Town in the Mountains

The atmosphere in the room suddenly changed.

Luo You'er, still holding a crab that she had just picked up, couldn't decide whether she should continue eating or put it back down. Very awkward.

"Are you… crazy?" Luo Qingqing finally broke the silence. It wasn't just a talk… he planned to put it into action! But the question was, how exactly would it benefit him?

Was he conspiring against the Luo Family? Probably not. The Luo Family was never obliged to evacuate everyone. No one could blame them if there were casualties. In fact, it would only unite the other candidates with the Luo Family. On the other hand, Xia Fan would be in a much worse situation. If the candidates knew that he was the one who blocked the way out, he might even be beaten to death!

It would be fine if he hadn't said it. But now he had exposed himself, turning him into the common enemy of all the candidates.

"Don't worry, I know what I'm doing," Xia Fan said in a calm tone. "Too many choices will only distract us from a concerted effort. To make all the candidates face the Night of Great Desolation directly, this is the most effective way."

"You're over-simplifying things!" Luo Qingqing stomped her foot and said, "There's no way for all the candidates to unite together when we're not fighting for the same cause! We have spirit fire, so we will naturally fight, but what about those candidates who don't have spirit fire? Why should they listen to you!"

"Because I can make all of them pass the test."

"Even so, it's not enough to — wait, what did you just say?" Luo Qingqing thought she was hearing things.

"I said, I can make everyone who stays pass the test," he repeated. "Spirit fire originates from the dead, and it's also the dead that the Night of Great Desolation awakens. Whether it's a succubus or a fiend, it will bring back the dead around it. So, as long as you take out enough evil spirits, won't there be spirit fire all over the place? You can't achieve this if all you do is hide in the well tunnels and try to protect yourself."

That… works?

Luo Qingqing felt that her common sense was turned upside down. What's wrong with trying to protect yourself when facing the Night of Great Desolation? But this person sees it as an opportunity to produce more spirit fire!

Theoretically, his proposal was possible. Tens of thousands of skeletons stacked in a single place for over a hundred years. A huge amount of spirit fire could be produced. But this was only theoretically possible — if you couldn't even survive, what was the point of having spirit fires all over the place? Not to mention the fact that they wouldn't just have to survive, but also take down a large number of evil spirits head-on. He's mad.

"It seems that you know quite a bit about the Night of Great Desolation, then you should know why the well tunnels are the best!" Luo Qingqing refuted loudly. "You only need to guard the front and back entrances, so the ghosts and demons cannot overwhelm us by numbers. If we really can't hold it off anymore, we can always seal the entrances and wait for the rescue from the Privy Council the next day. But fending them off outside? You don't even know where they will come from. Once someone gets defeated, the whole group will lose its stance because everyone will be squeezing around, trying to back off but not being able to. In that sort of chaotic situation, do you think you can handle everything?"

Xia Fan couldn't help but think a little higher of her now. Being able to say something like that proved that she wasn't only knowledgeable but also rich in practical experience. She clearly knew how difficult it was to form an organized group that would fight in coordination and that fear and chaos were common for night battles.

"I can't, so we should try to avoid such a situation."

"And how can you do that?"

Xia Fan raised his index finger and said, "The purpose of the examination is ultimately to select qualified mystics. What the Privy Council wants to see is not a one-sided fiasco. Qing Shan Town isn't the same as the Tilting Mountain Formation a hundred years ago, so the Privy Council must have considered this before setting this place as the examination venue. In other words, if we know that the well tunnels below the town can be used to defend against the evil spirits, then we can tell how powerful they will be."

Luo Qingqing thought over his words a few times before she understood what he meant. She really couldn't understand why he spoke in such a weird and rigid manner. But at the same time, she also realized that he probably had it thoroughly thought out.

So, she asked, "And then what?"

Xia Fan held up a second finger. "So, we only need to find other places that can possibly function as a better defensive line. As far as I know, besides the narrow terrain of the well tunnels, forts with high walls are also effective in defending against evil spirits. Furthermore, it can accommodate far more people than the well tunnels, and there's no need to worry about accidents of suffocation or the tunnel collapsing. By gathering everyone in the forts, we might even have an advantage in numbers. This will greatly reduce the risk of a cascading defeat."

"But there's no fort…" Luo Qingqing suddenly stopped in the middle of her sentence. She could see from Xia Fan's eyes that he wasn't joking.

"If there isn't, we'll build one," Xia Fan said word by word.

…

The next morning, all the candidates once again gathered at the small square in front of the inn.

