The Elven Cultivator

Silence filled the tent.

Scott and Summers exchanged a glance, seeing the same confusion in each other’s eyes.

’Attack the transport team?’

Hadn’t it just been made perfectly clear? It was a trap. Four or five Consuls were waiting for them to walk right into it. Going there was suicide!

’What… does Canglan mean by this?’

The two of them were completely baffled, unable to fathom the thoughts of the man before them.

Summers was the first to recover, frowning as he asked, ”Why?”

”You said it yourself. Dragon City’s transport team is carrying rare resources, and I happen to be in dire need of such things.”

Anton was blunt, and it was indeed his true objective.

He was still missing two main ingredients for the Condensation Pill.

He had yet to find sources for the Earth Attribute and Yang-attribute qi.

He might just find what he was looking for among the goods being transported by Kresol Dragon City.

Even if he didn’t, he could still obtain a large quantity of rare materials.

As his Cultivation Level increased, the quality of materials he would need for Artifact Refining, Alchemy, or setting up Arrays would only get higher.

How to acquire high-quality materials would become the greatest challenge he faced.

Now, a perfect opportunity was laid out before him. He naturally couldn’t give it up so easily.

Summers was still completely bewildered. ”Even so, there’s no need to knowingly walk into a trap, is there?”

”Remember what I told you before? We’ve already got a lead on one of the materials from the list you gave me. With a little more time, we can definitely get it for you.”

”I don’t really see it as a trap.” Anton smiled calmly, then changed the subject. ”Help me pass a message to the First Torch. I want to take down the transport team, and I’d like to ask him and another Torchbearer to make a move. All they need to do is keep one Consul each busy. I’ll handle the rest.”

Summers and Scott froze simultaneously, their expressions shifting from confusion to shock.

’Does this mean… Canglan is confident he can take on two or three Consuls alone and win?’

’Isn’t he overestimating himself a bit?’

Among those at the Golden Peak, there were indeed differences in strength.

A Golden Peak expert who had awakened a high-grade Power of Law could crush a peer who had awakened a low-grade one.

A veteran Golden Peak who had reached the rank centuries ago could also crush a newly promoted peer.

But in the end, they were of the same rank. There was a limit to how great the power disparity could be.

A formidable Golden Peak expert managing to gain the upper hand against two opponents was already an incredible achievement.

To actually win, let alone kill them, was nearly impossible.

Aurion, the highest-ranking Consul of Kresol Dragon City, was the perfect example.

He had once faced a siege by two Golden Peak experts. Not only did he not lose, but he even forced his opponents to retreat.

This battle made his name, and he was widely acknowledged as the strongest expert below the Legend rank on the Eldron Plain.

Even Aurion couldn’t defeat three opponents at once. What made Canglan think he could?

Deep down, Scott even suspected that Anton had been blinded by greed and lost all reason.

Summers, however, stared at Anton for a long moment before suddenly asking, ”Have you awakened a Power of Law?”

Anton gave him a surprised look, then nodded frankly. ”That’s right.”

Realization dawned on Summers and Scott.

Back when Canglan was at the Upper Gold rank, he had managed to kill Marcus, who had awakened a Power of Law, despite being a rank lower.

Now that he had successfully awakened a Power of Law himself, even if it was just a low-grade Law, his strength must have soared. Taking on two opponents seemed plausible.

But even so, attacking the transport team was still too risky.

Unless Anton was confident he could single-handedly kill three Golden Peak experts, the risk wasn’t worth it.

”Are you sure you don’t want to reconsider?” he asked again, his tone carrying a note of admonishment. ”This is a matter of life and death. If you fail, the consequences will be unimaginable.”

Anton didn’t speak, merely watching him with a calm expression.

His amber eyes were as deep as a pool, showing no sign of wavering.

Summers met his gaze for a moment, then finally sighed, knowing he couldn’t persuade this man.

”I understand.” Summers folded the map and stood up. ”I will deliver your message to the First Torch.”

”Thank you.”

Anton also stood and gave the two a slight nod.

The matter was of great importance, so Summers and Scott did not delay, leaving in a hurry.

In a flash, Anton was the only one left in the tent.

He sat back down by the low table and looked inward at his chest. Above the five-colored cloud of light in his Qi Sea, nine ink-black, jade-like droplets of water floated quietly, exuding an aura as profound as an abyss.

Nine drops of Dark Heavy Water!

And over nine hundred Five Camp Divine Soldiers!

This was the source of his confidence to strike at the Dragon City transport team.

So what if it was an overt scheme?

So what if it was a trap?

With enough power, a trap could be turned into an opportunity.

If Kresol Dragon City wanted to set a trap for him, they had better be prepared to suffer a double loss.

...

Anton had expected the branch to take a few days to consider and give him a reply.

He didn’t expect to receive a message from Scott early the next morning.

The First Torch had agreed.

On the day of the operation, he and another Torchbearer would strike alongside Anton.

But that was it.

No other branch members would participate in the operation.

Furthermore, if they successfully seized the transport team, he and the other Torchbearer would take a twenty-percent cut of the spoils.

Anton was greatly surprised.

He had thought he would have to meet the First Torch, negotiate face-to-face, and had even prepared his arguments to persuade him.

He never imagined the First Torch would agree so decisively to a request that seemed utterly fantastic to others, without even meeting him.

The crucial part was that agreeing to his request meant abandoning the operation to attack the southern Dragon’s Tooth defense line.

Anton didn’t have to think hard to guess that such a decision would surely dissatisfy a considerable portion of the branch members.

