Chen Ping's Sword

I understand now, their scheme is targeting Seventh Brother. They’ve calculated that if Fairy Fang falls into the ruins, Seventh Brother will have no choice but to rescue her. As long as he’s trapped in there, their objective will be achieved."

Ji Mingyue gritted her silver teeth in secret, "Such a sinister plot must have been orchestrated by my uncle. Although the True Martial King is known for his patience and his martial arts are extremely strong, he’s not that clever. It must have been Feng Yuantu who devised the plan, making people aware it’s a trap yet unable to resist falling for it. This is precisely his style of strategy."

"Then can’t we not rescue her?" Han Xiaoru felt dizzy with all the twists and turns and preferred to just slash through with her sword when things got confusing.

Knowing full well it’s a fiery pit, yet standing by and watching oneself jump in felt uncomfortable no matter how she thought about it.

"We can’t."

Chen Ping shook his head.

His eyes slightly darkened as he looked in the direction of that ruin’s blood-red vortex.

Yet he didn’t provide a detailed explanation.

In fact, he didn’t need to waste much breath.

In a person’s life, there will always be many choices.

Sometimes, you choose to advance; other times, you choose to retreat.

But at this moment, Chen Ping knew he couldn’t back down.

Even if not considering his friendship with Fang Qingzhu, purely from the standpoint of interest, this Fairy Fang couldn’t be allowed to die.

At least, she couldn’t die within the realm of Xingqing Prefecture.

"Both of you return and assist our ancestor and senior uncle in defending the city. If nothing goes wrong, the True Martial King’s army will soon be at our doorstep."

Chen Ping was well aware of the influence in Xingqing Prefecture, which was essentially built up by him single-handedly.

Without him in the center holding everything together, over time, not to mention the instability among the people, the various forces under his command wouldn’t work cohesively.

Expecting the Cui Family and Primordial Sect to cooperate seamlessly was impossible.

Without his suppression, in the short term, there might not be an issue.

But once too much time passed, he even suspected that the Vermilion Bird General, Baimei General, and others, who had surrendered after the East Wood Army’s defeat, might start calculating their own agendas.

In such a situation, if the True Martial King didn’t know how to take advantage of it, it would be a waste of his True Martial title.

It would also squander the "trapping strategy" designed by Feng Yuantu.

The highest level of strategy is not only mobilizing one’s own people but also the enemy.

Even if the opposing party sees through the strategist’s intent, they cannot break it and can only dance to the strategist’s tune.

Feng Yuantu’s strategy is brilliant precisely for this reason.

Of course, that’s assuming Chen Ping hadn’t learned some secrets from Tang Lin’er’s memories. This situation would be a dead end.

But now, it’s different.

The plan they used seemed vicious, yet ironically, it happened to lend Chen Ping a helping hand.

It was said that the Celestial Star Ruins had been rumored like thunder in their ears. Chen Ping had heard people speak mysteriously about it many times and had obtained several top martial arts from within the ruins.

But he truly didn’t know where exactly the ruins were located or how to navigate them.

When he first chased here, if not for the occasional flashes of lightning guiding the way, even knowing the direction, he might not have found the precise location of the ruins, not to mention breaking through its numerous mechanisms to see the blood vortex itself.

The secrets he obtained from Tang Lin’er only displayed their use and weren’t too detailed.

Some unimportant details of the other party’s life couldn’t possibly be known to him either.

Recently, he learned the Woyan Monarch of the Beizhou Royal Court might secretly lead a team of masters south, so it was naturally false to say there was no pressure.

Therefore, Chen Ping had already planned to return to Xingqing Prefecture, immediately dispatch his men in force, and search for the precise location of the ruins thoroughly.

He was worried about not finding it in a short time.

Unexpectedly, turning back, it was right before his eyes.

Isn’t that improbable?

Even more remarkably, he had a key on him.

The Celestial Star Order.

As if it had been arranged by the heavens.

Chen Ping looked up at the sky, speculating whether it was the benefit gained from taking Tang Lin’er’s opportunities.

Or perhaps the advantage gained after occupying half of Jiangnan and greatly enhancing his Qi Number.

In any case, heaven wouldn’t toy with him.

Therefore, what seemed to be a fiery pit was actually a chance encounter.

"Just not knowing why Fang Qingzhu is so intent on heading toward the ruins. Looking at the situation, it doesn’t seem like she’s simply running from pursuit..."

Ji Mingyue understood, "I actually found out about this. I heard back then more than twenty people teamed up to explore the ruins because they heard a rumor.

The rumor said there was an extraordinary treasure in the Celestial Star Ruins, and it held secrets for breaking through the Divine Martial realm. Once this news got out, anyone with aspirations for another breakthrough couldn’t resist. From the Central Plains to the Desert North, except for those with a steady temperament who didn’t explore, a large number of masters ventured in.

I also found out that among the top-tier masters who went in with those twenty or so people, there were also some lowly Jianghu wanderers. In the end, only six or seven came out alive. Those who survived eventually died as well."

Ji Mingyue refused to leave and didn’t persuade Chen Ping not to rescue Fang Qingzhu. She knew some matters couldn’t be reasoned against, and she could only show with action that she was determined not to leave.

If they were going in, they would go in together.

Han Xiaoru, on the contrary, was her usual carefree self, not frightened by Ji Mingyue’s words. With her broadsword in hand, she was eager to try, occasionally glancing at the vortex, as if estimating in what form the danger would appear.

"Alright then, if you want to follow, then follow. But at the moment of entry, don’t use any ultimate skill. I mean, any unusual skills, peerless skill, or specialty shouldn’t be shown. Even if a sword or blade is swinging at your head."