CHAPTER 603: CHAPTER 588: COMPLETE VICTORY!

Because the matter required great secrecy, Zhouyang only informed Liu Yunxiang and his Dao companion Xiao Ying about the message from the Yuqing Daoist Sect, and did not let a fourth person within the Suyun Sect know.

Upon learning the news, Liu Yunxiang could hardly suppress her excitement and was overjoyed, repeatedly expressing her delight.

This female hero immediately discussed and strategized with Zhouyang on how to respond based on the information contained in the message.

In the following period, the cultivators of the Six Paths Alliance attacking the Mountain Protection Array suddenly noticed that the resistance within the Suyun Sect seemed to weaken somewhat. Attacks of the same intensity produced slightly better effects on the Mountain Protection Array than before.

Noticing this situation, the high-tier cultivators of the Six Paths Alliance outside the mountain simultaneously increased the intensity of their attacks to test if the situation was real, and investigated the cause of this situation by various means.

These so-called various means, of course, included sending messages to spy within the Suyun Sect for confirmation.

Before the Six Paths Alliance besieged the mountain, the Suyun Sect had accepted several dozen cultivation clans and two small sect cultivators to reside, among whom were naturally spies already bought and cultivated by the Six Paths Alliance. It’s even possible that some direct disciples of the Suyun Sect might be spies.

The cultivation of these spies did not need to be high, as long as they could transmit various information from within the mountain. They had special messaging means to ignore the barriers of the Mountain Protection Array to send messages to the high-tier cultivators of the Six Paths Alliance outside the array.

Thus, through their external observation, tests, and the information from spies, the high-tier cultivators of the Six Paths Alliance finally made a judgment.

The reason the Mountain Protection Array of the Suyun Sect began to weaken in defense was because months of defense had shaken the roots of many Foundation Establishment cultivators inside the mountain gate. Their meridians and dantian were constantly damaged by waves of recoil forces, requiring long-term rest and recuperation to not affect their future cultivation.

These cultivators withdrew from the defense sequence to rest, leading to reduced energy supply to the Mountain Protection Array, and naturally, its defense also weakened.

"Aside from Zhouyang, who has been recuperating in the cave mansion, other Golden Core cultivators appear daily, and the two Tier Five Spirit Birds also remain on the mountain. This is enough to show that the enemy indeed had to reduce the array’s energy supply because the lower-level cultivators couldn’t withstand the pressure, and not because they were planning some strategy to trick us."

"Moreover, even if they have some scheme, breaking the Mountain Protection Array can only be beneficial to us and not harmful. As long as we adhere to this target, what can they do to us?"

Outside the Suyun Sect, after some discussion among the Golden Core Stage cultivators of the Six Paths Alliance, they quickly decided to increase their attack intensity, aiming to break the Suyun Sect’s Mountain Protection Array as quickly as possible.

The pressure on the Mountain Protection Array suddenly increased, forcing those cultivators who had withdrawn for rest within the Suyun Sect to return to their posts for defense. This information was quickly relayed by spies.

So the Golden Core cultivators of the Six Paths Alliance outside finally confirmed that their enemies were nearing collapse, and their assault intensified even further.

Preventing the enemy from achieving their goals is a fundamental principle of warfare.

Thus, despite the sustained fierce attacks causing their own cultivators to endure immense pressure and physical and mental fatigue, the Golden Core cultivators of the Six Paths Alliance had no intention of changing their strategy.

The intense war within the Suyun Sect was already barely related to Zhouyang, who had now left through a secret teleportation array inside the mountain gate of the Suyun Sect.

This secret teleportation array was only a short-distance array and could transport a maximum of five people at once, also functioning as a one-way teleportation array.

The original purpose of this one-way teleportation array was as a backup means for the Suyun Sect to preserve sect inheritance in times of life and death.

The commotion when it was activated was very low, and those below the Nascent Soul Stage almost couldn’t detect it, ensuring Zhouyang’s secret departure from the Suyun Sect.

His secret departure from the Suyun Sect this time was to rendezvous with a supporting Golden Core cultivator to deliver a fatal blow to the Six Paths Alliance cultivators outside the Suyun Sect.

The Golden Core cultivator supporting the Suyun Sect was named "Kanli Wanderer," a Ninth-Layer Golden Core loose cultivator renowned far and wide.

