After Sun Naiyong’s explanation, everyone finally understood the reason behind Fang Yun’s previous actions.
Regardless of whether Fang Yun spoke or not, the Demon Clan’s Holy Son would have set an ambush. As for when and where, no one could guess.
“How far are we from the exit? And how far is the insect nest from the exit?” Fang Yun asked.
“About six miles. The insect nest is three miles ahead of us, and the insects from the Poison Blood Nest can only move within one mile of the nest. After all, they are formed by demon magic and poison mist, not real insects. Once they stray too far from the nest, they will dissipate,” Sun Naiyong said with a smile.
“I knew the Demon Clan’s Holy Son wouldn’t wait for me at the last mile,” Fang Yun said with a smile.
Sun Naiyong analyzed, “The Demon Clan’s Holy Son has two choices: either to obstruct us all the way, which could easily turn into a fueling tactic, launching small-scale attacks that deplete his own strength. This method might work against ordinary soldiers, but it’s ineffective against us.”
“The other is to reduce consumption along the way, letting us slowly deplete our strength, and then concentrate his forces at a certain moment to crush us with absolute superiority. You repeatedly hinted that we have the ability to break through at the end, with two purposes.”
“The first is to provoke us. You continuously display confidence and contempt for the Demon Clan’s Holy Son. Even if he remains indifferent, he would want to kill you even more, and to win beautifully. From what we’ve learned about the Demon Clan’s Holy Son, like many of his clan, he is cunning and insidious but also has the heart of a serpent that swallows elephants, a nature that the Demon Clan cannot change. Moreover, if he dares to appear and obstruct us, he must have some confidence.”
“The second purpose is to strengthen our determination for the final battle. We must charge at the last moment, but you deliberately emphasized it, making the Demon Clan feel a stronger crisis, forcing them to choose the method with the greatest chance of success, not the safest one! The key to the whole affair is that not only did the Demon Clan’s Holy Son believe it, but we did too, because we all believe you can lead us out at the last moment,” Sun Naiyong said.
Fang Yun replied, “Actually, the moment he believed we would charge at the end, he had already lost! His greatest advantage is this poison mist. He can move freely and clearly know our whereabouts, holding the initiative. But now, let alone the Poison Blood Nest being immobile, even if it could move, he has already lost the initiative, giving us more time to think of countermeasures.”
The green poison mist still enveloped the sixth corridor.
“Alas…” Suddenly, a long sigh came from outside the mist, carrying a strange power that made it impossible to determine the position of the serpent demon through the sound.
“It’s no wonder you’re the one who led them from the second corridor to the sixth. You’re right, I have many ways to deal with you, but with the miraculous Fang Yun here, putting pressure on me, my choices are much fewer. He didn’t use any profound tactics or methods, just strengthened his own advantages and exploited our serpent nature, and yet it was so simple that I failed to realize it in time. I’m curious, how did you think of using this method?”
Fang Yun replied, “It’s nothing special. Your serpent clan has an amazing talent for sensing danger. For example, if you have a hundred choices and we force you to make one, you would feel cornered and detect it in advance to counter us. But I didn’t do that. From beginning to end, I left you with several choices, always a way out, completely nullifying your greatest advantage!”
After Fang Yun finished speaking, the Presented Scholars of the Human Clan suddenly realized, and the Demon Clan’s Holy Son was dumbfounded.
These Presented Scholars had considered how to deal with the Demon Clan’s Holy Son before, how to overcome the serpent clan’s talent for sensing danger, but their ideas were all about removing his ability. None had thought like Fang Yun, to win by “leaving the opponent a way out.”
“So there was a third layer to your plan! The first two layers are ordinary, but this method of nullifying the serpent clan’s talent is absolutely brilliant! Could it be the ‘Do not press a desperate foe too hard’ from Sun Tzu’s ‘Art of War’?” Sun Naiyong, a descendant of Sun Tzu, immediately recognized the origin of Fang Yun’s tactics.
“Yes. A cornered bird will fight, a cornered beast will bite,” Fang Yun had long studied the commentaries on Sun Tzu’s ‘Art of War’, among which the most famous three were written by Cao Cao, Du Mu, and Chen Hao.
Cao Cao and Du Mu were indeed famous, and although Chen Hao was not as well-known as the other two, he was considered one of the three authorities on Sun Tzu’s ‘Art of War’.
The Demon Clan’s Holy Son suddenly sneered, “Ordinary insect nests cover at most one mile, but my nest spans three miles! Even if you discover it in advance, what can you do! I…”
He suddenly stopped talking, his eyes revealing indescribable panic, his serpent scales standing on end as if he had seen a natural enemy when looking at Fang Yun.
On the Holy Origin Mainland, only Cao Cao existed, no Du Mu, no Chen Hao.
In the Holy Origin Mainland, Sun Tzu’s ‘Art of War’ is sacred, one of the classics of All the Saints. A good commentary on it could directly point to The Path of the Saints.
Fang Yun’s words carried a strange sound that spread in all directions. At first, no one noticed, but soon they realized that although Fang Yun was just speaking casually, he sounded like a sovereign, like heaven, like a saint, with an imperceptible authority that seemed to command all things.A martial spirit of the Military Strategists, intent on conquering all directions, emanated from Fang Yun’s body. He stood like a great general on the battlefield, his gaze sweeping across the world, and where his eyes landed, no one could stand as his equal.
Many Presented Scholars were so shocked they were rendered speechless. At this moment, Fang Yun was akin to a Great Scholar in person, his pen strokes driving back legions of demons.
