Chapter 305: Mighty Soldiers

Although he found it hard to believe, the evidence was right in front of him—Commander Yang had no choice but to believe it.

Because Mo Hua had already begun explaining the formations marked on the map of Black Mountain Fort.

Where each array was placed, what its purpose was, what would happen if it were forcefully broken, and what would happen if it wasn’t.

He even explained the logic behind the entire fort’s formation layout—where the arrays were strong or weak, which routes were safest for attack, and which secret exits and escape paths needed to be sealed off in advance to prevent the evil cultivators from fleeing…

…

The more Commander Yang listened, the more astonished he became.

Such mastery of formation arts was completely beyond his comprehension. Many of the principles Mo Hua mentioned were so advanced that even catching a rough sense of them left him dizzy.

The last time he’d felt this lost was back in clan school—scratching his head in confusion while his formation instructor lectured him.

He stole a glance at Zhang Lan.

Zhang Lan looked much calmer, though his expression was more numb than composed—like a student whose mind had long gone blank after realizing he couldn’t understand a single word of the lesson.

That made Commander Yang feel a little better.

So it wasn’t just him—Zhang Lan clearly wasn’t faring much better.

He silently consoled himself: My formation skills are poor, sure, but even Zhang Lan’s barely scratch the surface. Neither of us could follow a true formation master.

With that comforting thought, he focused entirely on the boy’s clear, youthful voice as Mo Hua patiently lectured him about the fort’s formation structure.

He needed to understand the terrain and array layout to devise an effective strategy.

He didn’t need to fully grasp every principle, but he had to know the function of each formation and what to watch for when breaking them, lest his troops fall into a trap.

These were Grade-One composite arrays—far beyond his theoretical grasp—but Mo Hua’s explanation was systematic, precise, and easy to follow. He covered every critical detail thoroughly, even pointing out dangers that Commander Yang wouldn’t have thought of himself.

Commander Yang soon found himself listening intently, even taking notes on key points.

By the time Mo Hua had spent most of the day explaining all the arrays on the map, Commander Yang was both shocked and deeply moved.

Shocked that such a young boy truly possessed such profound formation insight; and moved—because he’d never listened this attentively even in his own clan lectures, yet now he was taking notes from a child.

His attitude toward Mo Hua had unconsciously become much more respectful—genuine respect for a true Grade-One Array Master.

In fact, compared with most Grade-One Array Masters he had met, Mo Hua’s mastery was clearly a level higher.

Commander Yang clicked his tongue in admiration, then ordered tea and refreshments—plates of spirit-fruit and aura-rich spirit-meat—to be served.

“Master Mo, please make yourself comfortable.”

His tone was exceedingly polite.

“Thank you, Commander Yang.”

Mo Hua had talked for half a day and was indeed thirsty. He sat down naturally, sipping the fragrant tea and sampling some spirit-fruit he hadn’t tried before.

Meanwhile, Commander Yang and Zhang Lan conferred in low voices over the annotated map.

They didn’t avoid Mo Hua, so he listened openly—though most of it concerned troop deployments, tactical rotations, and battlefield formations. He couldn’t fully follow it, but he still jotted down a few notes, thinking they might be useful someday.

He listened with bright curiosity while enjoying his meal.

When their discussion ended, Mo Hua—now satisfied and refreshed—finally asked the question weighing on his mind:

“Commander Yang, can we really destroy Black Mountain Fort this time?”

Commander Yang pondered the battle plan briefly, then replied with firm conviction:

“We can.”

Mo Hua’s eyes lit up. “Truly?”

Commander Yang nodded and explained:

“The Dao Soldiers are the Dao Court’s most elite force. Their strength does not lie merely in individual cultivation, but in the harmony between their armor, spirit-weapons, formation techniques, and their own spiritual roots and Dao arts.”

“A unit of ten Dao Soldiers is usually composed of cultivators with identical or complementary roots and techniques. When they don their enchanted armor and wield their spirit-forged weapons—both inscribed with arrays that link their qi and morale—their power becomes overwhelming against enemies of the same realm.”

“Even against cultivators of higher realms, they can still put up a real fight.”

“Can they defeat multiple Foundation Establishment cultivators?” Mo Hua asked.

He knew that Black Mountain Fort had four leaders—four Foundation Establishment evil cultivators.

Among the Dao Soldiers, he sensed only Commander Yang himself was at Foundation Establishment.

