Chapter 446: Lu Hongtu Designs According to the Poem

In the mist, the sound of horns was faintly transmitted.

The heavy sound of horse hooves gradually approached, seeping out of the thick fog and transmitting into the mountain forest.

The army moved slowly in the thick fog, the iron armor emitting cold light, also obscured by the mist and blurred.

The cultivators' footsteps were steady and orderly, and the sound of iron blood and mud rubbing echoed in this mist. The warhorses lowered their heads and moved forward, their nostrils spraying white gas, and across the thick fog, it was like a phantom.

The five armies echoed each other, marching in the high mountains and ridges, like a slow and heavy giant snake, winding and wandering in the mist.

The thick fog did not dissipate until the afternoon.

The marching speed of the whole army was also improved.

When the sun slanted to the west, following Sun Gan's order, the whole army slowly stopped, occupied their respective territories, and began to set up camp.

By tomorrow, at dawn, the army would set out again.

After marching like this for two days, the gap between the armies gradually widened.

In the main general's tent, Sun Gan looked at the map, a cold light flashing in his eyes.

He pointed his finger at the mark of the Three Generals Camp and asked the people in the tent: "What's going on with the Three Generals Camp? Why is the marching speed so slow? They are actually lagging behind the Red Flower Camp by a full ten miles!"

The deputy general said: "Reporting to my lord, the Three Generals Camp strictly implements the one-word long snake formation, making it difficult for the whole army to speed up. Cultivators often walk for half an hour and have to stop to rest and replenish magic power and physical strength."

Sun Gan stared: "What are Liu Er and his group doing? They haven't reached the front line yet, and they are acting like this? Delaying the schedule, are they afraid of going to the front line?"

Another deputy general sneered: "They claim to the outside world that they are using marching to replace training."

"The key is that their marching like this is also in accordance with military law, and it's not easy for us to hold them accountable for this."

"In my opinion, this group of people is cowardly; from the time they set out, they avoided the responsibility of the vanguard, which can be seen."

"The so-called three generals Liu Er, Guan Hong, and Zhang Hei are just third-rate Golden Cores, unknown."

"The reason they came to participate in the war must be to fish in troubled waters and take advantage; how could they be like us, for the country and the people!"

Sun Gan looked at the deputy general, very dissatisfied: "I entrusted the marching matter to you; didn't you order the Three Generals Camp to speed up halfway?"

The deputy general gave a bitter smile: "My lord, I sent messengers to urge them many times, but the Three Generals Camp still went their own way."

"When urged urgently, they even gave us a prophecy poem, saying it was obtained by their military advisor's divination, and asked us to be careful!"

"Oh? A prophecy poem?" Sun Gan's expression stagnated, then his eyebrows twitched, and he asked in detail, "How is the poem written?"

The deputy general responded: "Horse hooves tread on falling flowers, wind rises, shadows sink in the sand. Who can keep the bright moon, who will bury the mist and clouds?"

Sun Gan frowned and pondered carefully: "This poem is ominous; who wrote it?"

Deputy general: "It was a young Foundation Establishment cultivator surnamed Ning, named Zhuo, from the South Bean Nation."

Sun Gan's brows immediately relaxed: "Just Foundation Establishment, a young man, and a cultivator from another country, hehe. The Three Generals believe in the divination of such people; how ridiculous!"

"Pass my military order!"

"Liu Er of the Three Generals Camp recklessly believes in prophecy and delays military aircraft; punish him with sixty heavy boards, and wait until the army arrives at Wooden Wheel Town to implement it."

The messenger immediately received the military order, carried the message, and ran out.

Sun Gan lowered his head and continued to study the military map.

He frowned again: "The position of the Red Flower Camp is also a bit wrong; what's going on?"

The deputy general said: "My lord, it is said that General Mulan also believed in this prophecy poem, so she has been organizing a flowing water battle formation during the march to prevent accidents."

"Is that so..." Sun Gan murmured, his heart secretly shocked.

Although the flowing water formation also has the blessing of marching, it is extremely difficult to support it for a long time.

Comparing it with the Three Generals Camp, one could see it.

But the Red Flower Camp actually persisted for so long, and used the battle formation to march, and the overall progress could actually keep up with the main force.

