Chapter 756: Using the Enemy

Just as everyone learned that reinforcements had arrived and were preparing to discuss halting the retreat to fight a decisive battle against the demon race, Bai Yuxian, who had been sitting to the side and saying little, suddenly spoke up to reject the proposal.

"Senior Uncle Bai, the reinforcements are arriving immediately. Why must we continue to retreat at this time?"

Hearing Bai Yuxian say they must continue to retreat, expressions of confusion immediately appeared on everyone's faces. Jin Ziyuan, who had a somewhat impatient temperament, blurted out a question in bewilderment.

Although most of those not present did not immediately grasp Bai Yuxian's intent, some reacted quickly.

Just as Jin Ziyuan finished speaking, before Bai Yuxian could offer an explanation, Song Qingming, standing to the side, immediately took up the conversation and replied:

"Senior Uncle Bai wants us to continue retreating—could it be that he wants to use this opportunity to lure the entire demon beast army out of White Cloud Valley so we can fight them in a decisive battle outside?"

Upon hearing this, Bai Yuxian immediately nodded at Song Qingming with a smile: "Correct. The demon race in White Cloud Valley is now almost certain that we are preparing to retreat.

The reason they haven't acted yet is that they want to wait until we begin a full-scale retreat to strike from the rear, entangle us, and catch us off guard.

Since the Ink Dragon Demon Emperor has the intention of coming out to fight us, why don't we use this opportunity to turn his own strategy against him and pull the battlefield far away from White Cloud Valley?"

Hearing Bai Yuxian's explanation, Li Mufeng, sitting to the side, hurriedly nodded in agreement: "Junior Sister Bai's plan is truly brilliant; I think it is worth a try! We aren't just putting on a show for them this time. The Ink Dragon Demon Emperor will certainly not be able to detect the arrival of our rear reinforcements for the time being.

As long as we can lure them to the south, the demon army will lose the protection of the miasma formation. This way, we can not only increase our chances of victory but also reduce unnecessary casualties in the upcoming decisive battle."

Li Mufeng felt great admiration for Bai Yuxian's ability to think of continuing the retreat to lure the demon race out for a decisive battle so quickly, and he felt much more at ease about Bai Yuxian taking charge of the sect in the future.

Seeing that both Nascent Soul ancestors of the sect agreed with the idea, the people below naturally had no objections and soon nodded in agreement.

After the discussion, everyone quickly began preparations, dispatching all transport convoys and large flying ships to accelerate the transport of supplies to the rear.

However, while these convoys and flying ships appeared fully loaded, the wooden crates stored on them were mostly empty; only a small number of crates on the surface contained spiritual items, intended to mislead the demon scouts that frequently appeared in the sky.

Just like that, after several days of transporting supplies, the "Carefree Sect" finally assembled all the sect's flying ships, broke camp, and took the initiative to leave "White Cloud Valley" and retreat to the south.

Not long after the human cultivators began their movement, the "Ink Dragon Demon Emperor," sitting in the main hall of "White Cloud Valley," immediately received the news and quickly assembled the demon beast army to pursue them to the south.

This time, not only did the two Nascent Soul demon emperors, the "Ink Dragon Demon Emperor" and the "Green Egret Demon Emperor," personally set out, but sixteen demon kings under their command and tens of thousands of low-level demon beasts also poured out, leaving only a very small portion of demon beasts to continue guarding the valley.

Because the number of large flying ships on the human side was limited and many cultivators were still on the ground following the supply convoys, their speed was not very fast. After traveling several hundred miles to the south, the demon beast army in the rear quickly caught up.

Seeing the demon beast army appearing behind them, the "Carefree Sect" immediately began organizing cultivators to resist while urging the team to increase their speed.

Seeing the human cultivator army fleeing desperately not far ahead, the "Ink Dragon Demon Emperor" and the "Green Egret Demon Emperor" high in the sky were feeling very excited.

Next, as long as the demon beasts could quickly catch up and entangle the human cultivator army, it would not be so easy for the other side to shake off the pursuit.

In their eyes, these "Carefree Sect" cultivators had already become fish on the chopping block and would surely pay a bloody price today.

