Chapter 1315: A Superior Strategy
That day, many people in Tianyuan City gathered around the vast castle of the Yang Clan, witnessing Hou Qinglin's demeanor after stepping into the Venerable Lord realm, and also witnessing the destruction of the Yang Clan.
Many felt a surge of emotion. Most people knew about the friction between the Yang Clan and the Heavenly Terrace. In the end, it all started because of Lin Feng. The Yang Clan ultimately chose to have Yang Zhan betray the Heavenly Terrace. Perhaps if that was all, the Heavenly Terrace wouldn't have gone too far, at most dealing with Yang Zhan for the sake of face. However, this time, the entire Yang Clan allied with the Heavenly Dragon Divine Fortress to participate in the hunt against the Heavenly Terrace. Therefore, today's outcome was hardly surprising. It could only be said that their strategy was inferior; the victor is king, the loser a bandit. Defeat meant annihilation.
Outside Tianyuan City, Lin Feng and Mo Qingtian stood on the Void Sail, arriving ahead of the Yang Clan members on the mountain peak where Tian Chi and Wang Xiao were located. The moment the Heavenly Dragon Divine Fortress and the Yang Clan stepped out of the Yang residence, they had also turned back simultaneously. What came next was enough to leave to Second Senior Brother Hou Qinglin. One man, single-handedly destroying the Yang Clan—that was sufficient.
"Back?" Tian Chi's eyes suddenly snapped open, his gaze falling on Lin Feng and Mo Qingtian.
"Senior Brother!" The two nodded to Tian Chi, and Tian Chi understood immediately. "You two, go and join the others."
"Understood!" The two acknowledged, their figures soaring into the air, flickering into the distance. On this solitary peak, only Tian Chi and Wang Xiao remained.
"Senior Brother, is there movement?" Wang Xiao asked Tian Chi.
"The people from the Heavenly Dragon Divine Fortress and the Yang Clan are heading this way," Tian Chi said, closing his eyes again, as if it had nothing to do with him.
Wang Xiao's brows furrowed. Then he said, "Senior Brother, since they're coming, shouldn't we also gather with the other fellow disciples and prepare for the battle against the Heavenly Dragon Divine Fortress?"
"No need. It's not time yet," Tian Chi replied calmly, his voice carrying a hint of indifference.
Hearing Tian Chi's answer, Wang Xiao stood up, his gaze sweeping towards the mountain ranges behind them, seemingly unable to see the figures of the others. This made him frown deeply. "Senior Brother, where have the other fellow disciples gone?"
Tian Chi opened his eyes, slowly turning to look at Wang Xiao. He just stared at him, making Wang Xiao feel very uncomfortable.
"Wang Xiao, you seem to be talking a bit too much today."
Wang Xiao smiled bitterly. "Now that it's just you and me here, if the people from the Heavenly Dragon Divine Fortress arrive, won't we be dead for sure? Why don't we go and join the others now? What do you think, Senior Brother?"
"It's already too late," Tian Chi uttered, causing Wang Xiao's expression to stiffen. Rumbling sounds echoed, and then he saw an army approaching from afar, led by the Heavenly Dragon Divine Fortress. Their strength was terrifying.
"Senior Brother, if we don't leave now, when will we?" Wang Xiao urged, making as if to leave.
"Are you a member of the Heavenly Terrace?" Tian Chi slowly spoke, freezing Wang Xiao's steps. He turned back slowly, looking at Tian Chi. At this moment, his gaze no longer held anxiety but became calm, even revealing a faint smile.
An overwhelming aura descended upon the peak. In the void, powerful figures stood, looking down at the two figures on the mountain.
"Tian Chi!" The leader's gaze was cold, tinged with a hint of doubt, his sharp eyes sweeping over Wang Xiao.
"Are you so sure it's me?" Wang Xiao looked at Tian Chi and asked.
"There's no need to be sure. Suspicion is enough," Tian Chi said calmly, without a trace of emotion.
"So, you think you're very clever?" Wang Xiao's voice was equally calm. The moment the people from the Heavenly Dragon Divine Fortress appeared, there was no need for further words. Why would the Heavenly Dragon Divine Fortress appear on this peak? Here, there were only Tian Chi and Wang Xiao. Tian Chi couldn't be the traitor, so it was obvious that Wang Xiao had a mark on him that could determine his location, controlled by the Heavenly Dragon Divine Fortress.
Therefore, by controlling Wang Xiao's location, the Heavenly Dragon Divine Fortress essentially controlled the Heavenly Terrace's movements. Wang Xiao just hadn't anticipated that the Heavenly Terrace would be harder to deal with than he imagined.
"Clever?" Tian Chi pressed his palms together, closing his eyes, very peaceful. "This time, the Heavenly Terrace's goal was to purge the traitors. Now that the Yang Clan is destroyed, it's your turn, Wang Xiao!"
Wang Xiao's gaze suddenly hardened. Then, he saw a burst of Buddha light, dyeing the void gold. The terrifying gold even directly attached itself to Wang Xiao's body. Instantly, Wang Xiao's body shot into the sky, fleeing upwards.
"Seal!" The terrifying Buddha light was dazzling. Where Tian Chi stood, brilliant golden patterns appeared—the power of Sacred Marks. The moment his words fell, a dazzling light shot into the clouds, freezing Wang Xiao's body, turning it gold.
"Break!" Wang Xiao roared, the golden light shattering with a crisp sound. The strands of gold seemed to slowly peel away from his body.
