In the center of the camp, the ground of shattered stones echoed with the sound of footsteps.

The barbarian troop and the original soldiers of the third battalion were divided into four formations. The cold light of iron armor and the rusty color of old weapons intermingled, yet there was an unprecedented sense of order.

Qin Tian stood at the forefront of the formation, his black combat suit gently billowing in the wind of the Demon Abyss. At his sides stood Xiong, Terreda, Poisonous Widow, Shen Juan, and Lu Sheng. The five of them exuded different auras, but all shared the same murderous intent.

"From now on, the third battalion will be divided into four companies." Qin Tian's voice was not loud, yet it penetrated everyone's ears clearly, "The captain of the first company, Lu Sheng, deputy captain, Scarlett."

Lu Sheng stepped forward with a jarring clank of his great saber against the ground, while Poisonous Widow lazily lifted her gaze, the silver spider silk at her fingertips glimmering in the sunlight, as they walked toward the first formation.

Though Lu Sheng was fierce and brave, he lacked Bloodline Power, and with Poisonous Widow's assistance, the first company's top combat strength was solidified.

"Captain of the second company, Shen Juan."

"Captain of the third company, Terreda."

"Captain of the fourth company, Xiong."

Shen Juan cupped his fists to accept the order, a resolute determination to regroup evident between his brows. Terreda turned with his Zhanshou saber hefted, white hair billowing in the wind, as the barbarian warriors behind him roared in agreement; Xiong merely grunted in a low voice, yet every barbarian warrior behind him straightened their backs, a testament to their faith in absolute strength.

"Everyone is already aware of the situation around the camp."

Qin Tian's gaze swept over the formation, taking in the caution and excitement in the warriors' eyes, "The Demon Cave is right near us, with over a dozen demon squads roaming outside. Waiting for the enemy to come to us is not my style."

He paused, his voice suddenly stern, "We must take the initiative to strike! Everyone—move out!"

"Yes!"

The sound wave collided with the rock walls, producing a deafening echo.

Four units shot out like arrows, led by their captains, dashing in different directions. The sound of iron armor clashing and footsteps interwoven, drumming a rapid battle beat on the barren plain.

Qin Tian remained in the center of the camp. A burst of purple light erupted from his eyes, and his Spiritual Power spread out like a spider web, covering dozens of miles around.

...

On the desolate plain, a gale whistled through the sand and gravel.

Over forty green-faced, fanged demons were wandering around. Their hunched backs resembled those of apes, arms hanging down to their knees, with sharp claws carving deep marks in the sand, saliva dripping from their sharp teeth, corroding the ground into black spots.

These were ape demons, known for their speed and claws.

Suddenly, all the ape demons stopped simultaneously, their blood-red eyes snapping to one side, as they let out low, excited growls.

Da-da-da—

The ground trembled with dense vibrations, as if a torrent of steel rolled over it.

A squad of barbarian warriors clad in black armor was charging at full speed. At the fore was a particularly eye-catching figure, with wild white hair and a resolute face, dragging a Zhanshou saber behind him, sparking a long trail of fire—this was Terreda.

The barbarian warriors behind him formed a wedge-shaped battle formation, their iron armor reflecting a steely gleam under the grey sky, resembling a moving fortress of steel.

"Wah-wah-wah—!"

The ape demons erupted instantly, their sharp screeches piercing the air, sprinting on all fours like rabid dogs towards the battle array, claws glinting ominously in the sunlight.

Dong-dong-dong!

Within a few breaths, both sides collided fiercely.

Pshhh!

Terreda was the first to engage, wielding his Zhanshou saber in a chilling arc, slicing one of the most ferocious ape demons in half at the waist.

The reek of its black blood splattered all over him, but he didn't even blink. The totem battle pattern on his chest grew warm, greedily absorbing the scattered demon blood qi.

Ding-ding-ding!

The ape demons' claws furiously scratched at the barbarians' armor, leaving only a trail of sparks and white marks.

