Parting Ways

One night passed, and the east gradually brightened.

But it didn't rain that day.

The sun slowly rose, hanging high in the cloudless blue sky.

Gu Qingshan's figure suddenly appeared in a dense forest.

The Python Demon's corpse still lay at his feet, and two hundred meters away, clusters of arrows were deeply embedded in the branches.

One day in the Other World was equivalent to one hour in the real world, but returning from the real world, not even a second had passed in the Other World.

This was truly a very strange flow of time.

Gu Qingshan checked the Storage Bag, which was filled with spoils such as snake blood and Snake Fangs.

The two most precious Python Demon Galls, he had consumed one himself, and the other lay quietly in the Storage Bag, occasionally emitting a faint glow.

This is the real deal. Even now, Gu Qingshan could still feel the blood and Qi throughout his body constantly growing stronger, almost catching up with a Martial Arts cultivator.

Should I walk the path of Martial Arts?

Gu Qingshan hesitated slightly.

Forget it, I'll think about that later. It's time to return to the military camp.

He hadn't had time to eat anything today, and although Zhao Liu wasn't good at much else, he was indeed skilled in cooking.

Gu Qingshan tidied up his gear and quickly returned along the same route.

He didn't stop along the way, and simply avoided Demon Beasts when he encountered them.

He had spent the night killing Demon Beasts, then returned to the real world to complete the development of a Mobile Armor, met Anna, fought the Grandmaster, met the President and the Martial Saint, and appeared on television. Now, he felt somewhat physically and mentally exhausted.

This time in the Other World, he might as well take a good day to rest.

When he returned to the military camp, Zhao Liu was standing at the camp entrance, eagerly waiting for his return.

As soon as he saw Gu Qingshan, he said anxiously, "Brother Gu, this is bad."

"What's wrong?"

"Last night, many Demons appeared, one after another."

"Hmm? What exactly happened?"

Gu Qingshan's expression tightened as he asked.

Zhao Liu didn't understand military matters, and after stammering for a long time, he couldn't explain it clearly.

Gu Qingshan had to ask patiently, and Zhao Liu would only say something based on his memory after three or four questions.

It took a full quarter of an hour for Gu Qingshan to figure out what had happened.

Last night, the Demon Army didn't send out large forces, but rather small groups of special forces.

These forces were well-equipped and highly skilled. In Zhao Liu's words, they "looked terrifying, even more ferocious than the monsters I saw last time."

The Demon Army teams all rushed past the military camp entrance at extremely high speeds.

In order to ensure concealment and mobility, the number of Demons was small, and their movements were silent.

If Zhao Liu hadn't gotten up to use the toilet at night, he wouldn't have noticed at all.

After listening to Zhao Liu's description, Gu Qingshan recalled the Faceless Giant and Blood-Drinking Demon that had appeared yesterday, and felt even more puzzled.

What is the Demon Army trying to do by frequently mobilizing such elite forces?

This was indeed the beginning of the first war, when the Demons and the Human Race were still testing each other's strengths, and neither side had yet sent out powerful teams to fight to the death.

These powerful Demons, which would only appear in the later stages of the war, had suddenly appeared now.

Gu Qingshan pondered, and began to seriously recall.

He sensed an ominous sign.

In his previous life, he was the commander of the Huaxia Country's National Guild, and the strategic chief instructor of the World Allied Forces Command, so he was particularly sensitive to troop movements.

Every battle in the game, he had studied meticulously.

Before, he had just transmigrated and his cultivation was too low, plus he was injured, so Gu Qingshan's attention was focused on improving himself.

Now that the situation has changed, he once again thinks seriously from the perspective of a strategic commander.

Gu Qingshan cast aside distracting thoughts and began to carefully sort out his thoughts.

Since it wasn't a large force of Demons that was dispatched, then what was about to happen was definitely not on the main battlefield.

In that case, a frontal war can be ruled out.

Then, could it be a surprise attack?

Gu Qingshan closed his eyes and ran through the map in his mind.

The military camp he was in was at the forefront, and now belonged to a fallen area.

In this vicinity, what Human Race position is worth the Demons dispatching a powerful elite force to attack with all their strength?

The nearest Human Race position is outside Border City, nearly a thousand miles away.

There are no Human Race targets worth attacking in this vicinity.

From this perspective, a surprise attack can also be ruled out.

After ruling out both situations, Gu Qingshan became even more nervous.

Could it be an assassination-like decapitation operation?

Gu Qingshan thought silently.

In this year of history, many top Human Race great cultivators died in battle.

At the beginning of the sudden outbreak of war, what important Human Race cultivators were ambushed and killed by the Demons?

One name after another flashed through Gu Qingshan's mind.

He recalled and quickly screened.

Suddenly, Gu Qingshan thought of two people.

Two stunningly talented people, two people who left a strong mark on history.

Many historians have stated that if either of these two had not died in the early stages of the war, the course of history would have changed.

Gu Qingshan suddenly asked, "What is the date today?"

Zhao Liu scratched his head and said, "June 7th."

Gu Qingshan's heart skipped a beat, this matched up!

Saint Dao Sect, Supreme Elder, Grandmaster of Arrays Gongsun Zhi, fell on June 8th.

Heavenly Peak Sect, Heavenly Peak Holy Maiden Ning Yuechan, fell on June 9th.

Gongsun Zhi was besieged by three million Demons and died in his own array.

Ning Yuechan was besieged by five Demon Generals, fought bitterly for a day and a night, and fell.

Many players who saw this historical record were almost stunned and unable to understand.

