Yinlan City, Part 2

The fog wasn’t just poisonous—upon entering the city ahead, Lin Hebai momentarily lost her bearings, nearly trapped in the mist.

She realized a high-tier maze array was at play.

Poisonous fog was tricky enough, but combined with a maze array, it was perilous.

Alone, she could navigate a few loops and likely escape if she survived.

But she wasn’t alone—she had three hundred Body School first-years behind her. She couldn’t risk it.

For now, resting in place and waiting for other Sword Sect schools to arrive was the safest plan.

Boat Elder understood, turning the helm to lower the cloud boat.

“The boat’s descending,” Tian Ning said. “Not moving forward?”

Su Qing glanced outside. “Likely stopping to set up camp and regroup.”
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Tang Yueling frowned. “Weren’t we supposed to rush to the beast tide frontline to aid Yinlan City? Why stop at Pinghe City?”

Su Qing spread her map on the table, eyeing its markings.

Yinlan City, one of the thirty-six major cities, wasn’t just one urban area but comprised a main city, two subsidiary cities, and a pass. From south to north: Pinghe City, Pinghe River, Inner Subsidiary City, Main City, Outer Subsidiary City, and Demon-Suppressing Pass.

The cloud boat had stopped just before the Inner Subsidiary City.

Something was off—likely tied to the fog.

Soon, third-year senior sister Ling Yunxiao’s voice transmitted to the first-years: dense fog blocked the way, stay calm in your rooms, don’t panic.

“I’ve heard Yinlan City is guarded by a branch of the Yan family,” Tang Yueling said. “They’re renowned for their spear techniques—Yan Family Spear, unmatched in the world. Even back home in the west, I heard of it.”

Su Qing mused: Tang’s family was on the continent’s west, Yinlan City in the northeast, nearly a continent apart. The Yan family’s fame was impressive.

Tang Yueling tapped the map. “People go to the Yan family to learn, even steal their techniques. They’re generous—those joining the Yan army can learn a bit. But outsiders can’t capture their aura. The spear technique isn’t special—it’s forged in the blood of beast tides, giving it unique killing intent. The real strength isn’t the technique itself.”

She pointed again. “This shows the beast tide hones people but is deadly. Yinlan City’s multiple passes exist for this reason.”

The first wave of the beast tide was handled at Demon-Suppressing Pass. If it breached, the Outer Subsidiary City dealt with it. If that fell, residents retreated to the Inner Subsidiary City. If Yinlan City itself couldn’t hold, the wide Pinghe River before Pinghe City was the final defense.

By then, few of Yinlan City’s people would survive.

Su Qing traced Tang Yueling’s path. “Each pass is spaced nearly a hundred li for preparation time. This fog stretched from Demon-Suppressing Pass through the Outer Subsidiary City, Main City, to the Inner Subsidiary City?”

Tian Ning frowned. “Such vast fog—has it been like this before?”

“Never this extensive,” the Pinghe City Lord said. A cultivator, he looked haggard from months of stress and sleeplessness. “In past years, fog reached the Outer Subsidiary City at most. A century ago, only Demon-Suppressing Pass. Lately, it’s worsened each time.”

Pinghe City was the gateway to Yinlan City’s aid. The impassable fog forced sects, alliances, and rogue cultivators to halt here, overcrowding the city, spiking prices, and sparking conflicts, overwhelming the city lord.

Lin Hebai tapped the table. “Did the fog appear suddenly, catching you unprepared?”

“Yinlan City is under Sword Sect’s protection. You owe us the truth,” she said, eyes sharp.

The city lord sighed. “It’s the truth—it appeared overnight. A month ago, Pinghe City folks fetching water at dawn saw Yinlan City shrouded in fog, like a barrier to another world.”

He’d rushed out, disheveled, thinking Yinlan City was swallowed.

“We know the fog’s source is the miasma from Ten Thousand Beasts Forest, flaring with beast tides,” he whispered. “I suspect someone used a teleportation array to bring it to the Inner Subsidiary City. It’s possible, but their motive isn’t good.”

Lin Hebai asked, “What of the Inner Subsidiary City’s residents? The fog’s toxic.”

