A Sect from a Spirit Vein

Chapter 305: Chapter 265: Gathering Intelligence

Lu Qian feared nothing, except encountering such a patient and silent enemy.

He urgently needed intelligence. The unknown was the greatest trouble.

Even if the Foundation Establishment within the array didn’t show up, responding a few words would allow Lu Qian to gain some information. But now, apart from the immobile Six Harmonies Grand Array, nothing could be detected.

Lu Qian personally came here to lure the enemy, hoping to draw out the enemy inside the array. If that didn’t work, at least he needed to figure out the situation of the troops stationed at the peak. Attacking rashly without understanding the situation was truly dangerous.

However, the people inside the array were not falling for it, remaining unmoved in the face of such insults, earning Lu Qian’s slight admiration.

Now, the need was to find out how many enemy troops were on Golden Dawn Peak. Otherwise, with the limited forces in hand, any incorrect allocation and excessive losses could doom the battle.

Suddenly, Lu Qian stopped talking, and under the watchful eyes of the garrisoned troops within the array, he sat cross-legged in mid-air, floating silently.

”What’s he up to?” a cultivator wondered.

”Be careful and cautious, don’t be fooled by his actions,” Yuchi Hui said calmly, closing his eyes again.

Hmph, baiting didn’t work, now he’s putting on an act of mystery?

The surrounding cultivators naturally suppressed their restlessness, speaking no more.

Inside and outside the array, a sudden silence maintained, with the Six Harmonies Grand Array standing firm, securing Golden Dawn Peak tightly.

Thus, communication inside and outside the array was cut off.

In the dense forest, Lu Qian observed the Cloud Mist Incarnation in the sky, gently stroking the Thousand-Mile Mirror.

Communication was cut off, it was time to try another place.

More than four hundred miles from Golden Dawn Peak lay Mingsha Bay, occupied by Sanshan County.

A mighty Lingsha River crossed the northeastern corner of Chongming County, making a sharp turn to the south just before leaving Chongming County. In the middle of Lingsha River, at this big turn, lay Mingsha Bay, a flat, prosperous area with abundant people and resources.

This fertile land stretched for hundreds of miles, where agriculture and livestock thrived. The Lingsha River flowed vigorously, offering rich opportunities in transportation and fishing, boosting the area’s commerce.

Add to this the presence of a third-level low-tier spirit vein at the core of Mingsha Bay, and for thousands of years, this place has never been short of sects of cultivators. Under the protection of the cultivators, the weather here was naturally favorable, and even if floods occurred occasionally, they were diverted elsewhere using extraordinary power.

Overall, the place flourished in all industries, densely populated, surpassing other areas, indeed a prosperous territory.

The headquarters of the Shahe Gang was originally built upon the spirit vein, turning directly into a small city adjacent to Lingsha River, Lingsha City.

Now, this Lingsha City was occupied by Sanshan County.

The Yunshan Sect possessed three pairs of Thousand-Mile Mirrors, of which two were now gathered here.

One was carried by members of the intelligence group hidden around the small city, while the other was in the hands of Guh Niqiang, who had just arrived here.

The Thousand-Mile Mirror in Guh Niqiang’s hands vibrated, and Lu Qian’s voice came from inside, ”Begin the operation.”

She was about to fly up when she heard Lu Qian hastily say, ”Remember what I told you, don’t engage in battle lightly, gather intel and leave hurriedly!”

Guh Niqiang hesitated a moment, then nodded in response, ”Understood.”

She knew something was off with her. Since the great battle on Yuqing Mountain, the feeling of mental fragmentation became more severe, as if she hadn’t yet awakened from the Illusion Realm.

Various bizarre ideas filled her mind, with all sorts of memories seeming to rearrange and reassemble.

She was no longer the Guh Niqiang of the past, focused solely on her task, or rather forcing herself to be.

Life arises from death, and death from life; if the meaning of death is to be found in life, then where lies the meaning of life?

