Immediately following, the twelve from Wind and Snow Silver City also charged out. Then, the major clans surged forward like a tide.

Jun Wuyi's military formation ironically became the rearguard. The three hundred-plus men were almost isolated and alone.

It had to be admitted that the words spoken by those from Blood Soul Villa were indeed extremely inflammatory. If they could truly kill one or two Xuan Beasts per person on average, victory would indeed be within sight. But, how many people truly possessed the strength to easily slay Xuan Beasts, and how many truly considered themselves Divine Profound or Heavenly Profound experts?

Yet, it could not be denied that the over three thousand who rushed out moved with surprising coordination. The Blood Soul Villa contingent, after breaking rank, suddenly veered left, maneuvering to encircle the Xuan Beasts. The Wind and Snow Silver City forces wheeled right in response. A portion of the troops behind, unaware of the strategy, followed the maneuver. Those further back, confused about whether to go left or right, hesitated for a moment, only to be startled by the sight of the surging horde of beasts charging head-on. They quickly scattered and followed along, abandoning any thought of direction; survival was paramount.

But this maneuvering completely exposed the three hundred men of the central army's commander, Jun Wuyi, directly to the forefront of the Xuan Beasts’ claws.

Four thousand Xuan Beasts surged forward in a tumultuous wave, roaring as they advanced!

"Shameless! Utterly shameless!" Dongfang Wenqing roared in anger, while Duanmu Chaofan, the head of the Duanmu Clan beside him, trembled so violently his beard was in disarray. He stammered: "H-he, he, d-damn son of a—" he let out a series of choked exclamations.

The other clan head, Sikong Anye, also wore a face darker than pitch, boiling with rage internally. He roared, "***, the beasts are at your very nose, stop stuttering, damn it! If the Xuan Beasts don't swallow you, your frustration will suffocate you!"

"Damn it! I, I, I haven't finished cursing y-y-yet!" Duanmu Chaofan thundered back, his speech suddenly smoother by a fraction. Especially the first word, "Damn!"—since it was only a single word, there was no chance for stuttering, delivered with perfect clarity. "Damn!" It was yelled with such earth-shattering vigor, so incredibly mighty.

"Stop talking!" Sikong Anye was leaping with fury, a dark line across his forehead. He hurriedly drew his sword, only to find a Golden Tiger already lunging at him. Biting and tearing, its tail swung like an iron rod, sweeping with the force of an army. Most ridiculously, this tiger seemed capable of using techniques; what looked like mere instinctual combat was in fact incredibly refined, the wind howling from its movements, displaying clear strategy and positioning. It was perfectly organized!

Xuan Beasts that use martial arts—who could possibly withstand that?

Almost simultaneously, the surging Xuan Beast army completely submerged them. Dongfang Wenqing and the others each faced several formidable opponents of the Eighth or Ninth Echelon. However, to their utter bewilderment, given their state of high alert, these vicious-looking Xuan Beasts acted as if merely demonstrating or greeting them, circling once, and then—they just left!

On the mountaintop, the assembled spectators were speechless, faces uniformly dark.

"Peerless Supreme, is this your deployment? Masters spread out, roaming in all directions, engaging half-heartedly, exposing the commander..." This was clearly a formation set up for certain death! In a conventional battlefield, simply for placing the commander in such peril, none of the three thousand upfront would have survived!"

Lei Baoyu pointed a disbelieving finger at the battlefield, challenging Li Jue Tian, before finally shaking his head and chuckling: "No wonder you were unwilling to accept the terms of the decisive battle. You never intended to win! These four thousand people—I imagine many are your enemies, yes? Truly a cunning tactic!"

Bu Kuangfeng chimed in, "The arrangement for the people guarding the commander was truly the work of a renowned master strategist of this era. The Blade Sealing Formation he initially set up, attacking from a defensive posture and defending to attack, even if it couldn't defeat the charging Xuan Beasts, could at least stabilize the situation temporarily. Combined with the numerous traps set beforehand, casualties would certainly be minimized. If they could successfully withstand the first wave of attacks, they could even leverage the beasts' broken momentum to counterattack, dealing heavy damage to the Xuan Beasts. Such a brilliant setup was truly remarkable! It’s a pity it was ruined by treacherous underlings—harrumph!"

"Underlings." The implication was clearly aimed at Li Jue Tian. The Peerless Supreme’s face cycled through green and red, looking deeply uncomfortable.

Although Lei Baoyu and Bu Kuangfeng were not schooled in military formations, their centuries of accumulated wisdom granted them insight far beyond the common eye. How could they fail to see such obvious framing?

Bu Kuangfeng, clearly more dissatisfied with Li Jue Tian, continued, "Peerless Supreme, I notice you don't seem very concerned about your son's legs either? Otherwise, why act this way? Just moments ago you feigned desperation for your son’s sake—it’s utterly baffling!"

Li Jue Tian’s old face flushed red; he had no idea how to respond, stammering incoherently.

He had no idea that the Secluded Immortal Palace had sent observers for this battle! He had only banked on his reputation in the secular world; even if someone disapproved of his actions, who would dare voice opposition? Even if objections arose, they would soon fade, as no one was willing to offend the Second Supreme for the sake of a dead man.

But with the arrival of Lei Baoyu and Bu Kuangfeng, Li Jue Tian was instantly thrown into disarray. Now, his disgrace was broadcast to the Three Great Sacred Lands, and worse, it directly implicated his own son...

