Chapter 2197: Unexpected Gains

After those strong ones left the Refining Alliance, the guards traveled from the Refining Alliance, keeping martial law all the way to the Teleportation Array.

They never returned to the Royal Palace; instead, they took thirty thousand Imperial Guard and went straight through the Teleportation Array to the Southern Region ferry port.

Those three Martial Cultivator strongmen watched the Imperial Guard board the ferry, tested the ferry again, and then reported back to Mo Xiaotian before returning to the Royal City.

Mo Xiaotian finally relaxed, snorted coldly and said, "Hmph, you want to fight me—let's see if you have the strength!"

Ye Liuyun did not expect Mo Xiaotian to suddenly dispatch troops.

He couldn't wait for the Teleportation Array to activate, so he bid farewell to the Purple Flame Divine Lord and returned to Fengqi City via the Black Tower.

Xiao Yunfang's army had almost all been teleported by now, but Liu Yang, Mo Shaowen and others had not yet returned.

"Hurry back, the situation has changed; we must raise troops early!"

Ye Liuyun immediately notified them to rush back.

Fortunately, the Teleportation Arrays were now unobstructed, and most of them returned within five days.

When they returned, Ye Liuyun began placing Slave Seals on the Martial Cultivators they had captured.

Because they had been out for so long, they managed to capture six to seven hundred Ninth Realm Martial Cultivators.

Ye Liuyun dispatched some Martial Cultivators in five groups, who used the Teleportation Array to reach five nearby major cities, destroyed the local Teleportation Arrays, then joined the main army to prevent reinforcements from suddenly appearing via the arrays.

Xiao Yunfang also immediately began reorganizing the troops.

Eighty thousand soldiers suddenly donned armor, fully equipped, and launched a surprise raid on surrounding towns.

The Martial Cultivators in the Central Region had only just learned a few days earlier that Zhongxing Wangchao had sent thirty thousand Imperial Guard to cross the Boundless Sea again, and were awaiting news.

Suddenly they learned that the Death Legion had reappeared in the Northern Region and had already begun a siege, and the situation quickly heated up.

After learning the news, Mo Xiaotian immediately dispatched ten thousand Imperial Guard to exterminate them.

The hundred thousand troops he can mobilize are all at the Southern Region ferry port, waiting to advance eastward.

A batch of ferries has already set out; he cannot recall the hundred thousand troops at this moment.

Therefore, the only force he can quickly redeploy now is the Imperial Guard.

All ten thousand Imperial Guard are stronger than Ninth Realm, and this strength is already more elite than the hundred thousand troops.

Thus the Martial Cultivators in the Central Region are debating, watching daily who will win.

Many hope Ye Liuyun will win, eager to see the Zhongxing Wangchao become a laughingstock.

But facing ten thousand Imperial Guard, everyone knows the Death Legion also faces considerable pressure this time.

Confronted with these Imperial Guard, Ye Liuyun only temporarily mobilized a hundred Soul Cultivators who guard the Eastern Cloud Royal Palace.

He made little preparation, not even borrowing the Underworld's soul barrier or the Yin Soul army.

He gathered all the Soul Cultivators into his own Space World, taking three hundred Ninth Realm Martial Cultivators and a spearhead unit, and with the main army continuously absorbed Divine Soul Power.

The Magic Vine kept devouring, further increasing its strength.

When the army besieged a city, they encountered Ninth Realm Martial Cultivators from Chengzhu Fu, which added experience in dealing with elites.

After a few days, Ye Liuyun found that the eighty thousand new recruits were adapting well, and casualties were decreasing.

At this time, the Martial Cultivators Ye Liuyun had sent to sabotage the Teleportation Arrays also rushed to join the main army and were taken into the Space World.

They also learned which cities the Imperial Guard had reached via the Teleportation Array, so Ye Liuyun hurried there first to find a way to counter them.

After three days of travel, Ye Liuyun saw the Imperial Guard from a distance.

He observed the formation of the Imperial Guard from afar.

The troops were divided into ten ranks, impeccably orderly; their momentum was indeed far stronger than a regular army, yet their arrogant bearing was clearly different from the Death Legion.

This Imperial Guard moved at full speed, racing to the battlefield.

"At this rate of consumption, by the time they reach the battlefield they'll have used up at least a third of their True Essence."

Ye Liuyun calculated the distance and estimated their consumption rate.

"Intercept! Increase their consumption!"

Ye Liuyun made a decision on the spot.

He instructed Liang Xue, Long Nv, and Lei Ming to give the Invisibility Cloak to Xuan Yun, Xuan Song, and Xuan Feng, three veteran strongmen, to launch a sneak attack on the Imperial Guard.

The three were already powerful, and with the Invisibility Cloak, as long as they weren't surrounded by the Imperial Guard, nothing could go wrong.

Ye Liuyun and his clone also donned the Invisibility Cloak, preparing to strike at their Leader amid the chaos.

The Imperial Guard never expected anyone to intercept them; while marching, the front, rear, and a middle point were suddenly bombarded fiercely.

Especially the attacks on the front and rear—one palm, one fist—bombarded the Imperial Guard, killing dozens.

What made them more frantic was that they couldn't see anyone, unable to lock onto the enemy's position.

Xuan Yun and the other two 'Xuan' generation strongmen not only had higher realms, but after years of cultivation their overall strength far surpassed theirs.

At that moment, the clone and Ye Liuyun each fired a white light; one used the Item to lock onto a deputy Leader, and both launched an attack.

The Imperial Guard's Leader and deputy were killed one after another.

Next, Xuan Yun and the other two strongmen kept shifting positions, targeting densely packed spots for their attacks.

The Imperial Guard soldiers immediately dispersed to reduce losses.

Ye Liuyun originally intended to intercept them briefly, to dent their morale and drain some True Essence.

But seeing the current situation, it turned out to be highly advantageous for him.

Thus, he released the five to six hundred newly captured Ninth Realm strongmen, letting them attack the Imperial Guard.

The Soul Cultivators among his Black Armor Guard followed behind, attacking the Imperial Guard's souls to create openings for those Martial Cultivators.

Ye Liuyun was merely testing whether this attack method could work.

Xuan Yun and the other two strongmen continued their sneak attacks, cutting the Imperial Guard's formation in half, preventing coordination between front and rear.

Then only Xuan Yun remained to watch the rear troops to prevent reinforcements, while Xuan Song and Xuan Feng moved to attack the front line.

These once‑proud Imperial Guard, now without a Leader's command, saw the rear soldiers hesitate to risk charging forward to aid the front.

The Martial Cultivators Ye Liuyun had just captured, under Ye Liuyun's Slave Seal, were also incredibly valiant.

Especially since there were nearly two hundred Soul Cultivators behind them cooperating.

Almost as they moved, the opposing Imperial Guard had already been disrupted by a Spiritual Soul Attack.

Thus once both sides engaged, the Imperial Guard were harvested en masse, with little chance even to retaliate.

Ye Liuyun was overjoyed, considering it an unexpected gain.

He originally intended to send these six hundred people to probe the enemy's depths, but unexpectedly, the opponent turned out to be just a paper tiger.

He hadn't even used the spearhead unit, yet he was already crushing those Imperial Guard.

Ye Liuyun hurriedly followed suit, beginning to gather some injured or Soul Cultivator‑controlled Martial Cultivators, and after planting a Slave Seal on them, he threw them into the Space World.