I must admit, when an army of a hundred thousand people, all cultivators, moved in one direction...


    It looked imposing.


    Xie Qing kept an eye on both the monsters and the army that followed behind him.


    "Such a gathering can be a problem..."


    Although many of them were from sects and smart enough not to cause trouble...


    Xie Qing always viewed such gatherings with caution. Especially during military operations, when everything was chaotic and too fast to keep track of everyone.


    However, so far his concerns had been unnecessary and although there were some troublemakers, they were quickly dealt with.


    The young man kept an eye on the formation team that included Li Yun. They were surrounded and apanied by a team of Soul Nascent cultivators.


    As for the team of alchemists, Lu Yin stayed in the camp with another hundred cultivators.


    After several hours, they encountered their first enemy.


    "Team 1, prepare for battle," the general ordered, and Xie Qing, who was also temporarily a member of this team, began the attack.


    Their enemy was a Soul Nascent fifth-stage monster.


    Xie Qing could kill several of them alone, but the others had a lot of trouble.


    The monster looked like a bear, was five meters tall, and was surrounded by thick demonic Qi.


    It was dangerous to fight against it not only because of its ws and enormous physical strength but also because of the demonic Qi, which was like poison.


    Xie Qing narrowed his eyes and unsheathed his sword. With a ng, the Nameless Sword emitted a bright light, and deep wounds appeared on the bear''s weak spots.


    Moreover, the released attack carried the Sword Aura, which was able to fight against the demonic Qi and limit its spread.


    "Rrrrrr!"


    The bear roared and tried to resist, but when four cultivators at the peak of Core Formation attacked it, it had no chance of resistance.


    After several minutes of fierce battle, one of the cultivators managed to cut off the bear''s head.


    Flying through the air, the hideous bear''s head fell to the ground with a crash, nearly injuring one of the ordinary soldiers.


    Xie Qing waved his hand and released the Sword Aura, which immediately turned the body into hundreds of thousands of small pieces, and General Liu Bei swung his spear, summoning fire and burning the remains of the bear''s body.


    Their coordinated work ensured that the demonic Qi could not escape and harm them.


    The soldiers'' morale rose, and triumphant cries filled the forest.


    The young man frowned slightly, as did Liu Bei.


    "These idiots are too excited. Their cries attract too much attention," thought Xie Qing, maintaining an indifferent expression.


    If they were a group of weak people, this would be fatal. Although Xie Qing did not like noise, he could not stop the soldiers, who were trying to get rid of their fear in this way.


    After all, they were fighting not just anyone, but monsters, who could cause trouble even after death.


    High-ranking individuals had special spiritual items to protect them, but ordinary soldiers did not.


    General Liu Bei waved his hand, and the noise immediately stopped.


    They continued on their way, and Xie Qing sensed the presence of three monsters ten miles away from them.


    However, their level was too low, and Xie Qing saw no point in getting involved himself.


    "I''m not going to do all the work for them," he thought, turning his attention to finding stronger enemies.


    Unfortunately, no matter how hard he tried, the young man found himself in a situation where he was walking on level ground and suddenly slipped, falling into an abyss.


    This meant that among the monsters, there was a creature capable of blocking his Qi.


    "It''s rming. Can a demonic monster develop intelligence? Although it''s not impossible, the cultivation level must be at least Divine Transformation..."


    Xie Qing frowned. Although he hated his character, these thoughts worried him.


    A monster without intelligence would be an easy opponent. Not so with one that has intelligence.


    "Ugh... Maybe I''m cursed or something? Why does the situation get worse every time I go somewhere..."


    ***


    In the deepest part of the forest, three monsters gathered in one ce. They were a white python, an elephant, and a tiger.


    Although it looked more like a circus, this trio was at the Soul Integration first stage.


    And, to your knowledge, they had developed intelligence.


    "We haven''t even gotten to our feet, and the humans have already sent executioners here," said the python. His voice was hissing and hard to understand.


    "What do you suggest we do? There are strong ones among these bastards. We''ll have to face them head-on!" roared the tiger, looking annoyed: "My subordinates are suffering! More than a hundred of our brothers have died!"


