The sun bathed the clouds in blood-red sunlight.
The daytime that should represent vitality now resembled the white cloth hung during a funeral. Danger and death were knocking at the door but the discussion was still ongoing. This concerned their lives; no one was willing to make a joke out of it.
"I think we should break out of the siege from the east. There, we can prevent a two-sided attack. Who knows if those from Mount Shu and the Judicature aren"t mad? If they"re really trying to weaken our strength to obtain the Divine Tool, they might silence us with death!" Yan Ziyue of the Seven Sabers Sect of Qingqiu suggested the cruelest, worst-case scenario.
"Not the east. We should break out the siege from the north. Don"t forget the natural disaster that will swallow us is right behind us. What if the ground cracks while we"re breaking out? The north is safer," Lin Xibei of the Incense Fragrance Valley said serenely.
"Didn"t any of you consider that Mount Shu and the Judicature might not have given up on us? If we put in more effort and attack from both sides, we might be able to eat up these demons. Shouldn"t we try to attack from the west and gauge their reaction?" someone suggested in a quiet voice. However, perhaps not even he believed such a possibility.
Someone interjected and said, "Isn"t it too dangerous to break out of the siege? We can try dividing into two groups: one to lure the enemies in and the other to ambush from the sides."
Another person immediately rejected the idea. "You must be kidding! There are so few of us as it is! Who"s going to go and lure the enemies? Who"s going to stay and ambush? That"s not practical at all!"
"Some will have to sacrifice themselves in b.l.o.o.d.y battles like this. Otherwise, we can all forget about surviving."
It took barely any time for the discussion to gradually dissolve into a dispute and then a heated argument between red-faced people. In the end, everyone"s expressions turned bleaker and bleaker. They finally realized that no matter who it was or what method they used, they shared a similar goal: their own survival.
As for the rest?
What did it have to do with them?
This wasn"t an individual problem yet everyone was focused on themselves. They were acting in a way that defeated their purpose by ignoring the group. How could they expect themselves to win against enemies stronger than they were? Death was certain to await them!
This continued until a certain point in time.
The howling of wolves came from all around them.
When the crowd looked up and around, they realized the siege was close to completion and the attack on them could happen at any time. If they don"t make a decision now, they would be a mess when the attack happened and end up fighting among themselves.
If that was the case, their survival was entirely up to fate.
"Cough, cough."
Ye Que, who had been keeping an eye on their surroundings in lieu of partic.i.p.ating in the discussion, finally opened his mouth to speak.
After coughing twice, he said loudly, "Be quiet, everyone. Listen to my two cents."
The discussion continued, for few people cared to listen to Ye Que"s opinion. To them, Ye Que"s position wasn"t any better than that of the Rogue Cultivators. Otherwise, why wasn"t he wearing the outfit of the Qingqiu Sword Sect? Besides, even if he really was a disciple, the sect must have been attacked considering the fact that they didn"t have a Starburst Realm expert left.
Those without strength had no right to voice their opinion.
"Ah!"
An ear-piercing screech resounded and continued for a whopping ten seconds. Everyone"s attention was finally drawn.
Nalan Rongruo, who had screeched earlier, pointed to Ye Que. "Silence! Listen to him."
Everyone turned to look at Ye Que.
He was a little stunned to be on the receiving end of everyone"s attention. Then, he began to speak openly.
"I"ll lure the enemies."
"The rest of you will break out of the siege from the south."
These two simple sentences were enough to dumbfound everyone.
To think that there would be someone who would take the initiative in luring the Demon Race! To think that a reckless, brainless fool that didn"t fear death would exist! Did he want to gain fame through this battle? For a moment, everyone didn"t notice the other odd detail in his words. "You"re going to lure them?"
"Yes, me," Ye Que said with certainty.
He added, "The rest of you will break out of the siege from the south."
"Which direction?"
"Which direction, you say? I think I misheard you."
"South?"
"Can we break out of the siege from that direction? Are you sure it"s not suicidal? Did you make a mistake?"