In contrast, the barbarian warriors wielded their war axes like thunder, their great sabers sweeping in arcs like moons. In the hands of these physically robust warriors, their weapons seemed to have life, every strike accompanied by an ape demon's head flying or body breaking apart.

The entire battle formation was like a red-hot iron spike, brutally piercing through the ape demon horde, the momentum unabated.

Soon, the warriors dispersed swiftly, forming groups of three to set up slaughter rings, their steel shields, war axes, and great sabers cooperating seamlessly to chop apart each surviving ape demon.

Blood dripped along the armor's gaps, mixing with sweat to soak their garments. Each barbarian's eyes burned with bloodlust, and the totem battle patterns were searing hot, as if ready to merge into their flesh.

In the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, the last ape demon was stomped to death by Terreda.

All that remained on the plain were dismembered limbs and black blood. Terreda flicked the blood droplets off his blade and reported through the Spiritual Link to Qin Tian: "Boss, all taken care of."

"Good." Qin Tian's voice echoed in his mind.

As soon as he finished speaking, a silver void gate appeared out of thin air in front of Terreda, its surface flowing with starlight-like patterns.

He was the first to step inside, followed closely by the barbarian warriors. The bloodstains on their black armor glistened dark red in the gate's dim light, yet it couldn't hide the battle intent still burning in their eyes.

The void gate closed slowly, isolating the desolation and bloodshed of the plain.

......

Bang-bang-bang!

Compared to the swift and decisive actions of the barbarian warriors, the first company's formation appeared more complex and varied.

Spirit Martial Artists clad in light armor charged at the forefront, Spiritual Energy flowing through their fists and blades, engaging in close combat with the approaching demons.

Spirit Mages formed an array at the rear, with fireballs and ice spikes raining down on the enemy horde, establishing a long-range firepower net.

Lu Sheng stood at the center of the formation, his gaze fixated on the nearly three-meter-tall ghost-faced demon—it bore a bone mask covering its green face and fangs, its claws exuding a dark green poisonous gleam, clearly the leader of this group of demons.

"Die!" Lu Sheng roared, charging forward first.

Clang!

The great saber clashed fiercely with the sharp claws, sparking blinding flashes, numbing Lu Sheng's palms.

The Demon with a Ghostly Mask emitted a sinister laughter, the scarlet eyes beneath the mask glinting with cruelty, as another claw, carrying a foul wind, clawed towards Lu Sheng's chest.

Lu Sheng swiftly twisted his feet, narrowly avoiding it, then swung his great saber, earth-brown Spiritual Energy surging like a tide over the blade, and slashed fiercely at the Demon's head, "Die for me!"

The Demon with a Ghostly Mask let out a piercing shriek, not dodging, as it crossed its claws to shield its head.

Clang!

The massive force sent Lu Sheng stumbling three steps back, and the Spiritual Energy on the blade made the Demon grunt as a tiny crack appeared on the white bone mask.

"Interesting." Lu Sheng licked his lips, his eyes blazing with even more fighting spirit.

In the following rounds, the two fought to a standstill.

Lu Sheng's Earth Spiritual Energy excelled in defense and outbursts, each strike hefty as a mountain, while the Demon with a Ghostly Mask was incredibly swift, its claws wickedly lethal, and occasionally spewing green toxic mist, forcing Lu Sheng to constantly remain vigilant.

Just as Lu Sheng found an opening and prepared for a horizontal slash to break through the opponent's defense—

"Aww—!"

The Demon with a Ghostly Mask suddenly threw its head back and released an extremely sharp mental screech, the invisible sound waves hammering into Lu Sheng's mind like a sledgehammer.

"Argh!" Lu Sheng felt darkness before his eyes, his consciousness momentarily dazed, and his grip on the saber loosened involuntarily.

This is the moment!

The Demon with a Ghostly Mask's eyes glinted with viciousness, its claws darting out like a poisonous snake, on course to strike Lu Sheng's throat, with such speed that left no time to react.

