Chapter 694: Be Utterly Careful

It wasn't just the soil beneath his feet; he looked around, and the earth that had been dug out in daylight and piled neatly by the canal was all moving!

They kept rushing into the canal.

It was as if something was chasing them from behind, speeding up, and wildly falling into the shallow pits that had just been dug.

At that moment, the soldiers guarding the canal noticed the anomaly.

"Earth! The earth is moving!"

"Help! Someone, quickly!"

"A ghost!"

Shouts rose in waves, exploding from all directions.

The soil surged faster, crazily crawling into the entire ditch, increasing in volume.

"Quick! Go down and hold it!" the leading hulking man, perched on the city wall with a clear view, roared, "Don't let it fill up!"

The guards by the canal leapt down one after another.

They frantically clawed with their hands, pushing upward, trying to dig the surging earth back out.

However, the earth kept increasing, swiftly covering their faces and climbing up to their legs.

"Can't! Can't hold it!"

"Grab a knife! Cut with the knife!"

The guards drew their side swords and frantically hacked at the soil beneath them.

But the blade cut into the earth, and as soon as it was withdrawn, it was instantly filled by newly surging soil.

The freshly cut fissure closed in an instant.

The guards went all out, throwing themselves onto the pit bottom, using their bodies to press down.

The earth, however, tunneled under them, gradually lifting their whole bodies upward.

The leading man, perched on the parapet, frowned as he looked down: "Quick! Everyone, go down and help!"

More people rushed down from the city wall.

But by the time they reached the canal, the last bit of the ditch had already been filled with soil.

The surging earth slowly ceased.

The guards stood dumbfounded, looking at the smooth ground beneath their feet.

Green grass sprouted from the soil, its tender leaves gently swaying in the morning breeze.

From sparse to dense, from shallow to deep, it instantly covered the earth.

The footprints and slash marks they had just made were completely covered by the newly grown grass.

Nothing was left behind.

As if they had never jumped down.

As if the ditch had never existed.

A guard's legs gave way, collapsing onto the ground.

His knife remained in his hand, the blade still stained with mud.

He lowered his head to glance at his hand, then at the freshly smooth grass beneath his feet.

His lips trembled a few times, but he uttered not a single word.

The others were the same.

Some sat, some knelt, all staring blankly at the ground, their faces full of fear and bewilderment.

The hulking man on the wall turned pale: "Quick! Quickly go report to the two princes!"

"Yes!" the two guards, unable to brush off the soil, hauled a horse up and fled: "Your Majesty!"

The servant of the Ning Prince's Mansion was startled awake by the massive knocking.

At this dead of night, who could it be!

He lazily got up and opened the door: "Don't want to live? Daring to smash the Prince's Mansion's door in the middle of the night!"

The guard who came to deliver the message was drenched in sweat, his mind still replaying the earlier scene.

"Your Highness?" his face ashen, "I— I have come by order of the commander, with urgent matters to report!"

"Another urgent matter?" the servant, also angry, glanced up and down at the dazed guard, but dared not delay, "Wait!"

After a long while, Qing Wang, still half‑asleep, sat in the front hall: "Let him in."

"Yes."

The servant led the guard before Qing Wang.

The guard fell to his knees with a thud and recounted everything he had just seen.

Qing Wang's head buzzed as he listened: "You mean the surrounding city canal disappeared again?"

"Or it filled itself up?"

"Yes, Your Highness!" the guard, lying on the ground, dared not lift his head, "All of us saw it!"

"Look, covered in soil, we all ended up in the canal, yet we couldn't stop it!"

"Your Highness! It's truly not that we lacked effort!"

"Earth God! Yes! It must be the Earth God's manifestation!"

"Silence!" Qing Wang's head ached from the noise, "Someone! Prepare horses!"

"Yes!"

A moment later, Qing Wang swung onto his horse and galloped to the city gate.

Chen Wang stood quietly on the now‑filled ditch.

"Ugh—"

Qing Wang dismounted and walked to his side: "Brother Prince!"

The two looked down at their feet, silent for a while.

Qing Wang asked: "What do we do tomorrow? If the commoners see this, they probably won't want to dig anymore."

Chen Wang's face darkened: "No more digging."

"But Brother Prince," Qing Wang said anxiously, "Xiao Yuanhang's hundred-thousand-strong army is about to arrive right before our eyes."

"We can't keep digging," Chen Wang shook his head, "if we continue, not only the commoners, even the soldiers will likely complain."

His chest felt as if a huge stone had lodged there, neither rising nor falling, making his breast ache faintly.

Such a perfect plan to defeat the enemy, about to be destroyed in an instant—all because of that Princess Jiayou!

He turned his head to look at Qing Wang: "No wonder the Supreme One values Princess Jiayou so highly."

"As long as she lives, our great cause will likely be ruined by her hands."

Qing Wang's eyes widened, fury blazing: "I will surely kill her!"

The leading burly man stepped cautiously to the side: "Your Highnesses, tomorrow..."

Before he could finish speaking, Chen Wang whirled around, drew the saber at his waist, and slashed at his neck in one stroke.

The burly man cried out and collapsed to the ground.

Blood spattered everywhere, drenching Chen Wang from head to toe.

All the guards stiffened.

Chen Wang flung the blood‑stained saber to the ground: "Pass the order—this prince sympathizes with the people's toil; the siege moat will no longer be dug."

"If they ask, say you filled it in overnight."

"Those who come tomorrow may still each receive twenty cash."

"After they collect it, get them out of my sight!"

"Yes!"

That night, when several people entered Chu Yuan's bedroom again, the star chart on the floor had vanished.

The tables and chairs had been moved back to their original places; Chu Yuan sat properly at the table, sipping tea.

Several people stared for a moment.

Tuan Tuan looked left and right: "Master, where is the Formation?"

Chu Yuan laughed: "Come in, everyone—the Formation is no longer needed; they aren't digging."

"Great!" Tuan Tuan happily hopped into Chu Yuan's arms: "Master, you're amazing!"

Chu Yuan held her close: "Fortunately you're here; without you, the Return-to-Origin Formation couldn't be activated."

Everyone sat down to drink tea, feeling especially relaxed.

After a bit of small talk, Chu Yuan seemed to have something to say but held back.

"National Preceptor," Xiao Ningyuan said doubtfully, "what else is there?"

"I only heard today," Chu Yuan frowned slightly, "Lord Song is ill."

"Teacher?" Tuan Tuan panicked at once: "What sickness does he have, Master?"

"Don't rush," Chu Yuan quickly patted her arm, "Chen Wang and Qing Wang are feigning illness in their mansions, seeking doctors everywhere, making it known to all."

"Hearing that Lord Song was ill, they, to show virtue, sent the doctors they had summoned to his residence, and thus the rumor spread."

"I sent someone to inquire, and it turns out it's not a serious illness."

"It's just that Lord Song is old, so he may be slow to recover."

Tuan Tuan looked at her brother: "Big brother, I want to go see the teacher."

Lord Song is the teacher who taught my younger sister; now that he is ill, we ought to visit.

"National Preceptor," Xiao Ningyuan mused, "do you know the current situation at the Song Residence?"

Chu Yuan sighed: "After the two princes entered the capital, they once wanted to invite Lord Song to assist in governing."

"But Lord Song remained ill and secluded for days, so they sent people to guard his residence—effectively putting him under house arrest."

"He is the foremost scholar; the two princes are extremely wary of him—if you go, you must be utterly careful."