The Elven Cultivator

Inside an inconspicuous gray tent in North Wind Camp.

Anton sat cross-legged on one side of a low table, his expression calm.

Across from him sat Scott and Summers.

Summers's gaze occasionally swept over Anton's face, a flicker of unconcealable doubt in his eyes.

The Canglan before him felt somehow different than before.

But he couldn't quite put his finger on what had changed.

His appearance and clothes were the same, yet there was an indescribable feeling, as if he had undergone some kind of fundamental transformation from the inside out.

He was like a dusty gemstone that had been carefully polished, faintly exuding a sense of clarity.

"What is it?"

Anton raised an eyebrow, having noticed Summers's stare.

"Nothing," Summers said, shaking his head. "I just think you've been looking much better recently."

Anton glanced at him, understanding immediately.

'After continuously overcoming multiple Heart Demon tribulations, my Dao heart has been repeatedly tempered and polished. It's now clear and complete, so my disposition has naturally undergone a subtle change.'

The three elders and Romance saw him every few days, so the change wasn't as obvious to them.

But Summers might not even see him once a year. Seeing him so suddenly, he would naturally notice the difference.

Anton had no intention of explaining further. He skipped the topic and got straight to the point. "You asked for me today. What's the matter?"

At the mention of official business, Summers's expression turned serious. He said in a low voice, "Are you aware that the various Dragon Cities turn over resources to the Dragon Court every year?"

Anton nodded.

Of course he knew.

One of the main purposes of the Dragon Court establishing Dragon Cities across the continent was to gather all sorts of rare resources, which were then centrally transported to the Dragon Court to fuel its development.

It was equivalent to plundering resources from colonies to support itself.

Every year, the Dragon Cities would dispatch a handpicked team to transport a vast amount of rare resources out of the Eldron Plain. They would rendezvous at a designated location before a unified escort team delivered the goods to the Dragon Court.

However, the specific departure time and route were always core secrets of Kresol Dragon City, unknown to outsiders.

A thought suddenly struck Anton. He raised an eyebrow and asked, "Don't tell me the higher-ups got intel on Kresol Dragon City's transport convoy?"

"That's right." Summers nodded, his expression nuanced. "The transport is in half a month. As for the route..."

He took out a map, spread it on the low table, and then slowly traced a winding, dotted line with his finger.

"The convoy will depart from the north side of Kresol Dragon City, pass through Green Valley, Morning Star Town, and Graystone Pass, and finally leave the Eldron Plain via the northern line of the Dragon's Tooth Defensive Line."

Anton stared at the clear route, his expression turning odd. "This detailed?"

Summers understood what he meant and gave a bitter smile. "We find it strange, too. The intel was too easy to obtain. We suspect this is very likely a bait deliberately released by Kresol Dragon City to lure us in."

Anton nodded in understanding.

That was indeed a high probability.

Although he wasn't directly involved in the Fallen Dragon Association's intelligence work, he could figure out with his eyes closed that an intelligence network operating in the Eldron Plain for only a few decades was simply incapable of accurately grasping the convoy's departure time and route.

Let alone knowing half a month in advance.

If the Fallen Dragon Association truly had that capability, they wouldn't have waited until today to get intel on the transport convoy.

It was just too abnormal—so abnormal that anyone could see the problem at a glance.

It was more likely that Kresol Dragon City had no intention of hiding it from the Fallen Dragon Association in the first place.

This was a completely open conspiracy.

The bait had been cast; it was just a matter of whether they were willing to bite.

From this, one could also see just how cornered Kresol Dragon City had become.

Over the years, they had been repeatedly humiliated by the Fallen Dragon Association and Canglan. Their prestige had suffered greatly, and they had long been itching for revenge.

But Canglan's whereabouts were erratic. He was elusive, and to this day, no one had figured out his hiding place.

The Fallen Dragon Association's strongholds were scattered and hidden, and Dragon City's several attempts to wipe them out had yielded little result. They could never find a suitable opportunity to strike.

Left with no other choice, they had to set up such a scheme.

They were using the convoy of rare resources as bait to lure the Fallen Dragon Association.

"Could the resources be fake?" Anton asked.

"No." Summers shook his head, his tone firm. "If the resources were fake, we'd easily see through the deception. If this really is a trap, Dragon City must be completely confident they can devour our forces. There's no need for them to resort to deceit."

Anton nodded and continued to ask, "What do the higher-ups say? Are they planning to make a move?"

"The higher-ups are very keen on acting," Scott took over. "These are resources that Kresol Dragon City is transporting over a long distance as tribute for the Dragon Court. They must be rare and incredibly valuable. If we could seize this shipment, we could, one, deal a heavy blow to Kresol Dragon City's prestige, and two, significantly replenish our branch's resource reserves. It would kill two birds with one stone!"

"But the risk is also plain to see."

Scott's expression was grave.

