"Squeak~~~"
The two giant-mouthed ghost soldiers let out low growls, shoulder to shoulder, and the ghost cultivator sat on their shoulders, looking extremely comical. Beside them, hundreds of ghost soldiers hurried through the dense forest. The sound of horse hooves came from behind, and cavalrymen clad in deep red armor, riding blood-colored bone horses, appeared in their sight.
Ghost Realm Knights, a type of high-level puppet among the ghost race. These knights were originally human cavalry. After their deaths, their souls were partially gathered by ghost cultivators of at least the eleventh realm, infused with a large amount of death energy, and transformed into powerful puppets. In fact, many of these Ghost Realm Knights were human cavalry who died in the Snow Domain Celestial Pool a hundred years ago, and now they had all become puppets.
As for the eleventh-realm Ghost Shepherd, named Qing Gu, he was a notable figure even in the Ghost Realm far to the west. However, the resources of that realm were extremely scarce, and the living beings in the world were almost all killed. Therefore, Qing Gu, with his retinue, had no choice but to venture far into the martial world, arriving at the border between the human and demon races.
"Hmph~~~"
Looking at the vast snow curtain, Qing Gu let out a cold laugh. He opened his palm, and a delicate compass appeared in his hand. The origin of this treasure was extraordinary. Once, a Nascent Soul realm Mohist disciple roamed the Ghost Realm with his sword, killing countless ghost cultivators. However, he was ultimately no match for Qing Gu. Qing Gu did not kill him directly but extracted his soul and refined it for nearly half a year. In the end, this Nascent Soul Mohist disciple compromised and crafted this compass for Qing Gu.
This compass did not point north; it only pointed in the direction of life.
At this moment, the compass needle trembled continuously and finally pointed to the southeast. Qing Gu frowned. That was the Snow Domain Celestial Pool. He heard that the humans in the Snow Domain Celestial Pool had recently caused quite a stir, and several powerful eleventh-realm cultivators resided there. Even the Wu Zhi Sword Immortal was serving in the Snow Domain Celestial Pool, someone not to be provoked.
He recalibrated the direction, and the compass immediately pointed to a forested area directly south. Qing Gu smiled. The vast northern domain was sparsely populated. Although it had been occupied by demons for a hundred years, traces of humans still remained. In those mountains and forests, there were still many villages and even towns, like hidden paradises!
To humans, these villages were of little significance, but to this eleventh-realm ghost cultivator, they were a source of sustenance.
"Lads!"
Qing Gu gently patted the heads of the two giant-mouthed ghost soldiers he was riding and said, "Head south, I'll find you something to eat!"
The two giant-mouthed ghost soldiers howled with extreme excitement, their tongues sticking out long.
...
In the snow forest, Lin Zhao rode his horse, holding the faintly glowing Thunderclap Sword. He had originally intended to hunt demons, but as he rode, he discovered hunched figures of ghoul-like creatures in the sea of snow. Level 110, Flowing Gold monsters. Their level was slightly high, but it wouldn't be too difficult for Lin Zhao to farm them, so he immediately charged forward, luring over a hundred ghouls and slaughtering them with his sword.
After killing them, his experience bar increased slightly. He followed the ghoul tracks further ahead and encountered another hundred or so ghouls. After killing them again, he continued to pursue. These ghouls seemed to be heading in a certain direction. Lin Zhao frowned and continued to chase and kill several more groups. Finally, he couldn't help it anymore. He stopped chasing and rode his horse through the adjacent woods. Shortly after, he saw Qing Gu riding on the heads of two giant-mouthed ghost soldiers.
Level 135, Heavenly Tier boss.
This was clearly something Lin Zhao could not handle at the moment. Let alone a Heavenly Tier boss, even a level 135 Earth Tier boss was not something he could solo; he would be thoroughly beaten.
Frowning, Lin Zhao opened the minimap and looked in the direction this ghost army was heading. Through the wind and snow, he could actually see small green dots on the minimap, nestled within the mountains. There was a human village! This was bad. This ghost army was heading for this village!
"Whoosh..."
He took a deep breath. He couldn't possibly hold them off alone. The scale of this ghost army was immense, numbering in the thousands. This area needed reinforcements. Lin Zhao frowned and softly called out in his sea of consciousness, "Wu Zhi?"
"I'm here, my lord."
Wu Zhi, as an eleventh-realm sword cultivator, was already considered among the ranks of sages in the mortal world. If her name was spoken in the vicinity, she could generally sense it. In Lin Zhao's sea of consciousness, Wu Zhi said softly, "What are your orders, my lord?"
"I've discovered an eleventh-realm ghost cultivator leading a ghost army into the mountains west of the Snow Domain Celestial Pool. Their target appears to be a village in the mountain forest. I need you to immediately have Chu Yu lead a thousand cavalry here for reinforcement. I can't handle this alone."
"Ah?"
Wu Zhi frowned. "Since it's an eleventh-realm cultivator, I should be the one to go."
"No."
Lin Zhao shook his head. "There are a horde of fifth-realm demons lurking in Pan Yun Mountain, eyeing us. You and Mu Gua, the two eleventh-realm cultivators, must stay and guard the Snow Domain Celestial Pool. Have Chu Yu and Xiang Ji lead a thousand cavalry here. Make it quick, or it will be too late."
"Understood."
Wu Zhi said, "My lord, you be careful too. I'll go and relay the order for Chu Yu to dispatch troops."
"Alright!"
...
