THDP Ch 157 Part 9 – Who Is Your Most Trusted Person? (IX)

Yun Qingyan was clearly in a good mood, “The arrays are nothing to worry about.” He waved his hand dismissively.

“…” Xu Zijun looked at his senior brother, unsure how to respond.

“Exactly.” Ling Ji also stepped forward, standing on Meng Qi’s other side, looking down at the city with indifference, “The arrays are of no concern.”

“…” Xu Zijun was silent once again. He knew well who Ling Ji was—the formidable figure who, in his youth, dazzled all four realms, and despite Duankong Sect’s focus on sword arrays, single-handedly made his name known to the world with just a sword in hand. He was a legendary swordsman who made all his contemporaries in swordsmanship across the Three Thousand Worlds bow in defeat.

And this same man had also shocked the four realms not too long ago when he injured his five senior brothers and sisters and forcibly took away the position of leader of the Duankong Sect which had been vacant for more than ten years.

Alright then, no concern it is. After a moment of silence, Xu Zijun continued, “There are three main checkpoints within the city, not counting the defensive arrays on the walls. Each of the four gates is anchored by a stone pillar to the north, south, east, and west, forming a chain that can unleash various spells—storm, rain, thunder, and lightning, all with astonishing power.”

“Further inside, there is a poison array made up of venomous insects and poisonous flowers. Beyond the poison array lies a sword array that guards the city lord’s manor.”

Xu Zijun explained in one breath: “According to the rules, we need to capture the city lord’s token to successfully conquer the city. So…”

He paused here. Normally, it wouldn’t be his place to speak, but he was the only one among them who had been inside the city. It was fortunate he was here; otherwise, the attackers would face immediate assaults from the four stone pillars at the very outset. Even if they managed to enter the city, they could easily fall into the trap of the poison array. Not to mention the formidable sword array waiting beyond.

“Shouldn’t we just wait here then, wait for the twenty-four hours to pass so that the attack and defense swap, making it easier for us to defend?” Xue Chengxuan frowned. It seemed to him that this was an impossible task. Even with the three extra allies, they only had nine people.

“That probably won’t work,” Xu Zijun shook his head. “Those defense arrays, stone pillars, poison arrays, and sword arrays are indeed formidable. But they all require cultivators to activate. We have too few people.” He explained, “For example, those stone pillars harnessing storm, rain, thunder, and lightning need four people each to channel aura simultaneously to activate their powers.”

“It’s the same with the defensive arrays on each wall; each side requires three people.”

“The poison array needs six people, the sword array needs nine,” Xu Zijun said. “If we only have nine people, we can only fall back to defend with the sword array. But if they have more people, just one injury among us, and the sword array can no longer protect us.”

He shook his head: “With too few people, those defenses won’t even work.”

“No wonder we are to attack first,” Xue Chengxuan pondered. “One of the rules is that anyone we injure who is then saved by Meng Qiqi or myself will count as part of our camp. This way, we can use the twenty-four hours to try to increase our numbers.”

Qin Xiumo said, “We can concentrate the power of nine people to attack one side of the city wall.”

“Exactly,” Xue Chengxuan nodded.

“The five of us can mount a strong attack on one side of the city wall,” Yan Xuan suddenly spoke up.

The three of them, groomed as future sect leaders, possessed considerable commanding talents.

“Since they know we have nine people, if all nine of us attack together, they can completely ignore the city lord’s manor and the sword and poison arrays, and even the other three city walls,” Yan Xuan continued. “They have more people, so this would actually be disadvantageous for us.”

“Correct,” Xue Chengxuan nodded again. Everyone here, apart from Ling Ji, Qiao Ran, and Yun Qingyan, knew the reasons behind Yan Xuan’s injuries. He wouldn’t underestimate this young master of Jingyuetian just because of his current Qi Condensation level of cultivation.

Xue Chengxuan pondered for a moment and said, “Then we can dispatch me, Fellow Daoist Qin, Pavilion Master Pei, Fellow Daoist Xu, and…” He turned to look at Ling Ji, hesitant to give commands to this sect leader of Duankong Sect, a senior above their generation.

“Me?” Ling Ji asked, “Are you sure you want me to show up from the beginning?” His lips curved into a smirk, half-mocking as he looked at Xue Chengxuan. “Are you sure you don’t want to give them a ‘surprise’?”

“If Senior suddenly appears and attacks one side of the city wall, the opponents will definitely be caught off guard,” Xue Chengxuan replied respectfully, cupping his hands to Ling Ji. “This way, we might be able to take advantage of the situation. Would that count as a ‘surprise’?” His tone was polite as he continued, “Moreover, seeing Senior presents, their first reaction will not be to recall that your cultivation is currently sealed at the Spirit Severing stage. Given your reputation, we should be able to catch them off guard.”

“That works,” Ling Ji nodded slightly, then suddenly glanced at Yun Qingyan, “You, come with me!” he declared abruptly.

“Alright,” Yun Qingyan agreed, “Then let Xiao Qi replace Xue Chengxuan.” He raised his chin slightly towards Xue Chengxuan.

“This…” Xue Chengxuan hesitated. He was somewhat worried about Meng Qi. Even with Ling Ji there, and even though they might surprise their opponents, the enemy still outnumbered them significantly.

“Alright,” Meng Qi had already nodded in agreement.

“But Meng Qiqi…”

Before Xue Chengxuan could finish, Yun Qingyan interrupted him. He coldly looked at the heir of the Feng Alliance’s Xue Clan. As the lord of Beyond The Heaven, he was aware of all the rumors and gossip in the Three Thousand Worlds. Just a glance was enough to tell him that this greenhorn surnamed Xue indeed harbored some impure intentions toward Meng Qi—something he would never tolerate.

“She was taught by me personally,” Yun Qingyan’s tone was slightly icy, and his gaze mocking, “More useful than you.”

Xue Chengxuan: “…”

“What’s more,” Yun Qingyan continued, “in the face of such relentless array attacks, I am more than capable of protecting her.” His tone even carried a hint of arrogance.

If someone else had said this, Xue Chengxuan might have found them arrogant. But he had traveled through the Starfallen Sea with Meng Qi and the others. From the few words Su Junmo and Sikong Xing had mentioned, he had vaguely inferred the identity of the man who seemed ambiguously close to Meng Qi.

Xue Chengxuan’s hand clenched at his side, then relaxed. His expression remained polite, showing no displeasure whatsoever. If this man was indeed the powerful figure he suspected, as the future head of the Xue clan, he could not afford to offend him for the sake of his family.

“Alright,” he said after a moment’s silence, his tone firm.

Yun Qingyan seemed to anticipate this response. Smiling softly, he took Meng Qi by the hand to the edge of the cliff. “Four pillars of storm, rain, thunder, and lightning, then the venomous insect array, followed by the sword array…” he murmured to Meng Qi, “What do you think?”

“The Four Poles?” Meng Qi replied in a low voice.

“Correct,” Yun Qingyan smiled faintly, his voice gentle when he spoke to Meng Qi, but his gaze as he surveyed the city was anything but soft. “Quite interesting. Also…”

He suddenly paused.

“Yes?” Meng Qi, not hearing him continue, asked instinctively, “What is it?”

“He has no feelings for you,” Yun Qingyan’s voice dropped lower, “What he cherishes is his family, power, status, and probably the future position as the leader of the Feng Alliance.”

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Translator’s note: