The large company pressed southeast, and as time wore on, they became enveloped by layer upon layer of pale green mist, which grew steadily thicker and more suffocating, creating an intensely uncomfortable atmosphere.

“What a potent aura of undeath,” Jian Fei exclaimed in surprise.

“Everyone, be careful,” I cautioned, recalling how the initial appearance of the Specter Phantoms had been preceded by a mist strikingly similar to this green vapor. “This is the precursor to the Specter Phantoms emerging.”

“Specter Phantoms.” Everyone instinctively heightened their alertness, cautiously scrutinizing the dense green mist.

Sure enough, it wasn't long before the green vapor seemed to come alive, beginning to swirl around the group, taking shape as monstrous beasts with terrifying forms and ferocious visages. Almost simultaneously, under the effect of the Death-Desire Eye, I immediately perceived faint energy fluctuations over two hundred meters ahead, behind, and on both the left and right flanks. I couldn't discern the exact nature of these fluctuations, only that they were saturated with powerful necromantic magic, possessing a profound capacity to penetrate and erode the human psyche and spirit.

It seemed those must be high-level undead. Intermingled with these were waves of dense killing intent emanating from all four directions—even after more than a year, I instantly recognized the unique aura of the Skeleton Legions from the Yellow Springs World.

The last time I was in the Yellow Springs World, I had not yet grasped the Death-Desire Eye, so I couldn't sense the presence of high-level undead, nor could I detect the Skeleton Legions from a distance. However, my cultivation had surged since then, making the current situation vastly different.

Of course, I wasn’t the only one to detect the high-level undead and the Skeleton Legions. Nalan Qiushui, Hong Tianjian, Li, and the others had also sensed four high-level undead positioned in the four cardinal directions. Yet, judging by their demeanor, none of them seemed inclined to make the first move. Clearly, they intended to leave these minions for the younger generation—Qing Long, Luo Zheng, Nalan Jingtang, Mo Ling—to handle themselves, serving as a form of training.

“Ah, there’s something strange about this mist,” Nalan Jingtang, a disciple of the Xuanwu Alliance’s Jingtang Hall, cried out. “Everyone, be wary!”

“Dao Hall, immediately search for the high-level undead. The rest of you, maintain high alert and be ready for battle at any moment,” Qing Long commanded. Since he was in charge of this march, he was instantly calm and composed, immediately implementing the method I had described earlier, which Bai Ling had used against high-level undead—employing the Taoists' Spiritual Revelation technique to pinpoint the location of the powerful foes. It had to be admitted that this was currently the best way to deal with high-level undead.

“Yes!” The Dao Hall contingent tasked with the search comprised over a hundred elite Taoists from the Nalan family of the Xuanwu Alliance.

“Group One, Group Two, focus on defense,” Qing Long continued.

“Phantom Shield!”

“Sacred Armor.” The other two groups of Taoists swiftly cast defensive blessings upon the main body of the troops. Everything proceeded with remarkable orderliness. Compared to the chaotic panic we experienced when we first broke into the Yellow Springs World, the difference was night and day.

But considering the caliber of this assembled force, there was little reason to be surprised. Masters like Jian Li, Nalan Qiushui, Luo Xiao, and Mo Yin were beyond mention. Among the younger generation, figures like Qing Long, Nalan Jingtang, and Mo Ling were each capable of making a name for themselves independently, possessing talent on par with Feng Qingtian.

With them directing the command, there was little genuine cause for worry. Moreover, this contingent was composed of the elite disciples from the three major sects of the Demon Dragon Continent, supplemented by the elite mages from the Brotherhood on the Demon Sealing Continent—such a powerful lineup was arguably the apex in the entire continent.

Compared to our group back then, the only ones we could possibly put forward were Bai Ling and myself. The disparity was like comparing the national football team to Real Madrid, I mused internally, before settling back contentedly to observe the spectacular performance of these continental elites.

Although everyone present had witnessed monumental battles before, facing these swirling masses of strange green fog still made them tense; their eyes wide, focused entirely on vigilance.

Roar! The Holy Word Divine Beasts belonging to the Scarlet Moon Taoists rose onto their hind legs and unleashed earth-shattering roars. The Divine Beasts possessed an uncanny perception for necromantic magic, and the Scarlet Moon Taoists, perfectly attuned to them, quickly pinpointed the positions of the high-level undead and the Skeleton Legions.

“Hah! Spiritual Revelation.” The Scarlet Moon Taoists within the formation rapidly flung streaks of Soul Fire Talismans. They pierced through the thick fog like lightning bolts, tracing conspicuous, bright red lines across the dense green vapor.

Almost simultaneously, countless terrifying monsters materialized from the mist, lunging forward with bared claws and fangs.

“Watch out for Necrotic Corpse Qi!” I immediately warned. I knew from my experience in the Bone Demon Cave within the Yellow Springs World just how dangerous Necrotic Corpse Qi was; once contaminated, it meant certain death.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Streams of soft blue light descended upon them—the pre-prepared Phantom Shields cast by the Taoists. The blue radiance enveloped their surroundings like a massive shield.

