"Hmm? Old Witch, what’s going on?"
The other old men stepped forward, their eyes filled with shock. The fifty City Lords also changed their expressions.
"Senior, what’s the situation?"
The fifty City Lords panicked a little. With such a massive formation, if they couldn’t find Ye Xuan’s whereabouts, it would be an utter humiliation!
The Old Witch with Foot-Scratching Habits didn’t speak immediately. He glanced at the others and said, "Help me."
"Alright!"
As soon as he spoke, the Elders simultaneously began to chant and dance on the altar. The momentum that had just dissipated coalesced once more, thicker than ever before.
The Old Witch bit his finger again. This time, the fresh blood sank directly into the goat’s head. Both sides of the goat’s head turned blood-red as it looked toward the west again. However, it was trembling. It seemed it still couldn’t pinpoint the exact location.
"Asuhu fulunu..."
The old men rapidly chanted a Spell, their words tumbling out faster and faster. The goat’s head began to tremble violently, and the entire altar seemed to shake.
This stalemate lasted for a long time until a muffled BOOM echoed through the air. The goat’s head exploded. The old men simultaneously took a step back, and the previously gathered momentum dissipated in an instant.
"This... what’s going on?"
"Did they manage to calculate Ye Xuan’s whereabouts or not?"
"Seniors, how is it?"
The old men remained silent, exchanging glances with one another. After a long while, the Old Witch with Foot-Scratching Habits finally spoke.
"That Ye Xuan has an expert helping him! If nothing else, someone has set up a Grand Array capable of deceiving the heavens, which is why we can’t find his exact location. This kind of interference is like a compass needle being affected by an invisible magnetic field, rendering it unable to discern direction. However, we are certain that he is in the west!"
"Seniors, the west is vast, and we’ve already searched it without success. Is there any other way to find his exact location?"
The Old Witch with Foot-Scratching Habits suddenly sighed. "We underestimated that boy. His hiding place is far from ordinary! Let me ask you, does this Ye Xuan have an expert assisting him? Or rather, is there anyone from the Celestial Secret Pavilion helping him?"
Everyone was astonished by his words.
"What? Ye Xuan has someone from the Celestial Secret Pavilion helping him?"
"Right, that’s highly likely! Otherwise, why wouldn’t the Celestial Secret Pavilion make a move against Ye Xuan?"
"This senior’s words have truly awakened us from our stupor!"
The fifty City Lords, however, furrowed their brows.
"The Celestial Secret Pavilion? Seniors, why bring them up?"
The old man explained, "Under the heavens, only the Celestial Secret Pavilion could possibly achieve such a level of heaven-deceiving concealment."
"But there’s absolutely no evidence of that. Besides, it’s completely impossible for the Celestial Secret Pavilion to help Ye Xuan!"
"Is that so? Well, regardless of whether it’s someone from the Celestial Secret Pavilion or not, if he thinks this is enough to stop me, he is gravely mistaken. Since our Celestial Calculation Mansion has decided to reveal itself to the world, we are by no means living up to a false reputation."
"Seniors, do you still have a way?"
"Naturally! Since his hiding place has a bizarre Grand Array that can deceive the heavens, why should I bother calculating where he is now? I will use the Celestial Calculation Technique to deduce where Ye Xuan will appear next."
"You can even calculate that?"
"Naturally!"
The old men stopped their chanting and dancing. Sitting cross-legged on the ground, each of them took out three Copper Coins. They placed the Copper Coins into various beast skulls, such as the ox and goat heads. With one hand shaking the skulls, they used the other to perform finger calculations and deductions.
This calculation lasted straight into the next day. They calculated every kind of hexagram and deduced every possibility!
Just when everyone was growing impatient and beginning to suspect that these old men were nothing but charlatans, the Old Witch with Foot-Scratching Habits stood up. A smile graced his lips as he announced arrogantly, "City Lords, three days from now, at the Ice Mountain three thousand miles to the north, you will claim Ye Xuan’s head."
"Ice Mountain?"
