Chapter 5194 – One Step Ahead

Translator: Silavin & Tia

Translation Checker: PewPewLazerGun

Editor and Proofreader: Leo of Zion Mountain & Dhael Ligerkeys

At the same time, the higher-ups suddenly issued another confusing order for collection. The last order for collection from the higher-ups had been to gather the various materials required for the refinement of the puppets. This time around, the order for collection was to gather spare clothing. They were neither limited to gender nor body shape or size. It was acceptable as long as the clothing could be worn.

Combined with the order to refine the puppets in large quantities, many people were starting to understand the intentions of the higher-ups. First, it was collecting the materials to refine large amounts of humanoid puppets, then it was collecting various kinds of clothing. Their intentions no longer required much explanation at this point.

Those puppets were going to be used as some kind of ruse. Every one of those puppets exuded the aura of a Fifth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master and above. It was conceivable that the Puppet Army would seem extremely imposing when gathered in one place. At the right time and the right place, they would easily be able to attract the full attention of the Black Ink Clan.

Meanwhile, the Great Evolution Eastern and Western Armies would take advantage of this opportunity to take action.

Although there were speculations about the purpose of these puppets, it was unfortunate that Yang Kai and the others could not figure out the where and how these puppets were going to be used.

Truthfully speaking, these puppets would easily be seen through if they were observed closely. While they could move around as smoothly as a real person and exude the aura of an Open Heaven Realm Master, that would only fool others when they were far away. However, just the Open Heaven Realm aura exuded by these puppets alone would likely be enough for them to be mistaken for a real Army if they were dressed in proper clothes and seen from a distance.

The Army had already stepped foot into the Great Evolution Theatre, so there was a chance of encountering the Black Ink Clan at any moment. The 30,000 troops prepared themselves for battle and conserved their energy so that they were ready for the possibility of war.

The members responsible for controlling the various Spirit Arrays and artifacts on the Squad Class Warships were carefully inspecting their weapons to ensure that there were no issues before the battle began.

The Great Evolution Army progressed through the void as silently as a phantom, exuding a chilling aura.

Upon receiving a summons from Xiang Shan, Yang Kai came to the Purifying Black Ink Battleship in the middle of the Army once more. The Old Ancestor and the two Army Commanders were gathered together as though they were waiting for him to arrive.

After Yang Kai greeted them, Xiang Shan got straight to the point, “We have a mission for you!”

“Please give me your instructions, Sir!” Yang Kai cupped his fist.

Xiang Shan said, “If we march forward for another two months, we will reach Great Evolution Pass. I want you to circle around ahead and search for the Great Evolution Northern and Southern Armies on the other side of Great Evolution Pass.”

At the moment, the Great Evolution Army had been split into two parts. One part was the Great Evolution Eastern and Western Armies that had gathered at Wind and Cloud Pass, while the other part was the Great Evolution Northern and Southern Armies that had gathered at Azure Void Pass.

There were two reasons for this deployment. The first reason was that Wind and Cloud Pass and Azure Void Pass had always been besieged by larger than normal Black Ink Armies. If the Great Evolution Army assembled at both these two Great Passes, then they could easily break these sieges. The second reason was that half of the troops from the Great Evolution Army came from these two Great Passes.

Both Wind and Cloud Pass and Azure Void Pass had each dispatched 15,000 troops each to cobble together the Great Evolution Army of 60,000 troops. Therefore, the Great Evolution Army was bound to depart from these two Great Passes and advance together regardless of the circumstances.

That was what Yang Kai understood. What he didn’t know was that the two Armies departing from different Great Passes had originally agreed to march towards Great Evolution Pass at full speed so that they could arrive as soon as possible and join forces to launch a coordinated attack.

However, the Great Evolution Eastern and Western Armies had encountered the Black Ink Clan reinforcement Army from Great Evolution Pass along their march. That had given Xiang Shan the idea for a better strategy, and he quickly made various arrangements during the march.

If there were changes to the original plan, then it was only natural to inform the Great Evolution Northern and Southern Armies about the changes so that they were not completely blindsided by the actions of the Great Evolution Eastern and Western Armies.

The inconvenience of communication on the battlefield could lead to extremely large losses.