At the exact same moment, countless Specter Phantoms slammed into the blue light shield!

Boom! Bang! Crash! With violent reverberations, circles of distorted ripples erupted between the blue light and the green mist, making the very space seem torn, instilling a suffocating coldness and pressure. All the incoming Necrotic Corpse Qi was repelled by the immense Phantom Shield.

But what followed immediately was a series of sharp whistling sounds.

“Arrow Volley!” My heart skipped a beat. That sound was far too familiar; many men from the Sky Spider Sect and Phoenix Nest Sect had fallen to these powerful shafts before.

“Raise Shields!” Qing Long stated gravely.

“Raise Shields!” The warriors bracing the large shields roared in unison, instantly driving the base of their shields hard into the ground. The massive shields shot upward with maximum speed, forming an impenetrable wall of steel.

Simultaneously, the mages positioned within the formation raised their Magic Shields. Countless golden shields, resembling eggshells, illuminated the interior of the formation brilliantly.

The sky-darkening arrow barrage tore through the air and crashed violently against the shields.

The terrifying impact shook the warriors at the front, causing them to sway momentarily, but it failed to budge them even half a step. They held the great shields steady, standing firm like an unbreakable iron fortress.

So strong. Only then did I truly witness the formidable power of the warriors from the three major sects. Back then, many warriors from the Sky Spider Sect and Phoenix Nest Sect had been knocked back several steps by those fierce arrows, and some weaker ones had even been sent flying, shield and all. Yet, these disciples seemed entirely unaffected.

Strength was strength, and I had no choice but to concede.

Protected by the warriors, the Taoists within the formation quickly locked onto their targets and issued attack orders.

“120 meters ahead, saturation bombardment!”

“120 meters to the left, saturation bombardment!”

“120 meters to the right, saturation bombardment!”

Almost as soon as the Taoists reported the coordinates, the mages unleashed devastating magical assaults.

Instantly, countless Ice Roars and Exploding Flames rained down like a furious tempest upon the surroundings.

This potent magical bombardment lasted only a mere two minutes before the area settled back into silence. The enveloping green mist swiftly vanished. Looking out, over a hundred meters away, countless shattered bones and splintered remains littered the ground.

The enemy forces were pulverized into fragments before the majority of the troops even got a clear look at what kind of skeletons they were fighting.

The combined army of over fifty thousand elite experts moved like an unstoppable torrent of iron. Any Skeleton Legion attempting to intercept them offered no resistance whatsoever.

Three days later, we finally arrived at the clearing where I had previously practiced the Thunder Array with Feng Qingtian. Although this was not the Yellow Springs World on the fifth level of the Bone Demon Cave, after trekking for days, I was certain that every sight and object here was identical to the Yellow Springs World. Gray fog still shrouded the area, contrasting with the rough, yellowish-brown stone walls and the hard, dry ground. Everything was exactly the same as the outpost we had established outside previously. Around the clearing were three separate branching paths leading in different directions.

“The end of this side path is where we encountered the Yellow Springs Sect Master,” I pointed to the path near the upper right corner. “About ten li further inside is a massive Undead Soul Devouring Array, and that is where the Yellow Springs Sect Master is located.”

“............” Nalan Qiushui and the others all looked grave, instinctively scanning their surroundings.

“Since we’re here, there’s no need to rush,” Hong Tian said. “The most important thing right now is to find a suitable location for an ambush.”

He looked towards me. “Are there any suitable spots for an ambush inside that side path?”

“This path is straight, leading directly toward the Undead Soul Devouring Array; there are no valleys or similar features along the way,” I recalled the path from memory. “However, about seven hundred meters from the Array, there is a small ravine, about twenty meters long. If we are to ambush him, that spot is likely the only place along this path where we can set up an attack on the Yellow Springs Sect Master.”

“Issue an order: rest and reorganize here,” Nalan Qiushui stated sternly.

“Yes!” A Xuanwu Alliance disciple acknowledged and left.

While the main force rested, the vanguard, composed of Nalan Qiushui, Hong Tian, Luo Xiao, Mo Yin, and over a hundred elite mages from the Brotherhood, led by myself, proceeded into the side path.

Our sole objective was to scout the terrain thoroughly to prepare fully for ambushing the Yellow Springs Sect Master. Along the way, we continually encountered resistance from high-level undead and Skeleton Legions. However, this vanguard included several Grandmaster-level masters and more than a dozen Elder-level experts. The weakest among them were the hundred Brotherhood mages, all of whom had reached the advanced Scarlet Moon tier. Coupled with the mages’ exceptional ranged attack capabilities, every Skeleton Legion unit attempting to intercept us was pulverized.

Before long, we arrived near the small ravine of which I held the memory.

..............................................................................................

Before us was a narrow, elongated ravine, only about twenty meters long and five meters wide, flanked by sheer cliffs towering over a hundred meters high on either side. Being within it was unnerving, as if we were being squeezed tightly between two colossal mountains.

