Asura in Arknights

"Yi will definitely not let them leave. Besides leading the way, they have other uses for Yi."

“That’s true…” Jingzhe sighed.

As they spoke, the two arrived at Xi's thatched hut.

"Xi should still be resting. She used up too much energy controlling herself earlier, so let's not disturb her."

Jingzhe nodded, skipped Xi's room, and walked towards the room where Adele lived.

Adele had clearly said she was going to get a piece of clothing for Li Ang, but Li Ang had been chatting with Yi for a long time and Adele still hadn't come out of the house. It was unclear what she was busy with.

"By the way, how did that guy convince you? I'm a little curious."

"he……"

Upon hearing this question, Jingzhe gave a wry smile and replied, "He produced a handwritten edict from the Grand Tutor."

Chapter Ninety-Five Decision

“There’s really… no other way…” Li Ang looked at Jingzhe with some sympathy. “You’ve had a tough time.”

Jingzhe could only shake her head helplessly.

Grand Tutor? Li Ang remembered that this was the emperor's teacher, one of the highest-ranking people in the Great Yan Dynasty.

In the martial world, one is often not in control of one's own destiny; this is even more true in the imperial court, where restrictions are often even greater than in the martial world.

Li Ang could understand Jingzhe's frustration. Don't underestimate that just because it was a Grand Tutor's edict. Who could be sure that it didn't contain the Emperor's intentions? Jingzhe was in a high position, so he thought more deeply. Yi had completely controlled Jingzhe with just this edict.

But the emperor...

It's not surprising that the Ministry of Rites, the Celestial Master's Mansion, and the Imperial Household Department got involved in this matter. But why did the Emperor of Great Yan want to interfere in this matter?

Preventing the resurrection of the Year Beast? But couldn't he just leave that to his own subordinates? There was no need for him to use the Grand Tutor to get involved.

Moreover, if the Emperor of Great Yan really wanted to participate, he should have sent his trusted confidants instead of cooperating with a dangerous figure like Yi.

Even if we take a step back, there are more suitable candidates than Yi among the incarnations of the Year Beast, such as Big Brother, Ling, Shu, and even the unreliable Nian. They are all more suitable candidates. They have all served the Great Yan for hundreds of years, and some of them are still officials in the court. Even if they do not have any good feelings towards the Great Yan, they would not do anything to harm the Great Yan.

Unless... there is some reason why we can only choose to play this game.

While Li Ang was pondering why the Great Yan Emperor wanted to cooperate with Yi, they had already arrived outside Adele's house.

"Adele, are you in there?" Leon knocked on the door and said, "Shall I come in?"

Then they heard a series of footsteps coming from inside the house, and soon the door was opened.

Adele popped her head out of the house and looked at Jingzhe with some surprise. "Eh? Sister Jingzhe, you're here too... Is there something you need?"

“Yes,” Jingzhe nodded, “There’s something I need to discuss with everyone, so I came to let you know.”

"Oh, I see... Then wait a moment, I'll be right there."

With that, Adele ran back inside.

Through the crack in the door, you could see that the room looked a bit messy, with all sorts of things, big and small, scattered everywhere, as if someone was looking for something.

...Isn't it just asking Adele to bring out a piece of clothing? What is she looking for in the house?

However, upon seeing Adele, Li Ang suddenly thought of another matter, which was something he had discussed with Adele before: why Wei Yanwu, the ruler of Lungmen, had given up the throne of the Great Yan Dynasty.

“…A curse?” Li Ang said in a low voice.

Jingzhe, who was standing next to him, didn't hear what Li Ang had just said and subconsciously asked, "What?"

"It's nothing." Li Ang shook his head, not rushing to voice his guess.

After all, this is just one possibility. This matter is closely related to the emperor of the Great Yan Dynasty, and it would be somewhat embarrassing if we guessed wrong.

The only connection between the Great Yan Emperor and the Sui Beast is the curse left on the Great Yan throne by the gods after they killed them... Could it be that Yi has the ability to lift this curse?

Unbeknownst to him, Li Ang's guess was very close to the truth, but he still did not know Yi's true purpose. There was still one last piece of the puzzle that had not been filled in.

The two waited outside for about two or three minutes before they saw Adele run out carrying a black outfit.

"Li Ang, wear this outfit."

