Chapter 285: Internal Fight
As Song Zhong saw the cultivators from the two dozen flying s.h.i.+ps charge at him like ants, he was elated instead of shocked. He then ordered, “Four of you remain in the flying formation of the s.h.i.+p. You have to make sure that we remain flying. The rest of you are to go into the insides of the s.h.i.+p to play a good game of hide-and-seek with them. With these fellows on the s.h.i.+p, we do not need to be worried that they will destroy the s.h.i.+p. As long as we can get to the Eastern Ocean, hmph hmph!”
While Song Zhong did not say it clearly, the demonic witches all knew what Song Zhong meant. He obviously wanted to rely on the Eastern Ocean to play all of these guys to death. Thus, they acknowledged him excitedly and dispersed to fulfil their mission. Song Zhong also let out a sneer and entered the base of the flying s.h.i.+p.
As the cultivators by the side saw that, they were elated. The all thought that Song Zhong was afraid of them and charged right into the Gold Dragon s.h.i.+p.
While the Gold Dragon s.h.i.+p was only three thousand feet long, the insides of the flying s.h.i.+p had been layered with a s.p.a.ce-type spell, and it was much larger than what it looked like on surface. There were many levels in the s.h.i.+p and an uncountable number of rooms. Back then, Song Zhong took fully half a year to leisurely explore the place. Thus, the Gold Dragon s.h.i.+p had more than enough s.p.a.ce to hold these three to four thousand people. After the large amount of cultivators entered, the originally peaceful Gold Dragon s.h.i.+p became lively. At this moment, something which was both unexpected but yet within common sense happened. People started arguing.
It turned out, there were many treasures in the body of the Gold Dragon s.h.i.+p. Any random flower pot in the s.h.i.+p would contain a spiritual herb which was at least a thousand years old. In the larger gardens, even a ten thousand year old spiritual herb could be seen.
Apart from that, the decorations in the Gold Dragon s.h.i.+p were also treasures. Even the most ordinary wine flask was a dimensional storage item. While it looked extremely small, more than a hundred catties of wine could be contained within it. Furthermore, while some items weren’t treasures, the materials used to make them were extremely precious and it wouldn’t be an issue to forge magical artifacts out of them. Only a LianXu cultivator would be able to forge such an extravagant s.h.i.+p. If it was anyone else, they would not even dare think about it.The many treasures in the place would naturally incite greed in the cultivators. Especially those sects which weren’t as wealthy, they stopped in their tracks like a famished beggar looking at a mountain of meat. At this moment, who could be bothered about Song Zhong? They all began to fight for the treasures.
While there were many such treasures, it wouldn’t be enough for the thousands of them. Thus, they quickly began to argue over these treasures. While it was called an argument, it was a crazy battle in reality. The cultivators in this place belonged to both the righteous and devil sects. Usually, both parties would definitely break out into a fight the moment they saw each other. While they were gathered together by Daoist Huo Long by benefits, such a brittle alliance would never be able to stand up to the temptation of treasures. Especially those from the devil sects, they couldn’t be bothered about their alliance at all. Seeing the benefits in front of them, they would naturally take action without restraint. The moment they took action, many righteous cultivators who were caught off guard had perished under their hands.
Of course, those from the righteous sects would not be bullied so easily either. Seeing that those from the devil sects took action, they began to retaliate immediately.
As such, before Song Zhong even took action, the Gold Dragon s.h.i.+p had already broken out into chaos. At the start, the righteous and devil cultivators were fighting each other. In the end, even the righteous sects began to have conflicts amongst themselves and broke out into an intense fight. As such, this chaotic battle enveloped the whole Gold Dragon s.h.i.+p.
Hiding in a secret chamber, Song Zhong was also able to witness everything that was happening. When he first saw them fighting, he was dumbfounded, followed by elation. Now that they were tangled up in one big mess, things would be much easier for him.
Suddenly, with a light bulb lighting up in his head, he thought about another scheming plan. He then commanded the five sword cultivator demonic witches to possess the people from the various sects to stir up trouble. They were to fight anyone they saw with the purpose of everyone in the s.h.i.+p killing each other in the internal strife.
