"The destruction of the Lingyun Sect? Elder Qiao makes a joke! That Lingyun Sect alone boasts eight Ninth-Rank powerhouses; how could my Qiantian Mountain possibly contend with them? As for the true combat strength of this Blood Cloud Cavalry, only by testing them will we know."
Zong Shou could only let out a dry laugh and shake his head. At this moment, he truly had no intention of destroying the Lingyun Sect, nor did he possess the strength to do so. At most, he aimed to completely expel this sect—a deep-seated enemy from both his past life and the present—from the Eastern Lin Cloud Continent.
Having spoken, Zong Shou paid no further heed to Qiao Han. He urged his horse onward, and before long, he arrived at the camp gate.
The two thousand eight hundred Blood Armored Knights instantly leaned forward in their saddles, striking their chests plates with their hands—a salute to Zong Shou—creating a resounding clang of armor.
Nearly half of these knights had eyes blazing with fanaticism. Zong Shou knew these were individuals who had been subjected to the Blood Cavalry Kill technique and cultivated to a certain degree. Consequently, they were fiercely loyal to him, their Blood Cavalry Master, bordering on worship.
As for the other portion, they were likely recent recruits, having joined less than a year ago. Their expressions were relatively calm, yet they too displayed profound reverence.
Zong Shou’s feelings were immensely complicated. In the past, he despised these dark arts that manipulated the hearts of men.
Yet, this time, he was forced to rely on this very technique to accumulate strength.
Having gained such benefit, he still couldn't help but complain that the Blood Cavalry Kill, this auxiliary cultivation art, was not the righteous path—he was truly a hypocrite.
Yin Yang and Zong Lan stood together, both stepping forward to meet Zong Shou as he approached. After offering their courtesies, Zong Lan immediately began to complain, "My Lord! I really shouldn't serve as the Grand General of the Right Pillar. Damn it, all that administrative work is maddening. Why don't you transfer me to this Blood Cloud Cavalry? Even if I only serve as a Battalion Commander, I, Zong Lan, would be content!"
Zong Shou smiled faintly, and the guilt in his heart receded somewhat. He had long intended to replace Zong Lan as the Grand General of the Right Pillar. He had known all along that his Uncle Lan was fit to be a general, but not a commander-in-chief. It was just that for the past year or so, a suitable replacement had been hard to find.
Pretending not to hear, Zong Shou turned instead to Yin Yang, who stood silently beside him, and asked, "Are the preparations complete?"
Yin Yang nodded and raised his hand in a signal. From another corner of the valley, a series of booming sounds suddenly erupted. Everyone looked in that direction and finally saw that thousands of iron cages were arranged there.
Qiao Han glanced over, and his pupils contracted sharply. Inside those cages were exclusively Sixth-Rank Spirit Beasts!
They seemed to carry a degree of demonic nature, as if hailing from beneath the Sea of Clouds.
He found the strength of Qiantian Mountain increasingly unfathomable. These Spirit Beasts from the Cursed Abyss Desolation Lands were easy to kill, but capturing them was exceptionally difficult. Capturing a thousand Sixth-Rank Spirit Beasts was practically impossible without immense power.
But recently, Qiantian’s cloud ship fleet had made several trips beneath the Sea of Clouds, and while the surrounding sects noticed the unusual activity, nothing seemed amiss.
Could Qiantian Mountain possess another, hidden fleet?
As the iron cages were thrown open, the already agitated Sixth-Rank Spirit Beasts surged out. They then began roaring and charging toward the camp.
At this moment, Yin Yang spoke again, his expression placid. "Since receiving the news of Your Lord's return, I have ceased feeding them. These fierce beasts have been starved for a full two days. Furthermore, they have all been given the Frenzy Strength Pill; their power can now reach the peak of Sixth-Rank, or even Half-Step Seventh-Rank!"
Qiao Han was startled once more. The so-called Frenzy Strength Pill was a type of elixir that stimulated potential, capable of plunging the recipient—person or beast—into a violent rage, temporarily granting them double or triple their strength. However, afterward, it would severely deplete their vital energy and shorten their lifespan.
These Spirit Beasts from beneath the Sea of Clouds, having grown up in such harsh conditions, were inherently formidable. After consuming the Frenzy Strength Pill, their combat prowess might indeed reach Half-Step Seventh-Rank!
Just as his expression shifted again, the two thousand eight hundred Blood Cloud Cavalry finally moved.
First, they advanced slowly in tight formation, then suddenly accelerated! Like streaks of blood-colored arrows, they charged directly toward the beast horde!
At the very instant the tide of blood met the tide of beasts, the two thousand eight hundred Blood Cloud Halberds were raised high and brought down in unison! A surge of bloody light and shadow erupted, followed by the spray of fresh blood.
Upon initial contact, nearly four hundred Sixth-Rank Spirit Beasts were instantly slain!
The subsequent process could almost be called trampling and butchery! Wherever the Blood Cavalry passed, they remained virtually unscathed. The Spirit Beasts that had consumed the Frenzy Strength Pill were slaughtered without any chance of resistance.
Zong Shou observed more keenly how the blood rain and mist splattering from the corpses often coalesced into clusters of scarlet vapor, which were then absorbed into the armor plates.
And those Blood Cloud Halberds seemed to have come alive, ravenously sucking down the blood.
With nearly every Spirit Beast killed, the aura of the Blood Cloud Cavalry grew a notch stronger. This was the true marvel of the Blood Cloud Cavalry: their armor and halberds could temporarily increase the strength and restore the vitality and stamina of their users by absorbing the vital essence from the blood of the fallen.
