Chapter Forty-Eight: Must Die
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无罪 update:2022-07-21 15:26
This gray crystal was the key to the formation of this turret. When his vital energy merged with the crystal and entered the center of the formation, the formation of the turret was activated. Yet, during this flash of time, when the gray crystal appeared in his hand, a patch of gray dust fell down from the roof beam about his head and perfectly floated behind his head.
This was some dust that was insignificant, so much so that even cultivators did not notice, but when it floated behind the general’s head, it was like his body was crushed to the ground by a heavy mountain. He hit the ground with a bang, and created a wave of dust!
The gray crystal in the general’s hand hit the edge of the metal disc ahead of him with a clear sound and created a spray of sparks. His face and eyes seemed to be infected with the light of the gray crystal, turning an odd gray.
Many sharp piercing sounds occurred. Multiple sword lights shot upwards towards a figure that had almost merged into one with the black and gray beams.
The multiple swordsmen behind the general were shocked and angry as they attacked. They could not understand what kind of toxin was this that was able to instantly destroy a realm six cultivator’s body and resolve. Who was able to sneak into the top of the turret without anyone noticing!
“Astrology Bureau!”
But when these swordsmen saw the figure almost merged with the surroundings, they immediately understood.
The academians of the Astrology Bureau.
The six academians of the Astrology Bureau were mysterious cultivators, but these were cultivators of the Qin Dynasty and into the Ye Celeng. Were all these people going to rebel with Ye Celeng?
Pang, pang, pang, pang!
The multiple sword lights missed under their angry and frightened gazes. There were mean holes between the eaves. Sunlight came through the holes, and formed bright rays.
The general on the ground was not breathing at all. The Astrology Bureau academian who had been on the beam had moved into the shadow of the turret below. When the multiple swords furiously spun in the air and gave chase, the faint figure who had changed color to fade in with the street bowed to the general on the turret like they were apologizing.
The several flying swords created many cyclones below the turret, but just passed through the afterimages of the Astrology Bureau academian.
The swordsmen who were controlling the swords did not have their mind on this academian. They knew the person they had to keep here was Ye Celeng, but there was no moment from the surrounding turrets.
The gray crystal was the key to activating the formations of the turret. Each general on the turret had one. Even if the general on this turret was dead, and no one on the turret knew the way to activate the turret with the crystal, as long as any general was able to activate the formation, then all of the turrets would be activated.
Then, on the turrets which should have discovered this already, what had happened?
“Do not move.”
On a turret closest to this turret, the general was already gripping the gray crystal in his sleeve, but one of his closest deputies said softly by his ear. “If you do not move, you may be punished, but if you move, your case in the Spring Wind Alley will be leaked, and I fear you may not be able to leave the Great Floating Water Prison in this lifetime.”
This general suddenly froze, and his hand which held the gray crystal slacked.
Back then, he had been fighting over a woman in the Spring Wind Alley, and he killed an important person of the Dugu Marquessate establishment. Compared to the Astrology Bureau discovering this, he was more shocked and disbelieving that his deputy knew of this.
“You are from the Astrology Bureau?” He stiffly turned his head, glancing at the deputy, and spoke in a voice only the two of them could hear.
This deputy looked at where Ye Celeng was walking, and answered in a voice only the two of them could hear, “It is not important whether I am of the Astrology Bureau or not. What is important is that even if Ye Celeng leaves Changling, her power in the Astrology Bureau will still exist in Changling. If you want to live well, do not do extreme things to her.”
**
There were many screams coming from under the ground. This voice was like the sound of many women buried alive wailing in their desire for revenge.
The turrets started to tremble. Unusual dark clouds appeared in the sky ahead. The edges of the dark clouds twisted like there were countless ghosts fighting to burrow out.
All of Changling was alarmed. Most people were afraid and knew not what was happening. But the important people and cultivators who knew what was happening had a sharp chill in their hearts.
All the formations of the turrets had been activated, but it was because of the turrets in the distance. The turrets in the area where Ye Celeng and Marquis Xu fought were not the first to react.
