In the still of the night, a sudden blaze erupted at the airship landing field, and the explosion woke up the entire garrison of the base city. The towering flames reached for the sky, and from afar, it seemed as if the fiery tongues were licking the low-hanging iron curtain.
Nangong Yuanwang, who had not yet fallen asleep and was quietly reading, instantly rushed to the airspace above the landing field upon seeing the fire. At this moment, more than half of the airship landing field was engulfed in fierce flames, with one airship after another burning and exploding.
Seeing this, Nangong Yuanwang felt a sudden darkness before his eyes, knowing that the airship fuel depot must have been ignited. Even he could not extinguish such a fire; the landing field was already doomed, along with a large portion of Nangong’s private air fleet.
The fuel depot, being of utmost importance, was always guarded by elite troops and fortified with thorough fire prevention measures. How could it be so easily detonated? However, even though the flames raged, the initial spread suggested the culprit hadn’t gone far.
Nangong Yuanwang’s eyes, sharp as lightning, swept over the area, instantly fixing on a figure heading towards the wilderness.
It was Qian Ye!
Without hesitation, Nangong Yuanwang shot out, chasing and blocking Qian Ye’s path in the blink of an eye.
Qian Ye, however, remained calm, staring directly at Nangong Yuanwang. In his left hand, primal force gathered, forming a small, tangible vortex. “What, has Elder Nangong finally made up his mind to have a good fight with me?”
Nangong Yuanwang’s gaze fell on the vortex of primal force in Qian Ye’s left hand, his expression shifting, and he remained silent. From this tiny vortex, he sensed the aura capable of awakening the will of a celestial ghost.
After a moment, seeing no response from Nangong Yuanwang, Qian Ye smiled and said, “If Elder Nangong doesn’t want to fight, then I’ll be on my way. I’ll visit again some other time.”
Until Qian Ye was long gone, Nangong Yuanwang did not move.
He came from a noble lineage, held great power, and had a slim chance of reaching the Divine General rank. Among the billions in the Empire, Nangong Yuanwang stood at the pinnacle. The death of his only son was the greatest setback in recent years, but he had left behind descendants. His grandchildren, though young, showed exceptional talent, far surpassing their father. In less than a decade, his line would achieve great things.
Qian Ye, on the other hand, was just a poor boy from the Evernight Domain, relying on the patronage of the Song and Zhao clans to gain a small city worth less than a village in the Upper Continent. In Nangong Yuanwang’s eyes, Qian Ye’s possessions were practically nothing, and dying alongside such a person was unbearable.
Yet, the situation was now in a deadlock. Qian Ye’s actions made it clear he would return, repeating these nighttime raids. Without a way to stop him, Nangong’s private army would be devoured piece by piece. Moreover, outside the private army, there were multiple squads of the Nangong family under the iron curtain.
Under the night sky, Nangong Yuanwang stood motionless, like a statue.
As dawn approached, Qian Ye safely arrived at Blackflow City, just in time for breakfast with Song Zining.
Hearing that Qian Ye had burned down most of the Nangong family’s airships, Song Zining declared, “Within three days, Nangong Yuanwang will definitely retreat!”
“Let’s hope so. Fighting ordinary people is not much fun,” Qian Ye said while quickly devouring his food.
Song Zining shook his head, “It’s not that simple. If this private army returns unharmed or is transferred to another battlefield, they will always be a threat.”
Pausing, Song Zining fell into deep thought. Seeing his expression, Qian Ye knew Song Zining was plotting a way to ensure the Nangong family’s private army would never leave the Evernight Domain.
For such matters, Qian Ye was not skilled and typically left them to Song Zining, who continued to ponder.
“Qian Ye, what are you planning to do next?” Song Zining asked after a while.
Qian Ye had already thought about this, “The Military Doctrine emphasizes fighting to strengthen oneself, so I will continue participating in the Blood War to stabilize my current realm and earn some military merits. By the way, if you don’t have any special use for the military merits from the Blackflow battle, register some under the Zhao clan. I promised Yuying to help her get some military merits. Of course, the benefits from the Zhao clan will all be yours.”
“Yuying? No problem!” Song Zining agreed readily.
Just as Song Zining predicted, within three days, the Nangong family’s unit had withdrawn, opening the passage from Blackflow City to the heart of Sanhe County.
Nangong Yuanwang retreated beyond the iron curtain, where he began reorganizing the remnants. Only outside the iron curtain did he feel safe from Qian Ye’s attacks. As for Nangong Town, it would take a long time to recover after its devastating escape.
After retreating beyond the iron curtain, Nangong Yuanwang did not make any moves against Qian Ye, which surprised many who were expecting a show, but it was within Song Zining’s expectations.