The news of last night's fire on the flying platform and the wooden kite had spread throughout the crowd, and many people had been up almost all night. If the Luo Family hadn't come forward to calm everyone down by saying that they had a plan B, a lot of the candidates would have left the group in search of their own way to leave the town.

After all, it was already the sixth day of the examination. If they didn't go, they would probably be trapped here. By midnight of the seventh day, all they could do would be pray.

Because of this, the atmosphere was quite depressing. Everyone was waiting patiently for the Luo Family to announce the backup plan. As for the examination, most of them had already given up and cast their hopes to the examination three years later.

However, surprisingly, the one standing at the long table was neither Luo Qingqing nor Luo Fengqing, but an unfamiliar young man.

"Who is this guy?"

"Not wearing blue robes. He's not a member of the Luo Family."

"I remember this guy… Isn't he the asshole who ran away in front of Fei Nian?"

"Hey, what are you doing up there!"

Only Wei Wushuang's mouth opened wide in surprise. He recognized the person on the stage. He was none other than his fellow countryman from Feng Hua County, Xia Fan! Why was Xia Fan standing there?

Seeing that the crowd was getting agitated, Xia Fan took a deep breath and pulled out a Wind Type Wind Evoking Talisman — of course, he preferred to call it the Loudspeaker Talisman.

Luo Qingqing handed it to him a few minutes ago.

"There are six of them in total, and the effect will gradually diminish after they are released, so make it as short as possible and save your breath." She had briefed him.

"There's no need for me to say it, you already know my entire plan." He had protested.

"What, stage fright? What if your plan fails? Luo Family's reputation is at stake! And… you proposed it, so you tell everyone."

The conversation was still ringing in his head.

Was it really just about reputation? This gathering was still organized by the Luo Family, so if the plan really failed, they would still be blamed. Perhaps… she simply didn't want to take all the credit for the idea. It was especially so because they were in the context of an exam.

It seemed like he owed her a favor.

Xia Fan smiled helplessly and threw the talisman into the air.

The Loudspeaker Talisman quickly turned into a gust of clear wind and blasted out.

"Everyone, listen up!" His voice boomed over the town like thunder. "This exam is far from over! The Night of Great Desolation is indeed terrifying, but that's for the unprepared! As long as we all abandon our grudges and unite as one, not only will you all be able to survive the last night of this exam, but you will also be able to pass the exam!

"You heard it right, all those who stay will pass this exam and thus become a mystic!"

The crowd exploded.

"What did you say!?"

Xia Fan didn't explain immediately. He waited until the crowd had calmed down before flinging a second Loudspeaker Talisman. "In fact, getting everyone to pass is not impossible. All it takes is to take advantage of the Night of Great Desolation." He then recounted the details of his plan. "We need a fortress to defend against the evil spirits, and when the night passes, spirit fire will be scattered all around the town!"

"A fortress? What are you babbling about?"

"It sounds reasonable, but where's the fortress?!"

There was a wave of disapproval.

"Of course there is, it's right next to you and me!" Xia Fan overwhelmed everyone's voice in a firm tone. "That's right. I'm talking about the inn and teahouse where you have been living for days, as well as the surrounding brick houses!

"The tic-tac-toe arrangement is a natural defensive layout, and two-stories high is enough to defend against succubi's attack! But the walls are not perfect, so we need to work together to enhance them!

"We have two days to rebuild it — either with spells or with your hands! We will tear down the houses beyond the circumference, blockade all the passages that lead into the circumference by connecting all the buildings in the center of the town with walls and turning this place into an impregnable fortress!"

Wei Wushuang was dumbfounded.

Building a fortress in Qing Shan Town in one day and a half? At first thought, it seemed like nonsense. But after looking around, he felt that there was a possibility. The houses in the center of the tic-tac-toe layout weren't only strong but also close to each other. And it wouldn't be difficult to seal up the roads between them. Once the roof was removed and planks were laid, these brick houses would form a natural fortress. They could walk on top, and the enemies would be kept at bay.

"That's not all!" Xia Fan used another Loudspeaker Talisman and continued, "If we want to resist the Night of Great Desolation head-on, everyone will have to contribute! We need to pool our herbs and supply them to those who are good at casting spells. We need to arrange for backup to replace the candidates injured in the battle. And we even need a hunting team that will gather enough food from Qing Mountain to last us two days!

"From this moment onward, all of you will no longer be competitors. You will be teammates working with one another! Together, we're invincible!"