“Mortals in it turn to blood in hours. Few lived there,” he sighed. “Survivors were evacuated to the Main City. To stop the fog spreading backward, Yan City Lord used the Yan Family’s Heart-Protecting Mirror to block it.”

As Sword Sect envoys, he held nothing back. “Without clearing the fog, you can’t enter the Main City. The mirror bars all.”

Lin Hebai nodded. “No clearing the fog, no opening the mirror.”

No entry to the Main City, no aiding the frontline.

She calculated—Array School, leaving half a day later, should arrive soon.

The cloud boat landed at Pinghe City’s outskirts. Body School students were allowed out to stretch, grouped in fives for mutual protection, checking in regularly.

Their range was limited to a barren riverbank—no shells, nothing fun. But with friends, even idle chatter was enjoyable. They savored the calm before battle.

At night, Body School lit campfires. Students chatted, practiced swordplay, or meditated nearby, staying close.

Tang Yueling tucked a copper wine flask under the fire—Dream Gold, brewed from fire cherries. They’d bought plenty, as Yinlan City’s cold demanded warmth.

Tian Ning, back from sword practice, wiped her Snowfall Sword by the firelight. Tang Yueling glanced at it, then looked away, pensive.

Su Qing poked sweet potatoes in the fire, their orange glow warming her face in the chilly night.

Zhu Xing’er was thorough, packing not just herbs but two hundred jin of provisions.

It should’ve been serene, but a crowd of rubbing hands, queuing for potatoes, ruined it. Body School students were notorious eaters.

Cracked potatoes, peeled of charred skin, revealed sweet, steaming flesh—scalding but irresistible in the cold. Su Qing shared, hoping for one herself.

Ling Yunxiao approached. “Junior Sister, come with me. Elder Lin wants you.”

Su Qing blinked. “Me?”

Ling Yunxiao scanned, pointing. “You, you, and you—come.”

About thirty Body School students, including Tian Ning and Tang Yueling, followed. Su Qing noticed they were top performers from the body cultivation exam—likely a mission.

Under the cloud boat, a simple tent served as the elders’ meeting spot.

With urgency, no one fussed over comforts—just stealth arrays and high-tier concealment talismans to secure talks.
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Su Qing and the selected students entered the tent, far more spacious inside. Elders from Body (Lin Hebai), Array (Deng Mingjian), and Talisman (Xu Ruyi) Schools stood, with their disciples present.

Only these three schools had reached Pinghe City. Artifact, Pill, and Beast Schools, delayed by travel restrictions in nearby cities, would arrive later.

For now, Body, Array, and Talisman Schools sufficed.

Before the students arrived, Lin Hebai had “cordially” spoken with Array Elder Deng Mingjian.

Arms crossed, she smirked coldly. “Deng Mingjian, break the array tonight, or by morning, you’re dead.”

Their rivalry dated back to their student days at Sword Sect, only worsening as colleagues.

Deng Mingjian’s veins throbbed, but he forced a smile. “You think arrays are that easy? We’re not brutes relying on strength. Can I dismantle it on the spot? I need measurements, drawings, preparations. We know nothing about the Inner Subsidiary City—how do I find the array eye or symbols?”

Lin Hebai, no array talent, relied on martial prowess to “persuade” those who could. “How long? One more day enough?”

Talisman Elder Xu Ruyi added, “Each day here costs the sect more—thousands of students, plus the boat’s expenses.”

“When the sect leader sees our reimbursement forms,” she paused, voice heavy, “our year-end evaluations… And the beast tide’s urgent. Yan’s patriarch personally requested aid. One day earlier eases the frontline.”

Fists didn’t sway Deng Mingjian, but spirit stones did. He sighed, sitting. “Fine, I’ll break it now.”

Lin Hebai asked, “How long?”

Suppressing a retort, he said, “Depends on how many people you lend me. I need a clear view of the Inner Subsidiary City.”

The city’s toxic fog made reconnaissance hard.

Its size ruled out elders alone exploring—it’d take too long, and leaving students unguarded risked accidents.
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Thus, students were needed for exploration—both a mission and training.

As for who…

Deng Mingjian smirked. “Elder Lin, your Body School folks are tough. Now’s their time to shine.”

Lin Hebai punched him to the ground. Xu Ruyi feigned blindness. Lin Hebai exhaled, relieved, as if settling an old grudge. “Call Ling Yunxiao.”

