Cultivation begins in Qingfeng Market.

The third team, an attack force of nearly five hundred men, all sword cultivators, was personally led by Qin Tianjun. Their mission was the most dangerous and crucial—to contain the dragon with the spirit boats, trap it within the great formation, and weaken it to a certain extent.

Together, they activated the third-tier sword magic weapon, the "Golden Rainbow Sword," seeking an opportunity to unleash a decisive, deadly strike! Lin Zhao joined this group, Fang Yue successfully established his foundation, and Young Master Yan Feng was also among them.

The fourth reserve team, consisting of over a thousand people, was scattered around the outer perimeter of the formation and near the spirit boat. They were responsible for providing early warning of other monsters that might be attracted by the great battle, handling unexpected events, and replenishing the ranks of the first three teams in case of battle losses.

With the plan set, the atmosphere inside the spirit boat became even more somber. No one cheered; only whispers rang out as people hurried to adjust their state, check their magical artifacts, and briefly rehearse with their group members.

Lin Zhao leaned against the window of the cabin where the sword cultivators were located, looking down at the mountains and rivers rushing past.

A third-tier demonic beast... comparable to a Core Formation cultivator... He took a deep breath, suppressed his slightly accelerated heartbeat, and his breathing gradually stabilized.

Closing your eyes to rest, this is not a martial arts competition, this is a real life-or-death struggle.

The journey was smooth sailing, without any unexpected incidents. The spirit boat quietly landed about three hundred miles from its destination.

This distance is such that, firstly, we don't want to alert them, and secondly... everyone is actually a little apprehensive.

With everyone working together, they set up several layers of second-tier concealment formations around the spirit boat, effectively hiding it.

Next, they sent out their "eyes." A reconnaissance team was formed, consisting of more than ten disciples who were skilled in infiltration or had special reconnaissance methods.

The task is simple: find out the surrounding area of ​​the "Overturning River Crocodile Dragon's" lair.

Let's see if the information from the sect brings any "surprises"—it's not that I don't trust the sect,

The main concern was that the sect might feel that killing a third-tier demon beast wasn't enough of a "test," and would add some extra challenges.

Before they left, everyone took out their most treasured concealment techniques and gave them to them. They all became faint and disappeared in the blink of an eye.

A day later, all the scouts returned, and the intelligence was compiled.

The result was a relief—nothing went wrong.

The terrain and landforms also basically match the intelligence map.

The target was clear: that early-stage Tier 3 alligator dragon.

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

That evening, these prodigies had a brief exchange, and only then did they realize just how wealthy and powerful this group of geniuses truly was.

There are more than a dozen life-saving trump cards that were given to him by his elders and could threaten or even harm Core Formation cultivators!

There are countless unspoken secrets surrounding this.

If all these things were thrown out at once, killing a newly-entered third-tier demon beast would be no problem at all.

"But the sect has provided the spirit boat, the grand formation, and the magic treasures," Pei Yue said in a deep voice, looking around at everyone. "The meaning is very clear. This is a major test, testing what we have learned in the past four years. It's about teamwork, not about who has the richest family. Unless... it really comes down to a life-or-death situation, or the mission is about to fail."

No one objected. Everyone knew that even if the mission was completed, abusing the "trump card" given by the elders would likely not earn them a good reputation in the sect's evaluation.

This is related to whether one can be favored by Golden Core cultivators or even Nascent Soul cultivators in the future, and whether one can receive better resource allocation.

The plan proceeded as scheduled. The next day, guided and covered by reconnaissance team members, the more than 7,000-strong formation began to move silently toward the target waters of the Canglan River.

They dared not get too close, and began to set up the "Zhou Tian Xing Dou Zhen Ling Array" from a distance of a hundred miles away, taking advantage of the terrain.

They were focused, carefully placing each array flag and activating each array plate, trying their best to delay the huge spiritual energy fluctuations generated when the great array was activated.

Meanwhile, the remaining thousand-strong assault team, piloting the third-tier spirit boat, ascended into the sky and hovered over the waters dozens of miles away. Spiritual energy was slowly poured into the boat, and the defensive runes on the hull lit up one by one, indicating that it had entered combat mode.

Just as the outer formation was about to be completed, and the seven thousand disciples entered their designated positions, beginning to infuse their spiritual power in preparation for fully activating the grand formation—

boom!!!

The once tranquil surface of the Canglan River below suddenly erupted with a terrifying water column hundreds of feet in diameter! A violent, turbid, and fishy-smelling demonic aura surged into the sky.

In an instant, it disrupted the spiritual energy of heaven and earth within a radius of dozens of miles! The river surface turned pitch black at a visible speed, and giant waves surged!

They've been discovered! Indeed, a third-tier demonic beast's senses might not be as sharp as a Core Formation cultivator's.

But if someone has already brought such a huge formation right to our doorstep, and we still don't react, it would be a huge insult to the title of "Core Formation level".

"Go! As planned, we'll hold it back!" Pei Yue's roar echoed through the temporary communication devices to all the groups.

The already prepared third-tier spirit boat emitted a muffled roar, its hull blazing with a sudden surge of azure light, no longer concealed.

Like a flying mountain, it crashed headlong into the center of the demonic energy eruption!

In an instant, a deafening roar echoed from afar—the sound of the spirit boat colliding with the magical powers of the alligator dragon.

Even from a hundred miles away, the shockwave of spiritual energy was enough to send chills down one's spine. Faintly visible intertwined blue light and black mist, along with lightning and giant waves, could be seen.

Meanwhile, the outer Zhou Tian Xing Dou Zhen Ling Array was finally fully activated under the unified command of the seven thousand disciples!

"Buzz—!"

Within a radius of a hundred miles, countless dazzling pillars of starlight rose from the ground, connecting with the faintly visible celestial shadows in the sky to form an incredibly complex and magnificent light shield.

The formation enveloped the area, along with the spirit boat and the crocodile dragon engaged in fierce combat! The scene inside the formation instantly became blurred.

The intense battle fluctuations were weakened and isolated by the formation, and when they reached the outside, only a series of muffled thunderous rumbles and faint tremors of the ground remained.

Outside the formation, only the reserve team and nearly five hundred sword cultivators remained.

All eyes were on Qin Tianjun, who stood quietly at the very front.

He carried the third-tier magic weapon "Golden Rainbow Sword" bestowed upon him by the sect, gazing at the starlight-filled array with a blank expression on his face.

"Senior Brother Qin, when do we enter the formation?" an impatient disciple couldn't help but ask.

Qin Tianjun withdrew his gaze, his voice calm: "No rush. Third-tier demonic beasts are not easy to deal with. Even with a third-tier spirit boat to hold them off head-on and a large formation to trap and weaken them..."

It will take at least ten days of patient, persistent effort to wear down its ferocity and demonic power. Going in now would be pointless.

He paused for a moment, then said, "It's not too late to enter the battle three days later."

Everyone was awestruck, and no one questioned him. This was not only due to his terrifying strength, but also because he was backed by the Qin family—one of the four major clans of the sects, a Nascent Soul family.

His judgment carries more weight regarding the power and combat rhythm of high-level demonic beasts.

So the remaining three days were spent in a state of tension and anticipation.