Book 4, Chapter 143: Encirclement
Book 4, Chapter 143: Encirclement
Xue Shou kept his eyes on Chen Chuan. “While Mr. Yao and my other comrade are ready outside, life is filled with unknowns and uncertainties. We can’t predict everything. The only thing we’re certain of is that our chances of winning are pretty high.
“That’s why I’ll keep this mental energy beside you to help you avoid certain situations and block some attacks.”
Chen Chuan nodded. After some thinking, he asked, “Have the Union and the Linacrox Union never considered the possibility that a martial arts master might join the fight for the artifact?”
“Of course they did. One of the branches here has an active biosentient entity that can fight against a martial arts master for a short period of time. If their subordinates or partners got the artifact, they would send the active biosentient entity to fight against the martial arts master. Then, they would act according to emergency protocol.
“It’s unlikely that an active biosentient entity could win against Wei Guochan, but it shouldn’t be hard for it to hold him back long enough for them to bring the artifact out.
“This wouldn’t affect our operation, though. Besides, even with the active biosentient entity’s help, they might be unable to bring the artifact away.
“After all, all sorts of things can happen in the merged space, and it’s very normal to slip up while fighting against a martial arts master, no?”
Chen Chuan understood what Xue Shou was saying. In the original plan, the active biosentient entity was sent to fight against Wei Guochan. If it worked out, the Great Shun Republic would have come into absolute control of this region of the merged space.
Many of the Great Shun Republic’s forces were held back by the former royal family. If they could break the deadlock, the benefits could be brought back to Central City, and they might be able to push forward many plans considered too difficult in the past.
“I’ll try to break out of the encirclement once the insect flood passes,” Chen Chuan declared.
“I’ll leave the details to you. From this moment on, I need to make sure this mental energy remains concentrated so that it doesn’t scatter too early. If you run into any trouble, you can communicate with me mentally through this mark,” Xue Shou instructed.
Chen Chuan raised his hand and saw that there was a faint blue light on the palm with which he had touched the green mandarin orange. It was Xue Shou’s mental mark.
When he looked up, Xue Shou was already gone.
Chen Chuan mulled over it. While Xue Shou had made everything clear, Chen Chuan remembered one thing clearly: Xue Shou was chronically late. Would it be the same this time too?
There was no way to tell.
Just like Xue Shou said, there were plenty of unknowns and uncertainties in the world. Even if Xue Shou was on time, there was no guarantee that everything would progress smoothly.
This meant that Chen Chuan had to rely on his own strength if he wanted to succeed.
Right now, he was only a step away from perfecting his mind. Once he did it and fused with his second self again, he would try to reach the Fourth Limit.
This had always been part of his plan.
Since the gap in the World Ring was about to close, his training environment was bound to plunge in quality. He had to reach the Fourth Limit before then, and training in the merged space was highly beneficial for him.
Besides, he had the artifact to help him.
Chen Chuan cast a glance outside before zipping his tent shut. Then, he grabbed the Frost King Saber and opened a gap. As light poured out, he sat down.
***
A cavalryman was holding a fluttering flag on a cliff with scarcely any trees. Under one of them was a young assistant general. He sat on top of a strong dragon-nose horse and was surrounded by more than a hundred elite cavalrymen and infantrymen.
His sharp gaze pierced through his helmet as he stared at the insect flood in the distance.
Just then, they heard horse hooves ahead of them. A few horses and their riders came back. They were the scouts they had sent to check out the situation. One of them had brought a man tied behind his horse.
Ingram’s mind was fuzzy. He could feel himself being dragged; his skin was scratching against and bumping into uneven ground and the stones on it. This brutal treatment was plain torture, but he felt fortunate, because this was better than being eaten alive by the insects.
With his protective item and some special medicine that could squeeze out his potential, he had managed to get out of the raccoon’s area of attack and survive for four days among the insects. The moment he reached the edge of the flood, though, he ran out of stamina and collapsed.
If the scouts hadn’t noticed him and dragged him out, all his efforts over the past few days would have been wasted.
Even so, only half of his head was in good condition. His limbs, torso, and flesh had been gnawed clean. He was a skeleton with a few bits of flesh left that desperately clung to life by doing all he could to protect his organs.