After all, there were certainly many people like Scott who believed this was a golden opportunity to destroy the military outposts on the southern Dragon’s Tooth line.

Unable to figure it out, Anton decided not to dwell on it.

As for the twenty-percent share, the terms were even more generous than he had anticipated.

Anton agreed without hesitation after hearing the terms.

The two parties then arranged a time and place to meet before the operation.

In addition, the branch sent over detailed intelligence on the twelve Consuls of Kresol Dragon City.

This included the Powers of Law they had awakened.

As famous figures on the Eldron Plain, all twelve Consuls had records of their battles, so obtaining intelligence on their strength was not difficult.

With the operation confirmed, the next step was preparation.

Half a month wasn’t a long time, but it wasn’t short either.

It wasn’t enough time to condense a tenth drop of Dark Heavy Water.

Nor was it enough time to gather the one thousand two hundred and fifty Five Camp Divine Soldiers needed to form a second Five Elements Array of six hundred and twenty-five.

Anton could only look for other ways to prepare.

The first thing he thought of was an Array.

In the Dark Nether Realm, the reason he didn’t use an Array against the Mind Flayers was because those Spiritual Energy beings had overly keen instincts and wouldn’t foolishly step into an ambush Array.

But this operation was different.

Kresol Dragon City was completely confident in its own strength. This was their greatest advantage, and also their greatest weakness.

The moment he appeared, those Consuls who hated Canglan to the bone would never let him go.

Even if they knew there might be a trap ahead, they would very likely choose to charge right in.

Even if the Dragon City Consuls didn’t fall for it, it didn’t matter. At worst, it would just be a head-on confrontation.

Besides, the Array he laid could also serve as his escape route. It would allow him to advance and attack, or retreat and defend.

It was better to be safe than sorry.

Although Anton rarely used Arrays, he had spent a great deal of time studying ancient texts on the subject, just in case he might need the knowledge one day.

Therefore, he quickly chose a thunder Array he was quite familiar with.

The Nine Heavens Thunder Suppression Array!

This Array used Celestial Thunder as its foundation to draw upon the thunderous earth energy.

When the Array was complete, thunder light would cascade like a waterfall, turning the hundred-zhang radius into a Thunder Domain. Lightning would fall like rain, cleansing all things.

This Array was specifically designed to counter yin and foul qi, spirit transformations, and incorporeal phantoms. Because it drew on the thunderous earth energy, it was perfectly suited for a place like the Dark Nether Realm.

Anton had originally studied this Array with the intention of using it against Mind Flayers in the future.

He never thought he would use it on the Dragon Race first.

Setting up the Nine Heavens Thunder Suppression Array required seven Celestial Thunder Banners arranged in the formation of the Big Dipper, coordinated with thirty-six Five-Thunder Jade Talismans to channel the earth qi. Once activated, thunder and fire would pour down with immense power.

The thirty-six Five-Thunder Jade Talismans were relatively easy to refine. One simply needed to use jade as a base, carve Thunder Talismans onto them, and then nurture them with True Essence for several days.

It was the seven Celestial Thunder Banners that were time-consuming; each one was equivalent to an exquisite Talisman.

Anton worked day and night without rest, finally managing to refine all the Array components within half a month.

During this period, he also found time to make several trips to the Dark Nether Realm.

Each time, he would pick a mining area controlled by Mind Flayers, appear brazenly at the mine entrance, and provoke the few High Tier Mind Flayers guarding it into attacking.

He wouldn’t fight back, simply letting the Mind Flayers frantically unleash their psychic blasts and spiritual assaults, using the Soul Suppression Bell to absorb the energy of their attacks.

Then, just before the Mind Flayer reinforcements arrived, he would use Sword Escape to flee.

After several consecutive trips, the Soul Suppression Bell was successfully filled with Soul Power.

’The Soul Suppression Bell’s soul-controlling ability isn’t very effective against the Dragon Race, but its soul-suppressing power is an excellent killing move.’

’If used well at a critical moment, it could be enough to decide the outcome.’

With all preparations complete, Anton began to set up the Array.

According to the Fallen Dragon Association’s intelligence, the Dragon City transport team’s route started from the north of Kresol Dragon City, passed through Green Valley, Morning Star Town, and Graystone Pass, before finally leaving the Eldron Plain via the northern Dragon’s Tooth line.

After some thought, Anton quickly chose Graystone Pass as the location for his Array.

The location was relatively far from both Kresol Dragon City and the northern Dragon’s Tooth line. Reinforcements from either side would need a considerable amount of time to arrive.

This provided an ample window of time for the battle.

Furthermore, the pass had complex terrain, making it easy to hide the Array’s flags and its hub, which was perfect.

That evening, Anton set off for Graystone Pass.

He spent the entire night meticulously placing all the Array flags and Thunder Talismans, then cast several techniques to conceal their auras to prevent them from being accidentally triggered by people or beasts.

By the time he finished, the sky was already beginning to lighten.

Anton stood on a rocky cliff on the north side of the pass, his gaze sweeping over the winding valley path below.

The seven Celestial Thunder Banners were buried underground according to the Big Dipper formation. Without prior knowledge, it was impossible to spot anything unusual.

The thirty-six Five-Thunder Jade Talismans were scattered on both sides of the valley path, mixed in with the rubble, completely inconspicuous.

At this point, all preparations were complete.

’Everything is ready, all that’s missing is the east wind.’

Anton retracted his gaze and turned to walk down from the cliff.

Now, all he had to do was wait for the operation to begin.