Choose Liu Bei at the start, I am the only one who knows the plot of the Three Kingdoms.

And the harassment from those sorcerers was everywhere.

The fire scorched the soldiers' legs and feet, the poisonous fog eroded their breath, and the eerie winds disrupted their vision and balance. From time to time, stray arrows and flying blades attacked from tricky angles.

Narrow passages and relatively open squares have now become bloody meat grinders!
The sounds of metal clashing, spells exploding, roars, screams, and the groans of the dying mingled together, creating a symphony of death!
Every swing of the sword and every thrust of the spear was accompanied by the destruction of the enemy and the fall of loyal soldiers on their own side!

Warm blood kept splashing, staining the black stone slabs beneath our feet, which seemed to absorb light, dark red, so sticky that it was almost impossible to stand.

Limbs and severed arms were scattered everywhere, and the air was filled with a nauseating stench of blood and the burnt smell of residual magic.

Guan Yu's phoenix eyes widened in anger. Every swing of his Green Dragon Crescent Blade was accompanied by a shrill whistling sound that tore through the air. The cyan blade energy was invincible, often cutting several Divine Army soldiers in two with a single strike, clearing a fan-shaped vacuum zone. It was a veritable human meat grinder!

Zhang Fei's roar seemed to carry a tangible sonic attack, causing nearby enemies to bleed from their eardrums, waver in their minds, and become sluggish in their movements.

His eighteen-foot spear was like a black storm of death, its power fierce and unparalleled. With a sweeping motion, no one could stop it, and it smashed a passage through the dense enemy ranks!

Zhao Yun was like a white ghost on the battlefield, wielding his bright silver spear with the speed and agility of a rain of pear blossoms, impenetrable to any attack!
His marksmanship was agile and precise to the extreme. He did not engage in a direct confrontation with the enemy, but instead targeted vital points such as the gaps in the armor of the Divine March Army, the throat, and the gaps in the faceplate. His spear tip moved like a viper's tongue, each strike deadly and efficient, conserving his energy to the maximum extent.

Huang Zhong held a relatively rear position in the formation, but his bow became the most terrifying eye of death on the battlefield!
With each vibration of the bowstring, a piercing arrow is released, precisely traversing the chaotic battlefield to pierce the head of a sorcerer chanting a crucial spell, or to eliminate elite enemies attempting to flank, defusing crises at critical moments.

Ma Chao led the few elite cavalrymen in his team, charging back and forth on the flanks of the wedge formation, like agile cavalry.

His tiger-headed golden spear transformed into streaks of deadly silver light, precise and ruthless, desperately resisting the enemies surging in from the side like a tide, ensuring the safety of the flank of the main attack direction.

Despite having the Five Tiger Generals as their spearhead and the soldiers who launched the attack being incredibly brave, their advance was still extremely slow. With each step forward, they were stepping on the corpses of soldiers from both sides, and they had to pay a huge price!

The number of people around me is constantly decreasing, from more than fifty to less than forty.

Worse still, the light at the gap that Guan Yu had forcibly torn open behind them was rapidly stabilizing, and the flowing runes were lighting up again. Clearly, the sorcerers of Penglai were doing their best to repair the magic array! Before long, their only escape route would be completely blocked!
Meanwhile, outside the main altar, deafening shouts of battle and the sounds of intense energy collisions echoed! Clearly, the troops responsible for feinting and drawing attention from the perimeter were also locked in a fierce battle and unable to provide any support.

Gu Rubing led this battered but resolute assault team, stepping over the corpses of their comrades and enemies, and finally broke through layers of obstacles, reaching the entrance to the exceptionally wide and magnificent passageway leading to the central pyramid.

Behind them, the deafening shouts of battle and the explosions of magic continued; the breach was closing, and retreat was impossible. Before them stood the last, and most formidable, barrier!
The passageway was wide enough for dozens of riders to ride abreast. The ground and the walls on both sides were made of black boulders that absorbed light, smooth as a mirror, yet exuding a chilling cold that penetrated to the bone.

At the end of the passageway, instead of a spacious plaza, stood two enormous, tightly closed metal doors, each several meters high!

The door, made of some unknown metal, had a dark purplish-black color and was engraved with huge and ferocious demonic patterns that seemed to come from the depths of the underworld. The demons were lifelike, with protruding fangs and disdainful eyes, as if they could come to life and devour living beings at any moment.

Thick, almost tangible black mist was seeping out from the cracks in the door and from the mouths, noses, eyes, and ears of the demon statues, bringing a chilling and oppressive aura that made one's soul tremble.

