208: Burning Mountains and Suppressing the Sea

The news A Ying brought back caused a sharp glint to flash in Chen Linsheng's eyes.

"It's not a fixed lair, but a mobile caravan?" he repeated in a low voice, his fingers unconsciously tapping on his knee. "Cycling between several oases... no wonder the previous suppression attempts all came up empty."

A Ying nodded and continued to supplement with gestures: The caravan was large, with at least thirty camels and over twenty people. However, not all were combatants—about ten seemed to specialize in driving the camels and managing supplies, appearing somewhat clumsy in their movements. The true hardened bandits numbered about fifteen or sixteen, divided into three groups, taking turns scouting ahead and guarding the flanks. Meanwhile, the core tents were always strictly protected.

"Is Ghost Sand among them?" Chen Linsheng asked.

A Ying hesitated for a moment before gesturing: He hadn't seen his true face. However, in the core tent, there was one person whose aura was most obscure, flickering in and out as if merging with the surrounding sandy ground. Moreover... at noon today, three people wearing grayish-white long robes with their faces covered in white cloth had slipped into the camp from the east and talked privately with that person of obscure aura for nearly an hour. When those three left, a few faint, uncomfortable wisps of sinister evil energy were left in the camp.

The White Lotus Sect!

Chen Linsheng and Li Qinger exchanged a look, both seeing the gravity in each other's eyes.

"Has A Ying discovered their next stopping point?" Chen Linsheng followed up.

A Ying pointed to a certain spot on the sand drawing—it was a small oasis located on the northwestern edge of Devil City, near the ruins of an ancient riverbed, about forty li from their current canyon stronghold.

"According to their movement patterns, they should arrive in two days," Zhou Tong leaned in, quickly calculating against the map left by Wang Mo. "If we set out tomorrow and ambush them in advance, there's enough time."

Chen Linsheng pondered for a moment, then looked up at everyone.

"The plan has changed." His voice was calm, yet carried an unquestionable decisiveness. "We will no longer feign exhaustion; instead, we'll take the initiative and catch them off guard."

"A night raid?" Zhao Tiezhu's eyes lit up.

"Yes, a night raid." Chen Linsheng stood up, his gaze like a torch. "A Ying has already figured out their patrol and shift patterns—at the intersection of the Zi Hour and the Chou Hour, there's a gap of time it takes to drink a cup of tea when the patrol teams on both sides will return to the center of the camp to hand over. At that time, the outer defenses will be at their weakest."

He crouched down and quickly sketched on the sand with a branch.

"The camp is oval-shaped, backed by a rock wall and facing the sandy ground. The core tents are here, on the western side. The camels and supplies are concentrated on the east." He pointed out several locations. "Zhou Tong, you set out half a day early. On the path they must take, set up a triple chain of traps here, here, and here—not lethal ones, but focused on delaying and startling them. Pay special attention to making the sound loud when the traps are triggered to create chaos."

Zhou Tong nodded solemnly: "Understood."

"Tiezhu, Qinger, you two will charge in from the front with me." Chen Linsheng looked at the two. "Tiezhu, your task is to pierce through the first line of defense and head straight for the camel herd on the east side to create even more chaos, disperse the caravan, and block their possibility of a quick relocation. Qinger, you'll be on Tiezhu's flank, clearing out scattered enemies with poison smoke and numbing needles, focusing on guarding against potential stray arrows and White Lotus Sect evil arts—distribute your Heart-Clearing Pills and Evil-Warding Powder to Tiezhu and me."

Li Qinger silently took several small vials from her rattan box and began to portion them out.

"A Ying," Chen Linsheng looked at the silent archer. "You take the high ground here." He pointed to an isolated rock hill on the south side of the camp in the sand drawing. "You have three tasks: First, snipe any minor leaders trying to organize a counterattack; second, suppress those three White Lotus Sect members with Demon-Breaking Arrows—if they appear, prioritize attacking them; third, and most crucially—keep a close eye on the core tent. Once 'Ghost Sand' appears, you don't need to ask for instructions; fire Demon-Breaking Arrows in succession to force him to reveal a weakness."

