Infinity: Our Zhongzhou team is really amazing!

Chapter 295: Blood Blade on the Abyss, a Sign of Great Disaster

"Ahead is the Lonely Mountain!" Legolas said with mixed emotions.

Through the clouds, a heavily guarded city appeared before everyone's eyes.

Saito looked down and found that the city had expanded and been strengthened a lot compared to the Lonely Mountain he had seen last time.

Not only was the original river valley city included in the city, but three huge city walls were even built from the inside out.

The outermost city wall is nearly a hundred meters high, and you can even see many soldiers patrolling on the wide wall.

The city walls are decorated with crossbows, catapults, stone turrets and other defensive weapons made of black metal, reflecting the dwarves' exquisite craftsmanship everywhere.

At first glance, it is a majestic city that far surpasses the Holy White City of Gondor, and is worthy of being the last bastion of the world of Arda.

"Gushan, the supreme and majestic city, I never thought I could come back alive when I left," Jin Li sighed.

The large army marched northwards, and in less than three days they crossed the many monster lairs in the Misty Mountains, the Anduin River where river monsters were rampant, and the southern part of the dense forest filled with all kinds of terrifying monsters.

If he and Jinli were to go, it would definitely be full of dangers and challenges.

But the savior is worthy of being the savior.

He flew here directly with so many people.

Although the strange broom-shaped flying prop made people feel uncomfortable in their crotch, it avoided most of the threats.

However, the evil dragon that was supposed to wreak havoc over the Misty Mountains somehow passed by them several times.

The group landed on Raven Ridge on the south side of Lonely Mountain.

This was once the command post of the pale orc Azog during his attack on Lonely Mountain.

"Never use a flying broom as a flying vehicle again." Neos pulled up his trousers, straightened his messy hair, and muttered.

However, he once again witnessed the methods of the Zhongzhou team, and also deeply realized that a team not only needs combat power and intelligence, but also needs logistical support in all aspects.

However, he can now confirm that the rumors are wrong, and not all members of the Zhongzhou team are at the fourth level. Neos has observed over the past few days that there should be only three members at the fourth level in the Zhongzhou team.

Zhuang Boshi, who claims to be his good friend, Zheng Zha, who looks very brainless after chopping off the head of a rotten stone giant, and Chu Xuan, who is the think tank of the team.

But the same three fourth-level players were able to defeat the three fourth-level players of the Demon Team in a head-to-head confrontation, which undoubtedly further proves the value of Zhongzhou.

Zhuang Boshi and Zheng Zha, one transformed into the sun holding a golden spear, and the other transformed into a demon holding a black sword upside down, showing obvious head-on combat capabilities.

But Chu Xuan has always been mysterious and has never shown his abilities.

Neos was very curious about the abilities of a fourth-level wise man.

"We're finally saved," Hoffer breathed a sigh of relief, tears welling in his eyes. "We're finally in the safe zone."

Hofer has been living in fear since he entered this world. When he had to follow Legolas into the Misty Mountains, he even felt that his life had begun to count down.

Unexpectedly, the Zhongzhou team came and not only saved their lives, but also escorted them to the safe zone.

This moved him so much that he almost cried. The Zhongzhou team was at least a hundred times kinder, more merciful, and more generous than he had imagined.

As for the previous rumors about the Zhongzhou team.

Those are all rumors!

Before, there must have been some dark reincarnation who was jealous of the great and glorious Zhongzhou team and deliberately spread the news that Zhongzhou was killing people to refine souls and sacrificing millions of people.

Now that we have met them, they are clearly a group of rule-abiding and moral officials!
From now on, if anyone says anything bad about the Zhongzhou team, he will have a good argument with them.

Of course, everything about the Zhongzhou team is good, except for the flying broom from Harry Potter between their legs.

The distance from Moria to Lonely Mountain was really uncomfortable for him.

"Friends from the Nanyan team, how is your experience with the improved 2.5th generation flying broom? What aspects need improvement?" Saito Ichi came up to Hoffer with an enthusiastic look on his face and began to ask about the user experience.

Hofer looked at Saito Ichi with an embarrassed look on his face and said, "Ah, they are all 2.5 generations? I think they are good, that's right."

As he spoke, he scratched his aching buttocks.

Saito said happily, "Really? Really? That's great! I was saying that the fixes for the 23 issues with the second generation were targeted!"

"The idea behind the flying broom is indeed correct. Lingdian, Zhang Jie, Zhan Lan, look, there are still people who appreciate my work. It's you who are too picky."

Beside him, Zhu Wen, who had the worst physical condition, and two newcomers were already vomiting while holding their brooms because they did not refuse the flying brooms that Saito Ichi was selling.

"Old Qi, stop talking like that. Look at your broom. It hasn't improved in terms of comfort or balance at all. All it's improved are some random functions!"

Zhan Lan looked disgusted. This time she didn't ride on a flying broom, but was carried and flown by Zhang Jie's telekinesis.

Although telekinetic flying is also very primitive, it is still much more comfortable than flying on a broomstick.

