Chapter 105: Camp Blood Battle!

The middle‑aged man leading the Wan Family Cultivators clearly had no patience to spar with Xiong Ba; after hearing Xiong Ba's neither soft nor hard words, he curled the corner of his mouth as if he'd heard the biggest joke.

"Bear Leader? What a grand title! Used to ruling and dominating in this wilderness, you've forgotten how high the sky is and how thick the earth is out there?"

His voice suddenly rose, and he pointed his long sword at the camp: "Enough chatter! Face or no face! Kill! Find that 'Old Wang', dead or alive! The rest of the resistors, kill without mercy!"

"How dare you!" Xiong Ba glared, his aura flaring as the pressure of Body Refining Ninth Layer Peak was unleashed without restraint.

"See whether I dare!" the middle‑aged man sneered, his Body Refining Ninth Layer Peak aura erupting with a boom that even slightly overpowered Xiong Ba, "When will the Wan Family get to boss around you ground‑rats? Attack!"

"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!" Before the middle‑aged man finished speaking, the Wan Family Cultivators behind him surged forward like starving wolves, their weapons flashing coldly as they charged at the camp gate. They moved in coordinated groups—three per squad, five per team—clearly well‑trained.

"Damn!" Xiong Ba was utterly enraged, "Damn it, you think I'm made of mud?" he roared, "Brothers, grab your weapons! Defend the camp! Let them know the Pioneer Camp isn't easy to mess with!"

In an instant, shouts and battle cries thundered. Around the camp, the crude wooden fence could not stop these wolf‑like Wan Family Cultivators; it was split and smashed in a few blows. A chaotic melee erupted suddenly!

Although the Pioneer Camp's cultivators were not outnumbered—indeed slightly more—they were mostly scattered militia, accustomed to small skirmishes, never having faced such formations. The Wan Family Cultivators fought ruthlessly, every strike targeting vital points—either a throat cut or a heart pierce—with exquisite coordination, often two holding back while one surged forward, achieving high efficiency.

"Ah!" A camp cultivator raised a simple sword, only to have it blocked by two long swords from the opposite side; a third sword then pierced under his ribs, passing straight through his body.

"Splat!" Blood sprayed everywhere.

"Hold! Hold on!" The camp's cultivators shouted, but they were cut down and forced to retreat step by step.

"Damn it, why are these guys so fierce?" a man who usually bragged of his bravery muttered, his limbs now trembling.

"Don't panic! Form a formation! Learn from them!" Li Hu shouted, shielding Zhang Mei as he struggled to fend off attacks from two Wan Family Cultivators. Zhang Mei's arrows were accurate, occasionally troubling the enemy, but their opponents moved nimbly, making a killing blow hard to land.

Xiong Ba's beard and hair stood on end; he swung a massive battle axe with a fierce wind, each swing accompanied by a dull whooshing sound. He deliberately targeted the opponents' Body Refining Eight Midphase and Ninth Layer hard points, already chopping down three people in succession.

"Big Bear, your opponent is me!" the middle‑aged man leading the Wan Family sneered, his long sword trembling like a venomous snake emerging from a hole, thrusting straight at Xiong Ba's face.

"Clang!" Xiong Ba blocked with his axe horizontally, the massive force numbing his palm.

"Good kid, you've got some skill!" Xiong Ba grinned, his eyes flashing even more fiercely.

Both were at Body Refining Ninth Layer Peak, the middle‑aged man even at the summit, making the duel evenly matched for a moment. Yet Xiong Ba's side clearly lacked high‑end combat power. Apart from him, only a handful of camp cultivators—such as Tie Tou—had reached Body Refining Ninth Layer, and they too were now entangled by the enemy's elite, creating a perilous situation.

"Brother Tie Tou, watch out!" a camp cultivator shouted, seeing Tie Tou kicked in the chest, staggering back with blood spattering from his mouth.

The camp's defenses, under the organized onslaught of the Wan Family Cultivators, receded like a shoreline battered by tides, on the verge of collapse. Casualties rose rapidly, and wails rose and fell.

Wang Shan stood behind the crowd, his brows knit. The members of his expedition team had gathered around him, each wearing a grave expression.

"Elder Wang, we…" Li Hu glanced back in a hurry, his eyes anxiously fixed on Wang Shan.

