How many cultivators above Foundation Establishment were there on the entire Desolate Moon Continent ? Li Yan didn't know, but with the enemy growing at this rate, could it be that a new passage between the two realms had been opened in the South Sea?
Hearing Li Yan's question, Bai Rou smiled sweetly.
"What Martial Uncle Wei said should be the number of the actual demon army. The remaining twenty thousand cultivators are the remnants of the Demon Clan that were once hidden in various parts of the continent, as well as the cultivation sects or families they controlled. And they also control many cultivators in the South Sea."
Hearing this, Li Yan silently cursed himself for being stupid. How could he have forgotten that remnants of the Demon Clan had always existed on the Desolate Moon Continent? He had been too focused on one aspect for a moment.
Seeing Li Yan nod, Bai Rou continued.
"Actually, the cultivation gap between these cultivators is very large. The weakest ones are even at the Qi Condensation stage.
However, among the South Sea cultivators, although they are controlled, they haven't been affected for long. When the real fighting starts, it's unknown how much they can contribute."
Li Yan had already thought of this level. He nodded slightly again, then said with a smile, "I didn't expect Senior Sister Bai to see things so clearly and in such detail. You must have been paying close attention to this battle."
Hearing Li Yan say this, Bai Rou's beautiful face turned crimson. "I... I didn't analyze it myself. This is all what my master told me. I... just... just repeated it!"
Li Yan just chuckled, not taking it to heart, and continued to ask.
"Senior Sister Bai, you just said that there are also Qi Condensation cultivators among this army of thirty thousand. What's the use of the demons sending them over?" This point was strange to Li Yan. On his side, the lowest cultivation was Foundation Establishment. So if the enemy sent Qi Condensation cultivators, wouldn't they just be slaughtered?
"They are of course not for combat, but for spying on our intelligence. On our side, because of the conscription order, the only cultivators who can move around freely now are Qi Condensation stage cultivators. There are too many of these cultivators, and we often can't screen them one by one, so it's inevitable that the enemy will exploit this loophole."
Li Yan thought about it and realized it was true. Sending these Qi Condensation cultivators out to gather information was indeed difficult to guard against. These were all real human cultivators, unless you checked every single one to see if they had been placed under a demonic restriction.
And if it were up to Li Yan to implement, he wouldn't even need a demon cultivator to personally place a restriction on a Qi Condensation cultivator. That way, it would be exposed immediately upon inspection.
All the demon cultivator needed to do was place a restriction on a high-level cultivator of a certain sect, and then have these high-level cultivators plant restrictions on the cultivators below them. No matter how you checked, there would be no trace of demonic arts on them.
Li Yan felt that if he could think of this, the demon cultivators could probably think of it too. So, Qi Condensation cultivators seemed useless, but it was different for the Demon Clan.
It was just that the Qi Condensation cultivators on their side were truly useless. They couldn't just send Qi Condensation human cultivators over; it would be too easy for the other side to find out.
"Among the South Sea cultivators who have sincerely surrendered to the demons, there should be quite a few mid- and high-level cultivators, right? This force should not be underestimated," Li Yan said after some thought.
"Of course there are such people. That's why the Four Great Sects are constantly conscripting Foundation Establishment and Golden Core cultivators, precisely to deal with this level of cultivator. The cultivators who didn't escape in time when the demons invaded were far more than just these twenty thousand. According to the news we received, many more cultivators from the South Sea will be escorted here." Bai Rou's face also showed a grave expression.
Li Yan sighed in his heart. This was probably the tragedy of cultivators.
If it were a war between mortals, if you wanted someone to fight and die for you, besides winning their hearts, the only way was to threaten and entice them with their relatives.
Otherwise, even if you tortured them into agreeing to serve you, once they were on the battlefield, these people might turn against you at the last minute, making you regret your actions.
But it was different for cultivators. Whether you agreed or not, before going into battle, they could place a restriction on you, or even more viciously, directly control your Divine Soul .
At that time, everything would be out of your hands. At most, these restrictions would affect your actual combat power, but it would be very difficult to turn against them.
However, in the end, it was the high-level cultivators who truly decided the outcome of the battle. That was why when Wei Zhongran introduced the situation to Li Yan, he had focused on the number of Golden Core and Nascent Soul cultivators on the other side.
In the South Sea itself, there should have been only one Spirit Transformation cultivator, Yuandu of the Supreme Mystery Teachings , whose physical body had already collapsed, leaving only his Nascent Soul to escape.
As for the Nascent Soul cultivators of the South Sea, as long as they weren't targeted by the Demon Clan's Spirit Transformation cultivators early on, with their heaven-reaching abilities, they would have probably already fled the South Sea. So, among these twenty thousand people, there should be very few great cultivators.
Bai Rou then continued, "Among the ten thousand troops of the demon army that crossed over, most are Demonic Soldiers , and there are also more than four hundred human cultivators from another realm. It is unknown where these human cultivators come from. Each of them has a profound and powerful cultivation..."
Bai Rou thought Li Yan knew nothing, so she went on to give him a detailed introduction to the matter of the cultivators from another realm.
Li Yan also listened attentively to Bai Rou's description, not interrupting her.
In fact, there was one thing that even Wei Zhongran and the high-level cultivators of the Four Great Sects did not know. It was precisely those mysterious human cultivators who were the first batch to teleport over regardless of the consequences.
Many of them were Golden Core and Nascent Soul, which caused the passage between the two realms to collapse at an accelerated rate. By the time the demon army arrived and found that the passage was already showing signs of instability, it was already too late. In the end, only one Demon Marshal level expert and a few Demonic Generals were teleported over.
