Chapter 46

Lixianghai, with his rich experience in commanding troops, had the more than three hundred soldiers who had been tempered by fierce battles, especially those who had occupied the stone slope and annihilated a significant number of enemy soldiers, their morale was boosted. After Lixianghai reasonably reorganized the battle formation, it became even more impregnable.

Chenhai, positioned at the front of the formation where the pressure was greatest, cooperated with Qian Wenyi and Yue Yi, charging into the gaps between the deer antlers and horse barriers.

With the remaining light from the bonfire, dozens of hidden soldiers leaped out from the shallow trenches, wielding various weapons, and surged forward. Chenhai swung his battle spear, sweeping left and right, splitting two hidden soldiers into pieces, the sharp spear blade cleaving through one man's face, blood splattering. But soon, more hidden soldiers swarmed up...

Chenhai did not use more complex martial arts techniques. Seeing countless rebels surging forward, he used basic spear techniques—stances, charging, thrusting, slashing, and sweeping—to charge through the enemy, blocking and killing all the enemy soldiers who approached him.

Unconsciously, Chenhai's soul and will once again connected with the puppet body hidden deep in the Blood Cloud Wasteland through the snake bracelet.

The puppet body's mind opened like a blood-red sky, the image of a Rakshasa demon with natural blood-red scales and two huge horns piercing the sky seemed to want to tear the blood-red sky apart. At this moment, Chenhai felt an indescribable pleasure of slaughter, making his blood boil.

Qian Wenyi, as a veteran who had survived many battles, also felt inexplicably excited, his chest filled with an uncontrollable surge of fighting spirit. He raised his large shield and smashed it into a man's head, then lifted his cold iron saber, and with a flash of cold light, split the man's head and kicked it away, blood gushing out like a hot spring.

Lixianghai, who had to oversee the entire battle, had not yet noticed the abnormality here.

Only Yue Yi, who was right next to Chenhai, directly felt the intense and overwhelming will of slaughter emanating from Chenhai's body.

Not only were Qian Wenyi and others unconsciously affected, but even he, with a firm Dao heart, felt an itching and heat at the center of his forehead, where the mind's sea would open, and a deep impulse surged in his heart, as if only a thorough slaughter could quell this uncontrollable impulse.

How could there be such a strange feeling?

Could it be that the fighting spirit in this young man's chest was so intense that it could directly affect others' moods?

Yue Yi, after reaching the late stage of the Spirit Opening Realm, mainly practiced comprehending and refining the true meaning of the sword. Only when he refined the true meaning of the sword into a secret form could he use it to open the mind's sea at the center of his forehead. At that point, he would have achieved great success in the Spirit Opening Realm and could step into the Enlightenment Realm.

Typically, only those who had stepped into the Enlightenment Realm and cultivated their consciousness to the point where it could resonate with the true meaning of the sword and the universe could directly and strongly influence others' moods.

Of course, there were also some people with extraordinary talents, whose soul and will were naturally extremely powerful. Could this young man, who had been expelled from the Yao clan and had a bad reputation in the Taowei Sect, be one of those with extraordinary talents?

Especially those whose soul and fighting spirit were naturally so intense that they could inspire others could be considered natural battlefield commanders.

What great crime could this young man have committed to make the Yao clan willing to expel such a talented descendant?

Yue Yi was puzzled, but this was not the time to ponder these matters.

Yue Yi, who had reached the peak of the Spirit Opening Realm, was just a step away from refining the true meaning of the sword into a form and opening the mind's sea. His immersion in martial arts was far beyond that of Chenhai, Qian Wenyi, and others. However, he was assigned to the left wing of the formation, and the pressure he faced was no less than that of Chenhai, especially when several skilled swordsmen and knights approached, he had to be cautious.

Chenhai did not know what Yue Yi, the protector of the deceased Lu Honglian, the direct descendant of the Lu clan, was thinking. He felt that all his soul and will were gradually merging with the image of the Rakshasa demon, and this feeling made the fighting spirit in his chest surge even more. At this moment, whether it was his five senses or the strength surging in his arms, they all improved significantly without even needing to mobilize the essence and energy within his body.

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After tearing through the line of hidden soldiers on the north side of the stone slope, Chenhai was already covered in blood, with more than ten new wounds on his body, and even his black-scaled armor was almost shattered, but fortunately, none of them were fatal.

Chenhai changed into a new set of black-scaled armor, holding a battle spear with countless notches, and still managed to follow the formation, advancing firmly towards the stone gorge to the north.

The hidden rebels also felt the determination of the more than three hundred soldiers to break through, and after paying a heavy price, they finally gave up blocking them head-on.

Although there were still large numbers of hidden rebels following and harassing them, Chenhai and his group had a precious elite cavalry that could charge through rugged and dangerous terrain.

When the hidden rebels approached, Lixianghai ordered Shen Kun and Zhou Jun to lead their troops to charge out, trampling and driving them away. Chenhai and the other soldiers did not have to worry about serious threats to their flanks, and the wounded would not be scattered by the hidden rebels...

The hidden rebels had mainly set up ambushes in the caves on both sides of the Huanglong Gorge, and to avoid being detected in advance, there were no additional deployments in the stone gorge. This made it relatively easier for Chenhai and his group to break through along the old road to the north.

