"I'll stick with you. Even if they're trying to trap us, they won't be able to defeat us easily. Let's assess the situation in Lujiang first," Chen Xi shook his head, refusing Gan Ning's suggestion. There wasn't much danger in staying with Gan Ning, and it was clear that Gan Luo had been sent ahead in case Lujiang fell, and the Lu family couldn't make contact.
Gan Ning thought about it and decided not to say more. He immediately activated his internal energy and led his troops, with Chen Xi in tow, towards Lujiang.
Meanwhile, Pang Tong, who had just extinguished the flames at the Lu residence and was preparing the rear camp to enter Lujiang City, suddenly raised his head. "This is bad!"
"Indeed, it's troublesome. Two opponents have arrived. Quickly, notify Bofu and the others. I'll have our men dismantle the rear camp and form a defensive formation right here. Internal energy really is a hassle. Normally, my spiritual talent should cover several miles, but I didn't sense them until they were this close," Zhou Yu said, frowning as he instructed a messenger. "Shiyuan, did you sense them too?"
"Do you have a wide-area spiritual talent as well?" Pang Tong asked with a frown. He had always thought he was unique since his spiritual talent allowed him to detect any other spiritual talents or special abilities nearby. This was especially useful for identifying top talents.
"Yes, didn't I mention it before? Aside from you, I've always detected others with spiritual talents. You're the only one I didn't sense initially," Zhou Yu replied calmly as he took down his sword hanging in the tent and strapped it to his waist. "I wonder how Kun Tao's task is progressing. It seems inevitable that we'll clash with Liu Bei's forces."
"When did you mention this?" Pang Tong muttered as he hurriedly followed Zhou Yu outside. "My spiritual talent can be perfectly concealed, making it undetectable, but only when I'm calm. Once I get worked up, like during our debates, I can't hide it anymore."
"I wonder who can keep their composure in the middle of a war," Zhou Yu scoffed as he stepped out of the tent. Moments ago, it had been a bright sunny day, but now the sky was filled with dark clouds, and the wind howled.
"Calling the wind and rain... I haven't done this in a while," Chen Xi chuckled. "It feels much easier and more controllable now. Though it's a shame I don't have Zijing's icy touch. If I did, I could turn this summer rain into snow, wounding the enemy before the battle even begins."
"Gongjin, you focus on forming the battle array and directing the flow of internal energy. I'll handle this weather manipulation—mere wind and rain won't stop me," Pang Tong said as he stepped forward, squinting against the wind and sand.
"Leave it to you then. The weather was sunny to begin with, so it'll be easier for you to clear the skies than for the enemy to change them," Zhou Yu nodded before rushing to the rear camp to raise their defensive formation, preventing Liu Bei's forces from exploiting any gaps.
Pang Tong immediately got to work, swiftly dispersing the clouds overhead, allowing sunlight to pierce through the gaps. Meanwhile, Zhou Yu began using his spiritual power to assist the disorganized Sun Ce troops in forming their battle array and raising their internal energy.
"They tore through it, huh? Let's see how they handle this!" Chen Xi laughed as he continued drawing in rain clouds from other areas. He realized he was facing a formidable opponent, likely Zhou Yu, given the swift and skillful maneuvers.
Pang Tong's already unattractive face twisted even further as he realized someone was reversing the weather pattern he had set in motion, suppressing his efforts. "I'll sap your intelligence first!" he snarled.
A wave of spiritual energy washed over Chen Xi, but it had no effect. However, Chen Xi could clearly tell that this was some kind of negative spiritual talent.
"Only one debuff landed!" Pang Tong's face contorted with frustration. Instead of weakening Chen Xi's mind, all he felt was a slight physical boost. "How could he resist my spiritual talent? This is impossible!"
Whether possible or not, Chen Xi took advantage of the time Pang Tong spent struggling to gather a massive storm cloud overhead. He was confident that this downpour would flood Lujiang City, turning it into a swamp.
"Turn into a flood!" Chen Xi laughed, clapping his hands. With a rumble of thunder, the dark clouds merged into an ominous black mass. Before Pang Tong or Zhou Yu could react, it was as if the heavens had opened, and a torrential downpour poured down.
Gan Ning's eyes widened in disbelief as he witnessed the scene. With his sharp vision, he could clearly see that the rain had nearly formed a solid sheet. At this rate, the flood would be catastrophic within minutes.
"Damn it!" Pang Tong ignored the downpour, pushing his spiritual power to its limits to tear a massive hole in the storm clouds.
But Chen Xi quickly countered, using what felt like immense force to gradually close the gap. As the hole sealed shut, another thunderclap shook the sky.
Pang Tong knew things were going south as soon as the clouds closed. He tried to retreat, but he was too late. The thunderclap reverberated through his head, making him dizzy and causing blood to rise in his throat. He collapsed into the mud.
"Shiyuan!" Sun Ce arrived just in time to catch Pang Tong, shielding them both from the rain with his internal energy. "Are you okay?" he asked, concerned.
"I'm fine. Tell Gongjin that the enemy's spiritual power is terrifying. They're a pair—one scholar, one warrior. As unbelievable as it sounds, the scholar is likely Chen Zichuan!" Pang Tong forced a bitter smile. "If I had known his spiritual power was this overwhelming, I never would have tried to compete with him. He might even be capable of casting pure spiritual spells. Bofu, you'd better stay away from him."
"Good to know you're okay. Now watch me avenge you!" Sun Ce dried Pang Tong's clothes with a wave of his hand before lifting him and sprinting towards Zhou Yu's formation, where the internal energy was rising.
"I've already crippled Zhou Yu. Let's see how he deals with this. Even if he dodged quickly, that blast should leave him reeling for a while," Chen Xi laughed. "Looks like Lujiang has fallen, and we're late to the party. But from the looks of it, Sun Ce's forces only just took the city. Let's speed up and catch them off guard!"
"Yes!" Gan Ning roared, filled with confidence. "Since Lujiang has fallen, there's nothing left to say. We'll take revenge for the Lu family."
Gan Ning took a deep breath, channeling his internal energy. With his sharp vision, he could see that the area ahead had turned into a swamp. Fighting in such conditions would be a nightmare, so the best strategy was to concentrate his forces' internal energy around him, replacing brute force with precision.
"I'll join in too!" Seeing the flow of energy centered on Gan Ning, Chen Xi knew what was happening and quickly linked his spiritual power with the internal energy, making the flow faster and smoother.