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"Jiangnan soldiers?"

Watching the approaching Jiangnan soldiers, Shenyue’s brows furrowed tightly, and the technique she had been preparing to unleash was forcefully halted at that moment.

Indeed, she had decided to take the initiative to attack the Ancient Demon’s side by seizing the right moment.

She was very clear about who the hidden figure in the Ancient Demon camp was, and eliminating that person was also one of the main reasons she had personally come here.

After finally finding an opportunity, she never expected the Jiangnan soldiers to make a sudden move at this critical time.

An army whose commander had encountered mishap still dared to meddle in others’ chaotic battles? Had they gone mad?

Shenyue stared intently at the Western Sea Army’s ranks, but oddly enough, she did not see Tian Heng, and... she also did not see the mysterious Sky Totem that had previously severely injured Tian Heng.

This Western Sea Army was actually led by Chen Family’s Chen Baifeng, which even caused her, who was always good at strategizing, to be stunned, unable to guess what was going on!

Meanwhile, at the same time, the Guard Commander of the Ancient Demon’s troops, who was surrounded by a tide of giant pythons, also knitted his brows tightly.

"What do we do, my lord?" The question came from Deputy General Ying Sheng.

Ying Sheng and the other deputy were personally trained and raised by the Guard Commander, both were the noble remnants of Elder bloodlines, allocated to him right after hatching, and the most loyal of his legitimate branch.

Now, with one deputy safeguarding the main hall, Ying Sheng was accompanying him as the personal deputy general in this battle.

"Go back immediately, assemble five hundred guards and be ready to support a surprise attack at any moment."

The Guard Commander did not panic in face of this sudden change.

The Jiangnan’s Western Sea Army was not weak; the elite legitimate branch was all transcendent, matching the Ghost Army in number, and although not as strong, they still counted as a powerful force in current times.

Such an opponent, if they formed a military formation and encircled him, indeed posed some trouble—but only some.

The Guard Army, composed solely of Elder orphans, was close to the level of other armies’ deputy generals, belonging to the strong ones just one level below King, and counted as nearly Transcendent.

If it were stated that the Western Sea Army’s elite were Sixth Rank soldiers, his Guard Army was Third Rank Warriors; if not for the support from their military formation, it would be easy for his side to take on a hundred adversaries.

Breaking the military formation might be impossible, but to expect to hold them was a fool’s dream.

Of course, the one point worthy of concern was the sudden intervention of that mysterious Sky Totem.

That person’s strength also seemed to be at a level where they could reach King Level at any moment.

If that person suddenly teamed up with Shenyue to launch an assassin’s strike against him and his deputy general, once restrained, they would face some risk without their command.

Thus, he asked Ying Sheng to go back, assemble five hundred guards ready to support at any time, so that even if he was caught up by an assassin’s tactic, and his men lacked command and couldn’t break through for a moment, with a deputy general leading five hundred men ready to act, they could assist the Guard Army in a breakout at the first opportunity.

"Yes..." Ying Sheng received the order and without hesitation sprinted towards the Azure Dragon Palace to prepare for troop support.

The Guard Commander remained on high alert for any hidden masterminds on Shenyue’s side, guarding against any sudden moves.

As expected, the hidden mastermind did not appear, but something he did not anticipate happened.

Firstly, the Jiangnan soldiers stopped far away without any intention of attacking.

They just watched from a not too distant spot, like a group of spectators enjoying a show.

This circling but not engaging stance made him even more puzzled about what Jiangnan was planning—in fact, it made him even more vigilant than if they had directly attacked.

And what made him even more wary in his heart was... his Deputy General Ying Sheng...

He had been gone for over a quarter of an hour and showed no signs of returning.

He did not believe anyone could threaten Ying Sheng.

Ying Sheng was the strongest deputy general under his command, his strength also belonging to the peak just below the King Level.

Even with Shenyue’s fearsome display earlier, it would take at least ten rounds to take him down alone; self-protection was not an issue.

Furthermore, there shouldn’t be any other army on the field capable of stopping him.

Even the formation of five hundred guards was frightening, invincible beneath King Level, and without the protection of an army, an assassination was simply impossible.

But why hadn’t he returned yet?

Could it be the Sky Totem?

He also noticed that, on the Jiangnan side, the mysterious person who had been holding Tian Heng had vanished.

