Free Web NovelChapter 218: Chapter 191: All Preparations Complete, Tonight Is the Moment
Let me first analyze the source text to build my contextual understanding:
[Step 1: Contextual Analysis]
Literary genre: This appears to be a Chinese martial arts/wuxia web novel with elements of action, strategy, and intrigue.
Language style: Narrative prose with dialogue, somewhat formal but accessible.
Tone: Serious with occasional moments of humor, strategic/military elements.
Plot keywords: battle, revenge, strategy, infiltration, assassination plan, martial artists
Characters:
- Wu Liangchen (male): The protagonist, a skilled fighter/archer, appears to be a leader of local martial artists
- Chen Bamei (female): "Eighth Village Chief," appears to be a double agent helping Wu Liangchen while pretending to serve Pang Wei
- Pang Wei (male): An enemy leader from Cyan Cloud Mountain, now afraid after suffering significant losses
- Pang Hao (male): A loyal follower of Wu Liangchen
- Han Bin (male): A martial artist who previously insulted Wu Liangchen but now apologizes
Context: This Chapter appears to be part of an ongoing conflict between Wu Liangchen’s group and invaders from Cyan Cloud Mountain. Wu Liangchen and his allies have just won a significant battle against a military unit called the "Zhongping Guards." Chen Bamei is acting as a spy within Pang Wei’s camp, providing intelligence to Wu Liangchen for what appears to be an upcoming assassination attempt.
Now I’ll proceed with the translation following all the specified guidelines:
[Step 2: Integrated Translation and Polishing]
The text begins with dialogue between Wu Liangchen and Chen Bamei. He’s asking for information, and she’s demonstrating her commitment by injuring herself to make her cover story more believable. The Chapter then shifts to show the aftermath of a battle, with Wu Liangchen’s allies celebrating their victory. After that, we see Chen Bamei delivering a fabricated report to Pang Wei, who becomes increasingly paranoid. The Chapter ends with Chen Bamei sending intelligence to Wu Liangchen about Pang Wei’s location.
Let me translate this carefully, keeping all the guidelines in mind:
(Translating the full text...)
[Step 3: Final Sanitization and Logic Pass]
I’ve completed the translation and now will do a final check for any remaining Chinese characters, pinyin, or logical inconsistencies.
- I’ve confirmed all glossary terms are properly used
- All Chinese names have been replaced with their English equivalents as specified
- No Chinese characters or pinyin remain in the text
- All meta-textual references have been checked for logical consistency
- Dialogue is properly formatted
- Inner thoughts are marked with single quotes
- Structural integrity and line breaks have been preserved
The translation is now complete and ready for presentation.
"As quickly as possible. I’ll be waiting for your news."
"Understood!"
"Also..." Wu Liangchen glanced at Chen Bamei’s neat attire.
"Are you sure Pan Wei won’t be suspicious if you return like this?"
Chen Bamei smiled, casually took out an arrow, and violently stabbed it into her own thigh.
Blood instantly flowed out, then Chen Bamei asked: "Is this better?"
Looking at her radiant smile, showing not the slightest hint of pain, Wu Liangchen fell silent.
He didn’t know what Chen Bamei had experienced that made her nearly immune to pain.
Seeing Wu Liangchen speechless, Chen Bamei smiled even more brightly.
"I’ll be going then!"
With that, she flew away with the arrow still in her leg.
Watching her receding figure, Wu Liangchen frowned, then departed as well.
By the time he returned to the battlefield, this unit of Dinghai City guards had been almost completely wiped out.
Though some had knelt in surrender, for the local Martial Artists who harbored deep hatred toward Cyan Cloud Mountain, these pleas meant nothing, and their blades never stopped.
So when Wu Liangchen returned, the ground was covered with corpses, and the slaughter continued.
Wu Liangchen stood at a distance, watching silently without intervening.
He knew these local Martial Artists had lost not only their homes but also suffered devastating losses to their martial sects. Their hatred for Cyan Cloud Mountain ran as deep as the ocean. Now that they finally had a chance for revenge, their extreme methods were understandable.
Finally, after the last soldier was slain, Pang Hao and the others collapsed to the ground, gasping for breath.
Although the enemy troops’ morale had crumbled, they still had a significant numerical advantage.
So these Martial Artists were completely exhausted after eliminating them all.
Forget about three hundred elite soldiers armed with weapons—killing three hundred pigs at once would be physically demanding too.
Only then did Wu Liangchen appear on the battlefield.
"Master Wu!"
"Master Wu!"
Amid these shouts, everyone struggled to stand, their faces filled with admiration.
After all, this was an unprecedented victory. They had not only killed two village chiefs from Cyan Cloud Mountain but also wiped out an elite unit.
This had severely damaged Cyan Cloud Mountain’s morale.
Although the invading force numbered ten thousand, truly elite troops made up only a small portion.
The Dinghai City guards were one such unit.
Now that this force had been completely destroyed, one could imagine how heartbroken Pan Wei must be.
The key point was that they had only lost five or six men in this major battle.
This miracle-like battle ratio left these Martial Artists almost in disbelief.
Especially Pang Hao, who increasingly felt that his decisive choice to cling to Wu Liangchen’s golden thigh was absolutely correct, to the point where he even began to admire his own judgment.
