The fiery light in front of the mountain had similarly raised the alarm of the camp.
The soldiers awoke from their sleep, took up their weapons, and began to run to their positions.
The array masters completed the preparations to activate the array as quickly as possible, and the eight hundred crossbowmen formed a crossbow array at the very front of the camp.
This was the North Third Camp, under the command of Divine General Peng Shihai.
He gazed at the several thousand vultures that covered the sky, his expression still indifferent, his voice not trembling in the slightest as he methodically issued ten-some military orders.
Only the personal guards standing at his side noticed that their commander's fists were tightly clenched, his knuckles rather white.
It was not fear, but anger and anxiety.
If every vulture was carrying a weapon similar to gunpowder, what sort of trial would the North Third Camp face today?
The array set up by the array masters could cover half the camp, but it would not be able to hold out for too long before such a fire.
As for the crossbow array, it should be able to shoot down a group of vultures, but based on the altitude at which the vultures were currently flying, by the time the crossbow bolts could reach them, they would already be flying over the camp. Thus, what difference did it make whether they threw down the gunpowder or were shot down?
… …
… …
"If only Master was here!"
A cavalryman who was climbing up the cliff shouted.
Another cavalryman shook his head and said, "Even if Master was here, he might not be able to kill all these birds."
The third cavalryman said nothing, his body exuding a cold Qi and a soaring killing intent.
In his view, the North Third Camp would assuredly become a sea of fire. Even if the array could resist for a few moments, it would still suffer grievous losses, and the fastest wolf cavalry of the Demon race might be waiting in the north to attack. In other words, there was no way to reverse this defeat.
Thus, he had to at least kill the commanders of those vultures and prevent such defeats from occurring in the future.
To be able to climb such a steep cliff and think like this, he and the other two cavalrymen were naturally no ordinary soldiers.
But even though they were powerful cultivators, there were still many things on the battlefield that could not be changed.
Suddenly, a shrill cry resounded through the sky.
The three cavalrymen subconsciously stopped and turned to look in the direction of the human camp, where they saw a completely unexpected sight.
Rays of green light spread out from the grassland that was illuminated by the morning sun, eventually forming a formation that enveloped the first half of the military camp.
Even at such a distance, he could still see the flickering light of the Sacred Light crossbows.
The human army was ready for battle.
However, those vultures did not even reach the top of the camp before they all fell to the ground!
There seemed to be an invisible and mysterious power in the world, appearing in front of the vultures, causing them to panic and feel powerless to flap their wings.
Thousands of vultures fell to the ground like raindrops, turning into flames that soared into the sky as they landed on the grassland. The scene was incomparably spectacular.
"What's going on?"
One of the cavalrymen shouted in pleasant surprise.
The cavalryman with a cold aura shouted, "Speed up!"
Seeing that the camp was safe and sound, the three cavalrymen's spirits were lifted. They rushed towards the caves in the middle of the cliff, their speed as fast as flying swans!
When they arrived in front of the caves, the three sensed the cold Qi seeping out from within and knew that the demon freak was still inside. Without any delay, their swords whistled out of their sheaths, shooting into the caves like cold rays of light, moving with unimaginable speed.
At first, there was no sound from the cliff, but then there was a muffled thud, followed by the incessant sounds of cutting, mixed with cries of pain and curses in the language of the demons. Eventually, the demon freak began to repeat a certain phrase, seeming particularly panicked and terrified.
After an unknown amount of time, the sound in the cliff finally disappeared.
Three cold swords flew out of the caves and returned to their sheaths.
The morning sun was higher than before, its light shining on the mountain to the side and then reflecting off the cliff, illuminating the faces of the three cavalrymen.
One face was calm and serene, one face was firm and cold, and one face was youthful and lively. They were Liang Banhu, Guan Feibai, and Bai Cai.
Bai Cai curiously asked, "What was that demon freak shouting before he died?"
Liang Banhu and Guan Feibai glanced at each other and laughed.
Guan Feibai's smile faded as he sternly said, "Eldest Brother told you to learn the language of the demons, so why didn't you listen?"
