Undying Life

Chapter 176: Between attack and defense, a certain death situation

"In that case, how about having A Da as your sparring partner?" Princess Qianyou looked at Zhong Shan and asked.

"Thank you, Princess," Zhong Shan immediately replied without hesitation.

"A Da, for the next period of time, you'll be practicing with Sir," Princess Qianyou said.

"Yes, Princess," A Da responded respectfully.

These days, A Da had developed a deep admiration for Zhong Shan due to witnessing his various tactics firsthand.

On a floating island north of the Twin City.

Standing beside Gu Lin, Water Mirror frowned as Mobeili spoke, "My lord, Sir, I've already dispatched two individuals to make contact with Water Tianya's camp."

"How did it go? What did you instruct your men to do?" Gu Lin asked.

"Just to gather information from their side," Mobeili replied.

"Gathering information? Excellent! Let's turn the tables and sow some confusion by feeding them false information," Gu Lin exclaimed excitedly, feeling rather clever with his strategy.

However, Water Mirror shook his head silently. It seemed futile to dampen Gu Lin's enthusiasm. Gathering information? What information? All the strategies employed by Mobeili were conceived by the three of them, and Mobeili wouldn't disclose any plans unless necessary. There was nothing significant to leak at this stage.

"Is there really no other plan?" Water Mirror frowned.

"I haven't heard of any," Mobeili replied.

"Not hearing about it doesn't mean it doesn't exist. They might not reveal their plans now, perhaps waiting for a crucial moment to catch us off guard," Water Mirror said thoughtfully.

"In that case, what should we do, Sir?" Mobeili asked.

"Without clarity, we should observe and adapt. However, during the voting period, everything changes rapidly, and we can't afford to wait passively. In that case, we should continue to mimic their actions. Even if they use your men for something, you can use theirs for similar purposes," Water Mirror suggested.

"Yes, Sir," Mobeili immediately responded respectfully.

In Zhong Shan's courtyard.

"Boom, boom, boom..."

Zhong Shan swung his blade fiercely at A Da. A Da countered with his fists, blocking the blade Qi.

"Roar!" Zhong Shan bellowed.

Another fifteen-zhang-long blade Qi struck fiercely at A Da. A Da's fists intersected, pushing upward with force.

"Boom~"

The colliding fist Qi fiercely collided with the blade Qi. Under the impact, the blade Qi disintegrated completely. At this moment, Zhong Shan revealed a sinister smile.

"Boom~"

A thunderous column descended from the sky just as the blade Qi dissipated, striking fiercely at the top of A Da's head. A Da's eyes widened, and his body surged with Qi, forming a thick protective shield above his head. However, it seemed slightly slow, and although most of the lightning was blocked by the shield, some still struck A Da's head directly.

"Bang~"

A Da's hair exploded into a mess, a fierce look flashing across his face as his Qi surged.

"Roar~~~"

A thunderous roar echoed, and Zhong Shan suddenly felt a phantom tiger rushing towards him fiercely.

"Boom~~~"

Despite Zhong Shan's full defense, he was sent flying and crashed into a large tree, breaking it.

"Puff~~~"

Zhong Shan spat out a mouthful of blood, realizing he had overestimated his capabilities.

"Sir, I'm sorry, it was just my instinctive reaction," A Da hurriedly ran over with concern written all over his face.

"I'm fine, it was just an instinctive reaction, I understand. It's not your fault!" Zhong Shan smiled wryly, wiping the blood from his mouth.

"I apologize again, Sir," A Da said, still worried.

"No sparring without getting hurt, what kind of sparring is that? It's even better this way, don't worry, I'm fine," Zhong Shan reassured him gently as he rose to his feet.

"Thank you, Sir," A Da said promptly.

"Well, go tidy up your hair," Zhong Shan chuckled.

Feeling embarrassed about his exploded hairstyle, A Da bowed slightly to Zhong Shan before quickly flying away to fix it.

"Sir, are you alright?" Princess Qianyou asked from nearby, standing by a stone table.

"I'm fine, Princess. I didn't pay attention just now," Zhong Shan walked over slowly.

Princess Qianyou sat at the stone table, with A Er and Water Tianya standing behind her.

"Your training is truly rigorous, Sir," Princess Qianyou handed Zhong Shan a cup of tea brewed for healing.

"Thank you, Princess," Zhong Shan sat down and took a sip.

With just one gulp, he felt much better from the injuries caused by A Da's instinctive reaction.

"No, A Da is at the peak of the Yuan Ying stage, yet he was still forced into a state of panic by Sir. And not just today, it's happened more than once. Sir, you're truly extraordinary," Princess Qianyou sincerely remarked.