This person practiced an extremely rare Water and Fire Mixed Cultivation Technique, the Kan Yuan Li Fire Scripture. This technique is several times more difficult than other high-level techniques and extremely dangerous; one misstep could lead to going mad and exploding to death.

However, danger and opportunity coexist. Though the Kan Yuan Li Fire Scripture is difficult and dangerous to cultivate, once mastered, it exponentially increases the cultivator’s combat power over peers. The integration of water and fire, yin and yang, is said to greatly aid Core Formation and Nascent Soul Formation.

Kanli Wanderer, being a loose cultivator, was already fortunate to have a high-level technique to cultivate. After this technique also increased his success rate in Core Formation and Nascent Soul Formation, he made little hesitation in choosing it as his main cultivation technique. Subsequently, he truly mastered it, reaching his current realm.

Over the past centuries, by relying on several Water and Fire Fusion Divine Techniques attached to the Kan Yuan Li Fire Scripture, the name Kanli Wanderer has spread throughout the circle of high-tier cultivators in the Liuyun Continent cultivation realm.

Zhouyang did not know how the high-ranking members of the [Profound Purity Dao Alliance] persuaded the "Kanli Wanderer" to dare get involved in the war between two superpowers, but he knew that with this person’s assistance, the Suyun Sect would surely achieve a favorable outcome soon.

And now, he was going to meet this person, and then both of them would launch a surprise attack from outside; Liu Yunxiang would then lead others to break out from within the Suyun Sect, launching a pincer attack to crush and defeat the army of the [Six Paths Alliance] that was fiercely assaulting the Mountain Protection Array.

At this time, Zhouyang had already started cultivating the "Stinging Dragon Avoiding Tribulation Technique." Although he couldn’t yet deceive Golden Core Stage cultivators like Wu Biao once did, it was more than enough to fool the low-tier cultivators’ eyes scattered throughout Chang Country by the [Six Paths Alliance].

The "Kanli Wanderer," although not practicing the same Concealing Breath and Invisibility divine techniques, also had similar methods to deceive those low-tier cultivators’ eyes and sneak into Chang Country outside the Suyun Sect.

According to their agreement, after reaching a small mortal city tens of thousands of miles away from the Suyun Sect, Zhouyang quickly found "Kanli Wanderer" disguised as a fisherman fishing next to a small river outside the city.

This "Kanli Wanderer" should be over eight hundred years old, his body seemed a bit frail, but his spirit was vigorous. Seeing him, Zhouyang couldn’t help but think of Master Cyan Yang in the past.

At that time, Master Cyan Yang was still Cyan Yang Daoist, also possessing a Ninth-Layer Golden Core cultivation and was preparing for refining pill and forming infant.

In Zhouyang’s eyes, the current "Kanli Wanderer" was very similar in state to Cyan Yang Daoist back then.

This realization startled Zhouyang, who originally intended to greet the other as an equal, but he immediately changed his demeanor, presenting himself as a junior, cupping his hands, and respectfully saluting, "Junior Zhouyang greets Senior Feng Zhen."

The real name of the "Kanli Wanderer" is Feng Zhen. However, those senior cultivators are often remembered by their Daoist names and nicknames, making people forget their real names.

Seeing Zhouyang address him by his long-unused real name and respectfully add "Senior," Feng Zhen was quite favorably impressed at first sight.

Polite young juniors like this are indeed rare today. More often, young juniors, upon succeeding in core formation, shout, "A pellet of golden core enters the belly, my fate is determined by me and not by heaven," showing disrespect to anyone.

There are many objective factors that contribute to this situation. For example, before the Golden Core Stage, many cultivators must keep a low profile, frequently encountering seniors one great realm above them.

But after reaching the Golden Core Stage, with Nascent Soul Stage cultivators rarely stepping down the mountain, Golden Core Stage cultivators become the top-tier active individuals in the cultivation realm.

With such opportunities to stand out, no one is willing to revert to their previous ways of keeping a low profile.

But in the eyes of a renowned Ninth-Layer Golden Core cultivator like "Kanli Wanderer," those newly successful Golden Core cultivators are no different from Purple Mansion Stage juniors— all easily crushable.

The difference lies in the various consequences of killing a Purple Mansion Stage cultivator versus a Golden Core Stage cultivator.

Before coming, "Kanli Wanderer" had heard of Zhouyang’s exploits. He initially thought such a Golden Core Stage cultivator, not yet five hundred years old and famed from a young age, would be quite arrogant and hard to get along with, and was even prepared to give Zhouyang a lesson upon meeting.