And guarding this final gate are no longer those mass-produced Divine Marchers!
Dozens of elite guards, clad in heavy dark gold armor and far taller and more robust than ordinary Divine March soldiers, stood like iron towers in front of the gate.

Their armor was covered with more complex and sinister runes, and their eyes no longer burned with a ghostly light, but with almost tangible, leaping, ghostly blue flames!

They held giant axes as big as doors and heavy hammers as big as millstones. These weapons were not only surrounded by powerful physical energy fluctuations, but also faintly resonated with the black energy emanating from the two giant doors. They were obviously no ordinary weapons!

Even more chilling was the sight of four archmages, dressed in black robes trimmed with gold, whose auras were far more profound and terrifying than the sorcerers they had encountered before, standing at the four corners in front of the giant gate.

They held staffs topped with pale white skulls, chanting ancient and obscure incantations, and powerful fel energy gathered and pulsed around them.

A dark purple, semi-transparent energy barrier, visible to the naked eye and rippling like water, was formed, firmly enveloping the entire giant gate and the area in front of it!
The energy pressure emanating from the barrier made the air thick and sticky.

Gu Rubing led the raiding party through a bloody battle, breaking through countless obstacles, leaving behind a path of death paved with blood and broken corpses.

Originally an elite force of fifty men, now only thirty remain, each bearing wounds, covered in blood, breathing heavily, their eyes filled with exhaustion, yet even more so with a desperate madness.

The continuous high-intensity and high-stakes battles had taken a toll on the internal and physical strength of even the five generals, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Zhao Yun, Huang Zhong, and Ma Chao.

Guan Yu's arm holding the sword trembled slightly, Zhang Fei's forehead was covered in sweat, Zhao Yun's breathing was no longer steady, Huang Zhong's fingers were stiff as he nocked an arrow, and Ma Chao's steps were also a little heavy.

However, when their gaze pierced through the dark purple energy barrier and landed on the two colossal doors radiating overwhelming demonic energy, sensing the almost overflowing, world-destroying evil energy emanating from behind them—like the pounding heart of a primordial beast—

There was not a trace of hesitation or retreat in anyone's eyes!
That extreme exhaustion was replaced by a more steadfast, purer, and more resolute will!

Behind us lies death, before us lies a den of demons! Only by breaking through this final barrier and destroying the evil source behind that door can we live up to the lives of our fallen brothers and the common people!
Gu Rubing took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing his surging blood and qi. He pointed his long sword at the dark purple energy barrier and the forest of powerful enemies behind it. His voice was a little hoarse from exhaustion and excitement, but it was filled with a resolute determination.

"Gentlemen! The final test! Break through this gate and annihilate the evil spirits!"

"kill!!!"

His response came from the remaining soldiers behind him, including the Five Tiger Generals, a thunderous roar that tore through their weariness and fear! The final battle was about to begin!
Gu Rubing's gaze was fixed on the two giant demon gates. The energy fluctuations coming from behind the gates were like drums, striking his heart with increasing urgency and ferocity!

He clearly sensed that the so-called "heaven-reaching" ritual had probably reached its most critical moment and could be completed at any moment! He dared not imagine what terrifying consequences it would cause, and he absolutely could not allow it to happen!
There's no time for further probing, no time for further maneuvering!

"Break it!"

Gu Rubing's voice sounded somewhat hoarse due to his urgency.

"Get out of the way! Watch me!"

Zhang Fei could no longer contain himself. Upon hearing this, he roared like a thunderclap from a clear sky!

His muscles bulged, and his violent internal energy surged into the eighteen-foot spear. A solid black light, about a foot long, rose from the dark spear shaft!
He was like a rapidly spinning black whirlwind of death, with an unstoppable and terrifying momentum that could shatter mountains and split rocks, as he charged toward the dark purple energy barrier!
"Break it for me—!"

The spear slammed into the very center of the barrier with a piercing shriek that seemed to tear everything apart!
"boom!!!"

A deep, resounding crash, like the crack of leather, echoed! The dark purple barrier rippled violently, its surface spreading with countless rapid waves, its light flickering erratically! Yet, this attack, imbued with Zhang Fei's ferocious power, failed to shatter it!

The barrier was extremely resilient, and instead, it violently rebounded a portion of the attack energy, which was mixed with a cold and corrosive property!
"Well!"

