Chapter 303: Art of War, Lure the Snake Out

In addition to Pei Shao, Zhong Qingshu had also followed the intelligence team around, seemingly a pointless addition to the team.

However, the fact that she was speaking up now meant that she had obviously discovered something that the intelligence team did not.

Judging from prior experience, Zhong Qingshu already had a definite guess and hypothesis regarding the situation.

With a faint smile of joy, Su Mo’s mind quickly went to work as soon as he heard they might have gone down the wrong path, trying to figure out the meaning behind Zhong Qingshu’s words.

The disaster was near.

If this twenty-thousand strong army of foreign race creatures were not located soon, and carried out a surprise attack on the basin a day before the ocean disaster…

By then, Su Mo’s main concern would no longer be about fighting a tough battle, but rather about how much trouble it would cause if the conditions required for Hope One to set sail were destroyed.

“Our initial judgment was wrong…”

“But which part of the initial judgment was wrong?”

“The number? Motive? Or the purpose?”

While pondering this sentence and looking at the chaotic yet complicated directions and topography on the map, Su Mo kept thinking about what went wrong.

The preliminary assumption on their numbers came from Clark.

The number “twenty thousand” also came from his lips. As for the other supporting evidence, only the fearlessness and disregard of other foreign races on the World Channel toward Su Mo hinted toward its truth.

But were there really twenty thousand of them?

Or did it mean that there would soon be twenty thousand?

“Do you mean that they might have already finished concealing themselves, but their numbers are still far from reaching this amount?”

Suddenly, Su Mo recalled the situation where the lion clan once defeated the kobolds in a battle and had afterward summoned a portal at their shelter. From this, he seemed to have grasped a hint of the truth surrounding the situation.

If they had not concealed themselves perfectly, Cursed Tiger’s Clark surely would have not arbitrarily said twenty thousand.

The other foreign races would not have received the news as openly either.

After all, if this assault could not take Su Mo down, it would be a heavy blow to the morale of the foreign races.

“There are still some possibilities…”

“…firstly, the army successfully concealed themselves underground in a location that cannot be detected by regular means, but unlike humans, they have the means to survive without having to eat or drink…”

“…secondly, they’ve accumulated tons of rewards from battles between races and, when the time to attack comes, they’ll open up the portal to summon their clan members and attack aggressively…”

“…thirdly, they will only gather and attack after the ocean emerges and are unable to mount the attack before this happens…”

“…among these three, the third one has the lowest probability when compared to the first two. Unfortunately, we don’t possess sufficient intelligence or the means to observe them…”

“…but since we’re already at this juncture, do you think that this question still holds any significance?”

After she finished talking, Zhong Qingshu loosened her grip, closed her notebook, and left Su Mo some time to think.

“Of course it’s significant. Twenty thousand isn’t a small number!”

“If we don’t figure out their strategy and location fast, it will be too late once they arrive undetected and directly summon twenty thousand foreign race creatures in our territory.”

Pei Shao on the side reacted and spoke out urgently even before Su Mo had the chance to respond.

From what Zhong Qingshu said, if their numbers, their hideout, and even their strategy were meaningless…

Then what else could be meaningful?

If they waited foolishly in the basin for the enemy to attack, when the time to battle actually arrived, they would then naturally know their opponent’s strategies and methods.

However, since things would have already reached the stage of close quarters combat at that point, what was the point of knowing how the opponent concealed themselves?

What was the use of establishing an intelligence department?

If that was the case, it would be better to disband it and strengthen the manpower of the combat organization instead and fight head-on.

Seeing how Su Mo did not stop the conversation nor continue it, Zhong Qingshu smiled slightly at the “anxious” look on Pei Shao’s face, but did not say a word.

Being the intelligent person she was and, having been in contact with Su Mo for a long time, she had a certain understanding of Su Mo’s method of problem-solving.

Besides, she was certain that Pei Shao had missed the point.

For someone who possessed greater knowledge about the secrets of the wasteland and the exchanges between the foreign races, Su Mo could definitely think of a way forward. All he needed was little guidance to expand his perspective.

“If the numbers are pointless…”

“Then we’re only left with the motive and purpose…”

“What’s their motive? What’s their purpose?”

Su Mo began thinking more deeply as he pulled the map over, examining the topography markings and the several entrances or exits indicated on the map.

“Their motives are very clear. I have great influence among humans, and they know that I may have the ability to change the battle’s outcome…”

“Therefore, in the plan drawn up by the Five Royal Clans, I most likely am an important factor. If they do not restrict my actions or movements, and I enter their planned battle, it’s very likely that the battle’s outcome will have too many variables.. This motive of theirs is pretty clear…”

“…beyond this motive, what’s their purpose? What is the task that the Five Royal Clans assigned to them?”

The development of modern weaponry, be it fighter jets, naval warships or even land-based forces, placed a large emphasis on a particular element.

Invisibility!

Invisibility here did not mean disappearance, but rather the ability to avoid the detection of one’s enemies.

In modern warfare, being invisible to the enemy basically meant that one would have a ninety-nine percent chance of victory.

However, there was no such convenient technology during ancient times.

Before the scout discovered the enemy’s movement, the most important measure of the strategist’s ability and leadership was…

Prediction!

Prediction did not mean making random guesses, but to figure out what was on the opposing strategist’s mind and their purpose.

Once the strategy of the enemy’s attack was successfully predicted, the team could prepare in advance, set a trap, and wait for the enemy to jump in obediently.

“If the mission given by the Five Royal Clans is me, it would be extremely difficult for them to attack in the early stages while everyone in Hope Village is around…”

“…even if they feel that their numbers are huge and that they would win this battle, they still have to consider whether I still possess the God-slaying missile that can bring them down with us…”

“…after all, they have their own goals too, and they’re not slaves to the Five Royal Clans. Who would be willing to die if they could live?”