A glimmer of cold light flashed in A Ying's grayish-white eyes as he slowly nodded.

"And I," Chen Linsheng stood up, his aura suddenly condensing, actually making the surrounding air several degrees hotter, "will go straight for the core and slay Ghost Sand."

His gaze swept over the four of them: "The key to this battle lies in 'speed' and 'chaos.' We must tear through the camp and slay the primary culprit before they can react. If things become impossible or if White Lotus Sect reinforcements suddenly arrive, use A Ying's Whistling Arrow as a signal to retreat immediately and meet at the backup route. Understand?"

"Understood!" everyone responded in low voices.

At dusk the next day, the team quietly left the temporary camp and sped toward the northwest.

The forty li of sandy road was covered under everyone's full-speed travel, arriving at the designated ambush point before the Hai Hour late at night.

Zhou Tong had already arrived ahead of time and completed the trap setup. His face was somewhat pale, clearly having consumed a lot of energy, but his eyes were bright: "The triple traps are set in the east, south, and north directions of the camp. They mainly consist of tripwire signal arrows and poisonous smoke blasts, enough to throw them into chaos for a while."

Chen Linsheng patted his shoulder: "You did well. Now, everyone rest and recover your strength while we wait for the Zi Hour."

The night was like ink, and the starlight was sparse.

In the oasis camp in the distance, a few campfires were vaguely visible, like the eyes of a sleeping beast.

Time trickled by bit by bit.

The Zi Hour was approaching.

Chen Linsheng slowly opened his eyes, a flash of blazing white starlight seemingly flickering in the depths of his pupils. He rose silently and checked his equipment: the autumn water sword hung at his waist, his left arm was bound with a special Detoxification Bracer made by Li Qinger, and the crimson flame great peng feather was tucked in his chest—it seemed to sense the impending battle as well, growing slightly hot.

"Prepare."

The voice was very soft, yet it made everyone instantly tense up.

A Ying was like a ghost blending into the night, being the first to sneak toward the rock hill on the south side. Zhou Tong crouched behind a sand dune, holding a lead connected to the traps.

Chen Linsheng, Zhao Tiezhu, and Li Qinger were like three arrows released from a bowstring, silently closing in on the camp's perimeter.

In the camp, the campfire crackled. Two sentry bandits held their blades, dozing off against the hitching posts. From the camel pen on the east side came the sound of the animals' uneasy snorting.

The Chou Hour was near.

The patrol teams on the north and south sides returned from the outer sandy ground almost simultaneously, gathering toward the campfire in the center of the camp. This was their daily handover moment, and also the moment when their vigilance was at its lowest.

Now!

Chen Linsheng raised his hand and made a slashing gesture.

"Sss—!"

Zhou Tong suddenly pulled the lead!

On the east side of the camp, the sand suddenly exploded! Several signal arrows tied with bells shrieked into the sky, bursting into clusters of dazzling red flares! Immediately after, muffled sounds of poison smoke canisters exploding rang out from the south and north directions simultaneously, as thick grayish-green smoke rapidly spread, carrying a pungent, sickly sweet scent!

"Enemy attack—!"

A shrill alarm cut through the night sky, but it was already too late.

Chen Linsheng's figure was like lightning, turning into a blurred gray shadow as he burst into the camp almost simultaneously with the first signal arrow! The two dozing sentry bandits had just woken up when a fine line of blood appeared at their throats; they slumped to the ground without even a groan.

Zhao Tiezhu followed closely behind like an enraged rhino, his giant shield leading the way as he slammed into the simple fence on the east side of the camp! Behind the fence, two bandits holding sabers were sent flying along with their weapons, the sound of their ribs cracking clearly audible. Tiezhu's momentum didn't slow as he charged straight for the camel herd, his thick-backed machete sweeping across to sever several hitching ropes!

The startled camels neighed and fled in all directions, instantly throwing the eastern camp into a state of chaos!

Li Qinger's figure was elusive, like a butterfly flitting through flowers as she moved through the chaotic crowd. She didn't engage the enemies head-on, but instead flicked her hands repeatedly, precisely firing poison-coated flying needles as fine as cow hair and wax pills that released numbing smoke upon bursting toward the bandit leaders trying to organize resistance. All who were hit felt their vision go dark and stumbled to the ground.

