Chapter 124: The Seventh Princess’s Fate

"Captain, find a spot. Let’s finish them off, the two of us."

Chen Mingguang actually shared this sentiment. He was furious; the proudest talents of the Luyang Academy were being chased like this. However, he had already stated the two reasons why they absolutely had to return.

*Bang!*

He stomped his foot onto the body of the Mengyi. Sensing the command, the eagle-like creature let out a high-pitched cry. Spirit energy surged violently within the long-haired beast, brewing and hissing, until, in a sudden flash, two wings sprouted from its body!

"Holy crap!" Wu Gang, who hadn't known this was possible, was shocked by the appendages bursting from the flesh. "What is that thing?!"

"Don't act like you've never seen the world; this is called 'Dou-Qi Wing Manifestation'."

Regardless of the explanation, the main point was to run. With the wings, their speed increased significantly. Wu Gang felt that no matter what the future held, Chen Mingguang would certainly live for a long time. Even if someone at the Return to Origin realm caught up now, it would cost them a considerable amount of spirit energy.

They hadn't traveled very far on foot, and with the wings, the Mengyi covered the distance back quickly. In the sky, the walls of Desheng Pass were already faintly visible. Gu Feng and He Jiang had even begun their brief initial skirmish.

"Where is General Ji?" Chen Mingguang kept searching the area below, desperate to spot Ji Lan. If she had been captured, the situation would be as bad as it could possibly get.

"She’s not here. She really isn't."

Damn it. What a cunning opponent. Chen Mingguang watched the two figures silently confronting each other—He Jiang and Gu Feng. To an outsider, they seemed to be doing nothing, but in reality, they were already locked in a fierce battle.

"Let’s go find the Seventh Princess first; she should still be on the city gate tower."

With the speed of the Mengyi, they arrived in the blink of an eye, jumping off the eagle’s back and rushing to the Princess.

"Did you catch them?"

"No. Not only that, but we were chased back. The Li Kingdom set a trap."

The Seventh Princess’s eyes widened slightly, but she remained composed.

"Is everything alright here?"

"General He Jiang is holding off Gu Feng," the Princess said, pointing to the high sky. "Shu Le has gone off chasing the 'Left-Handed Sword' Chang Meng."

Chen Mingguang’s heart sank. "Why chase them out? Where did they go?"

"Shu Le is quite strong; what’s wrong with chasing them? Has something happened?"

In the Princess’s view, after General Ji killed Sun Liang, the tide had turned completely. She had even gone out to "slaughter" the Li Kingdom’s cultivators; such an opportunity didn't come every day.

Chen Mingguang’s thoughts were complex, but he found a way to clarify the situation in a single sentence. "Princess, the Two Peaks have intervened. Even though Sun Liang is dead, the Two Peaks will surely send experts at the Return to Origin realm to assist the Great Rain Palace!"

"The Two Peaks...?" The Seventh Princess spoke with unusual slowness. "This must be reported to General He Jiang immediately."

Chen Mingguang thought the same, but too much time had passed since they had chased the enemy. Because everyone believed Ji Lan had achieved a great victory, many had followed suit. The death of a Return to Origin expert meant something everyone in the war understood. Even if He Jiang could restrain himself, he could no longer command every single Soul-Guard realm fighter to stop the pursuit. In fact, many had simply followed Ji Lan out.

Chen Mingguang flew up to survey the situation inside and outside Desheng Pass. The gate remained tightly shut; as the defender, General He Jiang would not allow it to open, even with a degree of victory. Chasing the enemy was a job for the cultivators. Even if they couldn't kill all the common soldiers, the lives of ordinary troops were not the priority; both sides were doing their best to eliminate each other's cultivators.

Yet, as the walls remained secure, only a handful of the Xu Kingdom’s cultivators remained; most of those who stayed were injured! Looking at the sparse number of Soul-Guard realm fighters in the sky, a chill ran down Chen Mingguang’s spine: they had been tricked!

A Return to Origin expert—the Li people were truly willing to pay a high price!

