Gu Yuan and the other two wore uniforms resembling military attire, clothes specially prepared by Dalong Pass for students undergoing trials. The rank of Major, awarded as an enrollment bonus, could only be utilized after graduation.
Holding the Qiankun, they stared grimly at a surging tide of monsters approaching from afar—the beast tide that was about to attack.
The beast tide rapidly neared Dalong Pass, reaching within five hundred meters. At this distance, Gu Yuan could clearly see the ferocious beasts, one after another, charging forward. However, Gu Yuan couldn't shake the feeling that many of them were being coerced into advancing.
"Archers, prepare. Three, two, one, fire." A general stood atop the city wall, drawing his long sword and directing the archers to commence the first wave of interception.
*Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!*
Ten thousand arrows flew, forming a sea of projectiles in mid-air.
However, Gu Yuan and his companions did not heed the general's command, as Jiang Qingyuan had granted them the authority for special operations.
Gu Yuan drew his bow, nocked an arrow, and aimed it at the approaching beast tide. Lightning crackled around his hand, coating the arrow.
*Bang!*
An arrow, entwined with spiraling lightning, streaked across hundreds of meters like a meteor, directly piercing into the charging beast tide.
*Puff!*
It penetrated five beasts front to back before finally stopping. The layer of lightning covering the arrow then exploded, clearing out beasts within a three-meter radius.
The beasts pierced by Gu Yuan's arrow fell to the ground, instantly trampled into mince by the stampeding beast tide behind them.
Qin Erlang and Wu Gui looked at the large bow in Gu Yuan's hand, astonishment on their faces. They knew Gu Yuan's archery was potent, but they never imagined he could pierce five beasts with a single arrow. These were not the thin bodies of humans, but the arrow went straight through from head to tail.
Qin Erlang and Wu Gui exchanged glances, feeling they couldn't just stand by. They had to find a way to contribute to killing the beasts.
The added archers engaged in successive volleys, displaying remarkable efficiency. Arrows in the sky were almost incessant. As one of the Nine Passes of the realm, Dalong Pass's military supplies were inexhaustible, and they also manufactured their own.
Qin Erlang produced a sharpened wooden stick, a method he devised to substitute for ranged attacks. These exceptionally hard wooden spikes could be used as javelins and inflict great damage. The reason he didn't use iron or steel was simple: he had no money!
He raised the wooden spike above his head, bending backward like a coiled spring. With a sudden surge of power from his waist and abdomen, he hurled the wooden spike, which produced a whistling sound.
The wooden spike heated up from friction in the air, eventually igniting spontaneously. One could only imagine the immense force Qin Erlang exerted.
A canine beast, charging forward with its head down, was instantly impaled by this burning wooden spike. The spike plunged into the ground, firmly pinning the beast, which was then crushed into pulp by the following horde.
Seeing his wooden spike achieve its effect, Qin Erlang smiled in satisfaction. Another wooden spike appeared in his hand. Gu Yuan, watching him, couldn't help but wonder what strange items filled his storage ring.
Meanwhile, Wu Gui, standing beside them, wasn't as fortunate. He lacked many ranged attack methods. He couldn't simply unleash his "Three Mountains Five Peaks" power and charge headlong into the beast tide.
His sword energy could only travel a few dozen meters, rendering it ineffective against the beast tide still two to three hundred meters away.
Wait, he could try his still-somewhat-proficient sword-controlling technique. After three days of grueling training, his sword-controlling range had improved from ten meters to two hundred meters in a straight line.
The most challenging aspects of sword-controlling were mastering the basics and obtaining suitable materials for the flying sword.
Wu Gui's eyes lit up. A small, inch-long sword flashed into his hand. This was the legendary flying sword—handleless, essentially just a blade, emanating an aura of sharpness. Its superior material was evident at a glance.
Although he was terrified of losing this flying sword, a lost flying sword could be reforged, but his reputation, once lost, would be gone forever. Seeing the two beside him slaughtering beasts with impressive displays, Wu Gui hardened his resolve.
He tossed the flying sword upwards, immediately taking control of it with his mind. It hovered in mid-air, emitting wisps of sword energy. Control of the flying sword relied on spiritual power, achieved by integrating a sliver of his soul from the beginning. Therefore, the flying sword's attack range was determined by the strength of his spiritual power.