However, he had to change his initial thoughts and instead smiled, saying, "Fellow Daoist Zhou, you’re too polite. I had already heard of your remarkable exploits before arriving. Now seeing your heroic demeanor, the rumors are indeed true; you are undoubtedly a dragon among men, with extraordinary natural talents."

"Senior praises me too much. Compared to your lifetime of renowned achievements, my few battle accomplishments are nothing and cannot bear such praise from you!"

Zhouyang shook his head repeatedly, modestly showing a declined acceptance, then slightly flattering, looked at the other person and said, "With you personally taking action, we will surely teach those villains of the [Six Paths Alliance] outside the Suyun Sect a lesson they’ll regret!"

Unexpectedly, "Kanli Wanderer" furrowed his brow upon hearing this and suddenly said, "Speaking of this, I have something to clarify with you, Fellow Daoist Zhou. Although I received benefits from your [Profound Purity Dao Alliance] to assist in the war, I don’t have the same substantial backing as you, and if I kill too many [Six Paths Alliance] people, it might be difficult to escape their Nascent Soul Stage cultivators’ retribution after the war.

Therefore, in this rescue of the Suyun Sect, I will not easily kill people, only injuring them and leaving it to you to handle. I hope you can understand this!"

Zhouyang could understand "Kanli Wanderer’s" difficulty, but the problem was, he couldn’t make the decision on this matter!

So his expression shifted and he promptly smiled bitterly, shaking his head, "Senior’s difficulty, I can understand, but on this matter, I cannot make decisions and must consult the seniors."

After speaking, he prepared to take out the "Immortal Spirit Jade Book" to communicate with the Yuqing Daoist Sect, to see if they agreed with "Kanli Wanderer’s" conditions.

Upon seeing this action, "Kanli Wanderer" immediately laughed, "Fellow Daoist Zhou, rest assured. This condition was one of the agreements for my assistance and all the seniors are already aware. Now I’m only informing you to prepare you mentally."

Hearing this, Zhouyang immediately stopped and smiled with reassurance, "In that case, I have no objections."

His action made "Kanli Wanderer" feel extremely pleased and he couldn’t help but laugh heartily, "Hahaha, since Fellow Daoist Zhou has no objections, let’s set off now. I believe Fellow Daoist Liu and the others in the Suyun Sect are anxiously waiting."

Liu Yunxiang indeed was waiting eagerly. Ever since Zhouyang secretly left the Suyun Sect, she had been in a state of anxiety.

In her heart, she desperately hoped that Zhouyang and the "Kanli Wanderer" would appear soon to completely resolve this sect extermination crisis for the Suyun Sect.

But she was also afraid that this matter might have unforeseen complications leading to terrible consequences.

Moreover, as the attack from the cultivators of the [Six Paths Alliance] outside the mountain gate grew a lot fiercer, the pressure on the Mountain Protection Array and the cultivators on the mountain increased, worsening her anxiety.

To maintain secrecy, she couldn’t disclose the entire plan until Zhouyang and the "Kanli Wanderer" appeared.

Fortunately, she herself was an exceptionally resolute woman, controlling her emotions and expressions well. In addition, other cultivators were mostly focused on the enemies outside the mountain gate, so they hadn’t noticed her anomaly.

However, as the Golden Core Stage cultivators from the [Six Paths Alliance] outside the mountain gate joined the attack sequence, making defense increasingly difficult, a cultivator finally couldn’t help but inquire about Zhouyang’s situation, hoping he could bring out the two Tier Five Spirit Birds to join the defensive array.

Upon hearing such words, she immediately responded without hesitation, "Good steel should be used on the blade. The situation hasn’t become severe enough yet; how can we rashly disturb Fellow Daoist Zhou? No, I don’t agree with doing this."

But as the situation became more critical, the number of cultivators asking grew, and even some began showing doubt, their gazes flickering. She had no choice but to soften her attitude again and change her statement.

"It’s not that I don’t want to ask Fellow Daoist Zhou for help, but he’s currently in seclusion, using a Healing Secret Technique to recover hidden wounds, so he can restore his full strength and participate in the crucial battle. And before seclusion, he specifically instructed me not to forcibly awaken him unless the Mountain Protection Array truly can’t hold."