Bai Cai aggrievedly said, "There are more than a hundred kinds of demon languages, so how could I learn them all?"
… …
… …
Cries of alarm could be heard all over the plains.
Because the same thing was happening in all the camps.
The demons had not mobilized a large number of soldiers to counterattack, but had launched countless sneak attacks at the same time.
This sort of sneak attack was more accurate to describe it as a surprise attack. The demons had used all sorts of strange techniques and had dispatched many experts.
This was the first time since the start of the war that the demons had sent experts into battle.
But just like in the first phase of the campaign, once they moved, they attacked with all their strength, leaving no room for retreat!
The demons had more than three thousand tribes, of which no less than a hundred possessed powerful fighting strength.
Today, the leaders of these tribes and their strongest warriors were either bursting out of the ground or flying down from the cliffs, their faces savage.
A beast tamer from a remote lake commanded a monster to launch a suicidal attack.
A wandering warrior from the slums of Xuelao City who had failed in his ambitions threw off the hide covering his body, took up his heavy demon axe, and leapt out of the monster horde.
The targets of these experts were extremely clear, and they had been specifically targeted: the provisions, array masters, and commanders of the human army.
Several hundred small-scale battles began simultaneously on the plains. Although they did not have much effect on the overall situation of the battle, they succeeded in creating a massive chaos.
Behind the chaos was often a clear and callous intention.
As the sun rose over the horizon, its light refracted by the mountains and plains, making the world even darker. The demons' true intentions seemed to have finally become clear.
Several hundred demon experts exuding a somber Qi, concealed by an array intent that could disrupt the workings of the heavens, arrived less than twenty li from the Human Army's tent.
The battle intent that could disrupt the workings of the heavens caused the clouds in the sky to gather once more. Drops of rain began to fall, falling on the faces and lips of the soldiers, making them feel rather light and empty.
This was the power of a law. Had an expert of the Divine Domain arrived?
The commander-in-chief, Divine General He Ming, was a low-key and composed man, but in certain aspects, he was extremely adventurous, even radical.
The Central Army Tent had been pushed to the very front, only a hundred-some li from that mountain called Mount Nuorilang.
At this crucial moment, there was no need to hold anything back.
The human experts had finally moved.
The pure white and blazing holy light illuminated the dark and gloomy world. It tore apart those cotton-like flowing clouds and revealed a corner of the blue sky.
Mao Qiuyu and Huai Ren walked out of the Central Army Tent. With a wave of their sleeves, they killed ten-some demon experts.
No one was surprised by this.
Even those demon experts who had come to their deaths had long ago predicted their fate.
How could the most important Central Army Tent not have an expert of the Divine Domain standing guard?
Since the demons had long ago predicted this, they had naturally made corresponding preparations.
The sky suddenly dimmed.
The deep blue had disappeared, and a black, broken chessboard was faintly discernible in the faint fog.
At the base of Mount Nuorilang, a pitch-black path had suddenly appeared in the empty grassland.
The edge of this path was not even, like a piece of paper that had been casually torn apart.
This description was actually very appropriate, because it was originally a passage torn out of space by the Demon Race's terrifying grand array.
Several Demon Generals, leading several thousand wolf cavalry, surged out of the valley from several hundred li away and galloped toward the Central Army Tent.
The clouds gradually thickened, obscuring the sun. The darkness seemed to come early, and several particularly tall figures appeared in the darkness.
They were probably members of the Council of Elders or some of the nobles of Xuelao City.
Mao Qiuyu and Huai Ren's expressions did not change, remaining very calm.
Since the demons had predicted that they would be here, they could naturally guess that the demons had made corresponding arrangements.
Late last night, they had already seen the possibility of that path appearing on their Fated Star Plate.
Up until now, nothing new or unexpected had occurred.
Suddenly, Huai Ren's eyes turned solemn.
Mao Qiuyu's sleeves began to move.
An extremely large black silhouette suddenly appeared on the summit of Mount Nuorilang.
Unlike the Demon Generals and the wolf cavalry, this black silhouette had not appeared through the path in the valley, but on the summit.
