Chapter 200

Though in extreme danger, the appearance of the Black Tortoise Manifestation was utterly persistent—its tiny claws flailed wildly; Li Guanyi turned his gaze toward it, and the Black Tortoise Manifestation's pea-sized eyes glowed with fierce excitement, fixed on a room.

'You mean there's a safer way out from there?'

Li Guanyi asked inwardly.

The Black Tortoise nodded with immense force.

It was usually greedy for treasures, but never this obsessed with them when actual danger loomed—thus, whatever it saw was likely no ordinary thing; Li Guanyi pondered, then grabbed Yao Guang and rushed forward.

Ahead stood guards—seven or eight men, all armed, with internal qi coursing through them.

Seeing Li Guanyi charging toward them.

Their first reaction was not to block him—but to turn pale.

They scattered left and right, screaming: "Woe! Run!"

"This damned killing star's come to us! How do we escape him?!"

"These are our Divine Beast Manor's goods! Esteemed Daoist, don't come here! Please fight elsewhere!"

Yao Guang seemed to let out a soft chuckle.

But when he looked, the girl's face held not a trace of expression.

Who's running from whom!?

Li Guanyi groaned, flicked his wrist, and swept his heavy spear—the spearhead instantly slammed into a stone lion statue with exquisitely carved details; the shockwave shattered the thousand-jin stone lion outright!

Li Guanyi twisted his wrist.

The long spear spun several times in his palm, wrapped in surging qi.

【Rolling Tide—Modified】!

Li Guanyi did not unleash Rolling Tide directly—instead, he used the centrifugal force of its violent surge to fling the shattered stones outward; streams of qi shot forth, sending the guards reeling, coughing blood; the young Daoist then drove his spear down in a heavy slash.

The front gate was shattered outright.

With a thunderous crash, Li Guanyi stepped inside, then spun back and drove his spear upward, piercing the ornate pavilion above—it crashed down, completely blocking the main entrance; the rumbling echoed loudly.

Li Guanyi gasped heavily.

His bloodline remained stable after this battle, but his internal qi was severely depleted.

His second-layer internal power was still not thick enough, not strong enough.

All the martial techniques and forms he mastered consumed enormous amounts of internal qi.

My blue bar's too short.

The young Daoist thought bitterly to himself; the Black Tortoise Manifestation had already flown out ahead. Only now did Li Guanyi have a moment to look around—he glanced once, and his expression shifted slightly; low growls echoed in his ears.

The unmistakable stench of wild beasts filled the entire chamber.

Li Guanyi's gaze swept across—there stood monstrous beasts: tigers, leopards, even an elephant; besides them, countless monstrous beast eggs, their ferocity still lingering, yet all seemingly starved for a long time.

Baring their fangs, they scraped their claws against the ground.

From their throats came low, threatening roars.

A primordial aura, thick with destructive desire, seeped out.

Li Guanyi said grimly: "This place is…"

He looked up and saw the plaque—a black lacquered sign with gilded characters: "Divine Beast Manor's Greeting Gift." Li Guanyi recalled the words he'd overheard and said:

"Is this the gift the Divine Beast Manor plans to give Yuwen Lie?"

The silver-haired girl's voice was calm: "Likely so."

"What are you doing here?"

The black tiger roared—terrifying, enough to halt a heart.

It seemed to be threatening the girl.

Li Guanyi kicked the cage—CRASH!

The tiger recoiled its neck, as if encountering a far more fearsome predator; it emitted low, rumbling roars that vibrated the air, its eyes blazing crimson, locked on Li Guanyi, its back fur standing on end in a thick, bristling mane.

All beasts.

Still driven by instinct.

Li Guanyi's gaze swept over the dozens of monstrous beasts, and he grinned.

The tension on the boy's face melted away; suddenly he laughed, as if suddenly relieved, and said:

"Hahahaha, good, very good."

"We can get out now!"

The silver-haired girl turned her eyes toward the boy.

Li Guanyi hurried around, seeing dozens of monstrous beasts—tigers, leopards, serpents, lions—all radiating fierce aggression; the Divine Beast Manor's disciples had fed them special pills to preserve their ferocity.

