Splitting the Heave

Outside the Four Spiritual Peak, a huge moon rose into the air and a frosty light illuminated the lands.  

A huge cloud flashed with three brilliant streaks of red, orange, and green light, and there seemed to be a trace of yellow mixed in between. The occasional flash of yellow looked weak, but it was extremely eye-catching.

All of a sudden, the cloud exploded and the moonlight disappeared. The darkness of night returned, but there were faint specks of light that fluttered through the sky. 

The specks of light resembled fireflies in the night sky, and every time it moved, it would edge closer to the giant moon hanging in the air. 

In the blink of an eye, the specks of light flashed seven times and right before they came into contact with the moon, all the specks of light fused back into one. It transformed into a massive lance.

Even though the moon in the sky trembled violently, the lance didn’t pull back.

A loud cry rang through the skies above the Four Spiritual Peak as the exchange went on.

A huge Rain Swallow appeared from nowhere and soared towards the giant moon.

Hiding in the shadow of the moon, the giant Rain Swallow’s claws reached towards the long lance.

In that instant, a snort boomed through the air. The cloud that dissipated earlier condensed to form a giant fist that punched straight towards the rain swallow.

“Ah!” 

A loud cry came after the blast that happened after the fist collided with its claws. Even though the fist was dispersed yet again, the rain swallow was sent tumbling through the air.

At the same time, the lance stabbed mercilessly into the huge moon.

Bang!

A visible shockwave tore through the lands and the cloud that dispersed earlier scattered even further.

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The lance returned to the hands of the wielder, and the moon started to fall. It eventually disappeared beneath the Four Spiritual Peak.

The Rain Swallow that finally steadied itself released an angry chirp before returning to the safety of the protection formation of the Four Spiritual Peak.

Even though both sides seemed even in that exchange, the experts of the Four Spiritual Peak were forced to return to the protection of their grand formation!

The scene wasn’t new to cultivators there. It has been happening for quite some time now.

Ever since the beast tide receded, the Shang Bo went over to stand guard outside the Four Spiritual Peak alone. He stopped any Martial Extermination Realm cultivator who tried to leave their protection formation.

Yu Zhiqing and Yan Que died during the war, Lang Xiaoyun was seriously injured, and Lu Zhanyi suffered some light injuries. Four of the seven Martial Extermination Realm cultivators of the Four Spiritual Peak were basically out of commission.

Even Yan Su’er, the crafty old grandma, suffered serious injuries due to the trap Ji Wenlong and Shang Bo set.

Ran Biluo was hiding in whatever hole she made, and Lu Zhanyi was a hired gun. Both were unwilling to deal with Shang Bo sitting at their doorstep. The only ones who had the ability to fight were Lang Xiaoyun and Yan Su’er. 

Otherwise, how could Shang Bo hold them off alone?!

His tactic of sitting in front of their doorstep was too damn insulting. Lang Xiaoyun and Yan Su’er were helpless. If they didn’t keep him in check, all their disciples would probably flee from the mountain.

Even though Yan Su’er had her own plans to dissociate herself with the other races on the Four Spiritual Peak, she had to put on a convincing show now that Shang Bo was there.

Both sides knew each other’s intentions.

Shang Bo’s true goal was to obstruct them from meeting up with the members of the Rose Party, and he had to fight for more time for the Tongyou Institution to deal with the enemies!

The Four Spiritual Peak wouldn’t give up on the Coral Forest anyway! They needed to mess with the Tongyou Peak every step of the way! If they could use the Rose Party to cause the Tongyou Peak to suffer huge losses, they would be more than happy!

“Shang Bo, if we really choose to leave the Four Spiritual Peak, you can’t stop us!” Lang Xiaoyun appeared close to the edge of the protection barrier as he yelled.

He stared at the void where a cloud was starting to reform itself and he seemed to be sure that that was where Shang Bo was hiding.

“Old wolf, I never thought of stopping you! You’re thinking too much! I’m here to train myself and gain some pointers from you! I need to consolidate my strength as soon as I can!” Shang Bo’s voice rang through the air.

Another figure appeared beside Lang Xiaoyun all of a sudden and Yan Su’er pointed her cane into the air. “There’s no need to hide it from us! Tell us what you plan to do in the Coral Forest!”

Shang Bo didn’t respond immediately. After some time, he finally spoke up. “Hahaha, you have always gotten straight to the point. It won’t be polite for me to beat about the bush then!” 

“Hurry up and speak. Do you plan to fight or do you want an alliance? Stop making us guess!” Yan Su’er had always been used to holding onto the initiative. When she spoke, Lang Xiaoyun stood silently at the side.

“So… You’re willing to help us kill the cultivators of the Rose Party?” Shang Bo’s clone appeared as the cloud around him condensed even more.

“Help? Hehe. Since we’re negotiating now, let’s take out some sincerity. Otherwise, you can screw off now!” Even though Yan Su’er was starting to look old and senile, her words proved otherwise.

Shang Bo chuckled in amusement. “I’m not the one who plots against others every chance I get. I’m not the one who allied with the Rose Party to sabotage my Tongyou Peak either. You guys colluded together and Yuwen Shengjie’s appearance in my Tongyou Peak was the greatest proof. Why are you talking to me about sincerity now?” 

After thinking about it, Yan Su’er turned to Lang Yunxiao. “You tell him!”

Lang Xiaoyun’s expression sank and he growled, “We cannot allow a third power to appear in the battlefield between two worlds.” 

