The moon reached its zenith, casting a clear glow. Zuo Yiqian suddenly awoke with a start, quickly stood up, and hurried toward the secret door, intending to reveal her identity to Du Huaishang and force him to swear an oath to the gods and demons not to harm her family, or else she would sever their emotional ties, activate her protective artifacts, and inform her grandfather.
The secret door slowly opened. She descended the wooden ladder into the hidden passage, where a cold and silent atmosphere enveloped her surroundings.
She hesitated for a moment, then whispered softly, “Brother Du? Brother Du?”
Her voice echoed, but there was no response. Zuo Yiqian’s face turned pale in an instant. She searched every stone chamber in the passage, only to discover that Du Huaishang was already gone.
Her body swayed slightly, and a bitter smile appeared on her face as she murmured, “So it was indeed only a connection lasting one or two days…”
“A truly self-fulfilling prophecy, spoken with iron certainty…”
……
Two days later, one of Wen Cheng’s secret agents was wandering around, inquiring from peddlers and laborers about the whereabouts of Du Huaishang and those few men and women.
“The one with a flat nose, big mouth, and broom-like eyebrows—did he suffer from facial paralysis before?” The vegetable vendor asked, slightly puzzled after hearing the agent’s inquiries.
Seeing this, the agent’s heart leaped with joy and his spirits lifted. “Have you seen him?”
“When I just passed through that alley, I happened to see such a person. He kept his head lowered and walked in a hurry, then turned into a courtyard belonging to a merchant,” the vendor recalled.
The agent took a few deep breaths to calm his sudden excitement, stood up, and pretended to be nonchalant as he slowly walked toward the alley.
Throughout that day, he repeatedly changed his disguise—sometimes as a drunkard, sometimes as a peddler, sometimes as a shortcut-taker—taking turns with several companions to enter the alley and closely monitor the people inside.
In the evening, he entered the alley again, carrying a piece of pig’s head meat and two taels of rice wine, humming a small tune.
As he walked, he saw a young girl coming from the opposite direction, dressed in plain white robes, her beauty unparalleled.
“It’s her! She changed her green robe for a white dress…” The agent’s face twitched slightly, but he quickly composed himself and continued humming his tune as he passed by the girl.
Then, he feigned lustful fascination and turned his head at the corner to look back, just in time to see the girl entering a courtyard—the very residence of the merchant described earlier by the vegetable vendor.
“A great achievement, a major success!” He was overjoyed.
……
Inside the secret chamber, after listening to the reports from Jiang Shenghong and Wen Cheng, Zuo Hanfeng, hidden behind a screen, did not speak immediately. Instead, he turned his gaze toward Yin Lenghui and his sect leader, Zhou Yong.
Yin Lenghui scoffed, “Du Huaishang had just broken my witchcraft technique and started recovering from his injuries when they suddenly exposed their hiding spot. How could such a coincidence possibly exist in this world?”
“Mr. Yin, what do you mean…” Wen Cheng was stunned into silence, while Jiang Shenghong, unfamiliar with the witchcraft technique, was also somewhat astonished.
“Naturally, it’s a trap,” Zhou Yong replied calmly, his eyes still closed.
Yin Lenghui elaborated in detail, “Two days ago, Du Huaishang completely dispelled the witchcraft technique I had cast upon him. Given the recovery capability of a Grade-D expert, he should have regained at least seventy to eighty percent of his strength by now. And right at this moment, the people who came to rescue him exposed their hiding place. How could one not feel suspicious and cautious?”
It appears the rescuers located Du Huaishang, assisted him in removing Mr. Yin’s witchcraft technique, and once he partially recovered, they deliberately revealed their hiding spot to lure us into an ambush. Then they would launch a sudden attack, attempting to eliminate either Mr. Yin or Mr. Zhou before our留守大人 could react. In that scenario, our留守大人 would be left isolated and powerless to prevent them from fleeing Danning.
*(Note: “留守大人” is translated as “留守大人” since it appears to be a specific title or role without direct English equivalent. If additional context is provided, a more precise translation can be offered.)*
“If it were merely the green-robed girl and her companions, we would certainly only send Mr. Yin, Mr. Zhou, and myself to deal with them, without troubling Master Zuo. This situation would provide them with an opportunity, especially if they have already reunited with Du Huaishang.”