He was unaware that the Secluded Immortal Palace’s involvement extended beyond mere observation... The situation...

Meanwhile, Jun Mo Xie was fraught with anxiety because he realized he had overlooked two individuals: Duanmu Chaofan and Sikong Anye! At this point, everyone surrounding Jun Wuyi was relatively safe, despite being encircled by several high-level Xuan Beasts; they were practically unharmed. It was the two clan heads, Duanmu Chaofan and Sikong Anye, who were facing genuine peril.

In the short time it took, Sikong Anye’s clothes were in tatters under the assault of five or six Xuan Beasts, leaving him flailing desperately. Duanmu Chaofan was even more wretched. The head of the Duanmu Clan roared repeatedly, chopping wildly, but frequently had to use his left hand to lift his tunic and shield his rear.

Jun Mo Xie flew over only to discover that Patriarch Duanmu Chaofan’s backside had indeed been ripped open by a large hole, apparently from a bite by one of the Xuan Beasts. It revealed firm buttocks marred by several scratch marks, looking rather intimate...

Jun Mo Xie was both angry and amused. He quickly sprinkled some medicinal powder over their heads and retreated swiftly.

Sikong Anye, mid-roar, unexpectedly felt the pressure ease. The Xuan Beasts about to pounce looked at him with confusion, then snorted, shook their tails, and walked away...

Then, the tidal wave of Xuan Beasts split into four streams, directed by the three Beast Kings, engaging the cultivators on the other sides. As for Jun Wuyi’s position, which should have been the primary target, only a handful of beasts remained. Although they were all Ninth Echelon Xuan Beasts—standard super-warfare strength, capable of wiping out this group with a mere breath—they showed absolutely no inclination to attack.

Sikong Anye was utterly bewildered. Only one Xuan Beast remained before him; it was highly intelligent and was winking and making faces at him...

Winking? What for? I’m in the middle of a battle, why are you pulling a face like that? Sikong Anye stared with wide eyes, clueless. The Golden Tiger became somewhat anxious, raised a paw, pointed around itself, and then roared, lunging over with terrifying momentum, posing an immediate mortal threat.

Sikong Anye frantically mustered all his strength to meet the charge, uncertain of the outcome. But upon contact, he instantly realized that although the lunge looked grand, it lacked any real force. As confusion mounted, he saw the beast wag its tail and wink again!

Only then did Sikong Anye finally grasp the situation: Damn, they want me to pretend-fight it! He glanced over and saw that everyone else had figured it out earlier than him. Each person faced one Xuan Beast, yelling sharply. The Xuan Beasts roared back loudly, but their swordsmanship looked lightning-fast yet consistently missed their marks; their claws swept like the wind but always fell short.

However, the most impressive figure among them was the overall commander, Jun Wuyi. Facing the "frenzied" siege of two Ninth Echelon Xuan Beasts, he remained seated calmly in his wheelchair, not a single strand of hair out of place. The two enormous Earth-Splitting Bears, weighing several thousand pounds each, bounded and leaped around, roaring loudly. The combined force of their simultaneous strikes sent dust billowing across the ground—a power that might force even Divine Profound experts, or even Supremes, to momentarily yield. Yet, Commander Jun calmly extended his long sword with a casual gesture. It wasn't particularly exquisite, but the two peak Ninth Echelon Earth-Splitting Bears immediately scrambled to evade. It was truly supreme swordsmanship that transcended technique!

Then they would charge again, only to be waved back again with another sweep of the sword...

What in the world was happening?

Sikong Anye’s mouth gaped so wide his jaw nearly dislocated. He turned to look and saw Duanmu Chaofan had also escaped the dangerous and awkward situation. He was now frantically snatching clothing off a corpse and tying it around his waist like an apron. However, this apron only covered the rear...

Duanmu Chaofan’s opponent was a Ninth Echelon Golden Tiger. Duanmu Chaofan simply tossed his sword aside and concentrated on tying his apron. The ferocious-looking Golden Tiger charged up, then whoosh, it leaped over Duanmu Chaofan's head in a cloud of dust, and whoosh, it leaped back, letting out a seemingly very angry roar towards the sky!

It struck at the air, struck at the earth, raged at the stones, but absolutely refused to strike Duanmu Chaofan! It was as if Duanmu Chaofan possessed the legendary Xuan Gang Fur—touching it would inflict severe injury.

"Goddammit, today!" Sikong Anye’s mouth finally stretched to its widest. He heard a distinct crack—his jaw genuinely dislocated—and he let out a pained cry.

The Golden Tiger opposite him was startled, immediately stopping its antics. It tilted its head suspiciously: This person is so fragile. I haven't even touched him. He opened his mouth and hurt himself? What kind of physique is that? Or perhaps I have inadvertently mastered the legendary King's Hegemony Aura and shocked him...

"Chaofan, what in the hell are you doing? ***, we're in a war! Are you putting on an apron because you plan to start cooking rice?" With the danger passed, Sikong Anye felt momentarily inclined to joke.

He rubbed his hands together and snapped his dislocated jaw back into place before speaking.

Duanmu Chaofan finally secured his secret regarding his posterior. He slowly picked up his long sword, feeling quite relieved. "Sikong, little, little, little white face, I, Duanmu Chu, Chu, Chu—For future developments, please log on to [Domain Name] for more chapters, support the author, and support genuine reading!"