Chapter 1280: On the Eve of the Great Battle
Chapter 1280: On the Eve of the Great Battle
On the southern foothills of Tianxing Highland lay Shuangjing Mountain.
Speed was paramount in war. After the council at the ice crystal palace, Qin Sang and Qingjun had immediately led the army onward, traveling day and night straight toward Sin Abyss’s camp.
Sin Abyss had attacked from south to north all along, always fighting uphill.
The Two-Domain Alliance had occupied the favorable terrain and relied on it to resist the invaders. If they launched a counterattack, it would be with unstoppable momentum, leaving Sin Abyss little chance to benefit from the terrain.
Shuangjing Mountain, however, was an exception. It was one of the most famous peaks on the first staircase of Tianxing Highland. The mountain towered so high that it even rose above the height of the second staircase. Its field of view was broad, and it was easy to defend and hard to assault.
The southern and northern sides of the mountain had very little rugged ground, as if two icy mirrors had been slanted into the earth. That was how Shuangjing Mountain had gotten its name, and it showed just how perilous the terrain was.[1]
Sin Abyss had occupied this mountain for many years, driving a camp into it like a nail. It was like a sharp fang buried deep in flesh, causing the Two-Domain Alliance endless pain.
At all times, at least one middle-stage Spiritual Infant expert had been stationed there. Now that Canghong had realized the situation was turning unfavorable and adopted a defensive posture, Shuangjing Mountain had become even more heavily concentrated with experts.
Their goal was to pull out this fang of Sin Abyss! As long as they could force Sin Abyss back from Shuangjing Mountain, they would be able to pursue them closely and tear open a gap in Sin Abyss’s formation.
Aside from Qin Sang and Qingjun, Daoist Master Zhenyi had also specially arranged for the city lord of Yinshan Stronghold, Jinglin, Si Di, and other Spiritual Infant cultivators familiar with them to come with a heavy force.
Several hundred li outside Shuangjing Mountain, there was a peak that served as a forward outpost for Sin Abyss.
The wind and snow were fierce. The mountain was covered in gleaming white snow, and the cold wind howled. Everything looked perfectly normal.
What no one would have guessed was that there was a very small and extremely well-hidden spirit array inside the mountain. Within it were ice houses, watchtowers, and every other necessary structure, all guarded by sentries.
Oddly enough, there was not only a cultivator standing atop the watchtower, but also an eyeball the size of a human head.
The eyeball floated in mid-air, rolling about restlessly. It looked extremely strange. The guards around it were grim and did not dare relax in the slightest.
Suddenly, a faint ripple appeared in the void.
Before the guards noticed anything unusual, the eyeball had already become acutely alert. Its pupil abruptly turned and locked onto the direction where the ripple had appeared, while it let out a piercing shriek.
"Crap! The enemy is attacking!" The guards were horrified.
They reacted instantly. The moment the eyeball stirred, they simultaneously raised a spirit talisman, slapped it with their palms, and darted down from the watchtower without even looking back.
The eyeball’s pupil suddenly contracted, and dazzling light burst from it.
Just as a white beam was about to shoot out, cracks suddenly appeared throughout the surrounding void. Then, with a tremendous boom, it shattered completely.
Fragments of space mixed with snowflakes and freezing wind, forming a chaotic torrent that slammed viciously into the watchtower. Faintly, several strange lights seemed to flash within it before vanishing.
Boom!
The buildings inside the spirit array, the eyeball atop the watchtower, and everything else failed to last even a moment before exploding and being flattened to the ground. A few miserable screams could be heard faintly within the destruction.
The wind and snow continued as before. In the next instant, three figures appeared in the void and looked down at the wreckage below.
"I never expected Daoist Qin to possess such profound attainment in arrays and barriers as well. You saw through the weak point of this protective spiritual array with ease!" A dignified, square-faced cultivator stroked his beard and repeatedly praised the man beside him.
This man was none other than the city lord of Yinshan Stronghold. The other two were Qin Sang and Jinglin.
"You flatter me, Daoist," Qin Sang said calmly. "This array was not some top-tier grand array. Its purpose was only to buy a little time under attack and allow the watchtower to catch sight of the invading enemy. It was not actually difficult to deal with."