"Like Summers just said, Dragon City wouldn't just hand us such a huge gift for free. Since they dared to set such a trap, they must have prepared sufficient armed forces. They must be certain they can take us down, just waiting for us to dive right in."

Although Scott didn't say it explicitly, everyone knew that Kresol Dragon City would certainly not mobilize a large army for this kind of operation. They could only use a small number of elites for the ambush.

And considering that the Fallen Dragon Association had a combatant on Canglan's level, ordinary elites wouldn't be nearly enough.

To ensure complete success, Dragon City would have to deploy its Archons.

And there would certainly be more than one.

"We've been keeping an eye on the four Archons stationed at the Dragon's Tooth Defensive Line, as well as the one in Bishui Port," Summers said grimly. "Kresol Dragon City is surely worried about us using a 'lure the tiger from the mountain' strategy, so those five probably won't move."

"Besides them, Kresol Dragon City will definitely need to keep two or three Archons to hold the city. So, they can dispatch four to five Archons at most this time."

'Four to five Golden Peaks...'

A glint flashed in Anton's eyes.

This was without a doubt a massive force.

It was probably the largest gathering of Golden Peaks in the history of the Eldron Plain, enough to wipe out all of the Fallen Dragon Association's current forces there.

No wonder Kresol Dragon City dared to set this trap.

They were acting with impunity, full of confidence.

But the more this was the case, the less likely the Fallen Dragon Association was to take the bait.

They weren't fools, after all.

Sure enough, Summers continued, "Including you, our Fallen Dragon Association only has three Golden Peak combatants. Half a month is too short to transfer people from other branches. If it's just you and Lord First Torch, attacking the convoy would be suicide."

"We have no choice but to give up on this bait."

Anton nodded calmly, not at all surprised that the higher-ups had made this decision.

Even when Kresol Dragon City set this trap, they probably didn't have high hopes that the Fallen Dragon Association would actually take the bait.

They were just taking a shot in the dark.

If the Fallen Dragon Association took the bait, that would be for the best; they could wipe them out in one fell swoop.

If not, they could just treat it as a normal transport operation. They wouldn't lose anything either way.

"Since you don't plan to act, why did you ask for me?" Anton asked.

Summers cleared his throat, finally getting to the real topic. "The higher-ups plan to launch a large-scale assault on the southern line of the Dragon's Tooth Defensive Line on the day the convoy departs, destroying all the military outposts there in one fell swoop."

Anton thought for a moment and quickly understood.

'On the day the convoy departs, Kresol Dragon City's attention will definitely be focused on the north. If the Fallen Dragon Association uses this opportunity to attack the military outposts on the southern line in the opposite direction, the Archons responsible for the ambush definitely won't be able to return as reinforcements in time. The chances of success are quite high.'

"But are you so sure Kresol Dragon City hasn't thought of that?" Anton asked with a faint smile. "What if they've already guarded against this move and made preparations in advance?"

Summers spread his hands. "The probability of success is still higher than attacking the transport convoy."

Anton smiled slightly and said no more.

'Kresol Dragon City guesses the Fallen Dragon Association's plan and, in turn, sets up an ambush on the southern line in advance... That's also a possibility. But if you keep thinking like that, you fall into an infinite loop of 'I predict they'll have an ambush here—they predict that I'll predict they'll have an ambush here—I predict that they'll predict that I'll predict they'll have an ambush here...' This kind of cycle repeats endlessly. The more you think, the more everything looks like a trap, and you end up being indecisive and missing your opportunity.'

Everything has risks.

As long as there's a reasonable chance of success, you should act decisively.

If you hesitate, looking ahead and behind, you'll never accomplish anything.

"This operation is of great importance. The higher-ups intend to use all our forces. Lord First Torch and another Torchbearer will both take action." Summers's gaze burned as he looked at Anton. "The higher-ups hope that you will also participate in this operation. They sent me to ask your opinion."

Anton pondered for a moment, then, under the expectant gazes of Scott and Summers, he slowly shook his head.

"Sorry, I refuse."

Scott and Summers were stunned. They had never expected Canglan to refuse.

"Why?"

Thinking that Canglan was worried about the risk, Summers quickly explained.

"There's only one Archon stationed on the southern line. Once it's attacked, only the Archons from the eastern and western lines will be able to arrive as reinforcements in time."

"As for Kresol Dragon City, they can send one Archon at most."

"In other words, we'll be facing four Archons at most, simultaneously. The enemy's strength won't be that much greater than ours."

"Besides, our goal isn't to kill the Archons, but to tie them down and give the people below enough time to destroy the military outposts. Once the mission is complete, we'll retreat immediately. Four Archons won't be able to stop you."

Anton waited patiently for him to finish before saying calmly, "I'm not worried about the risk of the operation."

Now Summers was truly baffled. "Then you..."

Anton pointed at the map on the table. "I'm just more inclined to attack the transport convoy than the southern line of the Dragon's Tooth Defensive Line."

As soon as he said this, the tent fell completely silent.

Scott and Summers both froze, their faces filled with astonishment.

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