Chapter 451: Chapter 446: Preparations Before Leaving, a Special Hobby
Only after arriving in Jinyun City did Yang Chan truly witness the cruelty of war.
The two armies faced off, a dense sea of people appearing before the city walls.
Once the war drums sounded, there was no retreat, only advance.
One living person after another fell into pools of blood, their vibrant lives silenced forever.
Yang Chan had seen his share of life and death, but this was the first time he had ever witnessed such a brutal battlefield.
When the two empires went to war, soldiers charged forward, fearless of death. Even those who had mastered Power couldn’t last long in the fray.
Those with External Cultivation were not invincible either. They would encounter experts of the same level and also face being surrounded. Once trapped in an encirclement, they would almost certainly meet a bitter end.
Only when the battle reached a certain point would the gongs sound the retreat. The two sides were at war, yet it felt more like they were simply trying to grind down each other’s forces.
Watching this, Yang Chan was filled with countless questions, but there was no one to answer them.
Everyone else was too busy trying to stay alive on the battlefield.
The Cyan Yuan Sect was responsible for defending a section of Jinyun City. When the fighting began, people would die, and the wounded disciples would be sent to them for treatment.
Even while treating the wounded in the rear, Yang Chan had survived three assassination attempts. Two were from assassins disguised as injured men who attacked during treatment, and one was a killer who struck in the dead of night.
His cultivation was much higher than he let on. The moment he sensed something was wrong, he would retreat and let Elder Song Yunxiang, his protector, handle it. Naturally, he remained unscathed.
As for the assassin in the night, he was exposed by a trap Yang Chan had set. He died from the poison coating the trap before he could even get close.
Yang Chan wasn’t the only one targeted; other Pharmacists had similar experiences. Some were already nothing but ashes.
Even in the cold weather, this was necessary to prevent the corpses from rotting and causing plagues.
Besides, Yang Chan had been in Jinyun City for over a month, and the weather was gradually warming up.
The Cyan Yuan Sect was only on the defensive, yet their casualties were still over fifty percent.
Although the Jin Meng Empire’s losses were heavier, no one felt happy about it, because the war was still ongoing.
"Elder Song, are you ready?"
After a busy day, Yang Chan returned to his room, looked toward a spot hidden in the shadows, and spoke slowly.
The man was within his senses, but he didn’t let on. The reason he looked at that specific spot was that it was where the man had appeared the last few times.
’So, naturally, I should look this way out of habit.’
"Everything is ready. We can leave in three days. The replacement bodies have all been prepared."
From the darkness, Song Yunxiang spoke. A figure emerged from the shadows, but from a spot to the side.
He had changed his position after noticing where Yang Chan was looking.
’Experts need to maintain an air of mystery.’ He was doing a great job of that.
"The Great Zhou Imperial Dynasty and the Jin Meng Empire seem to have reached some sort of agreement. They’re madly sacrificing the soldiers and sect disciples of both nations. It’s completely baffling."
The corner of Yang Chan’s mouth twitched slightly, but he pretended not to have seen anything. He then turned to the new location as if he had just noticed the man, a flicker of deliberate surprise in his eyes.
"Sect Leader Gu sent several more letters to the Merak Sacred Land but received no reply. Only recently did he get a single word back: ’Retreat.’ There was no other news. That’s why he arranged for us to leave Jinyun City."
Song Yunxiang also couldn’t understand what the Great Zhou Imperial Dynasty was up to, but upon receiving Gu An’s instructions, he didn’t hesitate to carry them out.
During this period, even many Inner Masters had fallen.
If they stayed in Jinyun City, he too would likely be in danger, especially since the situation here was so bizarre.
To be precise, it wasn’t just Jinyun City. The battlefronts in Qi State and Yu State were the same, madly grinding down the soldiers and sect disciples of both nations.
If not for the fact that the two sides were at war and there were no strange Magic Arrays or sacrificial rituals, one might think the two empires were performing some kind of Evil Technique.
This disregard for the people’s welfare was madly draining the national strength of both empires. It was as if they found their own power too great and wanted to pare it down. The entire situation was utterly bizarre and incomprehensible.
In a situation like this, leaving was the natural choice.
Yang Chan had no intention of participating on the battlefield. When they left, their official story would be that they had been assassinated, a way to explain their departure from Jinyun City.
With the two nations in this state, staying any longer was courting death. The only reason they were still alive was because they had been more vigilant than others.
In fact, it wasn’t just the Cyan Yuan Sect. Other Sects had also begun sending away their most promising disciples.
In a few more days, the time would come to challenge the Great Zhou Imperial Dynasty’s authority and find a chance to leave.
The Great Zhou Imperial Dynasty’s National Guardian Martial Saint Ancestor was said to have arrived at the border, but no one had seen him, nor was there any sign of him taking action. This made the various Sects deeply suspicious.
If an expert of that level wasn’t making a move, they naturally had no intention of sticking around either.
Yang Chan and the others were the ones leaving ahead of time; they represented the future of the major Sects.
After leaving, these people wouldn’t return to their Sects but would go into hiding. They would observe the situation between the Great Zhou and the Jin Meng Empire. If things went badly, they would become one of their Sect’s hidden seeds for the future, scattered abroad.
