Chapter 357: Traps

At dawn the next day, with the cold wind howling, the Netherworld Villa was extremely bustling. On the vast training ground, nearly a thousand people had gathered—these were the main combat forces of the Black Phoenix Clan. As one of the four great clans, with a heritage of tens of thousands of years, their strength was undoubtedly formidable. There were hundreds of god-tier warriors, and even among the rest, most were near-god-tier; true saint-tier warriors were few, as saint-tier fighters played little role in such battles.

Perhaps they could be considered powerful on the continent or decent warriors in the Abyss of Darkness, but in a clash between two strong forces, they could only serve as support. Only the finest among the saint-tier warriors were qualified to fight.

These nearly a thousand people represented the entire strength of the Black Phoenix Clan at present! At dawn, taking advantage of the dim light, Mork and the elders stood at the front, looking down at the crowd below. Needless to say, everyone knew what they were about to do today.

Finally, Mork fixed his gaze on Lucy. She was still dressed in white, perhaps wearing a fluffy coat due to the winter weather. Yet this not only didn’t make her look bulky but added to her grace. He then glanced at the dozens of people surrounding her closely, nodded slightly, and gave a faint smile. Lucy was the one who worried him the most, but Mork knew that as long as these people were around, nothing would happen to her. He had full confidence in them.

Seeming to sense Mork’s gaze, Nightingale looked up and nodded deeply, assuring him to be at ease. As long as one member of the Reaper Scythe Squad remained alive, Lucy wouldn’t suffer any harm. This was the promise they had made to Rhode Island back then, and it was also their promise to Mork now.

After receiving Nightingale’s affirmative look, Mork finally breathed a sigh of relief.

“The great battle is about to begin. Why hasn’t Brother Rhode returned yet?” Lucy murmured, gazing toward the direction of the Netherworld Peaks, as if asking Nightingale.

“He’ll be here soon!” That was Nightingale’s only reply to Lucy. Nearly a month had passed, yet there was still no sign of Rhode’s return. Nightingale couldn’t help but feel a bit worried and anxious.

Moreover, with the great battle approaching, if they succeeded, it would be fine. But what if they failed? What would they do then?

Thinking of what Rod had told them before leaving, Nightingale’s brows furrowed even more. The words Rod had spoken then, which she hadn’t fully understood, now made perfect sense—it seemed he had anticipated everything. Had he known about this from the start? Otherwise, why would he have insisted on protecting Lucy, why order them to defend the Netherpeak, and why give those specific instructions? Was there some other reason behind this?

With roars that shook the heavens and an overwhelming momentum, inspired by Merk, the members of the Black Phoenix clan united tightly, showing unprecedented solidarity. After all, their clan leader wasn’t just a figurehead—he knew exactly how to bring everyone together in such times.

At the foot of the mountain, there were nearly two thousand members of the Mi Jiao clan, along with a thousand troops drawn from the pro-war faction—three thousand in total, surrounding the entire Netherpeak range. This time, the Mi Jiao clan was throwing everything they had at it!

They weren’t in a hurry to attack, as the losses they might suffer in battle would be immense, something they couldn’t afford. The Black Phoenix clan took advantage of this, taking their time over the past two days to make various arrangements. If it weren’t for the opposition, they likely wouldn’t have worried about such an encirclement. But now, for the sake of the opposition, they had to fight their way out to help them—success or failure for all.

“Set off!” With a loud shout, nearly a thousand people quickly divided into eight groups according to the original plan and charged down the mountain. Lucy was in one of these groups. Since she was leaving, Nightingale and the others naturally couldn’t stay behind.

Following the rugged path, this group of about a hundred people soon reached the halfway point. Below, they could faintly hear the voices of the Mi Jiao clan members and see their camps.

……

“Clan leader, they’re here!” At that moment, an old man rushed into a tent at the foot of the mountain and spoke to a middle-aged man.

“The Black Phoenix clan, huh? Can’t wait anymore? You’ve finally decided to show up? Good, that saves me some effort. Since you’re so eager to seek death, I won’t hold back!” Hearing the old man’s report, a cold glint appeared in the middle-aged man’s eyes as he spoke.

“Give orders to gather our troops and block these three routes. As for the rest, we don’t need to worry about them! Let the demons delay them. There’s no need for us to lose so many people. Once we take care of these three groups, we can deal with the rest one by one!” Pointing at a map before him, the middle-aged man spoke calmly, as if everything was within his control.

