193: Chapter 193 Openly Repairing the Castle While Secretly Crossing the Chencang Pass

Night fell like ink, and the sounds of battle at Huhe Bay came to an abrupt halt at the final moment.

Below the city walls, corpses were piled like small mountains. The black carapaces of Black-armored Marching Scorpions, the silver fur of Silver-spotted Shadow Wolves, the dark yellow hides of Iron-Spined Crocodiles, the gray feathers of Demonized Sparrows, and the brown quills of Poison-spine Porcupines blended into a hideous mosaic under the moonlight. The air was thick with the stench of blood, mixed with the smell of gunpowder and char.

In the distance, the fleeing ferocious beasts were still struggling to run at the edge of the horizon. Five Silver Rank beast swarms had been transformed in a single night from five complete populations into five bands of remnants.

At this moment, it was the perfect time to pursue and capitalize on the victory.

"Everyone, retreat!"

Qin Ce's voice suddenly drifted down from the top of the castle. It wasn't loud, but every word was crystal clear in the night wind.

Jiang Mo's footsteps paused.

He looked back—the fleeing Silver-spotted Shadow Wolves were less than a hundred meters ahead, and the Nightmare's Psychic Shock had already locked onto the lead wolf running at the very front.

In another two seconds, he could freeze it; in three more seconds, he could catch up; and in five more seconds, he could end its life.

"Retreat!" Qin Ce's voice rang out again, carrying an unquestionable authority.

Jiang Mo turned and ran. The Nightmare followed at his heels.

Lei Gang, Sun Lie, Feng Bao, and Lin Qi—all five squads stopped in their tracks at the first possible moment, turned, and retreated.

Their movements were crisp and decisive, without hesitation, doubt, or even anyone asking "why."

In one month's time, the prestige Qin Ce had established in their hearts was more effective than any command.

Twenty-four people were all withdrawn into the castle in less than ten minutes.

On the city wall, Qin Ce stood there, looking at the squad members who were panting heavily and covered in blood. He offered no explanation and no comfort.

His gaze fell upon Qingluan.

The reason he had previously made Qingluan suppress its energy and wait until dark to break through was for this very moment.

He wanted to use this chaotic battle to escape the Wang Family's surveillance.

The Wang Family had troubled and obstructed him time and time again.

The Pterosaurs of Yinpinglu were lured there by the Wang Family, and this siege by five Silver Rank beast swarms was also orchestrated by the Wang Family behind the scenes.

If he didn't resolve the threat of the Wang Family, he would inevitably be plotted against when he went to hunt Gold Rank ferocious beasts later.

Hunting Gold Rank ferocious beasts as a Silver Rank was inherently extremely dangerous and allowed for no mistakes.

As long as there were people from the Wang Family watching nearby, his chances of failure would be immense.

When that time came, how would he accumulate energy for the God-level Ruins crystal? How would he open the God-level Ruins?

Therefore, the Wang Family was the first problem that had to be solved after breaking through to the Silver Rank.

Of course, solving the Wang Family didn't mean uprooting the northern Wang Family's power—that was simply impossible.

Nor was it about attacking the Wang Family's main force—that would also be seeking death.

But besides these two methods, were there no other ways to deal with the Wang Family?

As a high-IQ researcher in his past life, nurtured by five thousand years of Huaxia thinking, how could Qin Ce be without a plan?

Influenced by all kinds of information from his previous life—whether it was Cao Cao's famous tactic of raiding grain supply routes or the maxim that war is a battle of logistics—Qin Ce viewed power structures differently from everyone else in this world.

The Wang Family's ability to dominate the north didn't lie in military strength or administrative power at all.

The City Lord's Mansion and the other three families were not inferior to the Wang Family.

The foundation that allowed the Wang Family to gain an absolute advantage in the north lay in two things—an extremely meticulous intelligence network and a massive logistics smuggling system.

One could track all movements in the north, and the other could covertly transport logistical supplies to various places.

This was the true foundation of the Wang Family in the north.

And now, Qin Ce patted the small booklet in his breast pocket.

A month of data analysis, a month without sleep—the booklet that mapped out the smuggling and logistics network was now lying quietly in his arms.

He already held the Wang Family's Achilles' heel in his hands.

But before that—

He had to first check what talent the Silver Rank promoted Qingluan had actually awakened.

Qin Ce closed his eyes, and Nine-Star Insight operated silently, with lines of information flowing into his mind like a stream.

Qingluan's god-level talent, Nine-fold Azure Sky, awakens one layer of Wind-element Law with every major realm advancement.

The first layer is Breath Condensation, which allows the energy within Qingluan's body and the energy density of its released skills to be ten times that of an ordinary Pet Beast, making Qingluan's attacks inherently superior to those of the same rank.

The second layer is Wind Mastery; the attack of Flowing Cloud Wave Roll under the empowerment of Phoenix Flow had already demonstrated its extreme capability during the beast tide phase.

And this time, the third layer of Wind-element Law came into view.

