Chapter 381: Dividing the Troops into Two Groups

As dawn broke, the people of Wuyou City were still asleep. Yet at this very moment, the city gates opened, and a large group set out quietly toward the outside, moving at great speed. This was the first time the gates had been opened in days since Wuyou City fell to the Black Phoenix Clan and the Scorpion King Clan. To prevent information leakage, the city had been sealed off, allowing only entry but no exit. Today, at last, people could leave.

After passing through the city gates, the group split into two, heading in different directions. The first group headed north, while the second moved straight ahead!

“Kid, I’ll leave this to you. Don’t worry about my side—whenever anyone tries to retreat this way, I guarantee none of them will get away!” Locke said to Rod in a serious tone, a rare seriousness from him.

This group consisted of Rod, Locke, and others. Last night, after Rod returned, they decided to set off at dawn. Every extra day gave them a better chance of success and more hope. Speed is key—this saying truly applies here.

The troops were divided into two teams. The first team, led by Rod and Merk, was heading to Water Curtain City, while the second team was heading to Ice City! Of course, Rod and his group were going to attack Water Curtain City, so they had a larger force—nearly two thousand men, accounting for three-fifths of all their available troops. The remaining two-fifths stayed in Wuyou City to maintain order and resist any neutralists who might return, while a smaller group, led by Locke, went to Ice City not to attack it, but to block the road between Water Curtain City and Ice City, ensuring no one could escape to Ice City.

Looking at the winding mountain paths ahead, Rod felt a sense of heaviness. Could Water Curtain City really be conquered so easily? Hopefully, nothing would go wrong. After all, it wasn’t Wuyou City, and this time, their group was even smaller.

“What’s wrong? Worried?” Nightingale’s voice came from beside him, tinged with concern as Rod was lost in thought.

“No, I’m just thinking. We’ve come this far; there’s no turning back. The winner takes all—this is an unchanging truth!” With a sigh, Rod said with a bitter smile. After preparing for so many years, wasn’t it all for this day? He certainly couldn’t give up now. As long as he could defeat the pro-war faction, all his goals would be achieved, and perhaps the Source of Darkness would calm down as well.

Thinking of this, Rod rarely showed a relieved smile. What kind of scene would it be when the trolls returned? What would happen to his father once he recovered? By then, everything would become simpler. As for matters on the continent, as long as the war faction was eliminated, there would basically be no problems left—just some minor issues.

Thinking of the trolls and his father, Rod felt complex emotions and didn’t know how to face them. That’s how people are—often, when something we’ve long desired appears before us, we realize we’re actually nervous.

Seeing Rod deep in thought, Nightingale couldn’t help but worry. But since he refused to talk, she didn’t press further and simply stayed by his side. She knew that at this moment, Rod needed more support and companionship. Even the strongest person has their vulnerable and lonely sides.

“Don’t worry. Our Death Scythe Squad will always be by your side!” Nightingale said softly after a long while.

Hearing these words, Rod paused, turned to look at Nightingale. Finally, the clouds cleared, and his hesitation vanished. Yes, he still had a group of brothers by his side—why worry?

In the world at the end of winter, the cold wind was especially biting, and the arrival of early spring brought some humidity. Fine rain, like cowhair, began to fall from the sky, and combined with the cold wind, it made things even colder. The forests in the mountains were gloomy, and the piercing cold made everyone shiver.

Despite the difficult conditions, the group didn’t slow down and continued to move at high speed. Even these powerful warriors couldn’t help but look pale and show signs of fatigue.

It had been three days—three full days of travel. At this pace, it would take another four days to reach Water Curtain City. For the first time, Rod and Merk allowed everyone to rest for a whole morning without rushing.

News came from ahead—the fall of Wuyou City had finally spread. At that moment, the Source of Darkness wasn’t frenzied; there was only sighs and silence. When the Mi Jiao clan perished, these people seemed to have already gotten used to it and accepted the current situation. They knew the next to perish wouldn’t be a small clan, but they never expected it to be the neutral faction that had always remained neutral. So, they sighed.

