Ark Undead

"We want to go as soon as possible."

The innkeeper didn't insist, gave the four directions, and watched them leave.

When the Undead arrived at the military camp, dawn was just breaking.

But by this time, the military camp was already bustling with activity.

The soldiers reorganized their ranks, and most of the supplies were moved aside.

The Undying Man arrived early to see the Southern Expeditionary Army that General Li Qing had mentioned.

General Li Qing was found in the main general's tent.

Today he was wearing a dark suit of armor, covered in countless scratches, and even the undead could sense a strong abyssal aura emanating from it.

As expected, it was armor of the same style as that worn by the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

"My Lord, you have arrived."

When Li Qing saw that the immortals had arrived, he quickly led them outside the tent.

"The soldiers of the Southern Expeditionary Army are ready. The sacrificial fire will begin, and then it will be time to march into the Cave of Ten Thousand Demons."

The Undead did not ask further how many soldiers were in the Southern Expeditionary Army.

Although the edict stated that there were 30,000 people, it was clearly impossible for that many soldiers to go to the Cave of Ten Thousand Demons with the Undead.

So he followed General Li all the way to the drill ground.

General Li led the way without saying a word.

When they stopped at the entrance of the training ground, General Li turned around and looked at the Undead.

"My Lord, the task of eliminating the demons and closing the passage will be entrusted to you."

"it is good."

The Undead touched the greatsword on his back and agreed.

When the immortal stood on the command platform, Li Qing stood side by side with him.

Under the rising sun, a dense mass of black armor reflected the golden sunlight.

Millions of soldiers stood silently on the drill ground, waiting for Li Qing to give the order.

Li Qing took a deep breath, and his normally parched throat suddenly burst forth with tremendous power and sound.

"The green hills remain, and the heroic spirits follow us!"

Li Qing's eyes shone brightly, and his body, which had been on the verge of collapse, surged with boundless power.

"Where are the generals?!"

"To!"

Below the command platform, a group of young generals, including Li Mo, responded to Li Qing's call.

"On this journey, we will suppress demons and honor the heroic spirits of our ancestors. May our mountains and rivers remain evergreen. May our ancestors bless the Great Yan Dynasty, and may it endure for ten thousand generations!"

The roar of tens of thousands of people coalesced into a single force, dispersing the dark clouds in the sky and revealing the bluish-gray sky.

"May the Great Yan Dynasty be blessed by our ancestors and live on for ten thousand generations!"

313. The Executioner & the Soul Split

The Cave of Ten Thousand Demons is only ten kilometers away from the Jade Gate.

Within this ten-kilometer stretch, there are numerous checkpoints, each equipped with sentry towers and sufficient supplies and manpower.

Not only will tens of thousands, or even hundreds of thousands, of soldiers be stationed at the Jade Gate, but the ground will also be heavily guarded. Their defensive line is the guarantee that the demons of the Ten Thousand Demon Cave will not be able to leak their power.

However, the portals that appeared externally, like before, were ultimately only a minority.

Most of the demons were trapped and killed in the Demon Cave by these layers of obstacles.

The border defense conditions here are arranged in the same way as those along the Great Wall to the north.

Once a demon is discovered, a small force centered around the watchtower will be dispatched to thoroughly investigate the surrounding area.

In case of an emergency, information would be transmitted using beacon fires and lights.

The Undead asked Li Qing why he didn't use Originium artifacts to transmit information, and Li Qing's explanation was...

“The stability of Originium artifacts around the Cave of Ten Thousand Demons cannot be guaranteed. We considered using modern artifacts for communication in the early days, but problems often arose. In order to ensure the safety of the area around the Cave of Ten Thousand Demons, we still used the most primitive method.”

Li Qing sat atop his tamed Originium Beast, his face rosy and radiant, looking nothing like the weak and listless man Ling had described.

"Throughout the entire Southern Demon Cave area, no fewer than fifty watchtowers have been established, with a manpower exceeding ten thousand. This ensures that even in dense forest environments, there are sufficient troops to protect nearby towns."

Li Qing pointed the immortals in several directions, and in those directions, towering flames of war were lit one after another.

"Today is a big day. All the beacon fires will burn continuously. Half of the manpower in Yumen has been mobilized to ensure the safety of the fire-worshiping ceremony."

Li Mo also rode his tamed Originium Beast to the Undead and explained to him.

"What is the fire-worshiping ceremony, and what is its procedure?"

The Undead's curiosity about the fire-worshiping ceremony had been thoroughly aroused by their conversation with Ling the night before last.

"The entire fire-worshiping ceremony will pass through at least three demon gathering points and two demon passages. After the ceremony, the remaining soldiers will also close the remaining three demon passages that are far from the fire-worshiping points."

Even after counting the number of people, the Undying Man still didn't know the military quality of the Great Yan soldiers and couldn't estimate their combat strength.

