After the last Salt Ceremony's embarrassing escape back to Salt Village, feeling frustrated, he told Salt Qi that the inner core was in Yu Village. He urged Salt Qi to prepare to attack Yu Village.
Salt Qi hesitated due to concerns about the mountain god of Deer God Mountain. After all, even Salt Ceremony's three-headed bird had been drenched by the mountain god of Deer God Mountain, driven back like a wet chicken. Attacking Yu Village again didn't seem like a wise decision.
"Without the inner core, my three-headed bird can't advance. I must obtain the inner core," Salt Ceremony insisted.
Salt Qi thought it wasn't worth offending the mountain god of Deer God Mountain for Salt Ceremony's three-headed bird. He was already the village chief of Salt Village; there was no need to take such risks.
Salt Ceremony sneered, "That's because you haven't seen how terrifying Yu Village is. They obtained the power of a god with that inner core."
Salt Qi didn't believe it; the power of a god wasn't obtained so easily.
"That's what I saw with my own eyes. They can manipulate soil and even control the power of water. Isn't that the power of a god? Don't you feel tempted? Don't you want to have it?" Salt Ceremony questioned.
Salt Qi hesitated, "Is what you're saying true?"
Salt Ceremony replied, "Whether it's true or not, you'll know if you go see for yourself. Let me tell you, if we don't eliminate Yu Village and snatch back that inner core, they will inevitably become our major enemy."
Salt Qi felt he was being fearmongered.
Salt Ceremony continued, "Haven't you heard the rumors circulating in the wilderness recently? They all say that there's a messenger of the mountain god from the south named Yu Su Village. He possesses the power of a god and travels with a god's caravan, selling fine and inexpensive fine salt all the way. It's a hundred times better than Salt Village's salt!"
Salt Qi immediately stood up, "That's impossible!"
His face finally looked unpleasant, "How could Yu Village have salt."
Salt Ceremony's eyes darkened, "That's why we must find out what's going on. If they really have a salt field, we must seize it; otherwise, there won't be a foothold for our Salt Village in the future."
Salt Qi slowly sat back in his seat, his face grim, "What you're saying makes sense, but how do we deal with the mountain god of Deer God Mountain?"
Salt Ceremony replied, "Just make it rain a bit, what's there to fear about rain? You don't need to fear its curse. It has never left Deer God Mountain. As long as you don't enter the range of Deer God Mountain in the future, it can't do anything to you."
Salt Qi, persuaded by Salt Ceremony, began arranging manpower to prepare for the attack on Yu Village.
Two days later, when the Salt Village's troops arrived near Black Bear Valley, the people of Yu Village noticed.
"Sure enough, as Lord Yu Su predicted, people from Salt Village have come!" Yu Feng and others, patrolling the salt fields, were the first to notice. They quickly stopped boiling salt, hid everything, and rushed back to the village.
With preparations in place, the people of Yu Village were not afraid but rather eager for the challenge.
Even Xin Dong and the other seven slaves requested to join the battle. They had grievances with Salt Village and hoped to contribute.
Lu Yan allowed it, letting them join the ranks of ordinary soldiers.
Jian Yunchuan said, "These people are not bad. If they can make significant contributions in this battle, I think it's almost time to remove their slave status."
Lu Yan replied, "Let's see."
Xin Ya, that little slave, kept hanging around Yu Su all the time.
Lu Yan found him annoying.Jian Yunchuan noticed his indifferent attitude, "What did they do to provoke you?"
Lu Yan glanced at Xin Ya, who was preparing to join the battle with a spear, and said, "Nothing much, everything depends on Lord Yu Su's decision."
Jian Yunchuan: "..."
Looking in Xin Ya's direction, he thought about the child who diligently tanned beast skins every day, sewing leather clothes and bags for them. He was quite likable, so Lu Yan shouldn't be targeting him.
Could it be Xin Dong?
That made sense. Xin Dong had served as the chief guard, had rich leadership experience, and acted steadily. He was a talent that could be molded, and Lu Yan felt he posed a threat, which was normal.
So, he reassured Lu Yan, "Xin Dong can't compare to you; don't worry about him replacing your position."
Lu Yan, puzzled, gave him a look. When did he ever worry about that?
...
After the assembly of the troops, Jian Yunchuan led a large group of people out of the village, ready for battle.
Lu Yan, with his own warriors, ambushed on both sides.
So when Yan Qi and Yan Li arrived with their people, seeing the formidable momentum of the people from Yu Village, each holding pointed spears, waiting for them, their faces darkened.
When did the people of Yu Village know they were coming?
Moreover, each person's posture and momentum were completely different from ordinary guards. They seemed like well-trained warriors, just like the guards in Fengcheng, trained with special techniques.
Yan Qi and others were surprised; Yan Li, the last time he came, only knew that Yu Village had a few people with the power of gods, unaware that they had trained such decent warriors.
"Brothers of Yu Village, capture the dogs from Salt Village!"
Seizing the moment of Salt Village's astonishment, Jian Yunchuan shouted in front of the team, leading the charge. Other teams, following the agreed-upon tactics, immediately rushed towards Salt Village's forces from both sides.
"Charge, kill the dogs of Salt Village!"
The team approached with overwhelming momentum, shocking the people of Salt Village.
Yan Qi and the others had no time to think and had to order to counterattack.
Salt Ceremony patted the three-headed bird under him, making it fly and breathe fire towards Yu Village's forces.
