Chapter 1771: Turning Ruthless

Xiao Wencheng himself needed to remain at Wenhui Pavilion to coordinate the overall situation, so he could only deploy six immortals. Sending four immortals to Banqiu in one go was the most he could do. The elders unanimously responded, "Yes," and departed through the mirror.

Another swirl of mist rolled in, moisturizing the immortal flowers and jade grass, and dampening the high walls and ornate eaves.

Standing in this high-mountain immortal realm, one could look up at the stars, gaze down at the sea of clouds, but see no trace of human activity.

Dong Rui instinctively rubbed his arms. He said, "Staying here, I always feel a bit of a chill." In fact, he had long been immune to heat and cold.

He asked He Lingchuan, "Which plan do you think Master Xiao will ultimately choose?"

"The second one," He Lingchuan replied without hesitation. "Master Xiao himself might lean towards the first plan, but the Illusory Sect is not an autocracy. If the other elders disagree, it would be difficult for him to overrule their objections. Therefore, it will be the second."

The Illusory Sect is neither a state nor an army; it lacks a tradition of swift and decisive action, and matters are often subject to discussion. Although Xiao Wencheng is the sect master, he only manages internal affairs. The true leader of the Illusory Sect has always been True Person Qianhuan!

The other elders were well aware of this. How could they possibly view Xiao Wencheng as the ultimate authority?

Madam Zhu transmitted a message to them through her eyeball spider: "Why did you deliberately provoke Elder Xu just now?"

Having spent a long time with He Lingchuan, she knew he could be exceptionally smooth in his dealings, making others feel at ease. That particular statement could have been phrased in several ways, none of which would have offended anyone. So why, at that critical moment, did He Lingchuan suddenly provoke Elder Xu?

He Lingchuan smiled, making a hand gesture:

"Exactly. The more I provoke him and urge them to abandon the second plan, the more rebellious he becomes."

Madam Zhu and Dong Rui exchanged glances. Did this fellow mean he wanted to push the Illusory Sect to choose the second plan, which involved concentrating their attack on the Banqiu lighthouse?

"...Didn't you say earlier that it would be better for the Illusory Sect to fight steadily? Why did you suddenly change your mind?"

"Earlier was earlier. As there are no fixed strategies in war, just as water has no fixed form, battle situations change in an instant, so tactics must adjust accordingly, mustn't they?" After saying this, He Lingchuan switched to sign language again. "Before, no one could wake True Person Qianhuan, so the only tactical approach was to stall. But now..."

Dong Rui was startled and blurted out, his voice rising three octaves: "You can do it?!" Didn't they say no one could? How does this fellow suddenly have a trick up his sleeve? "At least seventy percent certainty," He Lingchuan said, pressing his hand to his chest.

He certainly couldn't do it himself; he could only rely on the divine bone necklace.

The first time he crossed through the Haoyuan Golden Mirror, he was teleported to the wrong location. Although Xiao Wencheng spoke lightly of it, He Lingchuan understood from his words that the Haoyuan Golden Mirror had never made such a mistake before.

Perhaps it wasn't the treasure mirror that made the mistake, but rather the divine bone necklace, or more precisely, the Great Square Cauldron, that quietly made an attempt?

He Lingchuan now knew that the Haoyuan Golden Mirror was an important hub for the various laws of the Upside-Down Sea, and was itself a part of those laws. If the Great Square Cauldron could make He Lingchuan teleport to the wrong place, did that indicate it could intervene, alter, or obscure the laws behind the Haoyuan Golden Mirror?

After all, this place was just a cave dwelling, a minor grotto-heaven. The Great Square Cauldron, however, could create its own space and generate its own laws, placing it on a much higher level.

If the Great Square Cauldron was willing to act—He Lingchuan had just received its affirmation—the success rate of waking Qianhuan would be very high.

Although Madam Zhu found it incredible, He Lingchuan often performed astonishing feats. If he said there was seventy percent certainty, then there absolutely was seventy percent certainty; Madam Zhu trusted him greatly.

However, she didn't understand: "Why, if you are confident you can wake True Person Qianhuan, do you want to induce the Illusory Sect to focus their attack on the Banqiu lighthouse?"

Or, to put it another way, "Why aren't you waking True Person Qianhuan now?"

"Have you forgotten why we came to the Upside-Down Sea?" He Lingchuan's smile turned wicked with his sign language. "Are we truly here with good intentions? Are we genuinely here to offer comfort to the Illusory Sect? Don't forget, the Illusory Sect's current predicament can be traced back to him bringing Bai Ziqi here!"

Otherwise, they would still be living peacefully right now.

Previously, with Qianhuan out of contact and He Lingchuan unable to leave the Upside-Down Sea himself, he had no choice but to temporarily align with the Illusory Sect, binding himself to their cause.

Now that he had found a way, he was ready to swiftly accelerate the war's progress! Dong Rui couldn't help but exclaim admiringly, "You're truly ruthless, turning your back so callously!"

So far, anyone or any nation that this fellow has schemed against has met a bad end.

He Lingchuan's lips curled into a slight smile as he gestured, "When it comes to ruthlessness, how can I compare to these immortals?"

Why was the Golden Flash Plain weaker in spiritual energy? Why were there Yakshas in the Upside-Down Sea? He held not a shred of goodwill towards True Person Qianhuan or these Illusory Sect immortals.

Madam Zhu was intrigued and couldn't help but pace back and forth a few steps. "Aren't you worried that Qianhuan might not be able to defeat Heavenly Lord Miaozhan, dragging us down?"

He Lingchuan continued to gesture, "As long as Qianhuan is woken, the Upside-Down Sea's blockade will be lifted. If Qianhuan is destined to lose, we'll just cut and run."

