Chapter 450: Chapter 450. Ironic Victory

Huang San sent several platoons to approach Fuxiang City and encircle it randomly. He did this every morning and evening. The soldiers atop Fuxiang City’s wall were alert the first few times this happened. By now, they were used to it and weren’t bothered anymore.

The reason Huang San sent these platoons out was to draw the attention of the soldiers atop the wall. While those soldiers were watching the platoons running around them haphazardly, the team of engravers and formation sages sneaked to the wall under cover of darkness. Even when they had gotten used to those platoons as they did now, they were still more likely to notice the platoons than the small team creeping toward them.

Tonight, it was the same. Amon and the others successfully sneaked until they were directly below the wall.

“Wait here,” Yi Chaisan whispered to Amon and the others. She then approached the wall with the other experts.

Those experts were skilled-level or expert-level engravers and formation sages like her. They resumed their work on the words of power on the wall. Amon noticed they were not only unraveling the existing words of power but also adding new ones. Aside from that, there were also faint words of power on the ground they stood on.

An Guan explained the words of power on the ground possessed concealing power. It masked their presence in case a Martial Realm cultivator passed by on the wall above.

After a couple of hours, Yi Chaisan returned to Amon and said, “We will activate the enchantment that creates a hole in the barrier. Our enchantment also silences the alarm so the enemies won’t notice what we did. However, it only lasts for a while. After it ends, the wall’s original words of power will start repairing itself. We will have to be on the other side by then.”

Amon nodded. Huang San had explained this to him yesterday. He and the others followed Yi Chaisan to the bottom of the wall.

“Wait for my signal,” An Guan told Yi Chaisan. He used his Spirit Sense to detect enemy soldiers above the wall. They needed to wait until the wall above was clear before they opened the hole.

Yi Chaisan nodded. Her hand was on the wall, ready to activate the enchantment on An Guan’s signal.

An Guan closed his eyes to concentrate fully on his Spirit Sense. After almost ten minutes, he finally gave the signal. Yi Chaisan responded. A brief flash shone where her hand touched the wall.

Anyone below the Martial Realm wouldn’t notice any change, but Amon could sense the wall’s barrier directly above them split apart and provided a path. Xin Wuming, Yang Li, and Wu Di, who were now Beginning Mystic Stage cultivators, also sensed the alteration.

“Go!” Amon said. He was the first to jump up. He stepped on the wall to propel himself up with speed. In only two seconds, he had reached the wall’s battlement fifteen meters off the ground.

He didn’t stop after landing on the battlement. He dashed to the other side. All the while using his Mystic Senses to detect anyone in the vicinity. He didn’t sense anyone on the other side of the wall, so he immediately jumped down. Landing on the ground, he rushed into one of the dark alleys between the nearest buildings.

His Mystic Sense informed him his four companions were following closely behind him. They continued moving. They stayed in the shadows and avoided the main streets. The streets were mostly empty. This was not surprising. The city was considered at war, so curfews must have been placed.

Amon led the others. This was his first time in the city, but he had studied the most up-to-date city layout provided by Huang San. His target was a slum area with several abandoned houses. He continued scanning the surroundings using his Mystic Sense as they moved. He avoided large groups of moving people, which should most likely be patrolling soldiers.

Arriving at the slum, he scanned the dilapidated houses. Most had occupants. He chose one with only two people inside and entered. The two occupants were staying in one corner. They saw Amon and the others entering but didn’t show any objection. They were homeless people who used this place as a temporary shelter.

Amon approached the two homeless people. His Mystic Sense informed him that the two were non-cultivators. He gave them a few aer stones and said, “Go find a different house.”

The two’s eyes gleamed when they saw the aer stones. They hurriedly took the aer stones and scurried away from there.

After the two left, Amon told his companions, “We should be safe now. We will stay here until daylight. We will move out in the morning and blend in with this city’s citizens. Even so, keep up our disguises and avoid drawing attention.”

“What will we be doing here?” Yi Chaisan asked.

“You will do nothing but lay low,” Amon answered.

“What? I didn’t infiltrate this city to do nothing,” Yi Chaisan protested.

“You are too important for our mission. Your role is to disarm the words of power protecting the winch above the main gate. We can’t afford to lose you. That is why you must stay safe until it’s time for us to go for the main gate.”

“When will that be?” Yi Chaisan asked.

“A few days. We will reconvene here every night to review our progress,” Amon said.

“So, the four of us will do the heavy lifting until the big day, I guess,” Wu Di said. “Okay, boss. Lay it out. What should we do?”

Amon took out several papers. On the papers were portraits of someone’s faces.

“You are to approach the people shown in these portraits,” Amon explained. “Underneath the portraits are their identities and their clan names. Give them these envelopes.”

The portraits in Amon’s hand numbered twenty. They divided five portraits among the four of them. Each portrait came with an envelope and a name corresponding to the portrait. Xin Wuming, Yang Li, and Wu Di studied the portraits before storing them in their space rings.

Afterward, Amon placed the map of Fuxiang City on the floor. Ten large circles were marked on the map, with names under each of them. He explained that these circles marked the clans of the people whose portraits he just distributed.

“What do these clans have to do with our effort to open the gate?” Yi Chaisan asked.

“These ten clans are the rebelling mayor’s main supporters,” Amon answered. He gained this information from Zong Hua. He visited her before he left for Fuxiang City. Aside from confirming the rebels’ meddling in this uprising, she also provided him with more details about the power inside this city.

“With only the mayor’s power, it was not enough to keep the city in check during this uprising,” Amon continued. “That’s why the mayor ensured these ten clans were on his sides before he started this uprising. In other words, if we can shift his influence from these ten clans, the mayor will lose most of his power.”

“In that case, shouldn’t we go for the clan heads?” Yi Chaisan asked. “I’ve been in this city before and know two of these clans. None of the portraits you gave just now are the clan heads.”

“The clan heads will most likely be loyal to the mayor,” Amon said. “As I said, the mayor wouldn’t have started this uprising if he wasn’t sure he had these clans under control. It is unlikely we can sway the clan heads, not with our time constraint.”

“So, we are targeting the clans’ second-in-command?” Xin Wuming asked.

“Something like that,” Amon replied. “The people I sent you to are people who, according to the info, showed dissatisfaction with their clan heads but still hold enough influence in the clans. I’m sure plenty in their clans disagree with going up against the kingdom.”

“Brother is trying to instigate them to rebel against their clan heads,” Xin Wuming concluded.

Amon confirmed by nodding.

Wu Di chuckled. “If we succeed, this will be an ironic victory. We bring down an uprising by causing an uprising ourselves.”

The others also chuckled upon hearing his remark.

“If that is the plan, give me the portraits of this clan,” Yi Chaisan pointed at one of the circles on the map. “I know this clan because I have done business with them. I know the people in the portraits. I will be able to find them more quickly.”

Amon contemplated the request.

“I am restless if you ask me to stay cooped up doing nothing. I need something to do!” Yi Chaisan insisted.

“Very well,” Amon said. Those possessing the four portraits from the two clans gave them to her.

“However, you must remain in disguise and not reveal your identity to them,” Amon warned Yi Chaisan. “My letters inside the envelopes didn’t fully reveal our intention. It just hinted at it. That is to prevent them from notifying the mayor about our presence here in case they decided to remain supporting this uprising.”

“All right. I understand,” Yi Chaisan said.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep