Chapter 1036: Troops Arriving at the Base of the Mountain
Dwarf Mountain was very lively!
Within a five-hundred-kilometer radius around the sacred mountain, the armies camped there numbered more than a million. Even before the armies from the four races had arrived, the armies from the other great races had reached the place first, surrounding the Dwarf Mountain.
Within a five-thousand-kilometer radius of the Dwarf Mountain were scouts from both the greater and lesser races… and from the Dwarf Race itself. Even those lesser races with a few thousand men had sent scouts here. The underground pa.s.sageways that the Heaven Devil Race had previously dug were now filled with scouts from the respective races.
Inside the snow mountain, under the ice river, inside the caverns—people were everywhere. There was actually no need to hide at all. There were people everywhere; that was the best cover of all.
“d.a.m.n! So many people?”
Jiang Yi arrived five-hundred-kilometers from the Dwarf Mountain in the middle of the night. On his way here, he found countless scouts in the pa.s.sageways. He had no choice but to change his appearance again, this time, resembling someone from the Phantom Race.
On the way here, he did not discover anyone from the Heaven Devil Race. Hence, it would be too conspicuous if suddenly, a single member of the Heaven Devil Race had appeared. On the other hand, it seemed like the Phantom Race had appeared in force; they probably had been bribed by countless great races to spread out and find out what was going on. He discovered nearly a thousand scouts from the Phantom Race. Thus, changing into a member of the Phantom Race would make him fit in easier.
He did not brazenly head near to Dwarf Mountain. Instead, he found an ice river five hundred kilometers north of Dwarf Mountain. This ice river was an underground river that flowed to Dwarf Mountain. He created a hole in the precipice of the ice river and hid inside it. He quietly wanted for the armies from the four races to arrive.
Along this river all the way to the Dwarf Mountain, a few hundred scouts were present. Even if the DemiG.o.ds came to investigate, they would not find anything. Jiang Yi’s current location was also a thousand-foot deep; the earth in the Snow Region could affect the effectiveness of divine senses. No matter how strong any DemiG.o.d’s divine senses were, they would definitely be weakened once they came close to his position.
Jiang Yi also did not need to find out more information personally. He only needed to track the scouts near to him. They went out every day and came back during the night; if they didn’t come back, that would mean the armies of the four races had arrived.
Bang!
There was a stone pillar at the top of Dwarf Mountain. Inside this pillar was a giant stone hall. At this moment, there was an elder from the Dwarf Race furiously smas.h.i.+ng precious porcelain in that stone hall.
“Clan Head, please calm down!”
A group of elders from the Dwarf Race anxiously knelt down. They were terrified to the core. The Grand Elder of the Dwarf Race, Qiu Zhe, waited for Qiu Shan to vent his frustration. Qiu Zhe then straightened himself and said, “Clan Head, you do not have to be so angry. Curmudgeon Cao and company do not dare to attack this mountain. The Dwarf Race has an impressive reputation in the Snow Region, with a huge sphere of influence. If they really destroyed the Dwarf Race, this will cause panic among all the races in the Snow Region.
“The other great races would also not sit and watch Curmudgeon Cao and company act wantonly; they would be fearful of being targeted next. Also, I had already sent men to Heaven Hidden Sect. The Heaven Hidden Sect is the ruler of the Snow Region; they would not sit and watch Snow Region fall into chaos.”
“Bullsh*t!”
Qiu Shan raged and shouted. He said coldly, “The other great races would not sit and watch us get destroyed? I’d say they can’t wait to see us get annihilated. Then, they could take our place next.
“Heaven Hidden Sect?”
Qiu Shan laughed mockingly. “That year, Heaven Hidden Sect almost wiped us out. This imbecile Qiu Ming dared to touch a Saint Lady from the Heaven Hidden Sect. If I did not destroy the evidence in time, do you think the Dwarf Race would still be in existence today? To depend on Heaven Hidden Sect, we might as well depend on the Nine Thearchs of the East Imperial Continent.”
“That might not necessarily be the case!”
Another elder cupped his hands and said, “Clan Head. So many years had gone by since that incident. The Heaven Hidden Sect had never made any moves. They must have forgotten about that matter. Furthermore, they couldn’t find any proof. It is possible that they are also suspicious of the other races. They are the rulers of the Snow Region; we are all their subjects. How would they bear to see us fight among ourselves, to see us plunge into misery and suffering?
“As long as we swear to fight to the death and to fight to the last man, the Heaven Hidden Sect Matriarch would definitely step in. Moreover, if we gave it our all, Curmudgeon Cao and the others would not dare to fight us head-on. After all, a head-on battle would definitely lead to significant losses on their side, too.”
