Chapter 169 Victory is certain
With a true master in charge and one side having an absolute advantage, the fierce fight did not last long.
The Xuanzhou people did not completely kill all the Jizhou people. Some of them tore off their outer shirts to show that they were not carrying any Insect Crystals. They encountered no obstruction when they escaped. As a result, several hundred people still escaped.
After cleaning up the bloody battlefield, a bunch of bulging black cloth bags were found from multiple locations with multiple people. The Jizhou group did not store the Insect Crystals in a centralized location; apparently each group kept them.
Li Shanshan, who was standing in front of a pile of counted insect crystals, raised his arms and shouted, "One hundred and seven hundred and fifty-three!"
In one battle, they harvested more than 10,000 Insect Crystals, and there was a cheer from everyone in Xuanzhou.
In the mirror image, the cheering Xuanzhou people and the piles of insect crystals made many viewers envious or sigh.
Chi Rang, Lord of Xuanzhou Territory, was delighted.
The other domain lords had complicated expressions. The domain lord of Jizhou stood up, kicked over the chair, and left with a flick of his sleeves.
Young Master Nan slumped in the chair, as if he had suffered a serious illness, mumbling something.
The troops in the mirror did not stop, and they rushed forward quickly just like Wang Sheng's troops.
The target of the second match was only a few hundred people, and Xuanzhou's troops crushed them in one fell swoop.
But the amount of insect crystals that could be harvested made Mulan Qingqing's heart skip a beat, as there were only about two thousand of them.
In the subsequent continuous raids, they thought they were looking for fatter targets, but each time they succeeded, they only caught a few thousand. This made Mulan, Qingqing and the others more and more nervous, and they found that their gains were similar to those of Wang Sheng and his team every time.
It turns out that finding the Chong Ji Jing has nothing to do with the number of people.
Only then did they realize that what Wang Sheng said when facing the soldiers' remonstration might be true. He had put in a lot of effort and found out the number of Insect Crystals in the target's hands before taking action.
They had to wonder how the spies sent by Wang Sheng did it. They couldn't figure it out. They really couldn't figure it out. Is the gap in ability between people really so big?
However, with their strength, they don't need to put in as much effort as Wang Sheng and his team did. It won't be wrong to just catch the fatter ones.
The key to the problem is that even if they can gain similar amounts to Wang Sheng and his team each time, they don’t have enough time as the conference will end in a few days.
During a raid before dusk the next day, they encountered the most annoying thing. Before the target was defeated, the leader slit the black cloth bag with a sad roar and released all the Insect Crystals. The number was unknown, but it was definitely not small.
Although the leader was chopped to pieces by the angry Xuanzhou troops, the Chongji Crystal that flew away could never be found again, and the Xuanzhou troops' efforts were in vain.
In a simple cave after nightfall, the light of the sandalwood and gold flames seemed a little strange.
Mulan Qingqing sat cross-legged on a mat, and Guan Yingjie also sat cross-legged below. They were both very silent, and they both realized one thing. Judging from the trend of the past two days, they would most likely lose to Wang Sheng and his team.
There was a sound of footsteps outside the cave. It was Wan Daoxuan and the other two. They glanced into the cave, and after the eyes of the inside and outside met, they walked in.
They sat down without being invited. Since they were not dressed in snow-white clothes, they did not need to worry too much about being clean. They sat in a circle with Su Yuanzong and the other two.
Li Shanshan spoke first: "I just heard that Wang Sheng and his team had another fight today, but the harvest was not high, only about a hundred Insect Crystals."
Tang Zhen sighed, "How come the harvest is not good as the conference is coming to an end?"
Wan Daoxuan: "We are not much better. We have only obtained about 18,000 pieces in two days. Excluding the 10,000 pieces in the first battle, our harvest in the past two days is not outstanding compared with Wang Sheng's past achievements. I have to say that I have a new understanding of Wang Sheng's ability."
Tang Zhen: "According to the time, the conference will end in four days, which means we only have four days left. If this trend continues, we can get at most 20,000 more, and that's while maintaining the same level of harvest."
Li Shanshan: "If Wang Sheng can get some more in the next few days, maybe he can collect 70,000. At this rate, even if we keep fighting, it will be hard to catch up with them. We can't keep fighting, we will be too weak, and we don't know who will defeat whom if we meet the opponent. In other words, at this rate, we are basically doomed to lose."
They didn't need to remind them whether they were doomed to lose or not. Su Yuanzong and the other two had already figured out the outcome while sitting there.
At this time, Mulan Qingqing seemed to be the same as usual, and still seemed cold as ice, but in fact she was already filled with frustration. If she lost, she would lose if her forces were equal. The other party led a group of rabble, while she led a group of elite troops, yet she still lost to them. The huge gap in ability between them really made her depressed.
But she still had to hold on.
Guan Yingjie finally spoke up, "Are you here just to boost others' morale and destroy your own prestige?"
Wan Daoxuan: "Brother Guan, you are too serious. We are saying this just to illustrate a point. Only by knowing ourselves and the enemy can we have a chance of winning. If we continue like this, we will definitely lose."
