Chapter 56

Because of Liu Jitang's quiet departure from Tongyou Peak and the sudden leakage of the news, Ji Wenlong rushed to Tongyou Peak, bringing only the head of the External Affairs Department of the Academy Guard, Yuan Zhen.

At this moment, the head of the External Affairs Department of the Academy Guard was standing in the middle of the hall, speaking confidently and analyzing the situation faced by Tongyou Peak.

"… Therefore, I am pessimistic about our ability to hold Tongyou Peak this time!"

Yuan Zhen smiled bitterly, shook his head, and then forced a smile, saying, "Of course, this is just my personal opinion. If anyone has a different view, please speak up. Let's pool our wisdom."

"So, what is your plan?"

Shang Ke, sitting opposite, suddenly spoke up.

Yuan Zhen took a deep breath and said in a solemn voice, "Abandon Tongyou Peak, retreat to Tongyou City, and wait for a chance to return!"

As soon as Yuan Zhen finished speaking, there was a commotion in the hall.

"No!"

Yuan Zilu, despite his severe injuries, struggled to stand up and said, "The situation is severe, but it's not time to give up lightly. Moreover, Deputy Mountain Master Liu may return at any time. When he does, the strength of Tongyou Peak will double, and with the help of the protective array, how can we not resist the full force of the Four Spirit Mountains?"

Yuan Zhen smiled bitterly and said, "Brother Yuan, how do you know what we have been doing these few days while you were recuperating? The Deputy Mountain Master led us to strike out in all directions, engaging the martial realm experts of the Four Spirit Mountains outside Tongyou Peak. This was both to contain their experts and to use the commotion to alert Deputy Mountain Master Liu and others to return as soon as possible. We also sent scouts to search for the traces of Deputy Mountain Master Liu and others, but unfortunately, there has been no news so far!"

Yuan Zilu sat down dejectedly and sighed, "Tongyou Peak is the result of the academy's twenty years of effort. How many seniors, teachers, and classmates have given their lives here!"

Yuan Zhen sighed, "I know all this too, but... sigh!"

Everyone turned their gaze to Ji Wenlong, awaiting his decision.

Ji Wenlong's low voice slowly echoed, "We cannot give up Tongyou Peak lightly!"

Shang Ke nodded in agreement, "Giving up Tongyou Peak is equivalent to giving up the Two Realms War Zone. We will be completely on the defensive."

Ji Min, the head of the Ji family, naturally would not contradict his family patriarch and loudly said, "Then we will fight to the death!"

Yun Yishu, the head of the Yun family, sitting next to Ji Min, also said, "The Yun family will stand with everyone!"

With Ji Wenlong and three of the four major families of Tongyou City speaking, there was no room for compromise.

Yuan Zhen then said, "Since that's the case, we can only fight to the death. I hope Deputy Mountain Master Liu and others will return in time!"

As soon as Yuan Zhen finished speaking, someone in the hall suddenly asked loudly, "Why did Deputy Mountain Master Liu leave Tongyou Peak?"

The words of the scripture hall attendant caused a moment of silence in the hall.

Zhao Yang looked at the other martial realm experts seated and smiled bitterly, saying, "It seems I am the only one who doesn't know."

Li Zengyu of the World Affairs Department opened his mouth but ultimately said nothing.

Shang Xia wanted to say he didn't know either, but at that moment, a thought flashed through his mind: Could Liu Jitang have left for the ruins of the Zhu family in the Two Realms War Zone?

However, from the way everyone present was being tight-lipped, it was clear that many knew.

Only Zhao Yang, the scripture hall attendant, who was always in a semi-isolated state, was slow to react to what was happening on Tongyou Peak.

Ji Wenlong clearly did not want to delve deeper into this topic and turned his gaze to the first seat on his left, where a stern, white-haired old man had not spoken a word. He asked with unusual courtesy, "What is your opinion, Brother Shang?"

Shang Bing, the head of the Examination Department, was of the same generation as Ji Wenlong and Shang Ke. Since arriving at the hall, he had been sitting with his eyes closed, as if the arguments before him were of no concern to him.

Now that Ji Wenlong personally asked, Shang Bing opened his eyes, a glint of sharpness flashing in his gaze, and said, "Actually, I have been thinking about one question."

He paused slightly and pointed to Shang Xia, saying, "The child just said that the Moon Rose Society not only revealed the news of Mountain Master Kou's severe injuries to the martial cultivators of the Four Spirit Mountains but also intended to collaborate with them."

"If it was just about passing the news, any spy could do it. But if both sides intend to collaborate, to ensure mutual trust and coordinate the timing of their actions, there must be a high-level meeting between the two sides."

"And the question is, how did the high-level officials of both sides meet, and when and where did they meet?"

Shang Bing's words seemed to open everyone's minds. Yun Yishu, the head of the Yun family, slapped his thigh and said, "That's right! For the high-level officials of both sides to meet, either the Moon Rose Society people came to the Two Realms War Zone, or the martial cultivators of the Four Spirit Mountains infiltrated our Cangyu World."