The camp was in total chaos!

Screams, roars, the clashing of weapons, the neighing of camels, and the explosions of continuously triggered traps... intertwined into a rhapsody of death.

And at the very moment this chaos reached its peak—

The curtain of the core tent was silently lifted.

A figure as thin as a bamboo pole slowly stepped out.

He wore large robes the same color as the sand, and his face was covered by a coarse, sand-yellow mask, revealing only two eyes—those eyes were not clearly black and white, but instead showed a strange, murky yellow, like weathered sandstone.

It was "Ghost Sand"!

As soon as he appeared, the surrounding chaotic waves of sound seemed to be suppressed by an invisible force, suddenly growing quieter. The panicked bandits seemed to have found their pillar of support and flocked toward him.

Ghost Sand didn't even look at them; his murky eyes locked directly onto the figure standing as straight as a spear in the center of the camp—Chen Linsheng.

"Heh heh..." A raspy laugh came from beneath the mask, like the friction of sand and gravel. "Finally... I've waited for you."

Chen Linsheng's gaze was calm as he met his eyes: "I've been waiting for you for a long time."

Before the words had even faded, Ghost Sand's figure suddenly blurred!

It wasn't fast movement, but rather his entire person seemed to melt, suddenly scattering into a mass of thick, rolling yellow sand that swept toward Chen Linsheng! Within the sandstorm, countless painfully twisted faces flickered in and out, emitting silent wails!

Sand Escape Evil Art!

Chen Linsheng's pupils shrank slightly, his feet performing the Crane Ape Illusory Wind Steps as he retreated rapidly, while his right hand pointed into the air with fingers together like a sword!

"Chiss!"

A wisp of condensed, silk-like blazing white energy shot through the air, accurately piercing into the center of that mass of yellow sand!

A muffled groan came from the yellow sand, and the rolling momentum faltered slightly. But in the next moment, the sand mass suddenly expanded, transforming into a sandstorm tornado about ten feet in diameter, pouncing with an even more violent posture! Wherever the tornado passed, the sand on the ground was frantically swept up, even pulling in several bandits who couldn't dodge in time, instantly followed by the terrifying sound of flesh and bone being ground to pieces!

'Scatter!' Chen Linsheng shouted sternly, alerting the surrounding team members.

At the same time, he pressed his palms together, the Hunyuan Qi and Blood within his body surging violently, and the spark of 'Great Sun True Flame' in his heart-fire cyclone shone brilliantly!

'Blazing Sun Hunyuan Palm!'

Pushing his palms forward, a blast of fiery, fierce, yet unified red-gold palm force erupted like a miniature sun, slamming resolutely into the sandstorm tornado!

Boom—!!

The energy collided with the sandstorm, erupting in a dull, thunderous roar! The red-gold palm force continuously burned and dissolved the sinister power within the sandstorm, but the sandstorm tornado seemed endless, constantly drawing sand from the ground to replenish itself, stubbornly resisting the palm force and even showing signs of pushing back!

Just then—

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

Three arrows, arranged in a triangular formation with silver demon-breaking runes flickering on their heads, tore through the night sky and struck the core of the sandstorm tornado with pinpoint accuracy!

It was A Ying's Demon-Breaking Arrows!

The demon-breaking power on the arrows erupted, causing the sandstorm tornado to tremble violently, and an angry roar faintly echoed from within! The tornado's rotation speed slowed noticeably for an instant, and its size shrank by a third!

Seizing this gap, a sharp light burst from Chen Linsheng's eyes!

He took a deep breath, the cyclones in his five internal organs spinning frantically at an unprecedented speed. Five Elements Origin Qi surged and gathered, merging into the rushing Hunyuan Qi and Blood. Within the heart-fire cyclone, the 'Great Sun True Flame' spark leaped wildly, infusing every bit of its magnificent aura—supreme Yang, supreme righteousness, and the power to incinerate all evil!

The prototype of the 'Mountain Burning Sea Suppressing Seal,' deduced by the spirit book, flowed and manifested in his mind.

