Following him were the elite core cadres of the Ghost Squad, experts in stealth reconnaissance and possessing a deep understanding of spatial laws. Upon Ghost Stab's command, they immediately moved silently, some to scout, others to set up formations.

The half-finished formations, already prepared, were soon methodically erected. The first to be deployed was the spatial array. As the formation system activated, drawing immense spiritual energy from the eighteen prime spirit stones, the space within a hundred-zhang radius subtly warped into streamlined curves.

This distortion served both to obstruct visual detection and allow divine senses to glide smoothly through, masking any anomaly. Bending space was one of the ingenious applications of spatial concealment, capable of deceiving those whose grasp of spatial laws was shallow. Moreover, even those with a deeper understanding might overlook it if they weren't specifically scrutinizing the area.

Not long after, the first Chaos Spirit Gathering Array flickered to life, quietly drawing in the chaotic spiritual energy, condensing it into threads that seemed almost tangible. Simultaneously, this energy was stored within a transparent crystal sphere. Once a sphere was filled, it could be passed through the Tempering Array to condense the contents into Chaos Crystals.

Lei Dong’s Tempering Array originated from Meixiang, the spirit of the Chaos Tower, and Meixiang’s formation was inherited directly from the Pluto himself. What an astonishingly brilliant figure the Pluto was! Not only was his cultivation transcendent, but his research into various miscellaneous arts—such as artifact forging, array construction, puppetry, and alchemy—was also profound. He was a super-mighty being rarely seen throughout history. Merely judging by his ability to craft the half-finished Chaos Tower, the famed Pluto Banner, and numerous puppets, one could grasp the level of his skill.

Thus, it was clear that the Chaos Spirit Gathering Array and the Chaos Spirit Tempering Array deployed by Ghost Stab were far beyond the ordinary merchandise. The efficiency of the former in absorbing chaotic spiritual energy likely surpassed that of the Abyss Lord's own formation, while the latter could directly condense high-grade Chaos Crystals.

Having completed the first array, Ghost Stab then enlisted Mei’er’s assistance in finding a second hidden and suitable location for deployment.

Relying on just one Spirit Gathering Array was clearly too inefficient and fell short of Lei Dong’s true objective.

As time wore on, turmoil brewed across the Abyss Domain. With the personal intervention of the former Abyss Lord, Shadow Demon King, numerous races, individuals, and organizations harboring discontent towards Wudis flocked—openly or secretly—to Shadow Demon King’s banner, raising the "Banner of Righteousness" against the "tyrannical and inhumane" Udis.

It was hardly surprising that these parties defected. The majority of races in the Abyss prioritized profit and the strength of their adversaries above all else. Furthermore, Shadow Demon King had been the nominal ruler of the Abyss for over two millennia. In those two thousand years, countless beings had lived and died under the reign of Shadow Demon King. Such prolonged titular rule afforded Shadow Demon Star considerable prestige and rallying power.

Of course, that prestige and appeal were built upon Shadow Demon King’s own formidable strength, the manifold benefits he promised, and the foundation of his powerful allies, the Winged Race. Otherwise, even if Shadow Demon King had ruled the Abyss Domain for ten thousand years, no one would follow him in an attempted restoration.

Moreover, the current Abyss Lord, Udis, to maintain secrecy, had not fully displayed his true power. This oversight allowed many opportunistic tribes, organizations, and clans to defect into Shadow Demon King’s embrace.

However, Udis was no pushover either. With Lei Dong’s support and instigation, he immediately launched targeted actions, revealing his immense might by dispatching the Blood Moss Army, composed entirely of Nascent Soul-level cultivators, to crush several rebellious tribes in a sweeping display of force. This bloody demonstration served to inform all those contemplating sedition exactly who the true Abyss Lord was now.

As Udis showcased his startling power and martial prowess, many wavering Abyss tribes quieted down. The situation had escalated to such a point that no race or tribe could afford to remain neutral; they were compelled to choose a side.

Those who hesitated, attempting to play both ends or fish in troubled waters, would inevitably face immediate retribution. Neither Udis nor Shadow Demon King desired fence-sitters whose loyalties were uncertain.

Soon, the widespread chaos in the Abyss Domain was brought under control in a short time, and the alignment of factions began to settle. After all, Udis, as the reigning Abyss Lord, had established his power base for a century or so, and once his formidable strength was revealed, he garnered far more investment than Shadow Demon King, securing roughly seventy percent support among all Abyss races, leaving Shadow Demon King with about thirty percent.

Wars broke out first among the Abyss races aligned with the two factions. Driven by factional pressure, the Abyss races clashed. Neither side’s main force engaged directly; instead, they fought through their vassal races and tribes.