Taking in everyone"s expressions, Ye Que calmly and earnestly repeated his words. "There"s no mistake. It"s the south. By contrast, the south should be the safest location later."
Perhaps out of concern that the rest found his plan to be confusing, he explained, "The obstacles waiting for us in the east, west, and north are the Demon Race. Those obstacles are living creatures with intellect; only the one in the south is a non-living thing. It"s a cracking ground with a discernable pattern. As long as everyone follows the outermost part of the crack, I"m sure no one will confront you head-on. Even wolves are afraid of death."
"All you have to do is make sure you don"t fall into the abyss. You don"t have to worry about other things for I"ll do my job in luring the enemies. I might even be able to seek revenge on them if a chance presents itself," Ye Que muttered.
Everyone exchanged looks but no one argued. What was there to say when someone was offering to die in their place? Furthermore, even if they ran toward the south, it wasn"t like they would be jumping to their deaths. They could very well run whenever there was a risk of falling. Since their legs were theirs, they were the final decision-makers on where and if they should run.
"Are you sure you can lure them?" Yan Ziyue asked uncertainly.
"That"s not the point. You guys wouldn"t be able to do it anyway. Even if you can, you"re not willing to. You have no choice but to trust me," Ye Que replied calmly.
He thought for a moment before adding, "Who among you have Spirit Beasts? I want something fast. Do everyone a favor and contribute it. It"ll improve my chances."
It wasn"t suitable to fly on a sword under such circ.u.mstances. On the one hand, even if those whose cultivation was beneath the Apocalypse Realm could fly on their sword, they wouldn"t be fast. Traveling on a sword and killing on a sword were two different things. On the other hand, riding a Spirit Beast wouldn"t distract him. He could even manipulate his sword to fly and kill enemies.
Due to the urgency in entering the ley lines of sovereignty of the Imperial Mausoleum, Ye Que hadn"t had the chance to equip himself with a Spirit Beast until now. However, he believed that Spirit Beasts were a standard for these official disciples of the various Qingqiu sects. In fact, most of them would own more than one.
"Hurry up. Don"t waste time," Ye Que said, glancing into the distance.
"Me."
A young man in the crowd suddenly raised his hand. "I have an extra Spirit Beast with me. I"m sure it"s fast enough, but…"
"But what?"
"It"s a wild Spirit Beast with a bad temper. Not only does it easily injure humans, but it"s also very disobedient."
Ye Que immediately replied, "Wild Spirit Beast?"
The young man tossed him a talisman. "It"s a Cloud-hoofed Red Hare caught just last month."
After Ye Que caught the talisman, he imbued Spiritual Force into it. In the blink of an eye, a Cloud-hoofed Red Hare the color of blood-red appeared in front of everyone with a thud. It displayed its wild side the moment its cloud-hooves landed on the ground, twisting its body in a manner that looked like it was about to soar into the sky. It even emitted a high-pitched humming sound as if it was celebrating its freedom.
However, the Cloud-hoofed Red Hare"s impudence didn"t even last for more than three seconds before it suffered a terrible blow on the head. The force was so great that its cloud-hooves were squashed to the ground. It was obvious that a brief spell of dizziness had hit the Cloud-hoofed Red Hare. It shook its head, the size of a deer or horse"s head, and for a moment it couldn"t gather its bearing.
It shook its ma.s.sive head, the size of a deer or horse"s head, and tried to get up. It wanted to see who had the audacity to hit it. It was so angry that steam was shooting out of its nostrils but it had barely lifted its head when a slap landed on its head.
"Boom!"
A m.u.f.fled explosion resounded. The head of the pride Cloud-hoofed Red Hare once again met the ground.
Subsequently, a youngster appeared in front of the hare"s wide eyes.
"I don"t have the time to waste words on you," Ye Que said coolly, staring into the hare"s eyes.
"I have one rule." He lifted a finger.
"Be obedient."
He paused and leaned down. With a faint smile and a calm but determined voice, he said, "If you disobey me, I"ll immediately kill you. You have my word."