Chapter Thirty-Three: The Trap

“All the members are present, so I must announce a matter that concerns the very survival of our Azure Mist Dao Palace!” The master, Qingyang, spoke with grave solemnity.

“As you all know, every one of us from the Azure Mist Dao Palace is now in this military camp. The regional army has no integrity—they treat us as cannon fodder. If things continue this way, we are doomed to die! Therefore, after discussing with my fellow brothers, I have resolved to seize an opportunity and escape!”

At these words, the disciples were caught between shock and elation. After all, no one wished to die as mere cannon fodder.

Many had long harbored resentment toward their uncles’ capitulation to the regional army, and now that the truth was laid bare, most were in favor of this decision.

“Master, how will we escape?” a disciple asked in a low voice.

“We now number over two hundred, so escaping from the camp outright is impossible. But if we wait until the rebel army attacks, we will have a much greater chance to flee amidst the chaos of battle!”

“There are no city walls in Willow River Town. When the rebels attack, the fighting will surely spill into the open fields or the town itself. Our chances to escape will indeed be much higher in such circumstances!”

“Enough, everyone remain calm. This must be kept secret for now—do not tell the ordinary disciples, lest word leaks out. When we reach the battlefield, then you may inform those nearby. At that moment, act decisively—if you must flee, then flee! Whether you can escape or not will depend on your luck!” Qingyang said helplessly.

Amidst the crowd, Qin Yi listened to Qingyang’s words and thought to himself that the uncles had finally been driven to desperation and decided to take a risk.

Still, it was better than having no hope at all.

...

After leaving the tent, Qin Yi hurried toward his father.

In a quiet corner:

“Father, tonight at midnight, I’ll come for you. Don’t sleep too soundly,” Qin Yi said to Qin Zumin.

“Can we really escape? I’m afraid I’ll drag you down. Maybe you should escape alone,” Qin Zumin hesitated.

“Father, don’t worry. I’m much stronger now, and getting you out of the camp should not be a problem,” Qin Yi reassured him.

“Very well!” Qin Zumin gritted his teeth. If their escape was discovered, he planned to let his son go ahead—if he died, so be it.

With their plan settled, Qin Yi returned outside his tent and continued practicing the Celestial Authority Claw.

In the afternoon:

Qin Yi was about to rest before continuing his training when suddenly an urgent call to assemble echoed from the vanguard camp.

“Emergency assembly! Hurry, hurry, all members of the Vanguard Battalion, gather immediately!” Guo Lin, deputy to Xue Yinhou, strode in with a hundred armored soldiers.

Soon, all more than two hundred members of the Azure Mist Dao Palace were assembled.

“Lord Guo, may I ask what is happening?” Qingyang looked at Guo Lin and his hundred men and spoke.

“All of you, arm yourselves and follow me out to carry out a mission!” Guo Lin said in a low, commanding voice.

“What mission is it?” Zhang Juwei asked subconsciously.

“Hmph! Don’t ask what you shouldn’t. Just follow orders and prepare yourselves. We leave in fifteen minutes!” Guo Lin’s tone was strict.

“Understood!”

The uncles exchanged glances—this was their chance!

“Going out on a mission? The uncles will surely seize this opportunity to escape!” Qin Yi thought to himself.

He too would need to escape—but his father was still in the camp.

This time, the miscellaneous workers from Azure Mist Dao Palace did not follow.

“At the right moment, I must act. No matter what, I need to get Father out!”

Fifteen minutes later.

The more than two hundred Azure Mist Dao Palace members, accompanied by Guo Lin’s hundred soldiers, left the camp and headed into the wilds.

...

In the wild.

At a fork in the official road, soldiers clad in leather armor lay concealed among the woods on both sides.

“Commander, are we really going to slaughter all these Daoists?” Xue Yinhou hesitated—there were many skilled individuals among them, who could take down at least one rebel each in battle.

“It is a pity to kill them, but we have recruited too many scattered groups lately. The army’s morale is unstable, so we must kill these Daoists to restore order. If we don’t, the decisive battle with the rebels could turn disastrous!” Pang Shaozheng’s gaze was icy. If not for the need to make an example, he could have fabricated charges and dealt with them in the camp.

Since this was meant to be a lesson for all the various groups in the camp, the show had to be played out.

“Commander, you’re right.”

...

The long procession moved farther and farther from the camp. Some disciples of Azure Mist Dao Palace began whispering among themselves, passing along messages.

Before the fork in the road:

“Stop!” Guo Lin, mounted on his warhorse, raised his hand.

Everyone halted at once.

“Wait here. I’ll take some men to scout ahead,” Guo Lin said, selecting fifty soldiers to head down the right-hand road.

Now, only fifty soldiers remained with the more than two hundred Azure Mist Dao Palace members.

When Guo Lin and the others disappeared down the road, Qingyang and Lu Mingxuan exchanged glances, and the disciples waited tensely for their uncles’ instructions.

One minute.

Three minutes.

Five minutes!

“What are we waiting for? Run!” Qingyang cried out.

“Run, into the woods!” Wang Qingxuan shouted.

“Hurry, hurry!”

At once, the disciples scattered like frightened birds, fleeing toward the woods on both sides.

The fifty foot soldiers left behind were stunned.

“Why are you running?” The centurion in charge was bewildered by the scene.

“Stop them! Anyone who keeps running will be killed on the spot!” The centurion charged at the nearest Azure Mist Dao Palace disciple.

“We’ll hold them off to buy time for the disciples!” Qingyang prepared to confront the centurion.

A long blade suddenly pierced through Qingyang’s back and out his chest. Turning, he saw that it was one of his own disciples who had struck him!

“You!” Blood spilled from Qingyang’s mouth as he fell, disbelief written across his face.

“Traitor! What are you doing?” Wang Qingxuan roared in fury when he saw his chief disciple, Wang Hongbo, attack the master.

Arrows whistled from both sides of the woods, striking down the disciples who had just reached the forest’s edge.

Wang Qingxuan and the others finally realized—it was a trap! They had been betrayed!

“So it was you. You betrayed us!”

“Master, I had no choice! I didn’t want this. But the seven great arts of Azure Mist Dao Palace can only be cultivated to the fifth stage. At twenty-five, I’ve reached the fourth stage. My talent should not be wasted like this. Commander promised me a technique that can be cultivated to the seventh stage—I couldn’t refuse!” Wang Hongbo laughed in a twisted manner.

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