Just when Song Zhong was enjoying his wine and watching the show in front of him, Daoist Huo Long, Huo Qing Yun and Daoist Lecher entered the Gold Dragon s.h.i.+p. As they saw the pitiful scene taking place in the Gold Dragon s.h.i.+p, they almost died from anxiety. They never imagined that these ‘alliance mates’ would fight over treasures the moment they entered. What if Song Zhong escaped during the mess?Thinking about this, Daoist Huo Long shouted, “Fellow daoists, fellow daoists, don’t fight amongst yourselves! We must first kill Song Zhong before we split up the spoils of war. I will promise all of you that no one will lose out!”
Despite shouting until his voice turned hoa.r.s.e, no one listened to him. Kill Song Zhong? Not to mention how crafty that brat was, just the might of the Nine Beauties Painting and the gigantic copper bell would be more than enough to destroy them. Furthermore, that brat only had two spiritual artifacts on him. Who would those items belong to after killing him? At that time, wouldn’t they have to fight again? At the end of the day, who knew who would be the one to reap all the benefits. Compared to chasing him, it was much better for them to obtain the treasures in front of them now. After all, it was better to have a portion of meat in their mouth than stare at ten portions of meat without eating them.
As Huo Qing Yun saw that, she could not help but say with a bitter laugh, “Forget it, it is useless for you to say anything now. They have no enmity with Song Zhong at all and would naturally choose to fight over treasures rather than finding trouble with him.”
“Dammit, don’t these people know that Song Zhong has more treasures on him?” Daoist Huo Long lamented in frustration. This pink-clad middle-aged man looked suave and charming. The only thing lacking about him was the sinister look in his eyes, spoiling his whole image. “Haiz!” Huo Qing Yun sighed before replying with a bitter laugh, “The Gold Dragon s.h.i.+p is so big and we don’t know where Song Zhong is hiding. If we really want to find him, that isn’t something which can be accomplished in a short time. All of them would definitely not give up the treasures in front of them to search for Song Zhong. After all, this is only a temporary alliance and we cannot force them into doing anything.”
“Hmph, we should really kill all of these b.a.s.t.a.r.ds!” Daoist Huo Long cursed with frustration.
“Forget it, let’s not talk about this!” Huo Qing Yun was afraid that Daoist Huo Long would end up in a conflict with the other sects due to his anger. At that time, it would be even more difficult for them to find Song Zhong. Thus, she diverted his attention, “Thankfully, we have already taken over the Gold Dragon s.h.i.+p and Song Zhong is already surrounded by us. As long as we lock down this area and do not give him a chance to escape, we will definitely be able to find him eventually!”
“That’s right!” Daoist Huo Long also added on, “I don’t believe that after dismantling the Gold Dragon s.h.i.+p, that d.a.m.n fatty can still hide!” “That’s right!” Daoist Lecher nodded his head before adding on, “If that’s the case, we shall not go in yet. Why don’t we split up and monitor the surroundings to prevent that d.a.m.n fatty from escaping!”
“That’s good, too!” Daoist Huo Long and Huo Qing Yun agreed with what Daoist Lecher said. Then, they began to lay out their plan and determined the places that they were supposed to guard. Following which, they flew to their respective areas and began to wait for their prey.
Actually, the idea for the three of them to lay in wait wasn’t too bad and could be considered to be a brilliant plan. For them to go in now, it would be easy for them to end up fighting the other cultivators who were obsessed over the treasures. Furthermore, they would also give Song Zhong a chance to escape in the chaos. But if they were to guard the surroundings, there was no need for them to be worried about Song Zhong’s escape. At the same time, they could also avoid fighting those crazy cultivators in the Gold Dragon s.h.i.+p. This was akin to killing many birds with a single stone. But the problem was, this plan would only be effective on the condition that Song Zhong had no backup and could only choose to escape. The three of them were completely clueless about the fact that Song Zhong was the Crown Prince of the Eastern Ocean Empire. This was something that they wouldn’t even dream of and thus, made no preparations for it. As such, this gave Song Zhong an extremely good chance. While the Gold Dragon s.h.i.+p had sustained serious damage externally, the internal formation which provided its flight capabilities was still intact and functional. As such, the Gold Dragon s.h.i.+p was still escaping at a speed of about 3000 mph. In the Gold Dragon s.h.i.+p, cultivators were s.n.a.t.c.hing treasures all around. With their boarding crews present, while the twentysome flying s.h.i.+ps on the outside had the capabilities to destroy the Gold Dragon s.h.i.+p, they would definitely not open fire. With all of the cultivators busy fighting over treasures, none of them would think about destroying the flying formation. Even the occasional few who thought about it would be killed by the four demonic witches guarding it. Thus, the Gold Dragon s.h.i.+p was able to travel towards the Eastern Ocean safely.
