Atlas of Heaven and Man.

Chapter 1402 The Lonely Night Shines Bright

On the side of the old imperial family, a disc embedded in the top wall of the airship suddenly emitted a faint light.

Yuan Congye and the others all glanced up, their expressions showing no surprise.

The items on this are among the relics they brought with them, and one of their purposes is to shield them from the prying eyes of other relics.

Now that this thing is lit up, it means it has started to work.

At this moment, they could all sense that something seemed to have been taken away from them.

Each Dongxuan Temple possesses an extremely high level of existence, making them highly sensitive to any changes in themselves. In this situation, it's likely that some information about them has already been collected by the relics on the other side.

But that's alright, they can all tell that these are just things that are superficial at most.

While some aspects of Yizhen's teachings may seem unreasonable, it's important to consider the level of the target. If both sides are of similar standing, then certain rules still need to be followed.

For example, some relics can restrict and harm fighters, but they cannot kill them in one fell swoop.

Most exploration-type relics cannot be obtained all at once, but rather through a gradual process.

The first things that are explored by the relics are usually information that is widely known and easy to collect. However, when it comes to deeper or unique memories, it is not so easy.

At this moment, as their own relics took effect, they felt that although the rate at which the surface information was flowing out had not slowed down, it had clearly been distorted into something they themselves did not understand.

Therefore, everyone remained calm. In such a short time, it was impossible for the other party to have discovered much.

Most importantly, once the relic above their heads is triggered, it will not only cause interference, but will also turn against the enemy and even weaken the enemy's cognition.

On Chen Chuan's side, he quickly transmitted the information he had just received to Jiang Linghuai and Mu Xiaoren through the boundary token.

However, after accepting the information, the two immediately discovered that it was fading from their memories at a relatively fast pace.

Moreover, as this information disappeared, the situation did not end; some of their own memories also faded away.

Although this process is very slow and only completely unimportant things are forgotten, this degree may deepen over time.

So they quickly reported the situation to Chen Chuan.

Upon receiving the message, Chen Chuan immediately deduced that the interference device left behind by the other side was likely the one that was causing the problem.

He, on the other hand, was not greatly affected, probably because his information access was not interrupted, so it could be said that the two sides canceled each other out.

That doesn't matter. He can use the boundary token and his spiritual power to send the information to the two of them again and again. As long as he doesn't forget these things, it's the same as Jiang and Mu not forgetting them. At the same time, it can also prevent the loss of their own memories.

So he immediately used his mental powers to transmit the information he had obtained back to the two of them.

It can be said that the two sides had already clashed through the lost items even before they had made formal contact.

This also shows that the old imperial family was very well prepared, and had probably considered all sorts of scenarios. Although the old imperial family was called a remnant, it was actually a powerful nation, and certainly had considerable experience in teamwork.

Before the enemy arrived, he sent a message to Hong Ancheng and Zhu Kongqi, instructing them to be on alert for any potential enemy arrivals.

He saw two martial artists from the Longevity Sect in the message. These two were unlikely to participate in their battle, so they would most likely launch a surprise attack from the rear later.

Because of the difference in numbers, he might not be able to go back and deal with it, so he would have to leave it to Hong and Zhu.

After receiving the message, the two acknowledged it and said they would definitely hold their position.

Chen Chuan said, "There is no need. If the enemy is too powerful, or if a stronger opponent appears, I will allow you to retreat."

The most important battlefield is here. If they win, they'll have to give back any territory they've occupied later, but if they lose their men, then they're truly finished. That's why he ordered most of the troops to retreat as soon as he became commander-in-chief.

The two said they understood.

After ending the call, Chen Chuan quickly contacted Wen Mingzhong: "Mr. Wen, do you have any further questions?"

Wen Mingzhong said, "No problem, I've made all the necessary arrangements. But, Manager Chen," he said in a more serious tone, adding, "this anomaly is something we brought from headquarters. It's very vicious, so please be careful later."

Chen Chuan said, "I understand."

He then glanced ahead, confirmed the other party's location again through Chaoming's gaze, and then used the Lower Realm Token to report a preset coordinate calculated by the wind and sand to the train artillery group behind him.

After doing all that, he took a couple of steps, came to a box, grabbed the buckle and pulled it, and the box panels immediately split open, revealing the implant inside.

He released the Snow Lord Blade, letting it float to the side, and walked into the cracked back of the implant.

As he entered, the implant quickly enveloped him. The implant's built-in active consciousness possessed a vast database, enabling him to analyze complex situations and formulate strategies—providing powerful assistance and, crucially, an extra layer of protection.

