Judging from the movie footage, this Evil Shade possesses formidable power; he even managed to summon a massive bat, about ten meters long, by the film's finale. It seems I might be no match for him... Cheng Xiao's Nanto Suichoken is incredibly potent; I should leave this one to him...

Xiao Honglü calculated silently. Only after the orc contingent entered the forest did he lift his binoculars toward a distant hillside. There, a checkpoint was guarded by hundreds of soldiers and orcs. Similar guards protected the forest's main exits; save for some treacherous mountain paths, the protagonists had no retreat.

(...Honestly, what Chu Xuan has done this time is truly infuriating. He has pulled away the team’s main fighting strength, leaving behind only non-combatants or those with weaker combat abilities. Even Cheng Xiao should probably be categorized as medical personnel... What is Chu Xuan thinking? Even if Zhang Heng and Zero Point went there, they could hardly offer much help. After all, Zheng Zha, Zhao Yingkong, and Chu Xuan himself possess overwhelming combat power. If strength were the issue, adding Zhang Heng and Zero Point wouldn't boost it significantly... Unless...) "Unless Chu Xuan intends to abandon us? Or perhaps he intends to let the weaker members among us perish?" After dismissing several impossible scenarios, Xiao Honglü suddenly arrived at this conclusion. Following the standard rules of deduction, once all impossibilities are cast aside, the remaining possibility, no matter how incredible, must be the truth.

"No, impossible. We are already at this stage. The final battle is imminent. Even a seasoned team member could be a useful piece in the final layout. If Chu Xuan truly planned to abandon us, then his wisdom is overrated. Rather than abandonment, a far greater possibility is... he wants us to become accustomed to death, or accustomed to the atmosphere of fighting on our own."

Regarding the situation in the final battle, Xiao Honglü, the second mastermind of the Central Continent team, had also formulated his own theories. Although there were still some ambiguities in the grand strategy, he had largely figured out the pattern of the final confrontation—it was almost identical to what Chu Xuan envisioned. The only way to defeat the Demon Reincarnation Squad... soldier against soldier, king against king! (If this is the case, then even members like us, who are ill-suited for combat, must bear sufficient responsibility. Even dying in that battle would be justifiable. Alas. I haven't been revived for long, and I might have to die again... However, Chu Xuan certainly has a brilliant scheme. As long as the Central Continent team becomes the strongest Reincarnation Squad, defeating the Demon Reincarnation Squad, and when our captain Zheng Zha reaches the pinnacle of Reincarnation member strength, and if the Box Theory truly holds, then our resurrection might not be impossible...) Xiao Honglü let out a breath, reluctantly accepting this conclusion. Although he grumbled inwardly about Chu Xuan's thinking, he had to admit the approach was undeniably correct. If they could win the final battle, any sacrifice would absolutely be worthwhile. Otherwise, if they were wiped out entirely, all notions of mercy would become mere jest.

"Very well, then it is time for me to fight... Fifth-level magic. Blizzard is my strongest spell right now. Fireball has decent power, but the daily uses are too few. Summoned beasts are the most practical..." Having decided to fight, Xiao Honglü was not an ordinary Reincarnation team member; he naturally needed to calculate his available spells, the enemy troop numbers, and all other variables. He lacked Zheng Zha’s raw brute force, so calculating the combat power of both sides and ensuring the mission's completion from the safest angle was his primary objective.

There were about a hundred soldiers on the outer perimeter of the forest. Roughly forty percent were orcs, with the humans serving only as reserves. In terms of raw combat power, three human soldiers might not even equal one orc. Thus, the forty-odd orc soldiers could easily account for the combat strength of nearly two hundred humans.

"They are stationed at three checkpoints, with two small patrols of ten men scattered about. The locations of these three checkpoints are not too far apart and can support each other. If a target is spotted or an attack occurs, they can consolidate forces immediately. So..." Xiao Honglü fiddled with his hair as he pondered, the entire plan slowly taking shape in his mind. When he finished contemplating, he stood up and quietly began chanting. With hand signs, incantations, and the scattering of spell components, a Celestial Hound materialized on the ground. This was a Level One Summoning spell. Given Xiao Honglü's current enhancement level, he could use it twelve times a day—far superior to the Weave magic in Dungeons & Dragons rules.

