The moment Yuan Jiuchen heard this, his eyes flashed with strange light. When the river bank broke and the floodwaters first rushed in, the water level was too low, and the current too fierce, making navigation impossible, especially for massive ships like the Ten Thousand Stones. Those three hundred great ships that could rush downstream must have been specially modified, perhaps even possessing the ability to briefly pierce the void.

Although the terrain around Helian Tieshan was low-lying, the area was not vast.

At the current water level, it would only take half an kèzhōng to completely fill the vicinity.

Traveling upstream against the Li River was rare for such a major east-to-west river. The three hundred great ships only needed to drift downstream, traveling west for about three thousand li, to leave the borders of the Great Shang Kingdom.

“Hmph! What a calculating scheme! Drowning the mountain with water, to report the demise of those three million people at Helian Tieshan. The local officials will have a ready explanation, won't make trouble, and won't jeopardize their careers. From here, heading west, it would only take a few days to sail effortlessly out of the national border! There must be moles from the Cangsheng Dao inside Helian Tieshan. Those three million people are likely waiting on some mountain right now!”

Ji Lingzi spoke, sneering coldly, “If we hadn't spontaneously decided to make a move against these three million people, forcing them to act prematurely, the Cangsheng Dao might have succeeded! But now, it probably won't be so easy—”

Boli and Xiao Ze exchanged a glance. While they held some admiration, their eyes mostly conveyed pity.

Their move, though seen through by you, was prepared long ago—a killing formation laid out, just waiting for someone to step in.

Yet, their faces showed slight nods, without the slightest trace of difference.

Ji Lingzi continued, then suddenly flicked his sleeve, sending a surge of qì erupting. He directly etched a diagram onto the grass before him, faintly resembling a stretch of the Li River and the topography near Helian Tieshan.

He then looked toward Yuan Jiuchen, his gaze questioning. The latter understood, knowing that while Ji Lingzi was intelligent, he was not skilled in military strategy himself.

Without hesitation, Yuan Jiuchen drew the longsword accompanying him and plunged it fiercely into a spot on the upper left of the terrain map.

“This is Black Spirit Mountain! Beside it runs a valley path, the most perilous area near Helian Tieshan, and currently, the only passable route. The Cangsheng Dao does not have many men; even with the forces that recently arrived, there are barely over nine hundred horsemen. If they intend to stop my great army from attacking before those condemned citizens board the ships, they will certainly choose this place to make a stand!”

A slight smile touched Yuan Jiuchen’s face, tinged with mockery. “Those mere eight hundred Cangsheng Xuanlong Riders—if they engage me in mobile warfare, I, Yuan Jiuchen, would need to exercise some caution. But now, by guarding a vital pass, they are essentially sealing their own doom. I can order the surrounding armies to converge near Black Spirit Mountain. Even if they miss the main battle, they can prevent the Cangsheng Dao bandits from escaping!”

Ji Lingzi’s eyes lit up slightly, and he uttered a brief ‘Good,’ his gaze also revealing a cold sneer.

Though he looked down upon Yuan Jiuchen’s character, he trusted the man’s generalship.

For today's battle, the Purple Heaven Sword Cavalry alone had dispatched one thousand four hundred riders from the Sect, nearly half of the Daoist soldiers sent here. There were also two hundred elite disciples, all possessing formidable combat strength.

If one added the Han King’s one thousand Dingxi Iron Cavalry and three thousand Imperial Guards, under Yuan Jiuchen’s command were also three thousand elite cavalry from Yancheng.

—Even if Tan Qiu truly possessed unparalleled generalship, he would certainly make this person perish beneath Black Spirit Mountain to wash away past shame!

Boli and Xiao Ze exchanged glances for the third time, muttering that it was indeed Black Spirit Mountain.

That person had also anticipated it.

※ ※ ※ ※

Dozens of li away, on one side of Black Spirit Mountain, nine hundred knights also stood stationed.

They too were motionless as wooden carvings amidst the torrential downpour.

However, the expressions of the few men leading them were somewhat unusual.

“I wonder where the Chief went? Why hasn't he returned yet? Does this matter also need to be kept secret?”

As he asked, Luo Shi Zheng frowned, looking to the side. There was a fifth-tier Silver Scale Wind-Treading Beast, Zong Shou’s mount. But at the moment, it was empty.

Zhao Yanran, standing beside him, pondered for a moment, feeling there was nothing substantial to hide, and said generously, “The Chief went to West Qin City; he should be back soon. As for his purpose, you will know in due time.”

Upon hearing this, not only Luo Shi, Xuan Ye, and the others were stunned, but the Cangsheng Dao disciples behind them were also incredibly surprised.

Then, they each furrowed their brows in deep thought.

Luo Shi’s first thought was that Zong Shou intended to work through the upper echelons of the Great Shang Dynasty, just as before.

But upon careful consideration, he knew this was impossible. This wasn't about a mere dozen people; it concerned the life and death of three million souls. Trying to delay things would likely be difficult.

Then what was the purpose of Tan Qiu’s trip to West Qin City? And at such a crucial juncture—

Gazing into the distance, toward Helian Tieshan shrouded in thick mist dozens of li away, Luo Shi’s worry deepened.

Vaguely visible now were countless people emerging from the mines, being driven by the guarding soldiers onto the nearby high ground.

What could this mean? Had the day of execution been moved forward?

