Chapter 99

The atmosphere in the lord's residence became somewhat heavy, with everyone's faces ashen and silent.

Li Yunxiao arrived late, frowning and asking, "What happened?"

Chen Dasheng glanced at him and said in a deep voice, "We have already sent out five batches of scouts, all of whom have disappeared without a trace! A total of 1,500 people, the last two batches were in close contact, each equipped with a cloud-piercing arrow. If there was any danger, they were supposed to send a signal. But they never returned, and there was no news at all!"

Li Yunxiao was also quite surprised, "Your meaning is that each batch of scouts was killed instantly, leaving no time to send out the cloud-piercing arrows?"

Chen Lin's face was full of distress as he explained, "From the situation, it seems so, but the reality is not that simple. Each time 300 people were sent out, and they were divided into many small teams, like five or six people per team, to gather information separately. It's impossible for all of them to be eliminated without a sound."

All the officers looked troubled, unable to figure out what was happening.

Chen Dasheng also felt a bit frustrated and said angrily, "No news at all, this is the first time I've encountered such a situation in my military career!"

Li Yunxiao's eyes showed a slight touch of emotion. He walked to a chair and sat down directly, "It seems that the situation I mentioned earlier is highly likely. They are truly overconfident, waiting like a rabbit for a hare!"

Chen Dasheng's pupils constricted, and he said in shock, "Your meaning is that they have deployed a large number of experts in these three towns?"

Li Yunxiao's face was calm, and he said indifferently, "Not just experts, but they must have set up a large-scale array. I suspect that these three towns are all enveloped in the array; otherwise, it would be impossible for over a thousand people to enter without a single one sending a signal."

"Array?!"

Everyone present was stunned, and they all looked at Jia Rong with shock. In their view, such mysterious things as arrays could only be created by alchemists. Most people only knew that Jia Rong was a second-rank alchemist in the army and were unaware of Li Yunxiao's situation.

After this analysis, Li Yunxiao and his few companions, who were originally dispensable, became increasingly important.

Chen Dasheng asked with a serious face, "What should we do?"

Suddenly, a voice came from outside the door, "General, there is an anomaly in the southern sky!"

"Anomaly?"

Everyone was taken aback. Li Yunxiao suddenly felt a stirring in his heart, stood up abruptly from his seat, and flew out.

In the southern sky, fiery clouds appeared, with golden light flickering within. Suddenly, they transformed into a fire phoenix soaring in the sky, then dashed down from the clouds and disappeared into the southern sky.

It was exactly the same as the anomaly in the World God Stele!

Li Yunxiao was shocked and shouted, "Lord Yuan Zijin, where did that fire phoenix land just now?"

Yuan Zijin was also stunned by the anomaly. Hearing someone call him, he thought for a moment and said, "That is Phoenix Town. These three towns are all located at the foot of Phoenix Mountain. It is said that there are phoenixes in the mountain, and I didn't expect it to be true!"

"Phoenix Mountain?" Li Yunxiao's pupils constricted, and his face became solemn as he muttered, "I see!"

Chen Dasheng was alarmed, "Yunxiao, what have you figured out?"

Li Yunxiao waved his hand and turned to walk back into the lord's residence, "Let's talk inside."

Soon, everyone sat in their respective positions, all eyes on Li Yunxiao.

Li Yunxiao said, "I finally understand what's going on. The anomaly in the sky just now is a sign of a great treasure appearing. This treasure must be related to the phoenix. The Hundred War Kingdom's action this time may not be to invade the Tian Shui Kingdom, but rather to obtain this treasure."

Xiao Qingwang's pupils constricted, and he said solemnly, "A treasure that can cause a heavenly anomaly is only heard of in legends, and I didn't expect it to be real! Since it appeared in our Tian Shui Kingdom, it cannot fall into the hands of the Hundred War Kingdom."

"Exactly!" Chen Dasheng said solemnly, "Deploying 800,000 troops as a cover, this treasure must be extraordinary! We should not delay, and immediately launch a strong attack on the town! I don't believe an array can trap 800,000 troops!"

Li Yunxiao did not comment. He had seen arrays that could trap even 80 billion people, where the more people came, the more died, and the killing would not stop until the array was destroyed. But the Hundred War Kingdom could not have such powerful strength. He thought for a moment and said, "We should proceed with caution. Since they dare to act so openly, they must have some reliance. I think we should investigate first."

"Investigate?" Chen Dasheng stared with wide eyes and said with a bitter smile, "The best scouts have all disappeared, how can we investigate!"

Li Yunxiao smiled slightly, "This time, let me go."

