Cultivation begins in Qingfeng Market.

And the fifth round...

It was a perilous situation.

Ye Xiaoxiao felt like her heart was about to jump out of her throat.

On the stone platform, the Fire Cauldron floated in front of her. The cauldron was scorching hot, and the heat emanating from it caused fine beads of sweat to appear on her forehead.

Lin You sat beside her, his hands gripping the Crimson Fire Sword tightly, his knuckles turning white.

The auxiliary formation of the Yang family below the stage was operating at full capacity, and pale red spiritual light continuously poured into the two women's bodies. Although their cultivation level had temporarily increased by two levels, it was like a child swinging a heavy hammer. They had the power, but it was difficult to control.

"Left Wing! Crimson Fire Wheel!" Ye Xiaoxiao shouted in a hoarse voice.

Lin You hurriedly manipulated the Crimson Fire Wheel on the left, its blades spinning as it flew toward the left wing, slashing down the "Rock Lizard" that was approaching the formation.

However, dozens of "Ironback Wolves" broke through the outer defenses on the right flank and rushed towards the stone platform.

"Fire Feather Robe!"

Ye Xiaoxiao gritted her teeth and poured most of her spiritual power into the Fire Feather Robe.

Her robes shone brightly, unfurling a pale red light screen that blocked all the Ironback Wolves. However, the light screen also fluctuated violently as a result, and she felt a sweet taste in her throat, almost spitting out blood.

There are too many. There are just too many monsters.

The fifth formation was responsible for a defensive line that was about two miles long, the shortest of the five formations, yet the density of the surging beast tide was considerable.

Although the defensive line formed by the Yang family cultivators was able to withstand the onslaught of the beast tide, it continued to retreat, eventually falling to within a hundred feet of the stone platform.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, a "Ironback Wolf King" of the commander level broke through the obstruction and pounced on the stone platform!

Lin You's face turned deathly pale, and she instinctively reached out to swing her sword to block the attack—

A dark figure moved faster than her.

"boom!"

The wolf king was thrown back as if it had crashed into an iron mountain, flying even faster than it had come. Its head was deformed and its neck was broken in mid-air, and it was a pile of mud when it landed.

The second-tier wooden puppet retracted its fist and stood quietly ten feet away from the stone platform, its fist still stained with the wolf king's brains and broken bones.

Lin Zhao's father, Lin Tianhui, then controlled the puppet to attack another gap.

The eldest brother stood at the edge of the stone platform, his longbow opening and closing rapidly, each arrow hitting the monster's eye socket or throat with precision. The fiery power attached to the arrows exploded inside the monster's body, killing or maiming those hit.

With the support of her family and the puppet, Ye Xiaoxiao was finally able to catch her breath.

She looked at the puppet below the stage, which was invincible among the beasts—wherever it went, the monsters were torn to shreds like weeds, carving out a bloody corridor along the two-mile defensive line—and a thought suddenly flashed through her mind.

"Youyou," she said urgently, "we won't be the main attacker, we'll... support it!"

Lin You was taken aback: "How do you provide support?"

"The Fire Cauldron provides energy, the Crimson Sun Pearl gathers spirit energy, and the remaining five magical artifacts... will serve as energy nodes!" A decisive glint flashed in Ye Xiaoxiao's eyes. "We'll use the 'Crimson Sun Magic Dragon,' which Master taught us. It will be the main attacker, and we'll clear out the low-level demonic beasts."

Just do it.

Ye Xiaoxiao activated the Li Huo Cauldron with all her might. The cauldron hummed and spun in front of her, and the crimson spiritual power gushing from the cauldron's mouth merged with the radiance of the suspended Crimson Sun Pearl, guiding and weaving—a Crimson Sun Dharma Dragon with distinct scales and claws slowly took shape in front of the formation.

The remaining five magical artifacts—the Crimson Fire Blade, Sword, Wheel, Bow, and Robe—flew to the Crimson Sun Dragon and formed a simple auxiliary formation.

The moment the formation took shape, the Crimson Sun Dragon was enveloped in intense crimson flames.

"go!"

