Along with his savior, Du Ping followed after the rest of the attackers until the [Void Palace] members entered a room on the 7th floor. And while a couple tried to follow inside and met a grizzly end, Du Ping had been held back by Pang.
"Inside, the limits don't apply. So if you enter, you will meet a true Emperor." Pang had said to him as he grabbed his shoulder. And while Du Ping doubted it for a few moments, the consequent disappearance of the two presences that entered confirmed Pang's words.
"Thank you!" Du Ping thanked the young cultivator from the [Demon Worshippers] region again. His savior had saved his life, again.
"It's not strange for you to not know. We did not either, at least until we assaulted the tower before." Pang, or Bai Qi, shrugged the thanks off and explained.
"But what now? We got nothing! And all the other towers were divided between the others by now." Du Ping was grateful to remain alive, but the matter of having neither spoils nor kills weighed on him. He and his companions had entered the ravine itself just a few hours ago, and they found that every tower, herb, and what else was looted and divided for that moment.
"There are almost a hundred in the same situation. Maybe someone has a plan on how to change it?" Bai Qi did not know what happened outside, but he did suspect that at least a couple of local-type leaders should have arisen. Thus, if he wanted to loot and inflict damage, he should go after them.
"Oh, you think that Bu Zan has thought of something? Could be, after all, he has no results to show off." Du Ping bit the hook immediately, so Bai Qi found out the name of a probable target.
Du Ping knew close to nothing, being from a truly insignificant power and a different region, but he did observe Bu Zan before. And so his information was at least something to go on.
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Bu Zan was indeed planning something. The lack of results was despairing enough, but his reasons lay in his title. The [Warlord] title implied being the leader or boss of the [Gray Gate] cultivators. So, having any of its variations meant an almost secure candidacy to inherit the position.
Initially, Bu Zan was one of the three young generation candidates, but now that number dropped to two. And with the [Cliff Warlord] traveling the [Demon Worshippers] region in some task, this assault was Bu Zan's opportunity to take the lead. And to take it, he needed to get some outstanding performance. One noticed not only by the boss but also by the [Seven Souls Sect].
And for that, Bu Zan needed to defeat, and either kill or capture, an elder of the [Void Palace].
Occupied with his thoughts and plans, Bu Zan did not notice the intent stare from a cultivator that had just left the tower. Cloaked and hooded in brown colors, accompanied by a wimpish and skittish man in green robes, the man had not stopped observing Bu Zan for long. But as for why? Only the owner of the stare would know.
***
"Are you sure?" Bu Zan asked for confirmation as a woman from the [Deer Lake Gang] brought news. It wasn't that she was a subordinate of his, not even a part of his power, but a few of her partners had joined Bu Zan's group, so she chose to come and inform him.
"Yes, there is no mistake. Another three towers acted as this one, and at the same time. And now, another three did the same." She wasn't used to being doubted, but she repeated what she knew again. Inside, she was very interested in how the renowned [Young Bear Warlord] would act. Or maybe she just wanted to participate in that action, as someone who stood close to inheriting a power wasn't anything to scoff at.
"I see, thanks." Bu Zan could not care more for the woman, but he was grateful for the information indeed. It confirmed his thoughts about the [Void Palace] continuing acting like that. And it also gave him hope to catch one of these outings unaware.
The towers were located a mile from each other, and while restricted, none of the present cultivators could sense anything but the nearest ones. The [Void Palace] Head included that in her calculations. So the plan was for three towers of each group to act in unison. And each of these three, to have a distance of at least five miles from the others. After all, with no possibility to use message talismans as they required surrounding qi to fly, it would disorganize the attackers. And indeed, either the attackers would group around the latest towers or spread out even more thinly.
Bu Zan could not be sure of the plan itself, but if towers acted with an hour of difference and not alone, there were not so many options for the next ones.
The entire group counted with only 38 towers, and six had already acted.
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The towers on the sides weren't a line, but with the exact borders of the gardens, they weren't in absolute disorder either. The northern part of the ravine being the narrowest one, with only a single tower from each side.
Then, as it slowly widened, the number of towers on each side increased to two, three, and up to six near the southern edge. Only to suddenly decrease to three, near the place where the east and west sides encountered the group of 23 towers that bordered the ravine's south.
The numbering of the towers was slightly misleading, but the 32nd second was on the easternmost edge of the ravine, in the single six towers line. From it, five ran to the west, three lined to the south, and another four lined to the north. Bu Zan's senses could only cover two on each side and one to the front, but he was right about neither of them having acted yet. And he also was right about them preparing to do so. Or, more correctly, one of them, the 35th tower, the middle one of the towers to the south.
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Bai Qi paid no heed to the constant chattering from the bandit or whatever he had rescued. His attention was on the man confirmed to be the current leader of the ones gathered around the tower. Bai Qi could almost feel how the latter was thinking of a plan, so he was trying to guess what it would entail.
