Chapter 504: Preparing for Battle

Yang Jishan hung up several maps.

These maps included the mining terrain, the entrance to the Lu family's corpse mine, the internal structure of the Shi Dian within the mine, and a simplified mine shaft route map.

Many small characters were marked on the maps.

The small characters detailed matters to watch for, including the iron zombies guarding the area, the locations of traps, corpse-poison pits, secret passages, hidden chambers, and hidden doors, among others.

The maps even marked the structure of arrays:

Defense arrays, early-warning arrays, manifestation arrays, trap arrays, killing arrays, and confinement arrays… all were clearly labeled.

The meticulous detail of these maps startled everyone.

Yang Jishan, consulting the maps, arranged the battle tactics.

First, he divided the teams, grouping Foundation Establishment cultivators according to their cultivation methods and preferred Dao arts.

Each team's cultivators had different roles in offense and defense, complementing each other's strengths and weaknesses.

Those skilled in slaughter, with sharp Dao arts, would lead the assault; those with strong physiques and thick blood qi would hold the defense.

Some cultivators practiced obscure Dao arts with unusual effects, and could be deployed as surprise forces to achieve unexpected results.

After dividing the teams, Yang Jishan said:

"The Dao Court has allocated a batch of pills; I will distribute them shortly…"

"These pills include Poison-Repelling Pills, Soul-Returning Pills, Blood-Replenishing Pills, Blood-Clarifying Pills, and others…"

"The rest are common pills; each of you take them as needed—I won't elaborate further."

"But the Blood-Clarifying Pills are different—they are specifically designed to counter corpse poison, hard to obtain, so use them with caution, yet never hoard them in critical moments."

"If you are wounded, bleed, and become infected with corpse poison—especially from a second-rank iron zombie—you must take them immediately; otherwise, if the poison reaches your heart and turns you into a living corpse, I will have no choice but to kill you…"

The cultivators present all wore solemn expressions.

Yang Jishan's expression grew grave, and he added:

"Of course, if I unfortunately become a corpse, turning into the Corpse King's puppet, do not hesitate—kill me, burn my body to ashes, leave not a single bone behind!"

"My Yang family descendants may die in battle, but we will not become zombies after death to aid the wicked…"

After speaking, Yang Jishan asked:

"Among you, is there any Mr. skilled in arrays?"

Everyone exchanged glances; then several cultivators rose—some with half-gray hair, others streaked white, all quite elderly.

Yang Jishan nodded.

Among the crowd, the white-robed youth hesitated, then stood up as well.

The middle-aged cultivator beside him tried to pull him down but failed, muttering discontentedly:

"What are you getting involved in for?"

The withered old man beside him sighed and shook his head.

The white-robed youth, however, wore a look of unyielding sincerity.

Yang Jishan, surprised by his youth, asked:

"Young friend… are you an array master?"

The white-robed youth nodded: "I am a second-rank array master."

Second-rank array master!

At these words, everyone was stunned.

"A second-rank array master… so young?"

"Impossible…"

"At a time like this, who would lie?"

"What's his background?"

"Probably a noble family's son…"

"Why would a noble family's son come here?"

"Who knows…"

"He looks barely twenty or thirty—such talent is truly terrifying…"

"I'm over one hundred and eighty years old and still only a first-rank array master… truly ashamed…"

…

The crowd murmured among themselves, discussing in low tones.

Yang Jishan, also startled, then regarded him solemnly and asked:

"Young Master, may I ask your surname?"

The white-robed youth bowed: "Yang Commander, you are too kind—I am of the Yun family."

"Yun… the young master of the Yun family…"

Yang Jishan's heart stirred slightly, and he nodded:

"Good. In this operation, I hope Young Master Yun will lend us your strength."

The white-robed Young Master Yun nodded: "To exterminate demons and defend the Dao, I will not shirk."

The youthful zeal made the middle-aged cultivator beside him ache with headache.