*Whoosh! Whoosh!*

Two burly young men emerged from within Desheng Pass. They had only rushed over after seeing Chen Mingguang and Wu Gang return. After all, they were part of the Luyang Academy.

"Commander Li Li of the War Wolf Army!"

"Commander Xu Yang of the Fire Fox Army!"

They were the two armies He Jiang had left behind—the strongest two of the five Soul-Guard commanders in the Desheng Pass garrison. Their main forces were cultivators; He Jiang had only sent three armies to the wall, keeping two in reserve. Chen Mingguang didn't know what to say; perhaps it was the existence of these reserves that had caused them to lower their guard.

"We two brothers have met the three masters of Luyang Academy. General He ordered us to wait in the city for emergencies, but hearing that Deputy General Ji killed Sun Liang was truly heartening. We thought the battle was surely won."

It seemed everyone thought the same.

"Commanders Li and Xu, General Ji Lan’s victory over Sun Liang was indeed a massive morale booster, but I’m afraid I must dampen your spirits: we have been tricked."

Both commanders looked confused. "Tricked? What trick? Sun Liang is dead. No matter what scheme Gu Feng had, it’s all in vain now. This is clearly a great victory."

Just then, a loud, violent sound erupted in the distance. A familiar figure plummeted from the sky. The iconic green hair was unmistakable: Li Qingrong, commander of the Tiger Wolf Army.

*Bang!!*

His body slammed into the city tower. As he fell, Li Qingrong didn't move an inch, like a corpse being discarded.

Because of the violent impact, the tower wall buckled, then he detached, slid, and crashed down again. The five of them witnessed it all. Li Qingrong was also a commander, a Soul-Guard. Was he killed just like that?

Who did it?

Chen Mingguang reacted the fastest. The Great Rain Palace clearly had stronger reinforcements. If a Return to Origin expert arrived now, were they supposed to let the common soldiers and low-level cultivators on the walls face them?

Directly ahead, in the distant sky, a mass of purple clouds was approaching. What was that? Chen Mingguang didn't know, and if he could, he didn't want to.

"Everyone! Retreat into the pass! Get off the city walls! Hide, all of you!"

Commanders Li and Xu were still hesitant. "This is..."

Wu Gang was a bit better; though slow, he had listened to Chen Mingguang’s analysis. After seeing Li Qingrong’s death, the trap was undeniable. He could only help his captain carry out the order. Leveraging their status as members of the Luyang Academy, they roared commands at the soldiers of Desheng Pass, which finally had some effect. Although no one understood what was happening, they woke from the joy of victory and began moving off the walls through various passages.

The strategy adopted by Chen Mingguang and Gu Feng was the same, and it was the only rational one: run, hide, and conceal.

The Seventh Princess slowly walked over to Li and Xu. "Commander Li Qingrong sacrificed himself for the country. Though it is heartbreaking, according to Chen Mingguang, the Great Rain Palace has received help from the Two Peaks. You two must prepare for the enemy with everything you have."

What she said was perfectly correct. But Li Qingrong’s death was so sudden. Only a short while ago, this green-haired young talent was one of the five commanders of Desheng Pass, and now he was a cold, stiff corpse on the ground.

Not long ago, someone had come to tell Master Yu of the Luyang Academy that the three people from the East Lake Academy who had followed them were all wiped out. According to the three from East Lake, they were just traveling and happened to encounter the war at Desheng Pass. When they left the East Lake Academy, they never imagined the conflict would be so brutal that they wouldn't even be able to recover their own bodies.

If the Seventh Princess, a member of the royal family, hadn't remembered to report their names upon returning, perhaps no one would ever know that three warriors from the East Lake Academy—not part of the military, just passersby—had abandoned all regard for their own lives and thrown themselves into the fray.

The little girl named Xin Chi was a worshiper of the "Transcendent Scholar" Gu Yi. She had been furious about Gu Yi being trapped in the Great Rain Palace, waiting for the war to end so everyone could focus on his rescue. She had even been prepared to join the effort. But tragically, the girl never even got to hear a single word about the immortals of Xiaoyuan Mountain from the Transcendent Scholar before losing her life forever.

