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"Is there no news from the Western Sea?"

As dawn barely broke, Wei Gongcheng asked the returning Fifth Elder Shen, and Shen San, face grave, shook his head, "I sent two men last night, none have returned, not a single one."

Silence fell upon Wei Gongcheng upon hearing this, it seemed Tian Heng truly had rebelled. Since last night, there had been no news, and neither the Night Traveling God nor the Day Traveling God could find any trace of him, yet no one dared to venture outside the city to search.

Everyone knew that among the powers in Jiangnan, only the Lord Chen Qing, Lady Ziyue, and Prince Ao Zhen could reliably defeat Tian Heng. Now, of those remained, including Xuu Hu, facing Tian Heng alone would likely mean certain death.

Wei Gongcheng knew they were trapped.

It might seem like they had numerous people, but even together, they couldn’t possibly venture outside Lyuzhou City. The ruler of the underworld only had the power of the law in their own city—that is to say, the high-ranking officials now seated in Lyuzhou were all trapped within its walls.

Without contact with the West Sea Aquatic Tribe, it was difficult to judge whether they would join Tian Heng’s rebellion, which was a significant problem.

"The West Sea Aquatic Tribe’s combat strength is not weak; if they fully turn to Tian Heng, we’ll need to prepare in advance," said Shen Eleven, looking at Wei Gongcheng. "Should we activate the city’s protective array ahead of time?"

Wei Gongcheng did not speak. Activating the array in advance could ensure safety, but that would leave no room for maneuver.

If Tian Heng didn’t attack the city, they would be putting themselves in a passive position.

After all, Tian Heng held a high rank, and one could not falsely accuse someone before actual proof of rebellion surfaced.

Moreover, activating the array unilaterally would mean a defensive stance, completely ignorant of the outside situation. What if Tian Heng led the Western Sea Army to ambush the Warrior Army?

Once the array was activated, it isolated the inside from the outside, preventing any scouts from being sent out, leaving no way to gather intelligence. Holding out in an isolated city was taboo in military strategy!

Yet, if the West Sea Aquatic Tribe also totally sided with Tian Heng and they launched a surprise attack, it was possible for them to break through before the array was activated.

"It seems we’re in trouble," sighed Shen San, seeing Wei Gongcheng’s demeanor. "Tian Heng is a well-seasoned general, a renowned commander of our times. Now it seems we’ve indeed fallen into a tactical dilemma."

Shen Eleven was puzzled. "Why?"

"Because no one can go out, nor dares to go out.

If we activate the array ahead of time, that would tip off our movements.

They just need to post a few people to keep watch here to constantly monitor the overall movements of Lyuzhou.

After all, shutting down the array makes quite a racket, and they can react at any moment," explained Shen San.

"At this point, Tian Heng could even choose to backstab the ill-prepared Warrior Army."

"That..." Shen Eleven was taken aback. "Does it mean that if we don’t activate the array, they won’t dare to ambush the Warrior Army?"

"Of course they wouldn’t dare..." Shen San chuckled.

"A large army movement makes a lot of noise. We are prepared to support at any moment, and Xuu Hu can also send long-distance notifications. If he dared to leave his back exposed to us and directly confront the Warrior Army, he’d be out of his mind. "

"But if we don’t activate the array and he suddenly attacks, what then?" Shen Eleven asked with a worried frown, feeling as though their position defending the city was somehow at a disadvantage.

Shen San also rubbed his fingers together. Tian Heng’s capability in military command had been proven, and the Tian Family Army had always been especially good at feinting and launching surprise attacks. The current situation was just the kind of battle Tian Heng thrived in.

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"Old Wolf, care for a drink?"

At the South Gate at dusk, when every household had lit their cooking fires, Meng Sheng, carrying two pieces of white deer meat and a big pot of Green Bamboo Wine, called out from the gate.

The gate guards all rolled their eyes but were used to it. As a general in the naval transportation fleet, Meng Sheng had the most dealings with the Gate God’s Guard. After several years of interaction, he was naturally very familiar with their Gate God.

Furthermore, he was good at maintaining relationships.

Not forgetting the Gate God’s Guard when he reaped his benefits, occasionally sending good things their way through his subordinates, had resulted in a relationship with the Gate God’s Guard that was even closer than with their own Western Sea Army.

"Cough... Kiddo, keep it down." The hoarse voice of Old Wolf transmitted directly into Meng Sheng’s mind: "There are many eyes on us. If they find out I’ve abandoned my post, where will my reputation be?"