"Yes, he will undoubtedly go there!"
"But... what would he go there for?"
Three thousand miles to the north lay a plateau with an altitude of five to six thousand meters. There stood a Big Mountain that was frozen year-round. However, aside from the ice and the extreme cold, there was nothing special about this Big Mountain.
"What? You don’t believe us? If our calculations are wrong, we will prove our sincerity with our lives!" the Old Witch stated coldly.
The fifty Sub-City Lords exchanged looks. After a long while, City Lord Hurricane spoke up.
"Senior, it’s not that we don’t believe you. Sigh, I’ll just be blunt. Even if Ye Xuan is truly heading to the Ice Mountain, you’ve announced it in front of so many of us. If Ye Xuan finds out we’re going to surround him, will he still go?"
City Lord Hurricane’s words made the surrounding onlookers nod repeatedly. In this world, no idiot would knowingly walk into an ambush just to throw their life away, right?
The Old Witch, however, replied with absolute confidence, "The terrifying aspect of the Celestial Calculation Technique is that even if you know there is a tiger in the mountain, you will still be compelled to walk into that tiger’s den. What we predict is an unalterable future! In other words, as long as the Celestial Calculation Technique’s calculation is accurate, it will definitely happen!"
The Old Witch’s voice was sonorous and forceful.
"Alright! Since you’ve put it that way, we will go prepare at once."
The fifty City Lords departed one after another. The old men, leaning on their canes, also left the high platform. After they left, the crowd broke into loud discussions.
"Is it... is it really that mystical? Will Ye Xuan actually go to the Ice Mountain? They can even calculate that?"
"I think it’s impossible. Even if Ye Xuan really intended to go to the Ice Mountain, unless he’s deaf and hasn’t heard this news, why would he still go?"
"Yeah, he absolutely shouldn’t go. If he does, fifty City Lords will be waiting for him there. Wouldn’t that be a dead end?"
"Let’s spread this news quickly. We must make sure Ye Xuan knows!"
"Right, spread the news quickly. We have to let Ye Xuan know that fifty City Lords are already waiting for him at the Ice Mountain."
The crowd rapidly dispersed. Among them, Man Tian was also using the Character Divination Method to calculate Ye Xuan’s fate. After a good while, he muttered, "This Celestial Calculation Technique really does have some profound workings to it."
...
Chasing Moon City.
The City Lord’s Mansion.
Taishu Shen came to find Liu Yan again. During this period, he had been staying at the Liu Family’s home, but he did not share a room with Liu Yan.
"Oh, Ruoxi is here too."
"Taishu Shen, let me clarify first. It’s not that I want to interrupt you two; my sister asked me to keep her company."
Taishu Shen gave a faint smile. "I understand Yan’Er’s feelings. There’s no need to explain."
"By the way, Taishu Shen, did you hear?"
"Hear what? Are you talking about the people from the Celestial Calculation Talisman calculating that Ye Xuan is heading to the Ice Mountain?"
"Yeah, the news has already spread. But is there something wrong with those old men’s heads? Even if they figured it out, couldn’t they have just quietly told the City Lords? Why must they be so blatant about it? What if Ye Xuan doesn’t show up?"
Taishu Shen chuckled. "Do you want Ye Xuan to go or not?"
"Of course I want him to go! Because I also plan to be there."
"You want the City Lords to spare his life temporarily so you can kill him yourself? Do you really have such a deep hatred for this Ye Xuan?"
Taishu Shen had always felt that Liu Ruoxi’s hatred for Ye Xuan was somewhat baffling.
"I swore an oath that I must kill him."
"Alright, we’re idle anyway. I’ll use the Qingtian Crane to take you both there; we can treat it as a relaxing outing. Yan’Er, you have no objections, right?"
Liu Yan said in a gentle voice, "Let’s go. I also want to see what kind of end awaits Ye Xuan."
As she spoke, Liu Yan looked up at the sky and asked silently in her heart, "Ye Xuan, will you really go?
"This time, will you die?"