This chapter has been brought to you by me, WanderingGummiOfDoom, and Anon
Chapter Six Hundred and Thirty – The Eve
The third night came.
Great Peace City was silent. People were resting and waiting for tomorrow"s battle. Today was the last day the water curtain would remain. During these three days, the Ming Bandits had tried to attack twice but did not break through the curtain of water.
In the darkness, the light of the mo matrixes rippled.
Zuo Mo was not as cheerful as he usually was. His expression was stern and his gaze that flashed occasionally was so sharp, it seemed to penetrate people"s hearts.
"What are you thinking about?" Princess Xia"s voice came from behind him. She walked next to Zuo Mo and sat down.
"Don"t know." Zuo Mo shook his head.
"You have times that you don"t know?" Princess Xia was slightly surprised. She smiled and said, "I had thought that you always have a solution, always have confidence!"
Looking at the silent Zuo Mo and a face that seemed thinner due to the labors of these past days, Princess Xia asked probingly, "Do you have any confidence in the battle tomorrow?"
"No," Zuo Mo shook his head, "I asked many people in order to learn how powerful the Ming Bandits really were. Their battalion can rank in the top thirty of Hundred Savage Realm. All of them are lawless killers. Their combat style is vicious and powerful, and they are bloodthirsty. Most importantly, they have many people!"
"Many people?" Princess Xia went along and asked.
"En." Zuo Mo"s gaze flashed as he said lightly, "They have twenty thousand people, and of that, about fifty percent are brigadier level and above. More importantly, they have twenty generals."
In these two days, he had spent great effort to get specific intelligence on the Ming Bandits.
Princess Xia inhaled sharply and her face was slightly pale. She was not a flower vase that was clueless about the world, this number shocked her. More than half were brigadier level or above, that meant there were three thousand brigadier levels. Adding on the twenty general levels, this battalion was terrifying!
The Great Peace City had many experts and if it was a one on one battle, twenty general levels was nothing. But if it was in a battalion with twenty general levels leading three thousand brigadier levels, then the Great Peace City experts who were like a disorderly rabble didn"t have any chance at victory.
"After every raid, if a hostage can defeat a member of them, they can join and survive. The members that are defeated would be eliminated, and the only path left to them is to die." Zuo Mo"s gaze turned into the darkness as he said calmly, "They used this method to become stronger. Ming Hui is talented, and what he is most talented at is a kind of jinzhi. With this jinzhi, he created and controls this beastly herd of bandits."
The more she heard, the paler Princess Xia got. She had heard of the reputation of the Ming Bandits before, but never thought they would be so powerful!
She forced herself to calm down. "Is there no way at all?"
Zuo Mo"s expression was normal as he said, "It is not that we do not have any advantages. We have more experts than they do. They have more general levels but in terms of combat power, they cannot compare to us. If the experts on our side can work together, there may be a chance for a break through."
Princess Xia did not speak. She understood that the situation was worse than she had imagined.
"But while everyone is strong individually, they all have complex histories and relations.h.i.+ps, it is hard for them to trust each other. They are wary and if they encounter danger, who will trust their backs to these other people? They will definitely split apart. Unless it is a marshal, individual power is not useful on a battlefield like this."
Zuo Mo"s voice was slightly low. "There are so many people, really beyond my expectations."
"That shows that people trust you deeply," Princess Xia comforted.
Zuo Mo grimaced. "Even though I was nervous before, I thought I had some chance of breaking through. But now, there is no way, I can only fight head on."
"We have more people," Princess Xia said with a forced smile.
"This really is a bunch of rabble. If there was more time, I wouldn"t fear these Ming Bandits, it is a pity there is only three days!" Zuo Mo grimaced. "We can only prepare as best as possible and wait for our fates!"
Princess Xia sighed lightly. "I saw that you were composed these last few days and thought you were confident. So you don"t have any confidence either!"
"You think that what I said that day was to motivate them?" Zuo Mo shook his head. "I only said what I thought. It"s not that I haven"t encountered dangerous and near hopeless situations but it is the first time I have encountered such a dangerous situation. There is almost no hope of victory to be seen!"
Princess Xia was silent and the shock on her face disappeared. She suddenly smiled. "Your words are frightening but why do I not feel afraid? Thinking about it, it is because you are not someone that will sit and wait to be captured."
"Of course!" Zuo Mo snickered and murderousness appeared on his face. "I have never had the habit of quietly taking abuse!"
Princess Xia covered her smile as she heard this and then sank into silence.
Zuo Mo was also silent as though he was thinking of something.
———
"This time, we have aimed too high." Ming Yu Wei"s brow was creased. A hint of worry flashed through her eyes. The Ming Bandits had progressed smoothly these past years, but without a doubt, after this fight, they would be known everywhere.
Ming Hui looked at the black water curtain and his usual bright smile disappeared. His presence was calm and grave and he seemed a completely different person than when he had been speaking to Bu Heng. He smiled slightly and said confidently, "This opportunity is perfect in timing and situation, we have no reason to fail. Even if it is for just the Anti Dragon Claw, we have to do this! If our strength is damaged, there are chances to replenish it, but if we miss this chance, it will be hard to come by one again."