Wang Shan understood there was no more time. He had originally wanted to see if Xiong Ba had any backup or whether the Wan Family would hold back, but now it was clear the enemy was determined to kill. If they waited any longer, the camp would truly be lost, and escaping would be impossible.

"Take action!" Wang Shan whispered low, his voice small yet clear to every expedition member.

He no longer concealed his strength; the aura of Refining Body Stage Eight Midphase erupted suddenly! Though still a notch below Xiong Ba and the Wan Family leader, on this chaotic battlefield it was already an undeniable force.

"Sharp Gold Talisman! Armor Coagulation Talisman! Swift Movement Talisman! Use them all!" Wang Shan said as he fished several Talismans from his satchel, his true Qi spurring them into instant activation.

Buzz! Golden light flickered as several sharp golden blades materialized out of thin air, whistling toward a few Wan Family Cultivators poised to strike down.

"Puff! Puff!"

Caught off guard, two of the Wan Family Cultivators were pierced through the chest by the golden blades, falling before they could even scream.

Simultaneously, Wang Shan's body glowed with an earth‑colored halo—the effect of the Armor Coagulation Talisman. A flash of blue light under his feet made his form a bit lighter.

"Kill!" Wang Shan charged ahead, a finely forged long sword suddenly appearing in his hand, and he surged into the battle like a tiger descending a mountain.

The expedition members, seeing Wang Shan act, also activated their Talismans and followed. Already skilled within the camp, the Wang Shan‑provided pill‑and‑talisman boost raised their strength a notch; now they erupted at full power, like sharp spears thrusting fiercely into the Wan Family cultivators' formation.

Wang Shan silently swallowed a pill—a Third Tier Burst Pill! This item was one of his treasured bottom‑drawer secrets, capable of dramatically boosting strength in a short time, though its side effects were considerable. But now there was no time to worry about that.

The pill dissolved instantly, a massive surge of medicinal force flooding his limbs and bones. Wang Shan felt his internal Qi boiling, power soaring; his Refining Body Stage Eight Midphase cultivation now faintly brushed the threshold of Body Refining Ninth Layer.

"Die!" Wang Shan let out a low roar, his long sword sweeping horizontally, blade light flashing; a Wan Family cultivator at Body Refining Seventh Layer could not evade and was cut cleanly at the waist.

Fresh blood and entrails spilled onto the ground.

"Bold!" The middle‑aged man leading the Wan Family, while dueling Xiong Ba, caught a corner glimpse of Wang Shan's sudden might—especially the power of those Talismans and his erupting aura—and felt something stir within him.

"This kid… could he be the 'Old Wang'?!" the middle‑aged man's eyes sharpened. Though the portrait was vague, this ferocity and endless tactics matched their profile of 'Old Wang'—cunning, formidable, adept with pills and talismans.

"You lot, go take him down!" the middle‑aged man barked at the several Body Refining Eight and Ninth Layer confidants beside him.

"Yes!" The confidants instantly abandoned their current foes, lunging toward Wang Shan like a wolf pack.

Xiong Ba's pressure eased, but he had no time to catch his breath; seeing Wang Shan surrounded, he shouted urgently, "Old Wang, be careful!" He tried to aid him but was tightly entangled by the middle‑aged man.

"Your opponent is me!" the middle‑aged man sneered, "Today, none of you think you can run away!"

Wang Shan instantly felt the pressure. These Wan Family confidants were far stronger than ordinary cultivators, and their coordination was even tighter. Relying on the Burst Pill's effect, the Armor Coagulation Talisman's defense, and the endless Second Tier Attack Talismans in his hand, he surged left and right, barely holding his ground for a moment.

"Sharp Gold Talisman!"

"Blazing Fire Talisman!"

Boom! Boom!

The exploding light of the Talismans flashed continuously among the crowd, accompanied by wails and roars. Wang Shan moved like a mobile artillery platform; each Talisman he hurled could take down or heavily wound an enemy.

He did not attack indiscriminately; relying on combat awareness far beyond ordinary humans and system‑assisted precise battlefield judgment, he singled out isolated Wan Family descendants or those attacking camp cultivators. Occasionally he would deliberately expose a flaw, luring enemies toward a weak spot in the camp's defense, then suddenly burst forth to counterattack with the camp's cultivators.

"Here! There's a gap here!" Wang Shan shouted, while a Sharp Gold Talisman shot toward a Wan Family cultivator attempting to breach the line.

Li Hu and the others immediately understood, leading several camp cultivators to block, a flurry of swords cutting the foe down.