Qian Ye’s confrontation with Nangong Town and Nangong Yuanwang proved his combat power was formidable enough to roam freely under the iron curtain. With Nangong Yuanwang’s presence, the private army could withdraw safely, but the Nangong family still had multiple squads and young disciples fighting on the battlefield.
If Qian Ye were to be pushed to the brink and focused on eliminating the Nangong family’s squads, it would result in a one-sided slaughter. Even if the iron curtain eventually receded, the Nangong family’s performance in the Blood War would be dismal, let alone the loss of young disciples, which would affect the family’s future for the next twenty years.
In fact, due to the heavy losses suffered in pursuing Qian Ye, the Nangong family began to show signs of weakening on the Blood War rankings. This was particularly intolerable for the once-dominant Nangong family. Recently, not only had rumors spread throughout the upper echelons of the Empire, but there were also murmurs of criticism within the Imperial Party, questioning the Nangong family’s strength and their previous actions against the Song clan.
Thus, the pressure on Nangong Yuanbo, the family head, and Nangong Yuanwang, responsible for front-line command, increased. In this context, the Nangong family’s elders weighed the pros and cons and decided not to push Qian Ye to a desperate corner.
At the end of the day, the feud between the Nangong family and Qian Ye started over a long-ousted clan daughter, a reason that many elder members found unacceptable. When comparing the need to kill Qian Ye to save face and ensuring the growth of the Nangong family’s young, the choice was clear.
Moreover, the situation in the Blood War had changed significantly. As more dark races from various continents took notice of the war, young geniuses from the Evernight side entered the iron curtain, increasing the pressure on the Empire. In many areas, the dark races were gaining the upper hand, even completely driving out the Imperial forces from some regions.
Public data clearly showed this shift.
Since the regular publication of the Empire’s military merit rankings, people noticed a slowing in the overall increase of military merits. In the shadows, the number of casualties from major families was rising, and familiar names were appearing on the lists of the fallen.
The roles of hunter and prey were gradually switching.
Shortly after the Nangong private army withdrew, in the early morning before dawn, Qian Ye left Blackflow City alone, heading into the dark realm to continue his hunts. This time, his list included not only dark races but also the Nangong family and Bai Kongzhao.
As Qian Ye disappeared at the border of the dark realm, the latest edition of the Empire’s military merit rankings was about to be published. The Zhao clan’s position finally changed, rising from ninth to seventh place with difficulty.
Given the Zhao clan’s status, this ranking was almost a disgrace. Early in the Blood War, it could have been explained by the family preparing and not deploying their elite forces. But now, with Zhao Jundu having fought for a long time, the current ranking was unexplainable.
At this moment, the atmosphere in the Zhao residence in Xiji City was tense, like a storm brewing, and no one dared to breathe. The arrival of two family warriors suddenly broke the silence. They ran at full speed, disregarding the rules of the mansion, and separately rushed into the study of Duke Youguo and Duke Yan, presenting the urgent report.
Duke Yan opened the envelope, glanced at the report, and his face turned ashen. He slammed the documents on the table. Duke Youguo read the report several times, then placed it between his hands, slowly rubbing it into dust, his face as dark as a storm cloud.
The two reports contained the same content: the list of Zhao clan’s casualties for the month. The list was so long that both dukes were visibly shocked.
In the central camp of the Wolf Smoke Army on the western border, a thunderous roar echoed through the air!
Emperor Chengen, Zhao Wei Huang, the head of the Zhao clan, slammed the urgent report onto the desk, turning the paper and the steel-hard wooden table into pieces.
But his anger was far from spent. Zhao Wei Huang smashed everything in sight, including a pair of jade vases he had cherished for nearly thirty years.
The sudden commotion startled the generals and officers of the Wolf Smoke Army, who rushed to the scene. Hearing the thunderous roars, they hesitated at the door, too afraid to enter, and communicated with glances.
Inside, Zhao Wei Huang’s roar echoed, “Four main squadrons wiped out, seventeen direct descendants, and over fifty collateral members killed! This is too much of an insult to the Zhao clan! Do they think I, Zhao Wei Huang, am not capable of killing?!”
The generals held their breath, not daring to make a sound. Although the Wolf Smoke Army was full of battle-hardened warriors, they understood the complexity behind the numbers. This political struggle was beyond their reach.
With a powerful kick, the door made of Purple Star Heavenly Wood was sent flying, drawing an arc and smashing into the barracks on the other side.
Zhao Wei Huang strode out, barking, “Issue my orders, gather the elites, and follow me back to Qin Land! I’ll see if my hundred-battle-tested Wolf Smoke Army is more capable, or if those private armies can match us!”
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