"You?" Chen Dasheng fell silent, as Li Yunxiao was indeed the best choice, but in his heart, Li Yunxiao's safety was more important than 800,000 troops!

"No!" Luo Yunshang said coldly, "I disagree!" This was the first time she had spoken in many days.

Li Yunxiao looked at her in surprise. When he met her sharp gaze, he was frightened and quickly looked away.

"Let me accompany Young Master Yun," Xiao Qingwang said with a smile. "Besides, I also want to see the treasure that can cause a heavenly anomaly, to broaden my horizons."

Li Yunxiao refused, "No, you need to use Master Luo's Yang True Qi to suppress the cold poison, otherwise, it will backfire and become a burden. Let Ji Meng accompany me."

Luo Yunshang stood up suddenly and shouted angrily, "Li Yunxiao, are you ignoring my words? This is a battle between two armies, why are you acting like a hero!"

Although it was a scolding, her concern was evident. Everyone fell silent.

Li Yunxiao smiled lightly, his lips moving slightly, using a secret transmission.

Luo Yunshang's angry expression immediately changed, her face full of disbelief as she asked, "Really?"

Li Yunxiao nodded slightly and smiled.

Luo Yunshang then frowned and sat back down, no longer speaking.

Everyone was stunned, their eyes darting back and forth, not knowing what the two had communicated, but they quickly reached a harmonious agreement.

Chen Dasheng still worried, "Yunxiao, are you really going?"

"Of course!" Li Yunxiao said with a smile. "It's a rare good thing, we should go and get rich."

Chen Dasheng nodded, "Since that's the case, I won't stop you, just remember to prioritize your safety!"

Li Yunxiao smiled, "Just wait for my good news."

He and Ji Meng's figures instantly disappeared from the lord's residence, leaving everyone stunned.

Luo Yunshang looked at the disappearing figure outside the door, her eyes filled with deep concern.

The two ran at a speed several times faster than a horse. Phoenix Mountain was only about a hundred miles from An Yong Town, and after half an hour, they could faintly see the outline of Phoenix Town. They then slowed down.

Li Yunxiao's eyes narrowed as he looked at the distant sky. In an instant, his divine sense spread out wildly from his body, radiating toward Phoenix Town.

His divine sense was far stronger than that of a second-rank alchemist. It quickly reached the sky above Phoenix Town and was immediately blocked by a strange force, unable to penetrate any further.

"Hmph!" Li Yunxiao snorted, "Pupil Technique—Demon Moon!"

His eyes turned into a blood-red crescent moon, and soon the scene inside the town began to appear in his pupils.

The houses were all lifeless, with no sign of life. The streets of the town were littered with corpses, both soldiers and civilians.

Indeed, all the scouts had died there, and the original residents had been completely massacred. The town was in ruins, with no sign of life. A strange force emanated from Phoenix Mountain outside the town.

Li Yunxiao's pupils returned to clarity, but his face was flushed, indicating that he had expended a lot of soul power.

Ji Meng couldn't help but ask, "Young Master Yun, how is it?"

Li Yunxiao took a moment to catch his breath, opened his eyes, and said calmly, "All dead, not a single living person in the town."

Ji Meng's pupils flashed with anger, and he said solemnly, "Could they all have entered Phoenix Mountain?"

Li Yunxiao looked at the eerie town ahead and said slowly, "Not necessarily. The situation here is more complicated than I imagined. The deaths of the people in the town are extremely strange. We need to be extremely cautious."

The two raised their vigilance to the highest level and began to walk step by step toward the town.

Soon, they seemed to pass through a layer of waves, as if something brushed past their faces. They knew they had entered the array.

The scene before them was exactly the same as what he had seen with the Pupil Technique, but it was even more shocking, and a foul smell filled the air. If not for their deep cultivation, they would have vomited long ago. Even so, they both frowned.

"It's like a mass grave!" Ji Meng said angrily. "The people of the Hundred War Kingdom are too cruel, not even sparing the defenseless civilians."

As they walked, they saw one shocking scene after another. Li Yunxiao's expression became increasingly serious, and he said slowly, "Killing civilians is to prevent information from leaking. What I'm most concerned about now is how these people died. Look at their wounds; they are not caused by humans."

Ji Meng was startled and looked at the bodies. Indeed, the wounds were blurred, as if torn by wild beasts. He was shocked, "Could it be?"

Li Yunxiao's steps suddenly stopped, as if weak auras were coming from all directions, growing stronger and more numerous. His gaze hardened, and he said coldly, "Indeed, they are beasts!"

Ji Meng looked around in shock. Suddenly, a continuous buzzing sound came from the surrounding houses, and faint lights began to appear, growing more numerous, like fireflies, quickly surrounding them.