The Shadow Demon King’s faction had a crystal-clear objective: to seize the Bone-Devouring Abyss Pool, the gateway to the alternate dimension, by any means necessary. This was the focus of their military thrusts, the sole destination of their grand armies. Squadrons of elite operatives launched infiltration and sudden attack maneuvers.

But the Abyss Lord Udis had anticipated this move. He had positioned substantial military forces in the same direction to block the advance of the Holy Radiance King and Shadow Demon King’s armies. As for the infiltrated elite squads, Udis personally organized over a hundred teams to intercept and eliminate them.

Although the main forces had yet to clash, this clandestine war for control over the dimension harboring Chaotic Spiritual Energy immediately entered a white-hot phase.

Meanwhile, Lei Dong’s army was stationed to the left flank, facing the forces of the not-quite-top-tier Blazing Star King and Flowing Moon King from the Shadow Demon King’s faction.

Having reaped tremendous benefits, Lei Dong was not idle; he diligently fulfilled his duty as an ally. With formidable military strength, he collaborated with several local allied tribes to halt the advance of the Blazing Star King and Flowing Moon King. Furthermore, he actively selected elites from the Ghost Squad, the Hidden Dragon Army, and the tribal coalition to form specialized squads for skirmishes, achieving notable gains while sustaining some self-inflicted casualties.

This was not due to Lei Dong's disregard for his troops' combat capability. From every strategic perspective, he had to block the advance of those two armies; he could not allow the Shadow Demon King’s faction to secure the alternate world. Otherwise, the advantage would shift from proactive engagement to reactive defense.

Besides, true elites could not be cultivated in a greenhouse. Only through extensive actual combat, the baptism of blood and life, could his officers and soldiers truly grow and achieve breakthroughs. This conflict was, in its own way, an excellent tempering experience for the Ghost Squad and the Hidden Dragon Army.

Furthermore, Lei Dong desperately needed souls and the corpses of powerful beings to enhance his own strength. This requirement had been explicitly written into his alliance agreement with the Abyss Lord—stipulating that Lei Dong would receive all the corpses and souls of powerful combatants as spoils from the entire campaign.

The Abyss Lord readily understood Lei Dong’s rationale. After all, Lei Dong’s main fighting force consisted of the "Fifty Thousand" elite Ghost Race troops, and the fact that the Ghost Race required the consumption of flesh and soul to advance was known throughout the Six Domains and Nine Continents; therefore, no one suspected Lei Dong's need for these resources.

As he accumulated spoils from his own victories, and as the Abyss Lord collected and sent over souls of various qualities from his own battlefronts, Lei Dong’s Chaos Soul Devouring Tower began operating at full capacity, reducing them back into threads of chaotic spiritual energy, mere wisps of the origin.

At this moment,

In the main base camp, Lei Dong was communicating with the seemingly fatigued Abyss Lord Udis via a communication array.

Within the array, Udis appeared agitated, shouting at Lei Dong, “My Brother, it’s been over ten days, why have you only been playing defense? We agreed beforehand that you must crush the Blazing Star King’s contingent.”

The alliance between the two was still in its honeymoon phase. Lei Dong had just received a significant shipment of corpses and souls collected from Udis’s various battlefields. Thus, satisfied with the current cooperation model, Lei Dong had no reason to fall out with Udis over minor grievances.

He merely frowned slightly and replied sincerely, “Elder Brother, I am currently facing the combined assault of the Blazing Star King and the Flowing Moon King alone; the pressure is immense. It is very difficult to find an easy opportunity to crush the Blazing Star King in one go. Moreover, in just these short ten-plus days, I have eliminated over fifty of the enemy’s elite squads, including more than a hundred at the Nascent Soul stage and over three hundred Golden Core cultivators. And I myself have lost over a hundred men.” Of course, when Lei Dong mentioned losing over a hundred men, the majority were elites drawn from the Abyss tribes. // The fastest text update from the Book Fan Tower.

After all, Lei Dong cherished his own core troops. He had secretly tasked Tian Mo and others with covert protection and assassination operations. With the escort of Soul Transformation stage powerhouses, the elites of the Hidden Dragon and Ghost Armies naturally achieved brilliant results while suffering minimal losses.

Naturally, Lei Dong did not concern himself overly with those Abyss elites; he commanded them according to standard operational thinking—those who performed well were rewarded, and those who died were considered expendable. He could not possibly worry about them all.

Seeing Lei Dong’s sincere attitude, Udis softened his tone. “My Brother, you must think of a way. Saint Radiance King’s troops are formidable.” From the intelligence gathered by his internal network, Udis knew Lei Dong had not been slackening in his duties.