As long as he could receive lots of proper nutrition and rest in nutritional fluid, he would be able to recover.
Just then, he stopped moving. The horse hooves thundering against the ground went quiet while some scattered words in a language he couldn’t understand were spoken. A moment later, someone gave an order, and he was yanked up and tied to a tree. They force-fed him some kind of medicine.
It stimulated his remaining bit of life force, and he regained some clarity of mind. At that moment, he heard a horse walking slowly toward him. Ingram opened his eyes and saw a general sitting on the horse. He wore a helmet and armor while holding a long spear in hand. The general observed him for a bit before asking, “You’re a foreigner? Why are you here?”
There was an interpreter beside the general. He first used the Linacrox Union’s language, then the lingua franca of the Union to ask him the same question.
Ingram stared at him for a while before replying in the Great Shun Republic’s language. “I’m Ingram Seville, a major general from the Linacrox Union. According to the clauses of the mega alliance, I hereby request to be given the treatment and respect worthy of my rank.”
“You’re from the Linacrox Union?” Disdain and disgust shone in the young general’s eyes. “Are you here for the artifact too? I’m pretty sure you are. Judging by the looks of it, you lost, didn’t you?”
He might have phrased his last sentence as a question, but there was certainty in his words.
“That’s not our fault. We aren’t in our motherland and don’t understand everything about what’s going on. Many of the sudden changes here caught us off guard, like the insect flood,” Ingram defended himself.
The young leader didn’t comment on that. “Where is the artifact now? Is it with the Union or the rebels?”
“It should be with a Great Shun Republic officer,” Ingram answered.
“What is his rank? How strong is he?”
Ingram didn’t answer directly. “I know quite a lot about him, and I can give you the details, but I want some form of guarantee.”
The young general scoffed at that and pointed his spear at Ingram. “Judging by your sorry state, you would rather face the insects than fight against your enemy. How dare a coward like you try to negotiate with me?”
Ingram was frustrated, but he had always been highly adaptable. Besides, he was a captive in the imperial army’s hands, so he said cordially, “The Linacrox Union has always been at odds with the Great Shun Republic, so I know about your situation. You were forced into the merged space by the Great Shun Republic’s government. This gives us a foundation to work together. I’m a major general, and I have a campsite and a powerful unit. As long as you treat me, I can provide you with manpower and information to grab the artifact toge—”
Before he could finish, the spear pierced his head and pinned him to the tree.
“Even if we don’t work with you, the artifact will be ours,” the young general said languidly and pulled the spear out. “Get rid of him, and make sure nothing is left behind.”
“Understood!”
Soldiers immediately came forward and poured fuel on Ingram’s body, then set him on fire.
The young general stared at the light staining the sky with its beautiful colors. They were only the vanguard. Further back was the imperial army’s main force surrounding the light from three directions. The opening was in the direction of the Great Shun Republic’s campsite they had yet to take down.
They left the opening on purpose, and it was the same about the camp. Instead of taking it down, they just didn’t give the people inside a chance to recover. They kept attacking and intercepting all reinforcements. Once the insect flood disappeared, the young general’s brigade would converge with the main force and attempt to grab the artifact.
***
A day later, Chen Chuan ended his nightly training. He took a tube of nutritional paste and fed Dawncall some food before coming out of his tent to take a look around.
The insect flood was still around, but it was much thinner than two days ago. By the looks of it, it was going to pass in a day or two. Then, they could finally take action.
He cast a glance in the direction of a barren rocky mountain. If he remembered correctly, one of the Linacrox Union’s campsites was there.
The Sleeping Worm was moving toward it.
Chen Chuan went over to Xu Chan and pointed at the mountain. “Captain Xu, see that mountain? One of the Linacrox Union’s campsites might be there. According to Skin Flayer, he stored Lead Investigator Wen’s remains there. Since we’re already here, I’d like to take a look.”
“Are you confident?” Xu Chan looked over.
“I made some calculations. If I go there at a slightly faster speed than usual, it’ll only take me a few minutes. I’m just going to take a look. If I can’t find Lead Investigator Wen’s remains, I’ll come back immediately,” Chen Chuan explained.