Of course, the mess in the Gold Dragon s.h.i.+p would not continue forever. After all, the people in the Gold Dragon s.h.i.+p were all cunning old foxes. After fighting for a while, they realized that something was wrong; they had too little treasures and too many deaths. Thus, some of the sly YuanYing cultivators began to stop the battle so they could obtain the treasures in a more peaceful manner. However, every time such a thought was conceived, it would be destroyed quickly. Either some JinDan cultivator wouldn’t listen to the orders of the sect and attack the allied troops, or a treasure would suddenly appear between two group of cultivators who had just stopped fighting. They would first argue over who should own the treasure before breaking out into another big fight for no good reason. Such a scene happened in all the various places of the Gold Dragon s.h.i.+p. As such, the cultivators who entered the Gold Dragon s.h.i.+p had never stopped fighting. While some of the wiser cultivators realized that something was wrong, it was impossible for them to stop such chaos without proper evidence. Thus, they could only succ.u.mb to the chaos.
Just like that, a few hours went by and the Gold Dragon s.h.i.+p finally flew out from the Vast Mountains and entered the Eastern Ocean.
Originally, Daoist Huo Long, Daoist Lecher and Huo Qing Yun were silently observing the happenings within the Gold Dragon s.h.i.+p on their own flying s.h.i.+ps. They were not anxious at all. Since Song Zhong was already the public enemy of all the human cultivators, there was no one to save him. As long as they surrounded him, it was only a matter of time before they found him. Thus, there was no need to be anxious at all. But when the Gold Dragon s.h.i.+p flew out of the Vast Mountains and entered the Eastern Ocean, the three of them could not help but grow worried. The Eastern Ocean was the territory of the demonic beasts, after all. While they would be able to stay at the outskirts of the Eastern Ocean, even the three of them might not be able to escape from the demonic beast experts if they were to go too deep into the Eastern Ocean.
Thinking about the demonic beast clans of the Eastern Ocean Empire, the three of them could no longer sit still. Daoist Huo Long could not help but frown, “Why is this Gold Dragon s.h.i.+p not stopping? If we continue flying in this direction, we will enter the internal region of the Eastern Ocean Empire. I do not want to alert those crazy demonic beasts!” “None of us would be willing to fight them, including me!” Daoist Lecher said with a frown.
“Something seems wrong. This d.a.m.n fatty can’t possibly be thinking of luring us to the Eastern Ocean Empire right?” Huo Qing Yun suddenly said.
“Aiyah!” After being reminded by Huo Qing Yun, Daoist Lecher and Daoist Huo Long became alert. They did not dare to delay and observing the direction they were heading towards, quickly realized that something was wrong. “Dammit, while this Gold Dragon s.h.i.+p looks like it is in tatters, its speed isn’t affected at all! Furthermore, it is headed right into the depths of the Eastern Ocean Empire. If you were to tell me that no one was controlling it, I won’t believe it even in death!” Daoist Huo Long frowned.
“No, this can’t continue. We must make the Gold Dragon s.h.i.+p stop!” Huo Qing Yun said.
“But, the flying formation is in the Gold Dragon s.h.i.+p. With the mess inside, how will we be able to charge in?” Daoist Lecher said helplessly. “We will have to charge in no matter what!” Daoist Huo Long said hatefully, “It is better than waiting for our deaths!”
“Why don’t we try persuading them!” Huo Qing Yun then said, “Perhaps, they would be able to see the crisis and stop fighting!”