At this point in her speech, others, regardless of whether they believed her or not, could only reluctantly choose to believe, and no one brought up this matter again, nor did anyone dare to question Zhouyang as a coward.

Liu Yunxiang didn’t know that Zhouyang and the "Kanli Wanderer" had been hiding hundreds of miles away from the Suyun Sect mountain gate, watching the battlefield from afar, waiting for the opportune moment to strike.

This time, their goal was to completely defeat the [Six Paths Alliance] army outside the Suyun Sect.

Therefore, timing this attack was crucial—it was best not to strike lightly; once they did, it would be earth-shattering, directly killing two or three Golden Core Stage cultivators from the opponent, laying the foundation for victory.

"The enemy has three Late-Stage Golden Core cultivators, one at Ninth Layer and two at Seventh Layer; if I launch a stealth attack, I have an eighty percent chance of severely injuring one at Seventh Layer, putting him in a perilous state, and intercepting the Ninth-Layer cultivator."

"Fellow Daoist Zhou, if you can hold off the other Late-Stage Golden Core cultivator, Fellow Daoist Liu Yunxiang inside the Suyun Sect can unleash herself and slaughter those Early-Stage Golden Core cultivators."

On a small hill belonging to the same mountain range as the Spirit Mountain of the Suyun Sect mountain gate, the "Kanli Wanderer," with his eyes flashing with light, surveyed the distant battlefield. After retracting his divine techniques, he looked at Zhouyang and conveyed his plan.

Currently, the number of Golden Core Stage cultivators from [Profound Purity Dao Alliance] and [Six Paths Alliance] was twelve versus thirteen; factoring in Zhouyang’s two Tier Five Spirit Birds, it was fourteen against thirteen, with [Six Paths Alliance] outnumbered.

As the "Kanli Wanderer" noted, if they could instantly kill a Late-Stage Golden Core cultivator from the opposite side at the start of the battle, and then have Liu Yunxiang, the Eighth-Layer Golden Core cultivator, free her hands to help others, then the battlefield situation would reverse at once; the [Six Paths Alliance] would no longer be able to achieve victory in the war and might not even be able to retreat intact.

Therefore, Zhouyang only pondered briefly before nodding in agreement, "The elder’s words are indeed correct, I have no objections."

Seeing his agreement, the "Kanli Wanderer" decisively said, "Then let’s wait for another hour before making a move. I see that the Mountain Protection Array of the Suyun Sect won’t hold much longer; we can’t truly let the enemy break the array, as that would cause great backlash damage to the cultivators providing magical power for the array!"

At this moment, Zhouyang finally used the "Spirit Rhinoceros Jade Pendant" magical artifact he carried to transmit a message to his Dao companion Xiao Ying within the Suyun Sect, and then through her, relay it to Liu Yunxiang.

Upon receiving Zhouyang’s message, Liu Yunxiang’s long-tense nerves finally relaxed, and she began silently counting and calculating the time.

When the time left until the agreed activation time was less than half a quarter, only then did she move her lips slightly, finally conveying the message to all the Golden Core Stage cultivators within the mountain gate.

As expected, upon suddenly hearing this good news, everyone was both surprised and delighted, and the previous tense and fatigued expressions on their faces vanished instantly, replaced by looks of joy.

At this moment, no one blamed Liu Yunxiang for not telling them the truth in advance. All cultivators who learned the news were prepared to counterattack with eager anticipation.

As half a quarter passed, the "Kanli Wanderer" and Zhouyang himself, concealing their presence using the "Hidden Spirit Incense" Zhouyang provided, suddenly launched an attack from behind the [Six Paths Alliance] cultivators’ base camp, directly initiating a sneak attack on two Golden Core Stage cultivators attacking the Mountain Protection Array in midair.

In the eyes of Liu Yunxiang and others on the mountain, they only saw a blue and red light beam suddenly shooting through the air with a "boom," blasting one of the Late-Stage Golden Core cultivators attacking the Mountain Protection Array down towards the ground.

Then, before the blasted Late-Stage Golden Core cultivator could perform self-rescue, a purple long spear rapidly followed, directly piercing and pinning him to the ground.

This scene made Liu Yunxiang’s blood boil; a blush of excitement spread across her fair and charming face, and she couldn’t help but shout aloud, "Fellow Daoists, the time to counterattack has come, kill!"

Before her shout had faded, she was already the first to rush out of the array to engage in battle.

