155: secretly crossing the Chencang River

"Hmm, you are quite motivated."

Outside Yangyuan Cave, Lu Tao looked up at the Yangquan Faction Cultivators in the distance, who were gritting their teeth to activate the Formation and launch attacks, a faint smile curling at the corner of his mouth.

"Rest assured, this grand Formation is a hard-hitting item we exchanged for with a million points."

Zhao Lie laughed heartily, his tone full of confidence, "Spirit Stones and primordial crystals are piled up like mountains; even if those six people under Shen Qingxuan attack together, there is absolutely no problem holding out for two or three hours."

"You all really went all out."

Lu Tao turned his head, his gaze sweeping across the faces of Zhao Lie and Murong Yue, his tone flat but carrying a hint of inquiry, "Is he really worth such a sacrifice from you?"

"Junior Brother Lu treats us with complete sincerity; what are these mere merit points compared to that?"

Murong Yue smiled faintly, turned around, and looked directly at the "Lu Tao" in front of her, a hint of understanding hidden in her eyes, "Furthermore, even if we didn't spend the points here, after the National War ends, we probably wouldn't be able to squeeze into the top one hundred of the overall rankings anyway."

"Lu Tao" pondered for a few seconds and nodded slowly, "Indeed, given your temperaments, you truly cannot compete with those people."

"Since that is the case, what meaning does keeping these points have for us?"

Murong Yue and Zhao Lie exchanged a smile, adding with a double meaning, "Besides, it is not just the two of us who are making sacrifices."

"Oh? You are referring to..."

"Lu Tao" narrowed his eyes slightly, his tone probing as he asked.

"When everything is over, you will naturally know... Senior Sister Chen."

Murong Yue blinked mysteriously, a smile flashing across the corners of her mouth.

"Since you refuse to say, then forget it."

"Lu Tao"'s face instantly shed its previous composure, revealing a hint of allure. He lazily stretched, turned around, and walked into the cave, "I will go rest for a while. If there is a special situation... little Yueyue, you call me again."

"Understood, Senior Sister Chen."

Zhao Lie and Murong Yue bowed slightly, watching her leave.

After the figure of "Lu Tao" completely disappeared into the depths of the cave, the two straightened up, their gazes falling back onto the Formation light screen, which was constantly roaring and rippling.

A trace of worry flashed in Murong Yue's eyes, and she murmured softly, "I wonder where Junior Brother Lu and the others are now..."

"They should be close."

Zhao Lie spoke in a deep voice, his tone certain, "At their speed, they will only arrive faster than Shen Qingxuan's group."

"I hope everything goes smoothly."

Murong Yue sighed softly, her fingertips unconsciously clutching the corner of her clothes.

Zhao Lie patted her shoulder, his tone firm, "It will definitely go smoothly."

The sounds of bombardment outside the Formation continued incessantly, the spiritual light on the light screen flickering on and off, while the two groups of people, inside and outside the cave, were waiting for their respective 'opportunity' to arrive.

...

Within the territory of the Yangquan Faction, hundreds of figures were silently shuttling through the mountains.

Soon, they arrived near a forest covered in icicles.

"Ice Prison Pain Forest, we have arrived."

A Divine Soul transmission sounded in everyone's minds, and the total of over one hundred Peak Core Formation Cultivators all halted their movements simultaneously.

"Next, you must strictly follow my footsteps to avoid triggering the warning Formation."

Su Ling turned his head and urged with a solemn expression.

The young man beside him revealed a smile and was the first to state his position, "Rest assured, I will not miss a single step."

This person was none other than Lu Tao, who should have remained at Yangyuan Cave.

"Rest assured, Fellow Daoist Han. Since Junior Brother Lu trusts you, we will naturally trust you too."

A scholarly young man swept his gaze over the crowd and nodded slowly.

Among these one hundred-plus Peak Core Formation Cultivators, nearly eighty percent were elites brought by him.

Feeling his gaze, everyone nodded in unison.

The reason for this was not just because they were intimidated by the scholarly young man's deterrent power.

It was also because they all knew about this 'Fellow Daoist Han' before them.

He was the one who had created the proud battle record of killing hundreds of Qingming Faction Cultivators single-handedly.

The Azure Thunder Demonic Cultivator 'Han Yu' who saved over a thousand Bitao Faction Cultivators from a certain-death situation!

And their purpose for this trip was to follow Han Yu and create history once again.

With the combat power of two Nascent Souls and one hundred Core Formations, they would brazenly capture a heavily guarded resource point.

Because strictly speaking, 'Han Yu' was not a Nascent Soul Cultivator.

If this trip went smoothly, on average, each person could gain at least twenty to thirty thousand points.

Points were secondary; what made them even more tempted was the rich spoils of war obtained after the battle.

"Good!"

Su Ling nodded in agreement, waved his large hand, and commanded, "Move out!"

As soon as his voice fell, he had already shot out like lightning.

What he used was entirely Physical Body strength, without the slightest fluctuation of magical power.

As a Core Formation Cultivator, even without tempering the Physical Body, under the nourishment of magical power, the strength of the Physical Body was extraordinary.

Everyone followed suit, moving rapidly following Su Ling's footsteps.

The reason for this was that there were countless warning Formations set up all around.

Among them were many special Formations specifically designed to detect fluctuations of magical power.

However, Su Ling had previously spent a great deal of time figuring out a highly secretive path that could be traversed without triggering any warning Formations.

Under his guidance, it took two quarter-hours, and dozens of miles were covered in a flash.

The group had already arrived at the core area of the Pain Forest; moving further ahead would be the area covered by the grand Formation guarding the Yangquan Faction's resource point.

A transparent light membrane emitting a faint golden light appeared suddenly before their eyes.

"Give me a quarter of an hour."

The ten thousand souls banner appeared from his palm, and Su Ling said in a low voice, "Once I am prepared, Senior Brother Song, Lu Tao... you two can proceed to bombard the Formation."

"Understood."

The scholarly young man nodded, a sharp glint flashing in his eyes as they swept over the ten thousand souls banner, "It just so happens that I also need some time to prepare."

Song Moting, another True Immortal Disciple of the Bitao Sect, was close friends with Lu Tao.

With 3.45 million points, he ranked fourth in the Bitao Faction and twenty-fifth on the overall point rankings.

"Rest assured, I will follow your arrangements!"

Lu Tao chuckled, his eyes full of excitement.

With Su Ling planning for him, he didn't need to consider so much at all.

After all, within the Bitao Sect, he did not have many friends.

Zhao Lie and Murong Yue were called friends, but in reality, they mostly treated him like a younger brother, taking care of him.

Song Moting, as well as Senior Sister Chen who was providing cover for him at Yangyuan Cave.

Usually, they were more like elders, often urging and instructing him.

Only Su Ling, from beginning to end, treated Lu Tao as an equal, like a good friend and brother.

He did not act as if he were deeply indebted just because he had saved him once.

Lu Tao liked this attitude very much.

At this moment, his heart was filled with the anticipation of fighting side-by-side with Su Ling.

"Good, protect me."

Su Ling took a deep breath and pressed one palm into the ground, which was covered in hard ice.

Under his control, the Soul-Devouring Spider Mother's soul body, carrying the ten thousand souls banner, silently burrowed into the underground rock layer.

Until a quarter-hour later, a sharp glint flashed in Su Ling's eyes, and he shouted in a low voice, "Attack!"

Before his voice had faded, two figures shot into the sky like lightning.

A majestic aura erupted, and the Formation light screen suddenly trembled violently.