Chapter 61: Ancient Secrets of Military Strategy

Audience expectation: 3

“You… dare to play me?!”

Yan Xicai’s back was soaked with cold sweat. Coming to his senses, he felt like he was about to explode with rage! He thought he had walked around the edge of death, only to discover it was just a joke Chen Ling had played on him… In that instant, Chen Ling had toyed with his very life.

“You dare to mess with me?! How dare you…” Yan Xicai staggered to his feet, his eyes bloodshot, and roared furiously: “Kill them all for me!!”

The next moment, the many enforcers surrounding Yan Xicai simultaneously drew their guns, more than a dozen muzzles aimed at Chen Ling and No. 8, who were at the center.

“You country bumpkins!! How dare you mock me?” Yan Xicai snatched a gun from an enforcer beside him and forcefully pressed the muzzle against Chen Ling’s forehead. “What do you have to fight me with? With one order from me, half the people on this ship will come to kill you!”

“And you!” He abruptly turned the gun, aiming it at No. 8. “Yes, I was born into a good life! One word from me can send you country bumpkins from District 3 straight to your next reincarnation! Are you not convinced?”

No. 8: ???

No. 8 had been completely dragged into this by Chen Ling… and was already cursing internally. He had painstakingly brought several Usurpers, stolen the identities of enforcers from three major districts, and hidden their true selves all the way here, precisely to avoid trouble and blend in to enter the Ancient Tomb of the Martial Path… But Chen Ling’s appearance had instantly put them in the eye of the storm. No. 8 had never imagined things would escalate to this point.

“Young Master Cai, do you really want to shoot?” Seeing Yan Xicai nearly driven mad, an Aurora City enforcer who still maintained some composure cautiously asked.

“What’s there to be afraid of? Can’t I, the young master, kill two country bumpkins without consequence? All of you, fire—”

“Stop!”

Just as Yan Xicai was about to give the order, three figures in black trench coats hurried over. The three officials were originally holding a meeting inside the cabin to discuss the upcoming route. Hearing the commotion outside, they came out and realized how out of hand things had gotten.

“Put down your guns! Do none of you want to enter the Ancient Tomb anymore?” the Five-Marked Enforcer said coldly.

Everyone exchanged glances and silently lowered their weapons.

“Officer Li, what is the meaning of this?” Yan Xicai frowned deeply. “They provoked me first; I was merely acting in self-defense.” Yan Xicai heavily emphasized the words “self-defense.”

“Young Master Yan, please don’t make things difficult for us… If a death occurs on this ship before entering the Ancient Tomb of the Martial Path, according to regulations, we must return for an investigation by the Aurora City Enforcer Headquarters.”

Hearing this, the rage in Yan Xicai’s eyes subsided slightly. This was indeed a regulation issued by the Enforcer Headquarters. If it were anywhere else, he could simply kill someone and be done with it, but this ship, heading to the Ancient Tomb of the Martial Path, held extraordinary significance for the Aurora Domain.

Even so, Yan Xicai remained unwilling to back down. He glared intensely at Chen Ling and No. 8, a cold glint in his eyes. A Four-Marked Enforcer, seeing this, leaned into his ear and whispered:

“Young Master Yan, please bear with it for a while. It’s not too late to act once we’re inside the Ancient Tomb. Losing one or two people in the Ancient Tomb of the Martial Path each year is common, but none of us can afford a death on this ship…”

Yan Xicai glanced at him, and his anger immediately lessened considerably. He then cast a sidelong look at Chen Ling and No. 8: “Alright, I’ll deal with them once we’re inside the Ancient Tomb.”

Seeing Yan Xicai not press the issue further, the Usurpers finally breathed a sigh of relief. However, they could sense that their plan might not go as smoothly once they entered the Ancient Tomb of the Martial Path…

No. 8 looked deeply at Chen Ling, whose lips curved into a harmless smile. But for some reason, seeing that smile sent a chill down No. 8’s spine…

As the ship steadily cut through the azure sea, massive ice floes began to appear all around. The biting cold seemed to penetrate to the bone, and even with heavy clothing, everyone found it difficult to withstand the extreme chill.

Simultaneously, at the edge of the horizon, a black sky gradually emerged. Even though it was still afternoon, the sunlight over the Frozen Sea had already begun to dim. Gloomy waters, carrying thick ice, flowed past the ship… This entire world was visibly descending into darkness.

Everyone stood on the deck, gazing up at the sky. Most of them had never witnessed such a sight, and neither had Chen Ling. A black sky over the Frozen Sea? This was the second time Chen Ling had witnessed a large-scale supernatural phenomenon since arriving in this era… The first was the aurora. However, even the omnipresent aurora within the Aurora Domain could not extend into this black sky. It was as if an invisible barrier existed in this realm, keeping all aurora out.

“This is…” The young enforcers exchanged bewildered glances.

“The domain of the Martial God’s Path,” the Four-Marked Enforcer slowly explained. “Humanity has a history spanning tens of thousands of years since its birth. From the moment we began to live in groups, human civilization emerged… From the initial acts of cutting wood, making fire, and hunting, to the numerous specialized divisions of labor after civilization prospered, the concept of ‘professions’ has permeated all of human civilization.

“Scholar, Healer, Soldier, Courtesan, Painter, Artisan, Go-player, Puppeteer, Shaman, Strongman, Diviner, Thief, Prostitute… These fourteen paths to godhood are the embodiment of the ‘divinity’ of certain professions within the long river of human civilization. And the Ancient Tomb of the Godly Paths is the materialization of the ‘divinity’ of the corresponding Godly Path in the human world. It contains all the accumulation of humanity on a particular path over tens of thousands of years… The Ancient Tomb of the Martial Path is the vessel for all slaughter and warfare since the dawn of humanity. Do you see that sword?”

Everyone looked in the direction of his finger, seeing a colossal black sword piercing through heaven and earth, standing majestically like a mountain in the central area of the black sky. The sword seemed to descend from the firmament, piercing through the human world and pointing directly to the earth’s core… Even as they gazed up from the deck, they could only see half of the sword’s blade; the other half, its hilt, was submerged in the dark sky above, invisible to the naked eye.

“Below that sword lies the ‘Ancient Tomb of the Martial Path.’”

“We… are going beneath that sword?”

“Exactly, but only the outermost area… The Ancient Tomb of the Martial Path is vast, and only a very small section is accessible to you.” The enforcer paused for a moment, “The Martial God’s Path is affirmed through slaughter. Within the Aurora Domain, you have no opportunity to kill, but in the ancient battlefields manifested by the Ancient Tomb of the Martial Path, you can fight to your heart’s content… When you find resonance amidst blood and fire, and accumulate enough killing intent through slaughter, you will have the chance to attract the foundation of the Martial God’s Path, which will grant you the qualification to embark on the divine path.”

Everyone stared blankly at the colossal sword in the sky, which was slowly drawing closer, their minds utterly shaken.

The ship hummed, and the cold wind howled, whipping up the hems of everyone’s clothes on deck, making them flap wildly.