"Such a task would require at least a Fourth Heaven martial expert from both sides. How could such experts enter and exit the Two Realms War Zone without being noticed? Unless..."

Yun Yishu's earlier excitement was gone, and his expression became increasingly fearful, his voice growing softer until he finally closed his mouth, afraid to speak further.

Because if his line of thinking continued, it would not only cast doubt on the high-level officials of Tongyou Academy but also directly accuse Deputy Mountain Master Liu Jitang, who had just quietly left Tongyou Peak, of being a remnant of the Five Surnames!

The hall fell into silence again.

After a long time, Ji Wenlong slowly spoke, his tone firm, "Old Liu is not a remnant of the Five Surnames!"

Although Ji Wenlong's words denied a reasonable speculation, they made all the martial experts present feel a sense of relief.

Shang Bing, however, remained calm, as if he had expected Ji Wenlong to say this. He simply nodded and said, "Good. Since neither the high-level officials of the Moon Rose Society nor those of the Four Spirit Mountains could meet through the academy-guarded passage without our notice, there is only one possibility left..."

Shang Bing looked at everyone and said, "Another passage connecting the Two Realms War Zone to the Cangyu World has appeared, a passage not under our control!"

"That's impossible!"

Li Zengyu of the World Affairs Department could not help but say, "If there were a second passage, there would certainly be a celestial phenomenon in Youzhou, and our World Affairs Department would not be unaware!"

Shang Bing glanced at the agitated Li Zengyu and said softly, "What if it's a one-way passage? A passage that only allows entry from the Cangyu World into the Two Realms War Zone?"

Without looking at the stunned Li Zengyu, Shang Bing explained to the others, "In that case, the celestial phenomenon would only appear in the Two Realms War Zone, perhaps accompanied by a small-scale surge of primordial tides!"

Shang Xia was startled, suddenly raising his head and looking at the head of the Examination Department with a strange light in his eyes.

"However, the terrain and celestial phenomena of the Two Realms War Zone are inherently unpredictable. Unless one is very close, even if a celestial phenomenon occurs, it might not be noticed. Moreover, after Liu Jitang left his post, all the forces of Tongyou Peak were withdrawn, and the surveillance of the Two Realms War Zone was at its loosest. It is reasonable that such a phenomenon was not detected."

Tang Yuan, who had been sitting quietly at the lower seat since Ji Wenlong's appearance, could not help but speak up, "Although Head Shang's speculation seems reasonable, the existence of this passage is still questionable! The reason is simple: I don't believe the Moon Rose Society has the ability to open a passage. If they did, why haven't they done so in the twenty years since the Two Realms War Zone was formed?"

Shang Bing glanced at Ji Wenlong, hesitating to speak.

Ji Wenlong's expression showed a rare moment of contemplation, as if he was considering what to say.

At that moment, he suddenly saw a hand cautiously raised, as if a student in the Academy Guard's school was raising their hand to speak.

Not only Ji Wenlong, but everyone in the hall turned their gaze to the person raising their hand.

Shang Xia, being self-aware, laughed dryly and lowered his hand, saying, "There might really be such a passage."

Silence, yet again!

At this moment, the hall was so quiet that a pin dropping could be heard.

"Nonsense!"

Shang Ke slapped the table beside him, feigning anger, "You rascal, why didn't you speak up about such an important matter earlier? How many things are you still hiding?"

Shang Xia felt wronged at this moment. How was he to know that such a critical matter would be related to him?

He then recounted his encounter with the simultaneous appearance of the sun and moon and the surge of primordial tides, omitting the details of his advancement to the Martial Extreme Realm.

Shang Bing, seeing Ji Wenlong remain silent, seemed slightly disappointed.

However, he did not expect that someone would have such an opportunity and come forward to support his recent speculation. He smiled and said, "It seems my speculation is likely true."

Yuan Zilu also spoke up, "If that's the case, the true purpose of the Fengyan Tribe entering Tongyou Path was to assist the Moon Rose Society in entering the Two Realms War Zone?"

Tang Yuan, who had not expected his recent questioning of Shang Bing's theory to be immediately contradicted by the facts, felt no good will toward the old man.

Thinking of the multiple reprimands he had received from the Examination Department due to the recent abduction of students, Tang Yuan harbored no good feelings toward Shang Bing.

Hearing Yuan Zilu's speculation, Tang Yuan's eyes darted around and said, "If that's true, the Fengyan Tribe, before being ambushed by our Hall of Scouts, had been lingering in Tongyou Path. Does this mean they had not yet made contact with the high-level officials of the Moon Rose Society?"

Shang Xia coughed lightly and said, "Head Tang, the reason the Fengyan Tribe lingered was, first, to create a false impression and draw the attention of the scouts, making us misjudge that the abducted students had already been taken out of Tongyou Path. Second, they were searching for a 'Yan' surname pure-blooded member who had become separated from them."