After commanding the demon beast army to catch up with the retreating human cultivators, the two demon emperors in the sky took the lead, charging toward the human cultivators with boundless momentum.

Behind them were numerous demon kings and various bird-type demon beasts that blotted out the sky, looking as if they were going to tear every human cultivator ahead to shreds.

"Do not be arrogant!"

Seeing that the enemy had begun their attack, Li Mufeng and Bai Yuxian immediately jumped out from above the flying ships, stepping forward to intercept the two most powerful Nascent Soul demon emperors.

"Everyone, speed up your retreat! Cultivators at Foundation Establishment level and above, come with us to block the demon beast army."

Song Qingming and other Golden Core cultivators were not to be outdone, immediately leading over a hundred Foundation Establishment cultivators to follow behind the two ancestors to block the incoming demon beast army from the sky.

Even knowing that the demon beast army behind them was stronger than their own side, none of the "Carefree Sect" members going to block them showed any signs of fear on their faces.

Upon meeting, both sides immediately began a fierce battle, just as they had a few days prior.

However, unlike before, the human cultivator side had no intention of lingering in the fight this time; everyone was fighting while retreating, slowly moving backward, and soon they had let the enemy chase them for another hundred-plus miles.

In just over a hundred miles, many cultivators on the ground had already been caught by the demon beast army, and two of the large flying ships in the sky had also been overtaken, their speed dropping significantly.

Just as the human cultivators retreated into a canyon where two mountains faced each other, the human cultivators who had been fleeing suddenly stopped, turned around, and took the initiative to meet the demon side head-on.

Immediately following this, shouts of battle suddenly erupted from both sides of the canyon, and an army of thousands of cultivators surged out from the mountain peaks, charging directly at the demon beast army that was entangled with the "Carefree Sect" in the canyon.

Seeing this sudden scene below, the demon side became somewhat panicked, not knowing why so many human cultivators were lying in ambush here.

Just as several demon kings in the sky discovered that something was wrong and were preparing to go down to investigate, a flying ship suddenly sped over from the side of the mountain below. Five Golden Core cultivators jumped off and immediately intercepted these demon kings, preventing them from having the chance to approach the demon beasts entangled with the human cultivators.

Seeing the sudden, massive change in the battlefield below, the "Ink Dragon Demon Emperor" immediately looked a bit grim, looking at his opponent, Li Mufeng, with a serious expression.

"There is an ambush here. Li Mufeng, what kind of trick are you playing?"

Seeing that the "Star Gate" cultivators who had come to support had already emerged, Li Mufeng no longer wanted to hide it from the enemy and laughed out loud:

"Fellow Daoist Ink Dragon, did you think that only you could bring in reinforcements, and my Carefree Sect could not?"

"Where did these reinforcements come from? Even if you asked for help, it would be impossible for them to arrive so quickly. Who exactly are they?"

Just as the "Ink Dragon Demon Emperor" was full of confusion, a streak of green light flew in from the distant sky, heading directly toward the position of the "Ink Dragon Demon Emperor."

"If you have any doubts, Fellow Daoist, let me explain it to you!"

The person had not yet arrived, but the voice had already clearly reached their ears, causing both demon emperors currently fighting to feel a shock in their hearts. They did not know where things had gone wrong, or how another Nascent Soul cultivator had appeared.

Before the "Ink Dragon Demon Emperor" could answer, a tall, sturdy man stepped through the air and appeared beside the two fighting, showing a smiling face to the "Ink Dragon Demon Emperor."

"I am Zheng Zitong of the Star Gate, here specifically to exchange pointers with the two demon emperor fellows. I hope Fellow Daoist Ink Dragon will not hesitate to enlighten me!"

"Zheng Zitong, Star Gate... aren't you in Zheng Guo? How did you suddenly appear here? What on earth is that guy Chi Yun doing, not sending a single message over?"

"Fellow Daoist Chi Yun has already fought me several times, and both sides are long since tired of it. Coming here this time is just right to exchange pointers with Fellow Daoist Ink Dragon."

