Under one person: I, Zhang Zhiwei, the arrogant Zhang.

With Zhang Sanjia's assurance, Zhang Zhiwei felt much more at ease.

Both are extraordinary individuals, and both are martial arts champions. They are generous and righteous, so it would be a suitable choice for their fellow disciples to follow him, allowing them to fully utilize their abilities.

While Zhang Huaiyi, Tian Jinzhong and others emerged from seclusion, the brothers Lü Ci and Lü Ren from Lüjia Village also finally fought their way out of the inner realm trial.

When Zhang Zhiwei set up the Guiyuan Formation in Lüjia Village, he always did it according to the standard of fifteen people per group. But when it came to the last group, there were only three people left, not enough to make up the full fifteen.

Lu Ci felt that the fewer people there were, the more difficult and challenging it would be, so he dragged his brother Lu Ren and a cousin into the inner scene as a group of three, wanting to take on a challenge.

However, in the inner battlefield of the Guiyuan Formation, during the beginner period, it is indeed easier for fifteen people to stick together, and the margin for error is higher.

However, achieving the goal of having everyone survive and play the entire game is much more difficult with fifteen people than with three.

The more people there are, the more uncontrollable variables there are. If even one person falters, the entire team has to start all over again.

However, Lü Ci and his trio were an exception. Lü Ren was calm and intelligent, Lü Ci was ruthless and decisive, and their cousin Lü Cheng was also a clever man.

Through countless life-or-death trials, the three cooperated flawlessly and actually managed to overcome the five hellish battlefield instances and pass all the trials.

Of course, even for Lü Ci, who had experienced many crises with Zhang Zhiwei, passing this trial after having all his abilities sealed was extremely difficult.

The long and brutal battle made his already volatile personality even more ferocious. Even the usually gentle and refined Lü Ren had a hint of murderous intent in his eyes.

Originally, they planned to wait until the rest of the clan members emerged from seclusion before setting off for the battlefield together. However, when Lü Ci saw the clan members' appalling progress on the light screen above the Guiyuan Formation, he immediately became restless.

Some tribesmen are still dying repeatedly in the first challenge, the "Verdun Meat Grinder," while others are still struggling in the second challenge, the "Somme." At this rate, who knows when they will all pass through.

Lu Ci is furious and desperately needs to find a group of real Japanese pirates to vent his anger!

His anger flared even more after hearing about Zhang Zhiwei's glorious exploits in Shanghai.

It's such a pity he wasn't there for such an exciting event.

No matter how realistic the battles in the interior are, nothing beats the thrill of real-life, bloody combat!

However, after communicating with Zhang Zhiwei through the Yin-Yang Paper and learning that Lu Jin had not yet passed the Inner Realm Trial, his anger subsided by more than half, and he even felt a little schadenfreude.

Losing face in front of others isn't shameful, but losing face in front of Lu Jin would be a huge embarrassment. Conversely, being able to outdo Lu Jin, even by a tiny margin, would be a tremendous victory!
After learning that Zhang Zhiwei was arranging for his fellow disciples from Longhu Mountain to go to the northern battlefield, Lü Ci could no longer contain himself and insisted on going along as well.

Lu Ren wanted to advise him to be more cautious and wait until the Lu brothers had cleared the level before taking action together.

But Lü Ci argued that if they went early, they could familiarize themselves with the battlefield situation sooner, find out the details of the Japanese pirates, and provide more guidance and support to the brothers who would pass through later.

Upon hearing this, Lü Ren immediately felt it made perfect sense. After discussing it with his father and several clan elders, he agreed.

Upon hearing that the two Lu family duo were also joining, Zhang Zhiwei naturally had no reason to refuse. The Lu family's ancestral martial art, "Ruyi Jin," while only mediocre in direct, head-on combat, had many other ingenious applications.

Besides being able to secretly ambush people, the Ruyi Force can also spread outwards like the sound waves of a bat, providing a comprehensive and thorough survey of the entire terrain.

In this way, the team is like having an extra human radar, a natural scout.

On the battlefield, this ability is simply invaluable. With the addition of these two, the safety of their fellow disciples will undoubtedly increase significantly.

Moreover, these two are already extremely strong and are rare combat forces.

However, Zhang Zhiwei also gave some thought to how to send them to the northern battlefield thousands of miles away.

Zhang Zhiwei originally intended to open the lightning channel directly and airdrop them there like supplies.

