Xiao Sheng was silent. Was there a choice? If there was, they wouldn't have signed up to participate in the battle.

Smack, Wu Jinliang suddenly lifted his leg and kicked Xiao Sheng's butt.

The two had been sneaking around together for twenty years, which was comparable to Wu Jinliang and Shi Chun's years together.

Xiao Sheng might not know about others, but he had some confidence in Wu Jinliang. Although he didn't consider this big guy to be a good person, often involving him in shady dealings, he knew Wu Jinliang was a trustworthy ally. They had been relying on each other for nearly twenty years.

Seeing Wu Jinliang gesture this way, Xiao Sheng could only stammer and agree, "It all depends on the Master's arrangements."

Thus, the plan was settled.

Once the situation here was confirmed, Shi Chun didn't want to waste any time and intended to lead a group straight to where Li Hongjiu was trapped.

However, before leaving, he instructed Feng Chi to stay behind.

Seeing the departure arrangement, Feng Chi was indeed displeased and pulled Shi Chun aside to complain, "Master, even Chai Wenwu, Old Chai, is brought along, but not me. What's the deal? Isn't this a bit too exclusionary?"

Shi Chun said, "If it weren't for your superiors insisting you follow me, you really shouldn't be included. We're going for a fight this time, and it's inconvenient to have you along."

Saying this, he turned to leave.

Feng Chi quickly grabbed his sleeve, "Don't do that. Since we're going to fight, more people mean more strength. You're not doubting my commitment, are you?"

Shi Chun: "It's not about worrying you'll slack off; it's more about fearing you'll be forced to exert yourself. If your Demon Skill gets exposed, everyone's efforts will be in vain, and they'll all be implicated."

He didn't mention that this time the Heavenly Mirror from five families would be watching closely; countless eyes would be on them. He couldn't risk the slightest chance of Feng Chi's Demon Skill being exposed.

Feng Chi suspiciously asked, "Then let me ask, what exactly are we going to do?"

Shi Chun replied, "I'll tell you when we get back."

After speaking, he flicked his sleeve and left, flashing back to the group's side.

The group, consisting of Chu Jingtang, Lao Changtai, Xiao Sheng, Tong Mingshan, Shen Moming, An Wuzhi, Zhu Xiangxin, Cai Wenwu, as well as Shi Chun and Wu Jinliang, was just a complete set of ten people, riding the Wind Riding Scale swiftly away.

Regarding the arrival of Chu Jingtang and Lao Changtai, Tong Mingshan and others felt puzzled. Though the two came with their faces covered, their physiques revealed they were not the returning Wu Hong, Chen Wuji, Fang Zicheng, or Hao Jizhong.

As soon as communication begun, they knew who they were and were amazed, firstly curious about where the two had been over the years, and secondly surprised that they hadn't seen them sign up for battle.

Where they went was a secret; the two brushed it off, saying they were handling matters for the Master, but specifics were hard to disclose.

As for signing up for battle, Shi Chun had explained, the two said they registered with other teams, but now they were recruited by the Master.

Meanwhile, Shi Chun contacted Manxi, Ming Chaofeng, and Wei Mo again on the way, formally commencing specific arrangements.

He focused on understanding the distribution of forces besieging Li Hongjiu from Ming Chaofeng's side. His simple goal was to find a weak point for easy breakout.

The besieging forces from four sides couldn't have evenly distributed strength. The weak spot he sought was where the Heavenly Court Team and East Victory Team forces had relative advantages. This was conducive to his breakout and was the entry point he'd choose.

In this regard, Ming Chaofeng cooperated well, and had his trusted subordinate, Pu Gong, take charge. As Commander, he had many matters to handle and couldn't focus solely on this, while Pu Gong was his junior brother.

Not like Li Hongjiu who shared the same master, but affiliated with Yanbao Sect, and had good relations, long taken as reliant support.

Central liaison Gao Lian, seeing the rescue operation underway, found renewed spirit amidst fatigue, encouraging teammates to persist.

Among the besieging forces, two sides ceased interference spells, easing their efforts considerably.

After repeatedly comparing the besieging numbers and strengths, Pu Gong finally informed Shi Chun of a coordinate point on the map for optimal entry.

Thereafter, Shi Chun consulted Manxi about this entry point's pros and cons since among the three collaborators, he trusted Ming Chaofeng more, yet couldn't help but maintain some caution given life was at stake.

Once comparing Manxi's pros and cons analysis with Ming Chaofeng's, finding them largely similar, he eased and contacted Wei Mo.

On the high platform of the East Victory Command Center, Tao Zhi received Shi Chun's message and promptly transmitted a reminder to Wei Mo gazing at the mirror image, "Commander, Shi Chun said coordination with Ming Chaofeng is complete; we can act."

Wei Mo glanced back, turned, and approached.

The two gathered together, avoiding others, as Tao Zhi pulled out a map, pointing to a location, "Shi Chun chose this entry point, just at the inlet of this small lake."

Wei Mo examined it, then looked back at the Mountain River Map, asking, "What's the basis for choosing this entry point?"

Tao Zhi stated, "Based on my prior comparison checks, the force distribution from this position shows a favorable presence of our troops and the Heavenly Court troops."

Wei Mo stroked his beard, "Seems finely chosen. From this position, how do our forces compare to the Heavenly Court's advantages and drawbacks?"

Tao Zhi said: "On the surface, it seems we still have some advantage, but it's unclear behind the scenes."

Wei Mo asked: "Are the forces prepared to support us in secret?"