These turrets had dense arrangements and defensive methods cultivators on the outside could not imagine. To be able to take care of five or six turrets silently mentality that in these years, the female bureau chief of the Astrology Bureau had not been as dispirited as the outside thought.
Her hidden power had reached a terrifying level…… This was the true reason she had stayed in Changling for so many years.
What shocked people the most was her own cultivation and strength. The method of Marquis Xu would create a terrifying amount of vital energy and primal energy to surge out in one moment.
In a case like this, when both sides used one move, then the power of his one move would be terrifying.
But the result of his clash with Ye Celeng was he was seriously injured, and Ye Celeng floated away like she was fine.
Then, in all Changling, how many people had the power to stop her by themselves?
Ye Celeng floated as she walked on the street. She was not walking quickly, but water kept on forming in the streets, turning to mist, and then into thick white mist.
She heard the sounds from the turrets, she knew that the Falling Dark Moon had been activated, but she was not in a hurry for she had won enough time. This time was enough for her presence to disappear from the perception of the people on the turrets, and the surrounding cultivators.
At this time, she suddenly looked up, and sensed that there was star light flashing high up in the sky. She narrowed her eyes slightly, but then her lips showed a hint of scorn.
In the Changling imperial palace, Zheng Xiu was feeling fear. She had no more restraints, and had no need to hide herself. So at this time, when Zheng Xiu could still sense a bit of her presence, Zheng Xiu did not dare to attack her.
She proudly walked among the streets. The white mist slowly shrouded her body.
The surrounding streets were completely silent, like this was an empty city.
Volume 4 48 - Coldness
In the dark night, the Wuzhi cavalry that had suffered serious losses did not retreat too far. They only moved to a meadow where they could barely make out Guyu Pass’s shadow in the darkness.
As the hoofbeats of the entire cavalry stopped tapping the ground, one rider appeared abnormal. At this moment, only this horse was moving, and in the next moment, multiple horses surrounded this rider.
“Why?”
A strong Wuzhi commander carrying an enormous curved blade and wearing a tiger robe shouted in fury as he looked at this rider.
Facing the angry question from this general half a head taller, the rider dressed in ordinary robes and a black cloth over his face looked back calmly and said, “Why what?”
This response immediately caused the strong Wuzhi commander’s eyes to burn in anger.
“Why pay that kind of price to assassinate that youth?” He gritted through his teeth in a cold voice. “Why retreat immediately? You should understand, even if the assassination succeeds, us cultivators cannot return, then what? Still want to retreat?”
Horses whined.
These horses, long trained and almost one with their owner, could only make such sounds when their riders’ hands changed tension. The sounds meant all these riders wanted to question this person.
Clearly, if this rider did not furnish a satisfactory answer, he would be reduced to flesh and bones on the ground as a tribute to those Wuzhi soldiers who had died due to his orders.
Yet this rider with the black cloth over his face and what was clearly not a Wuzhi accent did not care. He coldly raised his head and looked towards the mountain slope. “Before you question me, you all first have to understand one thing. It’s not me who wanted to be the Wuzhi leader, but your Wanyan queen who invited me to be the leader. And even your General Yelu agrees. So do not suspect that I have other goals in leading. You suspect me, you suspect your Wanyan queen and your General Yelu.”
His words and tone were very rude, evoking a louder wave of whines. Yet while the riders’ hands were unnaturally tense, the expression changed.
“You are angry now only because you do not know who that youth is.” This rider’s gaze fell onto the strong Wuzhi commander and his tone became unusually gentle. “The lives of those cultivators, and many more, cannot compare to that youth’s life.”
“Why?”
A familiar opening word, yet the strong Wuzhi commander had bowed his head already to show respect and a wish for guidance.
“Because that youth is Ding Ning, the victor of the Qin Dynasty Min Mountain Sword Trials. Purely to this battle, he represented Min Mountain Sword Sect. Your General Yelu is not personally leading because of him, so the people of Min Mountain Sword Sect would not participate in this battle.”