    "So what? They''re just idiots without brains. They disobeyed us and went beyond the boundaries of the Master''s formation," the elephant replied coldly.


    "Sh-sh-sh... Don''t argue... Sh-sh-sh!"


    The trio continued to argue. They looked very funny from the side. True, their power was terrifying.


    In this forest, besides two more, there was no one stronger than them. So they were somewhat arrogant.


    True, the humans quickly brought them to their senses. When their subordinates began to die one by one, this rmed them, forcing them to turn to the mysterious creature.


    "Where are Rabbit and Hare?" the python asked in his usual hissing voice.


    "I don''t know. They went somewhere with the master. They''ve probably been sent to the ughterhouse by now. The subordinates of these two fools are fighting each other," the tiger snorted, answering in an unhappy voice: "I''m telling you, it''s better to send these troublemakers against the humans! They''re useless anyway"


    "Without these two, it will be difficult to give orders to the demonic monsters. They obey only their ruler"


    "Tsk!"


    ***


    Xie Qing, of course, knew nothing about this zoo. He calmly cut off the elephant''s head. This time the enemy had too little demonic Qi, and the only advantage was thick skin.


    "Pick up his body and burn it. Keep only two teeth and ask someone from the formation team to deliver the box. We need to take samples," ordered Xie Qing.


    "Yes, sir!"


    Two cultivators bowed and ran to carry out the order. Since Xie Qing was a high-level cultivator, General Liu Bei appointed him directly as themander of the first team.


    The young man did not object and was doing a good job. He was already used to giving orders and managing people.


    Now the army had set up a small camp to rest and replenish their Qi.


    Xie Qing sat in a secluded ce by the fire.


    Stars twinkled in the sky. They had killed more than a hundred monsters on their way, and it was exhausting. Although many of these monsters were weaklings...


    A hundred, and even a thousand of them, had exhausted the ordinary soldiers.


    "You haven''t eaten anything. Although we don''t need it, you must be tired of the smell of blood," a soft female voice sounded behind him.


    Xie Qing turned his head and saw Li Yun bringing him hot soup.


    The young man jumped up and helped her, afraid she would spill the soup on herself.


    "You should have told me. I would have taken it myself," said Xie Qing, taking a table and two chairs out of his spatial ring.


    "How could I? You''re already so tired. The girls in my team were praising you," said Li Yun, shaking her head slightly with a weak smile.


    "Then thank you..."


    Xie Qing could not refuse her, so he reluctantly agreed. Only after his agreement did Li Yun smile brightly, looking pleased.


    She also brought her food and had dinner with him.


    "How is your team doing?" she asked after eating, wiping her hands.


    "...I think it''s going well. They''re all capable guys and can react quickly. I don''t ask for more," thought Xie Qing and asked a question in return: "And how about you?"


    "In my team, most of the members are from the Starry Stream Sect. So I feel like a fish in water," said Li Yun and giggled: "Elder Shan cares a lot about me"


    "d to hear you''re doing well"


    Although, if you think about it, it was natural. Most of the formation masters were from the Starry Stream Sect.


    So Li Yun, who was the main heir, was a respected figure and would be protected.


    Because of this, Xie Qing felt better. At least Li Yun was safe.


    They rested for two hours. During this time, there were forty attempts to attack. Twenty of them were stopped by Xie Qing, who only needed to use the basic skill "Materialization."


    If there were still people who doubted his strength, no one dared to ignore him now.


    It seemed that the reputation of Destroying de had shone again.


    No one dared to sleep or meditate at night. They were in a dangerous area.


    The mission for today was to kill as many monsters as possible, collect samples, and repeat this several times.


    If everything went ording to n, they would sessfully return to the main base by morning.


    "Stop"


    Suddenly, General Liu Bei raised his hand and ordered the army to stop.


    Xie Qing immediately tensed and drew his sword. His eyes narrowed, staring into the darkness of the forest.


    "Come out, demonic spawn," said the general indifferently.


    "Ha-ha, General Liu Bei is still so cruel. Why are you so rude?"


    A hoarse male voice came from the forest, in which mockery could be heard.


    From the darkness came a man... No, too ugly to be called a man.


    "This..."


    Xie Qing frowned.


    "So this is what demons look like"