicing the Plum Blossom Fist?" Luo Xiaoyue asked, approaching during his training.

The Plum Blossom Fist was a basic technique all disciples learned before they were even allowed to wield a sword. However, it wasn't unusual to see the disciples still practicing it.

Sometimes, many disciples would practice it to organize their thoughts or to relax their bodies.

"A little."

Zhou Xuchuan greeted Luo Xiaoyue warmly.

Coincidentally, he had just finished training. The two of them found a quiet spot to sit and talk.

"They say that once you become a Plum Blossom Swordsman, you won't be able to roam the

gangho

often or come out of the sect, but in my case, it's a little different," Luo Xiaoyue said with a bitter smile.

The elites of the Mount Hua Sect, the Plum Blossom Swordsmen, rarely appeared in the

gangho

.

Normally, they would only be sent out on missions that ordinary disciples wouldn't be able to handle, but recently, the situation had become so chaotic that she had to go out like this.

While it was better than being locked up in the sect from a young age, she couldn't be completely happy about it because it was proof that the

murim

wasn't at peace.

"I really hope this war ends soon," she muttered, hugging her knees.

"Ah..."

When Zhou Xuchuan saw her face, he couldn't help but exclaim in admiration.

Plum Blossom Sword Phoenix...

A plum blossom blooming in the midst of war.

The young Luo Xiaoyue was gone. He had seen this bitter smile as she had grown into a lady before.

Back then, he had only glanced at her from behind, but now it was different. She was sitting right next to him.

"I know it's a foolish thing to say, but I really hope this war ends without anyone dying. The pain of losing someone is unbearable."

Luo Xiaoyue recalled the past as she spoke.

The pain she felt when her precious Senior Brother, Zhou Xuchuan, went missing or was presumed dead was still unforgettable. It was a sadness that went beyond words.

"Honestly... it’s kind of embarrassing to say, but that’s why I followed you here, Senior Brother. I can’t stay by your side like I used to... but I didn’t want to hear that someone I care about died again."

She smiled shyly, her cheeks tinged with pink.

Zhou Xuchuan looked at her, stunned.

"W-why are you looking at me like that?" she asked, flustered.

Her face turned bright red, like a ripe persimmon. Her eyes trembled, clearly embarrassed.

"Ah, I'm sorry. It's just that... I'm both surprised and touched. Thank you for telling me that I'm precious to you. I feel the same way about you."

"...yes."

Luo Xiaoyue smiled happily.

Zhou Xuchuan thought of the present and future Luo Xiaoyue.

Heroes are people too.

Luo Xiaoyue was a hero that Zhou Xuchuan had admired.

That feeling and awe still hadn't disappeared.

Looking at her back, he had reached out and tried hard. She was one of the people he had aimed for his whole life.

Until now, I had for some reason thought that they weren't people, but akin to immortals or Buddhas.

But looking at it this way, that wasn't the case either. Heroes also wanted to find their own small happiness, not just a cause to believe in.

Were you the same, too? Divine Monk? Completion Sword?

When he closed his eyes again, he could see the backs of many people.

***

Two days later.

If one headed north from Weng'an, they'd reach Kaiyang. If one went a little further from Kaiyang, they'd reach the trade route from Guiyang.

If one traveled north along the trade route, they would eventually reach Zunyi—a crossroads from which it took roughly the same amount of time to travel anywhere within Guizhou.

The Gold Will Merchants mainly operated around Guiyang, the capital of Guizhou, and they often used this trade route to reach Zunyi.

The Guizhou Army departed from Weng'an and headed toward the trade route in order to lead the Dark Heavens Army to the ambush as planned.

There were three thousand six hundred of them, excluding the dead and seriously injured.

"Something is strange."

Zhongli Daojun was suspicious after seeing the Guizhou Army's movements.

"According to the Vast Gate star, the special force that was attacked by the Grotto Lake Gang joined the Guizhou Army. If that's the case, then they must know that the Eighteen Stockades of the Red Forest have joined forces with us, and they are heading to Zunyi, which is right below Chongqing..."