"No!"

"Commander!"

"Big brother!"

Beside him, the warriors' pupils constricted, crying out in terror.

Seeing the claws about to tear into Lu Sheng's throat, at the critical moment, a silver light shot diagonally from the side, accurately wrapping around the Demon's wrist.

"Tear!"

The Silver Spider Silk with barbs embedded deeply into the Demon's flesh, as the Spiritual Energy shimmered upon the silver silk, slightly diverting the claw's path, skimming past Lu Sheng's nose.

Simultaneously, a gush of black-purple venom quickly penetrated the wound through the tiny pores at the silk's tip.

"It's the Deputy Commander!"

Warriors in the rear exclaimed in shock and ecstasy.

The Demon with a Ghostly Mask's wrist numbed, its attack halted abruptly, and it turned its head in rage.

Only to see that Poisonous Widow had somehow made her way to its side, her red lips curving into a cold smirk, as she flicked her fingers to release several strands of Silver Spider Silk again.

The Silver Spider Silk was precisely the weapon "Mind devouring Silk" of Poisonous Widow, a Spiritual Artifact Qin Tian exchanged using tens of thousands of Military Merit Points.

Created from the web of the Nether Spider Queen mixed with stellar iron, it shone with a cold silver glow, appearing delicate but a hundred times tougher than alloy chains—even when slashed by a Tier Five Demon's claws, it would only leave faint white marks, instead wrapping tightly around the opponent's limbs, tightening the more they struggled.​

More terrifyingly, the fine micro-barbs covered the silk's length, the seemingly smooth surface harboring hidden blades, which would automatically deploy upon contact with flesh, able to both precisely cut the skin like a scalpel, and hook onto muscular fibers.

Furthermore, the Spiritual Energy circuit embedded within the silk amplified her wrist strength threefold, allowing a seemingly casual flick to unleash a sharp whistle through the air towards the target, like a silver venomous snake pouncing, and the feature of venom conduction was custom-made for Poisonous Widow.

"Swish! Swish! Swish!"

The spider silk wrapped around the Demon with a Ghostly Mask's limbs like a lively snake, binding it tightly in place as venom fiercely permeated through multiple wounds, causing the Demon's skin to visibly rot, muscles twitching into stiffness.

"Roar—!"

The Demon with a Ghostly Mask let out a howl of agony, struggling only to tighten the silk further, the barbs burrowing deeper into the flesh, accelerating the venom's spread.

"Now!" Poisonous Widow coldly reminded.

Lu Sheng snapped back to attention, looking at the restrained Demon with a Ghostly Mask, his eyes filled with lingering fear and fury. He raised his great saber, gathering earth-colored Spiritual Energy along the blade, and leapt—

Spcht!

The great saber precisely cleaved off the Demon's head, greenish-black blood gushed out, but Lu Sheng evaded it in time.

The headless Demon's body wobbled before crashing down, twitching a few times before falling still.

Lu Sheng panted heavily, looking at Poisonous Widow, expressing his lingering fear, "Miss Scarlett, thank you..."

Poisonous Widow retracted the spider silk, the silver glow dissipating from her fingertips, her tone lazy but with a hint of teasing, "The Battalion Commander said that when working, refer to rank, so please call me Deputy Commander in the future."

With that, she turned and looked towards the other Demons still fiercely battling, releasing the Silver Spider Silk again to wrap precisely around one Demon's neck, a gentle tug severing its cervical spine.

Lu Sheng watched her deft skills and then touched his own neck, suddenly realizing a problem.

Previously, he thought the Deputy Commander had risen through beauty and wasn't very capable; perhaps the Battalion Commander placed her in Company One to oversee him.

But now it seemed, the Deputy Commander's role wasn't oversight, but—

To protect him.

Turns out, I was the weakest one all along.

He shook his head helplessly, then gripped his great saber again, charging into the battle once more, shouting, "Brothers, give it your all! Slaughter these bastards!"

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