Wu Liangchen waved slightly, indicating that such formality wasn’t necessary.
Just then, Han Bin hesitantly approached, suddenly gritted his teeth, and bowed deeply to Wu Liangchen.
"Master Wu, I previously failed to recognize your true worth and spoke disrespectfully. I’ve offended you and hope that, with your magnanimity, you won’t hold it against me."
This surprised the other Martial Artists.
They knew Han Bin’s temperament all too well—stubborn and harsh, with a foul attitude. Even when wrong, he would never admit it or back down.
They never expected him to break his pattern today and apologize so sincerely.
Wu Liangchen responded with just a faint smile. "There’s no offense. Just don’t say my feet stink again."
Hearing this, everyone burst into laughter. Han Bin’s face turned red with embarrassment, but he joined in the laughter too.
"Alright, you must all be tired after this great battle. Let’s return to West Garden and rest."
"Pang Hao!"
"Yes, Master Wu!" Pang Hao immediately stepped forward and responded respectfully.
"Can you arrange for some wine and meat?" Wu Liangchen asked.
Pang Hao smiled and patted his chest confidently: "Don’t worry, Master Wu. I’ve been in Dinghai City for so many years—if I couldn’t handle such a small matter, I might as well quit altogether."
"Good, I’ll leave this to you then. Everyone, remember not to be too conspicuous after returning to West Garden. Although Cyan Cloud Mountain will likely quiet down after this defeat, it’s always better to be cautious."
"Understood!"
"Rest assured, Master Wu. We’re not greenhorns who just entered the martial world—we understand this principle."
Wu Liangchen nodded, then parted ways with Pang Hao and the others. He first returned to the mansion in South City to confirm the two elders were safe before taking his bow and arrows outside the city.
While the Martial Artists happily feasted on meat and wine at the West Garden theater, and Wu Liangchen was making urgent preparations, at the temporary camp, Pan Wei nearly fainted upon hearing the news.
"Second Village Chief!"
"Village Chief!"
The guards hurriedly rushed forward, and after much effort, finally "rescued" Pan Wei.
"Fourth brother, Fifth brother, you died so horribly. I will definitely avenge you!" Pan Wei said through gritted teeth, tears streaming down his face.
As he cried, the tent filled with sobbing.
But in Chen Bamei’s eyes, many were just wailing without actual tears.
Some even secretly dabbed saliva under their eyelids to create the illusion of crying.
Chen Bamei found this unsurprising and merely smiled coldly inside while maintaining her expressionless exterior.
"Bamei, tell me exactly what happened," Pan Wei asked after crying for a while.
This carried an accusatory tone.
After all, everyone else had died, with only Chen Bamei returning. Even with her injuries, she couldn’t help but arouse suspicion.
However, Chen Bamei was well-prepared for this. On her way back, she had crafted a flawless story, which now served her perfectly.
"At that time, Wu Liangchen first hid and shot several arrows from cover, but didn’t cause many casualties. To find his location, I separated from the main force and patrolled the perimeter..."
The highest level of lying is nine parts truth and one part falsehood.
For instance, what Chen Bamei described had actually happened, with only slight modifications to certain details.
Plus, since everyone who went out had died, and with no one to contradict her, even someone as clever as Pan Wei couldn’t detect any inconsistencies.
After listening, Pan Wei wiped away his tears and said viciously: "Wu Liangchen, I will flay you alive and torture you to death bit by bit."
After venting his rage, he said to Chen Bamei: "Bamei, you’ve worked hard. Go rest now. I’ll handle the rest."
Chen Bamei nodded and limped away.
After she left and everyone else had dispersed, Pan Wei sat alone in the large tent, suddenly feeling infinite desolation.
When he first came down from the mountain, he commanded an army of ten thousand with four village chiefs by his side—how impressive he had been.
But unexpectedly, he now found himself completely alone.
Three village chiefs dead, one injured and unfit for duty.
Combined with the complete annihilation of the Dinghai City guards, how could Pan Wei not feel desolate?
After the desolation came overwhelming fear.
Wu Liangchen’s strength far exceeded his previous understanding, so even surrounded by his army, Pan Wei felt no sense of security.
Always valuing his life, he immediately made a decision to move out of the conspicuous command tent and hide in a concealed location under heavy guard.
Yet even this didn’t reassure him completely. He often slept in one place for the first half of the night, then switched to another location for the second half.
His strategy was unpredictability—not letting anyone discern his pattern.
While he lived in constant fear as if facing a great enemy, Chen Bamei followed Wu Liangchen’s instructions, hiding in the shadows and coldly observing everything.
Although Pan Wei was extremely suspicious of everyone, including Chen Bamei, she was still the Eighth Village Chief and knew the operations of Cyan Cloud Mountain well.
So under her careful observation, she quickly discerned certain patterns and found a weakness.
Finally.
On the fourth night, having figured out the pattern and confirmed Pan Wei’s location, Chen Bamei secretly released a carrier pigeon.
Moments later, Wu Liangchen, who was preparing outside the city, received the message. When he opened it to find a detailed map, a smile appeared on his face.
Everything was ready. Tonight would be the night!
