Chapter 295 Fire Sea

　　The corpse disposal ground was reduced to a sea of fire.

　　Gu Shen, carrying the Silver Box of Divine Relics, came before Gu Qilin.

　　"These are the 'Heavenly Sheath Fragments' that the Northern Expedition has obtained so far."

　　Gu Shen handed over a total of two boxes, one of black silver and one of divine relic silver. The "Heavenly Sheath Fragments" in these two boxes retained their activity. According to the collection speed of the Tundra Prison staff over the past twenty years... even after another hundred years, they wouldn't be able to collect this many fragments.

　　Luo Yu took the boxes from the old man.

　　The two boxes were light, but also heavy.

　　"Did the Gu family prepare blueprints for use long ago?" Gu Shen asked curiously, "Are these fragments to be made into shells... or what?"

　　"Blueprints? Of course! The Gu family has prepared tens of thousands of blueprints for the Heavenly Sheath Project!"

　　The old man laughed loudly, "It's just that these blueprints have never been useful. This is the first time in so many years that we've had so many 'raw materials'. In the past, we used the [Deep Sea] to simulate the manufacturing process. This time, we can finally conduct sample experiments."

　　"Thanks to you."

　　Gu Nanfeng said seriously, "I hope the fragments in these two boxes can be used to create a complete Heavenly Sheath weapon."

　　"If these Heavenly Sheath Fragments... are not enough, don't worry, I have a way."

　　Gu Shen said, "I'm preparing to go to the White Whale Mountains."

　　"The White Whale Mountains?" Luo Yu was taken aback and said, "That's where the Central City Law Enforcement Officers are located."

　　"That's right."

　　Gu Shen nodded with a smile, "Don't forget that the task this time is a simultaneous effort from the north and south. Now that we have launched an extermination operation against the Kuru Cage Snow Mountain, the Northern Continent's operation should be coming soon... If I set off now and am fast enough, I should be able to catch up with the conclusion of the White Whale Mountains siege. They will be happy to hand over those 'corpses' for me to deal with."

　　Speaking of this.

　　Gu Shen suddenly frowned.

　　When dealing with those corpses at the corpse disposal ground, he thought of a question.

　　That is, whether there is more information to be gleaned from the "gift" that Han Dang sent.

　　At this moment.

　　He realized this problem.

　　The northern and southern extermination operations are being carried out simultaneously.

　　If Han Dang saw that his trick worked on the Nagano Law Enforcement Officers, would he consider replicating this move on the Northern Continent for another round?

　　……

　　……

　　The White Whale Mountains, as the northern "natural barrier" of the Tundra, possess roughly the same geographical advantages as the Kuru Cage Snow Mountain.

　　In this siege, the White Whale Mountains are the most likely "breakout point" in the eyes of many Tundra criminals.

　　As the encirclement narrows in the future.

　　Their range of activity is also getting smaller and smaller.

　　This night was long.

　　Those Snow Cage criminals lurking in the White Whale Mountains gradually despaired. The Northern Continent garrison stationed outside the line remained motionless, neither launching an attack nor deploying an encirclement... They simply drew a very long boundary, not knowing what they were waiting for. The Northern Continent's supernatural beings silently guarded within the boundary, maintaining their posture, motionless, from night until day.

　　The collective actions of supernatural beings, such as sieges and ambushes, actually have little to do with the time of day.

　　Whether it's day or night.

　　What they use to observe the world is not their eyes, but their mental power.

　　So such consumption has only one possibility—

　　The Northern Continent garrison is waiting for "orders."

　　"No one is allowed to advance without the order of the Legion Commander."

　　For this Southern Expedition mission, Central City temporarily mobilized elite teams from the surrounding fortresses and the Investigation Legion.

　　The second team leader, Zhong Yuan, led his team, guarding the western wing of the White Whale Mountains.

　　This blonde man, clad in an exoskeleton armor, sat on a snow-covered tree branch, his expression calm, not anxious at all. Yuan Yuan under the tree was equally composed.

　　As top hunters, they possess an incredibly keen hunting sense.

　　The White Whale Mountains seem calm.

　　But in reality, they give off an uneasy "sense of danger"... This feeling, of course, does not come from the escaped criminals in the mountains whose strength is generally at the third rank.

　　"There is likely more than one top fourth-rank supernatural being in these mountains."

　　The third-in-command of this squad, Su He, said seriously to the supernatural beings under him, "I think Lord Zhuxue has been reluctant to issue an attack order... possibly because he hasn't confirmed whether there is a 'title' present in the mountains."

　　Two titled criminals escaped from the Snow Cage this time.

　　One is Zhu Wang, the former temporary "Grand Arbiter" of Nagano.

　　Nagano's titles hold extremely high status within the Five Continents. The world recognizes the combat power of Nagano's top powerhouses. Before Zhu Wang, the previous Grand Arbiter, Zhou Jiren, had already proven Nagano's strength to the world.

