Chapter 660: Section 447: Mane Purple Discrepancy 2
Different Teleportation Arrays have different transportation distances.
Generally speaking, in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, villages do not have Teleportation Arrays. Small towns have small-sized Teleportation Arrays that can send one to the main city.
It’s only in the main cities that Teleportation Arrays can transport one to adjacent main cities, while large cities’ Teleportation Arrays may lead directly to the Royal Capital.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, en route to the Royal Capital, encountered a teleportation error, which made Zi Di and Zong Ge extremely cautious.
Zi Di directly suggested they retreat and head to Snow Rabbit Town first.
This was an excellent suggestion.
Zong Ge immediately agreed.
According to the ambush in the Cold Wind Valley, the enemy hid their presence but revealed some traces; it was obvious they did not want to show their true faces. If they attacked the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps in a town, they would undoubtedly expose their identities and would also provoke a manhunt from the Ice Sculpture officials, so this possibility was quite small.
Zong Ge, Zi Di, and their party then set off for Snow Rabbit Town.
The reason Snow Rabbit Town was named as such is that it is the largest rabbit fur producing area in the entire Ice Sculpture Kingdom. The snow rabbit fur produced in Snow Rabbit Town is not only white as snow and fine, but also transcendent—Bronze Level, Black Iron Level, Silver Level, and even Golden Level are all produced.
You must understand that snow rabbits are very difficult to breed. Only wild snow rabbits have high-quality fur.
Once wild snow rabbits are kept in a space for a long time, even if the supply of snow elements is very rich, the quality of the rabbit fur would sharply decline. If there are no natural predators to force the snow rabbits to keep running, their fur would keep getting thicker, changing from snow-white to pure white, even to off-white, continuously decreasing in value.
The mass production of rabbit fur in Snow Rabbit Town is not due to their mastery of large-scale breeding techniques. In fact, if such techniques truly existed, they would definitely be commandeered by the Ice Sculpture Royal Family and wouldn’t remain in a remote small town.
The reason Snow Rabbit Town has such a high output of rabbit fur is solely because of the Snow Rabbit Tribe.
Snow Rabbit Town is near the Patchwork Mountain.
On Patchwork Mountain resides a Snow Rabbit Tribe of considerable size.
Every year, a large number of Snow Rabbit Tribe members voluntarily come down the mountain to trade their fur in Snow Rabbit Town. They do not go to Snow Rabbit City. Snow Rabbit Town is already sufficient for their trade needs. Moreover, the town’s armed forces are much weaker than Snow Rabbit City’s, providing the trading Snow Rabbit Tribe members with a greater sense of security.
In fact, there have always been Transcendents who take the risk to hunt Snow Rabbit Tribe members in secret. Even though the Snow Rabbit Tribe already has a peace treaty with the Ice Sculpture Royal Family, hunting Snow Rabbit Tribe members is against the law.
The snow started falling heavier.
When the people from the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps just teleported here, there were only sparse snowflakes drifting in the sky.
By the time they had covered half the distance, the snowflakes in the sky became as large as goose feathers, with a tendency to grow even larger.
Such weather is common near Patchwork Mountain, with climates far harsher than this also existing.
The flurries of goose-feather-sized snow greatly hindered Xu Ma’s reconnaissance.
Being only a Bronze Level Thief, he struggled against such harsh cold and was soon shivering from the freeze.
The group’s reconnaissance did not solely rely on him.
From the start, Zi Di dispersed reconnaissance Alchemy Puppets.
Not only that, but she also scattered her recently modified Shadow Snake Ghosts and Rat Eye Ghosts.
Half an hour later, the snowfall got even heavier, and the thick snowflakes were mixed with some hail.
“Stop!” Zi Di suddenly spoke up.
Her brows were tightly knit as she glanced at Zong Ge.
Zong Ge’s heart skipped a beat as he surveyed the surroundings and commanded with a steady voice, “Let’s rest here for a bit.”
There was a gentle slope near the group.
They went to the lee side of the slope, took out the equipment for making fire and cooking, and began a temporary rest.
Zi Di and Zong Ge moved to a corner.
After ensuring that no one was eavesdropping, Zi Di spoke with a serious expression, “Three Golden Level individuals have been detected ahead. Among them are two fighters and one mage; one of the fighters is the same enemy who ambushed us in Cold Wind Valley.”
Zong Ge’s expression turned grim, “Three Golden Levels… They really think highly of us.”
Zi Di said with a sense of relief, “It’s a good thing I modified the Rat Eye Ghosts and Shadow Snake Ghosts before we set out. The three Golden Levels were hiding in a Magic Camp, invisible to the Reconnaissance Puppets, but the Rat Eye Ghosts saw through them.”
“This is where the advantage of the new school lies. Now, the initiative is in our hands.” In just a few seconds, Zong Ge had calmed down.
Zi Di said, “We weren’t heading to Snow Rabbit City, but to Rabbit Fur Town. However, our movement has already been detected by the enemy, and they have set an ambush in advance.”
“What should we do to escape now?”