She didn’t want students in danger, but Body School’s poison resistance made them ideal.

She regretted not training them in toxins earlier—borrowing venomous snakes, scorpions, or failed pills from Beast or Pill Schools would’ve helped.

Su Qing received her task.

It was simple—no fighting or scheming, just being Array School’s eyes, scouting the Inner Subsidiary City to locate the maze array’s eye.

The Inner Subsidiary City had 120 main streets, each assigned an exploration team.

Per Pinghe City’s experience, mortals with covered noses lasted half an hour in the toxic fog before irreversible damage.

Qi Refining cultivators could endure a day and night, Foundation Establishment three days and nights.

Protective robes and talismans extended this.

Though large, the Inner Subsidiary City was traversable in three days at a cultivator’s pace, sufficient for exploration.

But the high-tier maze array complicated plans, and deeper areas were riskier.

Outer streets were safer, needing less selective teams, just mutual care.

The inner twelve streets, at the fog’s heart, were the most dangerous.

Thus, only the best students were sent there.

Elders from Body, Array, and Talisman Schools quickly chose candidates.

Selected students were Sword Sect’s top talents, outwardly calm but inwardly competitive, eager to prove who the elders truly valued.

Teams were assigned starting from the outer twelfth street to the central first street.

Students vied for the first street—danger aside, it was an honor, plus Sword Sect’s generous mission rewards.

Each team had five members: three from Body School, one from Array, one from Talisman.

Lin Hebai, Xu Ruyi, and Deng Mingjian announced names.

“Twelfth Street: Body School—Cen Dan, Wu Hanjing, Li Yiping. Array School—Wang Youruo. Talisman School—Yu Hongxuan.”

Those picked first were slightly disappointed but relieved—being chosen meant they were capable, and the twelfth street was safer.

Xu Ruyi instructed, “Your team explores the twelfth street together.

Look out for each other. Get defensive artifacts from your senior sisters outside.”

Lin Hebai’s gaze swept the students’ eager faces. “Eleventh Street.”

She named, “Body School—Lin Qiuhan, Bai Shang, Li Huiming.”

The closer to the first street, the tenser the air. Remaining students sweated, fearing both selection and exclusion. Lin Hebai, brisk, quickly finalized teams.

After the second street’s team was named, the first street’s team emerged.

Su Qing met the crowd’s gazes calmly.

Lin Hebai announced, “First Street: Body School—Qi Tian Ning, Tang Yueling, Su Qing.”

Their dorm was fully selected.

It was expected.

All were Foundation Establishment, Tian Ning at late stage—the highest cultivation present. Tang Yueling, mid-stage, wielded fourth-tier earth fire, boosting safety. Su Qing, unremarkable but solid, excelled in poison resistance.

Deng Mingjian added, “Array School—Pei Jingzhi.”

Xu Ruyi named, “Talisman School—Lin Ziyue.”

The first street’s team: these five.

As the most dangerous area, it demanded the best. Talented, they carried pride, eager to compete.

Lin Hebai, knowing student rivalries, ordered each team to choose a captain, whose orders were final.

Pei Jingzhi eyed his four teammates, sensing disadvantage. He was mid-Foundation Establishment, outclassed by late-stage Tian Ning, mid-stage Tang Yueling, and Lin Ziyue. Only Su Qing, early-stage, was weaker.

Strength-wise, he wasn’t a top captain candidate.

With three Body School members and an unfamiliar Talisman member, competition existed within schools. Array expertise was key for breaking the array, giving him a shot.

Tian Ning was aloof, Tang Yueling haughty, Lin Ziyue a fence-sitter—he might be the best fit.

He opened his mouth.

Tang Yueling cut in. “We choose Su Qing as captain. Who agrees, raise your hand.”

She raised hers, “Agree,” and yanked Su Qing’s hand up, saying, “Agree.”

Tian Ning raised her hand, expressionless. “Agree.”

Lin Ziyue, easygoing as Talisman School was, nodded. “Agree.”

In ten seconds, the first street team chose the weakest, Su Qing, as captain.

Pei Jingzhi fell silent, humiliated.

He’d misjudged his rivals and the race itself.
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