"The Red Flower Camp's training is so orderly that it can almost rival my Golden Halberd Army!"

"Although this Upper General's Mansion has declined, the foundation in the army is still there; the old soldiers and backbone left behind are not to be underestimated."

Sun Gan was a veteran in the army and immediately realized this, but verbally he still said: "Mulan actually believes in the prophecy poem made by a child?"

"Hehe, after all, she is a woman; her hair is long, and her knowledge is short! The Upper General's Mansion has no successors."

The deputy general hurriedly laughed and echoed.

Sun Gan's heart moved: "Mulan is covering the prestige of the Upper General; this seems to be a good opportunity to let her lose face."

"The prestige of Old General Mu in the army is very high; only by operating like this step by step can we weaken it until it reaches a very low level."

"Only in this way can our plan to seize the position of Upper General be justified and natural."

Sun Gan was the commander of the Forbidden Army, and it was true that he had a high position and power, but how could the position of Forbidden Army commander be as fragrant as the position of Upper General!

There were only three Upper Generals in the entire two-note nation.

With Old General Mu bedridden all year round, his Upper General's Mansion had become a piece of fat meat that others coveted.

This time, according to common sense, it should not have been the Mu family's turn to send troops. But under the tacit understanding of many people, Old General Mu was pushed to go on an expedition.

Mulan went on an expedition on behalf of her father, and the situation was severe, all because she was facing not only the enemy army but also the covetousness of her own people!

Thinking of this, Sun Gan immediately ordered: "Walking and stopping like this, when will we arrive at Wooden Wheel Town and meet with the Commander?"

"Too slow!"

"Pass the order down, starting from tomorrow, forced march!"

Thousand Peaks Forest.

Barren Wood Peak.

This giant mountain of heaven-pillar wood was steep, barren, and lonely. The whole mountain was withered wood, with branches and trunks twisted like strange skeletons, stretching densely.

The withered wood forest stood tall, its roots deep and leaves withered, as if cursed; walking among them made one feel extremely depressed.

Besides withered wood, there were barren grass and night vines. They tightly entangled rocks and trees, swaying with the wind.

The sun here was often poisonous during the day, and it was abnormally cold at night.

Apart from withered grass and barren wood, there were no signs of life.

Cave Master Moyuan brought three Nascent Soul cave masters, hiding their tracks, and stepped onto the peak of Barren Wood Peak.

Someone was already waiting here.

The number of people was not small.

These cultivators were generally tall, dressed in revealing and tight clothing, with a very primitive beauty.

At a glance, one could identify that these people were all barbarian cultivators.

"The humans are here." The first to sense the approach of Cave Master Moyuan and others was a barbarian blind man.

This barbarian had a black cloth covering his eyes, his face was resolute, his bones were deep, his upper body was bare, and there were blood totems on his skin. His lower body was a pair of animal skin pants, with the trouser legs tightened by leather belts, which was convenient for movement.

He carried two huge curved blades on his back, the blades curved very exaggeratedly, like moon strings. Although they were in the scabbard, there were still wisps of cold moonlight flowing out.

Pale Moon Tribe, Di Lu!

Beside Di Lu stood a Nascent Soul-level cultivator of the same tribe.

He had blue hair, a tall and thin figure, strong muscles, and clear muscle texture. His skin was as pale as dead ice, and there were wolf claw patterns symbolizing the tribe on his forehead and cheeks.

He carried a huge wolf-tooth club on his back, and there was a circle of bloodshot eyes around his eyes.

Pale Moon Tribe, Gu Ya!

Gu Ya's nostrils twitched, he sniffed, cracked his mouth, and revealed jagged, white teeth: "Hmm, I smell a bloody smell, not fresh, carrying a stench, it must be the blood shadow brats of the Six Cave Sect."

Gu Ya also possessed Nascent Soul-level cultivation.

Blood Shadow immediately snorted coldly; he had fought Gu Ya before, and more than once.

He immediately revealed his figure, his killing intent revealed: "Old wolf, if you don't break through to the Soul Transformation stage, your lifespan is almost up, right? Aren't you afraid that I will visit your family after you die?"