“Alright!” Daoist Huo Long and Daoist Lecher nodded their heads.
Huo Qing Yun then circulated her magical Qi and shouted, “My fellow daoists, listen to me for a moment! We are now in the Eastern Ocean and will enter into the hinterland of the Eastern Ocean Empire in another few hours. At that time, we will definitely provoke many demonic beasts and we will not be able to escape!” “Fellow daoists, this is definitely Song Zhong’s scheme! He obviously wants to make use of the demonic beasts to fight us to the death. He would then be able to make use of that opportunity to escape. We must not fall for his tricks!” Daoist Lecher shouted out.
“That’s right, this b.a.s.t.a.r.d Song Zhong wants to make use of the demonic beasts to take care of us! We must not allow things to go his way!” Daoist Huo Long also added on.
With the three sect masters shouting at the top of their voices, they did indeed draw the attention of the many cultivators in the Gold Dragon s.h.i.+p. While the treasures were important, their lives were more important. The strength of the demonic beasts had long been imprinted into their hearts, and none of the humans dared to underestimate them. Even YuanYing cultivators would probably perish if they were to enter the hinterlands of the Eastern Ocean.A few experts then stopped fighting and shouted, “Then what do the three sect masters think that we should do?”
“Very simple, as long as all of you can destroy the flying formation within the Gold Dragon s.h.i.+p, the s.h.i.+p will stop. At that time, all of you can do whatever you wis.h.!.+” Huo Qing Yun smiled.
“Mmm, makes sense! I agree to doing that!”
“I agree as well!”
“Agreed!” Under the pressure of the demonic beasts, the cultivators all chose to work together.
Seeing that they were willing to work together, Huo Qing Yun was elated as she said, “That’s the best. I hope that all of you will stop fighting and destroy the flying formation first!”
“En, en!” The cultivators in the Gold Dragon s.h.i.+p all stopped fighting and made a pact to not fight until they could destroy the flying formation of the Gold Dragon s.h.i.+p. The one who went against the pact would be killed by everyone else. This pact was definitely a good thing and the disciples from the various sects would definitely listen to the orders of their sect. However, would this mean that nothing will go wrong? Obviously not. For example, at a certain junction in the Gold Dragon s.h.i.+p, two groups of righteous and devil cultivators met with seven to eight men in each group. Both the groups had fought with each other previously and had their fellow sect mates killed by the other party, forming a blood debt. But due to the orders from above, they did not fight each other upon seeing each other, letting out a cold snort before pa.s.sing each other.
Of course, when they walked past each other, both parties were extremely wary, afraid that the other party would sneak an attack against them. But the more they were afraid, the more something would happen. When both the groups were about to pa.s.s by each other, the last righteous cultivator of the group suddenly let out a m.u.f.fled groan before collapsing on the ground. With such a tense atmosphere, both parties did not hesitate at all as they saw that. Those from the righteous sects were certain that those from the devil sects must have made a sneak attack on their fellow sect mate. As for those from the devil sects, they thought that this sneak attack was the intention of their sect. As such, they also took action without hesitation, afraid that they weren’t cooperating well enough.
As such, both parties began to fight again. Sword light flashed all over and spells exploded all around. The loud commotion quickly alerted all the surrounding disciples. As they turned around to take a look, they realized that their own sect mates were fighting the enemy. Was there a need to question their actions? They would naturally pull out their swords to join in the fight! As such, more and more people from both sects began to join in and a large battle broke out again. Both parties naturally gave their all in the fight, unleas.h.i.+ng everything they had learned. As for whether or not the other party was their enemy, they wouldn’t have the time to slowly identify them. As long as they saw someone they weren’t familiar with, they would just kill them.
As such, some of the cultivators who were pa.s.sing by got caught into the mess as well and could not help but fight. Then, they ended up dying an unknown death in the chaotic battlefield. In the end, their deaths would pull the sect behind them into the battle, expanding the reach of the chaotic battle.
Furthermore, such a battle did not happen in a single place. There were five such battles happening at the same time. The reasons for all of them breaking out into a fight were extremely dubious, with some of them fighting for no reason at all.