Yin Lenghui smiled, “It’s a very simple plan, but sometimes the simpler it is, the more effective it becomes. Fortunately, I’ve already seen through it.”
“What should we do then? Surely we can’t just let them leave?” Wen Cheng, who was currently in charge of the secret agents, felt it was a pity not to make use of this hard-earned lead.
Zhou Yong sighed softly, “If we had just one or two more days, the great task of the留守大人 would be accomplished. No matter what schemes they devise, it wouldn’t matter. Why don’t we feign ignorance and stall for a few more days?”
What was the Governor doing? Jiang Shenghong and Wen Cheng were hearing about this for the first time. They were both shocked and surprised, vaguely feeling annoyed at having been kept in the dark. It seemed they were no longer the close confidants of the Governor.
“No,” Zuo Hanfeng suddenly spoke up, rejecting Zhou Yong’s suggestion. “If it’s a trap, Du the traitor must already know our agents have discovered it. If we delay and don’t act immediately, they will sense something is wrong, realize we are waiting for something, hesitate to act, and then seize this opportunity to directly break through and escape Danning.”
“But what about the left-behind adults?” Zhou Yong frowned.
“No problem. Even if it’s not yet fully accomplished, it’s almost there. As long as there are no other Grade-D experts, dealing with them will be effortless,” Zuo Hanfeng said confidently.
Zhou Yong slightly relaxed his brows. He didn’t mention that the other side might be a Reincarnator who could possess secret treasures against Out-of-Sight experts. Anyway, it didn’t matter—he himself had one too!
“Good, then we’ll go along with their plan and directly step into the trap,” Yin Lenghui sneered. “Their biggest problem is being too presumptuous, underestimating us, thinking we couldn’t possibly connect these two events.”
“And there’s also the enhancement from the Left-behind Lord…” Zhou Yong added with a faint smile.
Jiang Shenghong watched them speaking eloquently, feeling a sense of frustration as he loudly said, “I will immediately gather the experts and join the大人 in capturing Du the traitor!”
“No need. Extra people will only alarm them and cause them to hide again before we act,” Zuo Hanfeng waved his hand. “This operation will be carried out by myself and the two gentlemen launching a surprise attack. You and Lan Die will guard the perimeter to prevent any escapees.”
He refrained from mobilizing Ji Tao and Wen Cheng to prevent them from employing a feint to assault the留守府 and seize his family as hostages. As long as experts were present to oversee the formation, there would be no concerns from the rear.
“Yes, sir!” Jiang Shenghong and Wen Cheng promptly responded.
As for those within a one-mile radius, they certainly wouldn’t be evacuated in advance—doing so would practically be tipping off the enemy. In any case, both the留守大人 (Liu Shou Daren) and Du Huaishang would concentrate their forces during the confrontation. If they were fortunate enough, they might still escape before the shockwaves spread. As for those who unfortunately perished, it could only be said that fate had ordained it—no blame could be assigned to them.
……
Inside the merchant’s courtyard, Meng Qi had already discarded Ji Tao’s identity and was standing face-to-face with Du Huaishang, Jiang Zhiwei, and others.
“Can they really detect that it’s a ‘trap’?” Du Huaishang’s hands hung at his sides, his essence, energy, spirit, and intent all internally gathered, showing no hesitation or fear.
Meng Qi smiled, “As long as Yin Lenghui hasn’t had his brain devoured by Gu insects, he should be able to see through it.”
“Our true objective is to lure Zuo Hanfeng, Yin Lenghui, and Zhou Yong out of the garrison headquarters, engage them in battle beyond their fortified territory where they benefit from formation support, neutralize their terrain advantage, and focus our odds on tactical coordination among our forces.”
“And if they can’t see through it, wouldn’t that be even better? Without Zuo Hanfeng’s presence, we can calmly deal with Yin Lenghui, Zhou Yong, and Jiang Shenghong, eliminate Zuo Hanfeng’s supporters, leaving him isolated and unable to withstand us.”