Guh Niqiang found that when she started to care about life, she became weak; confusion, doubt, and fear began manifesting in her heart, even diminishing the power of her flames.

She didn’t know what to do, habitually wanting to seek help from Lu Qian, but the battle had already begun.

She could only wait until it was over to deal with it.

For the moment, Guh Niqiang forcefully suppressed her complicated feelings, suddenly mobilized her spiritual power, enveloped in surging flames, and shot towards Lingsha City like lightning.

In an instant, alarms rang through the city, and glowing rays burst forth, activating a spherical grand array that sealed Lingsha City.

Guh Niqiang didn’t recognize this array, but she didn’t care either, as she stopped outside the array.

She then pulled out a piece of paper from her pocket, just about to read it aloud from the beginning—

”Who goes there?” a loud voice cried from within the array.

Guh Niqiang was a bit puzzled; wasn’t Lu Qian’s procedure not like this?

But since they asked, Guh Niqiang responded coldly, ”Yunshan Sect, Guh Niqiang!”

With a roar, three strands of spiritual pressure shot up into the sky, and three dazzling escape lights flew towards Guh Niqiang.

”Daring to seek death by coming here alone!”

Guh Niqiang’s golden-red pupils blinked. Something’s off, Lu Qian said to first recite all the insults on this paper, then the insiders would rush out to kill.

But they rushed out without even reading?

In a blink, the city lit up with more bright lights. Judging by this, there were probably two to three hundred Qi Cultivators, driving flying spiritual artifacts, taking off alongside the three Foundation Establishments.

Recalling Lu Qian’s instructions, Guh Niqiang didn’t hesitate anymore, turned around, and left. The flames around her turned platinum instantly, her escape speed increasing in a straight line, shooting through the sky like a comet, swiftly leaving the pursuers behind, widening the gap.

What incredible escape speed! There’s no chance to catch up!

The three Foundation Establishments were startled; one of them pulled back a companion, stopping, ”Don’t pursue. Yuchi senior brother said, stick to the plan, remain vigilant at the gates.”

Another one frowned tightly, ”A lone Foundation Establishment from the Yunshan Sect, just spinning around and leaving? There must be something amiss, we’d better return.”

”This matter also needs reporting to Yuchi senior brother for a decision,” said a Liyuan Sect cultivator hurriedly. He took out a Thousand-Mile Mirror to activate it, but there was no response from within, causing a bit of a shock.

Communications were blocked by the array? Has fighting already begun at Golden Dawn Peak?

Should we immediately support, or wait for instructions according to the plan?

On the other side, Guh Niqiang had already left the enemy far behind, took out the Thousand-Mile Mirror, and contacted Lu Qian. ℯ

”Good, so there are at least three enemy Foundation Establishments in Lingsha City.” With relatively accurate intelligence, Lu Qian immediately started deducing.

When the east is dark, the west shines; the enemy on Golden Dawn Peak was so calm and composed that nothing could be probed, but Lingsha City revealed the most critical information.

It seemed that this flanking force most likely distributed their strength evenly!

They knew that Yunshan Sect’s strength was insufficient to split forces for an attack, so they intended to defend based on the array, holding a strategic position, with reinforcements coming from one place if another was attacked.

Thinking this made Lu Qian admire the opposing commander.

Even with an advantageous position, there was no recklessness, but rather a methodical approach, attacking by defending, using ’righteousness’ and ’stability’ to counter.

From this perspective, they were not afraid of intelligence leaks because their tactics were open and honest, fearing no conspiracy.

As long as these tactics could be implemented continuously, the Yunshan Sect would face immense pressure.

No matter where the attack was launched, with the Yunshan Sect’s resources, if they rashly collided with a base defended by three Foundation Establishments, hundreds of elites, and a Mountain Protection Grand Array, they would likely be trapped, surrounded by incoming reinforcements.

If that’s the case, how to break this stalemate?