Leaving Giant Stone Pass
Even Jiang Ling, the Chief Grand Scholar, had to admit that his talk of standing back up where he had fallen was really just his unwillingness to accept defeat at Giant Stone Pass, his unwillingness to let go of Asura Grand Scholar's death so easily.
His reasons were certainly sound, but there was one thing he couldn't deny: he wanted to reclaim his pride at Giant Stone Pass and avenge Asura Grand Scholar. To some extent, this was indeed influenced by his personal relationship with Asura Grand Scholar. It was a matter of personal feelings.
With so many of his subordinates urging him to shift the fight to the southern route, he had no choice but to calm down and weigh the pros and cons carefully.
In the end, he realized that shifting the main force to the southern route really was impractical, just as he'd said. It would inevitably alert the Five Elements Academy.
But a small-scale raid, using a feint to draw attention away from the real target, was still quite feasible.
Reading his expression, his subordinates could tell he was reconsidering. The senior Gold Ribbon Grand Scholar, in particular, picked up on it and continued at once, "Chief, I'm willing to play along and impersonate you here. You can personally lead a force of elite troops in a surprise attack on the southern route. You'll surely capture its pass in one stroke."
Jiang Ling nodded gravely. "Good. With Elder Bing holding the fort here, I feel much more at ease."
Elder Bing was a senior Gold Ribbon Grand Scholar of Titan Academy. The reason he wasn't a Purple Gold Ribbon Grand Scholar wasn't that he lacked seniority; quite the opposite. He had been around so long and was so advanced in years that