Wang Xia had a solemn expression on his face. As the tallest, he stood at the front, looking seriously at the Gushan City not far away.

"What's wrong, Wang Xia?" Lingdian asked.

Wang Xia shook his head hesitantly: "I don't know, I always feel an inexplicable unease."

"It seems like something in this city is staring at me."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Wen volunteered, "Brother Wang Xia, how about letting me tell your fortune? I've never used this ability before."

Chu Xuan nodded slightly: "Yes."

Zhu Wen immediately took out the ancient coin happily, closed his eyes, muttered something, and threw the coin towards Gushan Mountain.

Coins jingled on the ground and everyone gathered around.

Even Gunnir and Neos were very curious about this prophetic ability.

"Sister Zhu Wen, what does this hexagram mean?" Ming Yanwei asked.

Zhu Wen's face turned pale, and it was obvious that using the Eight Trigrams to calculate was quite a burden for her.

She frowned as she looked at the coin, hesitantly saying, "This hexagram is called 'Blood Knife on the Abyss.' The upper hexagram is Dui, and the lower hexagram is Kan. Dui represents a marsh, and Kan represents water. It represents a marsh and water overlapping, but the marsh and water are turbulent, suggesting a hidden worry."

"The first line is a yang line, located at the beginning of the lower hexagram, Kan, representing the danger of the abyss. Shadows of war are just beginning to appear, and the crowd is in a state of panic, leading to internal strife."

"Danger is brewing. Signs of external war are beginning to emerge, but there are also hidden shadows within that are about to erupt. This is a situation of internal and external difficulties."

"Eh, there's also the problem of the king's relocation. It seems the ruler of Lonely Mountain is not friendly to us."

"This hexagram is extremely ominous."

Everyone's face looked a little solemn.

Obviously, this was a very bad omen, casting a shadow on the journey to Solitary Mountain, which everyone had not yet entered.

Chu Xuan chuckled and asked, "I understand that the king has moved, but why is this cuckoo occupying the magpie's nest?"

Zhu Wen was somewhat flattered. She began to count with her right hand, but the more she calculated, the more puzzled she became: "What does this mean? Why is the king not a king, the prime minister not a prime minister, the human not like a human, and the ghost not like a ghost?"

"How come this Lonely Mountain is even more chaotic than the Misty Mountains!"

A thin layer of sweat had already appeared on her forehead.

Chu Xuan shook his head and said, "Zhu Wen, it's okay."

He turned and looked at the solitary mountain that was gradually covered with a dim yellow coat under the setting sun, his tone inexplicable.

"Some things are better to see in person."

Lonely Mountain is a fortress, and a very strong one at that.

There are hundreds of thousands of humans and thousands of dwarves and elves living in the city, which has become the largest gathering point in Middle-earth.

In order to prevent the invasion of the demon army from the south, three city walls were built, and the outermost wall did not even have a gate.

This shows that Lonely Mountain has completely lost the confidence to reclaim lost territory in the south and wage war against Chaos. This is also true. Except for certain members of the Survey Corps, ordinary civilians will never leave the high walls in their lifetime.

The Survey Corps can only enter and exit through the secret passages created by the dwarves.

The secret passage is filled with various dwarven mechanisms, and even dwarven alchemical explosives.

When encountering foreign invasion, just blow up the passage.

Ordinary outsiders who came to Gushan couldn't even find the way. If they rashly approached the city wall, the crossbows on the wall to fight against the dragon would be no more than decorations.

Neos obviously noticed this, and he was very glad that he chose to follow Legolas. Otherwise, with just a few of them, they would not be able to enter the Lonely Mountain even if they reached it.

Fortunately, with Legolas leading the way, after a series of magical tests and mechanical passages, the group finally entered the Lonely Mountain.

At this time, many people in Gushan had heard that a group of humans had come outside the city wall, and many people were watching them at the entrance.

Standing in the front was a very old and tall man with a beard that dragged on the ground and wearing a gray white robe.

"Gandalf!" Legolas and Gimli stepped forward quickly and bowed to Gandalf.

"Legolas, Gimli, if I had known you would come today, I would have washed my beard thoroughly." Although he looked very tired, Gandalf showed his dry humor.

"Gandalf, this time I met the savior predicted!" Legolas said excitedly, and led Gandalf directly to the Zhongzhou team.

"Gandalf!" Qi Tengyi greeted happily.

Compared to the last time he entered, Gandalf looked older, with wrinkles on his face and a hunched body. It was obvious that the pressure like a mountain was about to crush the old man completely.

Gandalf's cloudy eyes cleared up for a moment, and he said in great surprise, "Finally I meet you again, the wizard from the East!"

Among the Hobbits, it was Zitten who picked up Gandalf under Isengard, and traveled north with him, and they developed a certain friendship.

"Forgive my slow mind, I didn't even dare to recognize you at first." Gandalf said self-deprecatingly.

Qi Teng nodded and silently retreated behind Chu Xuan.

