A Chaotic World 233 Marshal Xianming's Arrival

Wenqin was expressionless even as he felt the Origin Core realm martial artist's body go limp in his arms.
Supporting the body of the Origin Core realm expert with his left hand, he coldly pulled his right arm out of the corpse, sending down a shower of blood.
Holding the lifeless corpse in his hand, Wenqin glanced at the scrambling soldiers below before taking a look at Elder Mingxin and the rest of them standing at a distance.
For a moment, his gaze fell upon Lu Tianzi.
He remembered clearly that right before the pursuing soldiers entered the killing formation, Lu Tianzi had called out to them, telling them to stop moving forward since it was a trap.
So his feat at the Second Battlefront was no fluke, eh?
Even so, his gaze did not linger on Lu Tianzi for long.
"Let's go," Wenqin instructed before flying off.
Despite having fallen for their trap, the dead Origin Core realm martial artist had been right about one thing.
They were still right outside the main camp of the Scarlet Moon Army. The longer they stayed, the more dangerous it would be for them.
Under the cover of the killing formation, the group from the Dragon Cauldron Army promptly retreated, and the Scarlet Moon Army forces led by Elder Mingxin could only watch on helplessly as they disappeared into the Rockfall Plain.
Just as Wenqin had taken a glance at Lu Tianzi, Lu Tianzi had been staring at the former as well.
Earlier when Wenqin impaled his opponent, Lu Tianzi had seen the energy threads wrapped around his arm spin out like a drill, cutting right through the defences of the Origin Core realm expert.
Without that, it was unlikely that he would have been able to slay his opponent in a single strike.
So it had been done with the bronze cauldron's help again…
Lu Tianzi had no idea what that bronze cauldron was, but it seemed to be capable of more than just enhancing the strength of allies.
At this moment, Lu Tianzi could not help but wonder. If he were to meet this opponent again on the battlefield, would he be left as helpless as today?
Along with the retreat of the Dragon Cauldron Army, Elder Mingxin and the rest of the soldiers hurried forward to lend their aid to those who had been caught in the killing formation.
Some had escaped, but suffered grievous injuries.
Some still remained in the formation, trapped by the maze of deadly earth spikes, desperate for rescue.
Elder Mingxin's group tried to help, but saving all of them was impossible. All they could do was to save whoever they could.
For many of them, it was already too late.
Even so, the survivors could not bring themselves to blame the one who had given them the order.
After all, the Origin Core realm martial artist had been killed, and his corpse was even brought back by the enemy, probably to be used as a trophy of sorts.
With such a dreadful outcome, the survivors could only hang their heads low for not listening to Elder Mingxin earlier, following the rest back to the camp in shameful silence.