Little did he know that before the three-headed bird could breathe fire, arrows with burning flames were shot towards them. In the blink of an eye, one of the arrows reached him. If it weren't for the three-headed bird being startled, swaying slightly and helping him avoid the arrow, one of his eyes would have been pierced!
"Tsk."
From the hidden spot, Lu Yan made a cold sound. With his current spiritual energy, it wasn't easy to condense a flame arrow; it would consume a considerable amount of energy. If one attempt failed, the next one would have to be more cautious.
"Yufeng, pay attention to that three-headed bird. When it breathes fire, hit it with your water sphere," Lu Yan instructed Yufeng.
Yufeng nodded.
Lu Yan spoke to the others, "Yufeng's spiritual power is limited; he can only hit a few water spheres. Yumeng, you need to catch them with your earth spheres. Yushan, the same for you. Others, throw whatever you have; the goal is to disturb it, don't let it breathe fire."
"Understood!"
Lu Yan intended to focus on dealing with Salt Ceremony.
Salt Ceremony, almost getting an arrow through his eye, became alert. Controlling the three-headed bird to fly higher, he tried to see who was attacking him.
Lu Yan guessed his intention and told Yufeng and others, "Infiltrate the regular warrior camp."
Yufeng and others nodded, blending into the ranks of ordinary soldiers, attacking Salt Village's forces together.
Salt Ceremony, flying higher, didn't find anyone. Furious, he manipulated the three-headed bird to fly higher, trying to see who was attacking him.
Lu Yan anticipated his move, told Yufeng and others, "Blend into the regular warrior camp."
Yufeng and the others nodded, infiltrating the ranks of ordinary soldiers, attacking Salt Village's forces together.
Salt Ceremony, flying higher, didn't find anyone. Furious, he slapped the three-headed bird.
"Hurry up and breathe fire, you stupid bird."
The three-headed bird squawked three times, and three heads lifted, preparing to breathe fire again.
At this moment, a water sphere fell from the sky, splashing into its open mouth. The other two mouths were blocked by earth spheres falling from the sky.
"Pfft." The fire of the three-headed bird was blocked in its own mouth, burning itself. It swung its three heads rapidly, shaking off the obstructing items. Fortunately, it avoided getting Salt Ceremony thrown off in the process.
"Wow!" Yufeng and the others secretly cheered; their hits were too accurate.
The three-headed bird didn't seem as terrifying now.
On Salt Qi's side, waiting for Salt Ceremony's three-headed bird to assist, it still hadn't breathed fire towards Yu Village's forces. He was infuriated and cursed at Salt Ceremony, "What the hell are you doing, Salt Ceremony? Why isn't your three-headed bird breathing fire!"
Damn it, these people from Yu Village are too hard to deal with. Not only are they individually strong, but they also cooperate seamlessly, playing his people like puppets!
Even when they attacked Ma Village, they didn't encounter such a tricky situation.
What's wrong with these people from Yu Village? How did they train such powerful warriors!
Salt Qi was shocked and angry, not sparing any face for Salt Ceremony, calling him useless, saying he's just eating and not contributing, not even his three-headed bird is of any use—completely useless.
This infuriated Salt Ceremony to the point of almost spitting blood. He angrily retorted, "Shut up!"
After saying that, he forcefully pulled the three-headed bird, "Breathe fire!"
The three-headed bird, also irritated, exerted force with all three heads, spraying out flames again.
This time, Yufeng and others only hit one of its heads. The other two heads weren't blocked and were misaligned.
"Oh no!"
At this moment, two flaming arrows shot out, hitting the other two heads of the three-headed bird.
Although the three-headed bird had a fire attribute, its flesh and skin were still vulnerable. It was injured after being hit, screamed in pain, swaying in the air, trying to shake off the pain. The two fireballs also went astray, hitting Salt Village's forces.
"Salt Ceremony!" Salt Qi was so angry that he spit out blood. What was Salt Ceremony doing? Hitting his own people?!
Salt Ceremony, trying to control the three-headed bird again, was in a dire situation. The three-headed bird, now furious and wild, ignored his commands, flapping crazily in the air, rushing towards the crowd in the battle, injuring people indiscriminately.
Before long, Salt Ceremony, attempting to regain control, was thrown off, falling embarrassingly to the ground.
The battle formation was in chaos; the rampaging three-headed bird not only started breathing fire indiscriminately but also trampled on people.
Jian Yunchuan, seeing the
situation turning dire, ordered everyone to retreat.
Lu Yan, with his people, went forward, using various techniques to attack, blocking the three-headed bird, preventing it from getting close to Yu Village's forces.
Salt Village's troops suffered heavy losses, and Salt Qi was so angry that he couldn't speak anymore.
Salt Ceremony, getting up, also had a pale face. He tried to control the three-headed bird again, but it was in a frenzy after being injured, not listening to him at all. It even wanted to breathe fire on him.
Lu Yan had Yu Shi, who also had a wood spirit root, summon vines to bind it.
Yu Shi, with a bitter face, said, "I used up my spiritual power too quickly; I can't summon anymore. And the vines I summoned can't restrain that bird; I'm not Lord Yu Su."
So Lu Yan asked Yufeng to lend him some power. He leaped up, landing on the back of the three-headed bird, raised his spear, and stabbed it.
With immense strength, he instantly wounded the three-headed bird.
The three-headed bird screamed in pain, becoming even more violent. It tried to shake off Lu Yan but couldn't because his spear was stuck in its body. It screamed in pain, wildly flapping its three heads, attempting to throw off the obstructive Lu Yan.