This was a strategy Meng Qi had learned from Suanshan Cangsheng and Wenqu Star God. As long as the true intentions were well hidden, often the opponent’s choices didn’t really matter—only the degree of difficulty would change.
“Their biggest problem is not understanding our overall strength,” Zhao Heng smiled slightly. “When the time comes, I and Sister Yin will each engage Yin Lenghui and Zhou Yong, while you four, with secret artifacts, quickly deal with Zuo Hanfeng.”
Yin Tao here referred to Ruan Yushu, using a false name.
Du Huaishang was at the ninth Grade-D level, equivalent to an Out-of-Sight expert. With him engaging directly, along with the Immortal Binding Rope, and combined attacks from Meng Qi, Jiang Zhiwei, and Qi Zhengyan, Zuo Hanfeng seemed to have no chance of survival—just like the Blood Demon they encountered in the demon realm fragment. Therefore, Zhao Heng felt the hope was great, and he and Ruan Yushu wouldn’t have to endure for too long.
Meng Qi slightly frowned, “There are two issues that seem problematic.”
“What issues?” Du Huaishang raised his eyebrows.
“Zhou Yong’s background is mysterious, and he may also possess secret artifacts. If we don’t prepare for this, we might lose everything and suffer heavy losses.” This was a problem Meng Qi and Jiang Zhiwei had discussed earlier. At that time, there might be a mutual elimination situation: Zuo Hanfeng and Du Huaishang temporarily withdrawing from the battle, while the five of them fought against Yin Lenghui and Zhou Yong.
They were all mid-tier Half-Step Invisibility experts, proficient in enigmatic witchcraft techniques, rendering the outcome unpredictable. If they couldn’t swiftly weaken the enemy and seize the upper hand, the situation would become complicated once Zuo Hanfeng broke free.
“The other point is that Zuo Hanfeng has been acting mysteriously these days, and we don’t know what he’s up to. We must be prepared for that,” Meng Qi fully expressed his concerns.
This was also the reason he chose to act quickly. He couldn’t afford to delay any longer—the longer they waited, the more dangerous it became.
“But besides Zhou Yong and Yin Lenghui, no one else knows what Zuo Hanfeng is doing. And time waits for no one—we don’t have time for a detailed investigation,” Jiang Zhiwei said, holding her sword calmly.
Du Huaishang paced with his hands behind his back, “Any good ideas?”
He was never particularly known for his strategies.
Actually, Meng Qi was in a similar situation, but he had learned from others. He relaxed his brow and chuckled, “We can tackle both problems with one solution—shifting our target from Zuo Hanfeng to Zhou Yong. No matter how Zuo Hanfeng changes, with Yin Tao’s zither music and Du Tianwang’s direct confrontation, stalling him for a few breaths should be manageable. Meanwhile, Lao Wu and Cousin will join forces to deal with Yin Lenghui, while I team up with Senior Sister to use secret artifacts and swiftly eliminate Zhou Yong, preventing him from activating his hidden treasures!”
Using the Immortal Binding Rope, meant for Grade-D experts, against Zhou Yong would be overkill, but this way, they could quickly eliminate him. If handled properly, they might even obtain the secret treasures in his possession, which could then be used against Zuo Hanfeng. Even if he had no secret treasures, they would have eliminated Zuo Hanfeng’s supporters. Even if they couldn’t defeat him, they could still escape.
With Zhou Yong’s items in hand, they wouldn’t fear the deduction of good deeds, and having rescued Du Huaishang, they would have completed half the mission!
Everyone had thought of this, but when Meng Qi said it, it suddenly became clear to all. Jiang Zhiwei lightly smiled, “Old Wang, you truly deserve to be called Old Wang…”
She was teasing Meng Qi, implying he was becoming like Old Wang, Wang Siyuan.
Du Huaishang pondered for a moment and found no flaws, nodding firmly, “Alright, let’s wait for them to come!”
As dusk approached, the streets became less crowded, presenting a peaceful and serene scene, while beneath the surface, the undercurrents began to surge rapidly.
Zuo Hanfeng, Yin Lenghui, and Zhou Yong quietly approached the merchant’s courtyard.
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