But if what Li Qing said is true, then an astonishing number of abyssal forces are entrenched in the entire Ten Thousand Demon Cave.

That...

The Undead didn't speak, but he didn't believe these ordinary soldiers would come out alive after rushing into the Abyss Cluster.

Even the Farron Undead, whose military prowess made them Lords of Cinder, had to resort to infighting to suppress the effects of the Abyss, ultimately resulting in their complete annihilation.

Li Qing glanced back at the army behind him.

There were nearly 20,000 soldiers following the main force, including the Undead's Southern Expeditionary Army and the Embroidered Uniform Guard who had come with the Undead. Chen was also among them on foot.

"General, look, how many people are behind us?"

The immortal glanced back, did some mental calculations, and gave a rough estimate.

"Around twenty thousand?"

"Of these 20,000 people, 10,000 are soldiers from the Wanmo Cave outpost who are changing shifts this year, and nearly 10,000 will follow us to the vicinity of Wanmo Cave to ensure that the demons do not run too far during the fire-worshiping ceremony."

Li Qing said.

"The remaining few thousand soldiers are the ones who will follow me and you into the Ten Thousand Demon Cave to seal the teleportation gate and sacrifice the True Fire."

The Undying Man did the math again. According to Li Qing, the 30,000 Southern Expeditionary Army now only numbered a few thousand. Was the Great Yan really that short of manpower?

“I know that the Emperor has promised you a southern expeditionary force of 30,000 men, and they are all by our side and have never left.”

Li Qing turned around and looked at the supplies being transported behind him, his eyes deep and thoughtful.

"The two thousand who are still alive are all veterans with at least ten years of combat experience. Only these veterans can cope with the harsh environment inside the Ten Thousand Demon Cave."

"The remaining 20,000-plus people have already been cremated, and their ashes and some belongings were divided into two parts. One part was sent back to their hometown to be with their families, and the other part was sent south with Yumen to be buried with the heroic souls of past generations. And theirs are here."

Li Qing pounded his chest.

The Undead didn't consider Li Qing to be any exceptionally powerful figure. In fact, the difference between them was like heaven and earth.

But upon closer inspection, the immortals sensed a rare soul presence emanating from Li Qing.

It's important to know that during the Undead's travels through Terra, those who possessed souls were all characters connected to the Abyss.

Whether it's Mephisto, Patriot, or Talulah, they are all warriors who have been tainted by the abyss and have fully experienced the rampage of human nature.

Li Qing, despite possessing a soul that could be perceived by the undead, has not shown any signs of abyss transformation, which is beyond the comprehension of the undead.

"The so-called 30,000 Southern Expeditionary Army is just a figure of speech. In fact, there were many more soldiers who were unable to return to their homeland with us. They were hastily settled in the far northern desert and ice plains. The identities of the soldiers who can be counted are only 32,476."

When Li Qing spoke of the dead soldiers, his tone was calm, yet he could accurately count their number.

"The soldiers who accompanied the army to the fire ceremony this time, including the Imperial Guards you brought, totaled 2,153. I have carefully noted down these numbers. I just don't know how many will be left when we leave the Ten Thousand Demon Cave."

The immortal couldn't help but ask.

"Abyss erosion, how to deal with it?"

How tragic it would be to be corrupted by the abyss during battle, and even turn against one's former comrades.

Li Qing smiled and said.

"My lord, do you know why His Majesty dispatched the Embroidered Uniform Guard to accompany you on your expedition?"

This is also one of the strange things about the Undead. Logically speaking, the Embroidered Uniform Guard is a special force that deals with the infection of demons and the spread of the Abyss. It is a special force of the Great Yan against the hidden demons in the country and the infected demons.

If the force only has two thousand men, then these one hundred Imperial Guards won't be able to play a decisive role...

The immortal leaned back slightly, and suddenly realized what was happening.

Following behind the Undead, Ling shook his head and took a sip of wine.

Onstan also sighed.

"The old Celestial Master really has the guts to do this, arranging for Chen to do these tasks."

“This is what the old master should do, and it is also the process that the girl must go through as the crown princess.”

Let him say.

"Perhaps growing up is always painful."

Behind the main force, a group of soldiers in black armor silently followed, all gripping their broadswords tightly and remaining silent.

Chen didn't understand why the atmosphere was so strange today. Although it was a fire-worshiping ceremony and should indeed be more solemn, his fellow Jinyiwei soldiers all seemed overly depressed.

Just as Chen was wondering to himself, the leader of the Imperial Guards at the front told him to leave the group and go find him ahead.

Chen jogged forward and arrived at the front.

This member of the Imperial Guard is a veteran who has served for nearly ten years, but he is only twenty-eight years old.

"Chen Huijie."

"arrive."