The rider said coolly, “For the greater situation which you may not understand, if our entire army can be traded for his death, it is worth it because until now, he is the fastest person in the world, and also the person with the greatest comprehension. The previous genius of the Qin Dynasty could only be his student.”
Min Mountain Sword Sect, General Yelu …… the words were like lightning that struck the surrounding riders, causing them to shudder.
Heavy breathing sounded like the horse whines.
“People like him, even without the protection of Min Mountain Sword Sect’s cultivators, will not easily die. I do not believe the Qin Dynasty would let someone like him die easily. At least, based on my understanding of Yuanwu and Zheng Xiu, they will use these so-called experts as best as they can if they can be controlled, they will let them burn out before letting them die.” This rider did not care about the changes in expression of these people and continued slowly with irony. “I created a likely chance to kill this youth because I wanted to see what powerful cultivators are behind this youth …… I had not expected this youth to be so strong, and that young person beside him to be this strong.”
“Your knowledge is too sparse. You do not know that this youth, other than his terrifying advancement, has great judgement and perception. I am certain that he is the most terrifying opponent I have met as a commander up until now.”
“In a sense, whether we can complete the mission and keep these tens of thousands of Qin soldiers on the plains depends on whether we can kill this youth. If we can kill him, it means this army has no more trump cards. If we cannot, then we can only give up on our mission, return, and try to kill as many Qin soldiers as we can.”
These Wuzhi people knew what kind of price they had paid to force these tens of thousands of Qin soldiers to scatter like stray dogs. It was almost unbelievable to hear that they would give up on the last siege just because of a youth. Yet as the rider explained, even the low ranking soldiers who only knew fighting knew that this was likely the cruel truth.
“Then why do you not send us all in?” The strong Wuzhi commander had long lost his anger. He bowed his head humbly and said, “We do not fear death.”
“I know you do not fear death.” The rider looked seriously at him and said, “But as a commander, you do not need to consider a matter of life and death, but whether this is useful for victory. If you cannot kill him, and all five thousand cavalry are killed here, you will not win, and the tens of thousands of Qin soldiers can return to Yin Mountain.”
“Then what should we do next?” The Wuzhi commander raised his head and asked helplessly, his mouth wide like a fish about to die.
“Wait.” The rider said calmly, “I have already sent a message to the main army for them to send enough powerful cultivators. We will attempt to kill the youth. If not possible, we will retreat.”
All the Wuzhi riders did not know when this rider had sent the message and by what means, but they naturally believed that this rider spoke the truth now.
On the slope in the darkness, Ding Ning did not talk with the Imperial Guard Army commanders and Guyu Pass’s commanders. He sat down next to Zhangsun Qianxue’s carriage.
“You have come twice now. I just reminded you that those two were unusual, but I have nothing else to tell you. What do you want to do?” Zhangsun Qianxue’s cool voice reached Ding Ning’s ears when he passed in the food box and charcoal basin that a soldier had delivered.
Ding Ning hesitated and then said seriously, “I do not want you to act.”
Zhangsun Qianxue said, “Why should I act?”
Ding Ning put the charcoal basin at the head of the carriage and said, “Because I want to gamble. The commander from the formation just now wants to try killing me …… Being reactive and waiting for someone’s next step is forever the stupidest idea. I want to see if I can kill the commander first.”
Zhangsun Qianxue did not speak.
Ding Ning looked up and took a deep breath. He said softly, “Do not be angry. You know I understand Zheng Xiu too well. She definitely arranged for people to follow me …… Her people will only appear if I truly encounter death. I want to force out her people. Otherwise, we will never be safe and escape her sight.”
The carriage was silent for many moments and then Zhangsun Qianxue’s icy voice sounded. “I will not act.”
Ding Ning was silent for a moment and stood up to walk slowly down the slope. He watched the brightening moon in the night sky, and thought, using one lifetime to understand and see a person clearly cost too much.
Translator Ramblings: Ding Ning just cannot stop scheming.
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