A Calculated Chaos

“But what about you? How did you end up looking like this?” Chi Qiu asked, her gaze fixed on Su Hanxing’s face, which now seemed much more weathered and whose features had subtly shifted.

“It’s a small trick to conceal my identity,” Su Hanxing explained, spreading his hands. “You wouldn’t believe it these past few days. Cultivators either flee the moment they spot me in the distance, or they gather a large group to hunt me down. I had no choice but to resort to this method.”

“Didn’t you just mention finding an opportunity? Tell me more about it.” Chi Qiu nodded, suddenly recalling the fortuitous encounter Su Hanxing had mentioned earlier, and promptly questioned him with keen interest.

After all, with things as they were, Chi Qiu knew she was powerless to change anything. It was far better to contend for opportunities and enhance her strength.

“About a hundred li ahead along this path lies a magnificent treasure hall, brimming with countless precious items. However, the Gate of Wonders and several aristocratic families have already occupied it, making it difficult to approach,” Su Hanxing recounted.

“Wouldn’t that treasure hall have already been plundered by them?” Chi Qiu asked, her interest waning instantly upon hearing that the hall was already occupied. “Even if we tried to contend for it, it would be pointless, and we’d only make enemies for no reason.”

“Not so, not so,” Su Hanxing said with a slight smile, shaking his head. “A formidable beast of the Dharma Manifestation Realm guards the treasure hall. The Gate of Wonders and the major aristocratic families are currently gathering forces to slay the creature and enter the hall to seek its treasures.”

“Do you know how many people they have?”

Hearing that the treasure hall was still unclaimed, Chi Qiu’s heart stirred with excitement.

“Around fifty people, with roughly thirty cultivators in the God Concealing stage among them,” Su Hanxing honestly revealed.

“This… this truly won’t be easy.” Chi Qiu immediately fell into deep thought.

Before long, Chi Qiu suddenly looked up at Su Hanxing, her brilliant golden pupils widening slightly. With a joyful expression, she declared, “I have a method that can let us claim a share from the Gate of Wonders.”

Su Hanxing’s eyes met Chi Qiu’s dazzling golden gaze, and he froze for a moment before recovering. He subtly averted his eyes, asking with a slightly unnatural tone, “Little Chi, what excellent method do you have in mind?”

Chi Qiu, quite excited, asked, “Have you managed to ascertain the size of this cave these past few days?”

Su Hanxing nodded. Although the cave was not small, his swift movements had allowed him to thoroughly explore both its interior and exterior over the past few days.

“Excellent! Draw several rough maps of this cave, mark the location of the treasure hall, and then spread them widely throughout the cave. Even if the cultivators don’t believe it initially, they will surely investigate.” Chi Qiu’s voice rose slightly as she elaborated. “Once more and more cultivators discover it, the Gate of Wonders will certainly be unable to monopolize the place. At that point, we can take advantage of the chaos and claim our share.”

Considering the sect flying artifacts Chi Qiu had previously observed heading towards the core region of the Sishui Marsh, at least forty to fifty factions had entered this Yinglong Tomb. With so many factions, the number of cultivators they dispatched likely amounted to several thousands. Even if split into three routes, their sheer numbers would still be astonishing. If such a multitude of cultivators converged to investigate the treasure hall, even the Gate of Wonders, no matter how powerful, would struggle to withstand them.

Upon hearing Chi Qiu’s words, Su Hanxing’s eyes gradually brightened with understanding. He clapped Chi Qiu on the shoulder, then burst into hearty laughter. “This plan is truly excellent! I’ll go execute it immediately. Watch me ‘drive the tiger to swallow the wolf’!”

Su Hanxing extended his hand, and dozens of jade slips immediately flew out from his storage artifact. Then, condensing his true qi into a brush, he inscribed the maps and the treasure hall’s location onto the slips with lightning speed. Next, Su Hanxing waved his hand, and the dozens of jade slips flew out as if guided by eyes, spreading light as they went. A colossal map, drawn with true qi, unfurled and drifted throughout the cave.

“These jade slips will circulate through this layer of the cave for three hours. All we need to do is wait patiently,” Su Hanxing said with a smile, turning to Chi Qiu, who had been watching him intently, after completing his task.

“What’s wrong? Why are you staring at me?” Su Hanxing asked, leaning closer to Chi Qiu when he noticed her continuous gaze.

“Nothing,” Chi Qiu mumbled, lowering her eyes. It’s just that sometimes you truly exude the aura of a chief disciple from a prominent sect.

“Little Chi, what did you say? I didn’t quite catch that.” Chi Qiu’s mumbled words were too soft, causing Su Hanxing to only make out a few words, completely failing to grasp her meaning.