But then I thought about it again, and realized that would be too unrealistic and would defeat the purpose of the experience.

Since it's a learning experience, we need to be down-to-earth, just like the monkeys on their journey to the West, who had to travel 108,000 miles step by step.

Letting them walk there on their own will allow them to witness firsthand the plight of ordinary people affected by the war and the suffering of this chaotic world. This will be an excellent opportunity to temper their character and moral cultivation.

However, it's nearly 1500 kilometers from Longhu Mountain to Longcheng. If they were to travel there by the traditional means, it would take at least two months. By the time they arrived, it would be too late, and the Battle of Longcheng would have already ended.

After thinking for a moment, Zhang Zhiwei gave each of his junior brothers who came down the mountain a few specially made "Divine Speed ​​Armor Horse" talismans.

"The Divine Horse can travel 800 li a day. If it travels day and night, it can travel 1,600 li. It will take less than two days to get from here to Dragon City, and it will definitely not delay anything."

The city of Ran, where the Lü family lived, was located at the border of Huizhou Prefecture and Jiangxi Province, and was very close to Longhu Mountain.

Zhang Zhiwei then told Lü Ci and the others to wait at home. He then gave Zhang Huaiyi and his fellow disciples a stack of Divine Speed ​​Talismans, instructing them to go to Lü Family Village first, pick up Lü Ci and his brother, and then travel together to Longcheng.

With the dozen or so elite warriors from Longhu Mountain, plus the two Lu family duo, and Zhang Huaiyi, a meticulous expert leading the team, Zhang Zhiwei really couldn't imagine what kind of trouble they would encounter on the road.

After seeing his fellow disciples off, Zhang Zhiwei turned his gaze back to Shanghai.

The battle here continues, and it even seems to be escalating.

After that crushing defeat, the Japanese pirates temporarily abandoned their attack on the Tiantong Church.

Many civilian anti-Japanese patriots, scattered soldiers, and the "National Salvation Team" organized by Lu Yusheng used this place as their base camp for rest and resupply.

The foreigners in the Municipal Council also turned a blind eye to this, completely ignoring it; they neither wanted to nor dared to get involved.

During this period, Zhang Zhiwei's lightning incarnation also took the initiative to attack several times, using lightning magic to dismantle the opponent's aerial bombardment on several occasions.

But not long after, the Shinto priests of the Japanese pirates set up talismans around the parish to specifically restrict the manifestation of lightning.

Although these talismans cannot completely control the lightning avatar, they can cause considerable interference and restraint to him.

Subsequently, some Japanese pirates and supernatural beings hiding in the shadows also began to use all sorts of abilities to restrict the lightning avatar's actions from various aspects.

Unfortunately, the lightning avatar wasn't Zhang Zhiwei himself descending to earth; it lacked the overwhelming life force and cultivation to support it. And the abilities of supernatural beings were simply too diverse and bizarre.

In this world, no matter how seemingly insurmountable a power may be, there is always a way to counter it.

Just like the "Spirit Binding and Commanding" technique in the Eight Extraordinary Skills, no matter if you are a great demon or immortal who has been around for hundreds of years, as long as you dare to appear in spirit form.

Even if the opponent is a greenhorn who has only been training for a few years, as long as he masters this strange skill, he can completely restrain you, leaving you powerless to resist, and even turning you into a puppet in his hands.

Every technique has its limitations.

The Eight Extraordinary Skills were simply some special techniques that emerged at a certain point in time in China.

In the eyes of a true master like Zhang Zhiwei, these are nothing more than some strange and ingenious tricks.

Similar methods will emerge in other parts of the world.

The Japanese pirates naturally had similar methods as well. Even though not all of them were passed down for various reasons, some remnants still exist.

For example, Shintoism has many methods specifically designed to restrict spirits, since Shintoism itself primarily relies on controlling spirits and deities.

Although the lightning incarnation is formed from lightning, it carries the power of faith and Zhang Zhiwei's will, so strictly speaking, it can also be considered a spiritual entity.

Therefore, the spells of those priests could still have some effect on him.

However, the power of the lightning incarnation was too strong and the speed too fast. No priest dared to confront him head-on. They could only hide in the shadows, secretly casting spells and tripping him up to annoy him.

Therefore, although they restricted the Lightning Incarnation's initiative, they themselves dared not easily approach the Tiantong Diocese, or even get close to the surrounding area.