The Dark Heavens Army had met up with the reinforcements from the Eighteen Stockades of the Red Forest.

The Dark Heavens Army had already joined forces with the Eighteen Stockades. The Guizhou Army, heading north, shouldn’t have been expecting any reinforcements.

However, if they managed to reach Zunyi, the Red Forest stockades could easily send additional troops down from Chongqing.

Unless the Guizhou Army had lost their minds, there was no reason for them to head toward Zunyi.

"It's a trap."

Destructive Soldier also noticed something.

However, he couldn't tell exactly what the trap was.

While he wanted to ask Blessed Existence, the brain of the Dark Heavens, for his opinion, the strategist was busy with other things and couldn't do so. Even a homing pigeon would take too long to reach him from the frontlines.

However, Destructive Soldier was an imperial official, and a capable and experienced general at that.

He was a person who could personally make such judgments. If he wasn't, he wouldn't have been entrusted with such an important battle.

To the north is Chongqing, and to the northeast and west is Sichuan and Yunnan. Are they planning on receiving help from the Tang Family and the Diancang Sect?

While Yunnan was a bit far, Sichuan was just as close to Junyi as Chongqing.

It was quite possible.

Thanks to the former Martial Alliance Leader taking the blame, that old man Poison King’s range of movement has widened. It's not impossible.

Before the Black Shadow Division incident, when the Black Shadow Division was revealed, Tang Mingren had brought up the sins of the Tang Family and placed it in a difficult position.

The Five Great Ancient Families had long been walking a tightrope, facing resentment from both those who distrusted their power and the bereaved families seeking revenge for past injustices.

However, more than half of the criticizers disappeared when Nangong Weiwu took the blame. However, those who still had doubts about the Tang Family remained.

It was the reason why Tang Youqi wouldn't have been able to personally step forward. Even so, he could still move the Tang Family's warriors.

Blessed Existence also expressed the same opinion.

"It seems that the other side is also trying to win."

"There's no need to worry about the Tang Family. Avaricious Wolf has taught us the detoxification technique that counters the Tang Family. Although their hidden weapons techniques are still a concern, the Tang Family without their poison is nothing more than a second-rate sect."

"The Diancang Sect is also suffering from betrayals in various places, meaning that they wouldn't be able to send much support."

"They're clearly trying to scare us by putting on an empty show of strength, so you don't have to worry too much."

"Even if they do have the upper hand, it's not much of a problem because the Evil Valley has few experts. Moreover, who would dare to stand in front of Destructive Soldier, whom even Zhou Xuchuan couldn't do anything against?"

Objectively speaking, he wasn't wrong.

However, Destructive Soldier had several concerns.

Zhou Xuchuan is a man who knows how to use his brain. Moreover, he also has Zhuge Xiuluan, who's skilled at strategy.

Destructive Soldier knew very well how dangerous pride was. There were more than a few who died on the battlefield due to pride.

If a single general made a wrong judgment, thousands of corpses would be created in his wake.

As the art of war said, a general's judgment must be wise.

"..."

A look of worry flickered across Destructive Soldier's handsome face and then disappeared.

If one showed concern in front of the subordinates, their morale would drop.

A general must always be brave and unstoppable.

"Increase the speed of the advance. We will annihilate the Guizhou Army before their reinforcements arrive."

Destructive Soldier made a decision.

"What should we do about Weng'an? Should we kill them all?"

"There are a few ordinary humans, but Weng'an is still a part of the

murim

and not an imperial city. The officials don't really care about it, so it might not be a bad idea to kill them all to spread fear."

"That's a great idea to lower the public's sentiment toward the Righteous and Evil Alliance. The public already dislikes the Righteous Faction after the recent war," Zhongli Daojun fawned.

It was a consideration that someone of the Demonic Path's Two Lineages would have.

"I don't care about the seriously injured and the wounded. Prioritize the annihilation of the Guizhou Army."

"I have received your orders."