　　The other is Jing Shanyan, the Great Judge of more than twenty years ago.

　　Even if these two have been imprisoned in the core area of the Heavenly Sheath and their strength has declined, they should not be underestimated.

　　"No need to worry, the Legion Commander is stationed in the rear."

　　Zhong Yuan, sitting in the tree, said calmly, "The garrison has sealed off the northern line. Even if they have earth-shattering abilities, they can't escape... so even if it drags on, it doesn't matter. Remember, our goal is not to win, but to 'annihilate completely'."

　　The difficulty of the word "annihilation" is not actually the latter part.

　　But the former "complete."

　　The ultimate goal of this joint law enforcement between the two continents is to find all the escapees from the Snow Cage and lock down their identities.

　　Whether they live or die doesn't matter.

　　It is important that there are no loose ends.

　　At this moment, on the northern line of the White Whale Mountains, there are many teams, like the elite second team led by Zhong Yuan, waiting quietly.

　　The law enforcement teams in the Northern Continent are grouped differently from those in Nagano.

　　The various fortresses participating in the operation, as well as the legion squads, have been meticulously divided according to their usual operational plans.

　　No matter what criminals they encounter, they simply crush them directly... If you really want to talk about actual combat capabilities, among the Five Continents, no one can deploy a force equal to the Northern Continent for a head-on confrontation.

　　Northern Line Base.

　　"I haven't detected the aura of a 'title'. Aren't you being a little too cautious?"

　　Zi Yu stood under the steel eaves of the base. She looked back at Zhuxue. This operation was jointly commanded by her and Zhuxue. She was responsible for guiding the battle and handling the risks that only titles could resolve.

　　And Lin Chou was responsible for the overall command, making the final decisions.

　　Of course, such a large task as the extermination of the White Whale Mountains needs Lin Chou's approval... but contrary to what the team leaders guessed, Lin Chou's failure to order an attack was not because she suspected that a title was hidden in the White Whale Mountains.

　　At this moment, Grand Duke Zhuxue was sitting upright at the table.

　　He stretched out his slender fingers, the fingertip of his middle finger wrapped around a circle of gold thread, at the end of which hung a round white bead.

　　This bead moved on its own without wind.

　　Lin Chou asked softly, "Aunt Wen, do you believe in 'fate'?"

　　Zi Yu watched the white bead sway, her expression a little helpless.

　t was this some kind of question?

　　"This is a 'token' that my sister gave me. Over the years, I often take out the bead before making decisions."

　　Lin Chou smiled slightly, "It doesn't need wind, it moves on its own... My sister didn't tell me what this bead is for, but I think, after all, this is a gift from the Empress, how could it be useless?"

　　The discarded stones that her sister casually threw in the corridor.

　　Were all divine relic silver.

　　Those things were picked up by Lin Lin, who didn't know how much she had accumulated... Even those "scraps" were worth a fortune.

　　Moreover, it was this carefully given gift?

　　"I have a hunch that this bead contains the power of fate... When I am hesitant, it will guide me to the right direction." Zhuxue said here, slowly clenched the bead, and then put it away.

　　He propped his elbows with his hands and said seriously, "Regarding the White Whale Mountains, the right direction is... not to fight."

　　"Not to fight."

　　Zi Yu sighed in her heart, and then solemnly warned, "Not fighting is of course possible. Now we have an absolute advantage. No matter how much we delay, we will win, but the people of the Northern Continent never retreat on the battlefield. If we don't choose to take the initiative to attack under such circumstances, we always need to give a reason... you know, everyone has been holding their breath for the past two days, thinking that there was a tough battle to fight, and everyone's morale was high on the eve of the battle."

　　One effort, then decline, and finally exhaustion.

　　"I still understand this principle."

　　Lin Chou smiled, "Not fighting is not never fighting, just not last night. The people of the Northern Continent do not need to retreat half a step on this battlefield."

　　"Ding ling ling."

　　The phone rang.

　　Lin Chou released the hand holding the jade stone and answered it very naturally, playing it on speakerphone.

　　"I'm Gu Shen."

　　Gu Shen asked, "Is the Southern Expedition in Central City going smoothly? You are so quiet over there. Have you already taken the White Whale Mountains?"

　　"Not yet."

　　Lin Chou said softly, "We haven't fought yet."

　　Delayed for a night? Gu Shen was slightly surprised, but this was a good thing.

　　"The Nagano Law Enforcement Team encountered a not-so-light attack in the Kuru Cage Snow Mountain. The specific situation is as follows..." Gu Shen briefly explained what happened last night. Zi Yu listened with a frown.

　　She didn't expect that Han Dang, a mere fourth-rank, could actually resist the curse of the Heavenly Sheath to complete the feat of remote control and detonating the Heavenly Sheath Fragments in his body. There was no doubt that these Heavenly Sheath Fragments shot into the bodies of supernatural beings... would cause great damage to the Allied Forces.

