Chapter 106 - Havoc
Shortly afterward, the court of Qi the Heavenly Country was shaken by a piece of sensational news. It was said that the country’s three fortress prefectures had fallen in a night raid made by the barbarians. Over the next three days, over half of the cities of the three prefectures had fallen. More shockingly, the Great Warlord Yue Tai, who had dedicated most of his lifetime to guarding the fortress, was declared missing! Nobody knew whether he was still alive or had sacrificed his life in the war, but three hundred bodies of his private guards were found lying near his mansion. Come to think of it, how terrifying! The three hundred picked guards were all strong Houtian warriors, but none of them survived. So, for a time, the whole country was profoundly shocked.
At last, someone woke up from their shock. The king, tortured by fear and anxiety, demanded that reinforcements be immediately sent to the fortress, not forgetting to send messengers to inform the three big sects of this tragic event, in hopes of getting their aid.
In the Yan Fire Country. The Black Demon Sect.
The sect’s landmark, the thirteen mountains, stood unperturbed, though the scent of war had already reached the sect. As the peak numbers fell, the mountains grew in height and peril. For example, the No.3 mountain rose almost perfectly straight toward the sky, and barely an edge could be seen from halfway up the mountain. Besides, contrary to the No.13 Mountain, which was in a constant hustle and bustle, this mountain hardly contained any life. No human figures, no buildings. Only a somber black hall that stood by itself at the peak, giving off a gloomy and cold feeling.
At this moment, the hall was dim, as per usual. Emptiness was the only thing that filled the space. A man in a seamless robe was sitting, motionless, in the center of the floor, his brows heavy and sharp like a sword. Strangely enough, a film of black rays had wrapped around him, and the rays were moving and gathering like a fire, except that it was black.
All of a sudden, the bracelet on his wrist glowed, making a faint black ring that contained tiny magical characters. The characters kept moving up and down, soon forming a small round formula. Then a part of the air seemed twisted, and a black jade slip the size of a palm emerged from nowhere. The man with sharp eyebrows suddenly opened his eyes, snatching the black slip and putting it against his forehead. After a moment, he raised his eyebrows and stood to his full height, and the film of dark rays immediately vanished without a trace. He quickly left the hall.
Almost simultaneously, on the adjacent mountain, a hall was also pushed open and out came a middle-aged man with long beard. His face looked rather severe. In his hand was the same black jade slip that the man with sharp eyebrows had...
......
Throughout the years, the No.1 Mountain peak remained eternally snow-capped and was lost in clouds and mist while biting wind whistled day and night. Amid the vast whiteness, a majestic black hall stood out. The entire building was made from a kind of heavenly stone as dark as the night sky, and it had three stories that stretched toward the sky until they ended in a pinnacle, on which a gigantic globe was in constant slow rotation, emitting dark light as if there was a huge ball of dark fire burning inside. The whole scene gave off an feeling which was so strange as to not be able to be described with words.
At this moment, the twenty big stools placed in the hall of this building had all had people sitting in them, except for the main seat at the center. Whoever had the qualification to sit in this congregation was either the sect’s leader, the mountain host, or an elderly saint. Among them were some that Shi Mu had met when he was kidnapped for their sect: Tiger Bone, Ning Ping, and Jin Xiaochai (the pretty girl who had been disguised as Han XiangXiu on their way to the Black Demon Sect). Although these people wore different expressions, they were all casting expectant glances to a small door in the hall every now and then.
Beside the main seat sat two middle-aged men. One was Master Xie, whom Shi Mu had met the day he was registered as an Adept scholar, whereas the other was a purple-robed man whose coat was embroidered thickly with magical patterns that kept giving off magical energy. He was wearing a big ring of blue jade on his right thumb, and in his hand was a purple magical cane that was made from some unknown material. The cane had a purple crystal stone at its top which would shed a purple light from time to time. The man with dashing brows at his opposite looked to be around the age of thirty and had sharp eyes. If not for his sandy whiskers and a slightly haggard face, he would have looked younger. People in the hall seemed to have divided into two groups which had the two middle-aged man as their respective leader. An antagonistic aura could be sensed in the air between the two sides.
Just then, a figure flashed out of the small door, and a black-robed old man had shown himself in the hall. The diminutive figure proceeded at a leisurely pace. His face was wizened, and the black robe he was wearing did not have a single decorative design on it. Judging from his appearance, this old man seemed to be one of the most commonly seen grandpas in one’s neighborhood. But as soon as he entered the space, all stood up in great reverence, their breath held.
“Your Highness the Head Saint.” Simultaneously they bowed deeply with the uniform respectful face.
“No need for rites in special time. Sit, all of you.” The black-robed old man said lightly, seating himself on the main stool.
All obeyed, not daring to make a sound.
“The barbarians have come and they have taken the three fortress prefectures of the Heavenly Qi Country.
Even Yu Tai is missing. I’m afraid the odds are against him rather than being in his favor.” The black-robed old man put aside pleasantries and went directly to the main issue.
The listeners exchanged looks but none dared to speak up.
The old man directed his look to master Xie and asked, “brother Xie, you are responsible for all Message Formulas in and out of our sect, so have you gotten any news? Have the other sects in the Heavenly Qi Country taken any measures?”
“Your Highness, there are not many spies of our sect in the three fortress prefectures, so I haven’t gotten any news yet. But I’ve been informed that the three big sects have all sent disciples to the fortress, and the that the Qi court has dispatched three hundred thousand soldiers divided into three armies to reinforce the three prefectures.” Master Xie straightened his back and answered with clasped hands. After a momentary pause, he added, “Your highness, please rest assured, I have contacted the three sects of the Heavenly Qi. Once they get any relevant information about the barbarians, they will send messages to us immediately.”
“Brother Xie, I understand it’s a time of emergency, but how could you have contacted other sects without first consulting the Head Saint and the great elders? I think you have overstepped your authority in making such a rash decision.” The man with dashing eyebrows immediately spoke up and expressed his disapproval.
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