(No, this Celestial Hound is too weak. Its speed is lacking, and its stability is poor. Furthermore, the forest won't allow it to run freely. If it gets hit by an arrow, Qing Bai dying so innocently would be a pity. I should use the Infernal Spider instead. The Infernal Spider is a Level Four spell; Xiao Honglü can only use it five times a day. However, the Infernal Spider is significantly stronger than the Celestial Hound. Putting aside its movement speed, the spider can jump and walk along tree trunks, making it the best means of transport in this forest. The spider, with a length of two and a half meters, also possesses quite astonishing combat prowess. Trading five spell slots for one summoned spider—that exchange is worth it.)

(Level Three Fireball can be used seven times. For Level Four, besides the one slot for the summoned spider, I can cast Blizzard four times. Then there's Level Five Dominate Human, usable three times. Level Two spells aren't very powerful, and Invisibility only lasts thirty seconds, though I can use it nine times. Finally, the Level One summoned Celestial Hound can still be used eleven times... That's enough! I can definitely defeat those orcs!) With his mind made up, Xiao Honglü immediately began summoning the Celestial Hounds in succession. This Weave summoning differed significantly from Liu Yu’s summoning technique. Spiritual power was merely a stabilizer for releasing the spell, not an essential component. In other words, he summoned eleven Celestial Hounds consecutively, yet felt no particular fatigue, only that he couldn't use Level One magic for the rest of the day.

"Now... go!" A moment later, in a makeshift watchtower at the edge of the jungle, several human soldiers leaned against the wall haphazardly, chatting quietly while keeping an eye on their surroundings. One of the soldiers mumbled, "Why did the royal city mobilize so many orcs? It’s just a few farmers; is such a massive display necessary?" "Hush! Do you want to die? Badmouthing the orcs behind their backs?" A slightly older soldier nearby immediately hissed, cautiously glancing left and right before adding, "Don't speak ill of the orcs, not even in whispers... Orcs are too savage; be careful they don't lose their temper and kill you. Your life isn't worth one orc's."

——————The first soldier looked startled and quickly thanked the other before falling silent. As he listened to his companion drone on about eating and drinking, he suddenly heard a faint, intermittent sound in his ear. Just as he turned his head, he indeed saw several large dogs staring intently from the undergrowth. Far beyond the dogs, a small boy stood silently facing their position, making continuous gestures with his hands, seemingly doing something.

"Intruder, huh?" The soldier exclaimed in shock and was about to shout an alarm when a sudden haze clouded his mind. He instinctively yelled, "I saw those three farmers! They are over there!" Saying this, he was already shouting and pointing toward the jungle in that direction. The little boy who had been standing there moments before had vanished, leaving only the vague shapes of the large dogs visible.

However, the commotion finally woke the soldiers. They vaguely discerned the direction the dogs were heading, which then alerted the orc soldiers as well. After questioning them about the situation, the orcs immediately followed the clear tracks in the brush. The human soldiers hesitated for a long moment before following behind the orcs and rushing toward the forest.

(The effect of Dominate Human worked well; I can use the three charges exactly where there are three camps... What good luck. I'll proceed according to the target.) Xiao Honglü's objective was a valley accessible by only one route; the other three sides were either cliffs or steep slopes. He could use the Infernal Spider's characteristic to climb the slopes, where this valley would become the final resting place for these hundreds of soldiers.

Although the plan was meticulous, and Xiao Honglü certainly possessed the capability to execute it, he forgot one crucial aspect: his age and experience... He was not Zheng Zha, nor was he Zhang Heng. As a mastermind, and a very young one with minimal combat ability, he had always been under the protection of the team, thus lacking any true experience in brutal warfare.

After nearly an hour of feinting and weaving, Xiao Honglü finally managed to draw out the bulk of the troops from the three watchtowers. However, the little boy was also terrified; he felt as if his heart was about to burst. Hundreds of soldiers were chasing him, and occasionally, arrows shot from the jungle whizzed past his sides. All these factors shattered the veneer of calm surrounding the young boy.

(Is this... is this combat? Is this what Zheng Zha and the others experience in countless battles like this?) Leaping toward...