"The hatred of you chasing me back then, I will definitely repay it."

As a result, Gu Ya said indifferently: "Go ahead and kill them; if they die in your hands, that is their fate."

Blood Shadow revealed a sinister look: "I forgot to tell you, not only will I kill them, but I will also extract their souls and burn them in the sunlight until they perish."

Gu Ya immediately revealed anger: "How dare you! Blood Shadow brat, before my lifespan ends, I will definitely visit your cave and take you down with me."

The Pale Moon Tribe believed in the Pale Moon Ancient God; dying in the sunlight was regarded as an act of blasphemy against the god, and after death, the soul would no longer ascend to the Pale Moon and would not be accepted by the Pale Moon Ancient God.

Blood Shadow's threat touched Gu Ya's reverse scale, making the latter angry.

"Hehehe, fight, what is fighting just by arguing? Fight! Fight quickly!" An old barbarian woman feared that the world would not be chaotic, and started a commotion on the side, her voice sharp like a crow.

She wore a cloak woven from emerald vines, and the cloak was hung with dense animal bones and bird feathers. Ancient talismans flashed from time to time on the animal bones and bird feathers.

Her skin was like tree bark, her wrinkles were deep, and she was very vicissitudinous.

Her eyes flashed with green light, which felt creepy.

And her hands were as old as withered wood, and her fingertips grew out like curved vines.

Ancient Vine Tribe, Nascent Soul cultivator, Bi Tengyi!

Beside her stood her husband, the Golden Core-level Cang Teng Wang.

Cang Teng Wang wore ancient vine battle armor, his face was rough, middle-aged, his white beard and long hair were messy, and his brows were full of wildness.

He carried a huge black bow on his back. The bow was naturally curved and not strung.

Cang Teng Wang stood behind Bi Tengyi and did not say a word.

Cave Master Moyuan and others revealed their figures, signaled with their eyes, and nodded slightly.

Responding to him were three cultivators from the Hundred Poison Tribe.

The leader was the Nascent Soul-level Poison Belly High Priest Tu Ming, Nascent Soul level.

On his left and right stood two Golden Core cultivators, namely the Rot Poison General Diao Ye and the Poisonous Savage Wu Lan.

Gu Ya and Blood Shadow were not on good terms and continued to argue, their voices getting louder and their tempers getting hotter.

Seeing that both sides were about to make a move, neither Di Lu of the Pale Moon Tribe nor Cave Master Moyuan Lu Hongtu showed any signs of stopping them.

Not at all.

In this region of Thousand Peaks Forest, taking the initiative to soften one's attitude was often regarded as weakness.

One must show a tough stance to win each other's respect!

But the battle between Gu Ya and Blood Shadow did not happen after all.

The one who stopped them was an old man.

His figure was hunched, his face was thin, his appearance was ordinary, his skin was mottled, and his eyes were dim as if he were dying.

He held a simple and unadorned cane all year round, with ginseng whiskers and dragon patterns carved on the head of the cane, and the body of the cane vaguely exuded a deep aura.

Seeing the old man appear, the human cultivators led by Moyuan and the barbarian cultivators took the initiative to salute one after another, respectfully calling: "Long Ye."

This "Long Ye" was also a Nascent Soul cultivator, with a special identity, the temple keeper of the Dragon King Temple's main temple, representing the existence of the Soul Transformation level—Ginseng Whisker Dragon King!

"Hehehe." Long Ye revealed a kind smile, "Two juniors, don't fight and make trouble; isn't it better to save your strength to kill the enemy?"

"Yes, Long Ye." Although Gu Ya was old, in terms of age, he could not compare to a fraction of Long Ye's.

Cave Master Blood Shadow appeared even more obedient: "I listen to you, Long Ye!"

Long Ye smiled, his gaze swept around, then paused on Cave Master Moyuan Lu Hongtu, and praised: "The Great Cave Master personally dispatched and invited many Nascent Soul cultivators to assist; the credit is great. After this battle, there will be rewards."

Lu Hongtu immediately smiled: "My Six Cave Sect resides in the Thousand Peaks Forest, naturally I must go all out to defend my home and resist the enemy invaders. Dragon King God's rewards and punishments are fair; our side will surely win this battle!"