It was no longer a simple palm print or fist force, but a condensation of 'momentum' and a sublimation of 'intent'!

Chen Linsheng planted his feet on the ground like a rooted old pine. He slowly raised his right arm, his fingers slightly curved as if he were gripping something weighing thousands of pounds.

The surrounding air suddenly stagnated.

The chaotic battlefield, the raging sand, the shrill screams... all sounds seemed to drift away.

Only between Chen Linsheng's palm and fingers, a terrifying 'momentum' capable of suppressing mountains and rivers and incinerating the eight desolations was frantically condensing and compressing!

Ghost Sand clearly sensed the fatal threat; the sandstorm tornado shrieked as it tried to retreat and disperse.

But it was already too late.

'Burn! Mountain! Suppress! Sea!'

As he uttered those four words, Chen Linsheng slowly pressed his right palm toward the rolling mass of yellow sand.

There was no world-shaking light, nor any deafening roar.

Only a grey palm print, condensed to the extreme, with miniature mountains floating inside, red-gold lava flowing, and the phantom of a great sun rising, flew out from his hand.

The palm print was initially only the size of a hand, but it expanded upon leaving his palm, growing to ten feet wide in the blink of an eye. Like a true mountain of flame, carrying irresistible suppressing power and the heat to incinerate everything, it locked onto the mass of yellow sand and smashed down!

Wherever it passed, the air distorted, letting out groans of being overburdened. The sand on the ground melted silently, leaving behind glass-like scorched marks.

The yellow sand that was Ghost Sand's Incarnation let out a high-pitched screech, twisting and struggling frantically in an attempt to escape. But the 'Mountain-Suppressing' intent contained within the palm print seemed to freeze space, locking him firmly in place!

'No—!!!'

A desperate roar exploded from the sandstorm.

In the next moment, the grey palm print slammed solidly into the core of the yellow sand!

Sizzle—!!!!

It was like a red-hot iron pressed against snow!

Most of the yellow sand was instantly evaporated, and the countless faces of resentful souls hidden within shrieked shrilly under the burning of the white-hot True Flame before vanishing into green smoke! A thin figure stumbled out from the collapsing sandstorm; it was Ghost Sand's true body!

Most of the mask on his face had shattered, revealing a face as dry as old tree bark and covered in eerie dark red patterns. A scorched palm print was deeply recessed into his chest, the flesh at the edges curled and emitting a pungent burnt smell, yet not a single drop of blood flowed—the flesh at the wound seemed to have been carbonized instantly, and even the blood had been dried up!

The turbid yellow light in Ghost Sand's eyes dimmed rapidly, and his aura plummeted; he had clearly suffered a fatal blow.

He stared fixedly at Chen Linsheng, his eyes full of malice and disbelief: 'Great Sun... True Flame... You can actually... use it to such an extent...'

Chen Linsheng withdrew his palm and slowly exhaled a breath of hot white air, his face turning slightly pale. That strike just now had drained nearly thirty percent of his Hunyuan Qi and Blood and Great Sun True Flame power, but the effect was significant.

He walked step by step toward the dying Ghost Sand, his voice cold: 'Who is the employer behind you? What is the relationship between the White Lotus Sect and your group? What role does Prosperous Fortune play in this?'

Ghost Sand coughed up a mouthful of black, sand-like coagulated matter and smiled miserably: 'You... will never... know...'

The last bit of light in his eyes suddenly condensed, and his withered hands violently plunged into the scorched palm print on his chest!

'With my remnant body, I invoke the Sacred Sand... Explode!!!'

An extremely violent, chaotic, and destructive sand-elemental energy surged frantically from his broken body! The sandy ground within ten feet shook violently, and countless grains of sand floated up, frantically gathering and compressing toward his body!

He was going to self-detonate! Using his remaining life and evil arts, he intended to trigger a leyline sandstorm and take everyone down with him!

Chen Linsheng's expression changed, and he shouted urgently, 'Retreat!!'