Thus, a fragile standoff and balance was formed between the two sides. They dared not enter the parish, but they had to deploy a large number of priests to look after it, because if they went to carry out other missions, the Lightning Avatar would come out to kill people. However, if they stayed there, the Lightning Avatar would not come out, and they would have no way to deal with the aliens and the army of the other side's Divine Land.

Essentially, the lightning incarnation held back a considerable number of Japanese pirates and other supernatural beings there.

This greatly relieved the pressure on our own side's aliens.

But this situation must come to an end.

Because the Japanese navy reinforcements have arrived.

This reinforcement was far smaller than the one led by Takeshita Yujiro, and it didn't have as many ships, but it was very elite.

More importantly, Prince Fushimi, the naval commander of the Japanese pirates, and the chief priest of the Shinto religion also came in person!

These two are truly the most powerful figures in the world of power and supernatural beings in Japan!
Upon learning that Prince Hiroyasu of Fushimi was going to the battlefield in person, Army General Matsumoto was greatly alarmed and almost dropped his teacup.

"That old navy idiot... Has he gone mad?! He actually risked his life to come here?!"

Of course, he could only mutter those words, "old navy idiot," in private.

He could point his finger at Admirals Hase and Takeshita Yujiro and call them idiots, but he would never dare to say that to Prince Fushimi!
This is not only because Prince Fushimi is a member of the noble imperial family, but also because he is a dignified naval admiral!

Japan is a place that places great emphasis on seniority and hierarchy.

If he were an army field marshal, he certainly wouldn't need to give face to a navy admiral; they could even bang on the table together. But the problem is... he's not!
Therefore, no matter how much he cursed in his heart, he had to put on a good show on the surface. He had to give Prince Fushimi absolute and impeccable respect.

After learning the exact arrival time of the naval fleet, Matsui, along with a group of core staff members from the army, arrived at the Wusongkou Wharf early to wait.

The pomp and circumstance he displayed was as grand as if he were receiving a Grand Marshal of the Army.

A red carpet was laid out, military music played, and the honor guard stood at attention with rifles.

Of course, this is only superficial compliance.

Matsui sneered inwardly: So what if he's a Fleet Admiral? He's just a slightly older, higher-ranking idiot! Trying to interfere with the command of my army? No way!
Unless it is personally authorized by His Majesty the Emperor, or a formal order is issued by the General Headquarters.

Otherwise, no matter what the admiral said, he would just stand at attention, salute, shout "Hai!", and then ignore it, continuing to do what he was doing.

With a long, drawn-out whistle, a massive battleship slowly entered the harbor; it was a Nagato-class battleship.

The massive hull resembled a mobile castle on the sea, with its dark 410mm cannons pointing straight to the sky, exuding a suffocating sense of oppression.

Under the watchful eyes of countless people, Prince Fushimi and the chief priest, surrounded by a group of high-ranking officers and priests, slowly descended the gangway.

Although Prince Fushimi was advanced in years, he still stood tall and his eyes were as sharp as an eagle's.

Beside him, the Grand Master, dressed in a white hunting robe, held a scepter, his face expressionless, his half-open eyes gleaming with a chilling light.

Even more striking was the sight of four burly priests carefully carrying a shrine covered in brocade behind the chief priest.

That was the sacred artifact Yata no Kagami. Because it carried the power of a sacred artifact, this time, the Grand Master and Prince Fushimi no Yasuhito did not conceal their whereabouts. They wanted to come openly and honestly, and then eliminate the little celestial master, whom they revered as a deity and the pinnacle, in front of their own people and the people of Shenzhou, thus shattering his myth in the world of extraordinary people in Shenzhou.

Matsui was able to become a general, so he must have worshipped the sacred artifacts. The moment he saw the shrine box, his pupils contracted slightly.

He knew that this time, those crazy naval idiots were really going to get serious!
"Welcome, Your Highness! Welcome, Grand Master of Ceremonies!"

Matsui quickly stepped forward and bowed deeply.

Prince Fushimi glanced at him indifferently and nodded slightly in return.

His gaze passed over Matsui and landed on the distant city shrouded in war and thunderclouds, on the Tentong Parish that kept him awake at night.

Prince Fushimi disdainfully looked at Matsui, but the Grand Priest looked over and said in a low voice, "Mr. Matsui, this time, we have not only brought the will of His Majesty the Emperor, but also... the will of Amaterasu Omikami. The end of the Tensui Church and its leader is nigh." (End of Chapter)