He had not failed to be vigilant, but with Ying Sheng’s strength, regardless of what opponent he faced, it should not happen without a trace.

Below King Level, there simply couldn’t be an existence capable of silently killing him.

If a King Level Power was present, he would certainly be able to sense it.

What, exactly, had happened?

Moreover, Shenyue’s situation was also strange; surrounding him, consuming their own forces, they seemed to want to do something to him, but now that the Jiangnan Army had arrived, they did nothing and fell into a stalemate. What was going on?

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"Um... Mister Chen... are we just going to watch like this?"

In the Western Sea Army, Deputy General Tian Yu asked with great caution.

This tactic of bringing troops just to spectate was something he had never encountered in his many years on the battlefield.

He was genuinely broadening his horizons.

Moreover, the mysterious person had taken their commander hostage without a trace, leaving behind only this demand.

It truly placed him in a difficult situation.

Logically, he should not abandon his commander and retreat. The other party’s request didn’t seem unreasonable. If they had demanded he and his men join the battle, he would definitely have refused. But to merely observe...

"What else can we do?" Chen Baifeng asked with a faint smile. "Could the general be considering abandoning Lord Tian Heng?"

"How could that be possible?" Tian Yu puffed out his chest, his face full of righteousness. "Even if there’s the slightest hope, we must rescue our commander and bring him back to our king, right?"

Chen Baifeng curled his lips but said nothing, instead continuing to watch the battle unfolding before him.

The number of Celestial Serpents in the Northern Territory was more than he had imagined, and even now, Giant Pythons kept surging out from underground without end.

However, if this was all there was to it, they were no match for the Regular Army, especially boosted by military formations.

Even more so as the opposing army’s quality was terrifyingly high, far surpassing His Majesty’s Ghost Army.

What was the meaning of such an offensive? To wear the enemy down to death?

Did the Northern Territory have so many Celestial Serpents to waste? Did those Demons not fear death?

And... where had the Sky Totem gone?

Chen Baifeng had a rough guess about the identity of the Sky Totem but still couldn’t be certain.

Now, with the Sky Totem taking Tian Heng away, it left him feeling uneasy.

In the current situation, one false move, and both he and the members of the Chen Family might have to stay here forever.

Without the option to retreat immediately, the pressure on him was immense.

He could feel that several battlefields had fallen into a weird deadlock, as if an invisible hand was manipulating the situation. Who was behind it all, he wasn’t quite sure.

Now, he could only pray that his guess about the Sky Totem was correct. Otherwise, if the Chen Family met its end here, he would truly become the sinner of his family!

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"Right beside us?"

At this moment, the atmosphere in the Azure Dragon Palace was the most solemn. Everywhere else was still clouded with suspicion, but here, it had reached a climax.

The speculation from Thousand-Faced Fox had everyone on edge, especially what Lord Ying Sheng had said: "Right beside us."

While others were tense, Ying Sheng felt heavy pressure too.

With no troops at his disposal, he should have returned to report immediately.

However, if it was indeed Thousand-Faced Fox who had infiltrated, this place became a higher priority.

He knew that something very important was here in the main palace, and if Thousand-Faced Fox became aware of it, the consequences would be dire.

Moreover, if he did not find this damned creature immediately, it would become even trickier once chaos erupted later on!

With this in mind, Ying Sheng’s eyes flashed with killing intent, and he thrust a punch without hesitation towards the remaining ten guards!

As a martial artist just below the King Level, his sudden attack took the guards by surprise. In an instant, they were reduced to a mess of blood and flesh from that domineering punch!

Such ruthless methods left Zhang Xiaoyun and her companion frozen in place.

With a single punch from Ying Sheng, not one of the ten survived; they were all mangled flesh, and the blood parasites of the Ancient Demons writhed within the bloodied remains.

Ying Sheng frowned. Had he been mistaken?

Or perhaps...

Ying Sheng turned around, directing his gaze toward Zhang Xiaoyun and Zhang Zhiyun.

At this moment, both were shivering under his intense scrutiny.

Especially Zhang Xiaoyun, a member of the Imperial Clan. Among those in the clan who had successfully undergone the transformation, only he and Zi Yue were left. Logically, the other party would not dare to strike at him carelessly.

But seeing the raging fury in the other’s eyes, he couldn’t be sure anymore.

What the hell was going on; why did everyone seem so abnormal?