Because arrays are best at concealment and evasion, and at worst can trap enemies and escape.

Among the various families and sects, Gongsun Zhi was a grandmaster whose array skills had reached the pinnacle, almost able to glimpse the Heavenly Dao.

With his array-laying ability, how could he put himself in the midst of millions of Demons? This simply didn't make sense.

The fall of Heavenly Peak Holy Maiden Ning Yuechan was particularly tragic.

Heavenly Peak Sect is one of the strongest sects in the cultivation world. Ning Yuechan became the Heavenly Peak Holy Maiden at a young age. Her talent and cultivation were among the best in the entire cultivation world.

Such an amazingly talented woman was besieged by five Demon Generals, fought with all her strength for a day and a night, and died of exhaustion.

If she had released even a little bit of information, Human Race experts would have come to rescue her during that day and night.

But until she fell, the Human Race high-level officials did not know that she had fought with the Demon Army for a day and a night.

A great cultivator once asserted that if Gongsun Zhi had not died, the outcome of the first battle would still be uncertain; if Ning Yuechan had not died, decades later, she would definitely have the ability to fight the Nine Nether Demon Lord and change the fate of the entire Human Race.

But these are just words of regret and sighing; history has already happened, and it's meaningless for later generations to say such things.

Gu Qingshan paced back and forth, pondering to himself.

Today is the seventh day of the sixth month. In the next two days, those two legendary figures will fall one after another.

The Demon Army is mobilizing elite troops, presumably for this very reason.

The locations where these two legendary figures will fall are...

Gu Qingshan silently recalled in his mind, and soon remembered the locations marked in the historical records.

Sure enough, it's not far from here, only a little over a hundred miles away.

That's right, Gu Qingshan felt a sudden clarity in his heart.

Once such two powerful Human Race cultivators show up, it will surely attract a frenzied encirclement by the Demons.

With Gu Qingshan's Qi Refining fifth layer cultivation, he wouldn't even be able to get close to such an intense encirclement battle.

The Demon armies guarding the periphery could easily take his life.

For him, the only thing he can do is take the opportunity to escape back to the Human Race's territory.

While the Demons' attention is focused on the two legendary figures, escape the occupied area!

Gu Qingshan quickly made a decision.

In such a situation, he can avoid danger to the greatest extent by leaving in the completely opposite direction.

From this military camp to the Human Race highlands outside Border City, it takes about a day and a night.

That's not a short time, and there are many dangers on the road, but it's better than waiting to die in a military camp that's about to fall.

So, if he's going to leave, he has to take advantage of the battle between the two legendary figures and the Demon Army and leave quickly!

Gu Qingshan didn't rest, and quickly checked the things he had on him.

The Snake Blood, Snake Fang, and Python Demon Gall are all there. The Military Bow is still in good condition, but there aren't many arrows left. He needs to replenish them when he leaves.

The standard-issue scimitar isn't very useful, but he should bring one anyway. If he needs to fight hand-to-hand, at least he'll have a weapon.

"Pack up, we're leaving immediately."

Gu Qingshan packed his things and told Zhao Liu.

"Leave? Where to?" Zhao Liu asked, his eyes wide.

He was holding the Demon Beast jerky he had just marinated, preparing to hang it under the eaves.

"Of course, to escape this occupied area and head to the Human Race highlands," Gu Qingshan said.

Zhao Liu hesitated, "But... but we've already found Spirit Stone. With the Concealment Array, we can hide for a while longer."

Gu Qingshan said, "This Concealment Array is only effective for those below the Golden Core realm. Those above Golden Core can see through it at a glance."

He added, "The Faceless Giant monster from a few days ago actually discovered us a long time ago, but it had a mission and treated us like ants, so it ignored us."

Zhao Liu took a step back, then another step back, shaking his head, "Gu Qingshan, why would you scare me like that? What's the point of lying to me?"

Gu Qingshan patiently explained, "If I'm not mistaken, this area will soon become a battlefield. If we want to live, we must leave early."

Zhao Liu said, "Weren't you out hunting? How would you know this?"

Gu Qingshan said, "You can tell from the Demon's army deployment. Don't worry, I won't be wrong about this."

Zhao Liu kept shaking his head, "No! You must be mistaken. It's so dangerous outside, you could die at any time! You can leave if you want, I'm not going!"

Gu Qingshan thought about the Healing Pill the other party had given him, sighed, and still tried to persuade him, "Come with me, this place can't be defended. Death is imminent."

Zhao Liu shook his head like a rattle drum, repeatedly saying, "It's dangerous outside. The camp has a formation. It's safe to stay here. Besides, the Human Race's main force will take this place back sooner or later."

Gu Qingshan tried to persuade him a few more times, but seeing that Zhao Liu's attitude was firm and even looked at him with some resentment, he gave up.

"I hope you understand," Gu Qingshan said seriously, "Once the Demons come, it will be too late for you to regret it."

Zhao Liu stubbornly remained silent.

Seeing this, Gu Qingshan helplessly turned around and left the military camp without looking back.

Only after Gu Qingshan had walked so far that even his shadow could no longer be seen did Zhao Liu spit fiercely.

"Bah! The greatest danger lies outside. Those soldiers only died in the mouths of Demons after leaving the military camp."

"Everyone else is lying in the Pit of the Dead; only I survived."

"I originally thought he was a reinforcement, but he was just a lone greenhorn. I only realized it after serving him for a few days."

"How laughable, he's going to his death and still dares to try and mislead me."

Zhao Liu cursed as he returned to the barracks.