After Zheng Zitong finished speaking, he quickly began casting spells, and a sharp flying sword magic treasure flew out from his side, quickly heading straight for the "Ink Dragon Demon Emperor" not far away, intending to join Li Mufeng in a pincer attack.

"Hmph! Daring to show off such petty tricks in front of this old man!"

Seeing this, the "Ink Dragon Demon Emperor" shouted loudly, spitting out a black sphere from his mouth to block Zheng Zitong's flying sword, then secretly transmitted a message to the numerous demon kings not far away, telling them to retreat from here immediately.

The demon beast army had poured out this time specifically to chase and beat the "underdog" while the human cultivators were retreating. The "Ink Dragon Demon Emperor" and the others had never expected that the "Carefree Sect" would also have reinforcements arrive just in time and ambush them here.

Knowing that their side had fallen into the enemy's trap and that it would likely be difficult to achieve his goal today, the "Ink Dragon Demon Emperor" saw that the situation was bad and decisively issued a retreat signal, wanting to lead the demon beast army to retreat directly back to "White Cloud Valley."

Although they received the retreat transmission from the "Ink Dragon Demon Emperor," the demon beast army below was already tightly entangled by the human cultivator side and could not easily break free.

Even after receiving the news of the retreat, only a small portion of the demon beast army running at the back managed to break away from the battle in time; the remaining demon beasts could only fight while retreating under the pursuit of the human cultivators.

The numerous demon kings high in the sky were also tightly entangled by the high-level human cultivators and could not withdraw from the battlefield.

Song Qingming and the others, who had originally been at a disadvantage in terms of the number of Golden Core cultivators, had not only reversed the unfavorable situation but quickly gained an absolute advantage on the battlefield due to the sudden addition of five "Star Gate" Golden Core elders.

Seeing that the situation was bad, the dozen or so Golden Core demon kings, who belonged to different factions, began to have their own thoughts for the sake of self-preservation.

Among them, the six demon kings brought by the "Green Egret Demon King" exchanged glances and, while fighting, took the initiative to slowly move closer together. Then, taking advantage of their opponents' lack of attention, the leader, the "Ink Crow Demon King," suddenly cast a spell to conjure thousands of black crows, charging directly at the surrounding human Golden Core cultivators and instantly attracting everyone's attention.

Immediately after, the "Ink Crow Demon King" quickly used a banner magic treasure, turning it into a violent hurricane to sweep up several demon kings around him and rush quickly out of the battlefield.

The person fighting the "Ink Crow Demon King" was a "Star Gate" Golden Core elder. Although this person was a late-stage Golden Core cultivator, their cultivation and supernatural powers were not very strong, and in the previous battle, they could only manage to contain the "Ink Crow Demon King."

Facing the powerful supernatural power suddenly unleashed by the "Ink Crow Demon King," although this person reacted quickly and rushed out from the obstruction of the crows to pursue them,

they were ultimately a step too slow. Despite giving their all, they could not catch up to the "Ink Crow Demon King" fleeing at full speed and could only watch helplessly as they gradually disappeared into the northern horizon.

With the "Ink Crow Demon King" suddenly retreating, the remaining numerous demon kings no longer had any intention of continuing the entanglement, and they all used various supernatural powers just to escape and save their own lives.

Seeing this, Song Qingming and the others naturally did not want to let the enemy escape easily and also desperately unleashed their supernatural powers, wanting to keep these demon kings here completely.

These demon kings under the "Golden Feather Mountain" were all old rivals of the "Carefree Sect" and mortal enemies of the human cultivators. No matter what, they could not be allowed to run away easily today.

Because six demon kings were suddenly missing, the strength of the demon side, which was already at a disadvantage, was suddenly greatly damaged. Facing the numerous human Golden Core cultivators again, they soon found it difficult to parry.

In less than a quarter of an hour, three demon kings on the demon side with slightly weaker strength accidentally fell, dying under the swords of the human Golden Core cultivators.

"White Dragon, I have a magic treasure left behind by the ancestor that can help us break out. You help me block them, and wait for me to cast the spell to take you out together."

