Chapter 1572: Embarking on the Campaign

The eyes of these people were filled with a deep weariness, but each one of them gave off the feeling of a ferocious beast uncaged. Not only were their bodies extremely lean, but their eyes also held a kind of hunger. When they looked at people, it was as if they were choosing someone to devour.

Upon arriving at the sect, Mu Guyue met with Shangguan Tianque and Ren Yanyu. She then weeded out twelve more Golden Core cultivators, allowing them to return to the sect normally, leaving exactly fifty Golden Core cultivators. Finally, she dismissed everyone, letting them go back and rest well for a few days. They would set out in three days.

Regarding the return of Mu Guyue’s group, Shangguan Tianque and Ren Yanyu did not ask where the vanished Golden Core cultivators had gone. Among those who had disappeared were many disciples who had been nurtured by the Broken Army Sect since the Qi Condensation stage, but from now on, no one would ever see them again. The two of them and Mu Guyue only exchanged a few simple words, and they had a tacit understanding.

Afterward, Mu Guyue also took her leave, but she did not head towards her own Cave Residence, but flew in the direction of Li Yan’s. Shangguan Tianque and Ren Yanyu exchanged a smile at this. They had long seen that the relationship between those two was not as simple as Li Yan had claimed. Especially Mu Guyue’s actions, which were completely undisguised. The Demon Clan’s likes and dislikes were always acted upon; otherwise, they were simply ignored.

Three days later, over a thousand people had gathered on the Broken Army Sect’s plaza. At the very front were Yu Banjiang and the other two Nascent Soul Guest Elders. Behind them followed fifty Golden Core cultivators. The crowd stood there quietly.

In the air in front of them hovered four figures: the four Spirit Transformation Supreme Elders of the Broken Army Sect.

“This battle concerns the rise of the sect. To say we fight for the sect is, of course, correct. However, we should not think of it that way! We are fighting for more cultivation resources, for each and every one of our own paths to the heavens. This is the true purpose of our battle. If anyone falls in battle, regardless of the outcome, your closest kin and descendants, as long as the Broken Army Sect is not destroyed, will become core disciples of the sect. And those who participate in this battle will all be rewarded according to their merits upon their return!”

Shangguan Tianque stood in the sky, his voice shaking the sect. He did not offer too many words of encouragement; instead, there was a sense of tragic grandeur. Although this was not a matter of life and death for the sect, it was an opportunity to break out of the cocoon and be reborn. For the Broken Army Sect, the path of retreat was very narrow. Once they failed, their days under the Blood Lantern Sect would definitely be difficult. People wouldn’t do anything to you openly, but everyone knew that the Broken Army Sect would be suppressed; that was a certainty. Including other fourth-rate sects, they would all distance themselves from the Broken Army Sect, partly out of fear of being implicated, and partly out of jealousy.

This was the true cultivation world. You wouldn’t gain much respect just because your strength began to increase. If you remained low-key, people might still consider you a potential rival, but if you insisted on showing off, that was another matter entirely.

“We will do our utmost!” As soon as Shangguan Tianque’s voice fell, Yu Banjiang, with a solemn expression, led the cry.

“We will do our utmost!” The other disciples immediately echoed in unison, their voices soaring to the clouds!

By Shangguan Tianque’s side, Ren Yanyu’s great red dress rustled in the wind. She looked at the disciples below, then turned to look at Shangguan Tianque. The two of them, once again, were leading the Broken Army Sect side by side, embarking on a new campaign.

Li Yan, in his green robe, remained inconspicuous, as silent as ever. Compared to the soaring fighting spirit of Shangguan Tianque and the other, his presence was easily overlooked. And standing shoulder to shoulder with Li Yan was Mu Guyue, who had once again summoned her long-unseen battle armor. A set of exquisite sleeveless armor made of beast hide clung tightly to her demonic-fairy-like body. The two mountain peaks were full and round, and with her breathing, the deep cleavage rose and fell slightly, the armor wrapping around them, bottomless.

