At that time, when forces from Yu County and Ling County combine, along with the two elders of the Yang family, Xu Daoyuan, and the two from the Chen family, there would be more than forty Foundation Establishment cultivators and five Purple Mansion combatants.
"Alright, let's proceed with this plan."
The group nodded in agreement with Elian's suggestion.
They quickly organized their manpower, deciding to deploy ten Foundation Establishment cultivators from Yu County. Combined with those from Feng County and Ling County, they managed to gather twenty Foundation Establishment cultivators.
Since Yuyang Market was located near the Hundred Thousand Mile Wasteland and could still face beast attacks, two late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators and six mid-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators were left behind to guard the area.
One of the late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators was the head of the Lin family. After failing to break through to the Purple Mansion stage, his vitality was severely damaged, and he now had less than five years of life left.
However, he had opened one percent of his Purple Mansion Dao Veins. If he fought desperately, he could activate Yuyang Market's Demon-Slaying Sword Formation to hold off a Purple Mansion cultivator.
The other was Meng Xinghe, specifically left behind by Elian to oversee the Chen family and act as a safeguard. If Lin family's leader were to act against the Chen family, Meng Xinghe, who controlled half of the Demon-Slaying Sword Formation, along with the other Foundation Establishment cultivators, could potentially subdue him.
After giving Meng Xinghe detailed instructions, Elian set out that very night, piloting the Seven-Star Demon-Slaying Boat toward Ling County.
Upon receiving the message, Ling County had already assembled its forces. After flying for three days and covering fifty to sixty thousand miles, Elian encountered Ling County's cultivators, led by Elder Yang Yuanhe.
Elian brought them back to Yu County, where they regrouped with the Yu County cultivators.
After resting for a day, the group replenished the spiritual energy of the Seven-Star Demon-Slaying Boat using ten thousand spirit stones from their reserves of one hundred thousand. Then, they activated the boat and set off for Feng County.
The Seven-Star Demon-Slaying Boat could only carry thirty people at a time, but there were forty Foundation Establishment cultivators in total. After squeezing thirty-five onto the boat, they realized they couldn't fit everyone.
Since Foundation Establishment cultivators without high-grade flying swords could only travel three to five thousand miles a day while consuming significant spiritual energy, Elder Yang and the three other Purple Mansion cultivators decided to fly on their own, each carrying two Foundation Establishment cultivators.
The speed of the Purple Mansion cultivators was slightly faster than that of the Seven-Star Demon-Slaying Boat. In less than three days, they covered over fifty thousand miles of wilderness and reached their destination.
The group stopped about a thousand miles away from Fengyang Market in a desolate mountain in northeastern Yu County. Elder Yang, studying the map with a grave expression, said:
"We are in a barren mountain northeast of Yu County, about a thousand miles from Fengyang Market."
"According to our intelligence, the beast army besieging Fengyang Market still numbers about eighteen thousand. Aside from the Violet-Striped Wolf King, there are three other Purple Mansion beasts."
Elder Yang explained the situation cautiously, emphasizing the importance of this battle.
The beast army included more than sixty Foundation Establishment-level beasts. With forty Foundation Establishment reinforcements on their side, the low-level beasts wouldn't pose much of a problem.
The main concern was the four Purple Mansion beasts: the Violet-Striped Wolf King, along with the Scarlet Flame Python, the Golden-Horned Barbaric Bull, and a demonic wolf from the wolf clan.
The Scarlet Flame Python, like the Ice Python, originated from Sky Python Lake and belonged to the same lineage as the Sky Python Demon King. However, the Scarlet Flame Python, at the fourth stage of the Purple Mansion realm, was significantly stronger than the Ice Python and would require a cautious approach.
The demonic wolf, at the first stage of the Purple Mansion realm, was a recent breakthrough and the weakest among them. Elian believed he could handle it.
The Golden-Horned Barbaric Bull, at the third stage of the Purple Mansion realm, was incredibly strong and possessed a powerful physical body, making it difficult for even advanced magical tools to inflict fatal damage.
However, the bull had a major flaw: its energy was relatively weak compared to others of its level. Beast energy was generally inferior to that of human cultivators, and the Golden-Horned Barbaric Bull was among the weakest in this regard. It likely wouldn't be able to use many divine abilities before resorting to physical combat.
Elder Yang analyzed the situation and said, "The Violet-Striped Wolf King is extremely powerful. Elder Xu Qianyang and I will need to join forces to deal with it.
"What about the other three Purple Mansion beasts? Can you handle them?"
The group exchanged glances. After some hesitation, Xu Daoyuan spoke up.
"I can handle the Scarlet Flame Python."
"But since it's mid-stage Purple Mansion, if the battle drags on too long, I might struggle to keep up."
With the strongest two beasts accounted for, the group turned to Elder Yang Yuanhe.
The third Purple Mansion elder present, Yang Yuanhe, hesitated but eventually said, "I can handle the demonic wolf. However, if it's the Golden-Horned Barbaric Bull, I might only be able to hold it off."
Elder Yang frowned at Yang Yuanhe, then turned to Elian and the patriarch. After some thought, he said,
"You haven't cultivated any Purple Mansion-level techniques or divine abilities, and your life-bound artifact, the Water-Rejecting Metal Orb, isn't very powerful. It would be difficult for you to defeat the demonic wolf."
"It's better if you handle the Golden-Horned Barbaric Bull while the two young members of the Chen family deal with the demonic wolf."
Despite some reluctance, Yang Yuanhe accepted the task after Elder Yang gave the order.
To aid him, Elder Yang distributed a set of formation flags called the Bingfire Demon Refining Flags. These low-grade third-tier flags, a treasured Yang family heirloom, were capable of holding off an early-stage Purple Mansion beast when activated by nine Foundation Establishment cultivators.
Elder Yang selected nine Foundation Establishment cultivators and instructed Yang Yuanhe, "These nine will assist you. Together, they'll be equivalent to two Purple Mansion cultivators, which should be enough to defeat the Golden-Horned Barbaric Bull."
"As for the demonic wolf," Elder Yang continued, turning to Elian and the patriarch with an expectant expression, "you'll take the treasure boat and work with seven Foundation Establishment cultivators to deal with it.
"Whether we can break through depends on the two of you."
The patriarch exchanged a glance with Elian and said solemnly, "The demonic wolf is weaker than the Ice Python. If the two of us work together, we will definitely succeed."
"That puts my mind at ease," Elder Yang said with a sigh of relief.
He added, "According to our agreement, Elder Xu Qianyang will lead an attack from the city tomorrow. At that time, we'll strike from the rear and catch the enemy off guard."
...
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I need POWAAA! Gimme Power Stones :D