Chapter 1703: The Grand Commander

"Master Mouwu should certainly know, but I don't..." Seeing he had been recognized, Zhang Xuan dropped his disguise and let out a laugh.

"He's not Master Mouwu! Attack!" The pupils of the three Foreign Spirit tribesmen constricted. Just as they were about to move, a colossal figure descended rapidly from the sky. Thud! The one in charge of the formation was instantly crushed into a pulp.

Immediately after, a bone dragon flew out, biting off the head of another. A demonic saber effortlessly cleaved the last one in two. They were merely three Foreign Spirit tribesmen at the Unbreakable God realm; since he had been recognized, killing them was simple. After disposing of the bodies, Zhang Xuan channeled his *zhenqi* into the teleportation array before him, and with a flash of light, he vanished from his original position.

As a Grandmaster of formations with an unparalleled understanding of space, activating the array was simple for him. His figure flickered, and he reappeared on another teleportation array. Looking up, he saw a massive valley, completely enclosed by rugged, uneven mountains.

"Greetings, Commander!" A voice rang out from the side just as he steadied himself. It was a few low-ranking soldiers guarding the array. They must have recognized the grade of his armor, not his identity. "Hmm," Zhang Xuan grunted without replying and strode forward.

The vast valley was bathed in the eerie glow of a blood moon, which hung obliquely over the distant mountains, resembling an ink wash painting. Countless soldiers, arranged in square formations, were spread across the valley. From afar, they presented a uniform and silent sight. Their sheer discipline alone indicated they were a well-trained and formidable army.

As this was a combined force from several subterranean chambers, no one suspected Zhang Xuan, despite his unfamiliar face as Mouwu. As he slowly advanced, Zhang Xuan grew increasingly alarmed. These soldiers, similar to those from the Dragon-Tiger Mountain Chamber, had a minimum cultivation of Saint 3-dan. If one hundred thousand powerhouses of this caliber attacked at once, even an Ancient Sage would have to retreat from their assault!

"I must stop them, or else... we'll definitely face a fierce struggle!" His brows furrowed. While the Master Teacher Pavilion, after years of development, could technically gather one hundred thousand Saint 3-dan cultivators if all forces combined, they were already dispersed, guarding various regions and contending with simultaneous attacks across 108 subterranean chambers. If this army surged forth, the unprepared human forces would suffer countless casualties. But... how could he stop them? Even an Ancient Sage wouldn't dare to confront them head-on, much less him now. If he charged in, he'd likely be swarmed and killed before taking down more than a few, without even knowing how he perished.

Poisoning them with Path of Heaven *zhenqi* would exhaust his entire reserves without being enough. And trying to harness lightning as he had before would be useless without a Diviner's artifact. Furthermore, all the soldiers would need to obey him.

"First, I'll find their supreme commander... and see if I can eliminate him!" After pondering for a moment and failing to devise a better plan, his eyes glinted. As the saying goes, "To shoot a person, first shoot his horse; to catch a thief, first catch his king." Since he couldn't capture all the Foreign Spirit tribesmen in one fell swoop, his best bet was to find their supreme commander. If he could deal with that individual, the remaining task should be significantly easier.

Activating his Eye of Insight, he scanned the surroundings. Soon, a large tent surrounded by soldiers appeared in his view. He approached slowly, found a hidden spot, and with a flick of his finger, the space before him twisted again, and he abruptly vanished. Fully concealed, he darted towards the tent, reaching it in moments.

Rustle! After a brief wait outside, a commander clad in black armor, identical to his own, lifted the tent flap and entered. Zhang Xuan, with a subtle shift, followed right behind him, slipping inside as well.

Inside the tent, a stove burned, keeping the temperature mildly warm. Looking ahead, he saw seventeen or eighteen individuals seated, all clad in black armor. It was evident at a glance that their status was akin to Mouwu's, at the commander level. "All Immortal Realm experts?" His eyebrow twitched.

These individuals were all Great Sage 4-dan Immortal Realm experts, their strength seemingly no less than Mouwu's. In particular, the middle-aged man seated in the very center, clutching a golden saber, exuded a subtle aura that was in no way inferior to Master Yang's! His body stiffened, and Zhang Xuan dared not move. Fortunately, he hadn't acted rashly but had followed one of the black-armored figures inside. Otherwise, even with the space around him sealed, he would have been easily detected. He had made significant progress recently, but against so many powerhouses, escape would be impossible.

"Reporting, Grand Commander, Bolin's side has not agreed to our request..." The newly arrived black-armored figure cupped his fists. "Not agreed?" the golden-saber-wielding middle-aged man asked expressionlessly. "He stated that their supplies are limited and they cannot provide us with more, suggesting that since we all serve our own masters, we shouldn't quarrel over this matter," the black-armored man replied. "Not quarrel? He's got a clever plan! He wants us to lead the charge but won't even lend us a batch of armor? He's clearly sending us to our deaths to snatch the benefits for himself!" "Precisely. Emperor Chenxing has always been two-faced and opportunistic. I didn't expect this Bolin to be so sly! We're allied, yet he wants to shirk responsibility? There's no such thing as a free lunch!" Upon hearing the black-armored man's report, the room instantly erupted in commotion.

The golden-saber-wielding middle-aged man raised a hand, cutting off the discussion. "Tell them, if they won't contribute funds, fine. But our two armies must advance side by side, and neither can retreat. Otherwise, they must hand over one hundred sets of the Starfall Armor refined by Emperor Chenxing. If they refuse... we'll settle it by force! I'll have a match with him: if I win, he follows my word; if I lose, I'll follow his!" "Yes!" The black-armored man nodded and withdrew once more.

Zhang Xuan paused for a moment, then subtly shifted, following the other man out of the tent. Trailing closely behind the black-armored figure, he walked for a short while until another massive tent appeared in the distance.

"From their conversation, it seems that although there are one hundred thousand people here, they are split into two factions: one belonging to Emperor Chenxing and the other to Emperor Chenling!" Zhang Xuan mused. Although he didn't know the precise differences between the two emperors, the current discussion, combined with his prior knowledge, suggested that the two forces were not as harmonious as one might assume.

"A rift between them is ideal! If I can find a way to incite them to fight each other... the hidden danger from the subterranean chamber would be resolved..." His eyes lit up. One hundred thousand people, if united, would be impossible to stop; he would only be able to alert humanity to prepare. But since they were divided into two apparently unharmonious teams... there was an opportunity to exploit!

His figure flickered, and Zhang Xuan altered his appearance. The next moment, he removed the spatial seal he had placed around himself, revealing his form. "Cough!" Having appeared, he deliberately coughed. "Who's there?!" The black-armored man, who had been heading towards the opposite tent, spun around at the sound. Recognizing the face, he was startled and immediately bowed deeply. "Grand Commander, you... why are you here?"

Zhang Xuan's disguise was none other than the Grand Commander holding the golden saber, who had been in the room earlier.