Guan Yingjie said, "Do you have any other ideas?"
Wan Daoxuan lowered his voice and said, "Before coming here, the three of us discussed that we must not sit back and wait for our face to be humiliated."
Tang Zhen: "Yes, the elite of Xuanzhou actually lost to that mob of scumbags. It will become a huge joke. From now on, whenever we meet someone who is not good enough, we will be humiliated by this matter. Can you bear it, Brother Guan? The problem is, in Xuanzhou, how can we face the orders given by those small sects in the future? Isn't it shameful? I can't accept it."
Li Shanshan: "This is a great humiliation, and it is unacceptable." Guan Yingjie: "Stop talking so much, just tell me what you have to say."
Wan Daoxuan: "The three of us discussed it and decided that even if the final gains were not as good as Wang Sheng's, it was not hopeless. In fact, the key to winning or losing lies in the rules of the competition. If the other party is willing to negotiate and change the rules, that would be another matter."
Guan Yingjie sneered, "If they are sure to win, if it were you, would you be willing to accept the change in the competition rules?"
Wan Daoxuan smiled, "So, the key to the problem lies in the word 'willing'."
Guan Yingjie was puzzled, "Don't beat around the bush with me, what do you mean?"
Wan Daoxuan asked: "If they knew they were doomed to lose and we were doomed to win, and we gave them another chance to fight, do you think they would be willing?"
After saying this, he, Tang Zhen, and Li Shanshan all showed strange smiles.
Mulan Qingqing's heart was slightly moved and her eyes flickered slightly.
Guan Yingjie asked, "How do you mean?"
Wan Daoxuan's face changed, his voice sank, and he whispered: "Our harvest yesterday was not low, it was only low today. Today was just an accident. Yesterday's harvest capacity was our normal level. Starting tomorrow, we will naturally recover.
Tomorrow, the day after tomorrow, and the day after tomorrow, our harvest will be the same as yesterday. There is no doubt that the final harvest amount will exceed theirs in one fell swoop."
Li Shanshan: "Brother Guan, starting tomorrow, the inventory of the insect crystals after harvest should be entrusted to a dedicated person, and they will be the ones to announce the public numbers."
Guan Yingjie suddenly realized, his eyes flashing with excitement, "They know we are sure to win. Give them another chance... Yes, they will definitely accept it."
In the end, everyone looked at the person who could make the final decision.
Mulan Qingqing looked a little hesitant, "Isn't it a bit unfair to win them by deceiving them?"
Li Shanshan: "It's an unfair victory. The key is that we can't use force against them. All is fair in war. Resolving this matter peacefully is the best way."
Tang Zhen: "That's right. Mulan, don't worry too much. They had the chance to win, but they were greedy. If they weren't greedy, they wouldn't have been fooled. They are the ones who are beating their chests afterwards."
Wan Daoxuan: "Anyway, we will never force anyone. If anyone is willing to take the bait, it will only be a joke or a good story afterwards."
Guan Yingjie also said: "Don't worry, Senior Sister, they are greedy and it's their own fault. They can't blame anyone. Besides, the rules of the competition don't stipulate that cheating is not allowed."
Wan Daoxuan: "That's right, Brother Guan is right. We didn't agree not to cheat. If there are criticisms later, we can tell everyone that if there is no quick way and we don't want to commit too many murders, why would we lie dormant? We would have taken action earlier, and the harvest would not be less than theirs. We have both methods in hand, and we will win either way. We are sure to win, so how can we say that the victory is unfair?"
Li Shanshan: "That's right, if they can defraud us, we will admit it!"
Tang Zhen clapped his hands and praised, "That's right, that's right."
Wan Daoxuan: "Of course, we still need to work hard. If we can surpass them in terms of real gains, we will not need to take any shortcuts."
"Exactly."
"It makes sense."
Looking at those pairs of fiery eyes, Mulan Qingqing knew that she could not stop them anymore. Now that they had found such a big loophole, she knew she could not stop them anymore and could only acquiesce.
There was a burst of laughter in the cave.
On the other side, the Xuanzhou people were also laughing and talking. Everyone walked out of the cave, chattering, hugging each other, and celebrating with the world.
There are many horizontal communication channels between the two sides, and we also have some knowledge of Mulan Qingqing's harvest.
We are not stupid. We have seen the clues based on the harvest trend over there. We are afraid that it will be difficult to surpass them.
Victory was in their grasp. They were all filled with joy at the thought of returning to the sect with their names in the merit book, and returning with glory after having made great contributions to the sect.
Those sects that might be qualified to strive for rankings for their clan were celebrating with great joy and laughter, but they only regretted that there was no wine. Their heroic spirit dared to compete with the stars in the sky.
A man with a broken arm sat on a rock, stroking his broken arm, with a look of relief on his face. He felt that it was worth it and that he had given an explanation to both others and himself.
Shi Chun, who was sitting on the top of the mountain, saw that everyone was happy and he also had a slight smile on his face, but his smile was a little reserved and he couldn't be as happy as them. Finally, he lay down with his arms around his pillow, looking up at the cold stars amid laughter.
(End of this chapter)