As she spoke, Adele stuffed the outfit into Leon's arms.

"This is……"

Upon closer inspection, it turned out to be the outfit Adele wore during the ceremony in Sagazaki City. How did she manage to find this outfit?

This was the only souvenir they brought from Sagazaki City. Adele's white kimono wasn't suitable for everyday wear, but Leon's was fine; it was a very common garment in the Eastern Kingdom.

“If you had been wearing these clothes before, Li Ang, you might not have gotten hurt. Wouldn’t the road ahead have been even more dangerous? Li Ang, you should put these on,” Adele said.

While this outfit isn't invulnerable, its defensive capabilities are comparable to regular heavy armor. Li Ang felt that the outfit was more of a memento than a practical item, which is why he put it away. However, since Adele specifically found it, he might as well put it on.

"Okay then." Li Ang nodded.

It's just a piece of clothing anyway.

Well... Adele is rather shy, and she probably wouldn't want to change into that white kimono in front of everyone, so Li Ang simply didn't mention it.

"You two go ahead, I'll be right back after I change my clothes."

When Li Ang changed his clothes and came outside again, everyone had already arrived; he was the last one to arrive.

After treating Nian's wounds, big and small, Sangshen had wrapped her body in bandages, making her look like a rice dumpling.

Seeing Li Ang in a different outfit, Nian's eyes lit up, and he teased, "Nice clothes, little brother."

Nodding towards Nian, Li Ang asked, "Have you finished discussing? What's the final decision?"

Before Li Ang came out, Yi told everyone about the underground river in front of everyone.

"Me? I don't really care, but if we can get to Tianyue Mountain faster, I have no objection," Nian said.

What she meant was that she preferred to go to the underground river rather than foolishly wait here.

"I...I'm fine with anything...I don't have any particular thoughts," Sangshen said weakly.

After the two women expressed their thoughts, there was no need to ask anyone else. As for the Zhao family father and son, they had no right to express their opinions; at best, they were just two accessories in the team.

Finally, everyone unanimously agreed to Yi's suggestion to travel to Tianyue Mountain via the underground river.

"Thank you all for your support. So... when should we set off? The entrance to the underground river is still quite a distance from here. If we're going to set off, I need to make some preparations in advance, but I'd prefer to rest for a while."

Although Yi proposed the plan, he didn't seem to be in a hurry.

Everyone looked at Jingzhe, waiting for her to make her final decision.

Jingzhe considered for a few seconds, and finally said,

"Then let's rest for a day and set off tomorrow morning."

Chapter 96 Entrance

The next day, nearly forty-eight hours had passed since the first lightning strike, but the torrential rain outside showed no sign of stopping.

If the torrential rain two days ago was only close to a natural disaster, then the damage caused by this rain now has exceeded that of a typical natural disaster. At this moment, they all realized that this rain would not stop easily.

The rainy season in Jiangnan often lasts for half a month, and this rain seems to be heading in that direction as well.

The world in the painting does not have day and night; everything needs to be manually controlled by the master of this world, Xi.

But the problem is... Xi had already gone to bed early because she was too exhausted, so they could only spend one night in the brightly lit world.

As the night passed, everyone's biological clocks were somewhat disrupted by the reversed day and night, but they managed to adjust and prepare for the next operation.

According to Yi, based on the speed of the underground river's flow, they could reach the vicinity of Linghai Peak in as little as six hours, which was many times faster than traveling over mountains and valleys on the surface. The only problem was that Yi's clone might not be able to maintain the spell for that long.

Everyone understands this, but whether they believe it or not is another matter.

After discussion, they decided that Yi would shrink the ice boat to a size that could only accommodate two people, so as to minimize the consumption of energy and reach the end of the river with only one or two rest stops.

Actually... Li Ang could have kept everyone else in the painting and swam across the underground river by himself. After all, he could breathe underwater and wasn't in danger of drowning.

After some consideration, Li Ang felt that he should find something for Yi to do. Yi seemed to be intentionally or unintentionally influencing the group's itinerary. If he was left idle, who knew what kind of trouble he would cause.

The first half of the Tianyue Mountains was basically for tourism, getting familiar with the environment. The thought of skipping the first half and going straight into the dangerous second half made them feel heavy-hearted, and even the atmosphere in the world in the painting became somewhat heavy.