Has the Black Phoenix clan sent troops in eight different directions to attack? He wasn’t worried—he had already considered this possibility. After all, he had studied the terrain of the Nether Mountain before coming here. As a clan leader, especially in such a world of survival of the fittest, reaching this position wasn’t something an incompetent person could achieve. Whatever Merk could think of, he could think of as well—and even do better.

The Mi Jiao clan separated from the Dragon clan a thousand years ago and became independent. Although they are known as one of the four major clans, they are actually the weakest in strength, even inferior to some ancient clans. How have they managed to maintain their position and gain everyone’s recognition over a thousand years?

It wasn’t through empty words but through genuine strength that they earned this reputation—a result of three generations of clan leaders working hard over a thousand years. How could he be such an incompetent person?

“But… if two of the eight groups manage to break through and attack us from both flanks along with the other three groups…” Could just a thousand members of the Demon clan withstand those five groups? If two groups broke through, the situation would become troublesome.

More importantly, as the eldest of the Mi Jiao clan, he knew the Black Phoenix clan well. They were very strong, truly a traditional and powerful clan. Even in a direct confrontation, despite their larger numbers, the Mi Jiao clan wouldn’t stand a chance against them—especially since this was their stronghold.

“You don’t need to worry about these things. Just do as I say! This time, the Black Phoenix clan will be destroyed!” Waving his hand, the middle-aged man spoke calmly, without the slightest concern.

This left the eldest of the Mi Jiao clan deeply puzzled. Was there something else he didn’t know? Thinking back on events over the past year or two, he indeed found that this clan leader seemed increasingly unfathomable. Perhaps he really had some hidden plans.

Watching the eldest leave, a cold smile appeared on the middle-aged man’s lips. “Black Phoenix clan, it seems you’ll become the first stepping stone for my Mi Jiao clan to dominate!”

Then he turned to look at the barrier behind him. “Ancestor! It’s time to act!”

“Gaha! I never expected my first move to be against the Black Phoenix clan. I wonder how those old guys will react when they see me!” Moments later, a shrill laugh came from behind the barrier, chilling to hear.

“Ancestor, aren’t you worried that some of the Black Phoenix clan’s elders are still alive?” The middle-aged man asked, slightly concerned, frowning.

“Them? Hehe, impossible. Without that item, they couldn’t have survived to this day!” The owner of that hoarse voice was quite confident about that.

“Alright, let’s go! I’ll see how much of their former dominance these guys still retain after a thousand years!” Suddenly, without any wind, a shadow flashed by and stood beside the middle-aged man. Dressed in black and wearing a masked conical hat, he seemed frail, as if a breeze could knock him over, making it hard to associate him with his previous appearance.
…
Dawn was just breaking, and as the first rays of sunlight appeared, the battle began! The troops on the far right, due to being too close, engaged the enemy first and were caught off guard by the waiting demons, getting surrounded.
Soon after, battles broke out in the second and third groups as well. Hearing the sounds of combat in the distance, Lucy frowned tightly. “Sister Nightingale, do you think they’ll be okay?”
“Whenever there’s a battle, there’s bloodshed!” Looking at Lucy, Nightingale wanted to say no, but after hesitating for a long time, she sighed and said so.
“That’s true! I wonder how Dad and the others are doing! Let’s hurry!” Lucy murmured to herself as she lowered her head.
After turning a corner, they soon arrived at the foot of the mountain.
But what greeted them was a dark, dense army! A huge encirclement trapped them there. Nearby, the other two groups had already been separated by the enemy and were locked in combat, with cries of battle filling the air!
“Form up!” Before Lucy could react, Nightingale shouted immediately. Clearly, their plan had been exposed. They hadn’t expected the enemy to know everything by now. Without time to figure out how the enemy had figured out their strategy, Nightingale ordered action right away.
The Black Phoenix clan had one advantage: their mages. In such battles, the impact mages could have was self-evident!
Unfortunately, the other two groups hadn’t had time to react before the enemy closed in, so the mages couldn’t do much! Otherwise, they wouldn’t be in such a dire situation. Although the enemy was numerically superior, they shouldn’t have been overwhelmed so badly.
If the mages could unleash their full power, perhaps it would be the enemy’s turn to be in trouble.
“Attack!” Before Nightingale and her group could retreat, a furious roar came from the enemy side, followed by hundreds of people charging at them like wolves and tigers!