Yang Chan and his group were better off; they could go to the Merak Sacred Land, giving them an extra escape route.
"Our departure this time will all depend on you, Elder Song. Once we join the Merak Sacred Land, if there’s anything you need help with, just say the word. If I can help, I certainly won’t hesitate!"
He had gotten pretty good at the art of making such promises.
’Then again, it isn’t really an empty promise. For me, using some resources to ensure my safety is nothing.’
He preferred not to reveal his hidden cultivation if he didn’t have to. These were trump cards for survival, and keeping them secret avoided unwanted attention.
Having witnessed too much death, he much preferred to keep a low profile.
"Rest assured, Pharmacist Yang. With me on the job, the journey will be safe. There won’t be any problems."
Hearing this, Song Yunxiang puffed out his chest and declared.
Protecting Yang Chan during this time had been easy for him, much better than the other Elders who had to fight and kill on the front lines.
An Inner Refining Elder had already died in battle, which had put him on high alert. That’s why he was already prepared when Gu An’s letter arrived.
He had started his preparations in advance.
According to their original agreement, if the situation turned sour, they would leave Jinyun City immediately. Now with Gu An’s letter, he had even fewer reservations.
Although the Merak Sacred Land hadn’t sent a reply regarding the Great Zhou’s situation, the letter had indeed been delivered. Sometimes, no reply was a signal in itself.
"Then I’ll follow your arrangements, Elder Song."
Yang Chan let out a long breath. This part, at least, wasn’t an act; he truly meant it.
Leaving this place would be a relief for him.
Compared to the peaceful life in the Cyan Yuan Sect, this place was a living hell.
He was exhausted every day, with very little time for Cultivation. He missed the creature comforts—warm quilts, fair-skinned pillows, and other generous assets. Everything here was a hardship.
Some people had made offers, but to Yang Chan, it was just trouble. He was already planning to leave, and besides, Elder Song was still protecting him from within the room. He had no interest in putting on a live show for someone, as he didn’t have such peculiar tastes.
If it were a woman, he might have invited her to join him on the ’battlefield,’ where he could take on two opponents at once and display his true combat power. But a man? No thanks.
Then there was the Yuanzhen Mutual Sensing Technique, a Dual Cultivation Method. He had practiced it with Han Bingyu before, and it could slightly speed up his Inner Refining. It was better than nothing, though not as helpful as the Taiyin Saintess had been.
Now, he didn’t even have time for that kind of cultivation.
Having obtained such a cultivation technique, he naturally wanted to make good use of it and practice it to a profound level. Staying in Jinyun City was severely limiting his cultivation.
"Yes. Get some rest, Pharmacist Yang."
"I will ensure your safety."
As Song Yunxiang spoke, he faded back into the darkness, returning to his original spot and perfectly avoiding Yang Chan’s line of sight.
Yang Chan sensed it all, and the corner of his mouth twitched again.
"I’ll be troubling you then, Elder Song!"
After a moment’s thought, Yang Chan clasped his fist in thanks toward the spot where he had just seen Song Yunxiang disappear.
He could sense the smile that appeared on the other man’s face as he did so. Clearly, Song Yunxiang was very satisfied by this gesture.
’What a peculiar fixation.’
But it didn’t affect Yang Chan, so he paid it no mind.
Extinguishing the candle, Yang Chan lay down on the bed and went to sleep.
Closing his eyes, Yang Chan waited for dawn. Before long, a very faint sound arose. It was subtle, but still within Yang Chan’s perception. He ignored it.
It was Song Yunxiang. Around dawn, he would leave his room to observe the surroundings. After another couple of hours, he would come back in to check again, then sleep nearby, constantly on watch.
He was extremely diligent when it came to protecting Yang Chan, which naturally satisfied him.
After all, a man dedicated to his duty was far more likable than one who was negligent.
This was one of the reasons Yang Chan had made his promise. Based on this alone, the man deserved some Cultivation Resources in return, which was a small price for Yang Chan to pay.
As long as he could continue his alchemy, he would never be short of Cultivation Resources.
Yang Chan sensed the man’s departure but paid it no mind. His own perception covered a much wider area, and besides, he had set up numerous traps inside the room.
Some were set in front of Song Yunxiang, while others were set in secret—the "secret" ones being set while Song Yunxiang was hiding in the shadows.
He had no desire to have his traps sprung on Song Yunxiang. That would be a real laugh.
Yang Chan had no interest in friendly fire.
Otherwise, the subsequent medical treatment would fall on his shoulders, forcing him to create more work for himself.
Moreover, he had noticed that while Elder Song Yunxiang was secretly watching him set traps, the man was constantly nodding with a smile playing on his lips.
He didn’t know if the elder was impressed with his trap-setting skills or pleased with his own hiding skills, which allowed him to see everything.
Yang Chan couldn’t figure it out, but he didn’t care either. As long as the man protected him, it was fine. And as long as it didn’t involve one man forcing himself on another.
After all, Yang Chan was only interested in high-quality members of the opposite sex.
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