In this delicate atmosphere, a carefree fellow appeared, seemingly out of place.

Zhao Anping eventually persuaded his father. The huge reward promised by Yi was one aspect, but on the other hand, he was indeed not confident that he could go back alone, and it would be safer to go back with the main group.

When he learned that they would cross Linghai Peak and venture deep into the heart of the Tianyue Mountains by tomorrow at the latest, the young man, who was just over twenty years old, was extremely excited.

An unprecedented adventure is about to unfold, and he seems to have become the protagonist of the story. The fantastical experiences along the way even give him a feeling of euphoria.

His father just kept sighing. As someone who had crossed Linghai Peak before, no one knew better than him how dangerous that dense forest was. He could only hope that these people could guarantee the safety of him and his son.

"Are you ready? If you are, let's go." Li Ang glanced at Yi and said.

"of course."

After getting ready, the two left the world in the painting together.

In the real world, howling winds can be strong enough to blow away lighter people, making it extremely dangerous to go out in such weather.

Li Ang was initially worried about Yi's condition, but Yi's steps were surprisingly steady. Yi followed closely behind Li Ang, using Li Ang's body to shield him from the wind while also guiding him in the direction of progress.

During their journey, Yi's Originium Arts played a crucial role. They would normally have been unable to cross the roads blocked by floods, but Yi used his Originium Arts to build ice bridges over the floodwaters, allowing them to cross the turbulent rivers.

When they had crossed the third mountain peak, Li Ang suddenly stopped.

Yi thought he wanted to ask where to go next, so without looking up, he pointed in a direction and said, "Go that way next."

"No... I wanted to ask, where is the entrance? How much longer until we get there?" Li Ang asked, wiping the rain off his face.

Although the rainwater couldn't soak through his haori hakama, it could seep in through his collar, which made Li Ang feel very strange. His clothes were completely dry, but he felt wet... However, this was still better than the person behind him whose underwear was stuck to his body.

"We're here, we're here, it's just ahead."

"where?"

"It's right there."

Yi didn't even look up, as if he were just pointing randomly. "It's on that mountain. There should be a rock wall covered with vines there... If the heavy rain didn't wash them away, the entrance to the underground river is behind those vines. This is what I left behind when I came here last time."

Following the direction Yi pointed, Li Ang indeed found a rock face on the opposite mountain that was exactly the same as the one Yi had described.

Beneath the lush vines, a hole large enough for one person to pass through can be vaguely seen.

strangeness……

Was there a rock wall like that just now? Li Ang frowned.

Li Ang had been paying close attention to his surroundings, and the storm hadn't affected him particularly badly, but... he didn't seem to have noticed that conspicuous rock face in that direction just now.

But it was indeed there, that was an indisputable fact, and Li Ang could only assume he had misjudged it; in such dim lighting, it was indeed possible to be visually impaired.

Yi had already begun preparing his Originium Arts, and a huge ice block began to condense on the ground.

In this water-rich environment, Yi's Originium Arts are not actually consumed in large quantities. If he were in a desert environment, he would probably be exhausted before he could even build half an ice bridge.

Looking at Yi's speed, Li Ang felt it was a bit too slow. Since there was only a short distance left, Li Ang didn't plan to walk over at such a slow pace any longer.

"Get ready, I'll take you straight across."

"what?"

Yi was stunned for a moment, and before he could react, he felt a hand grab his collar.

With a muffled bang, Yi felt as if he had flown into the sky... no, not as if, he was actually flying into the air.

The scenery before him became a blur, and the howling wind around him felt like sharp knives. Yi felt like he couldn't even catch his breath.

He didn't know how much time had passed before he felt himself fall heavily into a puddle of mud.

"Alright, we've arrived."

Hearing this calm voice, Yi became even more furious.

"Were you trying to kill me just now?"

Yi got up from the ground and shouted angrily.

Chapter Ninety-Seven Basin

At this moment, Yi also realized what his foolish younger brother had just done.

He actually thought he was building the bridge too slowly, so he grabbed his collar and jumped across the raging floodwaters.

If he makes even the slightest mistake, he will fall and be smashed into a pile of minced meat. Yi Du suspects that Li Ang may be planning to use this opportunity to get rid of him.

If this clone is also lost, he will be delayed for at least half a month.