Thus, the more foes they slew on the battlefield, the more formidable the combat power of the Blood Cloud Cavalry became!
When a set of Blood Cloud Armor was completely sated, it could even elevate a mere Fourth-Vein Martial Ancestor to the level of a Profound Martial Ancestor!
This bore some resemblance to his Swallowing Heaven Yuan Transformation Art, yet one relied on internal cultivation—far superior—while the other depended purely on external forces.
The secret technique the Cangsheng Dao had used in years past to defeat the Blood Cloud Cavalry was for Spirit Masters to interfere and prevent the absorption of this blood essence.
Though the Blood Cloud Cavalry were strong, once their sustenance was cut off, they were destined for ruin.
In a mere few breaths, not a single living Sixth-Rank Spirit Beast remained upright in the valley.
The two thousand eight hundred iron riders, divided into nine battalions, cut and wove through the beast tide, executing coordinated attacks—a perfect display of battlefield formation maneuvering.
Subsequently, they dispersed for the pursuit, leaving almost no Spirit Beast able to escape.
Qiao Han felt a bitter pang in his heart. This 'Blood Cavalry Kill' mental art—the Demon King actually knew it! He was also secretly astonished where Zong Shou had acquired these two thousand four hundred Dragon Horned Winged Horses.
After a moment of stunned silence, Qiao Han managed a strained compliment: "Congratulations, My Lord! To have built such an elite force. Indeed, worthy of the Blood Cloud Cavalry, which held such immense fame in ancient times. Truly exceptional!"
That last sentence was spoken with genuine sincerity. These ferocious beasts, which required at least three experts of equal rank to barely handle, were massacred by the Blood Cloud Cavalry without resistance! This level of combat power was enough to quell any dissenting thoughts in anyone's mind!
Zong Shou knew his thoughts but couldn't be bothered to address them. He continued to scrutinize the group of blood-armored riders in the distance. Once the last Sixth-Rank Spirit Beast was slain, the Blood Cloud Cavalry spontaneously reformed their ranks, presenting nine perfectly aligned crimson arrowheads, ready for battle at any moment.
Only then did Zong Shou nod in satisfaction. Entrusting the Blood Cloud Cavalry to Yin Yang had clearly been the right choice.
He then reached into his own Qiankun Bag and retrieved a set of Blood Cloud Cavalry armor, donning it himself. His five-rank Dragon Horned Winged Horse was similarly fitted with crimson horse armor. Holding a blood-colored halberd, he smiled and asked the assembled company, "They are only Sixth-Rank, so we cannot gauge the true limit of the Blood Cloud Cavalry. With no strong enemies nearby, we might as well seek out trouble with those Yin Jiao. Are you all willing to accompany me to the Evil Spirit Gulch?"
Though he was asking, Zong Shou did not wait for the others to agree, immediately spurring his horse forward.
Yin Yang and the two thousand eight hundred Blood Cavalry shared a mental link with Zong Shou and followed without hesitation.
Ren Bo and the remaining few, including Qiao Han, exchanged glances before also mounting their horses and following behind.
The Evil Spirit Gulch was not far from the valley, less than ten li of land. It was said to be the site of an ancient battlefield during the Cloud Barren Era. During the height of a fierce battle, an expert unleashed a single sword strike that instantly killed over ten million combatants, leaving behind this gash spanning thirteen thousand li—a semi-circular sash encircling the eastern side of Qiantian Mountain City.
Due to the resentment of those who perished, the Evil Spirit Gulch became a gathering place for malevolent spirits and dark entities.
This was why the iron chain bridge existed before the Zhenshan Pass. Personally forged by a Saint Realm expert, it not only connected east and west but also suppressed the evil entities within the Gulch.
When Zong Shou led all the Blood Cloud Cavalry into the Evil Spirit Gulch, he felt violent, ceaseless gusts of chilling wind all around, yet no evil spirits dared approach. They were repelled from afar by the vast, bloody aura.
They swept along the ravine for dozens of li before hearing sounds resembling dragon roars. Over twenty massive serpents, their bodies shrouded in green spectral mist, suddenly burst forth from the distant thick fog and lunged toward them!
The expressions of everyone present tightened slightly. Though these Yin Jiao lacked true martial cultivation, they were genuine Seventh-Rank entities! Carrying the bloodline of the Profound Yin Great Dragon, their combat strength far surpassed that of Soul Beasts and could contend with peak-rank Sixth-Rank Spirit Beasts!
Zong Shou merely laughed aloud, and with a thought, countless bursts of energy erupted within the crimson cavalry formation.
The energy conduits of thousands of men linked together, and the blood-colored halberd in Zong Shou’s hand slashed out!
A flash of blood-light, and four Yin Jiao charging at him were almost instantly cleaved apart before they could react; their spectral bodies shattered into fragments! Zong Shou passed through the horde of Yin Jiao completely unharmed.
Next came Yin Yang, followed by the battalion commanders and centurions of the nine divisions, all possessing the realm of Profound Martial Ancestor.
One crimson halberd light followed another in succession.
The two thousand eight hundred halberds utterly shredded all twenty-odd Seventh-Rank Yin Dragons into fragments, leaving them unable to reform!
At that moment, an enraged roar echoed from the distance. Two even more massive Yin Jiao charged forward. Both bore dragon horns and dragon claws, bearing a resemblance to his own Thunder Winged Jiao.
"Peak Eighth-Rank?"
Zong Shou’s eyes lit up. These two Yin Dragons could practically be considered Half-Step Ninth-Rank. If they worked together, they could even contend with a Ninth-Rank expert.
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