Long Ye smiled and nodded: "This is natural."

"Little Feng, Ah Guai, come out and tell everyone the intelligence you have gathered."

The next moment, two Golden Core-level cultivators descended from the sky and landed behind Long Ye.

One was a monster cultivator, human body with an eagle head, named Chen Lingfeng. He was originally a member of the monster beast group on Wind Pillar Peak, born with talent, was favored by the Ginseng Whisker Dragon King, was cultivated, and became a monster cultivator.

One was a human cultivator, named Wu Hen.

He was thin and long, his face was withered and pale, like a walking corpse.

His long hair was as black as ink, fluffy and messy, and the edges of his hair swayed gently in the air accompanied by shadows.

His eyes were deeply sunken, and the area around his eye sockets was covered with black bloodshot eyes, which were particularly gloomy.

He wore a black robe, the hem of the robe dragging on the ground, the surface was dilapidated, as if he had experienced countless life-and-death tempering.

And at the edge where the hem of the robe touched the ground, the black shadow twisted strangely, making people feel quite uncomfortable.

Long Ye said: "Tell everyone about the military situation you have investigated."

Wu Hen remained silent, and the monster cultivator Chen Lingfeng spoke: "I have been hiding in the high altitude for these few days, overlooking the mountains, and have been staring at the march of the two-note nation's rear army."

"On the mountain land, they are divided into five armies, echoing each other from front to back."

"The Savage Monster Camp in the lead, followed by the White Jade Camp, the Golden Halberd Army in the middle, the Red Flower Camp behind it, and the Three Generals Camp at the end..."

Chen Lingfeng then described the dynamics of the whole army in detail.

After listening to the introduction, the cultivators' expressions relaxed a bit.

"Although Sun Gan is the commander of the Forbidden Army, he does not often go to the battlefield, and he is in the rear, feeling safe, and actually forced a march. Hehehe." Cave Master Poison Scorpion giggled, and killing intent permeated.

Gu Ya stretched out his bright red tongue, licked his teeth, and revealed a bloodthirsty expression: "The enemy general is stupid; this is our chance for battle."

Cave Master Moyuan Lu Hongtu carried his hands on his back and pondered: "Although this is the case, there are differences between the five armies. In my opinion, we should go all out to ambush the Golden Halberd Army and cut off this army from the middle."

"The vanguard Savage Monster Camp is the key to breaking the situation. Although this army has many people, they are all monster cultivators and barbarians; even if they practice battle formations hard, the composition is mixed, and it is quite difficult to command. Plus, Xu Dali is not a wise general; once it becomes chaotic, it will be difficult for him to organize resistance with his ability."

"Once the Savage Monster Camp is defeated, we don't have to kill them all, just drive them away."

"Use them to impact the White Jade Camp. The commander of the White Jade Camp, Shuang Jing, is a noble descendant with few battle achievements, and it is very likely that his reaction will be insufficient and his response improper. Once the White Jade Camp's formation is also disrupted, we can continue to cover and kill, letting the army directly impact the Golden Halberd Army!"

"Although the Golden Halberd Army is strong, there are few people, and to stand firm, they must kill their own soldiers; in this way, the military heart will be shaken, the morale will inevitably plummet, and it is very likely that flaws will be revealed."

"Once we seize this flaw, we will surely win in one battle, and it is very possible to annihilate them all."

Lu Hongtu smiled, his tone was sinister: "As for the Red Flower Camp and the Three Generals Camp, they are not important."

"According to the intelligence, these two armies are heavily guarded and march with battle formations. Even if we ambush, it is difficult to achieve results, and it is easy to be dragged down."

"Once the ambush is launched, for every moment of delay, our advantage will drop by ten percent."

"The most critical thing is that these two armies are weak, and the generals are only Golden Cores; even if they are annihilated, it is hard to compare with the results of killing the Golden Halberd Army!"

The cultivators were silent.

After a long while, Long Ye smiled: "As expected of the Great Cave Master of the Six Cave Sect, this plan is not bad."

Di Lu of the Pale Moon Tribe suddenly said: "Isn't there a Fire Cloud Camp?"