These beasts were in a state akin to 【Mother Giving Birth】, in acute stress.

And extreme hunger—so severe it clouded rational judgment.

Li Guanyi circled once, and said: "Good. Very good."

He crouched down, studying the beasts—a serpent-tailed leopard suddenly roared and lunged at him; the young Daoist kicked it back with one foot.

The Fire Qilin clung tightly to Li Guanyi's shoulder, also peering out; the Black Tortoise Manifestation had slipped outside—likely because Li Guanyi's earlier destruction of the pavilion, which collapsed and blocked the entrance, had been too loud, alerting Yuwen Tianxian.

Now, the lord's private troops had drawn near; and in his earlier attempts, Li Guanyi had discovered that the roads leading out of the lord's mansion were thickly lined with crossbow traps.

Yuwen Tianxian had not pursued them with full force.

He was deliberately cutting off their escape routes.

The classic tactic: attack where they must defend, trap the turtle in the jar.

These seasoned generals—even when fighting as martial cultivators in single combat—still retained their commander's instincts; walls and gates were already sealed; escaping now was extremely difficult.

Li Guanyi might survive unharmed—but Yao Guang would be vulnerable to injury.

Yao Guang pushed Li Guanyi.

The boy snapped out of it and released his grip on Yao Guang's wrist.

The silver-haired girl took two small hops backward, patting the wrinkles and dust off her clothes.

Her voice was calm: "What are you going to do?"

"The exit is blocked by Yuwen Tianxian."

Li Guanyi laughed: "Don't worry—they have soldiers, so do we."

The silver-haired girl looked puzzled.

Li Guanyi gazed at the beasts, his eyes glinting with something unusual, and smiled faintly: "You'll see soon enough."

The beasts seemed to sense the boy's ill intent.

They all roared.

The tigers pressed their paws down, the black panthers growled low, the lions shook their heads, and even the elephant let out a trumpeting cry.

Li Guanyi grinned and said bluntly: "Fire Qilin."

The Fire Qilin, now in the form of a long-haired lion cat, stepped forward proudly.

It raised its head, shook it once, and let out a roar.

Stern, majestic, regal.

An indescribable aura surged out violently, then slammed down heavily!

This aura swept through with a booming rumble, causing many beasts to wilt instantly. They stared at the cat perched on the boy's shoulder with the terror of someone who'd seen a ghost. Li Guanyi noticed many beast eggs nearby—the Black Tortoise was already crouched there, face alight with excitement.

Earlier, in the 【Xuan-Level Treasure Vault】 of the Ghost Market in Zhenxi Xiongcheng, he had seen beast eggs with drastically diminished vitality, yet still expensive. But these here brimmed with stronger primordial energy—these were the gifts prepared by the 【Divine Beast Manor】 to curry favor with Yuwen Lie.

This gift was extraordinarily substantial, deeply earnest.

Li Guanyi looked at the Fire Qilin and said:

"Might as well keep them…"

The Fire Qilin's eyes lit up. It nodded vigorously, opened its mouth, and roasted all the beast eggs right before the beasts' eyes. Beneath the blazing Fire Qilin flame, the eggs quickly cooked, filling the air with an irresistible aroma. The other beasts trembled in shock.

The serpents coiled tightly, the tigers huddled together.

The Fire Qilin's eyes gleamed brighter. It lifted its head and looked at Li Guanyi.

Li Guanyi turned to the silver-haired girl: "Yao Guang, want some?"

Yao Guang declined.

So Li Guanyi sat cross-legged, cracked open one beast egg with his elbow. The shell shattered. The surrounding beasts shuddered. The albumen was large, fully cooked, exuding an indescribable fragrance.

Li Guanyi felt a rumbling in his belly.

The flow of his internal Qi subtly accelerated.

He had expended too much internal Qi just now.

The 【Great Zai Qian Yuan】 had drained him severely. Now, he didn't care—he devoured the eggs in large bites. The Fire Qilin, as if competing, also opened its mouth and feasted wildly. The boy and the beast gorged on the eggs right under the beasts' noses.

Every so often, the Fire Qilin lifted its head, licking yolk from between its teeth.

