Published: August 15, 2025
Chapter 77: Countermeasures
“But how did they break through the outer sentries on the mountain? When we escaped back to the mountain, we had clearly ordered the guards along the way to strengthen their vigilance,” Li Feiyu murmured to himself in confusion.
“That’s nothing surprising. The wild wolf gang must have been scheming this large-scale assault for a long time. It’s easy enough to plant a few spies in the outer perimeter. With those traitors guiding them, it’s normal for the outposts to fall silently,” Han Li said calmly.
“But it’s impossible for the wild wolf gang to easily take all the branches. I suspect they want to surround all the mountain peaks where these branches are located without attacking directly, then concentrate their other experts to focus on attacking Sunset Peak, where the main sect is located. As long as they capture or kill the sect’s top leaders, the other branches will collapse on their own.”
“So what should we do now? Should we go to Sunset Peak?” Li Feiyu asked anxiously.
Han Li was silent for a moment, then suddenly turned to Li Feiyu and said in a low voice, “You still haven’t told me how the negotiation team, with so many experts, was completely wiped out. Normally, the wild wolf gang shouldn’t have such strength.”
Hearing this, Li Feiyu’s facial muscles twitched slightly. He couldn’t help but lick his cracked lips and gave a bitter smile. “They used a massive number of repeating crossbows, all reinforced military-grade models.”
“Military repeating crossbows?”
“Exactly.”
“At that time, we had been off the mountain for only two days, walking through a grassy field. Because it was still in our own territory, everyone was quite relaxed. Suddenly, countless wild wolf gang members burst up from underground all around us, each armed with a heavy crossbow. Then a hail of crossbow bolts rained down, so dense that disciples with weaker martial arts died instantly under the barrage. Only a few with extremely high martial arts or good luck barely dodged the attack, but even they were wounded and greatly weakened. I was one of those lucky few—otherwise, I wouldn’t have made it back.”
Li Feiyu still looked shaken as he recounted this, his eyes betraying a trace of fear. The terrifying hail of crossbow bolts had clearly left a deep mark on him.
“After the crossbow volley, their experts charged in, and we fought a bitter battle. To increase our chances of survival, the remaining members split up and made independent breakouts.”
“I was also lucky. To them, I wasn’t an important target, so only a few chased me, and those pursuers weren’t very strong in martial arts. I actually managed to kill my way out. But when I rushed back, I found that all the checkpoints along the way, which should have been manned by us, had been taken over by the wild wolf gang. They were waiting for any stragglers like me to walk right into their trap. After falling for this once or twice, I never sought help again.”
“Wanting to know what happened to the others, I finally decided to ambush a Blue-Clothed Enforcer from the wild wolf gang. From him, I learned that Sect Master Wu and several elders were surrounded and killed by many enemy experts. Only a few like me, not considered very important but still strong in martial arts, managed to escape.”
“After hearing this news, I didn’t dare delay even a moment and rushed back to the mountain. On the way, I accidentally met two others who had also escaped, and we fled together for a day and a night before finally returning.”
“Once back, those two went to Sunset Peak to inform Sect Master Wang of the negotiation team’s annihilation. I made up an excuse about healing wounds and secretly came to you first to discuss countermeasures.”
“Since Sect Master Wu and so many others died in the ambush, and only a few of us—neither high nor low in status—made it back, no one knows how the higher-ups will vent their anger. We might become scapegoats.”