Chapter 1936: The Tu Brothers Three
Zhang Ruochen's emotions surged. Ji Fanxin's standards were extremely high; anyone she valued could never be mediocre. Someone who could become a Formation Earth Master after merely two hundred years of cultivation was truly formidable. The fact that they could cultivate such a young Formation Earth Master showed just how astonishing the foundation of the Five Elements Temple was.
"We'll launch the attack at dawn tomorrow. Senior Brother Lu will first dismantle the formations on Celestial Mechanism Mountain, then hold back that Formation Earth Master from the Death Clan."
"After reconnaissance, the Death Clan has set up eight military camps on Celestial Mechanism Mountain, modeled after the Eight Trigram formation, with numerous variations. We must attack all eight camps simultaneously to avoid complications. This involves the issue of personnel allocation."
"Brother Xuan and I discussed it. We want Junior Brother Zhang and the Hundred Flowers Fairy to be responsible for attacking one of the camps. You don't need to break through—just contain them."
Zhen Yuan spoke, roughly explaining the plan.
Without a doubt, the eight Death Clan camps were far from simple. Even just containing them required top-tier experts. Zhang Ruochen and Ji Fanxin had destroyed hundreds of thousands of Undying Blood Clan troops, killed several Divine Sons, and seized the Divine Python corpse from the Rakshasa Clan, proving their strength to everyone.
Exchanging a glance with Ji Fanxin, Zhang Ruochen said, "Since Senior Brother Zhen Yuan and Senior Brother Xuan trust us, we will naturally give our all."
"Then it's settled. The Northern Domain Main Camp will organize an army for you to command. I'll take you to see them later." Zhen Yuan smiled.
Zhang Ruochen nodded. "Besides us, who else will serve as commanders?"
Asking this question was also a way to learn which experts were in the Northern Domain Main Camp, so he could have a rough idea in advance.
Before Zhen Yuan could speak, Xuan Yuan Lie Kong laughed. "Before this, the commanders for the other eight armies have already been decided: Fairy Yuan, Ling Kongzi, Red Fox King, Wind Formless, Nie Yundao, Ten-Eyed Qiankun Insect, and You Yuexin. Now that you're added, that's everyone."
"Senior Brother Xuan and Senior Brother Zhen Yuan aren't commanding the main army?" Zhang Ruochen asked curiously.
Xuan Yuan Lie Kong shook his head. "The two of us, along with a few others, have different tasks. We'll monitor the overall situation and deal with a few troublesome figures on the Death Clan's side."
Hearing this, Zhang Ruochen understood. Anyone Xuan Yuan Lie Kong considered troublesome was definitely not to be underestimated—most were likely Divine Sons or Imperial Sons. Clearly, to attack Celestial Mechanism Mountain, Xuan Yuan Lie Kong and Zhen Yuan had prepared thoroughly. Once the battle erupted, many formidable figures would surely appear.
Countless cultivators from the Heavenly Court had entered the Kunlun Realm. As the most fiercely contested Merit Battlefield in the Northern Domain, how could it lack a massive gathering of experts?
After chatting a bit longer, Zhen Yuan personally led Zhang Ruochen and his five companions to the gathering point of the army.
This attack on Celestial Mechanism Mountain was no small matter, so only experts would be selected. Their cultivation had to be above the Saint Realm; anything less wasn't even qualified to be cannon fodder.
For easier coordination, Zhen Yuan and Xuan Yuan Lie Kong had set up a dedicated camp in the Northern Domain Main Camp. All the selected experts had already gathered there.
Zhen Yuan directly led Zhang Ruochen and the others into the main tent, then sent a voice transmission to summon the other seven commanders, letting everyone get acquainted first.
Zhang Ruochen noticed that most of these people he had seen before, but a few were quite unfamiliar. He recognized Fairy Yuan, Ten-Eyed Qiankun Insect, and You Yuexin, who represented the Supreme Origin Sect, the Nether God Temple, and the Black Demon Realm respectively.
As a Black Demon Realm cultivator, You Yuexin was far stronger than Shi Lingkun. She cultivated the "Heavenly Demon Nether Moon Diagram" from the Thirty-Six Heavenly Demon Stone Inscriptions, the same as Murong Yue, but her cultivation was deeper.