　　Not killing people.

　　But enough to make people retreat thousands of miles.

　　Sometimes, killing people will only stimulate bloodthirst, making a situation that originally had room for maneuver completely irreversible.

　　But Han Dang is different.

　　His "kill" does not kill law enforcement officers, but his own "companions." The reason why the bodies of those people can be controlled by him is likely because they stepped into the safety zone he set up, and thus unknowingly had a spiritual seed planted.

　　First kill companions.

　　Then destroy morale.

　　This... is the deterrence of the "Heavenly Sheath."

　　"So, there are a large number of 'suicide bombers' in the White Whale Mountains, waiting for the siege to begin, is that what you mean?"

　　Lin Chou lowered her voice.

　　"Yes." Gu Shen responded, "As soon as you enter the mountains, they will self-destruct."

　　"How did you finally solve this incident...?"

　　Zhuxue was a little confused. In fact, whether it was the White Whale Mountains or the Kuru Cage Snow Mountain, the methods used by Han Dang could not be considered conspiracies.

　　This... is actually a open plot.

　　Because the law enforcement teams and related leaders on both sides have always known... that this siege will not be so simple.

　　But even knowing Han Dang's weapon, the Northern Continent could do nothing.

　　Heavenly Sheath self-detonation, what can you do?

　　Could it be that they would just drag on like this, never fighting, just wasting time?

　　Zhuxue and Zi Yu were both smart people. After listening to the information Gu Shen said, they realized that Han Dang's real purpose was not to defeat the law enforcement officers, but to delay time.

　　Delaying is what he most hopes will happen.

　　"I have a way to restrain them." Gu Shen paused slightly. This matter has already spread in the south, and it is expected that the north will know soon.

　　He said frankly, "The Heavenly Sheath curse is useless to me."

　　Lin Chou: "..."

　　Zi Yu: "..."

　　"I am rushing on my way with all my strength, hoping to reach the White Whale Mountains before the war begins."

　　Gu Shen said, "If I am there, I can ensure the absolute safety of the Northern Continent team. I can provide 'treatment' to any injured person as soon as possible."

　　How should the Heavenly Sheath injuries be treated?

　　"Absorb the curse... and then use your own characteristics to resolve it?"

　　Zhuxue raised his eyebrows and immediately thought of this. If this kid can really be immune to the Heavenly Sheath curse, is he exploiting a bug in the game?

　　"If I don't make it in time, Mr. Zhuxue, please collect the corpses in the White Whale Mountains. These people are useful to me. Don't misunderstand. I don't have any special hobbies. Nagano needs to extract the Heavenly Sheath Fragments from their bodies as soon as possible while they are still 'fresh'." Gu Shen made his request.

　　This request is not excessive.

　　These corpses are useless to the Northern Continent.

　　"You really don't have any special hobbies?" Lin Chou said with emotion, "I always feel that you are tainted with the eerie aura of dead people. The curse of the Heavenly Sheath Fragments is ineffective... it shouldn't be a coincidence, right?"

　　"..."

　　Gu Shen felt a guilty conscience and hung up hastily.

　　Zhuxue smiled.

　　This information was actually some "thoughts" that flashed through Grand Duke Zhuxue's mind when he used the white bead earlier.

　　The white bead... is actually a small component of the Empress's ultimate bracelet, symbolizing the selfless power of fate.

　　With the blessing of [Fate].

　　The guidance obtained by Grand Duke Zhuxue is very accurate.

　　……

　　……

　　At this moment, deep in the White Whale Mountains.

　　The fog was thick.

　　Pine needles rustled.

　　A man sitting cross-legged in the snow slowly opened his eyes. His body was almost submerged in the snow layer. With the action of getting up, the whistling snow wind and thick fog sprinkled together, bringing out tens of millions of ice crystals.

　　This person is Qi Zhou, the "Ghost Fire" ranked second in the [Snow Cage].

　　"These guys from the Northern Continent can really endure. A whole night, they didn't make a move."

　　Qi Zhou restrained his spirit and looked into the distance.

　　The Northern Continent law enforcement officers, who were originally stationed in a group, began to cross the "natural barrier" and try to approach the White Whale Mountains.

　　This shows... that the operation is about to begin!

　　Qi Zhou recalled the task given to him by Han Dang, and he slowly exhaled.

　　Raging black fire burned on his clothes.

　　"Come on..."

　　Qi Zhou unfolded his domain.

　　Two laws rose and entangled in the Ghost Fire domain, only a little bit away from "unification."

　　"Let's begin!"

　　He held his breath, waiting for the war to begin.

　　"Let it all... come more violently!!"

　　……

　　……

　　(I'm back, I'll start catching up on updates tomorrow.)

　　(End of this chapter)