Since they wanted to inform the Great Evolution Northern and Southern Armies about the changes, they had to choose a suitable candidate for the task. For Xiang Shan, the first person that came to mind was Yang Kai.

Yang Kai was proficient in the Dao of Space, and as a result, his speed was something that even an Eighth-Order Master would not be able to match. Even if he ran into a Territory Lord on this journey, he would not be in danger as long as he was careful.

Not to mention, Xiang Shan did not know the current whereabouts of the Great Evolution Northern and Southern Armies even though he had a prior agreement with their Army Commanders. If he sent somebody else, they might need to spend time searching slowly.

On the contrary, the situation would be different if he sent Yang Kai on this trip. That was because all the Universe Arrays on the Purifying Black Ink Battleships of each Great Pass had been installed by Yang Kai himself. He had a unique advantage when it came to searching for the Great Evolution Northern and Southern Armies.

After Xiang Shan explained his reasons to Yang Kai, the latter naturally did not refuse.

“I exchanged communication artifacts with the Great Evolution Northern and Southern Armies in the past. As long as we are within a certain distance of each other, we will be able to contact each other. But, there’s no need to go to such trouble to search for them. The Great Evolution Northern and Southern Armies brought their Purifying Black Ink Battleships along, so when the time comes, you will only need to use the Universe Transference Law to arrive directly at their side,” Xiang Shan explained.

Yang Kai nodded, “Junior understands.”

Liu Zhi Ping added, “Just in case, you should bring the communication artifact with you. Having an extra method of communication will give you an extra layer of guarantee!”

Since she had already said so, Xiang Shan did not object to her suggestion. She thus handed a Communication Bead to Yang Kai, which he carefully stored away.

“When you locate the Great Evolution Northern and Southern Armies, tell them that there have been changes to the original plan. The Great Evolution Eastern and Western Armies will be taking action to draw the Black Ink Clan’s attention as we charge straight into the Black Ink Clan’s territory. I’m certain that the Black Ink Clan at Great Evolution Pass will receive news about the attack when the fighting breaks out. It would be great if the Black Ink Clan at Great Evolution Pass did not take any action, but that is unlikely, so, the Northern and Southern Armies need to intercept the enemy once the Black Ink Clan leaves Great Evolution Pass.”

Yang Kai was extremely surprised by those words, [Is the Great Evolution Eastern and Western Armies planning to attack the Black Ink Clan’s territory?]

He had always assumed that the goal of this campaign was to retake Great Evolution Pass, so he never imagined that Xiang Shan’s plan would be so bold.

Upon further consideration though, this plan was clearly more beneficial. If the Great Evolution Eastern and Western Armies attacked the Black Ink Clan’s territory, the Black Ink Clan at Great Evolution Pass would not be able to remain still once they received the news. They would surely head out to provide reinforcements, and at that time, the Great Evolution Northern and Southern Armies would make their move and catch the enemy by surprise. This approach was clearly much better than attacking Great Evolution Pass directly.

Yang Kai initially had some worries regarding this matter. The Black Ink Clan had taken over Great Evolution Pass some 30,000 years ago, so they were bound to have prepared various defensive measures. If the Humans had attacked the Great Pass head on, they would surely have suffered great losses.

On the contrary, the situation would be different if they lured the snake out of its hole in this manner. Without Great Evolution Pass for protection, the Black Ink Clan would lose a huge advantage in this battle.

If the Humans could obliterate all the Black Ink Clan at Great Evolution Pass, they would be able to retake Great Evolution Pass with ease. It could even be said that if they could beat the Black Ink Clan in the Great Evolution Theatre half to death, then the Great Evolution Army would gain ample time to establish a stable foothold in Great Evolution Pass after they retook it.

Following the various thoughts that ran through his mind, Yang Kai vaguely understood Xiang Shan’s plan and couldn’t help admiring the foresight of the Army Commander.

“Inform them that there’s no need to provide aid to the Great Evolution Eastern and Western Armies. They only need to keep the Black Ink Clan at Great Evolution Pass contained and kill as many enemies as possible to ensure we aren’t attacked from the rear.”

“Yes!” Yang Kai acknowledged the order.