Chen Lingfeng said: "This army has not set out; I think Canglin Immortal City is the great rear of the two-note nation this time, and it also needs troops to guard it."

Cave Master Demon Heart pondered: "It's a bit strange."

"The commander Sun Gan ordered a forced march; why do the last two armies march with battle formations and are so heavily guarded?"

This time, Wu Hen spoke: "There is a prophecy poem..."

His voice was very strange and very unpleasant, like sharp friction between fingertips and glass.

Under his introduction, the cultivators knew about Ning Zhuo's poem.

Horse hooves tread on falling flowers, wind rises, shadows sink in the sand. Who can keep the bright moon, who will bury the mist and clouds?

"This poem actually seems to have predicted our ambush this time?!" Everyone was shocked.

"Is the two-note nation so full of talent?"

"Who is this person? He must be killed to be at ease!"

Wu Hen then said: "This person's name is Ning Zhuo, but he is not from the two-note nation; he comes from the Ning family of the South Bean Nation."

"Is there a Ning family in the South Bean Nation?"

"Never heard of it..."

"Only heard of the Meng family and the Su family."

Wu Hen said again: "The Ning family came from the North Wind Nation, migrated all the way, passed through the two-note nation, and finally merged into the South Bean Nation, now residing in Fire Persimmon Mountain."

"The reason Ning Zhuo joined the army is that the Ning family once had a grudge with the Six Cave Sect. This time, it happened to be the start of the war, so he wanted to take the opportunity to take revenge."

Everyone looked at the Six Cave Sect.

"Ning family?" Cave Master Moyuan sighed in his heart; he remembered it and glanced at Cave Master Demon Heart beside him.

Cave Master Demon Heart coughed.

Cave Master Moyuan managed the Six Cave Sect and actively made friends with forces outside the mountains. The Ning family once possessed Nascent Soul cultivators and had trade dealings with the Six Cave Sect, and the friendship was not shallow.

The Ning family migrated with the whole clan, and Cave Master Moyuan originally intended to help, but Cave Master Demon Heart and others had crooked thoughts and took advantage of Lu Hongtu's inattention to carry out a conspiracy.

After all, they could not disobey the Great Cave Master's orders on the surface.

As a result, the Ning family also had luck, lost most of their wealth, and finally escaped at the last moment.

"This is an old grudge." Cave Master Moyuan smiled slightly, calm and composed, "The Ning family brat, mere Foundation Establishment, dares to take revenge; his courage is commendable. Good, this poem is good, and I have another plan!"

Long Ye: "Hmm? Great Cave Master, please speak."

Cave Master Moyuan then said: "It is difficult to break the battle formation; the key is the military heart and morale. Once morale falls and the military heart is shaken, the power of the battle formation will inevitably drop significantly."

"If this prophecy poem is used well, it may be comparable to Nascent Soul-level combat power, or even more critical!"

"Presumably the enemy army is already familiar with this prophecy poem. At least from the marching posture, the Three Generals Camp and the Red Flower Camp cannot escape."

"Since this is the case, we can take the opportunity to set a trap, and attack according to this poem, bringing them huge casualties and psychological shock!"

"The Red Flower Camp has the foundation of Old General Mu, so let's not mention it. The Three Generals Camp was created not long ago, and it is a mob; it is the weakest of the five armies!"

"At that time, we will cooperate with this poem and attack in turns, which will surely make the Three Generals Camp's military heart float, and maybe we can easily take it down in one fell swoop."

Everyone was silent again.

After a while, Long Ye clapped his hands and laughed: "Good, a plan to attack the heart, using the plan against the plan; the Great Cave Master's consideration is exquisite, and we will act accordingly!"

The cultivators had no objections, escaped into the high altitude, and left the Thousand Peaks Forest secretly together.

Halfway, they met several cultivators one after another, mainly Golden Cores, all of whom had signed divine decrees and participated in this ambush together.

With Long Ye leading, while moving forward secretly, he arranged and dispatched for the cultivators.

Cave Master Moyuan and others besieged the Golden Halberd Army, barbarian cultivators attacked the Savage Monster Camp, and several Golden Core cultivators contained the Red Flower Camp and the Three Generals Camp.