"Hehe, maybe I am indeed special," Zhong Shan chuckled.

"Yes, Sir, you're very special," Princess Qianyou smiled back.

"Water Tianya, how's the situation now with five days remaining?" Zhong Shan asked.

"Mobeili has four million votes, while I only have three million one hundred thousand. There's a gap of nine hundred thousand votes," Water Tianya replied anxiously.

"No worries, don't we still have nearly three million votes left? And there are still five days," Zhong Shan smiled.

"Yes," Water Tianya nodded.

"During these days, have the two individuals you bought from Mobeili been following my instructions?" Zhong Shan asked Water Tianya.

"Yes, they've followed your instructions completely. But, are their antics really useful for us?" Water Tianya worriedly inquired.

"They may not be useful for us directly, but they're definitely causing headaches for Water Mirror. He must be feeling overwhelmed during this time. Haha," Zhong Shan laughed heartily.

"Yes, he's too smart for his own good. He overthinks every little thing," Water Tianya chuckled in agreement.

"How are those people you've bought from them doing now?" Zhong Shan asked again.

"They're completely under my control, just 'peacefully' being bought over. As long as you give the order, they'll leap into the fire," Water Tianya affirmed.

"Good, that's perfect. However, I'm not going to have them do anything right now. Instead, I'm preparing to reveal something," Zhong Shan smiled.

"Please go on, Sir," Water Tianya said earnestly.

"Tell the elder brother of Mobeili to ambush me with Broken Gang Arrows on the last day of the election, the day I go to the Lord's Manor," Zhong Shan instructed.

"Ambush? Ambush Mobeili?" Water Tianya asked in surprise.

"No, ambush you!" Zhong Shan pointed at Water Tianya seriously.

Startled by Zhong Shan's gesture, Water Tianya's hair stood on end as he stared at Zhong Shan with a worried expression.

"Don't worry, it's just a pretend shot at you, it'll definitely miss. Besides, with so many guards, it's impossible to hit you anyway," Zhong Shan quickly reassured with a smile.

Relieved, Water Tianya let out a long breath. Calming down, he immediately understood what Zhong Shan was getting at.

"Sir, are you planning to frame Mobeili? Making everyone believe that Mobeili is trying to assassinate me for the election?" Water Tianya asked immediately.

"No, that's not it!" Water Tianya continued, puzzled.

"What?" Zhong Shan looked at Water Tianya with a smile.

"Sir, even though the elder brother of Mobeili has been bought by us, according to what you said, he should still be loyal to Mobeili. How could he listen to us?" Water Tianya asked worriedly.

Looking at Water Tianya, Zhong Shan smiled faintly. "He'll definitely do as we say, and he'll stand where I specify. Whether he actually shoots or not is not important."

"Why?" Water Tianya asked, puzzled.

"Because Water Mirror will instruct him to go, and your people, those who have been 'bought', will also be invited to pretend to use the Broken Gang Arrows to shoot Mobeili. Your people will follow their instructions obediently," Zhong Shan explained confidently.

"But Sir, why?" Water Tianya still didn't quite understand.

"Just do as I say, and you'll understand why later," Zhong Shan shook his head, clearly intending to keep the suspense.

"Yes, Sir," Water Tianya could only respond with a puzzled expression.

Then, Princess Qianyou dismissed Water Tianya.

"Is Sir ready to make a move?" Princess Qianyou asked excitedly.

"Yes, the trap has been set, we're just waiting for Water Mirror to fall into it," Zhong Shan said confidently.

"Does Sir have that much confidence?" Princess Qianyou asked.

"Seventy percent confidence," Zhong Shan said confidently.

"Why is Sir so confident?" Princess Qianyou asked.

"Water Mirror's abilities are beyond doubt, but this time, he made a mistake, or perhaps he did it intentionally," Zhong Shan explained.

"Oh? Please elaborate," Princess Qianyou said.

"Water Mirror has been defending all this time, leaving me to attack. However, prolonged defense will inevitably lead to failure," Zhong Shan said confidently.

"Prolonged defense will lead to failure?" Princess Qianyou frowned.

"Yes, I can feel that Water Mirror's abilities are not limited to just defense. However, this time, he hasn't made any move at all, just kept defending. Perhaps he never intended to give his all for Mobeili. By constantly defending, he has indeed countered many obstacles I've set up, but at the same time, he's narrowed the environment he controls more and more. Now, there's no escape, it'll be a sure-death situation, he can't counter anymore. It's too late to counter," Zhong Shan said confidently.