“If you don’t have anything to prepare, then please set off immediately.”

It was true that Yang Kai had nothing to prepare, but the hundred or so puppets that he refined previously were still inside his Space Ring, so he immediately took it out and handed it to Xiang Shan. Then, he cupped his fist in farewell, “Junior will depart right now.”

“Be careful, and stay safe!” The Old Ancestor, who had remained silent the entire time, suddenly urged.

Yang Kai nodded and flashed out of the Purifying Black Ink Battleship.

There was no need to inform Dawn. Even without him as the Squad Leader, Feng Ying and the others would be perfectly fine; after all, they were all people who had spent hundreds, if not thousands of years on the Black Ink Battlefield.

Manipulating Space Principles, Yang Kai’s figure flickered and disappeared out of sight. When he looked back again, he could no longer see the Great Eastern and Western fleets. There were various artifacts and barriers to conceal their whereabouts, so it was impossible to discover them unless one was close enough.

Yang Kai did not linger. Making use of Instantaneous Movement over and over again, his figure flashed through the void without pause.

According to the information given by Xiang Shan, the marching speed of the Great Evolution Northern and Southern Armies was probably faster than that of the Great Evolution Eastern and Western Armies.

Yang Kai guessed that the Great Evolution Northern and Southern Armies were about to arrive in the vicinity of Great Evolution Pass; however, they would never carry out any rash actions before receiving contact from the Eastern and Western Armies. Hiding in the shadows and observing the situation was definitely the safest method.

What he needed to do at this moment was circle around Great Evolution Pass, locate the Great Evolution Northern and Southern Armies, and deliver Xiang Shan’s message.

After Yang Kai departed, the conversation continued inside the Purifying Black Ink Battleship, with Liu Zhi Ping saying, “It’s almost time. We should act according to the plan.”

Xiang Shan nodded, “Collect all the puppets.”

The order was conveyed to the others and soon, all the Artifact Refiners delivered the puppets they refined during the past year to the Purifying Black Ink Battleship. The puppets were personally inspected and counted by Ma Fan himself.

There were more than 1,000 Artifact Refiners, including two Great Grandmasters and 50 Grandmasters, so the results of the past year could be said to be extremely bountiful. As many as 70,000 puppets had been refined!

Yang Kai alone had refined more than 100 puppets with the other Grandmasters achieving similar results. The two Great Grandmasters had refined even more. Although the number of puppets refined by the Great Masters was slightly lower, refining 70,000 puppets in this timeframe was a terrifying feat nevertheless.

That was a number that was accumulated from piling up various materials, but the preparations did not end there. Every puppet also needed to be charged and activated, which was another huge expense.

It was fortunate that the Great Evolution Eastern and Western Armies had brought enough supplies with them when they first set off on this journey to support such profligacy.

It took several days to install energy sources for the tens of thousands of puppets. Afterward, the puppets were divided into five portions and stored into five separate Space Rings. These five Space Rings were carried by five Eighth-Order Division Commanders, who jointly set off in the direction of Great Evolution Pass.

Following the departure of these five Eighth-Order Division Commanders, the huge fleet that had been marching straight towards Great Evolution Pass since they first set sail changed course.

It was also on this day that Zhe Chong Territory Lord, who had been fleeing for more than a year, finally arrived back at Great Evolution Pass.

The reason he was able to arrive at Great Evolution Pass two months earlier than the Great Evolution Army was that he had been acting alone, so it was only natural that his movements were less restricted. He had mustered all his strength to escape back then and subsequently continued to run for his life for the next whole month.

On the other hand, the Great Evolution Army had to maintain their formation, so it stood to reason that their speed could not compare to a lone Territory Lord. Be that as it may, it was the exact situation that Xiang Shan had been anticipating. It was crucial for Zhe Chong to return to Great Evolution Pass ahead of them so that the Black Ink Clan had enough time to make some arrangements.

Zhe Chong was a Territory Lord, but even his complexion was a little haggard at the moment. Travelling through the void for a year was no big deal for a Master in his Realm, so the reason he looked so disheveled was mainly due to the mental stress he had suffered. For some reason, he couldn’t shake the feeling that his pursuers were right behind him.

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