By hypothesizing, the first thing that could be determined was that the foreign race’s purpose for the attack was not Hope Village, nor was it the Underground Shelter, but rather Su Mo himself who could affect the battle’s outcome in the wasteland!

“Well, since the target of the mission goal shouldn’t be to kill me, nor to cause grievous harm and damage to me,, it can only be…”

“To prevent me from going to the center of the battlefield?”

Seeing Su Mo grasp the point, Zhong Qingshu’s face immediately lit up with a smile and she quickly continued the conversation:

“Yes, their goal is very clear—it’s you. Their goal surely isn’t to kill others and survive…”

“Instead, their goal is to stop you…”

“…you being alive and operating the destroyer, or even bringing everyone in Hope Village to migrate, does not affect the foreign races’ plan…”

“…there’s no difference to them whether you’re dead or alive as long as you don’t go where they don’t want you to…”

“…even if you really do, just let them know that you won’t go, and I guarantee you that it won’t even be a problem for these foreign races in hiding to send you off…”

Currently, there were only three people in the village who knew of the foreign races’ plan—Su Mo, Zhong Qingshu, and Connie.

With Pei Shao present, Zhong Qingshu pointed to the north of the conference room, once again presented things vaguely, and did not fully clarify what she said.

From the very beginning, when the number “twenty thousand” was stated, everyone went down the wrong path because of their incorrect thinking…

Including the intelligence organization.

The foreign races were not machines, nor were they zombies who were unafraid of life and death and only wanted to eat people. They had an IQ and goals.

To the foreign races, there were at most 150 people. including Su Mo. in Hope Village.

Compared to the other shelters, even if the foreign races were fools, they would understand that the harvest and risk involved in this attack were not proportional.

Why would they assemble to attack Hope Village?

Just to take revenge on Su Mo?

To take revenge on Su Mo for killing Heavenly Dog Pseudo God?

From analyzing their motive and purpose, the possibility of them directly launching a surprise attack was a big “0”!

“Because there are battles between the foreign races that reward the winning races, they aren’t united…”

“…but when there’s a common cause, everyone can still gather together on the surface while hiding their evil schemes in their hearts!”

“However, what could the Five Royal clans offer in order to get them to listen and participate in this plan?”

“How much would it take to convince them to launch a suicide attack and let an army of twenty thousand die out there? Can the Five Royal Clans bear this?”

“The answer is no!”

Zhong Qingshu stretched out her hand, took the map, and folded it into several halves.

After folding it, the only thing visible on the map was the path to the outside world through the Great Canyon.

Their field of vision became much clearer this time.

“Faced with a situation where they are unaware of which direction their enemy plans to go, if they wanted to mobilize a team of twenty thousand to encircle your position and force you to proceed in their desired direction…”

“Forget the Five Royal Clans, even Zhuge Liang or Sima Yi wouldn’t have the ability to do that…”

“…this is why we made the wrong judgment from the very beginning. We’ve seriously misunderstood their purpose and the mission assigned by the Five Royal Clans…”

“What they wanted to do was never to eliminate us, but to stop us…”

“…from going through the Great Canyon exit route…”

Zhong Qingshu no longer spoke. She picked up a pen and drew a straight line from the Underground Shelter to the Great Canyon. She then passed the baton to Su Mo.

At this point, even though Pei Shao still looked confused at the side with his face expressing:

‘Who am I?’

‘Where am I?’

‘What are they doing?’

As the recipient of the information, Su Mo fully understood and comprehended what Zhong Qingshu wanted to express.

The foreign races would not attack.

They would not stop him as long as he did not take that route and used other routes to reach the battlefield.

In other words, they were like roadblocks. You did not need to understand where the roadblocks were now or how they would suddenly appear when you passed them.

You only needed to know that they were there.

“So, is the method for us to find this ambush team before the disaster also this simple?”

“I only need to drive Earth Tiger through the Great Canyon road and they will automatically emerge by themselves…”

“…right?”

Knowledge was power.

As long as there was sufficient intelligence information, it was easy to reach a conclusion given the advantages of combining modern military systems and the ancient art of war.

“Right!”

“However, I don’t recommend that you lure the snake out now, it’s too great of a risk…”

“…without the home-court advantage, it’s difficult for us to secure a clear victory in this battle…”

“…if you don’t want to witness sacrifices…”

Looking at Pei Shao on the side who still looked like he was dreaming, Zhong Qingshu’s gaze pierced through the porthole and looked toward Hope Village.

The meaning was self-evident.

This battle could be fought, but there was no need for it.

The gains were not proportional to the risk the foreign races would have to shoulder if they forcibly attacked the basin, but the same was also true for Su Mo if he wanted to attack the Great Canyon.

Every villager sacrificed was an unredeemable loss for Hope Village.

There was a high possibility that, even if the battle was won, the number of villagers who would survive…

…would even be half of the current population!

“No, no, no, you’ve got it all wrong. Who said I was going to bring the villagers along into the battlefield?”

“It’s not easy to lure the snake out, you know. Give me some time tomorrow, no, before the disaster strikes. Find me the specific location of this army of foreign races…”

“…not only will I walk through this canyon, but I’ll also even walk for all the foreign races and humans to witness!”

As his voice fell, he saw Zhong Qingshu’s expression was the same as Pei Shao’s. There was a look of confusion.

Su Mo laughed out loud, stood up, and announced the end of the meeting.

This was the stealing of heaven’s secrets. They really stole “heaven’s secrets” this time!