He had also seen Red Fox King at the previous meeting, but they had no interaction.
As for Ling Kongzi, Wind Formless, and Nie Yundao, Zhang Ruochen had no impression of them at all. But the fact that they were chosen as commanders proved they were no ordinary individuals.
"Big Brother, Wind Formless is from our Wind Clan, one of my cousins. He has thick Great Saint bloodline and has already reached the peak of the Heaven-Connecting Realm. He's considered the leader of our Wind Clan in the Northern Domain Main Camp." Feng Yan transmitted.
Hearing this, Zhang Ruochen's heart stirred. A Great Saint descendant at the peak of the Heaven-Connecting Realm should be fully capable of matching a Path-Approaching Realm expert, far surpassing Black Flame General.
"I am Ling Kongzi, a disciple of Ten Thousand Sword Mountain. I've long heard of Fellow Daoist Zhang's reputation. Meeting you today, I see you truly have an extraordinary bearing." Ling Kongzi cupped his hands.
Zhang Ruochen quickly returned the gesture. "Fellow Daoist Ling flatters me. Ten Thousand Sword Mountain is a sacred land of the Sword Dao. I've admired it for a long time and hope to have the chance to seek your guidance on the mysteries of the Sword Dao."
Ten Thousand Sword Mountain was the number one Sword Dao sacred land in Sword King Realm, with an extremely long history and deep foundation. Sword King Realm itself was one of the top hundred major worlds in the universe, incredibly powerful, with multiple gods stationed there. In particular, one ancestor of Ten Thousand Sword Mountain was said to have survived two Eon Calamities, with unfathomable cultivation.
Zhang Ruochen could sense that Ling Kongzi possessed a very thick Great Saint bloodline, and the Sword Intent radiating from him was extremely powerful. His strength was not to be underestimated.
Ling Kongzi smiled. "I've also heard that Fellow Daoist Zhang's Sword Dao cultivation is profound. When we have time, we should definitely exchange insights."
"Good. I look forward to your guidance, Fellow Daoist Ling." Zhang Ruochen said.
Since the other party was extending goodwill, he wouldn't push them away. Having more friends was always better than having more enemies.
At this point, Fairy Yuan, Wind Formless, and Red Fox King all nodded slightly, acknowledging him. Nie Yundao, Ten-Eyed Qiankun Insect, and You Yuexin, however, remained very cold, clearly not welcoming Zhang Ruochen and his group.
Zhang Ruochen was a bit surprised. It was normal for Ten-Eyed Qiankun Insect and You Yuexin to dislike him, but why was Nie Yundao reacting the same way?
As if knowing what Zhang Ruochen was thinking, Feng Yan transmitted, "Big Brother, Nie Yundao is a cultivator from the Soul Realm, belonging to the Heavenly Realm Faction. You once targeted Da Xi Wang, so Nie Yundao harbors deep hatred for you. You'll need to be on guard."
Hearing this, Zhang Ruochen suddenly understood. Soul Realm cultivators were very close to Shang Zi. If Nie Yundao had welcomed him, that would have been strange.
Zhen Yuan spoke up: "In tomorrow's battle, I hope everyone will cooperate well and break through Celestial Mechanism Mountain in one go. This battle only allows victory, not defeat. Otherwise, the war situation in the Northern Domain will be very unfavorable to us."
With that, Zhen Yuan turned and left, clearly having other matters to attend to.
The tent fell silent, the atmosphere a bit awkward.
"Zhang Ruochen, you'd better be careful. The battlefield is chaotic. Don't accidentally lose your life." Ten-Eyed Qiankun Insect sneered, breaking the silence.
Zhang Ruochen said, "You're right. If you die on the battlefield, I'll definitely collect your corpse. After all, the body of an ancient relic race is quite valuable."
A cold killing intent flashed in Ten-Eyed Qiankun Insect's eyes. If not for his reservations, he would have wanted to deal with Zhang Ruochen right then and there.
"Hmph, we'll see about that."
Leaving those words, Ten-Eyed Qiankun Insect strode out of the tent.
