Chapter 154
The night was as black as ink, without stars or moon, and thick clouds hung low, like a huge velvet cloth soaked in ink, completely enveloping the entire world.
The biting north wind, like a wounded beast, howled and roared wildly through the treacherous peaks, whipping up sand, gravel, and withered branches that lashed against the rock walls with a chilling crackling sound.
The air was thick with a sense of impending doom, and... a faint, cloying, and rotten scent of incense emanating from the depths of the valley, a scent unique to the headquarters of a cult that made one dizzy and nauseous.
Inside the valley, stone fortresses and caves carved out along the steep mountainside linger in the shadows like a malignant tumor.
Scattered torches flickered in the wind, casting bizarre, swaying, and distorted shadows, adding to the eeriness. Faintly, the continuous, strangely rhythmic chanting and the ringing of copper bells could be heard. The sound was unlike the solemnity of an ordinary temple; instead, it carried a frenzied, bewitching magic, penetrating the wind and seeping into the eardrums, stirring up unease in everyone's mind.
Outside the valley, deep in the dense forest, a deathly silence was spreading.
The elite troops of the feudal lords, borrowed from elsewhere, moved like cheetahs in the night, silently completing the encirclement of the valley entrance. Each wore matte, dark scale armor, a matching cloak, and their faces were painted with black and green camouflage, blending almost seamlessly into their surroundings. The blades of their weapons were specially treated to prevent any reflection of moonlight.
Breathing was suppressed to a minimum, with only the occasional rustling sound of the armor plates rubbing together when adjusting their posture. The leading general, surnamed Zhao, had a face as if carved by a knife and axe, and eyes as sharp as an eagle's. He was staring intently through the gaps in the forest at the two towering watchtowers at the entrance of the valley, built of white bones and black stones and covered with strange, writhing runes.
On a gentle slope to the southeast, another elite force, the "Broken Camp," personally led by General Sheng Chi, had already driven itself into its designated position like a nail.
They were fewer in number than the Xuanjia Guards, but each of them exuded a fierce aura, clearly veterans who had survived countless battles.
Sheng Chi lay prone behind a boulder, unfolding a tanned sheepskin map. In the extremely dim light, he traced the scarlet markings on it again: "Remember, once the operation begins, one team will remove these three hidden stakes on the left flank using crossbows. Be quick and silent. The second team will take care of the trigger mechanisms of these two traps on the right flank; they must not be allowed to activate. The third team will follow me; once the frontal assault begins, immediately flank from the side and strike at their core to relieve the pressure."
His voice carried an undeniable, iron-fisted tone. The adjutant nodded emphatically, silently relaying the order.
Meanwhile, at the entrance to the hidden rift valley behind the main altar, almost completely covered by thick, dark green vines and rubble that had fallen over the years, the real snipers—Su Zelan, Sheng Xuan, and more than ten of his carefully selected true experts—slowly crept downwards against the stench-filled, cold wind surging up from the valley floor.
Su Zhelan was dressed in a tight-fitting black night suit made of a special material that could absorb light and muffle sound to the maximum extent. His face was also covered by a half-mask, revealing only a pair of eyes that were unusually bright in the darkness.
His movements were incredibly light, each step precisely placed on the most stable protrusion or crevice, making not a sound. The dagger was tightly bound to his outside thigh with a leather strap, the cool touch penetrating the fabric and strangely giving him a sense of calm.
He tilted his head slightly, his ears trembling slightly as he tried his best to catch every strange sound carried on the wind—the intervals between patrol shifts, the indistinct voices coming from the distant main castle, and even the faint hum of energy flow in certain areas.
His brain was like a sophisticated instrument, processing this information at lightning speed, calculating the optimal path, and avoiding any possible array nodes and sensor traps.
His face appeared somewhat pale beneath the mask. The continuous intense concentration and struggle against the invisible mental pollution permeating the valley had taken a heavy toll on him, but his eyes were as sharp as tempered steel needles, focused, calm, and even carrying an almost cold, analytical quality.
Sheng Xuan followed closely behind. His stealth style was completely different from Su Zelan's, and he was more powerful and had a wild instinct.
His imposing frame remained remarkably stable on the steep rock face, one hand gripping the rock like an iron claw, the other constantly resting on the hilt of his sword. His gaze, like that of a wary beast, constantly scanned all directions, ensuring that Su Zhelan was completely within his protective range.
He deliberately breathed long and steady, but the tense muscles in his neck and the occasional quick glances at Su Zhelan's back, filled with undisguised anxiety, betrayed his inner tension and impatience. He wished he could rush down immediately and smash those pretentious contraptions, instead of crawling slowly like a rat in a gutter.
The deeper they went into the rift, the dimmer the light became, until it was almost pitch black. The dripping of water became clearer, and from deeper within, a faint, unsettling fishy smell mixed with the odor of some kind of mold seemed to permeate the air, and the temperature dropped sharply.
"Stay close to me," Su Zhelan's voice was extremely low, almost the faint sound of air rubbing together, yet it clearly reached the ears of everyone behind her. "There are more traces of Gu poison here than expected, and... it's very ancient and very sinister. Don't step on the wrong spot where I'm standing."
Sheng Xuan nodded heavily and silently, then made an extremely complex hand gesture behind him. The experienced, equally masked, black-clad infiltrators behind him immediately followed at a slower, more cautious pace, like a string of ghosts clinging to a rock wall, slowly sinking into the bottomless darkness.
Outside the valley, the appointed time quietly slipped by in the oppressive silence.
The general's gaze was fixed on the last grain of sand falling into the hourglass. A sudden, cold glint flashed in his eyes, like lightning streaking across the darkness. His right hand, which had been clenched into a fist, snapped open and swung downwards with deadly force!
