Thousands of years had passed, and it seemed that a silent agreement had formed between Zhengying Academy and the Exotic Beasts.
This time, although there was an accident and the normally peaceable, powerful Exotic Beasts that cultivated and didn’t interfere with the Trialists suddenly attacked, overall, their strength had not changed.
The beasts that Qu Fengting had slain were equivalent to a Ninth Rank Swordsman, formidable for an ordinary swordsman but no match for a full-force strike from Qu Fengting, a Tenth Rank Great Swordsman.
The pungent scent of blood spread through the air, and the young swordsmen finally snapped to their senses and drew their longswords.
"Follow me and charge in, the passage is inside that palace. Only by reaching there can we escape the Exotic Beast Valley," Qu Fengting bellowed again, leading the charge against the horde of Exotic Beasts. Updates are released by N0veI.Fiɾe.net
In the morning breeze, Qu Fengting, with his long hair flying and pointing his sword towards the sky, exuded an imposing aura reminiscent of a War God descending.
"Follow the Alliance Leader, kill!" Seeing Qu Fengting’s unstoppable valor, the young swordsmen’s blood boiled. Their respect for him grew, and they charged forward without looking back.
In the blink of an eye, nearly a thousand swordsmen engaged in fierce combat with the Exotic Beasts.
But at this moment, Qu Fengting quietly slowed down, took several deep breaths. Although he was stronger than these beasts, and solo combat was no challenge for him, the notion of breaking through the encirclement of thousands of beasts by himself was a fool’s dream.
One must consider that Exotic Beasts naturally possess great defensive power and vitality. Unless dealt a lethal blow, even if severely injured, as long as they had a breath left, they could counterattack desperately. His strike earlier might have seemed effortless, but he had actually expended all his Qi, and now his legs felt slightly wobbly.
And with others inspired and rushing forward after seeing his act, he was afraid he wouldn’t even have the chance to feign bravado.
Around him, screams sounded intermittently, and blood splattered as one young swordsman after another fell to the ground, causing the momentum of the swordsmen’s charge to falter.
Qu Fengting took a few more breaths, swallowed an Elixir, and managed to recover some Qi. He then continued to charge forward.
He wasn’t particularly concerned about the life or death of those young swordsmen, but if they died too quickly, who would help him draw fire?
"If you want to survive, then follow me and kill, kill!" Qu Fengting shouted loudly once more.
Many of these young swordsmen had never experienced life and death battles before. For some, it was even their first time venturing away from home. Seeing comrades fall one by one and being splattered with blood had already terrified them, and they were on the verge of retreating.
Hearing Qu Fengting’s shout, they found their pillar of strength, clinging to him like drowning men clutching at straws, and followed unhesitatingly.
With them gathered around him, the pressure on Qu Fengting significantly lessened. He only needed to focus on the Exotic Beasts in front of him, conserving his strength and slowly pushing toward the palace.
He might have been safe now, but the young swordsmen around him were in tragic states, especially those at the periphery of the formation with weaker abilities. Following behind and surrounded on three sides, how could they possibly cope?
Within moments, dozens more fell victim to the siege of Exotic Beasts.
The scene was particularly gruesome.
Mu Hanyan and her companions, a bit further from the frontline, stood tightly together, also following Qu Fengting’s group towards the palace.
There were only four of them, naturally facing enemies on all sides. Even though her and Yan Yuchu’s skills were superior, they struggled clumsily to cope.