Chapter 458: The Main Forces Clash Head-On

Before the thunderbolt fell, Zhou You had already sensed the anomaly within.

Just like a gap in a body, the traces of Qi and blood being stimulated were present within the galloping thunder; it was man-made.

It could be confirmed that this bolt of galloping thunder was the aftermath of a fist technique unleashed by some powerful martial artist.

Yan Shan stepped forward and thrust his Long Spear fiercely at the thunder descending from the sky, living up to his nickname, Little Overlord.

A massive amount of thunder smashed into the ground, causing the heavens and earth to tremble; the fine steed he had been riding was scorched into a lump of charcoal on the spot.

Blinding light flickered, like flames spitting and retracting, unable to subside for a long time.

Once their vision became slightly clearer, many martial masters risked the danger of being blinded to look.

The acrid, scorched air shimmered with thick smoke, drifting away with the wind to reveal Yan Shan's tall, straight back.

He held the spear in one hand; he was like his name, a mountain that stood firm and unmoving, though his once-neat robe was now tattered.

On the ground ahead, there was scorched black earth everywhere, still emitting wisps of heat.

"Hah, that's got a kick."

Yan Shan spat out a puff of smoke and laughed heartily.

A weight lifted from the hearts of the people from the Overlord Martial Hall, and the Disciple Yan Wan Jun hurriedly fished out a brand-new robe and stepped forward quickly to help him change.

With this single event, the status of this number one person in the martial world became even more secure, and everyone acknowledged Yan Shan's position as the leader.

Fortunately, after this bolt of galloping thunder, no further aftermath fell, and the movements of the powerful martial artists fighting gradually moved into the distance.

Among the group were those skilled in observing geographical orientation; after some calculations, they reached a conclusion:

"They are retreating toward Gongliang City; our powerful martial artists have the upper hand."

In reality, the powerful martial artists on both sides were locked in a tug-of-war, sometimes one side advancing, sometimes the other, with no clear winner yet.

But the fact that the Witch Tribe's powerful ones were retreating was still heartening news.

The atmosphere clearly became spirited.

"Ah!"

Suddenly, a martial master was bitten by a groundhog that had burrowed out from underground and killed it with a single punch.

At first, he didn't think much of it, but the wound quickly went numb, spreading to his neck and chest, until gradually he could not speak and his heart stopped beating.

Within a few breaths, the bitten martial master died instantly; he had been poisoned to death.

Groundhogs were not common poisonous creatures, and the martial artists nearby hadn't thought much of it at the time, only realizing it too late and screaming once the consequences became so severe.

"Buzz, buzz, buzz!"

The sound of mosquitoes rose, and a black cloud dispersed, turning into countless mosquitoes the size of fists that pressed against their bodies to sting.

The Qi and blood martial artists snatched up their weapons to hack, only to find the mosquitoes' speed was bizarrely fast, and they couldn't hit them.

The fist-sized mosquitoes drilled in with their mouthparts, and the Qi and blood martial artists wilted on the spot, drained of all their Qi and blood in the blink of an eye.

"What a wicked beast."

Amidst the angry curses of a Primary Martial Master, a punch hit a mosquito, but it failed to kill it; the mosquito rolled on the ground a few times and took flight again.

It was only when someone unleashed a Qi and blood divine weapon and pierced a mosquito that they finally killed it.

"Pfft, pfft!"

With a few muffled sounds, Zuo Lv and Lan Chengxiu touched their chests and backs; they were fine.

They were wearing the Leather Robes gifted by Zhou You, and although mosquitoes landed on them and stung fiercely, they caused no harm.

You see, even the physical body of a Primary Martial Master could not withstand the piercing of the mosquitoes' mouthparts.

They immediately swung their blades to hack, and while the mosquitoes had yet to take flight, they cleaved them in two.

"Hall Master."

While feeling fortunate, they remembered the Leather Robes were a gift from Zhou You and felt immense gratitude toward the young Hall Master. Zhou You signaled them not to be agitated; the situation had changed.