“I guess that fellow probably ran off alone because he was completely helpless!”

A voice, like a silver bell, drew everyone’s attention. The speaker was a vivacious young woman, seemingly innocent and carefree. The Cangsheng Xuanlong Riders who had followed Zong Shou in the battle east of Lewu City felt their gazes warm slightly.

After that battle, they admired this current Chief of the Cangsheng Academy the most for her refusal to tolerate any insult.

But since she was just an ignorant little girl, there was no need to take her seriously.

Ruoshui also looked over, only to see Yong Qin glaring back, her face puffed out.

She secretly chuckled, brought a hand to her mouth, and returned a face-pulling grimace.

Yong Qin, however, was startled and then became furious with embarrassment. Even when Xuan Ye pulled her sleeve, she remained unyielding.

“I will say it! Back then, my Master and Palace Master Fang Wen couldn't rescue anyone, so what could Tan Qiu possibly do? He might be formidable, but is he more formidable than Uncle-Master Fang Wen from back then? I think waiting here is pointless!”

Xuan Ye could only offer a wry smile, wondering if this foolish girl was making excuses for Chief Tan, or if she genuinely didn't respect him.

Zhao Yanran couldn’t help but let out a soft chuckle before quickly stifling it. Then, she rubbed her temples with a headache, as her junior martial aunt was making the Seven Spirits Sect look ridiculous.

Only Xie Guan spoke, his expression grave. “Martial Aunt’s words aren't entirely wrong. It’s not that I, Xie Guan, don’t trust the Chief. It’s just that this matter is too thorny. If we try to save them, we will inevitably fall into the Grand Spirit Sect’s machinations. But if we do nothing, our conscience will betray us. In my view, we should report to our superiors and let the elders handle it—”

As he spoke, a sword light suddenly streaked down from the distant night sky. A figure stood on the sword, none other than Zong Shou.

Upon landing, he sat directly upon the Silver Scale Wind-Treading Beast.

Still clad in his black and red armor, carrying the eighteen-foot greatsword on his back, he landed and stared fixedly at the distant Helian Tieshan.

He poured his soul power into his eyes, gazing intently for a moment, and nodded slightly to himself. The population gathered around those dozen or so peaks was indeed around three million. The clerk at Helian Tieshan had done his job reasonably well. He then asked the person beside him, “Are the arrangements in place?”

Besides the Xuan Arts practitioner, another commander, named Xuan Chi, had joined the Cangsheng Xuanlong Riders. He was unfamiliar with Zong Shou, and their relationship was somewhat distant. The one who answered was the former. “Following the Chief’s intentions, we have set up a Reversal of Formlessness Array across the valley path, covering twenty li!”

Xie Guan’s eyelids twitched. Why an illusion array and not a killing array?

In his memory, the Reversal of Formlessness was not an extremely powerful illusion array; its only notable feature was its concealment. Even an Eighth or Ninth Rank expert would walk into it unaware. How could Tan Qiu be so certain this array would be useful?

Zong Shou smiled in satisfaction. With this, everything was ready except for the final catalyst.

He swept his gaze over those around him, pausing on Zong Yuan. His aura was already visibly unstable, occasionally causing spiritual energy to erupt around him—a clear sign of an imminent breakthrough, just like when he advanced to the Innate Realm within a year.

He was just one step away from the Celestial rank. The effects of those three Dragon Tiger Body Tempering Pills were indeed remarkable; just as rumored, three pills were enough to lay the foundation for the Celestial rank.

Just as a look of relief surfaced in his eyes, Zong Shou suddenly sensed something amiss, though he couldn't recall what it was immediately.

He had no choice but to turn his face, waiting leisurely.

It was strange; Yong Qin had been vehemently slandering Zong Shou moments ago, but now that he had returned, she dared not utter another word, behaving as docilely as a cat.

As for Xie Guan and Luo Shi, they occasionally wanted to speak and inquire, but could only forcefully restrain themselves.

It was at this moment that countless floodwaters could be seen charging and surging from the distance.

The momentum was tremendous; in just a kèzhōng, the low-lying areas were completely submerged.

The two were first startled, and then they saw hundreds of large ships appear within sight.

They were all newly constructed Floating Cloud Vessels. They were unpainted and clearly crudely built, but they seemed quite sturdy.

As Xie Guan’s expression relaxed, his brow furrowed tightly again. “I fear the Grand Spirit Sect and the Han King will not allow these condemned citizens of Helian Tieshan to board the ships safely—”

It was then that Zong Shou finally realized the source of the discordant feeling. Xie Guan, Luo Shi, and those Cangsheng Dao disciples were, without exception, all wearing the black and red battle armor of the Cangsheng Xuanlong Riders, and each held a crimson greatsword. Even their mounts were uniformly Silver Scale Wind-Treading Beasts.

His belly ached from suppressed laughter, but Zong Shou could only force himself to endure it, retrieving the eighteen-foot greatsword from his back.

Then, he looked toward the upper reaches of the Li River, toward that Black Spirit Valley Path.

“So, a battle must still be fought after all! That Ji Lingzi should be arriving soon!”

Xie Guan immediately gasped in cold fear. Not just him, but many of the elite Cangsheng Dao disciples behind them murmured in shock.

They didn't fear the Grand Spirit Sect alone, but facing the encirclement of the Han King’s hundreds of thousands of troops—wasn't that courting death?

Had this Tan Qiu gone mad?