“It’s the sound of the Path of the Saints again! And it’s the Military Strategists’ Path of the Saints!” Yan Yukong blurted out. He still remembered how Fang Yun had interpreted “If there is an error, correct it; if not, then encourage it” after the Dragon Boat Literary Meeting, and now Fang Yun was interpreting Sun Tzu’s “The Art of War.”
Sun Naiyong suddenly raised his hand excitedly, unsure where to slap, but finally he smacked his thigh hard and exclaimed, “We are saved! The sixth corridor can be passed!”
The sound of the Confucian Path of the Saints embodies benevolence and righteousness, stabilizing the nation and pacifying the people, while the sound of the Military Strategists’ Path of the Saints points directly to wisdom and courage, sweeping away bandits and pacifying rebels!
“Ah…” The Serpent Saint’s son suddenly let out a piercing scream.
Then, with Fang Yun at the center, a force that seemed to contain profound truths spread in all directions like a wild wind, pushing all the poison fog away.
In just the blink of an eye, the poison fog in the entire sixth corridor was cleared.
Ahead, there was a giant ant nest five stories high, with countless venomous ants inside, eager to strike, and above the nest, tens of thousands of flying ants circled.
This ant nest was dozens of times larger than the poison blood nests formed by the magic of ordinary Demon Generals, and after a certain period of accumulation, it had formed a significant presence.
Everyone gasped at the sight. If they had entered the three-mile radius of the ant nest unprepared, they would have been utterly annihilated; even with preparation, if these venomous ants blocked the exit, any attempt to break through would result in heavy casualties and deaths.
The sound of the Path of the Saints swept past.
The flying ants in the sky fell like rain, and the venomous ants on the ground stiffened and died on the spot. The nest of venomous ants formed by the blood and poison fog then turned into a blood mist, hanging in the air like cotton, motionless.
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
The Serpent Saint’s son, who had been hiding in the poison fog, finally revealed his form. It was a dark yellow giant snake two zhang long. Its eyes burst open, blood spraying out, and then it rolled on the ground, its body sometimes knotting, sometimes coiling, with scales falling off to reveal naturally split wounds.
The power of blood and qi on the snake’s body was dissipating at an extremely fast rate, and the features that represented its powerful strength were also degenerating.
The Serpent Saint’s son howled in agony, “You’re just a Presented Scholar, why can your words become the Path of the Saints and strip away my innate talent! Give it back to me! Return my Serpent Clan’s talent! My father is the Serpent Saint, if you kill me, he will surely kill you himself! I am the future hope of the Serpent Clan! I am the Saint’s son! The other Saint’s sons will surely avenge me!”
It tried to display its status as a Saint’s son, but the fear of death made its threats sound more like pleas.
“How ridiculous!”
Not only the Serpent Saint’s son had problems, but the lurking Demon Barbarians were also wailing in pain. All the blood Demon Barbarians, even those far away or near the entrance, suddenly screamed in agony, rolling on the ground in pain.
A few Demon Barbarians, while screaming, suddenly knelt on the ground, kowtowing to Fang Yun, begging loudly.
“Don’t take away my power! Please…”
A few other Demon Barbarians, enduring the pain, rushed forward, beating and kicking those begging for mercy.
A few star Demon Barbarians who had come to the sixth corridor were trembling with fear. Although their Demon Barbarian talents had not been stripped away, they still felt a terrifying presence circling around them.
Sun Naiyong surveyed the crowd and shouted loudly, “What are you waiting for? Kill!”
With the poison fog gone, the Presented Scholars had no reservations. They immediately used The War Poetry to rush forward swiftly, chanting as they went, launching into the slaughter without hesitation!
Fang Yun and a few others stood still, as they no longer needed to take action.
Yan Yukong smiled and said, “With the sound of the Military Strategists’ Path of the Saints, those Demon Barbarians won’t be able to enter the sixth corridor for at least three days, otherwise, they will surely be affected by this power.”
“Of course. It’s a pity that Fang Yun used the sound of the Military Strategists’ Path of the Saints in the sixth corridor. If he had done so in the seventh corridor, the Throne of Stars would surely be his.”
“Never mind what other tricks those Demon Barbarians are hiding, do you think the sound of the Path of the Saints can be uttered whenever one wishes? If one prepares deliberately, it might be themselves who end up dead.”
“Yes, it’s a pity indeed.”
“But how can the sound of the Path of the Saints strip away the talents of the Demon Barbarians?”
Yan Yukong said, “It must be because of Fang Yun’s intent.”
“These blood Demon Barbarians truly brought disaster upon themselves! If they were outside the Comet Corridor and affected by the sound of the Path of the Saints, they would only be injured, and their talents could not be stripped away, because each of their clans has a Semi-Saint, and they would never allow our human race to strip away their clan’s talents. However, this place was built by the Ancestor Demon, and they can only wait for death.”
Fang Yun and the others watched as the remaining Presented Scholars took action, cleanly killing all the blood Demon Barbarians in the sixth corridor.
“Another great achievement!”
With the poison fog in the entire sixth corridor cleared, the spirit beasts at the entrance ran wildly towards their masters.
The big rabbit ran swiftly, its ears flying like kites.
At that moment, a stone lion appeared in the sky.
“I like this method of bullying that you don’t see once in a thousand years with the sound of the Path of the Saints killing Demon Generals. No, it’s bullying Demon Barbarians,” the stone lion chuckled softly. (To be continued.)