What is war? Why does it exist? Why have people waged wars for thousands of years? After witnessing so much life and death, the Seventh Princess still couldn't understand. She had asked many people, even some from the Li Kingdom: if both sides of a war feel grief for the lost, why do they keep sending living, breathing people to the battlefield over and over again?

In these few short hours, the Seventh Princess had seen several people who were full of life now dead. She was even beginning to feel afraid. Who would be next?

"Someone, carry Commander Li Qingrong’s body down!"

Commander Li Li wiped a tear from the corner of his eye, drew his blade, and turned to stand on the walls of Desheng Pass. "General He’s order was to stand by for emergencies. Now is that time! War Wolf Army, hear my command: everyone, prepare to face the incoming enemy!"

The purple clouds in the distance drew closer. Commander Li sought out Chen Mingguang; he needed to understand what was going on. At this time, no one should have dared to attack Desheng Pass; the ones returning should have been General Ji Lan and the victorious Xu Kingdom soldiers.

But now...

*Whoosh! Whoosh!*

Two more black shadows flew rapidly from the forest. After a brief glance, Li and Xu gritted their teeth, their hands trembling as they gripped their swords. The enemy had killed three commanders in a way that was infuriating, as if using their corpses to shatter their confidence and faith.

Even the Seventh Princess felt nervous. Never mind the three commanders; what about the cultivators who had chased after Ji Lan? Had they all perished as well?

The situation became extremely dangerous in an instant. After Chen Mingguang and Wu Gang finished their tasks, they rushed back to the Seventh Princess. Their assessment of the situation was even more pessimistic; the Princess had to escape. Before, they had tried to persuade her, but now it was different. Even without speaking, their years of fighting together had forged a high level of tacit understanding: if necessary, they would force the Seventh Princess to leave!

"Were all the people who went out killed?"

The three of them stood on the wall, while the two commanders positioned themselves further out, closer to the enemy.

The Seventh Princess’s question pained Chen Mingguang. "Wu Gang and I only managed to escape back thanks to the Mengyi. The enemy’s counter-pursuit was fast, and for some reason, their numbers seemed overwhelming."

The Princess asked, "How could their numbers be high? The number of cultivators in the Chenzhou Basin is limited." Unless the Li Kingdom had transferred Soul-Guard and Li-Xin realm fighters from the Xingyuan battlefield.

"Princess, the reason is no longer important. The facts are what they are."

The fact was that many of the Desheng Pass cultivators had been lured out and were now either fleeing in a panic or already dead. There weren't many combat-capable people left in this fortress. The five of them might well be the largest cluster of Soul-Guard realm fighters remaining.

Wu Gang was actually thinking about something else. "Where is General Ji?"

"General Ji also chased them out," the Princess recalled.

"I don't think General Ji is in immediate danger. She is a powerful Return to Origin expert. Even to surround and kill her would take considerable effort. If I were them, the best approach would be to temporarily hold Ji Lan back, keeping her preoccupied, while sending the main force to Desheng Pass."

This was why Mao Tai once said Chen Mingguang was a future commander who would be a headache to deal with.

"We’re all that’s left," Wu Gang said, his bravery overshadowed by anger at the cruelty of fate.

Chen Mingguang said, "No matter how many of us are left, the important thing is He Jiang and Shu Le. If they fall and General Ji hasn't returned, Desheng Pass will surely fall."

General He Jiang... he likely noticed the purple clouds approaching in the sky, his sense of unease growing.

"It’s the people from the Two Peaks. You’re finished, He Jiang." Gu Feng’s words only increased his anxiety.

He Jiang surveyed the situation below and shot up to the center of the city wall, hovering above the three from Luyang Academy and the two commanders.

"General He."

"General, we are here!" Though the commanders said they were there, it was He Jiang’s presence that gave them a sense of security.

"Masters of Luyang Academy, Master Shu Le went off to the west. Is there any way to send word for her to return to Desheng Pass?"