Standing even further back and witnessing the entire scene was Beimu Fei.
She had rushed over to check on Lu Tianzi, but her speed was nowhere near the latter's. By the time she arrived, Lu Tianzi was already attempting to clash with Wenqin's bronze cauldron.
From there, Beimu Fei witnessed with her own eyes how the mysterious bronze cauldron caused cracks to appear on Lu Tianzi's sword in a single clash, followed by how the Scarlet Moon Army had been divided by conflicting orders.
What a complete mess!
Beimu Fei could not help but sigh in her heart.
Fortunately, at least Nanlu Tianzi was all right.
Beimu Fei turned and left, heading over to where her master was. Her master would probably be interested to know about what happened here.
In the end, the northern end of the camp had suffered an attack of a similar fashion, and the pursuing forces were caught in a killing formation as well.
Contrary to the southern end, however, no Origin Core realm experts had been killed in the skirmish at the northern end.
Of course, hearing about that did not help alleviate the mood in the camp whatsoever.
As for the western end where Formation Master Beimu had headed in personally, it was all peace and quiet, not seeing a single trace of the enemy.
That evening, the upper echelons of the camp did not meet up to discuss the matter, focusing instead on the more pressing task of strengthening the defences of the camp with the help of Formation Master Beimu.
After all, Marshal Xianming would be arriving the next day, and the decision making could be left to him instead.
At the same time, the fact that Marshal Xianming would be arriving the next day also made everyone feel like they were walking on pins and needles, as though they were criminals awaiting trial.
Who knew what Marshal Xianming would say upon hearing of this report?
It was an attack on their main camp, the place where all of their forces were gathered.
Even so, hundreds had died, including an Origin Core realm expert. On top of that, they even failed to stop the enemy's retreat.
This could be considered as a huge blunder on their part!
If Marshal Xianming wanted to push down the blame, just who would be able to take responsibility for this matter?
The Scarlet Moon Army had been riding a high since the victory at the Second Battlefront, pushing their enemies all the way back to Rockfall Plain.
But now, their surging morale had been crushed in one fell swoop.
It was a long night, and the atmosphere in the camp was dreary.
Lu Tianzi and the rest of the Nine Suns Sect gathered together for dinner, but no one spoke a word.
After hearing about what happened, Nanqing Haowen had been shocked as well. But deep in his heart, he was actually thanking the heavens that at least the members of the Nine Suns Sect were not the ones who had entered the enemy's trap.
When he realised just how selfish his thoughts were, he could only try to slap himself awake, drawing strange looks from those around him.
Dawn eventually arrived.
As expected, Marshal Xianming and many others arrived from the previous main camp of the central battlefields. Upon his arrival, he wasted no time in calling for a meeting with the rest of the Origin Core realm experts.
"He died just like that?" Marshal Xianming narrowed his eyes incredulously upon hearing Elder Mingxin's recount of what happened.
"It's the truth," Elder Mingxin nodded, unintimidated by the countless stares coming from all around the tent.
"…I see." Marshal Xianming let out a helpless sigh. "It's unfortunate that he fell for the enemy's trap, but you can't be asked to bear the full responsibility for this matter either since he had ignored your warning."
He leaned back in his chair, his gaze sweeping across the room as he looked at everyone present one by one.
Sensing his gaze fall upon them, some hung their heads low while some looked back resolutely. But no matter what, those who had been around when the attack occurred could not help but feel a certain level of guilt in their hearts.
"You guys can relax, I will not be meting out any punishments today," Marshal Xianming smiled to ease the tension. "However, do note that everything that has happened, and not just this one incident, will be considered when calculating contributions and rewards after the war. For those who believe you are at fault for any matter at all, do not worry. There is still a chance to redeem yourselves in the upcoming battle. No, not just redeem yourselves. Who knows? It is very possible that what you accomplish next can even completely strike off any past misdeeds, gaining you unparalleled recognition and glory instead. Work hard, and let's strive for glory together!"
"Yes, Marshal!" the Origin Core realm experts in the tent clasped their fists towards him in unison.
Marshal Xianming did not say much, but what he did say was already sufficient to achieve the effect that he had wanted.
Realising that nobody would be punished today, the martial artist present could not help but let out a sigh of relief. At the same time, they started to look forward to the battle ahead.
They knew that with everyone gathered at Rockfall Plain, the upcoming battle could very well be the decisive one. All of them hoped to grasp this final opportunity to obtain the promised glory and recognition.
If things went well, perhaps they might even be scouted to join the Scarlet Moon Palace?
Should that really happen, their future standing in the Scarlet Moon Kingdom would be incomparable to before!
"All right then," Marshal Xianming was somewhat relieved when he saw the changed expressions on their faces. "Now, let's start the discussion for the coming battle."
After all, what's done is done.
Harping on the matter now would only make things worse. What he needed to do now was not to assign blame for what happened in the past, but to rile them up in preparation for the future!
While the meeting was going on, Lu Tianzi sat outside his tent in the morning sun, holding a cracked sword in his hands.
Just twenty four hours ago, this sword had been in perfect condition. Yet right now, it was just one step away from becoming scrap metal.
The incident from the day before continued to replay in his mind as Lu Tianzi recalled how powerful the shockwave from the bronze cauldron truly was.
"Do you have a fetish for cracked swords or something?" the teasing voice of a young lady sounded out from behind him.
Lu Tianzi did not have to check to know that it was Nanlan Qianxue.
Even if not from the voice, she was the only one who had ever seen him wield the cracked Sword of Ivory Rock previously.
"He is really strong," Lu Tianzi commented without turning back. "And this is probably not the last we will see of him either."
"Stronger than you?" Nanlan Qianxue remarked as she sat down beside him.
There was no need to ask who Lu Tianzi was referring to.
But considering that the opponent was an Origin Core realm martial artist who had managed to fight evenly against two others of a higher cultivation level, Nanlan Qianxue's question would sound like childish banter to anyone else.
Only Nanlan Qianxue would ask such a question, and mean it as well.
After all, she was the only one who knew for a fact that the famous Lu Tianzi had actually been hiding his true capabilities all along.
Wenqin might have managed to kill a Third Cycle Origin Core realm martial artist, but so had Lu Tianzi!
"I don't know," Lu Tianzi let out a wry smile. "Perhaps he really is."
"Oh? Is our Inscription Master Tianzi losing confidence?" Nanlan Qianxue shook her head in disapproval. "How unbecoming of the top ranker of the Scarlet Moon Heroes Meet!"
"…" Lu Tianzi was speechless.
This was supposed to be an important topic that could concern their lives in the upcoming battle, but why did he feel like he was the only one being serious here?
Before he could think of a response, the two of them looked up at the same time, at the figure that was quickly approaching them.
"Beimu Fei?" Lu Tianzi blurted out in surprise. "What is the matter?"
"Tianzi, come with me," Beimu Fei had a serious look on her face. "Master just informed me that we are being summoned to the strategic meeting."

Chapter end

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