In an instant, including that Tier Five Array Master who had been presiding over the Mountain Protection Array, all the Golden Core Stage Cultivators within the Suyun Sect charged out together, each seeking a peer cultivator as an opponent to engage in combat.

Meanwhile, Zhouyang and "Kanli Wanderer" had already, as planned, each engaged with a formidable adversary.

The outcome of this great battle was actually already determined before it began.

"Kanli Wanderer" was worthy of his great reputation. At the onset of battle, he assisted Zhouyang in slaying an enemy Seventh-Layer Golden Core Cultivator and quickly intercepted the enemy’s sole Ninth-Layer Golden Core Cultivator, soon gaining a clear advantage, preventing them from intervening in other battles.

Zhouyang managed to hold off another Seventh-Layer Golden Core Cultivator, providing Liu Yunxiang with the foundation to wreak havoc.

With her Eighth-Layer Golden Core cultivation, she traversed the battlefield with ease, coordinating with fellow cultivators to slay an enemy Golden Core effortlessly.

After barely half an hour of combat, three Golden Core Stage Cultivators from the Six Paths Alliance had fallen at her hands.

As expected, a massive defeat ensued. The remaining Golden Core Stage Cultivators from the Six Paths Alliance, faced with life-and-death crises, abandoned all else to escape the battlefield by any means, not daring to linger any further.

The others might have escaped, but the Ninth-Layer Golden Core Cultivator and the Seventh-Layer Golden Core Cultivator Zhouyang was dealing with were forcibly detained by Zhouyang and "Kanli Wanderer," trapped in a siege.

Surrounded by over a dozen peer Golden Core Stage cultivators, the two Golden Core cultivators from the Six Paths Alliance turned pale, showing signs of despair.

Both knew that at this juncture, they had no other choice but to risk their lives in an attempt to drag some down with them.

To surrender was out of the question!

If they had broken through the Suyun Sect’s gate, Liu Yunxiang could have led the sect’s disciples to surrender, joining the Six Paths Alliance like those surrendering sects and clans in An Country, becoming vassals of a major sect.

But now, they stood alone outside, with countless sect and clan members behind them. Should they defect in battle, the consequences would be dire.

Perhaps some disregard all this and focus solely on survival, but these two surrounded Golden Core cultivators clearly couldn’t bring themselves to such a point.

Thus, a resolute determination arose amidst their despair.

They prepared for a desperate fight, to drag as many down with them as possible!

Upon realizing this, Zhouyang and the other Profound Purity Dao Alliance Golden Core Cultivators tacitly eased their offenses, slightly widening the distance, employing various defensive measures, ready for the worst.

However, just as this desperate struggle was about to erupt, a voice filled with helplessness suddenly echoed throughout the battlefield.

"To the victor go the spoils, we admit defeat in this battle. We’ll withdraw all our forces from this Chang Country battlefield. What does Fellow Daoist Yu Long think?"

This voice, emerging from an unknown origin, resonated across the entire battlefield.

Upon hearing this voice, Zhouyang and the other Golden Core cultivators were taken aback, having guessed the identity of this voice—undoubtedly a Nascent Soul Stage cultivator of the Six Paths Alliance.

Fortunately, shortly after this voice rang out, the voice of Yuqing Daoist Sect’s Nascent Soul Stage cultivator, Master Jade Dragon, also resounded across the battlefield.

"Fellow Daoist Xuanjian, you must be joking. After the battle for Suyun Sect ends, even if you don’t proactively withdraw, how could you resist our counterattack? This move of trying to trick us is unworthy of your status, Fellow Daoist!"

"Then what does Fellow Daoist Yu Long propose? Why not lay down some terms."

"It’s simple. You must voluntarily withdraw from Chang Country; this is a prerequisite. Then, you must leave all the treasures plundered during this war and compensate us for the personnel and material losses caused by this war. Let’s initially set the compensation amount at two hundred million Spirit Stones!"

"Is Fellow Daoist Yu Long joking? We merely lost this Chang Country battlefield, but that doesn’t mean we lost the entire war. You demanding war reparations now is quite laughable."

"If you’re truly insincere about negotiating, then let’s keep fighting and see who emerges victorious in the end!"

"Who precisely lacks sincerity, Fellow Daoist Xuanjian? You come to our territory, commit massacres, and expect to retreat without paying a price. Do you truly see our Profound Purity Dao Alliance as a soft target to be toyed with at your whim?"