Chapter 299 - 271: A Seat at the Table, Dividing the Spoils

Chapter 299: Chapter 271: A Seat at the Table, Dividing the Spoils

This sentence had a different meaning.

Previously, the attack on Shuzhou was decided entirely by Chen Yin and Meng Qianxun. According to custom, after conquering Shuzhou, all spoils would first be divided between their two families. Jinyun Valley would only get the leftover scraps.

How much Jinyun Valley received would depend on the others’ generosity.

Regarding this,

Chen Che hadn’t minded.

The Meng Family and Great Chen were powerful enough. The number of Foundation Establishment Cultivators they dispatched was several times that of Jinyun Valley. Even if Meng Qianxun and Chen Yin were willing to push him to the forefront, their subordinates would not necessarily agree. After all, the difference in strength was too great.

And Chen Che’s initial thought had been to follow behind the two families, throw a few token punches, drink some of the broth, and let the disciples from In the Valley see some real combat.

But after tonight’s battle...

Jinyun Valley now had the strength to sit at the main table.

"A suggestion?"

Seeing that the other party was sincerely asking, Chen Che sat squarely on the pumpon, pondered for a moment, and then said seriously:

"The patriarchs of the Five Races are dead, and morale throughout Shuzhou is at a low point. In my opinion, we should press our advantage and crush them in one fell swoop, lest we delay too long and give rise to new complications. After all, the Five Races have deep foundations; who knows what other tricks they might have up their sleeves."

"Indeed!"

The moment he finished speaking, Meng Qianxun chimed in, saying:

"I think so as well!"

"The Five Races’ foundations are considerable. The deaths of their patriarchs will only cause temporary panic. But as the saying goes, ’a centipede dies but never falls down’; their heritage cannot be underestimated. We cannot give them too much time to regroup. We must strike while they’re down!"

"The first to fall will be the Jin Family!"

Chen Yin tapped his fingertips on the table, his voice grim. "It was the Jin Family who orchestrated this, bringing the Five Races together. Moreover, we must see things through to the end. We began with the Jin Family, and we shall end with them."

Chen Che listened quietly, not interjecting.

The two patriarchs agreed to press their advantage and strike the Jin Family, just as they had planned before. Furthermore, they would crush the Jin Family with overwhelming force to avenge their audacity in besieging Juejian Mountain.

’They were likely also worried the enemy would pack up their wealth and flee.

Because,

great clans like these certainly had contingency plans. When faced with annihilation, they would choose to cut their losses.

Some would stay behind, while others would be secretly relocated, changing their names and identities.

They might even split the clan into main and branch lineages.’

"Greetings, Fellow Daoist Meng, Fellow Daoist Chen, Valley Master Chen."

Just then, Elder Daoist Qingsong, having been summoned, entered cautiously. With an uneasy expression, he clasped his hands and asked:

"You summoned me...?"

"Fellow Daoist Qingsong, give me a straight answer. How long will it take to break the Formless Tribulation Thunder Array?"

Not wanting to waste words, Meng Qianxun turned her head and stared at him.

Since they had decided to strike the Jin Family, they were back to the original problem: how to break the Array.

If there was an easy way, no one wanted to use brute force.

"Th-three... I can definitely break it within three days. If not, I... I..."

Elder Daoist Qingsong forced himself to speak.

But under her unfriendly gaze, he began to stutter. Chen Yin, in particular, was looking at him with killing intent.

For a moment, he didn’t dare to speak another word.

"Enough!"

Chen Che suddenly spoke up, withdrawing his gaze from Elder Daoist Qingsong. He made the final decision. "The patriarchs of the Five Races have fallen. The Major Cultivators controlling the main array are not strong enough, so the Array’s power will have diminished. Instead of dawdling and waiting three days after three days, we should just launch a full-scale assault!"

"Catch them completely by surprise!"

...

Although Elder Daoist Qingsong’s combat strength was lacking, he was still quite capable. Overnight, he set up a Ten Thousand Miles Clear Sky Array, which dispersed the rain clouds gathered around Thunder Accumulation Mountain. This forcefully reduced the power of the Formless Tribulation Thunder Array from Tier Three Middle Grade to Tier Three Low Grade.

A so-called Grand Array borrows the Power of Heaven and Earth. It can be enhanced by celestial phenomena, and naturally, it can also be weakened by them.

However, even though it was reduced to Tier Three Low Grade,

the clouds stretched for a hundred miles. Within the oppressive black clouds overhead, lightning writhed like pythons, its presence still utterly overwhelming.

"CREEEAK~"

Beneath the thunderclouds, Crossbow Bed after Crossbow Bed was pushed toward the mountain. Chen Che paced among them, his ears filled with the sounds of friction from ropes and turning wheels.

"How many days will it take to break the array by force?"

Meng Qianxun stood with her hands behind her back, gazing at the mountain ahead.

At the edge of a Foundation Establishment Great Perfection Cultivator’s vision, one could see Cultivators on the perimeter of Thunder Accumulation Mountain discovering their intent to storm the array. Following shouts of alarm, more and more figures gathered at the mountain’s edge, like ants from a disturbed nest.