Yang Jishan, however, looked at him with clear admiration, then instructed a deputy commander beside him:

"Once battle begins, you will accompany Young Master Yun, guard him closely, and ensure he suffers no harm."

"Yes!"

The deputy commander bowed in response.

Yang Jishan laid out the mine's array map and pointed out several arrays—defense arrays used at gateways and checkpoints.

Yang Jishan asked:

"Young Master Yun, take a look—how should we break these arrays?"

Young Master Yun shook his head: "I don't know how to unravel them yet—I can only teach you how to break them…"

Yang Jishan blinked in surprise.

Breaking an array—what's the difference between 'break' and 'unravel'?

Usually, when our Dao soldiers say 'break the array' or 'unravel the array,' they mean the same thing…

But he didn't dare ask further, lest he seem unprofessional, so he vaguely replied:

"Either way is fine."

Young Master Yun studied the array diagram, pondered for a moment, then pointed out the weak points of the array, told them where the array's core lay, how the array's pivot flowed, which array lines were critical, and where the array's medium was weakest…

As long as they destroyed these points with spiritual power or martial force, they could break the array.

Yang Jishan rejoiced, memorized all of it, then ordered several Dao soldier captains:

"Remember what Young Master Yun said—no error, not even a hair's breadth, when you break these arrays!"

"Yes, Commander!"

Afterward, Yang Jishan discussed with the others, checked for gaps, pooled ideas, and gradually refined the plan to suppress the Corpse Mine…

When the discussion ended, someone suddenly asked:

"Commander, where did this intelligence come from? It's so detailed."

At this, everyone froze and turned to Yang Jishan.

Yang Jishan involuntarily looked at Sister Situ Fang.

Sister Situ Fang rose and said: "Two young masters from noble families told me."

"Noble families?"

"Which family?"

"How did they get this? Can we trust it?"

…

Sister Situ Fang frowned and declared loudly: "Our Sister Situ family vouches for it."

Someone sneered: "What good is your Sister Situ family's word?"

"It's not that we don't believe you—this matter is too grave, we must be extremely cautious…"

Sister Situ Fang's brow tightened.

Yang Jishan thought briefly, then said: "Then have these two disciples come here—we'll verify it ourselves…"

"This…" Sister Situ Fang hesitated.

Yang Jishan asked: "Is there some difficulty?"

"I can go invite them, but I can't guarantee they'll come," Sister Situ Fang said.

"No problem," Yang Jishan said. "Sister Situ Diansi, go invite them."

"Alright."

Sister Situ Fang nodded, bowed, and took her leave.

Yang Jishan stared at the map, frowning in thought.

It really was too complete…

Like intelligence leaked by an 'inside traitor' in the Corpse Mine…

No—even an 'inside traitor' couldn't know this much.

The terrain maps and Shi Dian layout diagrams were understandable, but this array diagram? That's absolute top secret—no ordinary cultivator could get their hands on it.

Probably only Lu Chengyun in the entire Corpse Mine has it…

Is this Lu Chengyun's trap?

Or is the cultivator who obtained this intelligence familiar with the internal arrays because he's Lu Chengyun's 'confidant'?

Yang Jishan frowned, puzzled, then turned to see Young Master Yun also staring at the array diagram—he asked:

"Young Master Yun, what do you think?"

Young Master Yun paused, thought carefully, then said:

"I don't know about the rest, but this array diagram—its principles are complex, internally consistent, and perfectly aligned with the terrain. It can't be fake."

Yang Jishan nodded, his heart easing slightly.

As long as the array diagram is real, that's enough.

The array diagram is the core.

Even if Lu Chengyun wanted to 'lure the enemy into the trap,' he wouldn't be so foolish as to expose such a secret…

As long as the array diagram is accurate, any minor errors in the other intelligence can be handled on the fly—no major issue.

Yang Jishan then felt a flicker of curiosity.