He floated in the air against the wind. His expression was confident as he said proudly, "With the Anti Dragon Claw, my chances of breaking into marshal level would increase greatly. We have lots of manpower and experts. If I can break into marshal level, we have a chance at the world."
Ming Yu Wei felt that her brother"s ambitions were too grand. At this time, she did not want to pour cold water on his hopes but she still gritted out, "But after this battle, we will have offended too many factions!"
Ming Hui laughed. "It looks so from the surface but for them, these losses are not fatal. Adding on how sensitive the world"s situation is, they do not have the attention to spare on us. Who would dare to offend us? Also, with the Anti Dragon Claw, even those factions that have marshals will not dare to underestimate us."
"The Anti Dragon Claw is just a mo weapon … …" Ming Yu Wei"s brow furrowed.
"It isn"t just a mo weapon." Ming Hui shook his head and his expression was full of yearning. "If I had the Anti Dragon Claw, even facing a marshal, I would have a chance."
"But a weapon as vicious as the Anti Dragon Claw can only be subdued by a marshal," Ming Yu Wei asked.
"Yes, a general touching the Anti Dragon Claw would be to seek death. However, I have a solution." Ming Hui smiled mysteriously. "If I did not have confidence, would I have made such bold moves? This opportunity fell to us because other people are still wary of the reputation of Great Peace City. No one dared to act so it has benefited us."
He then said, "Bu Heng is special. He pushed from the shadows and he expected that I will be unable to refuse the Anti Dragon Claw and the Mo Skill Stele. It is a pity that he has no hopes of breaking into marshal level. Otherwise, the Green Yaksha Clan would probably be completely different."
Ming Yu Wei thought of Bu Heng"s conduct and speech. A hint of admiration flashed through her eyes. "Yes, Bu Heng is probably one of the most outstanding individuals that I have met in these recent years. However, from his tone, it seems that he is very wary of Xiao Mo Ge. We should be careful."
"In front of a battalion, a group of so-called experts can"t do anything," Ming Hui said unconcernedly.
Ming Yu Wei was just mentioning it and did not keep Xiao Mo Ge on her mind. She had followed her brother for so many years and saw countless geniuses fall under the mo weapons of their battalion.
This was a era of battalions!
Maybe she was worrying too much.
Looking at her confident brother, she felt that she really was too anxious.
This bandit troupe that Brother had worked so hard to develop had never been defeated before.
Great Peace City had many experts but no battalion. The Ming Bandits were well experienced in facing the so-called experts. This time, there were a lot more of the experts but other than the scale, there was nothing different. What she was worried about was that there would be many more fatalities than previously.
———
Not everyone in Great Peace City had ran over to Zuo Mo"s side. There was another group gathered in a corner. They were the Young Master Flower Protecting Alliance. They had gathered with their guards.
"The curtain of water is going to disappear tomorrow." The one who spoke was a young man. His face was ashen.
The other people paled.
"Impossible!"
"Really? Where did you hear it from?"
The people spoke over each other.
"From the other side." w.a.n.g Shen continued. His expression was grave. "It will be difficult tomorrow." He suddenly asked, "Where have all your reinforcements travelled to?"
"They should be here soon!"
"Still too early!"
"They will arrive in a week or so!"
At this time, one young master suddenly raised his arm and said, "My uncle sent a message to me three days ago. He said that he might arrive the day after tomorrow."
w.a.n.g Shen became alert. "How many people does he have?"
"He has a battalion but I don"t know the numbers." This young master said docilely. His surname was Wu and his family background was deep.
w.a.n.g Shen couldn"t help but show joy. "Great! The Wu Family Battalion is elite and strong. We will be saved!"
Then some of the other young masters reported that the reinforcements their families sent were not far from Great Peace City and that they had mostly sent battalions.
The Great Peace Treasure Pavilion was a fatal temptation for these families. Their determination could be seen from the fact they had sent battalions.
"But what to do tomorrow?" one person suddenly asked. Everyone became silent and turned to look at w.a.n.g Shen.
w.a.n.g Shen smiled and said, "Did you forget the other side? They have more people and are a bigger target. The Ming Bandits will first pay attention to them. The harder they fight, the more time they buy us." He then said sternly, "Everyone, hide well and do not venture out. If you offend the Ming Bandits, we all die!"
Everyone agreed.
w.a.n.g Shen did not forget to increase morale. "After a few days, our battalions will arrive and that will be when both sides will be wounded. That is the best situation for us!"
The morale of the group rose and they all became excited. They discussed how to kill the Ming Bandits and Xiao Mo Ge to win the favor of the three princesses.
No one noticed that two people were discussing in a dark corner.
"What do we do now?" Nanmen Xue asked in a deep voice, "The Mo Skill Stele was destroyed by Lin Qian but that Anti Dragon Claw is not ordinary. I don"t believe that Marshal Yu will not be moved."
The other smiled slightly. "You will know when the time comes."
Translator Ramblings: So many people doing their own things … …