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“The capital has dispatched two hundred thousand troops, and Resist the North City has over a hundred thousand. Such a massive army on the move, if I hadn’t known the route in advance, even with my Sword Sense domain fully deployed, it would have been hard to detect their movements.”
“The Great Jin lacks high-end combat power, but its soldiers are like a fierce army of tigers and wolves.”
“No, it seems there’s more to it…”
Meng Qingzhou sat cross-legged on the back of the winged beast, his Sword Sense of Time and Space covering a range of over ten thousand miles.
They were less than a thousand miles from the Northern Sejong Alliance, and could reach it within half a day.
From yesterday until today, Meng Qingzhou had been constantly probing the surroundings, never letting his guard down.
The Heaven-Watching Pavilion had set its sights on the Great Jin Dynasty, so their methods couldn’t be simple, yet…
Meng Qingzhou hadn’t found any trace of the Heaven-Watching Pavilion, but he did notice some arrangements that seemed to be made by Empress Qin Liuli.
“The various small and medium forces entrenched in the northern border are on high alert, as if they’re consolidating their troops. Could it be…”
Meng Qingzhou’s breath caught.
After a long while, he turned back to glance meaningfully at the boudoir belonging to the Empress on the back of the Mountain Carrier beast.
“Gathering momentum, rolling like a snowball, crushing the eternal fortresses. If the power of one nation isn’t enough to overthrow the Wilderness, then raise the banner and call upon all nations to attack together. What a brilliant strategy.”
Meng Qingzhou discarded his distracting thoughts and focused his mind.
“This war is gradually getting out of control, and my current strength is still insufficient…”
“The Heavenly Fortune Body is constantly helping me improve my cultivation, and with the nutrients absorbed from the Nine Layers of Divine Tribulation, I’m just a step away from breaking through to the mid-stage of the Morning Glow Realm. Plus, with the experience points accumulated by the Blind Sword Saint System, I can break through to the late stage of the Morning Glow Realm in one go!”
With this in mind, Meng Qingzhou no longer hesitated and began his breakthrough!
Half an hour later.
The spiritual energy of heaven and earth suddenly went into turmoil, and the spiritual energy within a radius of tens of thousands of miles was drained and gathered, then poured into the Baihui acupoint on the top of his head.
This phenomenon caught the attention of the Great Jin courtiers, who became alert, thinking something was amiss. It wasn’t until someone saw Meng Qingzhou sitting cross-legged that they relaxed.
“What is he doing?” Li Guanyan asked, looking from a distance.
Wang Xianjia squinted his eyes and stared for a while, then said indifferently, “He’s probably had some insight and is trying to make a breakthrough before the battle. Don’t worry about him; the grand scheme cannot be changed by him alone.”
“Besides, his identity is still uncertain; whether he’s friend or foe is yet to be determined. Let him be.”
Li Guanyan’s expression was stern. After thinking it over, he agreed and paid no further attention.
“By my calculations, Hai Lantian should have received the route map by now, and he should be taking action soon,” Wang Xianjia said.
…
…
Mid-stage of the Morning Glow Realm.
Meng Qingzhou smiled slightly and called out to the system in his mind.
“System, add points!”
In an instant, the small sun of spiritual energy that had been exhausted due to the breakthrough to the mid-stage of the Morning Glow Realm became full again!
Countless acupoints in his body radiated light, like stars in the night sky, highlighting the blazing sun in his dantian.
The embryonic form of the Dao of Space-Time began to take shape within him, gradually forming a small inner universe.
“This is the late stage of the Morning Glow Realm, where the Dao is incorporated into the body, transforming the body into a world, into the Dao!”
“Interpreting all things, interpreting the principles of space-time!”
Meng Qingzhou extended a hand, as if he could touch the threshold of the Sky-Reaching Realm. The realm where he could truly control his destiny was no longer far away!
“From this moment on, I am invincible below the Sky-Reaching Realm!”
At this moment, Meng Qingzhou was filled with heroic spirit. His long black hair danced wildly, and his black robe fluttered in the fierce wind. Standing on the back of the Cloud Swallower winged beast, he rode the waves through the sea of clouds.
If he were to face the recent situation where Pu Lingzi and the Yin-Yang Elder ambushed him, Meng Qingzhou wouldn’t even need to exert much effort; he could crush them with one hand.
From the peak of the early stage of the Morning Glow Realm to the late stage, the Dao of Space-Time gradually began to integrate into his body, causing his overall strength to skyrocket, multiplying countless times!
“Something’s wrong…”
“Someone is spying.”
Meng Qingzhou frowned, and within the range of his Sword Sense domain, a region of space was distorted.
Someone was watching, and just one glance had shattered the spatial barriers along the way.
Who could it be?!
At this moment, any unexpected situation couldn’t be simple.
“Time. Rewind!”