"Th-three days... If we’re lucky, maybe not even that long."

As Elder Daoist Qingsong was speaking, he saw Meng Qianxun’s cold gaze fall upon him and quickly corrected himself:

"The entire Thunder Accumulation Mountain spans seven or eight hundred miles. The Formless Tribulation Thunder Array cannot possibly cover every inch of it; there are bound to be weak spots. It’s like an ant hole in a thousand-mile dam. If we can find one and use it as a breakthrough point, we can easily break the array."

"This old Daoist has been at Juejian Mountain for nearly a month, and he’s finally said something useful."

Only then did Chen Yin nod slightly. "In that case, let’s begin!"

Elder Daoist Qingsong finally let out a sigh of relief, wiping the cold sweat from his forehead.

Chen Che stood to the side, observing his surroundings.

While the two were talking, hundreds of Crossbow Beds had been positioned before the mountain. Each Crossbow Bed was three to four zhang in size, its frame built from high-grade Spirit Wood, and its bowstring twisted from the tendons and hide of a Spirit Beast to guarantee its range.

Crossbow Arrows as thick as washbasins and covered in runes were loaded into the grooves by the Cultivators. As the bowstrings were drawn, they were pulled tighter and tighter.

Back when they conquered the Han Family, Jinyun Valley had also obtained a few of these.

These siege weapons posed almost no threat to a Major Cultivator, but they were quite effective against a stationary Array like this.

As soon as the words were spoken, someone pulled a trigger.

BOOM-SWOOSH!

A sharp, piercing sound of displaced air rang out as a three-to-five-zhang-long Crossbow Arrow shot from the string. Like a rainbow piercing the sun, it resembled a bolt of white silk streaking directly toward Thunder Accumulation Mountain.

Its might was no less than the full-powered strike of a Foundation Establishment Cultivator.

But just as it was about to slam into the mountain, countless runes appeared silently in the void. They linked together, instantly forming a translucent barrier made entirely of lightning. Like a celestial chasm, it severed this part of the world from the rest.

"BANG!"

A tremendous sound erupted.

The Crossbow Arrow, forged entirely from Wuyin Stone, twisted, collapsed, and exploded into dust the instant it struck the barrier. The shimmering violet shield, however, only trembled, sending out ripples before quickly returning to calm.

BANG!

Almost simultaneously, countless Crossbow Arrows surged forward, vying to be the first to strike.

How could the assembled might of Giant Cannons compare to a scene several times more terrifying than that?

If these were to hit Thunder Accumulation Mountain directly, they could level the entire peak in a single instant.

But at this moment, all of them were intercepted by the Grand Array.

"The Mountain Protection Array is truly terrifying in its power."

Chen Che stood with his hands behind his back, gazing into the distance.

Some lightning bolts even descended directly from the sky, shattering the incoming Fury Arrows.

For a time,

Thunder Accumulation Mountain seemed as impregnable as a fortress of metal.

"How could a dignified, thousand-year-old great clan be ordinary?"

Meng Qianxun let out a light laugh.

"If not for their poor luck, the Jin Family would already have produced three Golden Core Cultivators. If that were the case, even the Primordial Sect would have to show them some respect. It wouldn’t be our turn to make a move. I wonder how many Core Formation Materials the Jin Family has left..."

Core Formation Materials?

Chen Che’s eyebrow twitched.

’The high price of Foundation Establishment Pills was due to scarce materials, but also partly due to artificial control. Core Formation Materials, on the other hand, were truly and incomparably rare. Even for a great clan like the Meng Family, producing a single Core Formation Cultivator required the full resources of the entire clan.

One must understand that many High Tier Realm-Breaking Treasures couldn’t be bought with Spirit Stones alone.

Even Jinyun Valley, in its current state, would find it quite a strain to support his Core Formation.’

"Ah, Core Formation..."

Chen Yin, standing to the side, sighed with emotion.

Without sufficient faith, he would be stuck at the Foundation Establishment Great Perfection realm for the rest of his life.

...

Night fell, the sky a deep blue.

Before Thunder Accumulation Mountain, the assault continued unabated. The Cultivators were full of energy, vowing to take down the Jin Family regardless of day or night.

Of course,

beyond the Cultivator World, the Mortal World was also in a state of constant war.

For the next few days, Chen Che did not intervene further.

Aside from his Cultivation, he spent his days traveling back and forth between the Mortal World and Thunder Accumulation Mountain, checking on the state of the battle in both.

Even though he wasn’t directly involved, his share of the resources after the Jin Family was conquered would not be diminished in the slightest.

The fall of the Five Races’ patriarchs had a great impact on the Mortal World as well.

The clans were already overwhelmed trying to save themselves, wishing they could recall all their Cultivators to discuss how to handle the coming crisis. How could they have any mind to spare for the Mortal World? And without the backing of a major Cultivation Race, how could those mortal kingdoms possibly stand against the Great Chen Royal Family?

In just half a day, the mountain passes were breached by the army of Hunzhou.

In the blink of an eye,

three more days passed.

On this day, just as Chen Che was preparing to take his usual stroll through the Mortal World, a cry of alarm rang out:

"We’ve found a weak spot!"