The sky was growing gloomy, but the wind had dispersed much of the fog in front of the mountain, revealing the true appearance of this massive black silhouette.
This was an extremely rare Mountain-toppling Fiend from ancient times. It had a long snout and coiled horns, and was extremely vicious. It was forty-some zhang tall.
On the coiled horns of the Mountain-toppling Fiend sat a very thin and small demon, not even the size of a human child. It wore a suit of armor, and the armor was covered in complex designs woven from golden threads. Many dark green objects were embedded in the armor, some of which were emeralds, others copper that had been corroded by time.
An unimaginably terrifying Qi seeped out from the chink in the armor, but it was far less cruel and evil than this demon's gaze.
When this demon appeared on the summit, the world for several hundred li around it seemed to fall silent for a moment.
Because it was the Demon Commander.
After an extremely short period of silence, howls and shouts of killing could be heard.
The several thousand wolf cavalry madly charged at the Central Army Tent.
Because the Demon Commander had arrived.
It was obvious that if they wanted to defend the Central Army Tent today, they had to defeat, or at least block, the Demon Commander.
When the old Demon Lord was still alive, he had been the undisputed second-ranked expert of the snowy plains of the land of demons.
Now that the old Demon Lord was dead, could it be said that he was the strongest expert of the Demon race?
No one knew the answer to this question, because Mountain Man Yanzhi had secluded himself from the world, and because Black Robe had still not used his full strength.
But there was at least one fact that could be confirmed.
The Demon Commander was no ordinary expert of the Divine Domain.
If Chen Changsheng were here, he might have recalled that Su Li had used the word 'abnormal' when he mentioned the Demon Commander by the hot spring.
If even Su Li found it abnormal, one could imagine just how cruel and powerful the Demon Commander was.
Mao Qiuyu was well aware that he was no match for the Demon Commander, and Huai Ren had only been a Divine Domain expert for an even shorter time, so who could stop him?
… …
… …
A sword glow came from the south.
That sword light was clear and serene, just like real water.
This sword glow washed away the haze in the sky and drowned out the howls of the grassland. It seemed leisurely, but it was actually murderous as it slashed at the summit.
A plume of black smoke suddenly rose from the charging wolf cavalry. The Eighth Demon General flew through the air, treasure in hand as he attacked the sword glow.
The sword glow seemed like a reflection on the water in the corridor. With a slight tremble, it circled around the Eighth Demon General.
With a light swish, a clear sword slash appeared on the Eighth Demon General's armor, lines of fire flowing through it like lava.
The unbearable pain caused this Demon General famed for his perseverance to let out a furious roar.
With this furious roar, a plume of black smoke rose from the wolf cavalry, but its momentum was far greater than before. Demon Qi soared into the sky, forcefully stopping the sword glow.
The sword glow would occasionally flash, illuminating the black smoke, and the occasional sound of metal breaking could be heard.
The Third Demon General finally managed to block this sword glow. His helmet was covered in slashes and a small part of his demon horn had been broken off, demon blood gushing out.
It was just a single sword glow, but it had required two high-ranking Demon Generals to act one after the other to block it, and they had been in such a sorry state, even injured.
It was different from Su Li's sharpness and freedom, and also different from Chen Changsheng's directness and unswerving determination.
This sword was even more serene, even gentler, yet it did not lose its sharpness. It was completely traceless, impossible to grasp, and extremely profound.
On the side of the camp was a tent used to store miscellaneous items.
An old Daoist walked out from within.
He held a sword in his right hand and a sheath in his left. Whether it was the way he walked or the way he held the sword, there was nothing beautiful about it, and it had nothing to do with the word 'otherworldly'. But anyone with a discerning eye could see that this sword was no ordinary object. It was like the autumn water that had been washed for three thousand years, so bright that it was impossible to look at it directly. It seemed as if it wanted to obscure the world before everyone's eyes, including the heavens and earth.
Could this be the legendary Heaven Shrouding Sword?
Could this ordinary old Daoist be the Sect Master of the Mount Li Sword Sect?
The officers and soldiers in the camp were shocked speechless, and one by one, they opened a path.
Mao Qiuyu and Huai Ren slightly bowed.
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