Commander Yang didn’t answer directly but asked instead:

“How does a Qi-Refining cultivator compare to a Foundation Establishment cultivator?”

Mo Hua recalled Elder Yu’s words. “Ten Qi-Refining ninth-layer cultivators can match one early-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator.”

“That’s true—but not entirely,” Commander Yang replied. “Not any ten Qi-Refining cultivators can do that.”

“If they lack battle experience or coordination, even a dozen of them will simply be cut down one by one by a single Foundation Establishment expert.”

“Only those who are seasoned, disciplined, and perfectly coordinated can fight beyond their realm.”

“That’s what Dao Soldiers are, then?” Mo Hua asked.

Commander Yang nodded. “Exactly. And beyond that, with their enchanted armor and array-augmented weapons, when they form their squad-array, they can kill Foundation Establishment cultivators head-on.”

Mo Hua was shocked.

No wonder the Black Mountain Fort hid so carefully. Even with hundreds of evil cultivators, they’d never dare provoke the Dao Court—because once discovered, the Dao Soldiers would annihilate them.

Even Qi-Refining Dao Soldiers, when arrayed together, could stand against Foundation Establishment foes.

If one alone couldn’t win, ten could; if ten couldn’t, a hundred would.

When hundreds or thousands of Dao Soldiers formed battle-arrays, even higher-realm cultivators couldn’t withstand the onslaught.

Suddenly Mo Hua understood:

“This is just like formation arts—when a single rune isn’t strong enough, you layer them to form a minor array; if that’s still weak, you merge several into a composite array; and if that’s not enough, you keep accumulating until it becomes a grand array!”

“Grains of sand form a tower, rivers converge into a sea—whether in arrays or in armies, many small strengths unite into great power. That too is part of the Dao’s law.”

His eyes gleamed brighter as he spoke.

Commander Yang, though not versed in formations, found himself nodding in agreement. He’d seen the truth of it countless times in battle.

Mo Hua then asked curiously, “What kind of arrays do Dao Soldiers use?”

Commander Yang hesitated, then said apologetically, “That’s classified Dao Court information—something we can’t disclose to outsiders.”

In truth, it wasn’t that he couldn’t tell—he actually didn’t know.

Those formation patterns were standardized and issued by the Dao Court’s Military Array Division. Soldiers only used them; they couldn’t repair or modify them, much less understand their principles.

But admitting ignorance was embarrassing, so he used “classified” as an excuse.

Mo Hua believed him without doubt and quickly apologized. “That was rude of me to ask.”

After all, secret Dao Court battle-arrays were indeed not something he should pry into. He’d only been curious to compare them with his own array studies.

“It’s nothing—don’t worry about it,” Commander Yang said, waving it off, looking slightly guilty.

They chatted a bit longer, and Mo Hua was about to take his leave when Commander Yang hesitated, as though something was on his mind.

“Commander Yang,” Mo Hua asked, “is there something else?”

Commander Yang glanced at Zhang Lan and sighed.

“There is one more problem. The fog formation in the deep forest has changed—we can’t locate Black Mountain Fort anymore.”

He had asked Zhang Lan to find an Array Master not only to interpret the map but also to re-enter the mountains and confirm the new position of the fog array, to plan their assault.

But his scouts reported that the fog formation had shifted, and the mists were now even denser than before.

Mo Hua’s original map of the Fog Forest was now useless.

Without a working map, they couldn’t even find the fort, much less destroy it.

Mo Hua hesitated. He had promised Elder Yu he wouldn’t enter the mountains again—and the Third Leader of the fort was likely still after him.

Yet without passing through the Fog Forest, there was no way to eliminate the threat.

He looked at Commander Yang and Zhang Lan. “You’ll be my bodyguards, right?”

Commander Yang nodded. “Zhang Lan and I will personally escort you.”

“And if we run into Foundation Establishment evil cultivators?”

Commander Yang’s tone grew cold. “Then I’ll mobilize several more Dao Soldier squads. If we encounter Foundation Establishment foes—we’ll slay them on the spot. I’ll guarantee your safety. You won’t lose even a single hair.”

Zhang Lan added, “That’s exactly what I told Elder Yu. With Dao Soldiers guarding you, even Foundation Establishment evil cultivators won’t dare act rashly. That’s why he agreed to let me bring you.”

Mo Hua nodded. “Alright then—let’s go take a look at the Fog Forest.”

(End of Chapter)