"What reputation do you still have?" Meng Sheng couldn’t help but roll his eyes.

Among all the gate deities, the Gate Deity of Lyuzhou was the least serious.

Many merchants knew that passing the Lyuzhou Gate, especially with wine and similar items in their cargo, they were likely to "mysteriously" lose some to the Gate Deity.

It was common knowledge in all of Lyuzhou - what reputation left to speak of?

"Go, go, go, wait for me in Daqing Mountain!"

"Hurry up, this wine needs to be drunk while it’s hot. If it cools down, it loses its flavor," Meng Sheng urged.

"Okay, okay, make the deer meat extra spicy, and I’ll be right over."

Meng Sheng smiled, but a hint of unease flickered in his eyes. Upon leaving Lyuzhou City, he cast a glance back at the smoky Lyuzhou and was overwhelmed by complex emotions.

What would the scene look like after the Tian Family Army enters?

"Sir, please make sure you come back before the end of the shift, and don’t end up like last time, when you were so drunk you couldn’t even find your way north from south," the Gate General sighed and advised.

"Got it, got it, would I not know my limits? Seriously, such a nag..."

The gate guards behind the general snickered, while the general himself was speechless. Their immediate superior didn’t act at all like a general, and it was only by occupying a good spot that he had managed to claim the glory of being the first Gate God.

He wasn’t actually worried that the Gate God would neglect his duties in city defense, for Old Wolf knew what was important and never strayed beyond Daqing Mountain’s limits. As long as he remained within Daqing Mountain, a mere thought would bring him back.

Yet, once Old Wolf really left and the general felt the divine power at the South Gate vanish, for some reason, an inexplicable anxiety suddenly surged in his heart...

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Meng Sheng’s pace toward Daqing Mountain was not quick. By the time he arrived, Old Wolf was already waiting atop. With a voracious look and a body thick with fat, he looked nothing like a wolf.

"Did you crawl here? Why are you so slow?" Old Wolf said impatiently, "I’m very busy, you know. Look at you, even when drinking you’re more efficient. Hurry over; I’ve already found the firewood."

"You better not have dug up someone’s Qingti wood again," Meng Sheng glared at him. "That magician from last time complained throughout the entire city."

"Ugh, forget about those stingy farmer magicians," Old Wolf snorted and with a pawing motion, a pile of wood that looked like gold appeared beneath its feet, causing Meng Sheng’s face to twitch.

"You dare to touch the Azure Bird’s Gold Fruit Tree? Have you lost your mind?"

"The meat roasted with fruit wood smells the best, you don’t understand anything. Hurry up, it won’t find out. I happen to know it went to Yunzhou today, to exchange experiences with the Dayun Mountain Spirit."

"You’re quite well-informed..." Meng Sheng’s face turned as black as coal, but still, he dutifully began making the fire.

As a connoisseur of fine food, he knew the meat roasted with such high-quality fruit wood was the best. The problem was dealing with the mountain spirit’s trouble afterward; it would cost him a layer of skin...

As this thought crossed his mind, he suddenly paused and let out a wry smile. He wondered if this time, the Azure Bird would even have a chance to come after him.

"Old Meng, why do you seem so preoccupied today?"

Meng Sheng silently continued to build the fire and glanced at the sky, realizing the time had come to fulfill his promise. He looked up and said, "Old Wolf, what if I told you, I deliberately tricked you into coming here today? What would you do?"

"Tricked me to come here?" Old Wolf was startled. "Tricked me for what? Don’t tell me this liquor is fake?"

Meng Sheng saw those murderous eyes and didn’t know what to say; this old creature cared for nothing but wine.

But then... in its mind, the worst malice from him would be to trick it with fake liquor?

After all, born of demons, how could it be so gullible?

Old Meng sighed, "Aren’t you going to make your move?"

No sooner had he spoken than a blast of energy shot up into the sky, while the great white wolf looked at Meng Sheng, disbelief clear in its eyes...

"Have you gone mad?"

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"They’ve made their move?"

In Lyuzhou City, feeling the abnormal energy from Daqing Mountain, Second Elder Shen asked with a deep gaze.

"Yes... They must have..." the reply came in a gentle female voice. Anyone who heard this spring-like voice would instantly recognize it as that of the unique Daqing Mountain Spirit.

"Then it’s time for us to act..."