Wu Gui closed his eyes slightly. The flying sword before him began to advance tremulously, as if afraid of falling from the air. But after a brief period of familiarization, the flying sword's speed surged, approaching Mach 1.
*Whoosh!*
One hundred meters covered in an instant. A beast at the forefront, having narrowly escaped the arrows, had its head pierced, trailing a fine mist of brain matter. With a sharp turn, it lunged at another charging beast.
Some beasts, seeing the shadow of the flying sword, extended their claws to intercept. In an instant, their beast claws were severed, the wounds as smooth as mirrors. The flying sword, its power undiminished, continued towards its previous target, delivering a fatal blow. The defensive capabilities that the beasts prided themselves on were a joke before the flying sword.
Gu Yuan watched as the two beside him unleashed their respective techniques, slaying beasts. Sensing the competitive atmosphere brewing between the three, a mysterious smile curved his lips.
The arrows in his hand had, at some point, been replaced with armor-piercing arrows, highly conductive to True Qi. He first infused the front half of the arrow with lightning, and the latter half with the flames of the Li Xiang. The once-black arrow turned a hue of blue and red.
Drawing his bow, he aimed at the densest part of the beast tide, then released his finger.
*Rumble!*
The arrow instantly broke the sound barrier, carrying a booming roar as it plunged into the beast tide. Such a commotion attracted the attention of other soldiers. Witnessing the release of such a powerful arrow, they saw a remarkably young man. They immediately noticed that Gu Yuan's uniform differed from theirs, thus understanding his identity in an instant.
They marveled inwardly but did not show it, as this was not the time for discussion.
The arrow blazed with sparks and lightning, streaking directly into the beast horde.
*Puff...*
A series of five or six piercing sounds echoed, followed by an explosion that reverberated across the battlefield.
An area spanning dozens of meters was instantly cleared by the immense power generated by the confluence of lightning and fire. The beasts within this radius were reduced to mere pulp.
Gu Yuan was highly satisfied with the power he had unleashed, surprised by the explosive force generated by the combination of lightning and fire. However, it required a significant amount of spiritual energy to stabilize the balance between the two.
Yet, the carnage wrought by his arrow was but a drop in the ocean compared to the continuous influx of the beast tide.
The true means of large-scale destruction were formations. However, this beast tide was a minor one. Deploying a formation would be akin to using a cannon to swat a mosquito.
It was worth noting that Dalong Pass's formation was an eighth-tier formation, capable of both offense and defense, able to withstand an hour-long assault from an eighth-tier expert, provided its spirit stone reserves were substantial.
Typically, such beast tides were dealt with through battle formations and the assistance of martial artists.
Battle formations gathered the vital energy and blood of all soldiers and forcefully channeled it onto the commanding general, greatly enhancing their combat strength. Simultaneously, they bolstered the entire army, increasing its overall might, allowing it to charge through the battlefield like genuine ferocious beasts.
"Cease fire!" a voice infused with True Qi resonated across the battlefield. All archers and other projectile-wielding soldiers halted their attacks.
By then, the ferocious beasts had approached within two hundred meters of the pass.
*Rumble!*
The massive alloy gate, dozens of meters high, located within the city walls, slowly opened with a deafening sound.
*Stomp! Stomp! Stomp!*
A series of rhythmic footsteps echoed. Gu Yuan looked down as a unit clad in menacing black armor marched out from behind the city gate.
Information flashed through his mind: this was Dalong Pass's garrisoned army, the Demon Extermination Legion!
Gazing at the soldiers in full black armor, with only their mouths and noses exposed, wielding black sabers with synchronized movements, Gu Yuan felt a surge of fervor. Who wouldn't admire such armor!
After emerging from the city, facing the ferocious beast tide that surged forward, the legion commander at the front raised his saber. The soldiers behind him instantly understood. A faint trace of bloody malevolent aura began to manifest on their bodies.
The bloody malevolent aura ascended into the air and converged.
*Roar!*
A ferocious behemoth, condensed from blood energy, appeared on the ground, roaring to the heavens and unleashing boundless might.