From the Huanglong Gorge to the Chenqiao Fort, although there were still seven or eight forts along the way, the rebel leaders did not have enough time to arrange sufficient troops to guard these forts and block Chenhai and his group's return.

Two days later, the pursuers could not find an opportunity and finally gave up the pursuit, disappearing into the depths of the stone gorge.

Chenhai and his group, with 150 more wounded, had only about 200 people left who could still fight, and their armor was in tatters. At this point, they just wanted to get out of the Yulong Mountains and did not intend to complicate matters further, so they let the pursuers go.

Chenhai and his group took four days to get out of the Yulong Mountains; by then, the general of the Iron Stream Camp, Dong Pu, had already personally led reinforcements to the Chenqiao Fort...

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On the north bank of the Xihexi River, the black-scaled cavalry of Ma Yuqing spread out like a dark cloud, with over a hundred fierce spirit birds hovering in the high clouds, monitoring every blade of grass and tree for thousands of miles.

The more than three thousand black-scaled horses were all clad in horse armor, with only their blood-red eyes exposed. The riders on their backs were also completely covered in pitch-black gold-tempered armor, holding battle spears, as if they were one with the black-scaled horses, unbreakable.

Although Chenhai had not personally seen the elite troops of the Western River Great Protectorate, he was familiar with them from the stories of Shen Kun and Ge Tong.

The black-armored cavalry before him was personally led by Dong Liang's cousin, the general of the Iron Stream Camp, Dong Pu, who was also one of the few Dao Pill Realm experts in the Taowei Sect.

Whether it was Lixianghai sending a message or other inner disciples breaking through from other directions, Dong Pu should have learned of the惨败 in Huanglong Gorge within less than three days.

In less than three days, Dong Pu had gathered three thousand cavalry and crossed two thousand miles from Mengyi to Yulong, which demonstrated the excellence of the black-armored cavalry.

After three days and two thousand miles of galloping, the fierce soldiers on horseback still showed no signs of fatigue, each of them having at least the cultivation of the middle to late stage of the Mystic Realm.

Seeing the black-armored cavalry appear like a cliff of iron before the Chenqiao Fort, Chenhai and his group all breathed a sigh of relief.

After killing their way out of the Yulong Mountains, they had relied on their willpower to keep going. Now, seeing the reinforcements, many of them were so relieved that they could hardly stand, ready to collapse.

The cavalry on the opposite bank, however, looked at them with pity and disdain, as if they found it hard to imagine such a defeat.

Soon, a group of cavalry from the center of the formation galloped over. The young cavalry commander stopped his horse on the opposite bank, his thin face as hard as iron, his eyes piercing with a cold light. He scanned the ragged and defeated soldiers, his gaze finally landing on Lixianghai and the others, and he shouted loudly:

"Men, take these defeated soldiers and bring them to the Chenqiao Fort for detention!"

Shen Kun, Ge Tong, and the others were startled. They had just barely fought their way out of the Yulong Mountains and seen the reinforcements, and now they were to be treated like prisoners. Who could bear such a series of blows?

"Zhu Shinan, what do you mean?" Jie Wenzhuo, unable to bear the humiliation, shouted at the young cavalry commander on the opposite bank.

"I am acting on the orders of the General of the Protectorate, capturing you defeated soldiers. Jie Wenzhuo, if you have any objections, you can raise them with the General of the Protectorate if you get the chance in the future," the young cavalry commander said coldly.

Seeing that it was the General of the Protectorate, Dong Pu, who had given the order, Jie Wenzhuo grumbled a few words but did not dare to be more disrespectful.

The young cavalry commander and the more than a hundred cavalrymen behind him were Dong Pu's personal guards. They lightly leaped across the riverbed, which was dozens of meters wide, and ordered Chenhai and his group to hand over their weapons and horses.

After counting the number of people and registering their names, the young cavalry commander led them to the Chenqiao Fort.

Upon arriving at the Chenqiao Fort, Lixianghai, Yue Yi, and others were put in leg irons and taken away by the young cavalry commander. Chenhai and his group were driven into a row of barracks on the west side of the Chenqiao Fort for detention, while Jie Wenzhuo, Chen Qing, and other inner disciples were arranged to wait in other barracks for further handling.

"What will happen to Elder Li in the end?"

Shen Kun, Ge Tong, Chenhai, Zhou Jun, and about forty to fifty others were all driven into a horse stable for detention.

The horse stable had no beds, but fortunately, it was well-ventilated and not too stuffy. Dry grass was spread on the ground, and everyone lay down. Someone couldn't help but inquire about Lixianghai's future.

Chenhai sighed slightly. The Wuwei Army and the Taowei Sect had suffered such a devastating defeat at the hands of a mob, and someone had to take responsibility.

The upcoming battles would be personally led by the General of the Iron Stream Camp, Dong Pu. Regardless of whether Lixianghai, Yue Yi, and others were responsible, they would be detained for investigation. However, as ordinary soldiers who had managed to break out of the Yulong Mountains, they should be credited for their efforts and not blamed, so there was no need to worry about the future.