Who were these two noble disciples Sister Situ Fang mentioned?

And what was the true identity of the cultivator who obtained this intelligence?

Half an hour later, Sister Situ Fang led two cultivators into the hall.

It was Bai Zisheng and Bai Zi Xi.

As soon as they entered, everyone in the hall felt their eyes brighten.

Bai Zisheng had swordlike eyebrows and starlit eyes, noble and imposing; though only at the Qi Refining realm, his spiritual power was thick and deep, clearly with an extremely solid foundation.

Bai Zi Xi had altered his appearance—his face was merely clear and beautiful, but his aura was crisp and cold, his eyes shimmering like liquid glass, dazzling and unforgettable.

His spiritual power surged powerfully, no less than Bai Zisheng's.

Both looked like sons of prominent families, with extraordinary spiritual roots, yet their qi was subtly concealed, making it impossible to discern their true depth.

Some cultivators secretly probed with their spiritual senses.

But the moment their spiritual senses extended, they felt something pulling them in, swallowing them into a deep abyss, vanishing without a trace.

The cultivators who spied turned pale, their hearts gripped by dread.

These two's identities were far beyond what they could afford to provoke.

Yang Jishan remained stunned for a long while before finally speaking:

"May I ask, young masters, where are you from?"

Bai Zisheng said: "We are of the Bai family."

Bai?

Yang Jishan's heart tightened slightly—which Bai?

In the Nine Provinces of the cultivation world, there are several prominent families with the surname Bai…

Yet their status was clearly high, so he dared not press further, and turned to the matter at hand:

"Young masters, where did you hear this news about the corpse mine?"

Bai Zisheng said: "My junior brother found it out."

"Junior brother?"

"Yes," Bai Zisheng said. "My brother is an expert in formation arrays. He was captured and imprisoned by Lu Chengyun inside the corpse mine."

"Then these intelligence reports…"

Bai Zisheng nodded: "All of them were gathered by him from inside."

Yang Jishan frowned.

An expert in formation arrays? How expert could he possibly be?

These reports even contained formation diagrams—could such things truly be gleaned from inside…?

Yang Jishan was half-skeptical.

He glanced again at Bai Zisheng and Bai Zi Xi, gradually dispelling his doubts, thinking to himself:

"If someone can be the junior brother of these two Bai family cultivators, he must have some extraordinary abilities—doing things beyond ordinary people is only natural…"

On the other side, Bai Zi Xi, who had remained silent, quietly tugged at Bai Zisheng's sleeve.

Bai Zisheng then reluctantly spoke:

"I have another request… I ask all of you to rescue my junior brother…"

Bai Zisheng never liked to beg for help—had it not been for Mo Hua, he would never have asked these people for aid.

But the corpse mine was filled with too many zombies; he couldn't force his way in, and Mo Hua hadn't returned in a long time…

Yang Jishan said: "Naturally."

This junior cultivator was the junior brother of these two Bai family youths, and had been kidnapped and exploited by Lu Chengyun—clearly, his status and strength were no ordinary matter.

Moreover, he had delivered such vital intelligence, greatly aiding them; he must be rescued at all costs.

Yang Jishan then asked:

"What does your junior brother look like? What are his distinguishing features? What is his name?"

Bai Zisheng said: "Thirteen years old, skilled in formations, with delicate features—his name is Mo Hua."

Thirteen years old?

So young?

Everyone present was taken aback.

Yang Jishan was also stunned.

Mo Hua?

That name felt so familiar—he felt he had heard it before…

Had someone mentioned it to him?

Yang Jishan couldn't recall, so he set it aside for now and said solemnly:

"All of you, when attacking the corpse mine, if you encounter this junior cultivator named 'Mo Hua,' you must lend aid and rescue him!"

All the cultivators present nodded.

They all memorized the name "Mo Hua."

Yet none of them had the slightest idea what that name truly meant…

(End of Chapter)