Bai Qi had not approached or interacted with anyone except Du Ping, who was grateful and dumb enough to fail to notice any ruse, but he did not need it as Bu Zan loudly proclaimed his plan.
"One of the five towers we can quickly reach will act soon. And while each one has people around, they are lesser than our number. Last time we failed, but now I will not allow it." Bu Zan had not a bad skill for giving out speeches. After opening it by reminding everyone of the failure, he immediately ignited the hopes of success.
The plan wasn't anything special, but it appeared viable even to Bai Qi, who always took any plans made by others with a grain of salt.
Basically, the close to a hundred cultivators would separate into three teams. Each would move a mile to each of the three directions, south, north, and east, and prepare for lunging at the tower that acted.
"And for the first breaths, forget about your gains. The objective is to cut them from the tower first, and then you can separate, divide, or work together as you want." Bu Zan was aware that most groups would only vie for their rewards. So, he reinforced the point several times until everyone agreed.
"Let's go!" Bu Zan took seven men dressed like him and moved south. Another twenty-odd cultivator from two different powers followed, so the group numbered 32.
And while Bu Zan noticed a brown-cloaked cultivator who started after them, he decided that there was no problem with it. After all, what could a lone guy do? And even if he did something grand, wasn't Bu Zan the leader anyway?
***
"[Sky Grass Society], take the left side of the tower. [Deer Lake Gang] the right one. Hide yourselves behind, and the [Void Palace] members will not notice you before leaving. As for us, we will go to the front and serve as the bait. Also, I need to speak with that few gathered nearby and make them join." As they neared the tower just a few moments later, Bu Zan commanded. And surprisingly, he heard no comments from the other groups, as they obeyed right away.
Bai Qi maintained his distance before. But when Bu Zan gathered the thirteen cultivators from at least seven different powers near the tower, he joined the gathering. Bai Qi even voiced his support for Bu Zan's plan to join forces as one group, although it was clear that it was just a manner to make most of the spoils fall into the latter's hands.
And why would not he? After all, Bai Qi was here to avoid them having any spoils.
Luck, fate, destiny. Be it called in anyway, Bu Zan had indeed arrived near the tower that would act next as part of the third group. Moreover, it would do so just a quarter of an hour from that moment!
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Elder Ye Zexi did not fancy fighting or risks. Still, today's battle was one that she must take part in. The [Void Palace] had been her house for over seventy years, and three generations of disciples had already left her tower as full-fledged cultivators. She even felt like avoiding martial-path disciples, and her last group was one of six people only. All of them were talented for either the Herbs or the Pill path, and she decided to concentrate on them in place of battle. Thus, while she was ready to fight, as she had to, she planned to keep her disciples out of it until the last moment.
"But Master! We also are members of the Palace!" Still, all of her attempts to make them stay back and not participate did not work, so in the end, four accompanied her into clearing the tower. The other two also wanted to, but Ye Zexi would not allow a 4th and 5th level pair of Sages to fight in any case, even if they resented her for it later.
Ye Zexi was in the dark about how the other elders' situation turned out, but for her, only six hostiles remained in the tower. From which only one had been a Warrior Lord, so she initially thought her worries were unfounded.
Outside, the situation looked unstable, but she only sensed 12 hostiles in front, and her objective wasn't to fight them all anyway.
"Listen carefully. After I go out, wait for six breaths and if no barrage of attacks occurs, quickly leave the tower and send a few attacks. Then, we will retreat here and hope that they follow us. If not, we will repeat it once or twice and move back to the control room. Understood?" Ye Zexi lacked the will for making a plan more daring than it, but she considered it should be enough anyway.
And her thoughts were pretty much correct, even though they lacked the will and drive of elders like Gu Guanyu or He Delan.***
As Ye Zexi left the tower, there was a barrage of attacks indeed. But it numbered only ten skills in total, and neither of them was worthy of anything but a barrier of aura, which she immediately used.
*Boom*
Locking on the mere four cultivators, restricted, at the 3rd level of the Warrior Lord, with the others hardly a challenge for her disciples, Ye Zexi launched forward.
After her, four female disciples with cultivations varying between the 1st and 4th level of the Warrior Lord followed.
"No, retreat, now!" As her senses, at last, enveloped the surrounding mile, free of the tower's interference, Ye Zexi suddenly shouted. But it was too late.
*Swoosh*
Two dozens of auras exploded behind her and her disciples, quickly enveloping the entrance to the tower, as to cut their retreat.
A dozen cultivators in front rushed forward, intending to clash with her and her disciples while the retreat was cut off completely.
The situation was dire enough, but then, another two dozens flared just a mile away.
And among this close to fifty cultivators, a single aura had flared not intending to attack the entrapped [Void Palace] members but the attackers themselves. Not that they knew about it yet.