In the tunnels beneath the market town,
The battle two days ago had genuinely caught him off guard. He had assumed that since Qiaoqiao Grounds had reached an agreement with Red Star, Flying Smoke Hall's assault would end in disaster for the attackers. Who could have guessed that, at the critical moment, it was the Qiaoqiao Celestial Lord who was ambushed and killed by Zhao Baichuan and Yu Xiushan working together? In just two days, Qiaoqiao Grounds had changed hands!
No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't figure out when Zhao Baichuan had established a connection with Yu Xiushan.
Though he could understand Zhao Baichuan coveting Qiaoqiao Grounds as a base of operations—after all, Red Star's Star City had been destroyed, and they genuinely needed somewhere to settle down.
Perhaps that very temptation was what had brought the two parties together so readily.
The change of ownership at Qiaoqiao Grounds was, for him, a tremendous opportunity!
Previously, with the Qiaoqiao Celestial Lord in command and the jade token of the grand formation in his possession, Yang Kai had had no designs on Qiaoqiao Grounds. But now that Zhao Baichuan had taken over, things were entirely different.
For Zhao Baichuan to gain control of the grand formation, he would need to properly refine the jade token first. In other words, right now, Qiaoqiao Grounds was completely undefended!
With
Yang Kai licked his somewhat dry lips and made up his mind. Since Red Star's people refused to let up and intended to do him harm—since they had been the ones to start it, chasing him across several great domains—then they shouldn't blame him for striking back.
Yue He had clearly reached the same conclusion. She gazed at Yang Kai with eager anticipation. He turned his head, their eyes met, and he gave a slight nod.
Yue He brightened immediately. "Young Master, whatever you decide, I'll follow your lead."
Yang Kai asked, "If you fought Zhao Baichuan, how confident are you that you could take him down?"
Yue He smiled with a hint of confidence. "He and I are both Fifth-Order Heaven Opening cultivators. Under normal circumstances, our strength should be roughly equal—neither one able to overcome the other. But here at Qiaoqiao Grounds, I have the grand formation to assist me. In a one-on-one fight, I could kill him within half an hour!"
She had every reason to be confident. Having hidden here for two months, she had already refined fifty percent of the grand formation and could command its power. Zhao Baichuan, by contrast, had no such advantage.
This was precisely why
Zhao Baichuan was Red Star's strongest fighter, and Yue He could handle him. That left the remaining leaders—Chen Tianfei, the Ouyang brothers, Bei Yushan, and Madam Qin—all Fourth-Order Heaven Opening cultivators of considerable strength. The only person Yang Kai had at his disposal was
Red Jiao and the Earth Dragon might be able to contribute something, but Guo Ziyan was out of the question—a Second-Order Heaven Opening cultivator in a clash of this magnitude would only meet a tragic end if he wasn't careful.
Not enough hands! Yang Kai grimaced internally. He could only blame
With insufficient manpower, he would have to take them out one by one. As long as he cut away Zhao Baichuan's wings, dealing with the man alone would be far simpler.
"Can you pinpoint the locations of Chen Tianfei, Bei Yushan, and the other Fourth-Order cultivators?" Yang Kai asked in a low voice.
Yue He replied, "Let me try!"
She closed her eyes, gripped the jade token of the grand formation, and focused her senses.
Through the grand formation that blanketed all of Qiaoqiao Grounds, she could perceive some of what was happening within. However, since her refinement was far from complete, her awareness was limited.
A moment later, her eyes opened. "There's one person at the Water Spirit Land, two at the Fire Spirit Land, and two more at the Earth Spirit Land. I'm not certain who's at the Water Spirit or Fire Spirit lands, but the two at the Earth Spirit Land have nearly identical auras—even their spiritual fluctuations are practically indistinguishable. They should be the Ouyang brothers."
A sharp glint flashed in Yang Kai's eyes. "Then we start with them."
If he could eliminate the Ouyang brothers, Red Star's combat power would drop significantly.
As he spoke, Yang Kai had already produced a mask thin as a cicada's wing and pressed it to his face. With a thought, his features transformed into those of a fair-skinned man.
"Seven Faces..." Yue He stared at him, murmuring softly. A complex, faraway look flickered in her eyes, carrying the weight of memory.
"You recognize this?" Yang Kai was startled, but quickly understood—Yue He must have seen the mask before.
Seven Faces had been given to him by the Boss Lady, and given the tangled history between Yue He and the Boss Lady, it wasn't surprising she had encountered it.
Seven Faces was an Artifact of extraordinary versatility, capable of altering its wearer into seven different appearances. What made it truly remarkable was that it didn't just change one's looks—it could reshape one's very aura as well. It was a truly wondrous thing.