Chapter 230: Reactions from All Sides

Not long after, a carriage emerged from Bailian Peak.

The disciples and disciples of the peak who witnessed this all knelt to the ground, silently seeing off the carriage.

No one had ever seen such an enraged, murderous peak master—this was the first time.

Each felt an inner dread, unsure who had angered the peak master, but they now understood: with the peak master himself acting, the opponent’s fate was sealed.

Only after the carriage vanished completely from sight did the kneeling disciples of Bailian Peak slowly raise their heads.

Suddenly, all their peripheral vision shifted—they immediately gazed far into the distance.

All they saw was a brilliant silver light rising from the darkness in the direction of Bailian City.

At the same time, the carriage driver for Zheng Yunfeng also looked up, gazing toward Bailian City.

Then he carefully called out:

“Peak Master.”

The next instant, the carriage curtain stirred without wind, enveloped in golden qi; Zheng Yunfeng’s gaze passed over the driver’s body toward the silver flame in the distant sky.

Then his cold voice drifted, uneven in volume, as if suppressing uncontrollable rage:

“Even Old Wu has fallen—let me see who you truly are.”

…

The Ninth Peak of Luoshen Peak: Yulan Peak.

The entire peak resembled a giant jade tablet carved by heaven’s hand, its summit covered in dark ice, upon which stood a palace of blue jade.

Inside the palace, Yulan Peak’s master, Yu Mianjiao, sat between nine ice mirrors, clad in a white long gown, her face beautiful, age indiscernible.

The ice mirrors reflected Yu Mianjiao’s figure while continuously absorbing surrounding heavenly qi.

Threads of dark ice qi swirled throughout the palace, making the nine reflections within the mirrors seem real yet illusory, indistinct and elusive.

At this moment, the reflection of Yu Mianjiao in one ice mirror suddenly trembled, then flew out toward the outside of the blue jade palace.

Soon, the faint, blurred reflection of Yu Mianjiao halted before an old woman in front of the palace.

She hovered midair, her voice icy as she asked:

“What do you want from me?”

At once, the old woman in green robes bowed deeply, head lowered:

“Just now, a disciple from Bailian Peak came to report: a formidable expert has arrived in Bailian City, bringing Bailian Peak to the brink of annihilation.”

Yu Mianjiao’s reflection twisted and flickered in the night sky, her expression turning utterly indifferent:

“I just met with Brother Zheng—how could Bailian Peak be in peril? This person is surely lying. Execute him.”

As she spoke, Yu Mianjiao suddenly seemed to recall something:

“I did hear Brother Zheng’s son was killed—but even that is no real calamity for Bailian Peak.”

Hearing this, the green-robed old woman’s eyes flickered:

“Peak Master, the messenger from Bailian Peak also said the expert has killed two of Brother Zheng’s sons and the chief lady.”

“Moreover, the expert sent nine men to provoke each peak of Luoshen Peak, declaring that Brother Zheng is dead and demanding each peak avenge him.”

At these words, Yu Mianjiao’s reflection sharply coldly shouted:

“Arrogant!”

At that moment, she suddenly turned her gaze upward, fixing her eyes on the direction of Bailian Peak in the night.

Then she saw a silver flame rising into the night sky, stark against the darkness.

Seeing this, Yu Mianjiao’s reflection frowned, her expression clearly altered.

After a moment, she turned to the old woman before her:

“You said Brother Zheng’s two sons and chief lady were killed. Given this signal now, the matter is likely true.”

The old woman immediately raised her head and asked:

“What should we do next?”

Yu Mianjiao’s reflection fell silent for a moment, then slowly spoke:

“Logically, upon receiving this signal and report, we should send aid—but Yulan Peak must now confront the Da Li Tianjin Guard’s assault and cannot afford distraction.”

Saying this, she waved her hand:

“Besides, I am certain Brother Zheng can handle this easily. Send one of our senior elders to Bailian Peak to explain our position—so Brother Zheng does not mistake our inaction for indifference and harbor unnecessary resentment.”

Hearing this, the green-robed old woman nodded gently and replied:

“Peak Master, your deliberation is thorough and your words wise. I shall handle this immediately.”