Although this layer of protection is dispensable to him now, even a piece of paper has its purpose.

After the implant fully closed, the golden curtain above the helmet lowered, and the armor plates on the body opened up as if breathing, fitting seamlessly onto the body surface.

He reached out and took the Snow Lord Blade back into his hand.

Another whistling sound came from the sky.

Chen Chuan turned around and looked outside. In just a short while, the outline of the airship fleet had appeared in the distant sky.

The other side made no attempt to hide anything; the strings of lanterns around the hull were lit one by one, outlining the massive hull in mid-air.

In the darkness of the melting pot, those things that were originally writhing in the deep shadows slowly retreated under the illumination of these crimson lights.

At that moment, bursts of intense light suddenly erupted in front of the airship. Following the light came sharp whistles and muffled explosions, and then clouds of green mist appeared in the air, almost covering half of the sky.

That was the train cannon firing from behind, but it wasn't using ordinary shells. Instead of high-powered explosives, it was loaded with mutated microorganisms developed by the Da Shun Technology Department.

These things are used to deal with the active species in the fusion zone. They can parasitize and rapidly decompose the active structures in the target's body, weakening or even dismantling their regenerative ability and resistance from the inside.

These things quickly took effect; the dragons and multi-winged fish circling the airship began to sway from side to side after passing through the mist, and then fell from the sky like rain.

At the same time, the airship's speed also slowed down.

Chen Chuan's figure slowly floated up, until he reached the same height as the airship, and a trace of white-gold light emanated from his body, illuminating all directions.

As you can see, the spiritual fire covers the body like a viscous stream, appearing very stable.

Jiang and Mu also floated up and drifted far to the left and right of Chen Chuan.

As Jiang Linghuai gazed at Chen Chuanqian's figure facing the airship fleet, he felt a surge of intense emotion welling up in his chest, though he didn't know why.

Mu Xiaoren got into the zone very quickly. In this kind of battle, he naturally saw himself as a pawn on the battlefield, someone he could fill in whenever needed.

At that moment, as the three watched, the large cloud of mist suddenly surged and then parted to the sides.

On the airship at the very front, a figure about two meters tall appeared on the bow terrace.

The man was not wearing a mask and looked to be around thirty years old. He had a heroic appearance and a sharp, intimidating aura between his brows.

He was clad in a heavy armor of black dragons, wearing a dragon horn crown, shoulder guards with beast-swallowing cloud patterns, a brocade dragon-patterned red cloud robe over his upper body, a dark purple belt with jade entwined around his waist, the long belt fluttering in the wind, a long sword hanging from his left hip, and a phoenix-shaped spear with a red tassel in his hand. He looked majestic and extraordinary.

Behind him, a large black and red banner swayed in the air, bearing the four characters "General of the Cavalry".

Without a doubt, this man was General Yuan Congye.

Behind him, on other airships, one after another, the old imperial army generals in full armor emerged from behind the clouds, banners were raised, and at the same time, the thunderous sound of war drums rang out.

Yuan Congye's gaze immediately fell on Chen Chuan. He had originally intended to say a few words to persuade him to surrender, but after seeing Chen Chuan's deep and calm eyes, he immediately gave up the idea.

He grabbed the Imperial Spear from the side and, instead of riding his own mount, stepped through the air. Amidst the gazes of those on both sides and the rumbling of drums, he rode a cloud of black light across the sky, swiftly heading towards Chen Chuan.

Upon reaching him, he thrust his spear shaft forward at Chen Chuan with a whooshing sound as his black armor clattered. In that instant, he transformed into a streak of black light shooting swiftly forward.

Chen Chuan raised the unsheathed Snow Lord Blade in his hand and held it horizontally in front of him. The white-gold flames on his body gradually intensified, as if a great sun was shining in the sky.

The next moment, the two figures collided instantly. A bright light flashed in the sky, and Yuan Congye was sent flying like a meteor, disappearing into the distance in an instant.

No one noticed what had just happened; it was as if that period of time had suddenly disappeared, followed by the rumbling explosion.

Chen Chuan remained suspended in the air without taking a single step back, his hands still in the forward slashing motion.

He wasn't just starting out when he first entered Dongxuan Temple. Over the past few months, he had been getting stronger every day. And with his foundation already in place, even the slightest improvement was a huge step forward. Now, his transformation was almost complete, hence his exaggerated performance.

However, when he hit Yuan Congye, it was clear that he did not cause much damage to him. It is still unclear whether this was due to the lost object or the effect of a strange force.

At the same time, he also discovered that a force was hindering him, causing him to freeze in place and unable to launch a follow-up attack.

……

……

(End of this chapter)