Guizhou's trade route.

"They took the bait," the scout reported to the leaders.

"And their numbers?"

"Three thousand five hundred."

"What? Three thousand five hundred? Not two thousand five hundred?"

Two days earlier, the Dark Heavens Army had numbered three thousand. After their first clash, they lost five hundred, bringing their forces down to two thousand five hundred.

"The Nine Forest Gangs sent over a thousand troops."

"Ugh."

Not only had they regrouped, but their numbers had actually increased by five hundred.

Their numbers were more burdensome than they had originally thought.

In his previous life, the Eighteen Stockades of the Red Forest had also been a hindrance due to how many of them there were.

"I wonder if it'll work..."

Even though the leadership had agreed to the Sword God's plan, a trace of unease still lingered in their hearts.

They couldn't afford to be paralyzed by doubt, so they pushed their anxiety aside and moved forward.

The Guizhou Army advanced while being pursued by the Dark Heavens Army.

"There's a small lake about two hours away from Junyi along the trade route. We've arrived."

"Ha... so wouldn't this be the resting point in the middle of the trade route? What an excellent choice," Shen Daoyun exclaimed.

The Gold Will Merchants had deliberately chosen this location so that they could discreetly transport the mechanisms and the equipment needed to set it up.

"It's a necessary place if you need a rest, and it's also a place where one can check on supplies while secretly delivering the necessary materials for the mechanisms. This is all due to the wisdom of the Head Merchant," Gao Hun explained excitedly, sticking his nose up pompously as if it were his own accomplishments.

"Then, I'll explain the operation again," he said.

The command of the operation was given to five people.

The overall commander was Shen Daoyun, and the assistant commanders and strategists were Zhuge Xiuluan and Gao Hun. The representatives for the Martial Alliance and Evil Valley were Meng Chuhe and Zhou Meng, respectively.

"The mechanism is hidden under the ground about a hundred zhang away with the lake to the back. Normally, the mechanism's structure is supported so that it doesn't collapse, but if we manipulate it, it will collapse instantly and trap the people above."

While the mechanism of Guizhou was installed by several blacksmiths and the Phantoms assigned to the Gold Will Merchants, Gao Hun had been the one to oversee it.

No one present understood how the mechanism worked better than he did.

"Its diameter is about a hundred and twenty zhang, which is quite wide. Considering they number three thousand five hundred people, they won't move that densely. Moreover, since they were martial artists, they're going to move quickly. Thus, it'll be difficult to catch all of them, but it will still be enough to trap more than half of them."

"We'll be asking the Sword God to guide the enemy to the trap. After all, if we don't show our full strength, they'll be on guard," Zhuge Xiuluan said.

While Gao Xun explained the mechanism on behalf of Zhuge Shengji, Zhuge Xiuluan explained everything else about the operation in detail.

"We'll be dividing the troops into three groups. We'll guide the enemy northward, then block their escape routes to the east and south. Once enough of them are in position, we'll activate the mechanism, the Lake and Earth Formation."

"Understood."

Since most of the plan had already been explained beforehand, the details had been left out in the earlier conversation.

"Good. Then, let's start."

The troops were divided for the operation.

Five hundred men were assigned to block the enemy retreat to the south and the east, respectively.

They would have liked to assign more, but they had to eliminate the possibility of the enemy suspecting their trap due to the decreasing numbers of their main force.

Although the Guizhou Army’s two thousand six hundred remaining troops already appeared visibly diminished, they further enhanced the illusion by having each soldier carry multiple weapons, making their numbers seem larger at a glance.

In addition, to prevent the ambush from being detected, they also placed high-level experts to the east and south, using the lower-level warriors as bait.

That was Zhuge Xiuluan's idea.

Half a day later, contrary to their worries, the Dark Heavens Army followed the Guizhou Army and reached the operation's location.

What about the signal?

Hold on. Not yet.

They had to gather as many as possible. That way, the Lake and Earth Formation would be most effective.

The Guizhou Army held its breath and waited for the right moment.

