Chapter 1180: Crow Attack

"What are you doing? Let's talk properly. Please get up. Although we had some unpleasantness before, we are now friends who have gone through hardship together. There's no need for this."

Xu Yang's words sounded very heartwarming, but this time, Swordsman Old Seven, who was leading the kneeling group, did not get up. Instead, he gazed reverently at the towering Xu Yang before him.

"Brother Xu Yang, your cultivation is unparalleled, and your righteousness reaches the heavens. If you would accept us into your command, wouldn't that fulfill our greatest wish? Even if it's just to follow you, serving wherever needed, without any official position or salary, we would gladly accept!"

Xu Yang shook his head with a wry smile. "There's no need for that. You don't need to follow me to achieve your own success. Besides, our operation isn't over yet. We've just escaped the Lovers' City Dungeon, but we're still within the Splendid Mountain Villa's grounds.

The Third Prince's situation is unclear. It was likely the Fifth Prince who orchestrated this, trapping us in the Lovers' Bridge Dungeon. He is the mastermind, and it's highly probable he has already gained full control of all forces within the Splendid Mountain Villa.

In any case, our most urgent task is to first find him and bring the entire Splendid Mountain Villa under our control. That way, no matter what opponents we face, we will be fearless."

Hearing Xu Yang's words, everyone nodded gravely, seemingly re-energized. They quickly stood up and began arranging their next actions according to Xu Yang's commands.

"Alright, the Eight Gates will follow me to the front courtyard of Splendid Mountain Villa. The rest of you, disperse and search the back courtyard thoroughly to see if you can uncover any hidden information. After all, this Splendid Mountain Villa is truly vast. If we search as one large group, it would take forever to find those people.

By dispersing, our targets will naturally be much smaller, and we'll be harder to detect. You are all top-tier swordsmen, so I believe reconnaissance work should be well within your capabilities, right?"

These swordsmen, who already intended to join Xu Yang, were now even more motivated, making solemn vows to him.

"Don't worry, Brother A-Yang, we will definitely complete the mission. If we find anything, we'll send a message to you immediately."

Xu Yang nodded, then dismissed the members of both groups on the spot. Afterward, he led his Eight Gates teammates directly to the main hall of the Splendid Mountain Villa.

As Xu Yang expected, the Fifth Prince's people had completely secured the area, surrounding it layer upon layer. It would likely be difficult even for a fly to get in. It was clear at a glance that these were all the Fifth Prince's personal royal guards, each of them powerful.

"Hehe, Boss, shouldn't we just force our way in? Let's have a good, satisfying kill. I'm itching to tear these warriors of the Central Domain Royal Family to pieces, to avenge the blood feud from when they trampled the Dirk clan."

Xu Yang gently shook his head, stopping their thoughts. "Revenge isn't for this moment. The Fifth Prince's true objective should also come to light now. I truly didn't expect this fellow to possess such ambition, and to hide it so deeply. He barely revealed any clues along the way; even I had no suspicions about his identity.

If our strength hadn't surpassed their expectations this time, it wouldn't have been so easy to break free from this underground cage."

Xu Yang's words were indeed logical. "From my perspective, if he hadn't been almost certain that the Lovers' City Dungeon could securely imprison all the condemned prisoners, how could he have sent so few people to suppress it?"

"I have a method that won't require a direct break-in. Not far from the back mountain here, there should be a dedicated area of the Splendid Mountain Villa for disposing of prisoners' bodies. That's why countless crows often gather there.

Moreover, the bloodlines of these crows aren't entirely pure; they are special mutations resulting from interbreeding with creatures similar to the fly tribe. Their attacking power is much greater than that of ordinary crows. We can use these flying crows to help us deal with these people."

Everyone understood Xu Yang's meaning, but how to execute it and achieve the desired outcome was a profound matter. Suddenly, Xu Yang moved, disappearing from his spot and reappearing above a slope on the outskirts of Splendid Mountain Villa—the very place where the crows often gathered.

Then, Xu Yang deliberately released a concentrated burst of Yin energy, attracting large numbers of crows to him. He then applied a specialized toxin to their beaks, which was essentially feeding them a peculiar kind of food.

After consuming it, they entered a state of berserk bloodlust. It was during this period that Xu Yang stealthily moved to a high vantage point outside the heavily guarded courtyard. He drew his Phoenix Feather Qiankun Bow and fired more than a dozen arrows in quick succession, each coated with the same poison.

After first shooting down a dozen powerful warriors, the bloody scent, imbued with the poison's aroma, quickly permeated the surrounding forest. Soon after, hundreds of people became tainted with this smell.

The crows, now in a bloodthirsty frenzy, caught the scent and began a furious assault. A sky-darkening black mass quickly obscured everyone's vision, as the crows attacked the warriors in the courtyard with near-insane ferocity.

"Hahaha, this is truly miraculous, a work of divine skill! How did our boss's mind work? Why does he possess such wisdom? If only he could share some of his battlefield intellect with us, we wouldn't have been stuck in that wretched Lovers' City Dungeon in the first place!"

Crow Crab and the others started complaining again, but this time, the little scout mockingly retorted with a look that invited a beating. "Honestly, intelligence isn't something you can envy. Some people are just naturally smart, like our Boss A-Yang, or like me."

Everyone was speechless.

"Someone, quickly go report to the Prince!"

The deputy general guarding the main hall immediately realized the danger of the situation and decisively dispatched soldiers to the inner layers to report. However, facing hundreds of thousands of crows, it was almost impossible to completely clear them in a short time.

Moreover, with Xu Yang fueling the chaos from behind, he was like a Night King commanding an army of dark crows, coldly and proudly looking down at the warriors who were being pecked relentlessly by the birds.

What is battlefield wisdom? It is the ability to utilize all available resources in the most appropriate way, at the most suitable time, to efficiently achieve one's objectives and suppress opponents.

Clearly, this move by Xu Yang was a thorough lesson for his teammates. Even Xiao Hua hadn't considered such an ingenious strategy.

Soon after, the Fifth One—now known as the Fifth Prince—personally arrived in the courtyard, escorted by several top-tier experts. Upon seeing the scene, the Fifth Prince couldn't help but let a smile curl at the corner of his mouth. "It's indeed that brat's doing. My judgment was correct; they must have escaped the Lovers' City Dungeon."