Gandalf glanced around and smiled bitterly, "This isn't a good place for small talk. Please go to the Interior Office first. I have something I want to discuss with you."

Chu Xuan said expressionlessly, "Of course, honorable great wizard in white robes."

Neos walked at the end of the team, carefully observing the people around him.

Compared to the dead villages in the Shire and the ghosts in the Misty Mountains, they look much more normal and are indeed rare living people in this world.

But they were all very thin and their clothes were dirty, like poor people who had not had enough food for a long time.

This is understandable. After all, this is the last bastion of the forces of light. With the entire territory closed, there may be no guarantee of supplies.

But what Neos couldn't understand was that most of these people looked at them with indifference, resistance and disgust.

There is no curiosity or friendliness towards outsiders at all.

He also heard the murmurs of the onlookers.

"Are they the saviors predicted in the prophecy?"

"Don't look at them, it will bring misfortune."

Ming Yanwei, who had a keen sense of hearing, also heard it. She frowned and asked Legolas, "Why are the people here so hostile to us?"

Legolas sighed. "At the very beginning of the Lonely Mountain's founding, everyone still had the courage to reclaim the land beneath the sun and defeat the forces of Chaos."

"At that time, Gandalf, Thorin, Grace, Gimli, and Faramir, the representative of mankind, still held on to hope and took the initiative to attack southward to recover lost territory."

"However, repeated failures have gradually caused everyone to lose confidence. Especially the humans who have suffered heavy losses are unwilling to explore further and are only willing to defend the Lonely Mountain Fortress."

"Then came the dwarves. Thorin couldn't accept the loss, so he joined forces with humans and spent ten years building three huge walls on the Lonely Mountain."

"Trying to resist the monsters and armies from the south." A hint of sarcasm appeared on Legolas' face.

"Later, no one wanted to go out, because they found that as long as they hid within the city walls, the monsters and demon armies would reduce their attacks and invasions of Lonely Mountain."

"They have lost their courage and have become livestock in cages!" Jin Li shouted angrily.

"I'm unwilling to accept anything, I hide my head in the dirt, and I even hate all the news from the outside world and the people who come back!"

"They don't want anyone to come and share their meager food, nor do they want outsiders to bring danger back!"

"Later, even the Survey Corps, the only group able to go out, was weakened."

"This is also the reason why Gimli and I left Lonely Mountain and chose to go to Gondor to fight for our last chance." Legolas said slowly.

Neos listened silently. With the whole world falling, this place was indeed not a pure land.

"Where are those houses?" Ming Yanwei pointed to the houses on both sides.

The houses were packed closely together, so densely packed and narrow that they even emitted the stench of feces.

But the windows of every household were covered tightly with black cloth, which looked very strange.

"This is a way to prevent weirdness." Legolas looked helpless.

"There's something weird here?!" Hoffer said in surprise. He looked around in panic and leaned closer to Gunnier.

Legolas sighed, "The Silent Mourner will knock on doors in the middle of the night and peer into the house through the cracks in the moonlight with his blood-red eyes. If he finds someone asleep, he will open the door. If the person is still awake, he will climb in through the window."

"No matter how many people are in the house, it will eat the entrails of the owner's family."

"One hundred and twenty-five people have died at his hands."

"So, these humans can only cover the windows and doors with black cloth."

"In addition, there are also confirmed and unconfirmed weird things such as spirit children, scarecrows, green crows, etc."

Hearing that there were so many strange things, Qi Tengyi couldn't help but ask, "Didn't you send anyone to deal with it?"

"Gandalf, he is the white-robed wizard, can't he do anything about these weird things?"

Legolas lowered his head. "Gandalf took action, but he could not protect everyone."

"He has already dealt with more than ten invasions of strange beings, but the city walls can stop the demon army, but they can't stop the strange beings."

"Moreover, in recent years, there have been more and more weird things. The living live in fear, which will also attract weird things." Legolas looked worried.

"It seems that even Gushan is not much better than the outside world." Zhan Lan said in a low voice.

Wang Xia nodded and looked at the old man in front with complicated eyes.

Legolas also introduced the Lonely Mountain's harsh legal systems, including food rationing, night curfew, prohibition of alcohol, and forced labor.

Although people are very dissatisfied, they still have to abide by the rules.

Because anyone who doesn't follow the rules will become a corpse.

Thorin's dwarf guards are very brave when facing their enemies, and they will not show mercy to those who dare to resist.

Under such high-pressure policies, although Gushan was barely able to survive, it also lost the ability to expand outward.

The construction of the three high walls has exhausted the last bit of potential of Lonely Mountain, and also means that Lonely Mountain has completely abandoned all the remaining humans, elves and dwarves in the south.

And a lonely mountain cannot survive forever under the threat of Sauron's demon army.

In the eyes of many discerning people, this is a dying city, a city buried in a grave.

But Chu Xuan didn't think so.

Whether the Lonely Mountain will be destroyed or not, Sauron, Gandalf and Thorin have no say in it.

It only counts if he says it.

(End of this chapter)