Chapter 1702: Ten-Thousand Strong Army

Soon, they arrived at a mountain hollow where several Fae stood. Spiritual energy continuously gathered around them, seemingly activating a formation.

Upon closer inspection, there were four Fae. The strongest one was comparable to Mou Wu, having reached the Immortal Realm, while the other three possessed the strength of a Great Sage 1-dan (Indestructible Body). Before them was a teleportation formation. However, the formation flags indicated it was extremely ancient and dilapidated, having been in operation for an unknown duration, which made its activation quite troublesome.

The strongest Fae glared angrily at the Fae before him; the recent reprimand had come from his mouth.

"Lord Mo Ye, I've done my best, but this formation is simply too ancient... I'm at my wit's end!" said the Fae activating the formation, his face etched with embarrassment as he spoke cautiously.

"Enough talk! Hurry up, or if anything goes wrong, both our heads will roll!" Lord Mo Ye commanded with a dismissive wave.

"Yes!" The Fae before him dared not utter another word. His full power surged forth, rapidly accelerating the spiritual energy gathering around him. The ancient formation flickered incessantly, appearing on the verge of activation. The Fae's face paled, indicating his strength was beginning to wane.

"Quick, help!" he called out to the other two.

The two remaining Fae of the Indestructible Body Realm hesitated not at all. Gritting their teeth, they cut their fingers, allowing their blood to surge toward the teleportation formation before them. The spiritual energy instantly became exceptionally dense, and the formation unleashed a dazzling light.

"Hmph!" Mo Ye grunted upon seeing the formation activate, then swayed and stepped into its center. Engulfed in light, Mo Ye entered the spatial cracks that appeared, vanishing in the blink of an eye.

Thud! The moment Mo Ye departed, the three remaining Indestructible Body Realm experts simultaneously collapsed to the ground. It appeared the formation had, in an instant, completely drained all their power.

"Thank goodness it's done, otherwise, we'd surely have been beheaded..." Despite their exhaustion, all three managed to grin. Had the formation not activated, they likely wouldn't have survived.

As they were rejoicing, footsteps sounded, and then a tall Fae appeared before them.

"Lord Mou Wu!" they exclaimed, hastily rising as they recognized him.

"Hmm, activate the formation and send me to where Mo Ye just went!" Mou Wu commanded with a wave of his hand.

This Mou Wu was, of course, Zhang Xuan in disguise. Mo Ye's urgency to leave via the teleportation formation indicated he had an important task. Since Zhang Xuan had witnessed this, he naturally felt compelled to intervene and, at the same time, gather intelligence on the Fae's current situation.

"Is Your Excellency also headed to Thousand Leaf Sea?" The Fae responsible for activating the formation almost burst into tears. Having just completed one teleportation that nearly cost him his life, another would surely finish him off. Though despondent, he couldn't help but grit his teeth and ask, "Didn't Emperor Chen Ling instruct Your Excellency to go to the Star Forging River?"

Zhang Xuan's heart stirred. Mou Wu had been sent to the Dragon Tiger Mountain Seal, which the Fae referred to as the "Star Forging River." It appeared their names for geographical locations differed from those used by humans.

"The matter at the Star Forging River has been resolved. Emperor Chen Ling ordered me to hasten to Thousand Leaf Sea to rendezvous with Mo Ye. Why... do I need to report to you?" Zhang Xuan's eyes narrowed, and under the impact of his murderous true qi, the armor he wore rattled, as if he might strike at any moment. Since Mou Wu's armor was identical to Heng Jiang's, Zhang Xuan only needed to alter his appearance, eliminating any concern about his attire revealing his disguise.

"Your subordinate wouldn't dare..." The Fae activating the formation looked distraught but had no choice but to continue channeling power and operating the formation. However, he was severely fatigued from his recent exertion. The other two, knowing they would be reprimanded if the formation wasn't activated, didn't hesitate and rushed over to assist.

"I've just finished handling matters at the Star Forging River and am currently unaware of the situation at Thousand Leaf Sea. What's it like over there?" Zhang Xuan asked casually, paying no mind to those operating the formation. If the Star Forging River was indeed the Dragon Tiger Mountain abyss, then Thousand Leaf Sea might be the exit of another abyss, quite possibly one of the six abysses on the verge of being breached. Going there now would allow him to resolve the situation directly, sparing others the trouble.

"Reporting, Your Excellency, our status is too low for us to know the details. However... I just overheard Lord Mo Ye say that Emperor Morning Star and Emperor Chen Ling have jointly issued a command for the warriors defending Thousand Leaf Sea to launch an immediate attack, without delay..." A Fae replied without a hint of suspicion.

"Defending warriors? Attack?" Zhang Xuan's eyebrows shot up. Previously, Heng Jiang and his cohorts opposite the Zhang Clan showed no urgency in attacking, which had made Zhang Xuan suspect they were awaiting reinforcements. More than ten thousand Fae were already a formidable, difficult force to counter; with reinforcements, they would be unstoppable. Now, from this Fae's words, the so-called Thousand Leaf Sea was precisely where these reinforcements were located. An order to attack immediately... which abyss were they planning to assault? Would there be danger? And most critically... Emperor Morning Star and Emperor Chen Ling had jointly issued a command!

The previous order Heng Jiang received had been from Emperor Chen Ling to attack, while Emperor Morning Star had commanded them to wait in place. This implied a disagreement between the two emperors. However, now they had jointly issued an order for all to attack, signifying a unified front.

"How many warriors are currently stationed at Thousand Leaf Sea? Could some be diverted to support the Star Forging River?" Zhang Xuan continued to inquire, feigning a casual interest.

"Thousand Leaf Sea is garrisoned by the Fae's strongest soldiers—the most elite warriors under the direct command of Emperor Chen Ling and Emperor Morning Star—totaling as many as one hundred thousand!" a Fae replied with a proud expression.

"One hundred thousand?" Zhang Xuan's eyebrows twitched, and he nearly stumbled. Ten thousand soldiers had already compelled the entire Zhang Clan to descend into the abyss... if one hundred thousand were deployed simultaneously, even the Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters wouldn't be able to suppress them! Did the Fae truly command an army of such magnitude? If they were genuinely this powerful, how could the Master Teacher Continent possibly defend itself?

"Yes!" This Fae seemed quite knowledgeable. "This marks the first time the two emperors have united, gathering all the strongest warriors of the entire Fae race. Their plan is to concentrate their forces on breaching a single passage... Soldiers from all other passages have already converged on Thousand Leaf Sea; only the Star Forging River, being too distant, was not notified..."

Zhang Xuan's eyes flashed, and he finally let out a breath of relief. He had initially feared they were simultaneously attacking all 108 abysses, with a hundred thousand in reserve, but it seemed that was not the case. Instead, they must have consolidated all their forces from various abysses, intending a concentrated assault on a single one. Furthermore, listening to the Fae's words about Emperor Morning Star and Emperor Chen Ling uniting for the first time, combined with previous information, it appeared the three Fae emperors were not as harmonious as he had once assumed. It was probable they had always harbored suspicions of each other, preventing them from massing their troops; otherwise, even the Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters would be unable to withstand them.

"Wait... Lord Mou Wu, as a commander, how could you not know any of this?" Suddenly, one Fae realized something was amiss and exclaimed. The other two were startled and immediately fixed their sharp gazes upon Zhang Xuan.