“Spirit Array Master?”
Mu Chen realized that Zhou Ye was also quite capable. Her face was filled with surprise, clearly not expecting Nine Dragons Stronghold to have a Spirit Array Master.
However, this girl was only an ordinary first-rank Spirit Array Master.
“You people from Mu Domain should leave now, or don’t blame me for being impolite.”
The spirit seal in the girl’s hand moved, her eyes swept over Zhou Ye, and she spoke softly.
“Is this your way of treating guests?”
Zhou Ye raised an eyebrow and said.
“Our Nine Dragons Stronghold has no acquaintance with Mu Domain, so you are not guests.”
The girl’s lips curled up, and the spirit seal in her hand quickly merged into the air. The spiritual energy there fluctuated faster, gradually forming an ice-blue spirit array that emitted an oppressive cold aura.
“If you don’t leave, don’t blame me!”
The girl glared, waved her hand, and the cold energy within the spirit array suddenly blew out, condensing into ice spears that shot towards Zhou Ye’s group, carrying the sound of wind breaking and bone-chilling cold.
Seeing this, Zhou Ye’s face darkened, but before she could act, Mu Chen beside her stepped forward. Without him seemingly doing anything, the air in front of him stirred, and a fiery spirit array quickly condensed. Powerful sparks erupted, transforming into a pillar of fire that shot out, causing the ice spears to melt and evaporate into thin air.
“What?!”
The girl saw her spirit array broken and looked at Mu Chen in astonishment: “You are also a Spirit Array Master?”
“Miss, our Mu Domain’s visit this time is to offer Nine Dragons Stronghold a great opportunity, brought to your doorstep with the magnanimity of Chief Lei. However, perhaps I overestimated Chief Lei too much. Nine Dragons Stronghold might not amount to much after all.”
Mu Chen looked directly at the beautiful girl and said calmly.
“You dare to badmouth my father?”
Hearing his taunt, the girl’s eyebrows shot up in anger. However, just as she was about to explode and leap down to attack, a shout rang out:
“Yin’er, stop!”
Mu Chen suddenly shivered upon hearing that shout, because the voice suddenly sounded familiar.
He frowned, carefully examining the figure who had just appeared beside the girl named Yin’er, his eyes growing increasingly surprised:
“Brother Lei Cheng?”
The person who had just appeared was a tall and sturdy man with faintly red arms. His face was none other than Lei Cheng, the captain of the Blazing Thunder team, whom Mu Chen had once cooperated with in Northern Spirit Field.
“Hahaha, Brother Mu Chen, long time no no see.”
Lei Cheng laughed heartily and cupped his hands in greeting to Mu Chen.
“Mu Chen?”
The girl heard him call out to the person below and was startled, her eyes looking at Mu Chen with a complex expression, carrying a provocative curiosity:
“Is that the Mu Chen who won the seed quota at Northern Spirit Academy?”
Lei Cheng chuckled and nodded: “Open the stronghold gate.”
“Second Uncle, but…”
Lei Cheng waved his hand and said: “Your father’s order!”
The girl sighed, waved her hand, and several henchmen quickly stepped forward to open the heavy gate. Mu Chen and Zhou Ye exchanged glances, then spurred their horses and rode in.
“Brother Lei Cheng, why are you at Nine Dragons Stronghold?”
Inside, upon meeting Lei Cheng again, Mu Chen immediately asked with confusion.
“Haha! My elder brother is the Chief of Nine Dragons Stronghold, so of course I’m here. However, I usually lead people to hunt spirit beasts, so I formed an exploration team.”
Lei Cheng said with a smile.
“Hey, you’re Mu Chen? I heard you’re also a Spirit Array Master? Since when did Northern Spirit Academy teach spirit arrays to its disciples?”
The girl looked down at Mu Chen haughtily, her red lips moving rapidly as she rattled off a string of questions.
From her tone, it seemed she harbored a good deal of resentment towards the Northern Spirit Academy, which left him somewhat puzzled.