“Nothing,” Chi Qiu replied, shaking her head. She did not repeat her words, instead turning to Su Hanxing. “Where do we go next?”

Seeing that Chi Qiu was unwilling to elaborate, Su Hanxing didn’t press further. He pointed in the direction of the treasure hall. “We’ll head to the vicinity of the treasure hall first. Once the situation there descends into chaos, we’ll quietly slip in.”

Chi Qiu nodded, her thoughts perfectly aligning with Su Hanxing’s.

“Then let’s depart now.”

As the jade slips released by Su Hanxing swiftly circulated throughout the entire cave, several major powers immediately began eyeing the location marked on the map with predatory intent.

However, since everyone present had been selected by various sects and aristocratic families to enter this Yinglong Tomb, they were undoubtedly powerful and experienced individuals. The information on the jade slips was highly suspicious, potentially a trap. Thus, while these factions were eager to act, they managed to restrain themselves, refraining from sending people to explore immediately.

Several hours later, an aristocratic family finally lost its patience and dispatched a few cultivators to investigate. Although these cultivators did not find the treasure hall, they encountered many Gate of Wonders disciples. Most of them were killed, with only one managing to escape. The aristocratic family believed the Gate of Wonders had set a trap to harm the other factions and sought revenge, yet they knew they were no match for the Gate of Wonders.

Instead, they spread the news widely, asserting that the opportunity was real but had been seized by the Gate of Wonders. With this, they incited the other factions to go treasure hunting.

What was originally just an ambiguous jade slip naturally couldn’t prompt numerous factions to take risks. But now, with a major aristocratic family vouching for it, the various powers within the cave could no longer remain idle. They all dispatched their forces to investigate the marked location. This investigation indeed revealed the Gate of Wonders and several of its affiliated families guarding the area, which inadvertently confirmed the presence of a great opportunity there.

Several hours later, various factions had gathered. The relatively small cavern quickly became densely packed with cultivators, easily numbering over a hundred at a glance. Su Hanxing and Chi Qiu had already been waiting nearby. At that moment, they were following the massive cultivator army, charging together into the cave controlled by the Gate of Wonders.

“Since the Gate of Wonders already summoned three aristocratic families, why didn’t they call for more? If they had, this treasure hall would surely be theirs by now,” Chi Qiu asked, puzzled.

Chi Qiu and Su Hanxing found a secluded corner to stand. Noticing other aristocratic family disciples within the Gate of Wonders’ encampment, Chi Qiu voiced her confusion. The Gate of Wonders had discovered this treasure hall over three days ago and had summoned three major families to collectively hunt the formidable beast. It was clear now that their attempt had failed.

It was well known that time within the Yinglong Tomb was extremely precious. In Chi Qiu’s view, after their failure, the Gate of Wonders should have continued to widely recruit families to battle the formidable beast. Even if some treasures were split among others, it would be better than gaining nothing at all. Yet, for some unknown reason, the Gate of Wonders had remained completely inactive these past few days, allowing time to simply slip away.

“It’s different…” Su Hanxing said with an air of profound wisdom.

“Different how?” Chi Qiu asked, perplexed.

“The families are different,” Su Hanxing explained with a hint of schadenfreude. “The three aristocratic families the Gate of Wonders summoned are all related to their own elders, sharing the same roots as the Gate of Wonders itself. Thus, they naturally trusted them. But these other families have no ties of kinship or allegiance to the Gate of Wonders. They couldn’t feel at ease, which is why they preferred to spend more time wearing down the formidable beast rather than inviting other forces to join. However, now, their plans must surely have fallen through.”

Only then did Chi Qiu understand. So the aristocratic families that had been summoned shared a common origin with the Gate of Wonders. No wonder they trusted each other so implicitly.

“Then are you and Su He from the same family? Your surname uses the same character, but it’s pronounced differently. How peculiar.” Chi Qiu suddenly thought of Su He and Su Hanxing; while both shared the surname ‘Su’, their pronunciations differed.

“My master and I share no blood relation; the similarity in our names is purely coincidental. When I was young, my master took a liking to me and brought me to the Tianyan Sect to cultivate. I am not from an aristocratic family,” Su Hanxing refuted, shaking his head.

Chi Qiu nodded. Sensing that Su Hanxing was disinclined to discuss his origins further, she dropped the topic.

“Look—” Su Hanxing pointed into the distance. “Representatives from these factions have already been chosen to negotiate with the Gate of Wonders. It seems that even with so many cultivators gathered here, they still harbor some apprehension towards the Gate of Wonders.” He indicated several powerful cultivators who had proactively entered the Gate of Wonders’ encampment.

“Now, we simply await the outcome of the negotiations.”

Chi Qiu waited quietly in her spot, a flicker of anticipation in her eyes.