Lin Zhao stayed in the snow forest for a while. Not long after, the heavy sound of horse hooves could be heard amidst the wind and snow. Chu Yu and Xiang Ji, two martial practitioners, leading a thousand cavalry from the Snow Domain Celestial Pool had arrived. From a distance, the thousand cavalry of the Snow Domain Legion were all armored and armed. After days of training, each of them exuded a strong aura of killing intent. This greatly pleased Lin Zhao. These were the troops he had painstakingly gathered. To establish a firm foothold in the Snow Domain Celestial Pool in the future, he would need to rely on them.
"My lord!"
Chu Yu and Xiang Ji clasped their fists together.
"No need for pleasantries."
Lin Zhao tugged at his reins, turned his horse, and said, "Follow me. We will use the cavalry's mobility advantage to flank them and arrive at the village ahead of the ghost army to set an ambush. Everyone brought enough arrows, right?"
"We brought plenty!"
Chu Yu chuckled. "Three quivers per person!"
"Let's go!"
Lin Zhao charged forward, followed by the others, galloping through the snow forest. As they rode, Chu Yu and Xiang Ji appeared on either side of Lin Zhao. Chu Yu frowned. "My lord, what exactly is going on? Elder Wu Zhi didn't explain clearly either."
"An eleventh-realm ghost cultivator is leading his retinue into the mountains, targeting a human village."
Lin Zhao frowned. "We're flanking them to reinforce. Chu Yu, Xiang Ji, tell me honestly, can the two of you combined take on an eleventh-realm ghost cultivator?"
"That's a tough one..."
Chu Yu's lips curled into a smile. "If it's a ghost cultivator, I might be able to handle it alone without Lord Xiang Ji's intervention."
"Why?"
Lin Zhao was startled. "There's a realm difference, and besides, they're Upper Fifth Realm, while you're at the peak of the Sea Treading Realm, but you're still Middle Fifth Realm..."
"My lord, you need not worry."
Chu Yu smiled. "There's a saying in the martial world: 'Walking the jianghu, ghost cultivators are a notch lower.' If it were an eleventh-realm demon, devil, or spirit, I might not be able to defeat them. But if it's an eleventh-realm ghost cultivator, it shouldn't be a major problem. All ghost cultivators in the world only seek life and death, not the Great Dao. They enslave corpses and gnaw on bones. Ghost cultivators are inherently contrary to the Great Dao, so their strength is always considered inferior. An eleventh-realm ghost cultivator's strength is, at best, equivalent to a peak tenth-realm cultivator, not to mention I have a flying sword to assist."
"Alright!"
Lin Zhao nodded. "If a fight really breaks out later, you don't need to worry about anything else. Just take care of that eleventh-realm ghost cultivator. Xiang Ji and I will lead the brothers in charging and fighting. Our goal is to repel or even eliminate this ghost army with minimal losses."
"Yes!"
Chu Yu and Xiang Ji nodded with smiles.
...
The wind and snow were fierce. To conceal their movements from the eleventh-realm ghost cultivator, Lin Zhao took a wide detour. When the thousand Snow Domain cavalry appeared from the shortcut behind the mountain, the ghost army had not yet arrived. So, Lin Zhao waved his hand and ordered everyone to find cover. Some hid in the dense forest, while others hid behind the mountain. Chu Yu stood on the hillside, narrowing her beautiful eyes, looking down at the approaching enemy.
In the distance, an army exuding a strong death aura was advancing slowly. The vanguard consisted of about 2000-3000 Ghost Realm Knights. Their combat power was not weak, but compared to the battle-hardened Snow Domain cavalry, they were still inferior. The Snow Domain cavalry had been upgraded significantly during their expedition to the Eastern Wu Kingdom and had also improved through daily training. They were now basically Flowing Gold NPCs between levels 125-130. Their offensive and defensive capabilities were very strong, and among them, many centurions were Earth Tier quasi-bosses above level 130, making their combat power even more terrifying.
From afar, on the shoulders of the two giant-mouthed ghost soldiers, the eleventh-realm ghost cultivator Qing Gu narrowed his eyes. He could already smell the scent of living beings – the smell of food. He sniffed desperately and said with a smile, "After this job, I can probably build a bone pile. Although the death qi offered as a sacrifice is not as much as that of a monumental tomb, it should be enough. When I return to the Ghost Realm, I might already be a twelfth-realm ghost cultivator. At that time... heh, those old fellows' days are numbered!"
He smirked and muttered to himself, "Perhaps I can even find a Dao companion above the fifth realm in the mountains. The Bone Fairies of Green Ash Mountain are quite good..."
...
While he was lost in his pleasant dreams, Lin Zhao had already given the order to attack. Instantly, arrows rained down from both sides of the snow forest. The Snow Domain cavalry's archery was incredibly accurate and possessed high armor-piercing power. Some Middle Fifth Realm martial practitioners could even pierce a Ghost Realm Knight's throat with a single arrow, killing them instantly. Furthermore, their archery was extremely proficient. As soon as they loosed an arrow, they nocked another for a second shot. In an instant, arrows fell like rain from both sides. The 2000+ Ghost Realm Knights at the forefront had already lost over half their numbers before they could even draw their swords.
"Damn it!"
Qing Gu roared with rage. He suddenly stood up from the head of the giant-mouthed ghost soldiers, his body surging with dense death energy, and bellowed, "What scurvy rat dares to ambush your Grandpa Qing Gu!"
Before his words had even faded, a powerful fist intent exploded in the air. Chu Yu descended from the sky, unleashing a full-fledged Cavalry Fist style!