She spoke in a low voice, her mind as taut as a bowstring.

The ten-zhang-long Crimson Sun Dragon raised its head and roared, plunging into the beast tide below! Wherever it passed, the monsters were charred and collapsed, the tearing sound of scales and claws scraping through the beast horde mixed with the mournful roars of the beasts.

But in less than the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, the Crimson Sun Dragon's form began to fluctuate and dissipate.

Ye Xiaoxiao let out a muffled groan and withdrew the spell.

The fire dragon dissipated into a sky full of flames. She collapsed to the ground, sweat soaking her temples—nearly half of her spiritual energy was depleted, and her dantian was empty.

Ye Xiaoxiao's face was as pale as paper. This formation was extremely taxing on her spiritual sense, but she gritted her teeth and persevered.

Lin You was in no better shape; her hand holding the sword was trembling.

Below the stone platform, the Yang family cultivators felt much less pressure and finally regained their footing.

Yang Zhen wiped the blood off his face, looked up at the two excessively young girls on the stone platform, and a complex expression flashed in his eyes.

These are the cultivators of the Cloud Sea Azure Sea Sect. In just a few years, they have enabled two young girls to wield such powerful strength.

-----

Above the sky

The battle on the ground was fierce, but the fighting in the sky was even more dangerous and unpredictable.

More than thirty Foundation Establishment level auras crisscrossed in the sky, their spiritual light flashing like a summer thunderstorm.

Human Foundation Establishment cultivators, relying on three second-tier flying boats, formed three battle groups and fiercely attacked the Foundation Establishment demon beasts on the demon beast side.

The Green Pine Taoist stood on a green flying sword, and with each sweep of his whisk, he stirred up streaks of green wind dragons, forcing the "Black Wind Eagle" to retreat repeatedly.

Lady Liu's swordsmanship was light and sharp, her white clothes fluttering in the wind, and each sword strike accurately hit the key point in the circulation of the demon beast's spiritual power.

Sun Hanshan was the most ferocious. He landed on the ground and directly clashed with a "Silver Armored Rhinoceros King" with his bare body. The sound of each punch hitting flesh was like muffled thunder rolling across the sky.

These Foundation Establishment level demonic beasts are extremely cunning.

They would never easily approach the ground defense line—there were twelve second-tier formations there, and once entangled by the formations, and surrounded by Foundation Establishment cultivators, they would likely perish there.

Their goal is clear: to hold back the human foundation building while waiting for the ground beast tide to break through the defenses.

When the formation collapses, they can unleash their full power and deliver the final blow.

Therefore, although the high-altitude battle was intense, they were actually testing and restraining each other, holding their real trump cards in their hands, waiting for changes in the ground battle.

The aftershocks of the magical clashes occasionally crashed to the ground.

An out-of-control wind blade fell, cleaving dozens of demonic beasts in half at the waist; a bursting fireball crashed into the horde, blasting a crater ten feet in diameter.

The human defenses were protected by array formations, so the damage was not significant, but the beast tide suffered heavy losses as a result.

My grandfather stood at the very center of the defensive line, his gaze sweeping across the entire battlefield like that of a hawk.

He occasionally issued commands through the communication array.

Occasionally, aftershocks from attacks at the Foundation Establishment level would fall towards the vital points of the defense line. He would then raise his hand and unleash a crimson blade of energy, shattering the aftershocks in mid-air.

With his full power unleashed, the cultivator at the Foundation Establishment stage possessed astonishing strength.

More often than not, he silently observed the battlefield.

Pay special attention to the battle groups composed of powerful cultivators from outside the region—these groups number over four thousand and have set up hundreds of small first-order formations in the gaps between the five fire-separating formations, forming a second line of defense.

Some of them were fierce, some were cunning, and some were just going through the motions.

The fact that my grandfather's Foundation Establishment cultivation level remained within the formation below was itself a deterrent.

Just half an hour ago, a battle formation nearly broke into infighting over the distribution of spoils. He slashed at the front of the formation with his sword, plowing a trench more than ten feet long in the ground, and the dispute immediately subsided.

War allows no mercy or hesitation.