“It resembles the Deadly Valley on the fourth layer,” Hong Tian observed.

“It’s certainly good for an ambush, though perhaps a bit too short,” Mo Ling remarked.

“The ground level is fine,” Jian Li stated. “The crucial factor is whether the area above the valley can accommodate a large number of mages to deploy and launch their most powerful magical attacks.”

“Let’s go up and take a look first,” Nalan Qiushui suggested.

Although the area atop the ravine was not exactly open and flat, it was clearly not an ideal location for mages to arrange themselves for a massive magical bombardment.

A young Taoist beside Mo Ling was rapidly sketching diagrams with magical correspondence while constantly calculating positions, seemingly determining the best spots for deployment.

“We can barely fit a little over a thousand mages here,” Mo Ling concluded after examining the map sketched by the Taoist. “If we add the opposite cliff face, which can hold another thousand or so mages, we get just over two thousand. If we can trap the Yellow Springs Sect Master within this narrowest ten-meter section in the middle, the combined power of our two thousand-plus mages should be sufficient to create a high-intensity magical saturation attack on that zone.”

“So, the critical issue is how to confine the Yellow Springs Sect Master to that central ten-meter stretch,” Nalan Qiushui pointed to the area in the exact middle of the ravine, which was about ten meters long but only four meters wide. “A ten-meter span can be crossed in the blink of an eye. Trapping him there is incredibly difficult; we won’t have enough time to collapse the mountain walls at both ends to block the exits.”

“Indeed,” Luo Xiao nodded slightly. Ten meters truly was just a fleeting moment for both us and the Yellow Springs Sect Master; trapping a high-speed target was as hard as scaling the heavens.

“We could try using triggered magic traps,” Mo Ling suggested.

“Triggered magic traps.” Nalan Qiushui and the others’ eyes lit up, only to dim quickly thereafter. “If we use triggered traps, the magic will detonate the instant he enters, collapsing the mountain walls on both sides. But the person acting as the lure would absolutely not survive.”

“That’s right. A magical explosion powerful enough to shatter the mountain walls would be so devastating that anyone triggering it would be utterly annihilated,” Hong Tian said, aghast.

For some reason, a sudden feeling of deep foreboding washed over me.

“That’s nothing to worry about,” Mo Ling smiled at me. “Others might be blasted to death, but surely, explosions of that magnitude wouldn't harm a single hair on Starfall’s head, would they?”

“Ah!” Everyone was momentarily shocked, then relief washed over their faces as they looked at me.

“That’s true. How could we forget about the existence of the Blue Lightning?” Luo Xiao looked at me with a hint of malicious glee. “If even the magical attacks from Ancestor ZUMA and Ancestor WOMER couldn’t harm you, then the explosion from a magic trap shouldn’t be able to do much to you.”

Jian Li and the others also had drastic changes in expression. “Absolutely not! Even if the magical explosion from the trap doesn't harm Starfall, the falling debris would certainly bury him at the bottom of the ravine!”

“Hahaha.” Mo Ling’s tone dripped with scorn. “Although that is highly possible, given Starfall’s cultivation level and his prior knowledge, escaping the valley the instant the stones start falling during the detonation might not be impossible.” She then gave me a challenging look. “Or perhaps the famed Blue Lightning outside is simply a coward afraid of death.”

Damn that scheming girl! She was clearly calculating against me.

Watching her cold smirk, suggesting she knew her plot would succeed, I desperately wanted to beat her up.

Everyone else instinctively turned to look at me. Objectively speaking, Mo Ling’s plan was highly feasible: I lure the Yellow Springs Sect Master out, then return to the ravine to detonate the magic traps. This would minimize casualties significantly.

However, this action would present a monumental test for me. No one understood the terrifying nature of the Yellow Springs Sect Master better than I did. The thought of having to lead him on a seven-hundred-meter run made me feel dizzy enough to collapse on the spot.

Yet, sitting idly by was never my nature. If she was going to be ruthless, I shouldn't be merciful. With that thought, my mind raced furiously.

“Your plan is indeed highly viable,” I said seriously. “I will undertake the role of the lure in this operation.”

Mo Ling, Luo Xiao, and the others were all stunned by my surprisingly swift agreement. Even Nalan Qiushui and Hong Tian’s expressions shifted slightly.

“Starfall, don’t be reckless out of pride,” Jian Li urged anxiously.

I smiled lightly. “However, I cannot lure the Yellow Springs Sect Master into the ravine by myself. Surely you remember the staggering number of high-level undead and Enhanced Skeletons still within the Undead Soul Devouring Array? Only by annihilating them all will the Yellow Springs Sect Master be forced to show himself. And that is clearly something I cannot accomplish alone.” Having said this, I returned an equally ill-intentioned smile. “If you can devise a way to solve that problem, I won’t mind shouldering the heavy burden of luring the Yellow Springs Sect Master.”

“............” This time, it was Mo Ling and the others who looked utterly dumbfounded.