With its golden-red eyes—now slit-pupiled—it eyed the beasts with malicious intent, licked its lips, and said: "Li Guanyi, I want meat!"

A backhanded slap landed squarely on its face.

The few tigers crouched nearby shuddered.

The Fire Qilin whined unhappily. The silver-haired girl showed no expression, only crouched forward and gently stroked the Fire Qilin's head.

For some reason, all the beasts seemed drawn to Yao Guang.

The Fire Qilin closed its eyes in comfort.

Li Guanyi said to the Fire Qilin: "Having beast eggs to eat is already plenty. These are probably decades' worth of stock from the 【Divine Beast Manor】. Still complaining?"

Suddenly, a soft touch.

A palm pressed against Li Guanyi's head, rubbing gently.

Li Guanyi froze slightly. He looked ahead—the silver-haired girl was crouching, her hand rubbing his hair. The boy let her do it, continuing to wolf down the beast eggs.

Li Guanyi was a martial artist of the Second Heaven, and had refined his oral orifice.

With his appetite wide open, he could easily consume vast quantities—let alone these precious beast eggs. As he swallowed them, warm currents flowed through his entire body.

Li Guanyi felt his internal Qi rapidly replenish; at the same time, his blood and qi stirred faintly. Within the governor's mansion, Li Guanyi and the Fire Qilin feasted wildly, making final preparations for the coming charge.

The other beasts huddled together, wanting to flee but unable to.

They trembled.

………………

The muffled thunder of armored cavalry galloping faded into the distance.

On the walls of Zhenxi Xiongcheng, Prince Ji Yanzhong calmly looked down, watching General Yue Qianfeng lead the eight thousand fully armored cavalry of the Yue family army depart. He knew Li Guanyi's plan had succeeded—this powerful force had left Chen State and was about to enter Ying State's territory.

And Ying State would never fight to the death against General Yue Qianfeng's eight thousand armored cavalry.

They would try to recruit them.

If recruitment failed, they would send massive supplies to help the army reach beyond the pass. Beyond the pass, the situation was complex—home to the world's greatest generals, a region of warlord warfare.

To Ying State, eight thousand Yue cavalry were insufficient to fully unify the frontier and threaten its rear. Yet they could make the frontier even more chaotic.

And General Yue Qianfeng's very existence was like a banner—a perfect mockery of Chen State's imperial dignity. So for Ying State, it was better that Yue Qianfeng and his men lived.

Even more, Prince Ji Yanzhong believed that with the Ying Emperor's grandeur, he would treat General Yue Qianfeng with great courtesy, willing to humble himself to befriend him—thus trampling on Chen Dingye's face while building his own reputation as a noble ruler who honored capable generals. Then, all the world's famed generals would gladly give their lives in service.

Prince Ji Yanzhong thought: this army had already passed its most difficult hurdle so far.

When, in this world, would such a storm rise again?

The white-haired elder sighed. Soon, arrows rose in the distance, exploding in midair into brilliant flares—signaling that General Yue Qianfeng and his men had escaped successfully. Prince Ji Yanzhong turned and looked inward toward the city.

Night curfew ruled Zhenxi Xiongcheng—it was less bustling than Jiangzhou City or Yicheng.

Thus, the sound of elite border troops from Beicheng rushing toward the Magistrate's Mansion with weapons in hand was crystal clear, heavy as Lei Ting; the wind suddenly surged violently, roaring across the sky as Prince Ji Yanzhong's sleeves flapped.

He saw Xue Zhaoji, rescued by Li Guanyi, ignoring his own wounds; after confirming that General Yue Qianfeng and the others had escaped safely, this bloodstained elder, tormented for three days, personally fired the signal arrow.

The force tore open his still-unhealed wounds, and blood flowed out.

Yet he ignored his injuries, eyes wide, watching his signal arrow streak toward the sky, halt at extreme height, then explode violently—once more taking the form of the Fire Qilin, blazing with radiant fire, bright for an instant before falling like rain.

Dribbles of glowing light tore through the night, descending upon the city.