Tao Zhi: "They have already been carefully selected in advance and have taken off their armor. They are now gathering in the shadows."

Wei Mo said: "Watch over them carefully, that guy is very deceitful."

After speaking, he left, but still felt uneasy. He took out the Mother-child Talisman and personally sent a message to Ming Chaofeng, asking: "Did Shi Chun approach you for cooperation?"

Ming Chaofeng from the Nanshan Command Center looked at the Mother-child Talisman, feeling a bit speechless. When Shi Chun suggested finding locations surrounded by Heavenly Court and East Victory forces, he had suspicions. It puzzled him that East Victory had clearly sent people to hunt you down, yet you dared to approach them?

Now it's confirmed, that guy not only contacted the Heavenly Court but also East Victory.

He was curious about how he persuaded them. Could a single Magical Treasure be shared between two parties? Or did he offer some other enticing benefits?

He didn't respond immediately but first asked his junior brother Pu Gong to contact Shi Chun to verify the situation, worried that a wrong judgment might lead to saying the wrong thing to Wei Mo.

After receiving confirmation from Shi Chun, the hemming and hawing Ming Chaofeng finally gave Wei Mo a definite answer.

After ending the contact, he looked again at the Mountain River Map. With the assistance of those two parties, the encirclement had been broken, and the chances of breaking through had indeed increased significantly.

He then sent a sound message to Pu Gong: "How are the preparations for the forces supporting the junior brother in breaking through?"

Pu Gong replied via sound transmission: "The secret gathering is in place, and the people Shi Chun specified have been sent to meet him."

The people Shi Chun specified arrived at the agreed meeting point about half an hour later.

After waiting for a while, Shi Chun was seen flying in with Wu Jinliang and Tong Mingshan, with no others appearing.

After confirming each other's identity, the Nanshan envoy started sketching and explaining the design of the Sky Splitting Sword on the cliff. Before the envoy came, Pu Gong had instructed him to carefully observe the detailed form of the treasure sword.

Only then did Shi Chun learn that this Broken Fifth Grade, Quasi-Sixth Grade Magical Treasure, was called the Sky Splitting Sword.

They sought such a person for no other reason than to replicate a fake treasure sword. No point in making a fake person without a fake sword in hand, right?

The goal was to create a counterfeit with the same exterior. Since it wasn't actual treasure refining, it was a small task easily handled by a professional like Tong Mingshan.

Yet he seemed somewhat stubborn, repeatedly modifying it according to the Nanshan envoy's instructions. The envoy had already nodded in agreement that it was about right, but Tong Mingshan insisted on further refining it, apparently worried that he would produce something obviously fake.

Wu Jinliang turned away, holding his forehead. He had experienced this once already and was powerless to persuade Tong Mingshan, leaving it to Shi Chun to handle it. After all, Shi Chun had previously criticized his craftsmanship for being inferior to Tong Mingshan's; he wanted Shi Chun to see if it was a matter of skill.

As he wished, after observing for a while, Shi Chun's expression became odd, wondering what Tong Mingshan was up to. Everyone said it was close enough, so why keep nitpicking? By the time you're done, Li Hongjiu will be dead.

A tool that's unusable, no matter how it looks, is useless.

He didn't stop Tong Mingshan from pursuing details but instead interjected directly, saying to the Nanshan envoy: "Okay, if it's close enough, you can head back first."

The Nanshan envoy felt as if he had been granted a great pardon and quickly took his leave, truly feeling intimidated by Tong Mingshan's relentless inquiries, doubting his own memory.

"..." Tong Mingshan stood speechless, looking back and forth between Shi Chun and a grinning Wu Jinliang.

He was resigned to these two; after all, Li Hongjiu's life was at stake. Even when faking, it should be done convincingly, right? He had thought Wu Jinliang's methods were rough, but now he realized that the Master was also somewhat careless. None of us have seen the real thing, and you think it's enough to just theorize?

He wanted to endure it since the Master had been of great help to him, someone he respected and admired, but his professional ethics wouldn't allow him to stay silent. Frowning, he couldn't help but say, "Master, if it's too fake, won't it endanger Li Hongjiu's life?"

Wu Jinliang immediately stood aside with arms crossed, looking ready to enjoy the show, a smirk at the corner of his mouth, waiting for Shi Chun to experience Tong Mingshan's intransigence in this regard.

But Shi Chun, being Shi Chun, had a different approach to handling it.

Shi Chun reached out, took the mock-up from Tong Mingshan's hand, inspected it briefly, and responded lightly: "Sect Master, this time it can't be too real. If it's too real, it might cost Li Hongjiu his life, and even Xiao Sheng's. Close enough will do."

He then casually tossed the sample back, "I see you can make one quite quickly. Since you've started, why not whip up a few more? They might come in handy later."

"..." Holding the sample, Tong Mingshan gaped for a moment, ultimately sighing, turning silently back to again producing duplicates from materials.

However, he felt somewhat downcast. After all, he was a sect master of the Artifact Refining Sect. Which sect master in the Artifact Refining World frequently makes forgeries?

Fake tokens, fake swords, all circulated from here, and he was the only one here who could refine artifacts. It made him worry about his reputation in the industry in the future...

"..." Cross-armed Wu Jinliang was also speechless, letting his arms drop and looked around, thinking, "Is that it?"

"Is that all?"

Unable to watch the expected commotion, he suddenly snorted, turned away with a bit of the blues, again crossing his arms, and cast a sidelong glance at the strip of sky above the canyon.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.