Zhang Fei felt a strange and chilling force coming from the spear, which made his arms numb and his blood surge. He involuntarily took two steps back, leaving deep footprints on the ground, and a look of shock and anger flashed across his face.

"Third brother, don't panic! Watch me chop down this tortoise shell!"

Guan Yu's phoenix eyes widened instantly, and a sharp light shot out from them as if it were real!

He was already poised to strike, and the Green Dragon Crescent Blade emitted a high-pitched and clear sound, as if a true dragon had descended to earth!
A bright blue light shone from the blade, and an incredibly condensed blade aura instantly extended out, striking the same spot on the barrier almost simultaneously with Zhang Fei!

At the same time, Zhao Yun's figure appeared on the side of the barrier like a ghost. His eyes were like lightning, and he instantly captured a subtle point in the flow of energy in the barrier!
The steel spear moved with lightning speed and absolute precision, its tip gathering a spiraling force that attempted to penetrate that single point!
Ma Chao was not to be outdone. His spear transformed into countless shimmering stars, frantically stabbing at the barrier like a storm. Although his individual attacks were not as powerful as Guan Yu and Zhang Fei's, the dense barrage still greatly dispersed and consumed the barrier's energy!
"Crack... Bang—!!!"

With the combined strength of four peerless warriors, the incredibly tough dark purple barrier finally emitted a piercing sound, like ice shattering, as it could no longer bear the strain! Then, with a deafening roar, the entire barrier shattered like broken glass, turning into countless dark purple energy specks that scattered and vanished into the air!
The last barrier has fallen!
However, almost at the same instant the barrier shattered—

"Roar--!"

The dozens of elite guards clad in dark gold armor suddenly blazed with intense blue flames in their eyes. They let out low, inhuman roars and launched a counter-charge with heavy, elephant-like steps, like an iron wall!
The giant axe, as big as a door panel, came crashing down with a fierce wind that tore through the air, while the millstone-like hammer slammed down, determined to crush these intruders into mincemeat!
As the four black-robed archmages waved their staffs, even more terrifying evil magic descended!

The black stone slab beneath Gu Rubing and the others instantly softened and collapsed, turning into a bubbling, foul-smelling, muddy toxic pool that tried to devour and corrode them!

In the sky, thick black clouds gathered, and countless meteorites burning with pitch-black flames and trailing long tails of fire materialized out of thin air, crashing down on the area where they were like a final judgment!

Even before the black flame meteorite arrived, the destructive heat and oppressive feeling were already suffocating!

Even more insidious is the invisible mental attack—a shrill, piercing wail that sounds like the wailing of ten thousand ghosts, ignoring physical defenses and striking straight into the depths of everyone's soul, attempting to disturb their minds and break their fighting spirit!

"Watch your step! Spread out!"

Gu Rubing shouted loudly, and at the same time swung his sword to meet the heavy hammer that an elite guard who rushed in front of him slammed down!

"clang--!!!"

The sword and hammer clashed, unleashing a deafening metallic clang! A tremendous force surged through the sword, causing Gu Rubing's arm to go slightly numb, and the ground beneath his feet to crack!
He was taken aback; the strength of these elite guards was indeed far superior to that of ordinary Divine Marchers, and even stronger than that of the previous Demon Cavalry!
"You old fool! Take this arrow!"

In the midst of the chaos, Huang Zhong managed to steady himself amidst the confusion. He took a deep breath, suppressing his surging blood and qi, and his eyes, sharp as a hawk's, instantly locked onto the four archmages who were continuously casting spells! The bowstrings vibrated repeatedly, emitting a thunderous explosion!
"Boo! Hah! Hah!"

Three specially crafted exorcising arrows, their shafts engraved with cinnabar talismans, shot towards the three archmages like three shooting stars tearing through the darkness, each carrying a blinding golden light! The arrows were too fast, and their angles too tricky!
The three archmages clearly hadn't expected such a precise and deadly ranged attack amidst the chaos of close combat!
They hastily tried to dodge or form a shield, but it was too late!

"puff!"

"boom!"

"what--!"

An arrow pierced the dark shield formed by a mage's hastily raised staff. Although not fatal, it forcibly interrupted his chanting, causing him to suffer a magical backlash and spit out a mouthful of black blood.

Another arrow was narrowly dodged by a mage who tilted his head, but it grazed his cheek. The golden light that warded off evil on the arrow burned his skin, causing him to groan in pain.

The third mage fared the worst; he tried to block with his staff, but the cinnabar talisman on the exorcising arrow exploded the instant it touched the staff! (End of Chapter)