His body was trembling slightly, a mixture of anger, heartache, and inexplicable rage. Things had likely escalated far beyond his expectations.
Qin Chuan was also worried that the opponent would attack again; another attack would surely break the formation, forcing him to leave immediately.
It was too much trouble, and he didn't want to move. Seeing the old man's expression, he felt relieved.
The opponent certainly wouldn't attack a third time, which was good. If they couldn't destroy it with three attacks in a short time, the formation would recover after a day.
Then, breaking it again would require three more attacks.
"Elder Xu, what's wrong?" Bei Chuyang asked, puzzled.
"I've exhausted myself; I can't break the formation anytime soon," Elder Xu said, trying to remain calm.
Bei Chuyang was taken aback, looking at Elder Xu. He seemed a little tired, but not quite, since it had only been a short while and he didn't appear to be overexerted…
"Elder Xu, please help me, otherwise all our previous efforts will be wasted. You yourself said that it needs to be broken in a short time, otherwise, once it recovers, breaking the formation will be even more difficult." Bei Chuyang accepted the task. How could he do it without breaking the formation?
Elder Xu felt a pang of pain upon hearing that his efforts had been wasted, a pain greater than anyone else's, but he couldn't express his bitterness. But this wasn't the end of it.
"Elder Xu, can this formation be broken?" Bei Chuyang asked.
At this moment, Bei Chuyang's tone was still very polite, but Elder Xu could already sense the unease.
Over the years, although Elder Xu had a great reputation, he hadn't made any significant contributions to the Bei Chu family. He
had always been treated well, with the best food and drink, and this was the result of trying to break the formation.
This was going to ruin his reputation, because he had hardly done anything for the Bei Chu family before, and his legend only existed outside the family, before he came to the Bei Chu family.
A person's reputation is like a tree's shadow; his fame is immense, and his abilities are undeniable. However, this time he was incredibly unlucky to have encountered Qin Chuan.
The Bei Chu family rarely has problems, so they rarely need Elder Xu. This was practically the first time Elder Xu had acted on behalf of the Bei Chu family. And
this first time turned out like this, inevitably making people doubt Elder Xu's abilities, at least making the Bei Chu family doubt his. What they want is results. No matter how eloquently you speak, what's the use if they don't use you when they need you…
This matter is no small thing for the Bei Chu family; otherwise, they wouldn't have needed Elder Xu's help. His intervention shows how much the Bei Chu family values this matter.
He can't do what the other party values.
Or he could say it's too difficult, even someone else couldn't break it, but that's nonsense. He's eyeing the title of the First Array Master. It's not shameful for others not to break it,
since he can't even break it himself, he can't even be the first, so it's not shameful for him to be defeated.
But he would lose face, because he was the top array master here. If he couldn't break it, he would definitely lose his title.
That was a minor matter; the main concern was what would happen afterward, and the Bei Chu family would definitely blame him. "
They treat you like an honored guest, but when they need you, you can't even handle this little thing? What use are you? "
Old Xu trembled, his expression changing repeatedly.
Old Xu wanted to say tactfully that he couldn't break it, but he knew that even tact wouldn't work, and Bei Chu Yang seemed to have seen through him.
"Old Xu, just tell me if you can break it or not?"
Before, he used the formal "you," but now he directly said "you," because Bei Chu Yang already knew the outcome and was just suppressing his anger.
Bei Chu Yang knew that Old Xu had enjoyed too much from the Bei Chu family—resources, and so on. It could be said that Old Xu's entire family was supported by the Bei Chu family.
"This old man is incompetent; I cannot break it!" Old Xu slowly said.
Bei Chu Yang's face was very ugly. He had noticed Old Xu's hesitation earlier; sometimes it's like that—it's better to say no directly than to try and hide it.
At first, Old Xu tried to be evasive, even saying the losses were too great. Finally, when asked to directly answer whether the formation could be broken, the answer was no.
He was furious, deeply furious, feeling betrayed.
He had accepted the mission, but if the formation couldn't be broken, how could he kill Qin Chuan, how could he kill Palace Master Wu?
If he went back like this, he would be looked down upon. Even if others came, they couldn't stop the ridicule.
What if someone else came and completed the mission? Wouldn't that make him look incompetent? So the more he thought about it
, the angrier he became. "Useless trash! What do my Bei Chu family need you for?" Bei Chuyang couldn't help but say
, looking at Old Xu. Old Xu almost spat out a mouthful of blood. Bei Chuyang had never dared to speak to him like that before. Even the head of the Bei Chu family wouldn't speak to him like that.
Everyone addressed him as Old Xu.
He had never heard such harsh words before, and now, to be spoken to like that by a junior like Bei Chuyang, he was so angry he wanted to explode.
But he held back, his body trembling, unable to utter a single word, his face turning purple.
*Pfft!*
A mouthful of blood spurted out!
Seeing Elder Xu cough up blood, Bei Chuyang felt a sense of relief and calm. This meant Elder Xu truly had no way to break the formation.
He had actually worried that Elder Xu might have other methods to break the formation, which would mean he would have to apologize and even be punished by the family head.
But now that Elder Xu had coughed up blood, at least he wouldn't be punished for this. Looking at Elder Xu's pale face, he seemed to have aged considerably in an instant.
Bei Chuyang didn't look at Elder Xu again, but instead headed towards the formation. He wanted to test its power; if his brute force could break it, that would be even better.
Bang!
Bei Chuyang struck hard, but there was no reaction. The formation remained unmoved, and he was instead sent flying backward by the force.
A look of helplessness appeared on his face.
"Let's go back!" Bei Chuyang called out, heading straight back. He had no mood for further arguments, much less for provoking Qin Chuan and Palace Master Wu.
He knew that since the other side dared to treat the Bei Chu family this way, they must have something to rely on, and that reliance was very likely this formation.
Old Xu also returned home in a daze.
When he got back, he found many people waiting for them, eager for news. They were all happy to see them return.
"It was resolved so quickly."
This question wasn't surprising, since they considered the matter a quick affair, something that could be easily resolved anywhere.
It was just a trip,
so they hadn't thought much of it.
However, some people noticed that Bei Chuyang and Elder Xu looked off, especially the patriarch, who frowned and waved his hand to quiet everyone down.
"Patriarch, I failed the mission," Bei Chuyang said, his head bowed.