Shang Bo nodded lightly in acknowledgment. “Yeah. The battlefield between two worlds belongs to us. The moment a new power appears, we’ll have to split the resources here again…”

“What do we do with the Coral Forest then?” Yan Su’er asked.

“It’s come down to a fair competition between us.” Shang Bo replied.

Yan Su’er sneered under her breath, however, Lang Xiaoyun replied in her stead. “Alright! It;’s settled then!” 

Shang Bo and Yan Su’er were clearly shocked and they turned to look at Lang Xiaoyun who had an expressionless face.

Shang Bo seemed to have thought of something and he chuckled in response, “Brother Lang is really thoughtful… Aren’t you afraid that the Rose Party will hold a grudge against you for breaking their arrangement?” 

“So what? Do you think they’ll come over to pester us before they take their revenge on you?” Lang Xiaoyun sneered.

“Brother Lang, you’re really something else!” 

“Alright, it’s settled then!” 

The two figures above the Four Spiritual Peak disappeared. 

A teasing smile appeared on Shang Bo’s face before his clone disappeared in a gust of wind.

…

In the Four Spiritual Hall of the Four Spiritual Peak. 

Several Martial Extermination Realm experts of the four great races sat around the main hall and Martial Intent Realm cultivators gathered behind them.

Lang Xiaoyun and Yan Su’er walked through the main entrance and were immediately bombarded with questions.

“Brother Lang, are we really going to work with them?” An expert from his race yelled.

Lang Xiaoyun swept his gaze across those present and growled, “All of you heard our conversation earlier. We cannot allow a third power to appear in the battlefield between the two worlds! This is our bottom line!” 

“Why aren’t we working with the Rose Party instead to get rid of the Tongyou Peak?” One of the Martial Intent Realm experts stood up and asked.

Glancing at the member from the corner of his eye, Lang Xiaoyun’s tone became a lot softer. “I understand the rage you have after Brother Yu died in battle. However, we need to take things one step at a time. We cannot send more people of our races to die! We need to be one hundred percent sure we can wipe out the Tongyou Peak if we try again!” 

The cultivator who spoke sat down after receiving his reply. He might be unhappy about it, but he couldn’t do anything!

Lang Xiaoyun no longer bothered with him and he glanced at several others. “When will our reinforcements arrive?” 

Looking at each other, one of them finally stood up to answer, “They’ll be coming soon. Senior She Zhihong will be bringing them here.”

“Good.” Lang Xiaoyun nodded before giving his order, “There’s no need for them to come to our Four Spiritual Peak. Tell them to go hide around the Tongyou Peak.” 

Everyone in the hall stared at him in shock.

A smile slowly appeared on Lang Xiaoyun’s face. “We need to deal with the Rose Party, but if we can take the opportunity to destroy the Tongyou Peak, they can only blame themselves for their carelessness. I didn’t say that we won’t move against them.”

A commotion broke out in the hall.

When discussions broke out in the hall, someone brought up an actual concern. “What if they already made preparations? They’ve been controlling the Tongyou Peak for a long time. It’s not easy for us to chase them out of their territory! Moreover, they definitely suffered less losses than us when the beast tide broke out! They have the Tongyou Institution behind them too… Reinforcements might also be coming their way…” 

Lang Xiaoyun seemed to have thought about it a long time ago and he interrupted the speaker, “That is why Brother She Zhihong cannot be the only one going. My brother, Lang Jingyun, will also be part of the operation! I will also ask Brother Lu Zhanyi to make his move. With the three of them, we’ll definitely be able to cripple the Tongyou Institution!” 

One of the Martial Intent Realm cultivators behind Lang Xiaoyun asked all of a sudden, “That… About Jingyun’s injuries…”

“Relax. I won’t play around with the life of our Martial Extermination Realm experts!” 

“As for the reinforcements from the Tongyou Institution… They will definitely send some people over! Kou Chongxue is injured and Yun Jing will have to remain in the institution. Even if they have hidden Martial Extermination Realm experts, I believe the three on our side will be more than enough to suppress them!” Lang Xiaoyun declared confidently. 

“As for the experts we’re sending to the Coral Forest…” 

Yan Su’er interrupted. “There’s no need to say any more. I’ll be heading there personally!” 

Lang Xiaoyun nodded slightly before turning to Ran Biluo. “Lass, what about you?” 

Ran Biluo was the only one on the Four Spiritual Peak who maintained most of her fighting strength after the war with the Tongyou Peak. 

However, she seemed to be extremely worn out after the battle and she hadn’t appeared in public since then. Even though everyone was discussing their future plans, she didn’t say a word.

Hearing Lang Xiaoyun’s question, she finally raised her head. “I was thinking if we should request for reinforcements from outside the Liao Continent… This will allow us to…” 

“Shut up!” Lang Xiaoyun roared at her before she could complete her sentence, shocking everyone in the hall.

Yan Su’er’s voice rang through the hall soon after. “Do you know what you’re talking about right now? How much blood and sweat did our four races shed in the battlefield for us to reach our current height? With victory right in front of us, you’re asking us to split it up even more? Did you come up with the idea of inviting experts from the other continents yourself or is this the intention of your race?”

Ran Biluo felt stares converging on her body and her body trembled involuntarily. She realized her mistake and she quickly tried to correct herself, “It was merely a passing comment. You don’t have to take me seriously. Anyway, I’ll head over to the Coral Forest too!” 

Lang Xiaoyun and Yan Su’er’s gazes met and they saw the doubt in each other’s eyes. However, Lang Xiaoyun couldn’t deal with the problem immediately and he nodded slowly, “Alright. It shall be decided then!”