"Wait a moment," Dong Rui asked him. "Master Xiao just said that Kidney Lake is where Qianhuan is in seclusion, and also the only path to leave the Upside-Down Sea. What does that mean?"

"That's Master Xiao's hint that we've always been in an illusion," He Lingchuan said, pointing towards Kidney Lake. "Assuming True Person Qianhuan doesn't emerge from seclusion, anyone who wants to leave the Upside-Down Sea must first return to the real world. Several elders from the Illusory Sect, along with investigators sent by the Spirit Mountain Sect, have previously entered Kidney Lake to probe, hoping to find a way out."

"It's not that easy to get out, is it?" Dong Rui scratched his head. "They haven't left the storm zone yet, have they?"

"Master Xiao only said it was the only way, not that it would be an easy path," He Lingchuan chuckled. "I said long ago that luring the Heavenly Palace army into Kidney Lake would be killing two birds with one stone: it would bring out True Person Qianhuan and allow us to deal with Heavenly Lord Miaozhan. Previously, the Illusory Sect refused, fearing that the enemy would harm their Patriarch, which would eventually bring disaster upon themselves. After several successive major battles, Heavenly Lord Miaozhan and the Heavenly Palace forces have been greatly depleted. At this point, luring them to Kidney Lake and seeking help from the old ancestor makes perfect sense."

Most importantly, the Illusory Sect itself has suffered severe damage and has had to abandon its illusions, seeking practical solutions.

All their previous 'no, we can't do this' and 'no, we can't do that' was just affectation; a good beating was all it took.

"And for the Heavenly Palace, the biggest problem with this expedition to the Upside-Down Sea is that their main forces are being depleted too quickly and excessively."

Dong Rui chuckled, "Thanks to you, several demon immortals and heavenly demons have died. And Bai Ziqi suffered a great loss at your hands this time."

"He suffered losses because he was pinned down at the lakeside lighthouse, forced to coordinate the overall situation, and couldn't focus solely on defending against me," He Lingchuan analyzed objectively. "The Celestial Gods also restrict his actions, unlike me who can move freely without restraint."

Dong Rui rubbed his nose. That being said, who else could influence the overall situation while acting as a lone operative? Only He Lingchuan.

"Back to the situation. Currently, even the most basic elite forces of the Heavenly Palace have suffered heavy casualties from the earth-shattering power and the onslaught of the Yaksha horde—these are soldiers who arrived with primal energy! In the outside world, each one is precious." The Heavenly Palace brought in over three thousand people, and now only over a thousand remain. "By the time Bai Ziqi decides to retreat, who knows how many will be left? This remaining manpower isn't enough to divide among three lighthouses. Therefore, the Heavenly Palace's original plan has been ruined."

"What will he do?"

"He'll wait to see what the Illusory Sect does. If the Illusory Sect adopts my first plan, which is to continue fighting steadily—" He Lingchuan held up three fingers. "Bai Ziqi's counter-strategy would be one of two options: either concentrate all his forces at Banqiu and defend the lighthouse to the death; or enter Kidney Lake and withdraw from the Upside-Down Sea. If Bai Ziqi chooses to retreat quickly, he could preserve more personnel to deal with True Person Qianhuan. In any case, whether they ultimately defeat the Illusory Sect or not, they must enter Kidney Lake to leave the Upside-Down Sea."

Dong Rui exclaimed in surprise, "Wait a minute, isn't there a second lighthouse? Why don't you or Master Xiao ever mention it?"

The Illusory Sect even sent only a small contingent to attack the second lighthouse, just for show. On the vast battlefield, it seemed as if it were invisible. Yet, no matter how inconspicuous the second lighthouse was, it was still a vital route for the Heavenly Palace's northward advance.

He Lingchuan exhaled softly. "This is the third point I didn't finish: the second lighthouse is the buffer zone of this war. If it's destroyed, Bai Ziqi will only have a third path left."

"Huh?" Dong Rui didn't understand, and the ghost ape on his shoulder scratched its ear. "Is that even human language? At the lakeside battlefield, the Heavenly Palace can win; at the Banqiu battlefield, the Illusory Sect can win. This is like two sides playing chess: with wins and losses, the game can continue. As long as the second lighthouse remains, the Heavenly Palace forces will still have a stronghold and can exert their strength. But if this last lighthouse is also destroyed, or is about to be destroyed, and the Heavenly Palace forces have no foothold on Silver Pearl Island, what do you think Bai Ziqi will do?"

He then asked, "If a chess game can't continue, and you don't want to concede defeat, what would you do?"

Dong Rui replied without thinking, "Flip the table." He had poor sportsmanship.

"Do you think they have the ability to flip the table?"

"Yes," Dong Rui replied without hesitation. "If they had no backing, how would they dare enter the Upside-Down Sea?"

Bai Ziqi and the others' trump card must be the power of the True Gods!

At this point, Dong Rui looked a bit lost. "Then why isn't Bai Ziqi flipping the table now?"

"He's unsure of Qianhuan's state and doesn't dare act rashly. After all, this is True Person Qianhuan; any intelligence Bai Ziqi receives about Qianhuan could be a trap," He Lingchuan said earnestly. "If Bai Ziqi reveals his trump card too early, leading to the depletion of the True Gods' power, will the Heavenly Palace still have an advantage when Qianhuan himself appears?"

"Master Xiao is also well aware of this, which is why he hasn't wanted to force the Heavenly Palace forces to unleash their ultimate moves, at least not until just now." Don't let the current intense fighting between immortals and demons deceive you, even though several have fallen on each side; it hasn't truly reached the point of a death match.

The commanders on both sides are still controlling the intensity of the war.