Seeing that their side was trapped in the heavy encirclement of human cultivators and that the encirclement was getting smaller and smaller, making it difficult to escape, the "Golden Tiger Demon King" could no longer care about anything else. After transmitting a message to the "White Dragon Demon King" not far away, he directly took out a round bead magic treasure from his body.

This magic treasure was specially bestowed upon his trusted aide, the "Golden Tiger Demon King," by the "Ink Dragon Demon Emperor" after he arrived at the Floating Cloud Mountain Range. It was refined from the origin elixir liquid within the Nascent Soul demon emperor's own Golden Core, and its power far exceeded that of ordinary third-level magic treasures.

However, this magic treasure, like the spirit talismans of human cultivators, was a one-time-use spiritual item. If it weren't for such a critical moment today, the "Golden Tiger Demon King" would not have easily taken it out to use.

Seeing the round bead magic treasure that the "Golden Tiger Demon King" was activating, the "White Dragon Demon King" and the other remaining Golden Core demon kings immediately understood the other's intention and moved directly toward the "Golden Tiger Demon King's" position to cover his spellcasting.

"Quick, stop him! Don't let them run away."

Seeing such an unusual move by the demon side, the surrounding human Golden Core cultivators also realized that the enemy wanted to take the opportunity to escape and all unleashed their supernatural powers, attacking the "Golden Tiger Demon King" with all their might, wanting to interrupt the magic treasure he was activating.

However, although there were many human cultivators, the "White Dragon Demon King" and the other numerous demon kings were already in a desperate situation. At this moment, even if they were injured themselves, they dared not take a step back and give up this last chance to escape.

Under the desperate cover of these demon kings, the "Golden Tiger Demon King" successfully completed the spellcasting and activated the black round bead magic treasure in his hand.

As the magic treasure in his hand emitted dazzling spiritual light, the "Golden Tiger Demon King" immediately threw it into the air. Then, a flash of white light appeared above the round bead magic treasure, and it transformed into a black flood dragon made of spiritual light.

As soon as this black flood dragon appeared on the battlefield, Song Qingming and the others who were besieging the demon kings immediately felt a very powerful aura coming from it, which faintly exceeded the scope of Golden Core cultivators.

Hearing the black flood dragon in front of them suddenly let out a roar, the surrounding human cultivators who felt the powerful aura coming from it could not help but take a few steps back.

Then, under the drive of the "Golden Tiger Demon King," the black flood dragon charged directly toward a corner of the encirclement.

Facing this powerful black flood dragon, Jin Ziyuan and several other Golden Core cultivators blocking its path still wanted to use their magic treasures to step forward and stop it.

But the magic treasures and spirit talismans they usually used to fight enemies were like paper in front of this black flood dragon and were quickly broken through. Several people nearby were even directly sent flying by the shockwave of the flood dragon.

Seeing that the black flood dragon was so powerful, the "White Dragon Demon King" and the other numerous demon kings felt a surge of joy in their hearts. Without waiting for the "Golden Tiger Demon King" to remind them, they decisively followed the black flood dragon and charged directly out of the encirclement.

"Quick, stop them!"

Seeing that these demon kings were about to break free and escape, Li Wutong immediately shouted to remind everyone to chase and intercept the enemy.

Seeing the human cultivators in the rear chasing them again, the "White Dragon Demon King" dared not hide anything and directly took a flying ship used by human cultivators, jumping onto it with several demon kings beside him.

"Brother White Dragon, wait for me!"

Although the "Golden Tiger Demon King's" cultivation had reached the peak of the Golden Core, he had consumed a large amount of magic power in his body just now to activate the round bead magic treasure and open the encirclement.

Now, lacking magic power, his escape speed fell to the very back, and he was left far behind by the "White Dragon Demon King" and the others.

Seeing that the "White Dragon Demon King" and the others had all jumped onto the flying ship, the "Golden Tiger Demon King," who was a step late, felt anxious and shouted loudly, wanting them to wait for him to escape together.

However, facing the "Golden Tiger Demon King's" plea for help, the "White Dragon Demon King" ignored him. As soon as he jumped onto the flying ship, he did not dare to delay for a moment, desperately driving the flying ship magic treasure and fleeing quickly to the north.

