Chapter 58: Burning the City Down The memories of humans could be altered.
In fact, people often rewrite their own memories, amplifying the good ones while quietly forgetting about the hardships and suffering that came with them.
“The perfection of this illusion... is actually its greatest flaw. Its perfection is its fatal weakness. In the end, Tao Bo wrote that he had come up with a bold solution. Once he finished burying this journal, he would try it. But relying on his own strength, it was nearly impossible, and failure meant certain death. Still, he noted that there’s one spot in the city where reality is warped, completely out of place with real history. His health was already failing by then, so he couldn’t give it much thought, but he hoped that perhaps those who came here after him could find a breakthrough there.”
Mao Tao pressed, “So, where is this place?”
“He didn’t say.” Sun Fuping shook his head. “However, from the moment they entered the illusion, the expedition team always felt like something was watching them. Some even claimed to have glimpsed a gigantic red shadow, just out of the corner of their eye.”
A red shadow! He Lingchuan’s expression changed. “They saw it too?”
“Too?”
“Huh? Did none of you see it?”
Everyone shook their heads.
“When I got into the pool, it felt like there was something huge moving in the blood-water, but I couldn’t make out what it was.” He Lingchuan gave a wry smile. “So others saw it too? I thought I was just seeing things.”
“Was it alive or dead?”
“It moved, but I couldn’t tell if it was moving on its own or just drifting with the current.”
Clearly, his account did not give them any new leads. Sun Fuping shifted focus back to the immediate problem. “Tao Bo thought that it might be the artifact spirit of the Generous Pot, or perhaps a wrathful soul deeply hidden in this place. That’s why he couldn’t write down his method or the illusion’s flaw. Otherwise, this world would likely change accordingly.”
Nian Songyu frowned. “What difference would it make if he did write it? Tao Bo didn’t make it out alive; that proves his method failed.”
However, He Lingchuan said, “His way of understanding this world is pretty interesting, though. Maybe that’s the angle we should take.”
“And how are we supposed to do that?”
“This world is too perfect, so there’s no Generous Pot?” He Lingchuan said offhandedly. “Isn’t it simple, then? Just destroy this world, and the Generous Pot will show itself, right?”
“You...” Nian Songyu was about to call it nonsense, but then he thought about it. Despite it appearing to be such a straightforward and brute-force approach, was there not actually some logic to it?
That actually... makes sense. “What better way to hide something like that? No wonder wave after wave of explorers left empty-handed!” The more He Lingchuan thought about it, the more pleased he became. “And besides, Tao Bo already searched every corner of this place. If we tear it all down, there’s really nothing to lose.”
Sun Fuping looked a bit dazed. “But that out-of-place detail...” If we destroy everything, it’ll truly be impossible to find it. “Panlong City is huge. How are we supposed to find a tiny flaw across such a massive place with so few people? Even if we had another sixty days, it wouldn’t be enough. And honestly, I doubt any of us would last another sixty days.”
Mao Tao shivered at those words.
Tao Bo had survived for more than sixty days only because he had started with his own food and water, and then began eating his companions. There were four people here now. If it ever came to that, no matter how you calculated it, he would be the first one on the chopping block!
Just the thought of it made him feel as if all three others were eyeing him with deep, predatory malice. He quickly chimed in, “Young Master, that’s a great idea!”
He Lingchuan shot Mao Tao a sidelong glance, as if he saw straight through the man’s fear. “Didn’t the state preceptor say that, worst case, we could use the state’s fate to get us all out of here?”
“Of course. But that chance can only be used once, so we must be cautious.”
“Then what are we afraid of?” He Lingchuan chuckled. “Let’s talk about how to destroy a world, shall we?”
“Set it on fire!” This time, Nian Songyu and Mao Tao actually spoke in unison.
Mao Tao immediately clammed up, while Nian Songyu glanced at Sun Fuping. “Just like after Panlong City fell.”
When the Xianba[1] Coalition Army breached Panlong City in days past. After looting and slaughtering, they had burned the entire city to the ground. There was no more brutal way to wipe out a place.
Sun Fuping considered it and nodded. “We’ll start gathering materials for the fire. Let’s split up.”
“Burning down a city this size won’t be easy, will it?” said He Lingchuan. “Even with four of us, won’t it still take a month or two?”
Mao Tao jumped in alarm, instantly imagining his own grim fate. Sun Fuping thought for a moment. “You’re right, we’re short-handed. It’s best if we call in everyone from outside.”
You want to bring my father down here, too? He Lingchuan froze. “Can you even reach them?”
“It’s hard to say for sure, but I can definitely give it a try.” They were, after all, in two separate worlds, so this was no longer just a question of distance. As a result, Sun Fuping was not entirely confident in his ability to contact those outside.
Seeing Sun Fuping roll up his sleeves, ready to summon help, He Lingchuan quickly interjected, “If it’s easy to enter but impossible to leave, won’t we just be sending those outside to their deaths by having them come in here? Why don’t we just give it a try ourselves first? Tao Bo seemed to have managed to do so much even when he was just alone back then.”
“That’s why he failed,” Nian Songyu said, his smile not reaching his eyes. “No one’s ever survived the season of mad sand in the Panlong Desert. You said it yourself, if we don’t get the Generous Pot, your father can’t leave Panlong City either. Either way, we all die here. It doesn’t matter which side of the wall you’re on.”
This guy’s really damn cold-blooded. If it isn’t his own men, he clearly doesn’t care how many die. He Lingchuan was about to argue further when inspiration struck. “We can still burn the city with just us four! All we need to do is turn the city’s defensive artillery around! They’re all concentrated on the southern side. Besides, my father can’t come down now. Who would hold off the Gale Army for us?”
Defensive artillery? Nian Songyu paused, then actually complimented him, “That does make sense.”
The city walls had their own fortifications, and this typically came in the form of defensive artillery generally used for long-range defense. Some of these defensive artillery flung regular and flaming boulders, while others launched giant bolts to fend off attackers. If they aimed those machines inward, they could rain fire on the city itself, and from a much greater distance than any person could manage by hand.
It would be a far more efficient way to set Panlong City ablaze than for four people to run around with torches.
Besides, a city this size did not need to be burned to the ground. It would probably be enough as long as they gutted the main district.
He Lingchuan seized the moment and said, “The ranges of the defensive artillery are limited, so I’ll go set fire to the outlying buildings they can’t reach.”
His planning was so thorough that even Nian Songyu had nothing more to say. Sun Fuping only added a warning, “We’ll split up. Meet back at the city wall in two hours.”
“Be on time! If anything goes wrong, head straight for the southern gate!” Sun Fuping added with a stern look on his face. “We’re exploiting the flaw Tao Bo discovered, but he still failed to escape in the end, so there must be some force we can’t foresee after the fire is set. If you want to live, make sure you’re by my side when the time comes. Remember that!”
With that, the four split up.
Nian Songyu headed south to inspect the defensive artillery and look for supplies in the armory. As an experienced soldier, he knew exactly where to find such things.
Meanwhile, He Lingchuan went east, Mao Tao north, and Sun Fuping west.
1. This is a combination of the Xianyou and Baling’s names. ☜