The fighting grew ever more brutal. Though the camp cultivators, under Wang Shan and the expedition's leadership, briefly steadied their formation and even launched a small counterattack, the overall strength gap remained too great.

The Wan Family cultivators fought fearlessly, wave after wave of assaults.

"Puff!" A member of the expedition beside Zhang Mei, trying to block a sword for her, was pierced through the shoulder and fell with a scream.

"Lao Liu!" Zhang Mei's eyes reddened as she drew her bow faster, arrows raining down.

Li Hu was also drenched in blood, a deep wound on his arm exposing bone, yet he gritted his teeth and kept holding the flank protecting his sister and Wang Shan.

Wang Shan himself fared no better. The Burst Pill's effect was waning, and several wounds scarred his body. The Armor Coagulation Talisman's glow had long dimmed; had he not reacted quickly, several times he would have been severely wounded by enemy weapons.

"Damn it, this never ends!" Wang Shan spat a mouthful of blood, watching the growing tide of Wan Family cultivators and realizing this could not continue.

More than half of the camp's cultivators were dead or wounded, and the number able to fight kept dwindling. Every member of the expedition bore injuries, sustained only by sheer will.

He must fight for his clan and for those who trust him, to carve out a sliver of hope!

"Bear Leader!" Wang Shan suddenly let out a sharp whistle, a signal he and Xiong Ba had prearranged!

Hearing the sound while locked in a bitter fight with the leader of the Wan Family Cultivators, Xiong Ba's eyes flashed with resolve. He suddenly forced his opponent aside, roared with all his strength: "Everyone, hear my command! Retreat to the secret path behind the mountain! Quickly!"

Several of Xiong Ba's trusted subordinates, already having received orders, immediately organized the remaining camp cultivators and began orderly withdrawing toward a hidden Cave Entrance at the rear of the camp. That place was the escape route Xiong Ba had prepared long ago.

"Think you can run? Dream on!" The Wan Family leader, seeing this, still unaware that he might be being tricked, roared, his attack becoming even fiercer, "Stop them! Not a single one may get away!"

He abandoned Xiong Ba, turned, and went to chase those retreating camp cultivators.

"Your opponent is me!" A cold glint flashed in Wang Shan's eyes as he stepped forward voluntarily. He knew that at this moment someone had to hold the rear, otherwise none could escape.

"Seeking death!" The Wan Family leader, seeing Wang Shan dare to provoke him, became even more incensed.

Wang Shan inhaled deeply, squeezing the remaining medicinal energy in his body to the limit; a force stronger than his previous Refining Body Stage Eight Midphase, even vaguely approaching the momentum of Refining Body Stage Nine, erupted from him with a thunderous blast!

"Thunder Rush Palm!"

Wang Shan let out a sharp command, launching both palms simultaneously; the palm wind whistled, with a faint Thunderclap. This was his trump‑card technique, rarely used.

The Wan Family leader hadn't expected Wang Shan to unleash such power at this moment, and hastily raised his sword to block.

"Bang!"

With a muffled thud, the Wan Family leader was knocked back three steps by Wang Shan's palm, his arm numb, his eyes filled with bewildered doubt. This kid—what's going on? On drugs?

Wang Shan's palm forced the leader back, yet he felt a sweet sensation in his throat, a mouthful of fresh blood nearly spurted out, which he forced himself to swallow.

"Li Hu! Take people and leave quickly!" Wang Shan roared.

Li Hu and the others, eyes watery, glanced at Wang Shan, knowing there was no time for hesitation; they led the remaining expedition members, protecting Zhang Mei, and swiftly joined the retreating column.

Seizing the moment the Wan Family leader was stunned, Wang Shan again flung several massive second‑stage Talismans, temporarily repelling the Wan Family cultivators swarming around him.

However, there were simply too many people from the Wan Family.

He had bought precious evacuation time for the camp cultivators and expedition members, but he himself had already become encircled by layers of Wan Family cultivators.

The Wan Family leader steadied himself, looking at Wang Shan, who was surrounded in the center and already at the end of his strength, a cruel smile spreading across his face: "Kid, let's see where you run this time!"

Wang Shan leaned on his sword, breathing heavily, fresh blood dripping from his arm onto the ground.

Dead end?

Yet his mind was unusually clear.

Perhaps.

But Wang Shan has never been the type to sit and wait for death!