After all, in their view, the neutrals had always acted within the bounds of convention, never taking any extreme actions—they hadn’t even participated in this great war, yet they were destroyed so early on, which was somewhat regrettable.
When these people learned that it was the Black Phoenix clan that had destroyed Wuyou City, the very clan that had wiped out the Mi Jiao clan, some were even astonished by the strength of this ancient clan and its profound heritage. The fact that they had managed to eliminate two clans that were no less powerful than theirs without suffering significant losses made them reevaluate this mysterious clan.
Of course, rumors abounded. Some said Wuyou City fell because they hadn’t chosen to support any faction this time; the opposition was attacked by the pro-war faction, and the Black Phoenix clan was attacked by the Mi Jiao clan. Since they hadn’t taken a side, the Black Phoenix clan vented all its anger on the neutrals, leading to such consequences.
Others claimed it was because the neutrals secretly supported the pro-war faction, thus earning the hostility of the Black Phoenix clan.
Opinions varied, but they all revolved around these two viewpoints.
Naturally, with the Darkness Source being so vast, there were many smart people who saw through the tricks, though they didn’t speak up.
Rod wasn’t concerned about any of this. All he cared about was the reaction of the pro-war faction. Fortunately, everything seemed to be developing in their favor.
Although the pro-war faction was furious upon hearing the news, they didn’t issue any statements. Instead, they sent a small team to Wuyou City to investigate. Everything was under control, and Shuimu City remained quiet, with no signs of major activity. This gave Rod and the others some peace of mind.
“We’re almost there!” Merck sighed as he looked into the distance. Shuimu City, that familiar town—this time, even he found it hard to believe their purpose for going there.
“Yeah, we’re almost there!” Rod nodded, looking at the exhausted group. These past few days had been extremely rushed. Everyone was tired and clearly not in a state to fight right away, so it was necessary to give them enough time to rest.
“This time, we can’t give the pro-war faction another chance! How confident are you?” As the initiator of the plan, Merck naturally wanted to hear Rod’s thoughts.

“Five layers!” After a moment’s thought, Rod said calmly. The atmosphere grew somber after his words—half a chance of success, with the survival of two clans at stake. It seemed like a huge gamble, but retreating now was impossible.
“Hey, let everyone rest properly. We’ll slow down a bit these next couple of days. Water Screen City is almost here. The vanguard should be able to blend in soon! Give them some time!” Merk sighed after a long while.
This time, they adopted the same strategy as attacking Wuyou City—attack from within and outside. After all, Water Screen City couldn’t possibly expect them to take the risk of attacking them, so their vigilance would surely be low. A strategy of attacking from both sides was likely the most effective and practical at this point! Before leaving Wuyou City, Rod had already sent a group of nearly 200 people ahead toward Water Screen City, divided into dozens of groups, to avoid arousing the enemy’s suspicion.
“Mm, I’ll arrange it!” Merk made a reasonable point, so Rod quickly agreed.
After a morning’s rest, everyone was noticeably more energetic in the afternoon and set off again.
……
“Wuyou City… Wuyou City has been destroyed too! Damn the Black Phoenix clan! Bastards!” At that moment, outside Dark Moon City, in the headquarters of the pro-war faction, a furious roar was heard. A pile of documents was thrown to the ground, and the messenger who brought the news was kicked out outright.
The atmosphere inside the tent was extremely gloomy. Everyone hung their heads, unable to say a word.
No one could have imagined that Wuyou City would fall. Everyone’s faces turned pale. First it was the Mi Jiao clan, and now Wuyou City—the Black Phoenix clan had brought them too many surprises. Watching the Second Prince, Gu Yi, fly into a rage, they really didn’t know how to defend themselves. They had sworn that Wuyou City would be safe—what could they say now?
“Come back! What were you doing?” Moments later, Gu Yi’s furious roar was heard again.

“I went to destroy the Black Phoenix clan, those bastards! Wuyou City—my father and everyone in my family were there. Now Wuyou City is gone, and you know what happened to them. How can I still sit here?” He was stopped by Guyi, who turned to look at him angrily. His eyes were red; he was the rightful successor of the Neutral Faction in Wuyou City. All the members of the Neutral Faction were his relatives, so it was only natural that he was the most angry. Following closely behind him were five or six others, all of them members of the Neutral Faction who had come to offer aid. Now that their stronghold had been destroyed, one could only imagine how they felt.