Thinking that he would be performing missions here, Li Yan then asked.
"Since those human cultivators from another realm have many Golden Core and Nascent Soul cultivators, what is the probability of encountering them when we are on missions?"
This was what Li Yan was most concerned about. It would be fine if he encountered an Initial-stage Golden Core, but if it was an enemy cultivator at Mid-stage Golden Core or above, it would be dangerous.
Bai Rou hesitated for a moment, then answered.
"The three major defensive points, including Windy Cool Mountain, actually have a wisp of a Nascent Soul ancestor's Divine Will left behind. As long as they sense the aura of an enemy Nascent Soul cultivator, the main bodies of these Nascent Soul ancestors will arrive in a moment with the 'Great Spatial Shift' divine ability.
Currently, the main forces in the battle on both sides are Golden Core cultivators like Martial Uncle Wei. Perhaps only when the real decisive battle between the two sides begins will figures like the Nascent Soul ancestors appear, to decide the outcome of the battle with their own power. As for news about the Spirit Transformation level, it is not for us to know."
At this point, Bai Rou paused. Her answer just now had not answered Li Yan's question.
Li Yan also felt that what Bai Rou said about the battle situation was correct, but he didn't know if she had analyzed it herself or heard it from an elder like Elder Chigong. He figured it was probably the latter.
He continued to listen. Bai Rou actually wanted to tell Li Yan everything she knew. She was well aware of the dangers of being in an unfamiliar situation.
Then she gave a light smile and continued, "And our daily missions are to intercept the enemy's scouts, probe their front-line intelligence, screen for suspicious cultivators nearby, and so on. There are quite a few types of missions, but the enemies we encounter are basically at the Foundation Establishment or Qi Condensation stage."
Li Yan nodded. At the same time, he noticed the word "basically" in Bai Rou's words. That meant there was still a chance of encountering mid- to high-level cultivators.
Li Yan was grateful for Bai Rou's approach of telling him the timing of when different levels of cultivators might appear. People like Bai Rou were rare among cultivators.
Both sides used Golden Core cultivators as their main fighting force. This was just like a mortal army.
Wei Zhongran and the others were the generals, Li Yan and the others were the soldiers, and the Nascent Souls, and even the Spirit Transformations, were the final trump cards.
A general would not personally go into battle for every little thing. They would only appear on the battlefield when a decisive battle occurred.
The various trivial matters before a battle and small-scale skirmishes were naturally handled by the soldiers. Li Yan and the others were the ones who did these things.
"But... actually, for some important missions, Golden Core cultivators from both sides will also hide their cultivation and come out to perform them. It is precisely because of this that not only our 'Heavy Peak Battalion,' but also the other battalions, have had several squads run into the enemy's Golden Core cultivators, resulting in the entire squad being wiped out.
In view of this situation, Martial Uncle Wei and the others have also sent out many Golden Core cultivators to patrol outside. As long as we can send out a distress signal in time, they will arrive as soon as possible. And these martial uncles and aunts are also looking for opportunities to hunt down the enemy cultivators who are out on missions."
With some hesitation, Bai Rou still stated the reality of the situation. In fact, every time their Ninth Squad went out, they also held on to a fifty-fifty hope of returning alive. Who knew which day they would be unlucky and run into the enemy's mid- to high-level cultivators?
After she finished speaking, she was afraid Li Yan would worry and quickly explained.
"However, the number of Golden Core cultivators on both sides is limited after all. And there are many squads of cultivators going out on various missions every day. In such a vast area in front of Windy Cool Mountain, it's not easy to run into a Golden Core."
Li Yan felt helpless. He could only give a wry smile.
"What Senior Sister says is also true. Even if we do run into one, as long as they can't kill us in one blow, according to what you said, then it's possible that our martial uncles and aunts will be the ones to arrive."
Li Yan knew this was just like the past between Green Mountain Pass and the State of Meng . Both sides would often send out small teams to harass the other. Sometimes, with bad luck, they might run into a team led by an enemy lieutenant general with extremely high combat power, and death would be instantaneous.
It seemed that whether it was a cultivator or a mortal army, unpredictable changes were the norm.
Li Yan thought to himself, 'Besides being extra careful, there's no other way. The ones who die the most in a war are the low-level soldiers. This saying is indeed not false.'
Next, the two talked for a while longer before Bai Rou realized it was already midnight. Her heart began to beat faster. When had she ever stayed with a man for so long late at night, and alone in a room at that?
She had stayed here until midnight, yet she hadn't felt how much time had passed at all. Feeling shy, she quickly stood up.
"Since the materials have been given to Junior Brother, I... I'll take my leave now. Please pay attention to the token you received today. If there is a mission, a message will be sent."
With that, she walked out of the Cave Residence with somewhat flustered steps.
After Bai Rou left, Li Yan sat in the main hall of the Cave Residence without moving, his brows furrowed in deep thought. But no matter how he thought about it, he couldn't come up with a good plan to avoid the danger.
In a war, there was no such thing as soldier against soldier, general against general. When you encountered them, it was a slaughter, and more likely a one-sided massacre.
Finally, Li Yan suddenly thought of the Snow Mosquito King . 'I haven't had time to enter the "Earthen Patch" space for so long. I wonder how the snow mosquito colony is doing?'
Thinking of this, Li Yan's spirits lifted, and his Divine Sense quickly sank into the "Earthen Patch" space.
But the moment his Divine Sense entered the space, he heard an arrogant voice. "Tremble, you riffraff! Today, I, the Elephant Lord..."
Another impatient voice directly interrupted, letting out a sharp whistle. "The hell with your Lordship! You remnant soul without a body! Today, I'll show you my might! Children, form up..."