Meng Qingzhou brought his two fingers together and placed them on his forehead. In an instant, a white-gray light emerged from the center of his body and began to expand outward.
Within the area covered by the white-gray light, time and space began to flow backward.
Finally.
That gaze reassembled, tracing back to its source…
“Isn’t that the direction of the Northern Sejong Alliance? Have they discovered us?!”
Just then.
A sudden change occurred!
As the winged fleet passed through a certain airspace, a buzzing sound echoed through the heavens and earth!
Then, under the shocked gazes of everyone, a terrifying formation covering a thousand miles slowly rose, enveloping the entire winged fleet.
“We’ve been ambushed! The Northern Sejong Alliance has discovered us! They’ve set up an Emperor Grade formation along the way, enough to slaughter any Morning Glow Realm cultivator! Protect Your Majesty!”
“This formation cannot be broken through! It has isolation effects!”
“The Northern Sejong Alliance wants to separate us from the Great Jin army following behind and defeat us in detail. Break the formation at all costs! I’ll go wake up the Empress from her seclusion!”
“Don’t panic, follow the command to break the formation, and the rest of you defend against the incoming formation attacks!”
An Emperor Grade formation, what a grand gesture!
Even the entire Great Jin Dynasty couldn’t produce an Emperor Grade formation, showing its preciousness, comparable to a strategic weapon.
Undoubtedly, the Northern Sejong Alliance had received accurate information!
…
Not only that, but the sounds of earth-shaking slaughter erupted from the east, west, south, and north, with terrifying auras crisscrossing.
The hidden Great Jin army was all precisely located and attacked by numerous unknown powerful individuals.
“Great Jin Dynasty, how dare you attack our Northern Sejong Alliance. Since you seek death, I will fulfill your wish!” A powerful figure sneered, causing mountains to crumble with a wave of his hand and creating a thousand-mile canyon with a single punch.
“Hahaha… Today, we will erase the Great Jin!”
“Kill! Leave no one alive!”
Boom!
The Great Jin army reacted, forming defensive formations to counterattack.
In an instant, the once vast and empty snowfield was filled with numerous Moon Shine Realm experts and tens of thousands of Great Jin soldiers, methodically defending and counterattacking.
Wu Shangpin, the City Lord of Resist the North City, wielded a blade and was simultaneously ambushed by three Morning Glow Realm cultivators. In just one encounter, he was covered in blood and severely injured!
“Liuli…”
Meng Qingzhou’s expression changed. In front of him was the Emperor Grade formation! He… was isolated outside the formation!
Although he couldn’t see, within the range of his Sword Sense domain, he could clearly sense ten Morning Glow Realm experts hidden within the formation, moving towards the Mountain Carrier beast, their target being… the Great Jin Empress in seclusion.
The ambush was a ruse…
The real goal was to decapitate!
The Northern Sejong Alliance’s true target was the Empress!
“You court death.” Meng Qingzhou instantly erupted in fury, his Sword Sense domain going berserk. All living beings within this range were shredded by the Sword Sense of Time and Space, their blood, limbs, and organs flying chaotically, turning the area into a hellish scene.
“Space-Time. Ocean Flow.”
Without hesitation, Meng Qingzhou drew the Cicada Song sword and soared into the sky. A long river of space-time, as wide as an ocean, broke through the space and descended from above.
Using the long river of space-time as a sword, he struck the formation!
“Break!”
The Emperor Grade formation trembled, and under this strike, countless cracks appeared.
The formation was on the verge of collapse.
Inside the formation, a few Morning Glow Realm elders of the Northern Sejong Alliance, who had boarded the back of the Mountain Carrier beast, were also drawn to the commotion.
Turning their heads, they saw Meng Qingzhou outside the formation barrier, standing in the air like a demon god, wielding his sword with a terrifying aura, continuously attacking the formation.
“Is he Meng Qin?!” An elder of the Northern Sejong Alliance exclaimed in disbelief.
“The Emperor Grade formation is supposed to be unbreakable, yet in front of him, it’s so fragile?!”
…
Just as Meng Qingzhou was about to strike the Emperor Grade formation again with the long river of space-time, a foreign aura approached, slowly walking towards him.
“Sword Saint Meng Qin of the Great Jin, practicing the Dao of Space-Time, you are truly a rare talent. I’ve always admired you.”
“Who are you?”
Meng Qingzhou paused, frowning. The newcomer was very powerful, and he hadn’t noticed him before.
Hai Lantian smiled and said, “I am Hai Lantian, the Alliance Leader of the Northern Sejong Alliance.”
“Get lost. While I don’t have time to deal with you, you’d better stay away, or I’ll kill you.” Meng Qingzhou had no time for nonsense and was about to strike the formation again.
Hearing that the newcomer was the Alliance Leader of the Northern Sejong Alliance, he immediately lost interest.