"Ah, this is my elder brother's daughter, Lei Yin. She's very fond of spirit formations, and her talent isn't bad either. However, our Nine Dragons Stockade has no way to invite a Spirit Formation Master to teach her, so she's been fumbling her way through it herself these past few years. She's achieved a bit now, barely counting as a first-rank Spirit Formation Master."
Lei Cheng said with a smile, introducing her.
Mu Chen was even more startled to hear this. To reach first-rank Spirit Formation Master through self-study, it seemed her talent in this area was not much inferior to his.
"However, while she's good at spirit formations, her spiritual energy is terrible. She tried to apply to the Northern Spirit Academy to study before, but she didn't meet the standards."
"Hmph..."
Mu Chen's eyes widened as he looked at the resentful girl, finally understanding.
"You've come about the matter of Mount Mangyin, haven't you?"
Lei Cheng looked at Mu Chen and Zhou Ye, speaking frankly.
Zhou Ye nodded and said, "Please trouble this gentleman to take us to see Chief Lei."
"About this, my elder brother said he couldn't get involved. However, since you've come, and Mu Chen helped me quite a bit last time, I'll lead you in. But whether you can persuade him or not, that will depend on your own abilities."
Lei Cheng said helplessly.
"Thank you, Brother Lei Cheng."
Mu Chen expressed his gratitude politely.
Lei Cheng smiled and led the way. Lei Yin glared at Mu Chen, scrutinizing him for a few moments, then suddenly tossed her head, let out a "hmph," and turned to follow.
Mu Chen and Zhou Ye were led by Lei Cheng into the Nine Dragons Stockade, passing several large courtyards where many people were sweating profusely, practicing martial arts. The aura of these individuals was not weak, and a faint bloodlust lingered around them; they were clearly not gentle novices. The combat strength of the Nine Dragons Stockade was indeed not bad at all.
The two followed Lei Cheng directly to the chief's house, where a robust middle-aged man sat in the main seat. His face bore many resemblances to Lei Cheng's, and his sharp eyes scrutinized the people who had just entered.
This person was undoubtedly Lei Shan, the Great Chief of the Nine Dragons Stockade, and the second most famous figure in the Northern Spirit Realm's underworld, right after Yang Gui. He spoke calmly,
"Friends from Mu Territory, I already know your purpose in coming here. However, that is a private grudge between you and Mount Mangyin. Our Nine Dragons Stockade finds it inconvenient to get involved."
Zhou Ye's heart sank upon hearing this. The Nine Dragons Stockade indeed did not want to help. However, he hadn't expected these bandits to exert themselves for Mu Territory; he merely wanted to borrow a path through. But just as he was about to speak, a soft voice came from beside him:
"Uncle Zhou, let me handle it."
Zhou Ye looked back at Mu Chen in surprise; the young man's expression was very firm. He hesitated for a moment but then nodded.
"Great Chief Lei, I've long heard that you built the Nine Dragons Stockade by wielding a pair of iron fists, becoming a renowned figure in the Northern Spirit Realm's underworld. However, meeting you today, I'm a little disappointed."
Mu Chen slowly stepped forward, speaking with a light smile.
Lei Shan glared fiercely at Mu Chen, but he suppressed his anger and waved his hand.
"You're still too green to use such a provocation on me."
"I wonder if Great Chief Lei has the ambition and spirit to truly elevate the Nine Dragons Stockade, to genuinely become the dragon head of the Northern Spirit Realm's underworld?"
Mu Chen continued to speak calmly.
Lei Shan's eyes were bloodshot, but he didn't utter a word.
"Currently, in the Black Dao of the Northern Spirit Realm, the Mang Yin Mountain's power is growing stronger by the day, its influence expanding, having absorbed many other factions. Now, it can truly be considered worthy of the dragon head position. I'm sure Chief Lei fully acknowledges this, right?"
Lei Shan nodded indifferently.
"Mang Yin Mountain is expanding its power extremely rapidly, its ambition is clear, and behind it, the Liu Domain is secretly colluding. I predict that before long, it will forcefully and domineeringly absorb the entire Black Dao of this Mang Yin Mountain Range. By then, the Nine Dragons Stockade will only have two paths to take: one is to surrender and become a subordinate part of Mang Yin Mountain; the other is to resist, but it's clear that you are not currently a match for Mang Yin Mountain. What the outcome will be then, I don't need to say."