"Release the arrows!" The command was conveyed silently through a special hand gesture, but the battle horn had already sounded!
"Whoosh whoosh whoosh—!"
The next instant, a piercing sound, sharp enough to tear eardrums, suddenly exploded! No longer sporadic probes, but a true storm of arrows! Countless specially made rockets, their arrowheads strapped with balls of flaming oil, surged forth like a suddenly awakened swarm of bees, their fiery tails trailing a deluge as they blanketed the watchtowers, wooden palisades, barricades, and the patrolling black-robed cultists at the valley entrance! The flames instantly illuminated half the sky!
"Enemy attack! Enemy attack!!" The shrill alarm and the desperate screams of dying humans rang out almost simultaneously, instantly drowning out the sound of the wind!
The rocket slammed into the wooden watchtower and fence, the oil-soaked structure instantly exploding into flames! The raging fire, like a greedy beast, frantically licked at everything that could burn, crackling and popping!
Some of the black-robed cultists were instantly engulfed in flames, turning into screaming, wildly flailing human torches before tumbling to the ground and turning into charred remains. Many others, recovering from their initial shock, frantically searched for cover or blindly fired arrows and threw poisoned darts in the direction from which the arrows were coming from the darkness, the darts clanging and clattering against the Xuanjia Guards' massive shields.
"Crossbowmen, fire three volleys! Suppress! Swordsmen and shieldmen, advance!" The general's voice, cold as iron, emanated from his visor, devoid of any emotional fluctuation. A veteran of countless battles, he knew all too well that the initial resistance from such cult strongholds was often the most ferocious.
More arrows rained down like a storm, precisely covering any corner where enemies might be hiding, suppressing the cultists at the valley entrance to the point where they could barely raise their heads.
At the same time, heavily armored warriors, wielding shields as tall as themselves and heavy ring-pommel swords, began to line up, their heavy, orderly steps like moving metal walls, steadily advancing towards the burning, chaotic valley entrance! Every step shook the earth, filled with an unstoppable sense of power! The real close combat was about to begin; shouts of battle, the clang of clashing weapons, the roar of burning flames, the wails of the dying… instantly shattered the silence of Black Fiend Valley!
Almost at the same instant the main battle began, fierce fighting and the explosions of energy collisions also erupted on the gentle slope to the southeast!
General Sheng Chi took the lead, his figure as fast as lightning. The iron spear in his hand transformed into a black shadow like a poisonous dragon, instantly sending a black-robed cultist who was frantically trying to light the warning signal fire flying! The cultist screamed, a huge bloody hole appeared in his chest, and he fell off the cliff.
The elite troops of "Broken Camp" followed like tigers released from their cages, like a red-hot dagger, fiercely piercing the flank and vulnerable part of the cult's defense system! Their objective was extremely clear—to eliminate the key sentry posts and trap trigger points as quickly as possible and with the most ruthless means, ensuring they did not interfere with the frontal assault!
The flashes of swords and blades were frantic in the firelight, each strike carrying deadly force.
Screams rose and fell, from both enemies and their own men. The cultists' resistance was exceptionally fierce; they seemed oblivious to pain and death, their eyes fanatical, chanting incantations, wielding all sorts of bizarre, poisoned weapons, some even lunging forward to try and tear them apart with their teeth! The battle had reached a fever pitch from the very beginning!
Just as Xiao Qiyun had predicted and hoped, the sudden and fierce attack caused enormous chaos among the Black Fiend Valley defenders! The cult's attention was almost instantly drawn to this powerful and relentless assault from two directions!
The piercing sound of gongs and the mournful, shrill sound of some kind of horn made from an unknown animal horn echoed wildly in the valley. More figures in black robes poured out from the stone houses, caves, and the huge skull fortress carved into the mountainside, like ants whose nests had been destroyed, clamoring and frantically rushing towards the fire-filled valley entrance and the flank battlefield!
Deep within the rift valley behind the mountain, Su Zelan, Sheng Xuan, and their team, who were scrambling along the rock face, clearly heard the sudden burst of shouts, explosions, and chaotic noises outside the valley, which sounded like a landslide and a tsunami.
"It's starting!" Sheng Xuan's spirits lifted, his eyes flashing with a mixture of excitement and bloodlust. But then, an even stronger sense of vigilance rose within him, and he almost instinctively moved closer to Su Zhelan, his muscles tensing.
The fiercer the battle outside, the more covert and swift their actions here need to be; any mistake could lead to their utter destruction.
Su Zhelan took a deep breath, and the deafening sounds of battle outside seemed to be separated by an invisible barrier, becoming distant and blurry.
His entire mind and all his senses were focused intently on the intricate and perilous remnants of the array before him and on the slippery, narrow path beneath his feet, where one wrong step could mean certain death.
Fine beads of sweat kept seeping from his forehead, only to be dried by the cold mountain wind as soon as they appeared. This was not only a severe test of his physical strength, but also an extreme drain on his mental energy.
He could clearly feel that the evil and filth permeating the depths of the valley, especially the closer he got to the core of the main altar, became increasingly intense, like thick, cold silt, constantly trying to erode his will, interfere with his judgment, and lure him into a trap of death.
Sheng Xuan followed closely, never leaving her side. He completely trusted Su Zhelan's judgment, and his burly body did its best to shield Su Zhelan from any falling rocks or arrows from above—even though the depths of this ravine were currently only filled with a chilling wind and dripping, unidentified, icy water droplets.
Half of his attention was on the road beneath his feet, half on his surroundings, and the majority was firmly fixed on the slender yet exceptionally resilient figure in front of him.
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