You Yuexin stared at Zhang Ruochen for a moment, said nothing, and also walked out.
Nie Yundao made no attempt to hide his killing intent toward Zhang Ruochen. "Zhang Ruochen, I will take back what belongs to the Divine Maiden from you and kill you."
Compared to Ten-Eyed Qiankun Insect and You Yuexin, Nie Yundao was much more direct, not hiding his true thoughts at all.
Slightly restraining his killing intent, Nie Yundao walked out. He was afraid that if he stayed any longer, he wouldn't be able to resist attacking Zhang Ruochen.
Seeing this, the others lost interest and soon dispersed.
On the battlefield, they had to rely on themselves; others were hard to count on. Rather than waste time here, it was better to go back and conserve their strength.
Fairy Yuan was more enthusiastic, personally leading Zhang Ruochen and his five companions to their camp.
For this operation, the Northern Domain Main Camp had formed eight armies, each with fifty thousand soldiers. Among them were a thousand Saint King-level experts, with the rest being Saint Realm cultivators.
As soon as they entered the camp, over a dozen experts came forward. But they didn't look like they were there to welcome them; their gazes were unfriendly.
Leading them were three handsome young men with identical faces, radiating extremely powerful auras—clearly at the Heaven-Connecting Realm. The eight people behind them were also at the Dao Domain Realm level.
"Big Brother, they are the Tu Brothers Three, named Tu Tian, Tu Di, and Tu Ren. They are descendants of a top-tier Great Saint from Ten Thousand Ruins Realm. Individually, each has the strength to sweep through the Heaven-Connecting Realm. Together, the three of them can match a Path-Approaching Realm expert. I didn't expect them to be assigned to this army." Feng Yan transmitted.
He knew the Tu Brothers' temperament, so seeing them made him uneasy.
Sure enough, Tu Tian spoke with a hostile tone. "Zhang Ruochen, I hear you're the commander of this camp?"
"That's right, it's me." Zhang Ruochen nodded.
Tu Tian's gaze sharpened. "Do you think you're qualified to be our commander? Have you asked for our opinion?"
"Is that necessary?" Zhang Ruochen said flatly.
Tu Tian said, "Of course it is. What makes you think you're worthy to command us? Just because you're at the Rule Small Heaven cultivation level?"
"It seems you're quite dissatisfied." Zhang Ruochen said.
Tu Di stepped forward. "If you want us to accept you, you need to show enough strength."
Tu Ren chimed in, "That's right. If you can defeat us three brothers, we'll willingly follow your orders. Otherwise, don't even think about commanding anyone in this camp."
By now, everything was clear. The Tu Brothers Three had come specifically to cause trouble, unhappy with Zhen Yuan and Xuan Yuan Lie Kong's arrangements. They didn't dare defy Zhen Yuan and Xuan Yuan Lie Kong directly, but they wanted to use their own strength to force Zhang Ruochen to give up the commander position.
Zhang Ruochen didn't care about the commander title, but since he had already agreed to Zhen Yuan and Xuan Yuan Lie Kong, and the Tu Brothers were being so aggressive, he had no choice but to take the position.
"Since you insist, I'll have to oblige you." Zhang Ruochen said coldly.
Hearing this, the Tu Brothers Three all smiled. They had been afraid Zhang Ruochen would refuse, which would have been troublesome.
Tu Di sneered. "There's a training ground in the camp. Follow us."
Zhang Ruochen said nothing more and naturally followed.
In the world of cultivators, the strong always rule. Principles are forged with fists. Zhen Yuan and Xuan Yuan Lie Kong making him the commander was indeed a difficult test—were they intentionally trying to gauge his strength?
Soon, they arrived at the training ground, which was already packed with people. It seemed the entire camp's soldiers had gathered.
Clearly, the Tu Brothers Three had arranged this in advance, making everyone witnesses so Zhang Ruochen couldn't deny the outcome if he lost.
The Tu Brothers Three entered the training ground first, forming a Three-Talent formation, ready for battle at any moment.
Zhang Ruochen's expression was calm as he slowly walked into the training ground. Having just broken through to the Rule Large Heaven, he planned to use these three brothers to test his cultivation results.