Wind Core!!!

A Wind Core can be placed in any aerial area.

The Wind Core can influence a ten-meter radius, causing the air within that range to form a fixed flow direction, and the wind speed can be set between Level 1 to Level 13. A maximum of nine Wind Cores can be deployed.

Qin Ce opened his eyes, his brow furrowing slightly.

The third layer characteristic is controlling wind direction?

Releasing a Wind Core, ten-meter range, Level 1 to Level 13 wind speeds.

It sounded decent, but compared to Breath Condensation and Wind Mastery, wasn't it a bit too useless?

Qin Ce's brow furrowed even tighter. He didn't believe the system would give him a useless talent.

With every layer of Nine-fold Azure Sky awakened, the power would have a qualitative leap; this was the system's description, and it had never been wrong.

But this Wind Core indeed left Qin Ce scratching his head.

However, in the next moment, three wind-element skills slowly emerged in Qingluan's skill bar—Wind Barrier, Phoenix Dance Nine Turns, and Wind Prison.

Qin Ce's pupils suddenly constricted.

Wind Barrier: Uses at least two Wind Cores spaced twenty meters apart, with their wind flows released in opposite directions to form a wind wall up to twenty meters wide, blocking all ranged attacks or intercepting a dash-type skill.

Two Wind Cores combined into a wind-element blocking shield?

Images flashed through Qin Ce's mind—two Wind Cores standing opposite each other twenty meters apart, with wind directions opposing, creating a high-speed counter-flowing wind wall between them. Incoming arrows, fireballs, Wind Blades, and lightning would be shredded, deflected, or bounced away upon hitting that wind wall. Any lunging ferocious beast would be knocked back, strangled, or torn to pieces.

This wasn't useless; this was a strategic-level defensive skill.

Qin Ce's finger tapped lightly on Qingluan's feathers as he continued reading.

Phoenix Dance Nine Turns: Deploys nine Wind Cores at once according to a specific spatial formula, allowing for rapid movement and turns between the nine Wind Cores, forming nine impossible shifts to achieve extreme speed and superior evasion effects.

Nine shifts. In battle, a single shift could make an opponent's attack miss; what did nine shifts mean? It meant that within the combat space formed by the nine Wind Cores, Qingluan could weave through like a ghost. Every shift would be inconceivable, and every movement unpredictable. The opponent's attacks would forever strike its afterimages, while its true body had already moved in another direction.

This wasn't just evasion; this was crushing on a spatial level. Achieving an effect near spatial teleportation with Silver Rank strength relied not on energy, but on the exquisite geometric structure formed by the nine Wind Cores.

Wind Prison: Forms a cage with nine Wind Cores in a three-dimensional spatial structure, with all wind directions chosen to flow toward the internal central area, trapping the enemy in the middle of the Wind Cores. The wind directions of the nine Wind Cores are not aimed directly at the center but are all staggered and slightly offset, causing the enemy in the center of the Wind Prison to be blown by nine different wind directions, spinning constantly like they were in a tumble dryer, just like hell.

Wind Prison. It wasn't restraint; it was chaos. The enemy trapped inside wouldn't lose the ability to move, but they would lose their sense of direction. They wouldn't be able to distinguish north, south, east, or west, nor up, down, left, or right. They would think they were charging forward when they were actually spinning in circles. They would think they were retreating when they were actually crashing toward the center of the Wind Prison. Nine different wind directions blowing from nine directions, each slightly offset, combined to form a chaotic domain where no creature could maintain its balance.

Qin Ce took a deep breath. These three skills were all very strong, each enough to make Qingluan invincible among its peers. But what truly made his heart race wasn't the three skills themselves, but the information conveyed behind them.

A Wind Core wasn't a single skill; it was a platform. Nine Wind Cores, nine fulcrums, which could be arbitrarily arranged, combined, and switched on the battlefield. Wind Barrier was just one combination, Phoenix Dance Nine Turns was another, and Wind Prison was a third. What about a fourth, fifth, or sixth?

A thought flashed through Qin Ce's mind like lightning.

The essence of the Wind Core was to create a special wind-element pseudo-domain around Qin Ce and Qingluan.

A domain. That was a power only those at the Transcendent Rank could master. Transcendent Rank Beast Tamers and Pet Beasts could do anything within their own domain—strengthening allies, weakening enemies, and changing rules. Yet Qingluan, at the Silver Rank, possessed a combat space similar to a domain.

The nine Wind Cores didn't form a fixed area; they were a mobile, variable, and combinable wind-element combat platform. Within this platform, Qingluan could perform many feats far beyond its current level—defending against ranged attacks, extreme evasion, and creating chaotic prisons. Furthermore, combined with the Wind Mastery talent, as long as a Wind Core was present, the source of Phoenix Flow would be inexhaustible.

When a Wind Core was placed in the air, its location would form a stable convergence point for wind-element energy. As the air flowed, the wind-element energy would flow with it, and the Wind Mastery talent could continuously draw energy from that Wind Core, converting it into Phoenix Flow.

