"You should go back and rest," Qian Renxue suddenly said.
Su Chen glanced at her: "You should rest too."
Qian Renxue neither refuted nor admitted it. She merely said softly: "After I finish reviewing these documents."
Su Chen stood up. When he reached the door, he heard her call out to him from behind: "Su Chen."
He turned back.
Qian Renxue's gaze fell on his right arm, her voice betraying no emotion: "You said you would protect everyone. Your own hand is included in 'everyone.' Don't let it become useless."
Su Chen was taken aback for a moment, then smiled. He raised his right arm fixed in the soul tool brace and shook it: "Don't worry, I need to keep both hands. One to hold a sword, one to make a fist—I need them both."
The corner of Qian Renxue's mouth seemed to twitch, but she quickly returned to that cool expression. She lowered her head and continued reviewing the documents, not looking at him again. Su Chen gently closed the door. As he walked out, night wind poured in from the window at the end of the corridor, carrying the slightly cool air of early autumn. He took a deep breath, feeling some of the suffocating pressure in his chest dissipate.
At least they were still moving. As long as they were still moving, there was hope.
...
Over the next three days, the Spirit Hall branch in Tian Dou City was permeated with a tense and busy atmosphere. Qian Renxue mobilized all available combat forces from the branch, dispatching them in batches to various directions for reconnaissance and node repair missions. Every day, carrier pigeons flew back from different directions, bringing news both good and bad. Two paralyzed nodes were successfully repaired. Three reconnaissance squads encountered Void Cult patrols during their search, resulting in several small-scale conflicts—one dead and three wounded. But the good news was that one reconnaissance squad had discovered a suspicious underground entrance deep in the forest four hundred li to the northeast of Qingfeng Valley. The perimeter was protected by a high-intensity illusion formation. If the Soul Saint leading the team hadn't happened to be proficient in spiritual-type soul skills, they would have almost overlooked it.
"That is very likely a core-level base," Qian Renxue said at the next morning meeting. On the map, that suspicious location was marked with a striking red circle. "But the reconnaissance squad didn't go deep. They only recorded the energy fluctuation data around the entrance perimeter before withdrawing. According to their report, the illusion formation at the entrance is of extremely high grade, and there is at least Soul Douluo-level defensive strength inside."
Su Chen looked at the red circle on the map, his fingers lightly tapping the desktop. The outermost large brace on his right arm had been removed during the third day's medicine change, leaving only a thin fixation strip attached to the inner side of his forearm. The bone-setting paste was working well. The broken bones had already begun to heal. Though he still couldn't exert force, daily activities were no longer a problem.
"When do we move?" Chen Hao asked from the other side of the table. He had recovered faster than anticipated. The Solar Will's inherent restorative ability allowed his body to heal at a speed far beyond ordinary people. By the third day, he was already able to get out of bed and walk on his own. Though his complexion was still somewhat pale, his energy had returned to about eighty or ninety percent.
Qian Renxue glanced at him: "Not in a hurry. We need more intelligence. If that place is a core-level base, rushing in blindly is no different from suicide. The success at Qingfeng Valley last time had many fortuitous factors, including that base's Titled Douluo being partially lured away by me, and the remaining one happening to be countered by your Solar Will. We won't have such good luck this time."
"Then what are we waiting for?" Li Yang asked.
"For the sealing arts master we sent to Spirit City to return," Qian Renxue said. "The information inside that black jade talisman may contain the specific defensive layout and personnel deployment of that base. Know yourself and know your enemy, and you can minimize casualties."
Li Yang was silent for a while and didn't press further. Everyone understood that the last battle at Qingfeng Valley had already proven how dangerous Void Cult bases were—places where the slightest carelessness would result in total annihilation. Qian Renxue's decision was not wrong.
But Su Chen noticed that when Qian Renxue said the words "minimize casualties," her fingers lightly clenched on the edge of the table. She wasn't concerned for herself, but for this team. She didn't want to see anyone else get hurt.
"I have a proposal," Su Chen spoke, and everyone's gaze turned to him. "While we wait for the sealing arts master to return, we can do something else. Among the materials Lin Xue sorted through, there is an experimental subject list containing all the living people who participated in the modification experiments. Although most of them are already dead, there are twelve names with 'surviving' and 'under observation' marked next to them. If these twelve people are still in the Void Cult's hands, they are very likely being held captive in some base."
He paused: "If we can find these survivors, we might be able to obtain first-hand information about the internal structure of the bases from them. Moreover, rescuing them is something we must do in itself."
The conference room was quiet for several seconds. Lin Xue raised her head to look at Su Chen. For an instant there was a gleam in her eyes, but it quickly dimmed again.
"The location information on the list is incomplete," she said. "It only says 'Western District,' with no more specific location."
"Western District." Qian Renxue repeated the word, then walked to the large map on the wall, her finger tracing westward from Qingfeng Valley's position. "The western region of the Tian Dou Empire—the scope is too large. But if we combine it with the location of that suspicious underground entrance—four hundred li to the northeast, the core experiment cycle schedule at Qingfeng Valley marked a migration in two months, and the record of the Western District experimental subjects was last updated half a month ago—"
Her finger stopped at one location: "Sacred Soul Mountain Range. The largest mountain range in the western Tian Dou Empire, rarely visited by humans, with complex terrain and abundant soul power resources. If one were to establish a large-scale detention and experimentation base, that would be the most suitable choice."
Su Chen walked over and looked at the vast area marked as the Sacred Soul Mountain Range on the map. The mountains stretched for hundreds of li, the highest peak exceeding five thousand meters in elevation, perpetually snow-capped. The ravines between the mountains ran in all directions, covered by dense forests. Even an army hiding within might not be discovered.
"But the Sacred Soul Mountain Range is too large," Su Chen said. "Even if we've locked down this region, finding a specific base will take time. Moreover, the depths of the Sacred Soul Mountain Range contain large numbers of wild soul beasts, many at the ten-thousand-year level or above. For ordinary people, entering is a death sentence."
Qian Renxue turned to face everyone: "So we can't all go. We'll split up—I'll send an elite squad into the Sacred Soul Mountain Range to search for the whereabouts of the experimental subjects. Another team will continue monitoring that suspicious underground entrance, and decide whether to infiltrate after the sealing arts master arrives. Su Chen, you, Chen Hao, and Zhang Wan will come with me to the Sacred Soul Mountain Range. Li Yang and Lin Xue will stay here, responsible for coordinating intelligence and support from all sides."
Li Yang opened his mouth, seeming to want to say something, but after looking at Su Chen's expression, he ultimately closed it. Lin Xue simply nodded quietly.
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