The Beicheng soldiers rushing toward the Magistrate's Mansion looked up; Chen Chengbi, Tu Shengyuan, and the four masters still fighting; the anxious Magistrate Tong; Yuwen Hua retreating from the front; even Yuwen Tianxian.

Gong Wumeng, sitting atop the corpse of the Magistrate's guest, lazily twirling a short sword in his hand.

All saw the falling starlight points from above.

This night, perhaps, had failed…

In Yuwen Tianxian's heart, an unbidden thought arose: he was a battle-hardened general, and he felt a faint but persistent trembling beneath his feet—not from an earthquake, not from the earth dragon's turn, but from the thunder of heavy cavalry galloping.

The Yue family army had broken away from the line; they had failed to stop them.

Chen Chengbi's appearance likely disrupted the four masters' coordinated strike.

Chen Chengbi was of the Chen royal house; Magistrate Tong's betrayal had already failed.

Precisely because of these many failures, the final key must be seized! The three hundred elite heavy cavalry left by Yuwen Lie remained outside the city; Yuwen Tianxian now commanded the Magistrate's personal troops.

Yet even these personal troops, under his command, surpassed their usual capabilities: all escape routes were sealed; the remaining hundreds operated ballistae, dragging the Magistrate's Mansion's carriages forward.

The Magistrate's Mansion lived in luxury; its carriages were built of sturdy materials.

Yuwen Tianxian formed a perimeter with the carriage exteriors, surrounding the pavilion where Li Guanyi now stood; outside the carriages, he laid down poisoned iron spikes.

Then, in the second layer, he deployed large crossbow platforms, each fitted with steel spikes pointing outward.

Above, he mounted rotating crossbows, linked by ropes; anyone who touched a rope triggered the mechanism to spin and fire in that direction—even Wu Gong masters would struggle to evade. Around them, he planted stone pillars, hung bells and mallets to sound alarms, and behind all this, stationed five hundred archers.

Infantry and chariots coordinated.

At close range, rely on traps; then let archers finish them off.

This was the steady, methodical advance of battlefield tactics.

Yuwen Tianxian immediately donned armor, raised his precious weapon; his features were not handsome, yet at this moment he radiated a calmness and coldness absent in younger generals like Yu Wen Lie and Yuwen Hua.

"All of you, ready fire arrows and explosive bolts, douse them in oil, and obliterate this entire area."

Magistrate Tong's face turned pale: "This—General Yuwen, if you do this, won't it be going too far? You've personally set up this battle formation—if the Beicheng garrison commanders discover it, I'll be dead!"

Yuwen Tianxian said coldly: "Magistrate, killing was always your task."

"Without paying a sufficient price, how can you stand firm in this world?"

"You want rewards and safety too? This is the Age of Great Struggle—heroes hang their heads from their belts to fight for glory. Where is the possibility of you sitting there, holding beauties, drinking and laughing, and still gaining a noble title?"

"Do you think we're all fools?!"

Magistrate Tong's face turned ashen; Yuwen Tianxian flicked his hand, flinging the Magistrate aside.

Right hand gripping a long spear, left hand raised, pointing straight upward.

Inside the room, Li Guanyi finished his last egg, exhaled, and his internal qi surged violently, blood and breath boiling.

These strange beasts seemed to have special effects.

Li Guanyi felt his hearing and sight sharpened, his blood racing, his strength swollen far beyond normal.

These things might be the kind described in the Shanhaijing—"eat it and gain such-and-such." Li Guanyi looked at the Fire Qilin: "What now?"

The Fire Qilin's golden-red vertical pupils glowed brightly.

"All clear."

"Good!"

Li Guanyi picked up the Fire Qilin and placed it on his shoulder, then personally opened the cages of the strange beasts; due to the Fire Qilin's aura, the beasts showed no reaction. Yao Guang gathered many flammable materials and brought them over.

Li Guanyi tied the flammable materials to the tails of the strange beasts.

Then he tied ropes to every door and window.

All doors and windows were pulled taut by a single rope, all ropes converging into one.

When Li Guanyi pulled, every door and window would snap open at once. In this moment of extreme danger, Li Guanyi felt no fear; he turned to the silver-haired girl and smiled gently: "Yao Guang, have you ever seen beast fights at the market?"