"Sacrifice the soul to the Sacred Mark!" Tian Chi uttered a single word, his body turning into golden light, merging into the Sacred Mark. Instantly, endless light radiated, blindingly bright, stabbing towards Wang Xiao. A scream rang out as Wang Xiao's body was pierced by the golden light, riddled with holes. Tian Chi had been sitting cross-legged here all along, but in reality, he was laying down Sacred Marks beneath him. And the Tian Chi now was merely a wisp of his soul.
A powerful figure from the Heavenly Dragon Divine Fortress reached out with a massive demonic dragon arm to grab him, but it was too late. After the Sacred Mark bloomed, everything happened in an instant. Wang Xiao was destroyed.
"Today, the Heavenly Terrace only came to execute the traitor and destroy the Yang Clan!" Thinking of Tian Chi's words, the Yang Clan's strongman's face turned pale. The Yang Clan was destroyed?
Their hearts were convulsing.
"Senior Brother!" Yang Zhan looked towards the Venerable Lord of the Heavenly Dragon Divine Fortress, his face ashen. Tian Chi's words were definitely not nonsense. Now, the traitor Wang Xiao had been executed!
"When you set foot on this path, you should have understood how to walk it. If the martial heart is not firm, how can one seek the Dao?" That Venerable Lord glanced at Yang Zhan. Yang Zhan's eyes were bloodshot, and he nodded slightly. "I naturally won't let this affect my martial path, but I will avenge this hatred today!"
"There's no need to wait until later. The Heavenly Terrace first sent people to hunt down your Yang Clan members one by one, while using Wang Xiao as bait to force us to come here and fight them. At the same time, they took the opportunity to destroy the Yang Clan. Their scheme has indeed succeeded. But it seems the Heavenly Terrace has underestimated my Heavenly Dragon Divine Fortress!" A cold glint flashed in that Venerable Lord's eyes. "Let's go. The Heavenly Terrace hasn't gone far. They might still be waiting to regroup with the ones who destroyed the Yang Clan. Now, we go for revenge!"
Hearing his words, Yang Zhan's murderous intent surged, killing aura spilling out. The Heavenly Terrace hadn't gone far.
"Whoosh!" That Venerable Lord stepped forward, saying coldly, "Follow me to exterminate the Heavenly Terrace!"
Figures flickered, heading into the distance, making the void seem to carry a suffocating pressure.
Just as they had guessed, the people of the Heavenly Terrace hadn't returned. Instead, they were in another mountain range canyon a hundred miles away. This canyon was surrounded by cliffs on all sides, seemingly very secluded and hard to detect, leaving many in the Heavenly Terrace confused.
"Senior Brother, what's going on?" Someone asked Tian Chi. Tian Chi had returned, but where was Wang Xiao?
"The Yang Clan has been destroyed. Wang Xiao was a traitor and has been executed by me," Tian Chi replied calmly, making everyone's eyes narrow. The Yang Clan was destroyed? And Wang Xiao was actually a traitor, a mole.
"So it was him. When we returned to the Heavenly Terrace, Wang Xiao seemed the most eager, urging us to come for revenge. Was that also a scheme?"
"Naturally. Because the force the Heavenly Dragon Divine Fortress deployed this time might have exceeded our expectations. So, Wang Xiao wanted us to go to Yangzhou City and die," Tian Chi's answer caused a great stir in the hearts of many. They silently cursed Wang Xiao. The Heavenly Dragon Divine Fortress actually wanted to wipe out all the active forces of the Heavenly Terrace.
"Thinking you're so clever. Do you think your plan was perfect?" At that moment, echoes reverberated from the cliffs above the canyon, shaking in the eardrums of the crowd. Many people's expressions changed. The people from the Heavenly Dragon Divine Fortress!
Overwhelming auras spread downwards from the sky. When they looked up, they saw the strongmen of the Heavenly Dragon Divine Fortress descending, carrying a domineering presence, dropping from the sky towards the canyon below.
"Tian Chi, do you still think you're so clever?" The Venerable Lord of the Heavenly Dragon Divine Fortress asked coldly.
The ascetic monk Tian Chi frowned. When the many strongmen of the Heavenly Dragon Divine Fortress descended, his pupils seemed to sink deeper. "Can you tell me, who else among you is their man?"
"Boom!" Two figures shot into the void like arrows from a bowstring, as if afraid of being caught in the crossfire when the Heavenly Dragon Divine Fortress began its slaughter.
"Xuan Ting, Lin Xiao! There were actually two more!" The crowd's gaze focused on the two figures in the void. Many showed angry expressions. But Tian Chi's gaze instead became calm. He smiled and said, "You've put a lot of effort into this, planting three people inside. That way, it's foolproof, right?"
"Of course. I've sealed the sky above. Of all the places to hide, you chose this canyon trap. A bunch of fools. It's a pity Hou Qinglin isn't here."
"Perhaps your wish will come true," Tian Chi said calmly. Then, above the canyon, a cracking sound echoed. Sword qi shot into the clouds. The sky-sealing seal shattered. There, a graceful and elegant figure appeared.
"Hou Qinglin!" The strongmen of the Heavenly Dragon Divine Fortress looked up, frowning slightly. Almost simultaneously, below the canyon, the stone platform where the Heavenly Terrace crowd stood suddenly lit up, emitting a dazzling light. The entire stone platform transformed into a giant sail—the Void Sail!
"How else could we wipe you all out in one go in this canyon?" A cold voice echoed through the void. Then, a dazzling light shot into the clouds. The Void Sail carried the figures of the Heavenly Terrace crowd, instantly disappearing from the canyon, teleporting through the void. The next moment, they appeared directly above the canyon. The Heavenly Terrace and the Heavenly Dragon Divine Fortress had switched positions!