Chapter 133
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 133
Chapter Title: Chapter 27: A Love? (I Love You) (3)
"It's impossible."
Those words came from Mian Sosal himself, none other than one of the top masters of the Central Plains.
"How many layers is this thing? It feels like at least twenty."
Jaja spoke coldly, her face devoid of any smile.
Vanguard and Hanbi didn't even bother looking up. They'd started off listening with interest, but after hearing about the inner walls within the Heavenly Annihilation Division's main fortress, they'd given up entirely—even on paying attention.
"This is an impregnable fortress. We never spotted Little Penalty, but even if he made it halfway here, he wouldn't have escaped. Getting in there is sheer madness. You're really going?"
Fox directed his final question at Four Thousand Four.
Four Thousand Four chuckled as he replied.
"I'm not going to survive—I'm going to die. So it doesn't matter. If I can at least see the old man's face while I'm alive, that's a bonus. If not, it's no different from dying in Little Penalty. I was going to die there anyway."
"What's in it for you if we go in there?"
Fox glared at Zhuge Soso as he asked.
"If we do well, the Heavenly Annihilation Division gets wiped out. If not, at least some damage?"
"Ha! You got nothing to say to that. Fine, send us in. You—next life, try being the one getting bossed around instead of doing the bossing. Hope they send you somewhere like this."
"Sure. But right now, I'm the one in charge, so I'll enjoy it to the fullest. If you don't want to go, you don't have to. I'm not forcing you."
Zhuge Soso looked at Four Thousand Four as she spoke.
"Hmph!"
Fox snorted derisively.
There was this guy called Noksa, whose master was being held hostage by the Heavenly Annihilation Division. And he'd provided incredibly detailed information—detailed enough that digging further was pointless.
What choice would Four Thousand Four make?
I'm not forcing you? That was true enough. No one was ordering them to go. But wasn't this a more insidious way to send them than outright coercion?
The envelopes Zhuge Soso had offered as reference numbered over twenty.
Four Thousand Four gathered up the envelopes from the table.
"Wish there was a cloth or something to bundle these in."
A maid standing by his side quickly handed him a small travel pouch that could be tied to the waist—specially made to fit just the envelopes.
Four Thousand Four stuffed the envelopes into the pouch and fastened it around his waist.
"Who's from the Zhuge family coming with me?"
"No one. Nobody's going."
"Then I can treat anyone tailing me as an enemy?"
"You can."
"Will I ever see you again...?"
"No."
"I see."
Four Thousand Four nodded. Only he knew what that nod truly meant.
"Then this is goodbye... That wasn't the Immovable Bright King Art, was it?"
"I know."
Zhuge Soso gave a faint smile.
Her red lips parted like cherries, revealing glimpses of white teeth between them. Her skin was flawless and clear, her eyes sparkling like morning stars.
She was a woman of breathtaking beauty.
"I released you knowing it wasn't the real Immovable Bright King Art. There are only a handful of people in this world who even know of it. But... the moment you were revealed as Noksa's disciple, everything clicked. I understood how you knew of the Immovable Bright King Art. The fake one... I'm no longer curious."
A smile spread across Zhuge Soso's face. But her voice was icy cold—at least, it felt that way to Four Thousand Four.
In the past, the old man had said that anyone who learned the Final Resolution must keep it secret forever. If the world found out, they'd face immediate contempt.
Back then, Four Thousand Four hadn't understood. Now he did.
Noksa was history's greatest murderer. That was why he was despised.
And Four Thousand Four, as Noksa's disciple, was history's greatest murderer too. If he admitted to killing three hundred with his own mouth, the world would hear it as three thousand.
In short, they'd see him as a raving madman, a fanatic killer.
Four Thousand Four read that meaning in Zhuge Soso's gaze.
No, maybe she hadn't looked at him that way. It could just be his own inferiority complex. He believed Noksa had never killed unjustly... but the fact remained that he'd killed many.
This time, Zhuge Soso spoke first.
"Shall I release the seal?"
"It's already gone."
"I know. I was just curious what you'd say. Anyone under my seal has a faint blue line across the center of their forehead—only those who know can see it. Yours is gone. Means you've broken it. How?"
"You wouldn't believe me if I told you."
"Try me."
"It was like a dream. I heard breathing sounds and mimicked them. My inner energy started flowing, and the seal unraveled."
"I really can't believe that."
"Told you."
Zhuge Soso stared piercingly at Four Thousand Four.
This moment marked their final parting. There was nothing more to exchange. Besides, it seemed unlikely Four Thousand Four would ever emerge alive from the Heavenly Annihilation Division's core.
Four Thousand Four performed a fist-and-palm salute while seated.
"Sorry I can't offer you tea. Instead, take this."
Zhuge Soso held out a small wooden box the size of her thumb.
"It's a life-saving pill from the Zhuge family. Don't think about what it is—just take it when you feel death closing in. It should let you survive at least two or three fatal blows more."
"Thank you."
"You're welcome."
Four Thousand Four stood up. But then—
"Hm? What's this?"
Mian Sosal was the first to furrow his brow.
Four Thousand Four soon picked up on unfamiliar footsteps too. With Zhuge Soso sitting in front of him, he'd been focused on her and hadn't noticed despite his ears being open... but now he heard them clearly.
"We have a guest."
"A guest? I didn't invite anyone."
Zhuge Soso's eyes sharpened.
At that moment! Urgent footsteps rang out as a group of warriors burst in from all directions.
"What is it?"
Zhuge Soso demanded hastily.
"We're under attack."