With that, she did not linger, bowed, and turned to leave.

Yu Mianjiao’s reflection continued gazing toward Bailian Peak, murmuring to herself:

“Daring to strike Luoshen Peak—the intruder is likely from the Da Li Tianjin Guard. Could this be Fu Qiwén’s scheme?”

…

At the same time, the Eighth Peak of Luoshen Peak: Zhan Yue Peak.

In the night, the peak’s rocks were jagged, its entire form crimson as blood, resembling a colossal severed blade thrust into the earth.

The peak’s summit held no clouds or mist, yet faint, invisible blades of sharpness lingered—anyone gazing from afar felt a chilling, terrifying edge.

At this moment, a night owl soared overhead, but mid-flight it shattered into four pieces, dissolving into a mist of blood in the night sky.

On the mid-slope of Zhan Yue Peak stood an extremely luxurious courtyard.

Inside, a beautiful woman, no more than thirty, reclined on a soft couch, clad in a thin silver-threaded silk gown.

Beside her stood a muscular, handsome man, bare-chested, gently massaging her temples.

“Madam, the Peak Master is truly obsessed with martial arts—he can leave such a heartbreakingly lovely beauty alone for two years without even a single visit. What a waste.”

The muscular man murmured, eyes fixed on the woman’s chest.

Hearing this, the woman blushed, pouted her lips, and blew warm air at him, laughing:

“That old thing is past his prime—his body is useless. How could he compare to you, young man?”

At this, the man grinned triumphantly and reached out to touch her body.

But just then, a clearly urgent voice came from outside the courtyard:

“Madam Ni, Bailian Peak has sent a messenger—they say the Bailian Peak Master is dead and need our peak to assist.”

At these words, both in the room froze. Madam Ni sat up quickly, pulling her thin robe together, signaling the man to hide and stay silent.

Then she opened the door and stepped out, addressing the messenger:

“Where did you hear this? Even if I’m ignorant, I know a Luoshen Peak Master cannot die so easily.”

The messenger glanced at the beautiful woman and hurriedly replied:

“Madam, this news comes directly from a Bailian Peak expert—he’s still here on the peak.”

Hearing this, Madam Ni frowned, hands on her hips:

“First they said Yu Wenfeng was dead, now they say the Bailian Peak Master is dead—does that mean Bailian Peak is finished?”

The messenger’s eyes lit up immediately, bowing low:

“Madam, you’re astonishingly perceptive—the Bailian Peak people said the same: Bailian Peak is done, and they beg us to send men to avenge them.”

Then, with a troubled expression, he continued:

“But all our elders and above—including the Peak Master—are in seclusion. Even Yu Wen’s death is being ignored—how could we spare any powerful experts to aid Bailian City?”

Hearing this, Madam Ni nodded slightly, clearly agreeing, then yawned and waved her hand:

“Go tell the Bailian Peak messenger we are powerless in this matter. Tell them to seek help from other peaks.”

Then, glancing sidelong at the room in the courtyard, she snapped:

“It’s already this late—I need rest. Send that man away. If anything else comes up, handle it yourself. Don’t bother me again.”

With that, Madam Ni ignored him, turned, and swayed into the courtyard.

At that moment, a silver flame rose into the night sky from the direction of Bailian City.

But she clearly paid it no mind, simply shutting the door with a sharp “click.”

The messenger said nothing more, turned, and left. Soon after, lascivious sounds drifted from the room.

…

At the same time, the other six peaks of Luoshen Peak also received messages from Bailian Peak disciples.

Though their responses varied, none were as bizarre as Zhan Yue Peak’s.

Of these, the three peaks directly facing Da Li Tianjin Guard assaults merely dispatched elders to Bailian Peak to offer support and verify the truth.

The remaining two peaks, upon hearing the news, immediately sent multiple elder-level martial experts to assist.

The main peak, Luoshen Peak, handled the matter with utmost caution: it interrogated the Bailian Peak messenger to extract the full story.

After witnessing the signal from Bailian City, it directly dispatched the main peak’s chief disciple, personally trained by the abbot, to Bailian Peak.

