Time ticked by second by second.
Ye Cangtian's figure had already ventured deep behind the Light Hall's encampment.
The probability of being discovered was extremely high since he had to pass through the Light Hall's encampment for reconnaissance, which was why Ye Cangtian chose to come personally.
After all, his mental power was exceptionally strong, and in the deep mountains and old forests, no one could capture his presence.
"Hmm?"
Not long after passing through the Light Hall's encampment, Ye Cangtian stopped.
A small platform appeared before him.
The platform was made of stone and wood, standing about four to five meters high, covering an area of nearly a hundred square meters. It was unremarkable.
The platform was divided into three tiers, shaped like a trapezoid, with the area decreasing with each tier.
It had four sides, each with a staircase.
At first glance, it resembled an ancient altar for sky sacrifices, just much smaller.
What is this?
Ye Cangtian observed for a long time, growing puzzled.
He was quite familiar with the area around the entrance, and judging by the surrounding traces, such a platform had been recently constructed.
This implied that it was likely the work of the Light Hall.
But why would the Light Hall build such a platform?
More importantly, since such a platform was erected, why was it unguarded?
Was it simply because it was behind the Light Hall's encampment, and they weren't worried about being discovered?
Carrying his questions, Ye Cangtian inspected the platform.
The seemingly ordinary platform gave Ye Cangtian a different feeling.
Firstly, the stones used in its construction did not belong to this place. They were extremely hard, definitely rare ores that were seldom seen.
Secondly, the timber was also not from this area. It was dark red and emitted a faint scent of blood.
It appeared that the timber had been soaked in the blood of some wild beast.
Overall, the platform exuded a sinister aura.
After a moment of silence, Ye Cangtian finally dismantled the platform and collected all the broken materials.
Firstly, the Light Hall would not act without purpose, so this platform must be useful, and thus it had to be dismantled.
Secondly, he was concerned that the Light Hall might recycle these broken materials, so he took all of them away.
After completing all this, Ye Cangtian continued to scout the surroundings.
He found another similar platform several kilometers away.
This time, Ye Cangtian was even more certain that these platforms were tools for the Light Hall to achieve some objective.
Therefore, Ye Cangtian decided to go all out and continued to dismantle them in the same manner.
After toiling all night until dawn, Ye Cangtian finally returned to the camp.
As soon as he entered the commander's tent, Ye Cangtian saw Qiangwei, Lanyue, and others gathered together, seemingly studying something.
Upon closer inspection, a piece of stone and timber were placed on the table, their material identical to what he had obtained from dismantling the platforms.
"Junior brother, you're back?"
"Come quickly and take a look, what are these materials, and what are their uses?"
Seeing Ye Cangtian approach, Lanyue quickly made way for him and said.
Ye Cangtian's gaze turned to Lanyue, asking, "You also discovered platforms built with these materials?"
Lanyue nodded, "Yes, the three of us have found a total of four locations."
Lanyue was not foolish. Since Ye Cangtian had mentioned the word "platform," she immediately understood that Ye Cangtian's responsible area must also have such platforms.
Hearing this, Ye Cangtian's expression turned somewhat grim, and he then said, "Do you remember the general locations? Mark them all."
Upon hearing his words, Lanyue, Jian Wusheng, and Qiangwei did not hesitate. They walked to the map and marked the coordinates of the platforms in their respective areas.
Then, the three looked at Ye Cangtian.
Feeling their gazes, Ye Cangtian slowly walked forward and also marked the platforms in his area.
"Is there any connection between these platforms?" Lanyue inquired.
"There should be."
Jian Wusheng nodded. Although he couldn't discern any connection, it was obvious that these platforms were all constructed around the entrance to the Huaxia ruins.
"We'll know if we connect them," Ye Cangtian's voice came at this moment.
The others looked over, and Ye Cangtian had already connected all the points, forming a pattern that was close to a regular hexagon.
Seeing this, Ye Cangtian showed a faint smile, then reached out again and connected all the points.
Instantly, a hexagram appeared before everyone.
"This..."
No one was unfamiliar with the hexagram.
Not only in Western civilization but also in Eastern civilization, hexagrams were frequently used in formations.
Therefore, everyone was almost certain that this was definitely a grand formation set up by the Light Hall, and once activated, it would be sufficient to influence the balance of victory.
"Fortunately, they were all destroyed!"
After a long while, Lanyue came back to her senses and was the first to speak.
The others nodded in agreement.
They shared the same thought as Ye Cangtian: since they were not built by their own people, they must have been established by the Light Hall.
As long as they were built by the Light Hall, they should be destroyed directly, regardless of the reason.
"Very good."
Ye Cangtian showed a faint smile and continued, "Since their backup plan has been severed, all we need to do next is to drive away those foreign guests."
His meaning was simple: as long as these foreign guests were dealt with, the Light Hall in the capital would have no further reliance, and Anqiluo would naturally retreat.
As for the subsequent battle, it would be very simple.
All the experts from the Hidden Group would be mobilized and act as vanguards, first eliminating the Light Hall's eyes and ears, followed by the main army advancing, thereby directly encircling the Light Hall's forces stationed here.
No one had any objections to Ye Cangtian's proposal and agreed with a nod.
To maintain the secrecy of their operation, Ye Cangtian and the others decided to rest during the day and launch their action when night fell.
...
Within the Light Hall's encampment.
In the commander's tent sat a middle-aged man. Before him sat two rows of cardinal bishops, each exuding a formidable killing intent, clearly not ordinary individuals.
Although these individuals did not belong to the three great knight orders of the Light Hall's inner sanctum, their combat power was absolutely no less than that of the elites from the three great knight orders.
They were all survivors who had been baptized by life and death.
The middle-aged man sitting before them was a newly recruited expert in the Light Hall's inner sanctum within the Light Ruins, and also the youngest enshrined official, Babylon.
At this moment, Babylon's expression was somewhat grim.
As someone who had just joined the inner sanctum, and immediately attained the rank of enshrined official, he was naturally eager to earn merit.
After all, the Light Hall's inner sanctum was a place where the strong preyed on the weak. As a newcomer, without some merit to his name, he could hardly move forward.
Therefore, Babylon was extremely eager for battle, as it was his opportunity to achieve glory through combat.
However, he had originally agreed with Anqiluo, and today was the final deadline, yet Anqiluo had not sent any news, which truly distressed him.
After all, he needed to know the outcome of Anqiluo's negotiations with the Dragon Group before he could take action.
Otherwise, if he were to initiate a battle on his side, and Anqiluo had reached an agreement with the Hidden Group, it would be a superfluous move and spoil the Light Hall's plans.
"Damn it, can someone tell me what the hell is going on!"
"Why is there no news from the capital? Could it be that Anqiluo was killed!"
Finally, after waiting in苦 waiting, Babylon could not stand it any longer and roared at the cardinal bishops before him.
"My lord, please remain calm! This is still within the Huaxia realm, and we must be cautious in all matters. It is understandable for Lord Anqiluo's message to be delayed!"
"Yes, my lord. You have had little contact with the Chinese. You may not know that the Chinese are like stones in a latrine, stinking and hard! So it's not that simple to make them compromise..."
As soon as Babylon's voice fell, the cardinal bishops before him began to offer their counsel.
They were also trying to understand the conduct and temperament of this condescending enshrined official.
This would lay the foundation for future competition for various interests.
Before they could finish, Babylon let out a cold snort.
"Damn it, no wonder the Light Hall has never been able to destroy the Dark Association and the Huaxia forces. It's all because of useless people like you!"
"When something happens, you only know how to wait but not how to find solutions. You are all just eating and waiting to die..."