The assault was launched 1 hour after nightfall. The fortress of Qingdao overlooked the sea. The cultivators had gathered to free those of their own who had been taken prisoner in the past 6 months.
Taking advantage of a moonless night, Lan Xichen...
"To say I'm surprised would be a lie...and you Lan Zhan?" said Wuxian
"Mnnn...me neither. There was a high probability.
"What do we do?" asked Meng Yao.
"What we had planned. Have him join us in the great hall of Qishan, we will confront him with Wen Ruohan and then see how he reacts" I replied
"Very well, to make him go to the field will not be easy, but I will find a stratagem to bring him there "
"We trust you. You have the time from the road to Qishan to find a solution," said Lan Zhan.
"Now we must prepare to leave. We have two days of sustained travel. Once we arrive, we will barely have time to rest before the attack. We have scheduled the first assault for shortly before dawn," said Xichen.
With that, we parted ways and Lan Zhan and I went to our room.
We packed the few things we had and made our way to the front of the palace down the grand staircase where we were expected.
The horses were pawing impatiently. I looked at the armed troop that filled the entire esplanade. The movement of such a mass of soldiers would not go unnoticed! When I spoke to Xichen, he told me that we were going to split into three groups and take three different routes. Each group would be under the command of one of the "three brothers.
MingJue came to greet us and left with his men and part of the other clan leaders. Jin GuangShan left in his turn. Jin ZiXuan came to us and spoke to Jin Ling.
"Take care of yourself..." Jin Ling hesitated and after a quick glance at Jiang Cheng took his father's double in his arms.
"You too, be careful. After the battle and before we leave, I would like to spend some time together..."
ZiXuan hugged him tightly and before leaving us turned to Meng Yao.
He said, "Take good care of him, I entrust him to you" and then he got on his horse and rode off. I saw Jin Ling clench his jaw and hold back tears! He was still acting brave, but I knew that his heart was tender and full of love! The fact that he never got to know his parents had always been a gaping wound in his soul.
I helped Lan Zhan onto the horse that had been assigned to him. Then I looked at mine...did they do it on purpose? My soul mate's horse was bright white with a long mane, and mine was a satiny black with a fiery glow from the sun. Xichen stopped near us and looked at the magnificent animal Lan Zhan was riding.
"Your mount was Wangji's. You'll see that despite its appearance as a ceremonial horse, it is a real war machine that fears nothing. I am sure you will get along well,
My soul mate nodded. Xichen went to stand in front of the troop and Meng Yao came to stand on his right. At a nod from the youngest of the "three brothers" Meng Yao gave the signal to leave. We were leaving for a two-day journey that would end in the foothills of the Qishan Fire Mountains.
The time to reach the cradle of the Wen clan was short! It's crazy that we had been running after him for some time. I looked at Lan Zhan beside me. Over the years I had learned to read his silences. I could sense that he was worried and concerned.
"What are you worried about?" I asked him.
"The Yin Hufu and...your demonic culture!"
I think I was beginning to understand. Since we were in this world, I had taken on the personality of the Yiling Patriarch and showed my soulmate this other side, the one that had already worried him many years ago.
"Lan Zhan, I am no longer the young man who invented this culture 20 years ago. I am another today. And that is thanks to you. You have brought into my life what I have always lacked: stability, confidence and infinite love. Don't worry, the Yin Hufu will not pervert me. I know you are worried because it is controlled by feelings, but as long as you are close to me, there is nothing to fear!"
"What if we get separated?"
"That won't happen again! And then... I know you won't let that happen! So don't worry!" I gave him a knowing smile. I returned my gaze to the front of the column. It fell on Xichen and Meng Yao.
"It won't be easy for them... Lan Zhan, do you think that tonight we could help them to find each other..."
"Wei Ying, stop meddling in other people's private affairs!"
"Yes but..."
"Wei Ying, they are old enough to take care of themselves..."
"But..."
"No!" I made a face and kept quiet.
The road to our evening stop was very quiet. I expected to find myself in front of Wen soldiers, but nothing! It was as if they had all disappeared or been called back to Qishan!
If Jin GuangShan was the traitor, and I had little doubt about it, Wen Ruohan must have already known about our arrival and must have recalled his troops.
The night came, we stopped at the edge of a lake. Under the shelter of the forest trees, we were safe even if it was not easy to hide a group the size of ours. Our night was peaceful although the specter of battle hung in the air.
We broke camp just before dawn. We were approaching Qishan. We could see the black mountains in the distance which did not look good. A little before noon we were surprised to find our friends Xiao Xingchen and Song Lan who joined us for the rest of the trip. Xingchen seemed to be better and to be recovered! We knew that the only reason they were there was to eliminate Xue Yang... I was willing to let them have it, but if they failed, I would not!
We reached our position just before nightfall. We had until dawn before the final assault. Lan Zhan needed to rest and I insisted on a tent so we could lie down for a few hours. It wasn't long before he fell asleep. Sometimes I envied him for being able to do so no matter where he was or what conditions he was in. I held him close to me. Nevertheless, I managed to fall asleep. A few hours later, Jiang Cheng came to wake us up. We got up and joined the rest of our troop.
We divided the targets among us. Jiang Cheng, SiZhui and Jin Ling had to find and neutralize, if not eliminate, Wen Chao. I did not envy this monster, with what he had done to the Jiang Yanli of this world. I knew two of them who were up !!!! I hoped SiZhui would manage to channel his uncle and cousin !!!!
We left Xue Yang to Song Lan and Xiao Xingchen. Lan Zhan, Wen Ning and I reserved Wen Ruohan and the traitor! Meng Yao had an idea to attract Jin GuangShan. He would bring him to us. Xichen would accompany us.
We were all ready. The signal would be given any moment. I took the Yin Hufu out of my Qiankun pouch and felt all eyes on me. I had a piece in each hand. Lan Zhan was standing next to me. I could see worry in his eyes, but then confidence replaced it. When the signal light burst into the sky, the two parts of the amulet sealed together. I was ready to face Wen Ruohan and his monsters! I took Chenqing and began to play.
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