At the same time, without hesitation, he unsheathed the autumn water sword in his left hand, the ice-blue sword light slashing toward Ghost Sand's neck like a silken ribbon in an attempt to interrupt the self-detonation; his right hand once again condensed the remaining True Flame power, striking a palm toward the man's crown!

But he seemed to be a step too slow.

Ghost Sand's body expanded rapidly like a balloon, and countless sand currents seemed to be scurrying under his skin; the destructive aura had already climbed to its peak!

At this critical juncture—

An arrow.

An arrow that was entirely black, with only a point of silver light condensed like a star at its tip.

It was silent and stealthy, yet faster than perception.

It came whistling through the air from the rocky hill to the south.

It wasn't aimed at Ghost Sand's body, but—at the void three feet above Ghost Sand's head, where the space was slightly distorted by the violent convergence of energy.

The arrow arrived, and the silver light exploded.

There was no loud noise, only a soft sound like the cracking of glass.

The silver light that burst forth was not ordinary demon-breaking power, but a mysterious ripple that seemed capable of 'stilling' the flow of energy.

The sand-elemental energy surging wildly from Ghost Sand's body was suddenly locked as if by invisible shackles, and its gathering momentum came to a sudden halt!

Though it was only for a brief moment.

That moment was enough.

Chen Linsheng's sword light and palm force arrived!

Pfft!

The sword light swept past, and a withered head soared into the sky.

The palm force struck down, and the remnant body that was about to explode collapsed like a deflated ball. The violent sand energy gathered in the chest lost control and scattered with a bang, turning into a small-scale rain of sand that rustled down.

Ghost Sand was dead!

Chen Linsheng sheathed his sword and turned to look at the rocky hill to the south.

A Ying's figure remained hidden in the darkness, with only the bowstring of the longbow still vibrating slightly.

That arrow just now... was definitely no ordinary Demon-Breaking Arrow. The 'Stilling' power contained within it was incredibly profound.

This silent archer likely had no fewer secrets than anyone else.

Chen Linsheng suppressed his doubts and scanned the battlefield.

With their leader slain, the remaining Sand Shadow Bandits collapsed like a mountain. Under Zhao Tiezhu's rampage, Li Qinger's poison smoke and hidden weapons, and A Ying's occasional sniping arrows, they were already in shambles. Most were dead or wounded, and the few who fled frantically into the dark sea of sand no longer posed a threat.

As for the three White Lotus Sect members, they had tried to launch a flank attack while Ghost Sand was fighting Chen Linsheng, but they were pinned down by A Ying's Demon-Breaking Arrows and couldn't get close. Seeing Ghost Sand's death, they knew the situation was hopeless. One of them suddenly threw out several evil talismans, which turned into rolling black smoke to obscure their vision, and the three took the opportunity to turn and flee.

'Trying to leave?'

Chen Linsheng snorted coldly, his body shooting out like lightning. He crossed dozens of feet in an instant, cutting off one person's path and shattering their heart meridian with a single palm. The other two were intercepted by Li Qinger and Zhou Tong; one was silenced by a poison needle to the throat, and the other was pierced through the back of the neck by Zhou Tong's blowgun dart.

The battle quickly subsided.

In the camp, only the uneasy snorting of camels, the crackling of the fire, and the heavy scent of blood in the wind remained.

Chen Linsheng stood by Ghost Sand's headless corpse, leaning over to search his tattered clothes. He pulled out a token made of neither metal nor wood, carved with twisted sand patterns, and a small booklet tightly wrapped in oilcloth.

Opening the booklet, he found it densely packed with records of transactions, lists of personnel, and... several hidden supply depots and contact methods.

One page was clearly stamped with Prosperous Fortune's private seal of a tripod and cloud pattern.

And on the last page, there was only a single line of scrawled characters:

'Seventh month, third day, midnight, Black Wind Pass, "New Moon" will arrive in person to inspect the goods and pay the balance. If anything goes wrong, lead them into the Sand Burial Valley.'

New Moon?

Chen Linsheng's pupils suddenly contracted.

The middleman who hired the Northern Desert Wolf Clan riders, had a New Moon scar on his hand, and wore the Letter-Carrying Bird Celadon Jade!

The third day of the seventh month... that's in five days!