Simultaneously, it sent word to the master of the Fifth Peak, Ouyang Mingqi, ordering him to personally inquire with Zheng Yunfeng about the situation.

Logically, after learning the Bailian Peak messenger was coerced by Li Muxian, Luoshen Peak had no need to act so drastically.

After all, Zheng Yunfeng had not yet acted—this was not yet urgent.

Yet the reason for such caution was clear: Da Li Tianjin Guard was currently attacking Luoshen Peak.

Luoshen Peak feared this might be a Tianjin Guard scheme, so it responded with extreme caution, avoiding misjudgment.

…

More than seventy li from Luoshen Peak’s territory, in the woods near Yuxing City, Commander Fu Qiwén and his Tianjin Guard experts had quietly arrived under cover of night.

Fu Qiwén understood Luoshen Peak’s power and influence in Lanzhou, and knew Da Li Tianjin Guard must harbor spies within its ranks.

This was unavoidable—just as Luoshen Peak, too, harbored Tianjin Guard infiltrators.

Between the Great Li Tianjin Guard and Luoshen Peak, two colossal powers, many things were mutually understood, making complete secrecy impossible.

Yet in Fu Qiwén’s view, even if the enemy knew the Tianjin Guard’s attack route, it made no difference.

On the battlefield, deception and reality are intertwined; one can never fully trust all intelligence. He did not believe Luoshen Peak would truly risk placing all its top experts solely on the defense of Sifeng, leaving the other peaks vulnerable.

In a forest clearing, inside a tent lit by oil lamps, nearly all senior Tianjin Guard officers had gathered.

“We resume movement in one hour. We must capture Yuxing City before dawn, then press forward without pause to seize Yuxing Peak in the shortest time possible.”

Fu Qiwén spoke, pointing at the map under the dim lamplight. Around him stood nearly forty Tianjin Guard martial experts, including Hu Rui’an.

Yet, apart from Fu Qiwén and Hu Rui’an, the others all subtly furrowed their brows, their expressions clearly heavy.

In their eyes, capturing Yuxing City posed little challenge, but facing Yuxing Peak inspired little confidence—even under the direct command of Commander Fu Qiwén.

After all, according to current intelligence, the number of Tianjin Guard seniors who had reached the Heaven-Man realm was less than half of Yuxing Peak’s.

In campaigns against martial sects, the outcome between Heaven-Man experts often decided the entire battle.

Fu Qiwén sensed the thoughts in their minds, but said nothing further.

He knew well that under these circumstances, more words were useless.

As the leader directing this assault on Yuxing Peak, he needed only to answer all questions with results.

After finalizing the specifics of the attack on Yuxing City, Fu Qiwén led the group out of the tent one by one.

Soon, they would break camp and continue forward.

“Commander seems confident he can take Yuxing Peak, but it’s said the peak’s master is invincible in defense within Luoshen Peak.”

Hu Rui’an walked beside Fu Qiwén along the mountain path, his gaze studying the man through the night.

Hearing this, Fu Qiwén waved his hand and said:

“Every choice I make has my reasons. Otherwise, do you think I’d personally lead the assault on Yuxing Peak?”

Hu Rui’an’s expression shifted slightly—he well understood the capability of this commander.

But facing Luoshen Peak, he remained uneasy.

Yet seeing the man’s unshakable composure now, his heart steadied somewhat.

Thinking of this, Hu Rui’an silently shook his head:

“After all, it’s safer by the Prince’s side. With him present, nothing feels frightening.”

Since leaving Li Muxian, this feeling had grown stronger.

Of course, he suspected it might simply be because their journey had held little danger and they’d never faced the crushing pressure of Luoshen Peak directly, which had fostered this illusion.

At that moment, a sound suddenly emerged from the trees ahead.

Fu Qiwén and Hu Rui’an both halted and turned to see Murong Xiaoya searching frantically in the darkness.

Seeing this, Hu Rui’an immediately asked:

“Miss Murong, have you lost something?”

Hearing this, Murong Xiaoya turned back and sighed:

“The big black cat the Prince gave us is gone. We saw it sleeping peacefully in the daylight—no one knows when it disappeared.”

(End of Chapter)