He paused. "If you're afraid, stay behind me."

He whispered: "I'll protect you."

Across the wall, the young hero and the battle-seasoned general faced each other, neither knowing the other's tactics—a strategy as elusive as a deer's hoofprint meeting the rigid, textbook formations of the Bingfajuan Sect.

Almost simultaneously, Yuwen Tianxian brought his hand down.

The crossbow triggers clicked—like a swarm of furious hornets.

Li Guanyi yanked the rope with all his strength.

Whether life or death—now we'll see!

ZZZZZZ!!!

Arrows shot out in a torrent; time seemed to slow—each crimson arrow soared into the sky, spinning and tearing the air, while at the same moment, the great hall's doors burst open, and the beasts roared.

BOOM!!!

The doors shattered.

Tigers, leopards, even an elephant already enormous despite its youth.

All roared forward, their backs crowned by the terrifying Fire Qilin; their bodies ignited, claws bared, even the elephant bound with countless knives, charging forward with thunderous force.

The archers' faces turned ashen.

BOOM!!!

The infantry-chariot formation meant for men was smashed and trampled by the beasts; traps triggered, archers turned pale, crushed by tigers, torn by leopards, stamped by elephants, fleeing in panic; Yuwen Tianxian's pupils shrank violently.

Using strange beasts as a battle formation, they shattered five hundred archers and utterly disrupted the situation.

This is a genius of battlefield tactics.

He recalled Yuwen Lie's evaluation of the boy.

At such a young age, possessing such strategy and adaptability—this is precisely the prototype of a great general of the world!

Yuwen Tianxian suddenly surged forward, spearing the elephant dead with one thrust.

Then he leapt into the air; the boy Daoist stepped forward, and Li Guanyi watched as the sixfold Heaven general, who had intended to kill, descended—his mind whispered:

"Fire Qilin…"

The primordial energy of the divine beast Fire Qilin erupted outward.

It was an immensely vast primordial energy, blazing and radiant.

Li Guanyi had never intended to directly unleash his Fire Qilin transformation as a trump card; originally, unless the Fire Qilin poured its entire primordial energy into Li Guanyi's body at great cost, he could not achieve the technique that had slain Situ Deqing that day—but that was only the original condition.

Now, it was different.

The boy Daoist raised his right hand, and a vast void suddenly drew in that boundless, tyrannical Fire Qilin true flame, encircling him—

【Greatness · Qian Yuan】!

Unlike the technique used to control Yuwen Hua.

This time, the Fire Qilin did not attack him, so controlling it was exceedingly effortless.

Until it reached Li Guanyi's absolute limit.

The boy's black temple hairs fluttered slightly, his eyes glowing with golden-red light; he spread his five fingers, then clenched them tightly—a tiger's roar surged skyward, dark-golden light spreading, coalescing into the Tiger Roaring Heaven Battle Spear.

The spear touched the ground; the boy did not retreat, but charged forward in great strides.

Qian represents Heaven, Li represents Fire!

Fire is above Heaven!

Top Nine: Heaven itself aids, auspicious, without disadvantage!

Li Guanyi's Dao robe flared as it merged with the Fire Qilin's power; the boy's technique surged violently upward—he raised the battle spear, stomped into empty air, his right foot crashing down upon nothingness, igniting a burst of flame; the boy soared, both hands gripping the spear, slashing downward with all his might!

【Fire Heaven Da You】.

The nobleman follows Heaven, nurtures his destiny!

Li Guanyi suddenly thought: he would use this technique to step onto the world stage.

In Yuwen Tianxian's eyes, the blazing Fire Qilin flame fused utterly with the boy's aura; the divine weapon, bearing absolute annihilation, crashed down, tearing through the night.

He is not merely the prototype of a great general of the world…

Yuwen Tianxian thought.

Not at all.

He shattered my brother's schemes from within, rescued the Yue family's heavy cavalry from without, and devised a hundred stratagems.

Even when trapped in utter desperation, he relied on himself to save his comrades and escape unscathed.

This is—

A great general of the world!

The battle spear slashed down.

The Fire Qilin's roar rose!

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