For the River God, it made sense to deal with the most troublesome State Preceptor last. It had also apparently observed that this small group of people looked to Lu Ming for leadership, and to capture the thief, one must first capture the leader—so killing him was the priority.

Her strike was successful, and she aimed her other Star Heaven Cone at the opponent’s throat.

But something even stranger happened: before her cone’s tip could touch the target, the person vanished.

Not fleeing, but instantly disappearing into thin air.

Only the severed arm along with its weapon fell onto the ice surface with a “ding.”

Feng Miaojun was stunned.

Was the one who had attempted to ambush Lu Ming also an illusion? How could an illusion kill someone? Why would the River God go to such trouble?

Then, the green mist suddenly dispersed, and everything around them became clear.

This was still the empty expanse of the river surface. Where was the Jiao dragon? Where was the crocodile demon? Looking around, there was nothing.

The cultivators who had rushed out earlier quickly returned, all saying the same thing:

The opponents they were fighting had suddenly disappeared.

Almost all the demons had vanished simultaneously without a trace.

So, had the River God’s illusion array been broken? With so many powerful beings gathered here, who had destroyed the critical array eye to break the formation?

And if everyone’s opponents were illusions, where had the River God gone?

Suddenly, a “hmm” came from behind Lu Ming. A cultivator pointed at the ice surface below: “That severed half-arm is gone.”

Everyone looked down, and indeed it was true. The hand that Feng Miaojun had chopped off from the person attacking Lu Ming had disappeared along with the person—wasn’t that perfectly normal?

Yun Ya, however, walked over upon hearing this, lifted his robe, and crouched down to examine the spot.

The ice surface was still crystal clear, appearing undamaged. He reached out to touch it and felt a fine crack.

It was very thin, only as thick as a hair. In this cold, the crack would likely close up again in a dozen breaths, and then nothing would be visible.

He suddenly smiled: “Playing tricks.”

Feng Miaojun watched as he stood up straight and removed his cloak, handing it to her: “Hold this.”

She was greatly surprised but didn’t hesitate to take it: “Are you going into the water?” Now?

He drew his long sword and drove it straight into the ice along the crack. With pale red elemental power activated, the hard ice layer gave way like soft tofu as he cut out a circular shape.

Yun Ya stomped down hard, pushing the ice block downward to reveal the slowly flowing river water beneath.

Now Feng Miaojun could finally see how thick the ice was:

More than a zhang (over three meters).

This far exceeded the natural thickness of river ice and was the result of forcefully using elemental power to solidify it. Even if a Molong giant beast walked on it, it wouldn’t cause the ice to crack. It was unrealistic for aquatic creatures below to break through three meters of solid ice to ambush humans.

Overall, except for the River God, all other problems had been solved.

Yun Ya turned to Lu Ming and instructed: “Inform His Majesty that the River God’s threat has been eliminated. The army can advance.”

Military matters couldn’t be delayed. Upon receiving the order, Lu Ming quickly departed.

Yun Ya stepped forward and leaped into the river water below the ice layer through the circular hole.

In an instant, he was gone.

The Wei army, cautiously observing from the shore, finally received the signal.

The Wei King laughed loudly and waved his hand: “Advance! Target: Ji Yuan City!”

The iron-armored troops could now cross the icy river, with a clear path ahead. The natural barrier that Ji Yuan City relied on for survival no longer existed.

The massive army marched onto the frozen river, heading toward the opposite shore.

This time, the river ice had solidified exceptionally thick. Whether heavily armored cavalry, siege engines, or logistical supplies, all moved smoothly across the ice without breaking the surface.

In the blink of an eye, they passed by Feng Miaojun.

She watched this army emanating a murderous aura, her feelings complex and difficult to articulate. Now, they were going to capture another territory and ignite war in the innocent city ahead, and she had become one of them.

She had always been decisive and planned her actions, but now she felt somewhat lost:

Should she continue to follow Yun Ya?

Staying by his side would certainly gain her cultivation guidance and resources that others could only dream of, but it would also lead her into one slaughterhouse after another, witnessing fertile land transformed into hell on earth.

As long as the Wei King’s ambition lived, the war would not end.

Could she remain a cold observer, or would she become increasingly callous and unfeeling amid the blood and fire, just like Yun Ya and others who contended for power in this era?

The army advanced rapidly, soon leaving her behind.

Feng Miaojun stared at their advancing formation, lost in thought.

Until Lu Ming came up behind her and sincerely said: “Thank you, Miss An’an, for saving my life.”

Feng Miaojun came back to her senses and smiled politely.

“Please come back to camp with me to rest. The upcoming siege doesn’t concern us.” The siege was left to the frontline soldiers while setting up camp was the logistics team’s responsibility. As the State Preceptor’s attendants, they only needed to wait for Yun Ya’s return.

Feng Miaojun sighed, taking one last look at the distant city before carrying Yun Ya’s cloak and following Lu Ming back.

Lu Ming was much warmer toward her, his life-saver. Seeing her gloomy expression and thinking she was worried about Yun Ya, he smiled: “Are you concerned about the State Preceptor? There’s no need. Though he appears frail, he’s capable of reaching up to pluck the moon from the ninth heaven or diving down to capture turtles in the five oceans.”

Feng Miaojun also smiled, revealing teeth like arranged shells: “Does His Majesty know this?”

Lu Ming’s expression became serious: “That’s none of our concern. Just don’t mention it to outsiders.”

She understood. Lu Ming continued: “The State Preceptor holds a transcendent position in the army. Following him, you don’t need to obey orders from others.”

Feng Miaojun tilted her head: “Not even the prince’s orders?”

“No need,” Lu Ming said, his tone carrying a hint of cultivator’s arrogance. “If you were to obey others obsequiously, the State Preceptor would dislike it.”

Recalling Yun Ya’s demeanor, she deeply agreed.

Yun Ya’s dive underwater lasted two full hours.

Feng Miaojun didn’t believe a River God could harm him, so when Yun Ya returned, he found her leaning against his high-backed chair reading a book, with a cup of ice yogurt beside her, eating while reading, looking quite comfortable.

The army certainly didn’t provide such luxurious desserts. This ice yogurt was something she had purchased when passing through a large city and had kept in the food cellar of her spatial bottle. It had strong flavors of milk and almond. To her, this was like softened ice cream. She had added some extras, placing two candied strawberries on top, making it deliciously sweet in her mouth.

Yun Ya’s face darkened immediately.

While he was out in the cold fighting the River God, this infuriating girl was comfortably hiding here eating and enjoying herself, not worried about his safety at all.

He stopped in his tracks and snorted heavily.

Feng Miaojun looked up and saw the storm almost gathering above his head. She quickly jumped away from the chair and ran over with a smile: “You’re back, sir! I’ve prepared some hot milk. Shall I bring you a bowl?”