Qingjun had opened the treasured collection of Yuanshen Sect to him and allowed him to study it freely.
Qin Sang’s understanding of arrays had long since changed beyond recognition. At the very least, with the help of the Sky-Eyed Butterfly, his ability to break arrays was far beyond that of other cultivators of the same realm.
With the three of them joining forces, they had shattered the array in an instant and destroyed everything here. That eyeball had likely seen nothing but chaos.
Jinglin flashed down to the ground and swept away the ruins with a wave of his hand, only to discover a damaged small teleportation array. Those guards had died before they even had the chance to activate it.
Qin Sang was a little surprised. "Sin Abyss has really spared no expense. Even a mere forward outpost had a teleportation array set up here."
"Sin Abyss places enormous importance on Shuangjing Mountain. It is just as important as the two major camps before Shiqu Mountain and Wangdong City. They already turned it into an iron fortress long ago." Jinglin glanced around, found no useful information, erased the traces, then took out a sword talisman and sent a message back to the central army.
After that, the three of them set off again to eliminate the remaining outposts.
The moment the first outpost was destroyed, the Sin Abyss army on Shuangjing Mountain had already noticed something was wrong.
Inside the great hall of the camp was a miniature Shuangjing Mountain, similar to the one in Canghong’s tent.
The Spiritual Infant cultivators had all gathered there, watching helplessly as one watchtower after another dimmed. The speed was so fast that it was alarming.
Everyone’s expressions were grave. It would have been one thing if the watchtowers had only been destroyed, but up to now, not a single one had successfully sent back a message. They had not even caught sight of the invaders’ shadows. And not a single survivor had been left behind.
"Order everyone, including those in the frontline camps, to withdraw to Shuangjing Mountain immediately. There is no need for meaningless sacrifice."
At the center of the crowd, like the moon among stars, stood a female cultivator in purple robes. Her tone allowed no doubt. She was clearly a middle-stage Spiritual Infant cultivator.
Someone accepted the order and left.
A man beside her said in a low voice, "There are only a handful in the Two-Domain Alliance capable of doing something like this. It is very likely Zhenyi himself or Tongyou in person. Just as Senior Canghong predicted, the Two-Domain Alliance has begun its counterattack."
"Do not forget the two who heavily injured Senior Tianzheng and Elder Ye at Blood Lake. Elder Ye saw it with his own eyes. That fellow disguised as a demon king was also skilled at breaking arrays," another person said and looked out of the hall, his brow tightly furrowed. "The enemy has come with overwhelming force. Are they determined to take Shuangjing Mountain? There is still no news from the other camps. We do not know which one has come, or even how many."
The purple-robed woman’s expression was firm. "There is no need to overthink it. Daoist Canghong already made the arrangements long ago. We will hold Shuangjing Mountain. No matter who comes, they should not even think of breaking the array in a short time. Hear my order. Activate the array immediately, and set up the Nether Crystal Tower on the northern side!"
"Yes!"
"Understood!"
***
At the same time, Qin Sang’s trio struck another outpost, only to find it already abandoned. The next several outposts were the same.
The three of them understood that Sin Abyss had already withdrawn fully into Shuangjing Mountain, but they still conscientiously destroyed every last outpost.
"So this is Shuangjing Mountain." Jinglin pointed at the magnificent white mountain silhouette in the distance, his gaze complicated.
There had once been a market on Shuangjing Mountain. Before he reached the Spiritual Infant Realm, he had cultivated here for several decades. It held memories of both laughter and sorrow for him. Now, however, times had changed, and it had already fallen into enemy hands.
"As expected, it is a dangerous stronghold, second only to the two great staircases!" Qin Sang said.
After discussing the matter, Qin Sang and the other two decided not to press forward rashly. There was a Sin Abyss camp ahead, and it would be difficult to uproot it as cleanly as before, so they stayed where they were and waited for the central army.
Not long afterward, Qingjun arrived with the central army. The great battle was about to begin!
1. Shuangjing also translates to "two mirrors". ☜