“That’s right, that’s right. Let’s fight to the death!”
“We cannot lose the sacred mountain. Over the years, we have offended many great races. If we abandon this sacred mountain, they would definitely pursue us with a vengeance and eliminate our race. Instead of suffering that fate, let’s fight to the death! We might still have a chance of survival.”
“Ninth elder’s words are true. A fight to the death.”
A group of elders echoed their a.s.sent, their faces filled with murderous intent. The Dwarf Race was known to be cruel, brutal, and bloodthirsty; they were not cowards who feared death.
“Alright!”
Qiu Shan angrily yelled. He waved a hand and said, “Qiu Zhe, go and send another message. Ask our disciples stationed near Heaven Hidden Sect to seek an audience with Heaven Hidden Sect Matriarch. Tell them to say that if Heaven Hidden Sect helps us to survive this difficult time, from now onward, the Dwarf Race will be obedient to the Heaven Hidden Sect. The rest of you, seal off Dwarf Mountain. Recall all our people back to Dwarf Mountain and prepare for a fight to the death.”
“Understood!”
The elders present roared their reply. They had no choice but to fight, with their backs cornered. If they didn’t win the battle, they would die. There was no other way out. There was only a fight to the death.
Three days later, the armies of the four races arrived. A combined total of one million two hundred thousand warriors. They stationed themselves at all four sides of Dwarf Mountain and were merely fifty kilometers away from Dwarf Mountain.
Even as the armies had arrived, they did not attack immediately. They rested on the spot, with the chief commanders of the other three races converging in Tiger Subdue Sect’s encampment. They had come because Cao Peiwen had said that as long as everyone attacked Dwarf Mountain, that mysterious martial expert would definitely appear.
Now that they had reached Dwarf Mountain, the other three races naturally did not make any rash moves. This was especially the case for the Fire Chi Race and the Mammoth Race. If they were not sure that that mysterious martial expert would appear, they would definitely not attack the mountain. After all, the Dwarf Race had been allies with them for many years.
The chief commanders gathered in Tiger Subdue Sect’s encampment. However, Cao Peiwen did not show himself. He had not been seen throughout the journey to Dwarf Mountain. No one knew if he had come together with the armies. Cao Duantian was the chief commander of the Tiger Subdue Sect’s army and personally came to greet the three men.
Cao Duantian sat inside his tent, wearing white battle armor. He carried a majestic air with him. His eyes looked at the three chief commanders and growled, “Gentlemen. We have rested for two whole days. After the sun sets tomorrow, let’s attack the mountain together!”
The elder from Mantis Blade Sect did not say anything and was actually looking suspiciously at the other two elders from the other two races. The elders from the Fire Chi Race and Mammoth Race couldn’t resist anymore. The elder from the Fire Chi Race rose and said,” Young Master Duantian. Sect Patriarch Cao had said that as long as our armies reached Dwarf Mountain, that mysterious martial expert would appear. Where is he now? Our scouts had started investigating within a five-hundred-kilometer radius since three days ago but have not found anything.”
“That’s right!”
The elder from Mammoth Race also chimed in. “We had invited the Phantom Race to conduct secret investigations, but to no avail. Young Master Duantian, are you trying to trick us?”
The physique of the Mammoth Race was immense. If they were faced in battle head-on, they were formidable opponents. However, to ask them to go and investigate was a difficult task. They were too big and were easily found wherever they went. Even before they had found their enemy, their enemy would have long detected their presence and flee. Hence, they liked asking the Phantom Race to help them to scout for information.
“Keke!”
Cao Duantian smiled lightly. “Our armies have been on the move for so many days. Has that mysterious martial expert appeared once? Has he tried to attack our armies or our people? No, right? Gentlemen, please listen to me. If you guys really do not want to attack tomorrow night, you can feign an attack. As long as you guys start the battle, there is no need for you guys to kill too many people; neither is there a need for you guys to face Qiu Shan in battle. You guys can leave the rest to the Tiger Subdue Sect!”
“So it is like this…”
With the Tiger Subdue Sect offering to take on the bulk of the responsibilities, the chief commanders of the other three races were rather pleased. They were deep in thought.
Cao Duantian smiled again and continued, “However… please inform your Clan Heads that once we start the battle tomorrow, they should start to scan the surroundings secretly. I guarantee that that mysterious martial expert will definitely make an appearance tomorrow night.”
“Alright!”
The three chief commanders rose at the same time. They had come to Dwarf Mountain this time not to eliminate the Dwarf Race. Their target was the mysterious martial expert that had made all four races lose face. If this person was not killed, they would not be able to sleep in peace.