However...

"Considering we were planning on fighting them at their base, did they really think that we wouldn't investigate the terrain nearby?"

Destructive Soldier raised his hand and stopped the Dark Heavens Army's advance.

"...!"

The Guizhou Army commanders who were waiting for the ambush also held their breath.

"The trade route of a merchant company, with a lake nearby. If we get surrounded, at least one of our escape routes would be cut off, making it the perfect place to ambush and launch a surprise attack."

As if he saw everything, Destructive Soldier glared at their hiding place with sharp eyes and raised his spear.

"We will divide our forces and move. March while guarding against the north, east, and south, excluding the lake."

"However, if we attack while our forces are dispersed..." Zhongli Daojun questioned.

"We'll be able to block them sufficiently, so there isn't any need to worry. Even if we miss the Guizhou Army ahead, we'll catch them in Qingcheng anyway. And if they change direction, moving such a large force will cost them precious time. We’ll catch up easily."

No!

Meng Chuhe and Zhou Meng’s faces darkened. At this rate, they wouldn’t inflict any meaningful damage.

Destructive Soldier, who had charged at the front during their first clash, had now stationed himself at the rear. The issue was the number of units he was personally leading was also small.

If they were to activate the mechanism when Destructive Soldier was passing by, the number of people who would get caught would be small. That would be a clear failure.

Just where did a bastard like that appear from?

Destructive Soldier was a general with enough experience to be considered a war veteran. It wasn't for nothing that the Dark Heavens Association Lord had recruited him.

He was smart enough not to be seen lacking compared to Blessed Existence, and above all, he had a special intuition.

We haven't been defeated by you just once or twice, Zhou Xuchuan.

His subordinates thought it was nothing to worry about. However, Destructive Soldier never ignored his instincts—an intuition sharpened by countless battles and hard-earned experience.

On the battlefield, the one who won wasn't the winner. The one who survived was the winner.

Cowards survived, and those who were reckless died.

What should I do?

Follow the backup plan we had made in case of failure. Send everyone ahead early and attack when Destructive Soldier passes by.

The biggest threat in the Dark Heavens Army was Destructive Soldier.

He was an executive of the Dark Heavens Association, and they had to stop that armor that boasted absolute defense.

That was why they had designated Destructive Soldier as the greatest threat in case the operation failed.

When he raised his hand to give the signal for the backup plan, a clear sound echoed through the battlefield.

Thud.

Thud, thud, thud.

"...?"

At that sound, both the Dark Heavens Army and the Guizhou Army stopped.

Destructive Soldier slowly turned his body and made a puzzled expression inside his helmet.

"The Shaolin Temple?"

The sound that rang in his head was the sound of a wooden fish being struck.

"No, that can't be..."

The Shaolin Temple was located in Hanam, the center of the Righteous Faction's sphere of influence. It was far, so if Shaolin Temple had truly moved, there was no way he wouldn't have noticed.

Destructive Soldier raised his head and looked behind him.

Then who are they?

A group appeared on the hill following the mountain path.

"W-what is that! Over there!"

Zhongli Daojun let out a panicked whimper.

It wasn't just one person. There were easily hundreds of them.

They were monks wearing yellow hats and yellow robes.

"Right next to Guizhou is Sichuan and Yunnan... Next to that is Xizang..."

Destructive Soldier muttered as if he had remembered something.

"There's no way..."

Their robes and other attire were different from Shaolin Temple. They seemed to be chanting, but it was something he had never heard of before.

Crack!

Destructive Soldier ground his teeth.

"Zhou Xuchuan... when the hell..."

His voice trembled.

"When did... the Potala Palace?!"

While Destructive Soldier muttered, Zhou Xuchuan of the detachment to the north also looked back and smiled.

"As always, I'll find a more certain method and make sure to deal with you."

It was definitely not a miracle.

Miracles weren't something that one wished for, but something one created.

Zhou Xuchuan took a deep breath...

"All forces!"

He shouted.

"Surround them!"