The response came from a solidly built man with refined features but chillingly cold eyes. Zhuge Ming—Zhuge Soso's older brother.
"An attack? By whom?"
"The Ten Directions Linkage Squad is broken. We need to retreat."
Zhuge Ming's voice was calm but urgent.
"If the Ten Directions Linkage Squad has fallen, this isn't some ordinary foe."
"They pierced its exact weaknesses. They struck through the gaps, and it crumbled without resistance. No escape underground. Retreat."
Zhuge Ming pushed Zhuge Soso toward the side with more cover. Then he turned to Mian Sosal.
"I'm counting on you to protect her."
"Ugh!"
Mian Sosal groaned, at a loss for words.
Zhuge Soso had positioned the Ten Directions Linkage Squad around the area. It served as a dragnet for enemies, but in defense, it formed an airtight perimeter.
Of course, the squad's primary focus was detecting foes.
Blocking or attacking was secondary. First, detect the enemy, tighten the encirclement to force a many-against-few battle, then slowly draw them into linked serial strikes.
The Zhuge family's Ten Directions Linkage Squad members had drilled this process— from detection to envelopment—dozens, hundreds of times. Now, they could drag anyone they spotted into the net.
Yet that squad had collapsed.
She only needed a moment alone with Four Thousand Four. Just pass him a few letters, and it was done.
She hadn't imagined danger in such a task.
But one must always prepare for the worst—especially against the Heavenly Annihilation Division. Never drop your guard...
She'd prepared... and still, they'd been hit.
Zhuge Ming, a pillar of the Zhuge family, commanded the Ten Directions Linkage Squad. There was also Mian Sosal, one of the Five Great Masters of the Central Plains. And Namso's world's greatest strategist, Zhuge Soso.
Who could attack them?
Zhuge Soso asked urgently.
"How many dead?"
The Ten Directions Linkage Squad required over a thousand men normally. But this time, only five hundred had been mobilized. The operation was secret, so no one expected a raid. Besides, five hundred should handle ordinary attacks.
Those thoughts prompted the question. But the answer was unexpected.
"Dead? Faster to count survivors. Us. Just us."
Zhuge Ming's face was grim.
Zhuge Soso quickly scanned the surroundings.
Survivors... Even being generous, fewer than a hundred. Over four hundred wiped out in an instant.
As Zhuge Soso opened her mouth to speak, Mian Sosal cut in.
"This is no joke. That's one hell of a master."
Mian Sosal's brows furrowed deeply.
Thud thud thud thud! Thud thud thud!
The ground shook like warhorses charging. And indeed, mounted warriors began surging in from all sides, cutting down Zhuge family fighters as they came.
Swoosh! Paat! Thunk!
"Kuh!"
The Zhuge warriors fell helplessly before the cavalry.
The squad's members weren't elite masters on their own. They shone only in formation. Scattered like this, they were just a rabble.
The enemy had successfully broken the formation.
Zhuge Ming knew its vulnerabilities better than anyone. He'd fought desperately to hold it together. Yet it shattered... meaning a lightning-fast assault.
Come to think of it, she hadn't heard the attack begin.
Only as she finished with Four Thousand Four and was about to part did she learn of it. By then, the battle had already tilted, forcing Zhuge Ming to fall back.
From the fight's start to the scales tipping—it was mere seconds. Victory and defeat decided the instant combat began.
'They knew us inside out!'
'They plan to capture or kill us all. They attacked intending to settle it here. This is a fight to the death. Someone waited for the perfect moment to play their trump card.'
'The lake's blocked too. No way they'd leave that open after this.'
A flurry of thoughts raced through Zhuge Soso's mind.
"Soso, we should retreat. Looks like even your brother can't hold them alone. But with me here..."
Mian Sosal called Zhuge Ming "brother" with easy familiarity.
Zhuge Soso let the words flow past her ears.
There was nowhere left to run. Her brother and Mian Sosal could take boats across the lake, but it was sealed too.
She gazed darkly at the lake.
Sure enough—it was blockaded. Far off... at least thirty vessels bobbing on the water.
The enemy was dead set on capturing her.
They knew about the Ten Directions Linkage Squad. They knew about Mian Sosal and the man called Shadowless Wall, Four Thousand Four. And they were prepared to smash it all.
First, they'd crushed the squad.
"Go, hurry! With Mian Sosal, you'll escape easily. Don't worry about us..."
"We're surrounded on all sides already."
"I know the lake's blockaded. But there are still gaps—slip out in small boats..."
"Those ships are in Nine Palaces Linked Ring Formation. No way out."
"What?!"
Zhuge Ming's eyes widened as he glared at the boats on the lake.
Meanwhile, Zhuge Soso watched the incoming cavalry. She focused on their movements.
The horses weren't charging randomly. They moved with precision, in perfect order, without a single error—slaughtering Zhuge fighters while maintaining discipline.
Zhuge Ming and Mian Sosal had missed that detail.
Zhuge Soso clutched her head.
Now she understood the enemy's approach.
Blockading the lake and overwhelming with cavalry was just part of it. Such an assault required three peak masters to back it up. North sealed by water, southeast held by elites. Their skills had to match the foes' strongest—rivals for Mian Sosal.
Theoretically impossible.
To face one of the Five Great Masters, another was needed... Did that mean three of the other four were here?
No, not quite.
The enemy was a master of strategy. So they supplemented with tactics.
Now it clicked. The one orchestrating this was Bei Ming Fangxue.
Bei Ming Fangxue had set a trap for Namso—using the eighth disciple of Little Penalty.
"Hohoho!"
Zhuge Soso laughed hollowly.