“Currently, we are closest to Rabbit Fur Town, but our intentions are already known to the enemy. Snow Rabbit City has become the furthest destination, and even if we wanted to utilize the City Guard, they couldn’t possibly be mobilized to such a distant location.”
Zi Di scrutinized the Magic Map, reviewing other towns and focusing on the distances between herself and these locations.
But Zong Ge extended his hand, covering the map, and blocking Zi Di’s investigative gaze, “We have the initiative now, we shouldn’t be thinking about running away, but about launching a surprise attack.”
“It’s too late to run. Three Golden Level enemies are much faster than us. They also have Mages, undoubtedly capable of flight. Choosing other routes would quickly alert them, and realizing we’ve detected their tracks, they’d likely attack us proactively.”
“But if we launch the attack, it would present a fantastic opportunity for battle!”
Zi Di’s eyes widened, “You want to attack them?”
The disbelief was plain on the girl’s face as she stared at Zong Ge, seriously doubting whether his brain had been left behind in the City of Kin during the teleportation.
Zong Ge’s expression remained unaltered, his tone slightly impatient, “Don’t let fear cloud your judgment, Miss Merchant. Think carefully, we have a tremendous advantage.”
Zi Di nearly laughed out of irritation.
“The enemy has three at the Golden Level, while the strongest on our side are the two of us, merely Silver Level. If we count the Silver Level ghost Lan Lu, that barely makes three. I don’t know where this ‘advantage’ you speak of lies!”
Zong Ge stated bluntly, “Deception and Disguise Skill—that’s our strongest card.”
Zi Di’s eyes narrowed, her tone grew urgent, “This is indeed our trump card, but don’t forget, we’re headed for the Ice Sculpture Royal Capital.”
“The squad leader and we are out of touch, and though we have many Pearl Bubbles in hand, they are unsustainable.”
“We do not know how long we’ll stay in the Royal Capital, nor how long the Pearl Bubbles will last.”
“We shouldn’t waste them recklessly.”
“Once the effect of the Deception and Disguise Skill wears off and our true identities are exposed, the Royal Capital will become our graveyard!”
Especially since Zi Di was an Undead Mage, once exposed, it would undoubtedly attract a terrifying and fatal response.
As the heart of a nation’s capital, how could they tolerate an Undead Mage?
Zi Di continued, “Even if we still have the Divine Artifact ‘Mermaid’s Fairy Tale’ on our side, the artifact’s production is dwindling. Only by communicating with the Empire’s high echelon as soon as we’re able, do we stand a chance of redemption. This is the most critical part of all our plans.”
Zong Ge shook his head, his stance firm, “No, using Pearl Bubble now is when it’s most valuable.”
“Miss Merchant, have you not realized the situation yet?”
“The enemy’s origin is mysterious, and their power is massive. One Golden Level ambush is already significant, but now they’ve brought together three. What kind of force could do this?”
“After the squad leader killed Teng Donglang, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps became famous nationwide, yet they still target us. To deal with two Silver Level individuals, they mobilized three Golden Level. What grievance warrants such an action?”
“We don’t even understand the opponent’s motives nor know who they are or where they come from. This is the worst part!”
“By taking the offensive now, we might eliminate one or two and gather crucial intelligence. What’s most important is that we can really demonstrate our ‘strength’, making the enemy understand that killing us would come at a steep price. That way, we’ll possess true agency in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.”
“Otherwise, even if we escape this time, the enemy will not let things go. They will hamstring us, creating opportunities to strike. The next time they act, they’ll be more cautious and might even counteract the reconnaissance of undead spirits. Our situation will be much worse than it is now!”
Zi Di fell silent for a moment before speaking disheartenedly, “We already have clues we could investigate.”
Zong Ge scoffed, “Are your clues reliable? If they can use these Puppets as rearguards, would they really leave any evidence? Besides, do we have a suitable candidate who can follow these clues to the truth? Who do you want to send, Xu Ma?”
Zi Di clenched her teeth, “The gap between us and the enemy is too large…”
Zong Ge readily admitted, “Of course, there’s risk, but that’s combat for you; nothing comes without risk. With the Deception and Disguise Skill, I’m confident I can kill at least one Golden Level. We must hit them hard to display our strength and threat.”
“Remember the incident in Snowbird Port? By leveraging the Deception and Disguise Skill, we made the tracking device completely ‘invisible’, neither the Golden Level assassin nor the City Lord of Snowbird Port noticed. Wasn’t that battle proof enough of the strategic value of the Deception and Disguise Skill?”
Zi Di looked hesitant, her mouth opening as if to speak.
Zong Ge interrupted her, “That’s why, I’ll go alone for this battle. Once you cast a Spell, the Spell won’t be enhanced by the Deception and Disguise Skill, which would actually be a vulnerability.”
“Even if I can’t overcome them, I can tie them up for a while. You can take the people and use the Rapid March to head to Rabbit Fur Town. Once there, we should be safe.”
Zong Ge’s tone was much more conciliatory than the last time in Cold Wind Valley.
Because he needed to gain Zi Di’s support.
He wasn’t a Mage; to use the Deception Array would require Zi Di’s personal operation.