“Don’t worry, the Empress will be fine. Those people are only surrounding her, not killing her,” Hai Lantian said calmly.
Upon hearing this, Meng Qingzhou extended his Sword Sense domain to investigate and indeed found that the dozen or so Morning Glow Realm experts were merely surrounding the Empress’s seclusion area, with no intention of advancing further.
Not only that.
Even the Northern Sejong Alliance experts who had ambushed the Great Jin army had stopped their slaughter after an initial attack, merely blocking the army from rescuing the Empress.
It seemed that all this commotion was just to warn the Great Jin.
“What do you mean by this?” Meng Qingzhou asked coldly, turning his head.
Hai Lantian smiled without speaking, then casually conjured a low table and a chessboard out of thin air.
He then gestured invitingly and said, “Sword Saint, how about a game of chess with me?”
Meng Qingzhou frowned deeply, remaining silent.
Hai Lantian was very patient, quietly waiting with a smile.
“After doing all this, surrounding the Empress and besieging the army, you just want to play a game of chess with me?” Meng Qingzhou asked.
“Yes, and no,” Hai Lantian replied calmly.
Meng Qingzhou frowned, hesitated for a moment, then lifted his robe and sat cross-legged on the long river of space-time. He visualized the chessboard in his mind and wrapped the chessboard with his Sword Sense domain, allowing him to sense the position of each piece.
“You are guests from afar, and as the host, I will follow your lead. You make the first move,” Hai Lantian said gently.
Meng Qingzhou picked up a black piece and placed it directly in the center of the board.
Hai Lantian looked closely, somewhat surprised, and said:
“I’ve studied you. In my opinion, you don’t seem like the type to expose yourself to the public eye. You chose to retire at your peak, cultivating in seclusion for years, only revealing your strength when the Empress was in danger. Placing your piece in the center is quite unexpected.”
With that, Hai Lantian picked up a white piece and placed it casually.
Meng Qingzhou sensed the position of the piece and said calmly:
“Adaptability suits you better. I am not the person you imagine, hiding my strength. I see the true nature of the world and know many secrets, realizing that I am not yet capable of controlling my own destiny.”
“I like to keep my destiny firmly in my own hands, but you, Hai Lantian, are a complete slacker.”
Hearing this, Hai Lantian was initially stunned, then laughed and shook his head, saying:
“A slacker? Interesting, it suits me well.”
“You’re right. My greatest wish in life is to live freely, but my father was the previous Alliance Leader of the Northern Sejong Alliance, and I have been a prodigy since birth, carrying high expectations. Otherwise, my life would be completely different.”
Then, the two fell silent.
They placed their pieces rapidly on the board, surrounded by the sounds of battle, as if they were in an ordinary setting, chatting occasionally.
Li Guanyan, who was defending against the enemy, kept his eyes on the sky, cautiously observing the surroundings, and transmitted his voice:
“What’s going on? The Northern Sejong Alliance’s attack has slowed, they’re surrounding but not killing, and even Meng Qin is playing chess with Hai Lantian.”
Wang Xianjia, who was fighting a Moon Shine Realm cultivator, also had a serious expression and said:
“Hai Lantian is not simple. He must have a deeper purpose for doing this!”
“If they don’t dare to fight, we’ll help them. Kill a few of the Northern Sejong Alliance’s experts and force Hai Lantian’s hand!”
With that, Wang Xianjia exerted his strength, punching through the Moon Shine Realm cultivator, his arm piercing through the chest and grasping a beating heart.
“Die!”
“Let’s quietly kill a few Morning Glow Realm cultivators. I don’t believe Hai Lantian can stay calm!” Wang Xianjia said angrily.
Li Guanyan nodded with a stern face, drew his long knife, and began looking for opportunities to hunt the Morning Glow Realm cultivators of the Northern Sejong Alliance.
……
“Retreat,” Hai Lantian suddenly said.
Meng Qingzhou paused with a black piece in his hand, suspended in mid-air, and asked, “Is that what you wanted to say?”
Hai Lantian shook his head and said calmly:
“I’ll tell you a secret. The information was provided by the young master of the Ji family in Sky State, and the route was anonymously leaked to us by someone among you.”
“Do you understand now?”
“Someone has set their sights on the Wilderness, likely a force from Sky State. I don’t want to be used as a pawn, so I’m advising you to retreat.”
Meng Qingzhou remained silent.
Leaked information?
Who could it be… who else could it be!
Li Guanyan, Wang Xianjia!
“From your expression, it seems you’re not surprised,” Hai Lantian said, his smile fading as he became serious.
“Not surprised, and I know who leaked the information. I’ll deal with them personally later,” Meng Qingzhou nodded, a cold smile appearing on his lips.
…….
【Double-length chapter, please follow and send gifts】
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