Apart from her chest, abdomen, and parts of her legs being covered, her exposed limbs were long and slender, her muscles gleaming with a textured luster, the lines tight and smooth. In each of her long hands, she held a crescent moon handguard saber in a reverse grip, the tips of the blades pointing upwards, resting against her elbows. The skin outside the sleeveless armor shone with a flowing light. Although no demonic patterns were visible, as the Spiritual Energy moved over her body, the luster on her skin flowed unceasingly, like on perfect porcelain. Her long legs were as smooth as satin, with fine vertical muscle lines that appeared and disappeared, carving her legs into an exceptionally round and powerful shape, full of astonishing elasticity!

Although Li Yan was looking down, he could feel the restrained fighting spirit by his side and couldn’t help but think of the scene this morning when Mu Guyue had summoned her battle armor. When he saw her disdainful air, he knew that after he had told her his plan, Mu Guyue had begun to take the cross-realm plan seriously. It was just that when he saw the flat abdomen and the smoothly angled abdominal muscles under that armor, his gaze had faltered for a moment.

And in that instant, his expression had been immediately caught by Mu Guyue. Mu Guyue’s beautiful face had turned red. She knew what Li Yan was thinking. Apart from her amorous encounter with Li Yan a few years ago, after returning this time, there had been another round of dragon and phoenix in harmonious cry. For Mu Guyue, this would have been simply impossible in the past. But once her heart’s lock was opened, her demonic nature could no longer be controlled. Of course, this kind of demonic openness, for the Demon Clan, could only be for that one person in a lifetime. Towards others, there was still only endless coldness and slaughter.

And when Li Yan’s gaze swept over her abdomen, Mu Guyue had guessed his doubts. With a blush on her face, her crimson lips had parted slightly. “No, we are both Spirit Transformation cultivators now…”

Li Yan’s old face had turned red when his thoughts were seen through. Because he had indeed been wondering why, after just one spring breeze encounter back then, she had said she was with his child. And now, not to mention their recent intimacy, there had been some a few years ago, but the Mu Guyue he saw now showed no signs of it. Although the gestation period for the Demon Clan was longer, her abdomen should have looked different by now. So when he saw Mu Guyue’s flat, elastic abdomen, that thought had arisen.

Mu Guyue’s keen senses had immediately seen through him with a single sentence. Li Yan had then thought that when he had met Mu Guyue at the bottom of the sea back then, he was just a small Golden Core cultivator. And now he was a Spirit Transformation cultivator, and Mu Guyue herself was as well. The stronger a cultivator, the stricter the restrictions of the laws of heaven and earth. Therefore, the situation now was completely different from before.

‘I wonder if Min’er and A Ying are with child?’ That thought had flashed through Li Yan’s mind in that instant. When he married Zhao Min, she was also still at Golden Core, and he had just formed his Nascent Soul. This was very similar to when he met Mu Guyue. But not long after his marriage to Gong Chenying, Gong Chenying also succeeded in forming her Nascent Soul. So, Li Yan couldn’t be sure if the two women were with child when he left…

In the sky above the Broken Army Sect’s plaza, after a brief exchange, Shangguan Tianque flicked his sleeve, and a Green Cloud Sparrow over three hundred zhang long hovered in the air. It was his puppet flying magical treasure. After he had advanced to Spirit Transformation, he had refined it once again. Shangguan Tianque was proficient in alchemy and artifact refining, which made this flying magical treasure’s speed and defense incomparable to what it had been before.

“Banjiang, all of you, come up! Yang Jian, Cheng Guoshan, you two will temporarily manage the sect. Do not be careless. Order the disciples in the sect not to approach the core areas. If they are killed by the formation restrictions, they will be treated as having betrayed the sect. If the sect encounters any mishaps, you need not worry. Someone will naturally step in to clean up!” Shangguan Tianque first spoke to Yu Banjiang at the front of the crowd, then looked at two people in the crowd behind him.

