Chapter 897: Assisting with a Fight

“Master Meng, it seems you’re in trouble.”
Daozhen clearly still wanted more action, his tone slightly mocking. But after all, this was the domain of Yipin Hall. It seemed inappropriate for two guests to fight while their host was in difficulty.
Hua Yu, following behind Daozhen, looked displeased.
“What, friend Daozhen? Are you planning to play the hero and step in to save her? Though such a spirit has long existed in the Central Plains, don’t forget—there’s only one person who can embarrass Master Meng…”
Hua Yu resembled a woman filled with pent-up resentment, her expression gloomy and her speech odd, a stark contrast to her usual composed demeanor in the training hall.
“Hmph, so what? I was just looking for a chance to challenge him and see if the greatest master of the Central Plains truly has the skills rumored about… As for you, do you plan to stay a coward forever?”
Daozhen’s behavior at this moment was equally baffling.
On the battlefield, their personalities were polar opposites—completely different from their usual selves.
On the surface, Daozhen appeared arrogant, like a hot-headed young man; but in battle, his innate intuition and calmness shone through.
In the earlier fight, Daozhen used the “Swordplay Art” to show everyone that those who had reached the highest level of this martial art possessed strategies beyond ordinary people’s reach. At first, he used tactics to lure Hua Yu into attacking; when that failed, he carefully set traps, forcing Hua Yu to use her other special skill—“Sky Shadow Flash.”
Even in the end, he didn’t unleash his full strength, constantly on guard against Hua Yu’s devastating strikes.
As a result, Hua Yu never gained the confidence to defeat Daozhen with a single blow, staying in a defensive stance the whole time.
Although the fight ended in a draw, Daozhen dominated completely, while Hua Yu suffered heavy losses.
Yet Hua Yu’s furious anger after the fight was starkly different from her usually composed demeanor on the battlefield, which was astonishing.
“Hmph!”
Hua Yu snorted disdainfully through her nose.
“Finding joy was already my goal for coming to the Central Plains. Even if you hadn’t mentioned it, I would have challenged him sooner or later.”
“Surely not when no one else is around?”
“Since you want to lose face, I’ll just watch carefully!” With a cold expression, Hua Yu turned to Meng Yun. “If you know where Master Meng is, perhaps you could tell us…”

Just a moment ago, Mengyun was in a state of turmoil, but upon hearing their argument, she immediately felt joy: “I am deeply grateful to you two for stepping in so bravely. This happened suddenly—the Mu family suddenly sent troops to attack several of our altars. But we haven’t found Xikai yet; it will take some time…”
“I have plenty of time.”
Daozhen didn’t give Huayu a chance to back out and rushed to speak, “Anyway, we haven’t found anyone in the Central Plains these past few days. Today is a good chance to meet this top expert in the Central Plains! I’m sure Brother Huayu won’t back down at a time like this, right?”
“…Hmph.”
Seeing the two stay, Mengyun was overjoyed:
“Please come inside and wait a moment. I need to go make a call.”
“Hm?”
Daozhen and Huayu looked at her in surprise only to see Mengyun’s figure disappear from where she stood.
“A call?”
Both of them looked thoughtful.
…
Arulu City.
Hundreds of top experts from the First-Class Hall, fully armed, gathered tense inside the altar hall. Watching their comrades, whose faces were pale and sickly, enter through the main gate, anger burned in their eyes.
“What’s going on!”
Just then, someone rushed out of the altar hall.
“Hall Master!”
“Hall Master, you’re finally here… The Mu family’s men are almost at our doorstep!” people outside shouted.
It was the hall master of the First-Class Hall’s branch in Arulu City, a core disciple. He had gone down to rest earlier but rushed back immediately after receiving the call, still out of breath:
“Shut up! Tell me, what’s going on outside!!”
He strode down the steps and pointed at someone to answer.
That person was clever enough:
“All the comrades training at the training sites outside the city have been stopped and returned dead. The two resource sites outside the city also weren’t spared… We don’t know exactly how many died, but it’s probably several hundred.”
“…”
Upon hearing the number, the hall master’s face turned pale:
“How many people did the Mu family send?”
When he logged off, he had clearly heard from scouts in the grasslands that everything was normal—the four major gangs of the Mu family had gathered 100,000 cavalry to attack the Mongol camp. Killing hundreds in such a short time required a large number of troops.
“We don’t know. From the comrades who returned dead, it seems only about a dozen went to the resource sites… The comrades outside the city are scattered. In total, over 200 have shown up.”
Hearing that the number didn’t seem high, the hall master calmed down:
“What does the main hall say?”
“They asked us to wait for you to log back in to figure out the number of Mu family’s men and their intentions. It seems there have been problems in Kui Town, Toma Town, and Weng City. The hall master wants you to make a decision after you log in.”
“Understood.”

The sect leader, now confident, pondered for a moment before giving orders:
“It might be a feint. You, immediately assign over a dozen brothers to guard the four city gates… Vice Sect Leader Huang! Take a hundred men to the first level of the resource mines to investigate… Everyone else, follow me out of the city to search for them. Those who are injured stay behind.”
“Everyone going out? Sect Leader, isn’t that too risky?”
“Since something has happened in Kui Town, there’s no doubt about it. The Mu family, allied with the four major gangs, is making a big show on the grasslands—definitely trying to sacrifice their troops to save themselves, abandoning the imperial decree mission early and breaking through from the north… They attacked us to hold back the troops from Aru City and distract us. Toma Town and Weng City are also decoys. So…”
The sect leader shouted confidently, “There surely aren’t many troops left outside Aru City! Damn it, they made us lose face over twenty days ago… Brothers, this time we’ll get back twice as much! Let’s go!! Out of the city to hunt those bastards!!!”
His logical analysis immediately inspired the previously demoralized disciples of the First-Class Hall.
The crowd became excited.
Hundreds of troops rushed out of the branch sect in a grand procession.
Unbeknownst to them, this scene was being watched by a group of people who had infiltrated the tavern.
Over twenty people, led by Lin Xiao of the Heroic Gate, silently held their wine cups, watching the troops of the First-Class Hall march down the streets, each wearing a strange smile.
“Haha! Vice Gate Master Lin is truly brilliant! Now that they’re gone, the branch sect is just an empty shell with some wounded people left.”
“These bastards think we’re just here to harass them. They definitely can’t imagine that we’ll not only break through but also attack their branch sect.”
“Alright, get ready. As soon as Xiao Bei and the others engage them, we’ll strike immediately!” Lin Xiao sat calmly in a private room of the tavern. His broad and heroic figure showed a rare hint of murderous intent—he had been waiting for this day for a long time!