What did this mean? It meant that in battle, Qingluan no longer needed to frantically draw energy from the surrounding air as it did before. As long as the Wind Cores were deployed in advance, Phoenix Flow would automatically generate, supplement, and circulate. Qingluan could focus more of its energy on attacking rather than on energy collection and conversion.

The boost this gave Qingluan was earth-shattering.

Qin Ce opened his eyes, and the silver moonlight shone on his face.

He looked down at Qingluan, and Qingluan looked back at him, those silver-cyan eyes showing no excitement or pride, only a quiet, certain steadiness.

Qin Ce smiled and reached out to stroke Qingluan's neck.

But now was not the time to study new skills.

What needed to be done now was—to run.

"Everyone, pack your gear. In fifteen minutes, we cross the river!"

Jiang Mo was stunned for a moment.

Cross the river? The Huhube River?

They had spent three days building the castle and had just won a battle, and now they were leaving?

But he didn't ask. He turned around and began packing his gear.

The others didn't ask either.

Twenty-four people moved simultaneously; some dismantled tents, some packed sleeping bags, some organized medical kits, and others counted crystal cores and materials. Their movements were swift, and in less than fifteen minutes, the entire camp was cleared out completely.

Qin Ce stood on the city wall, taking one last look at this castle he had built with his own hands.

Three days of construction, one day of bloody battle, and then they were leaving.

He felt no reluctance; from the first day he built this castle, he never intended to stay long. This was just one step in his plan.

"Qingluan, take four at a time."

Qingluan flapped its wings, carrying four squad members into the air and flying toward the opposite bank of the Huhube River. The night was thick, and Qingluan flew very low, almost skimming the surface of the water.

Below the river, schools of Bone-devouring Fish were swimming, and a few leapt out of the water, opening their mouths to reveal rows of fine, sharp teeth. Qingluan lightly flapped its wings and avoided them.

One trip, two trips, three trips. After six trips, all twenty-four people had crossed the Huhube River.

The last one to cross was Qin Ce himself.

He stood on the bank of the Huhube River, looked back at the castle, and then pulled something from his breast pocket—a black sphere the size of a fist, its surface covered in fine runes that glinted faintly in the moonlight.

This was the most powerful energy bomb Qin Ce had exchanged for in the Wuji Army.

Qin Ce stuffed the energy bomb into a crack at the base of the city wall, injected a sliver of wind-element energy, then turned and leapt onto Qingluan's back.

Qingluan carried him across the Huhube River and landed on the high ground on the opposite bank.

Qin Ce landed, turned back, and looked at the brightly lit castle on the other side.

BOOM—!!!

A blinding white light exploded from the opposite bank of the Huhube River, and the entire castle was blown sky-high in that instant.

Rubble, wood, ice shards, and sand mixed together like a giant mushroom cloud, rising, spreading, and falling in the night sky.

The shockwave of the explosion skimmed across the water's surface, pressing a deep indentation into the Huhube River, and the Bone-devouring Fish school was shaken into the air, looking like a silver waterfall under the moonlight.

The firelight from the explosion reddened half the sky, even dyeing the distant wasteland in shades of orange-red.

The firelight died down, and the castle was gone.

Only rubble scattered across the ground and still-burning wooden stakes remained, crackling in the night wind like a massive bonfire.

In the distance, the few Wang Family Scouts lying on the wasteland all sprang up from the ground the moment the explosion sounded.

"Exploded... it exploded?"

"The castle exploded? Then Qin Ce and the others—"

"They couldn't all be dead, could they?"

No one could answer.

They only saw the firelight, only heard the explosion, and only saw the ruins of the castle burning.

They didn't know that Qin Ce and the Seventh Squad had already crossed the Huhube River, nor did they know that Qin Ce was watching them from the high ground on the opposite bank.

One scout pulled out a communicator, his fingers flying across the buttons.

"Report! A massive explosion has occurred in the direction of Huhe Bay! The Seventh Squad's castle has been leveled to the ground!" His fingers paused for a moment, he hesitated briefly, and then he pressed the send button. "Qin Ce and his squad—suspected total annihilation."

On the communicator's screen, the message sent successfully notification flashed by.

On the high ground opposite, Qin Ce stood in the night, looking at the burning ruins across the Huhube River, the corners of his mouth slowly curling into an arc.

He pulled the small booklet from his pocket and flipped it open, looking at the dense lines and names upon it by the moonlight.

The Wang Family's intelligence network, the Wang Family's logistics smuggling network, every one of the Wang Family's strongholds, routes, and key nodes—all were in this booklet.

This was the Wang Family's Achilles' heel. And now, this Achilles' heel was in his hands.

Qin Ce closed the booklet and tucked it back into his pocket. Behind him, the figures of twenty-four people stood silently in the night, like twenty-four unsheathed blades.

"Let's go," Qin Ce said.

The twenty-four figures followed behind Qin Ce and vanished into the night.

...