He had long since seen that the groundhogs were Witch Beasts and the mosquitoes were Gu Insects; this was the vanguard of the Witch Tribe army.

Just looking at the leading Overlord Martial Hall, after suffering a few casualties, they began to stabilize their formation and counterattack.

Yan Wan Jun, this Little Overlord, was quite formidable; his Long Spear never missed, and every strike burst a cluster of mosquitoes.

"Watch out for other poisonous insects."

Exclamations rang out in the crowd as more groundhogs, field rats, snakes, and insects broke through the soil, chasing and biting at positions below the knees.

These Witch Beasts carried potent toxins and were different from those in Zhong Yuan, making them exceptionally lethal to martial artists.

As long as they broke through a layer of skin, even a martial master could not withstand it, and Qi and blood martial artists died on the spot.

After the initial chaos, the martial artists began to react, taking out Jiedu Danya to hold in their mouths and coordinating with one another.

To deal with the agile mosquitoes, they kept their distance and used hidden weapons, not giving the enemy a chance to create chaos.

To deal with the Witch Beasts burrowing from the ground, they left it specifically to those martial artists skilled in leg techniques; whenever they saw a black shadow emerge, they would lift their feet, either stomping them into a mass of flesh or kicking them to smithereens.

The Witch Tribe's attack had only caught them off guard at the very beginning.

Gradually, the martial artists used their robust bodies and diverse fist techniques to adapt to the rhythm, in turn annihilating the Witch Beasts and Gu Insects.

At the edge of the horizon, new traces of the Witch people appeared one after another; some rode tall, fierce Witch Beasts, while more arrived on foot.

They were here, they were here; the Witch Tribe army had arrived.

Having walked for these many days, finally seeing living enemies, they actually felt a sense of familiarity.

"Master, the Baigong Army is ten miles to the rear flank; should we wait for them?"

Yan Wan Jun requested instructions.

Yan Shan glanced at him, "A feast doesn't wait for people; we arrived early, so we'll eat the first course and let them eat the leftovers."

He brandished his Overlord Spear and pointed forward, "The enemy is ahead, go kill!"

The martial artists had great tacit understanding, spreading out toward the left and right, watching the Witch people opposite them from afar to find their opponents.

Zhou You remembered a post he had read in his past life: did armies in a high-martial world have any value? The reason for the doubt was that high-end combat power could wipe out a hundred-thousand-man army with a single slap, leaving the low-level soldiers with no power to resist.

In fact, whether in low-martial or high-martial worlds, an army is an indispensable force.

What is an army? An organized unit of violence.

In a low-martial world, an army can pile up and kill an expert by relying on good training, fine armor and weapons, and by relying on numbers and battle formations.

When it comes to a high-martial world...

As the foundation for maintaining order, the importance of an army is reflected in every aspect.

The garrison of Commander Chen destroyed the Cloud-Touching Stronghold by betting on their level of organization and training under equal combat strength.

Even against high-end combatants, there is a necessity for their existence; it is true that the Witch Tribe has powerful warriors, but they also have low-level combatants, and one certainly cannot have their own powerful warriors stoop to clearing out cannon fodder!

It is just like the war between the two tribes before our eyes; the powerful warriors fight in the sky, while on the ground, it still falls to those with Qi and blood or even Martial Masters to decide the victory.

After all, having nuclear bombs does not mean one should disband the army.

For an army in a high-martial world, what truly changes is the method of combat, which is formation and organization.

For an army composed of low-end combatants, when facing high-level enemies, the most taboo thing is to line up neatly; individual phalanxes are not only useless, they are practically queuing up to be slapped to death by the opponent.

Therefore, whether it is the great army of Fucheng or the Witch Tribe, the moment they see the enemy, they all unanimously spread out into skirmish lines.

This style of fighting, where everyone battles on their own, best suits the current situation of uneven strength in the world.

Even if one is unlucky enough to encounter high-end combatants, at most a portion will die, and the rest can avoid them, waiting for their own side's high-end combatants to clash, soldier against soldier, general against general.

(End of chapter)