Lei Shan's indifferent expression gradually changed. After a moment, he said, "That's just your speculation."
"Yes, it is indeed speculation. But I have a basis for my speculation. Consider it a game of cards. When the time comes, will Chief Lei be willing to stake the survival of everyone in the Nine Dragons Stockade on that dangerous game? Are you sure Mang Yin Mountain won't make a move? How they are, I think you know much better than I do."
Mu Chen smiled. He was very familiar with Mang Yin Mountain's modus operandi and knew a little about the Black Dao situation here.
The people of the Nine Dragons Stockade looked at each other, their expressions serious. Mu Chen's analysis of the situation clearly made them quite uneasy. After all, they knew the people of Mang Yin Mountain well. If the Liu Domain was indeed secretly assisting them from behind, then their ambition would sooner or later be realized.
In the Black Dao of the Northern Spirit Realm, currently only the Nine Dragons Stockade was strong enough to contend with Mang Yin Mountain. Those people wanted to unify the Black Dao of the Northern Spirit Realm, and they would definitely make their first move against the Nine Dragons Stockade.
Zhou Ye also noticed the change, his eyes showing a hint of pleased admiration for Mu Chen. The young man unexpectedly had such sharp insight, striking directly at the Nine Dragons Stockade's weakness.
"What do you intend to do?"
Lei Shan frowned, his tone much more relaxed.
"Originally, our Mu Domain didn't concern itself with the affairs of the Northern Spirit Realm's Black Dao. However, Mang Yin Mountain actively challenged us, so the Mu Domain naturally won't let them off. And that is also an opportunity for the Nine Dragons Stockade. If both sides join forces, I'm sure we'll be more than capable of eliminating Mang Yin Mountain. By then, the Black Dao space will be vast, and you can develop freely. The Mu Domain will absolutely not make things difficult for you."
Mu Chen said without hesitation.
"But won't the Nine Dragons Stockade offend the Liu Domain then? The Liu Domain is the number one domain in the Northern Spirit Realm. Supporting the Mu Domain and offending them is not a wise move."
Lei Shan said slowly.
"However, you no longer have a choice. The Liu Domain seems to have an issue with you and has directly contacted Mang Yin Mountain. Now, it's no longer a question of whether or not to offend the Liu Domain, but rather that the Liu Domain will certainly have to help Mang Yin Mountain deal with the thorn in their side."
Mu Chen spread his hands and said softly. People are plotting day and night to destroy you, yet you're worried about offending them. That's truly too foolish.
Lei Shan's face became stern, growing increasingly displeased. The young man's words truly showed him no respect at all.
"Now, an opportunity has come before you. If our Mu Domain cannot thoroughly resolve Mang Yin Mountain, we can still withdraw our forces. But by then, the Nine Dragons Stockade will not fare well."
Mu Chen smiled, his eyes gradually turning cold:
"Therefore, if Lei Dashou is a farsighted individual, why would he be afraid of a few outdated rules? Join hands with us, and sweep through Mangyin Mountain! Not only will you eliminate a threat, but you will also create great prestige and opportunities for yourself. Lei Dashou, what do you think?"
Mu Chen meticulously guided Lei Shan step by step.
Inside the main hall of the stronghold, the atmosphere became solemn. Lei Cheng and Lei Yin both looked at Lei Shan's constantly changing expression; his decision would determine the fate of Jiulong Stronghold.
Time passed slowly and heavily, and Mu Chen's mood grew increasingly tense. Everything that needed to be said had been said. Whether he could sway Lei Shan or not, he had no other recourse. If it didn't work, he would have to find another way to attack Mangyin Mountain.
"Hoo!"
The silent atmosphere was finally broken by Lei Shan's exhale. He looked at Mu Chen, his gaze sharp, and nodded slightly.
"Alright, our Jiulong Stronghold will cooperate with Mu Territory to destroy Mangyin Mountain!"