Chen Mingguang sent out the Mengyi, though this time it was a small one that didn't need to carry anyone. As the eagle flapped its wings in the sky, He Jiang watched it in silence. Then, his gaze shifted upward; Gu Feng was now standing alongside the purple clouds. As they drew closer, it became clear that the purple wasn't clouds, but two people. A constant flow of purple spirit energy surged from their bodies.

Chen Mingguang, worried that He Jiang didn't know the full situation, flew to his side and quickly relayed everything he knew.

"So, it’s not just those two from the Two Peaks. There are actually many Li Kingdom cultivators hidden outside Desheng Pass on the Chenzhou Basin. Where did they come from?"

The Seventh Princess dismissed that possibility. "The Two Peaks cannot have many people, otherwise His Majesty would have noticed them."

"Xu Yang!"

"Yes, Commander!"

"Draft a letter. Record everything that has happened here. Send one to Luyang to inform His Majesty that Desheng Pass is in danger, and one to Xingyuan to notify the Vice-Dean. The Li army has secretly redeployed; if possible, I suggest they seize the opportunity."

Suggesting tactics to a commander at another location was a bit overstepping. But Chen Mingguang understood He Jiang’s mindset. He knew that a major sacrifice by the Xu Kingdom here was inevitable, so he hoped his colleagues wouldn't waste the opportunity and let the Li Kingdom benefit, but instead seize the chance to expand their own gains.

"Three masters of Luyang Academy, He Jiang knows there are those of noble status among you. This defeat was at the hands of Gu Feng and has nothing to do with you. The Xu Kingdom needs its young talents. If you still consider me the commander of this war, then obey my order: retreat into the pass immediately."

The Seventh Princess seemed to sense General He Jiang’s resolve to die. She said, "This battle is not a loss to Gu Feng, but to the Two Peaks. It is not the General’s fault. You are a tiger general of our Great Xu’s northern border!"

The three from Desheng Pass looked at this young woman. At such a moment, when survival was uncertain and death was likely, the Seventh Princess didn't care about such things anymore. "General, I am the Seventh Princess of the Xu Kingdom. What I say to you is what the Royal Family says to you!"

Chen Mingguang and Wu Gang knelt on one knee, hitching up their robes.

He Jiang’s bull-like eyes widened, a mix of tragic resolve and gratification in them. "This subordinate... thanks the Seventh Princess, thanks His Majesty!"

"The enemy is nearby. Forgive this subordinate for not saluting the Princess to avoid revealing her identity. Both masters of Luyang Academy, please rise." This was indeed not the time for such formalities. "With the Seventh Princess here, this subordinate must command you three to leave quickly. Otherwise, this would be a crime I could never redeem with a hundred deaths."

...

These were just fantasies.

Gu Feng’s body drifted forward slowly. "Where is the Seventh Princess of the Great Xu? Since she is of the royal family, she should have the courage to stand out. Hiding now—isn't that a disgrace to the Yin family?"

Chen Mingguang and Wu Gang cursed inwardly. "Seventh Princess! Don't fall for it!" Chen Mingguang suddenly remembered that they had mentioned the Princess’s name during the pursuit, and Mao Tai had been right there with them.

However, the Seventh Princess was stubborn. She refused to move.

"Ji Lan has been entangled by my people, and Shu Le is no match for Chang Meng. Most of your many cultivators who chased us out have been hunted down by my people. Only you remain, He Jiang, and you alone cannot stop me. Besides, I have two others with me."

"Desheng Pass will be in my pocket in no time. However, I can guarantee that I won't slaughter you like you just slaughtered our people. I know the Seventh Princess of the Great Xu is among you. As long as she stands out, I will spare this city. I will only take it; I will not kill."

It’s a trap! Chen Mingguang didn't believe it for a second! It was just a hollow promise with no binding force—what did it mean?

Yet the Seventh Princess, who cared deeply for the people, didn't want to hide anymore.

Chen Mingguang was helpless. If only Gu Yi were here—that guy had a mountain of twisted logic; maybe it would have worked! It made him angry just thinking about it: Gu Yi, how could he be trapped in the Great Rain Palace?!

Was there really no way for him to appear right now?!