Those two were both Pseudo-Core Realm cultivators. One was Yu Banjiang’s disciple, Yang Jian, who had just successfully broken through during the year-plus training led by Mu Guyue. The other was an old disciple of the sect, very loyal and reliable, whom Yu Banjiang also held in high regard. They were two of the twelve who had been weeded out. This was a decision made after discussion between Shangguan Tianque and Mu Guyue, to specifically leave them behind to guard the sect. Along with them, ten other Golden Core cultivators were left behind. Some of these people indeed had limited improvement in combat power, while others were deliberately left behind. If not for the small number of Spirit Transformation and Nascent Soul cultivators, someone would definitely have been left behind to firmly guard the sect.

As Shangguan Tianque spoke, a formation plate appeared in his hand. As he instantly infused it with his Spirit Power, a green light shield suddenly appeared in the sky behind him. At the same time, a rumbling sound echoed in the sky. He had fully activated all the large and small sub-formations in the core area of the sect. In this way, even the disciples left behind in the sect could not approach. This formation was personally laid down by Shangguan Tianque. Not to mention these Golden Core cultivators, even a Spirit Transformation cultivator would have to expend some effort to open it. After the formation was activated, all the remaining disciples could only move about in the outer sect area.

“We accept the order!” the disciples in the plaza said in unison. Then, streaks of light flew up onto the giant Green Cloud Sparrow. Finally, the four of them, Shangguan Tianque and his group, also flickered and stood at the head of the Green Cloud Sparrow.

“All of you, return to your duties within the sect!” As Shangguan Tianque’s voice spread far and wide, the Green Cloud Sparrow let out a crisp cry and shot straight up into the clouds!

When the Green Cloud Sparrow had flown a thousand li from the Broken Army Sect, it quickly came to a stop! Subsequently, Shangguan Tianque sent a voice transmission to Li Yan and the other two, and then left the group of bewildered disciples behind and departed alone.

After Shangguan Tianque’s figure disappeared into the void, he flew continuously upwards. When he reached a height where the disciples below could no longer see, the void in front of him suddenly rippled. Sensing this, Shangguan Tianque immediately stopped. Just now, someone had sent him a voice transmission, which was why he had come here.

Subsequently, he saw two figures. The moment they revealed themselves, they each turned their palms towards Shangguan Tianque and gave a slight flick. Shangguan Tianque instantly saw clearly that they were two tokens from the Pure Yang Hall. At the same time, one of the old men chuckled. “Fellow Daoist Shangguan, this is the Voice Gui from Chongyangzi. Please have a look!” As he spoke, a Voice Gui Jade Slip suddenly appeared and flew towards Shangguan Tianque.

Shangguan Tianque didn’t stand on ceremony. He directly caught it with his Spirit Power, and a thread of Divine Sense entered the jade slip. Inside, Chongyangzi’s figure immediately appeared…

A short while later, Shangguan Tianque’s figure reappeared at the head of the giant Green Cloud Sparrow. Then, with a light tap of his foot, the Green Cloud Sparrow let out another crisp cry and flew off in the direction of the Blood Lantern Sect!

At the head of the Green Cloud Sparrow, a sound-insulating restriction enveloped the four of them. Ren Yanyu asked softly, “Is it confirmed?”

“Mm, Senior Chongyangzi personally transmitted the Voice Gui Jade Slip to avoid lengthy explanations. Everything is fine. Moreover, the two who came are both Late-stage Spirit Transformation cultivators, hehehe… I don’t know what level the cultivators guarding the sect for the Bright Flame Sect are. But to have such experts guarding our side, this should be thanks to Junior Brother Li and Junior Sister Mu. Senior Chongyangzi has really taken good care of us!” Shangguan Tianque said with a smile, turning to look at Li Yan and Mu Guyue.

Through these recent events, they could long feel that Chongyangzi was taking very good care of the Broken Army Sect. This was undoubtedly related to Chongyangzi’s first visit…

But neither Li Yan nor Mu Guyue spoke. Li Yan just smiled, his expression noncommittal. Mu Guyue, on the other hand, was looking ahead at the white clouds rushing towards them, seemingly lost in thought…