"White Dragon, you... you actually dare to abandon me! The ancestor will not let you off..."

Seeing that the "White Dragon Demon King" had run off without caring about him, the "Golden Tiger Demon King" was so angry that his face turned blue, and he roared desperately at the distance.

But no matter how he cursed, the "White Dragon Demon King" and the others acted as if they hadn't heard him, with no intention of looking back at all, and instead accelerated the speed of the flying ship.

The "Golden Tiger Demon King," already lacking magic power, did not escape very far before he was quickly caught up by Song Qingming and the others chasing from behind.

Now at the end of his rope, the "Golden Tiger Demon King" had no power to resist the siege of more than a dozen human Golden Core cultivators, and in just a moment, his head was cut off by Chen Xuanxin's sword.

Seeing this peak Golden Core demon king, who had dealt with the "Carefree Sect" for many years, fall and perish, Song Qingming and the others nearby all breathed a sigh of relief.

Although they did not eliminate all their opponents in today's battle, being able to kill four demon kings under the "Golden Feather Mountain" at once, and also leaving behind the "Golden Tiger Demon King," a peak Golden Core demon king, was quite a significant achievement.

Just as the battle ended, Song Qingming turned and came to the side of Huang Siyuan, who was healing not far away, escorting her back to the flying ship in the rear first.

In the fierce battle just now, Huang Siyuan, along with Jin Ziyuan and two other "Star Gate" elders, happened to be located at the position where the "Golden Tiger Demon King" had cast his spell to break out.

To prevent the enemy from escaping, they had released their magic treasures to desperately resist the black flood dragon's attack. As a result, they did not succeed as they had hoped and were instead injured by the black flood dragon, temporarily withdrawing from the battle.

Fortunately, Huang Siyuan and the others were only shaken and injured in their meridians, and their injuries were not too serious, though each of them had damaged a magic treasure, which still made them feel a bit of heartache.

By the time Song Qingming returned to the battlefield, the battle on the ground below had already entered a one-sided situation with the participation of numerous Golden Core cultivators. The remaining numerous low-level demon beasts had no intention of fighting and fled in all directions without a target.

The human cultivators also began to pursue them with all their might.

Having been chased by the demon beast army all the way, everyone had long been holding a fire in their hearts. Naturally, they did not want to easily give up such a good opportunity to earn merit and picked up their magic tools to chase the demon beasts in front of them desperately.

As for the high sky, the several Nascent Soul cultivators who had originally been fighting had long since disappeared from sight as they fought their way north. The battlefield, which had been filled with shouts of battle just moments ago, gradually quieted down.

Seeing this, Song Qingming and the others immediately arranged for some cultivators to start cleaning up the battlefield, while the remaining main force all boarded the sect's large flying ships and began to charge back toward "White Cloud Valley" in a grand manner.

At this moment, the main force of the demon beast side had been almost entirely annihilated. Relying only on the few remaining garrison troops and the remnants who had fled back, even with the help of the miasma formation, it was already impossible for them to hold "White Cloud Valley."

Everyone rode the flying ships at accelerated speed and before long arrived outside "White Cloud Valley." At this moment, the demon beasts in the valley had already learned of the defeat at the front line and were in complete chaos.

The "White Dragon Demon King" and the "Ink Crow Demon King," who had just retreated from the front line, were at a loss as to what to do, as they had not seen their own ancestor return for a long time.

Facing the overwhelming pressure of the human cultivator army, the two late-stage Golden Core demon kings discussed it and chose to abandon "White Cloud Valley" directly, retreating all the way north to "Golden Feather Mountain."

When the human cultivators had prepared and began to attack "White Cloud Valley," they discovered that the vast majority of the demon beasts in the valley had already retreated. In the end, they occupied "White Cloud Valley," this third-level high-grade spiritual vein, without much effort.

As for Li Mufeng and Bai Yuxian, after a great battle with the two demon emperors outside...

Although they successfully defeated the opponent, they were unable to keep these two seasoned Nascent Soul demon emperors, only destroying one of the "Ink Dragon Demon Emperor's" powerful magic treasures, still allowing them to successfully retreat to "Golden Feather Mountain."