Counterattack

The moment Zeng Fan swallowed the Body Tempering Pill, he felt a massive surge of pure spiritual energy emerge from it. This spiritual energy was free of impurities and, with simple refinement, could continuously merge with his blood, increasing the concentration of Body Tempering Blood within his body.

As the spiritual energy integrated into his blood, Zeng Fan's cultivation slowly climbed, hovering between the Perfection of Body Tempering Bone and Body Tempering Blood, on the verge of a breakthrough.

He knew that as the pill's medicinal effects continued to fuse, this step was inevitable. What he needed to do now was maintain balance and prevent his spiritual energy from becoming unstable after the breakthrough.

After the time it takes an incense stick to burn, Zeng Fan, who had been cultivating with focus, opened his eyes. He felt that over thirty percent of the blood in his body was slowly emitting spiritual energy, and his aura surged, breaking through to Body Tempering Blood!

The medicinal power of the Body Tempering Pill was still active within him, with waves of energy continuously surging forth, not yet fully depleted. Zeng Fan closed his eyes once more.

"Let's see if I can break through to Major Accomplishment of Body Tempering Blood," he murmured. The room fell silent again, with only a brewing spiritual energy preparing for the next impact.

The next day, news finally came from the upper levels: preparations were underway for a counterattack. Disciples below the Body Tempering Bone realm were not required to participate, as their cultivation was too low, and entering the territory of Demonic Beasts would be a futile sacrifice.

"This counterattack should be divided into two stages. The first will be a feint to ascertain the enemy's deployment, and the second will be the main engagement. You all stay close to me then; we'll look out for each other," said Murong Xue. The frequency of Demonic Beast attacks had significantly decreased in the past two days, and fewer disciples were needed on the city walls for defense. Murong Xue had come to find Zeng Fan and the others.

"Alright, if there are no unexpected situations, we'll try to stick together and watch each other's backs," Zeng Fan nodded, listening to Murong Xue. His aura fluctuated similarly to Yuan Jin and Wang Beichen.

After breaking through by taking the Body Tempering Pill yesterday, he had wanted to use the remaining medicinal energy to push for Major Accomplishment of Body Tempering Blood. Unfortunately, the energy wasn't enough, only allowing his cultivation to advance a bit further. However, he wasn't far from Major Accomplishment of Body Tempering Blood now.

"Then we'll be counting on you, Big Sister Murong. Little Brother Yuan will be cheering you on," Yuan Jin said with a grin.

"You two be careful then," Wang Beichen said, sounding a bit dejected. After the news of the counterattack spread, Qian Dayou, a Foundation Establishment cultivator, had privately sought him out. He informed Wang Beichen that he had received word from an elder within the Sect that the trial was complete and he didn't need to participate in this counterattack, only to remain within the city.

Wang Beichen was initially unhappy, but Qian Dayou coaxed him gently until he reluctantly agreed with a pained expression. However, he did propose one condition: that Murong Xue, Zeng Fan, and Yuan Jin act together, looking out for each other. Qian Dayou readily agreed.

Such a trivial matter was insignificant in his eyes. If any ordinary Body Tempering Realm cultivator dared to act so presumptuously in front of him, they would have been swatted away long ago. But given their influential ancestor, Qian Dayou could only speak to them politely.

Aside from this minor interlude, everything else proceeded according to the wishes of the Foundation Establishment cultivators. The disciples and the soldiers and generals of the Datong Dynasty operated like a well-oiled war machine.

Murong Xue and Zeng Fan, along with the others, followed the main force out of the pass and headed towards the distant mountain range. As they drew closer, the agitated roars of Demonic Beasts occasionally echoed from within the mountains, but the dense trees obscured their exact locations.

According to the higher-ups, cultivators at the Foundation Establishment and Spirit Control realms would attack first, followed by those in the Spirit Gathering and Body Tempering realms. Zeng Fan looked up; three figures radiating powerful spiritual energy fluctuations were flying through the air. They were Qian Dayou, Lin Li, and Sun Ze, whom he hadn't seen much since the war began.

The three had solemn expressions, their Foundation Establishment realm cultivation fully active. After all, no one knew when Demonic Beasts at the Foundation Establishment realm might appear, and a single misstep could lead to severe injury.

The crowd reached the foot of the mountain range. The agitated roars that had been echoing earlier had vanished, and the entire mountain range fell silent, creating an eerie sense of pressure.

"Still not coming out?" Sun Ze, in the air, sneered. He pointed downwards, and a small sword flew from somewhere on his person towards the base of the mountain. The sword grew rapidly in the wind, becoming a large sword several dozen feet long by the time it reached the mountain's base. Following Sun Ze's will, the great sword unleashed a powerful sword energy downwards.

"Roar!!!" The instant the sword energy appeared, an enraged roar echoed, and a red figure shot out from the mountain forest below. Its sharp claws directly collided with the sword energy, scattering it completely.

A tiger with fiery red fur appeared before them. It stood in mid-air, its red fur blazing like flames. It was about fifteen meters long, with sharp fangs protruding from its mouth. Its massive eyes fixed on the three figures in the air, filled with human-like anger.

"Fire Cloud Tiger!"

Qian Dayou and Lin Li exchanged glances. This beast was no weakling among Foundation Establishment realm Demonic Beasts. Judging by its aura, it was close to the Perfection of Foundation Establishment. However, if it was the only Demonic Beast here today, it wouldn't escape, as the three of them were all cultivators at the Perfection of Foundation Establishment! Killing it wouldn't be a problem.

"Stop hiding and call out your helpers, or you won't have a chance," Sun Ze narrowed his eyes and said coldly to the Fire Cloud Tiger. He had already clashed with this Fire Cloud Tiger multiple times and knew its cunning was comparable to humans. It wouldn't dare to face the three of them directly if it were the only one guarding the area.

Sun Ze's voice reached the Fire Cloud Tiger's ears. A hint of regret flashed in its eyes, realizing it couldn't keep its accomplice hidden for a surprise attack. These human cultivators were already on guard.

The Fire Cloud Tiger opened its mouth and let out a roar that formed a sonic wave directed at the disciples below. Lin Li reacted by waving a surge of spiritual energy to block it.

"Hiss hiss hiss!"

A black shadow, hearing the tiger's roar, flew out from behind the mountain range and, in the blink of an eye, reached the Fire Cloud Tiger's side. Its accomplice was revealed to be a giant three-headed snake. The snake was entirely black, with mysterious patterns on its body. Its three heads and six eyes glared ferociously at the three opponents.

"Three-Headed Demon Snake!" The three Foundation Establishment cultivators exchanged glances. This was troublesome. The Three-Headed Demon Snake was no weaker than the Fire Cloud Tiger, and Demonic Beasts at the same realm were inherently stronger than humans. Whether two Demonic Beasts at the Perfection of Foundation Establishment could defeat three human cultivators at the Perfection of Foundation Establishment could only be determined by fighting.

"Attack!" Sun Ze said to Qian Dayou and Lin Li. The great sword he had summoned earlier, imbued with spiritual energy, slashed towards the two Demonic Beasts. The other two Foundation Establishment cultivators also drew their magical artifacts and attacked together.

The two Demonic Beasts roared and charged towards the three, and the battle instantly began!

Seeing the battle commence above, Cai Yi below issued an order and charged forward, with the others following him into the forest. Shouts of killing and the roars of Demonic Beasts mingled together.

A firework suddenly exploded in mid-air. "Let's go!" Murong Xue whispered to the group. The firework was the signal for the Spirit Gathering and Body Tempering realm disciples to enter the fray.

Zeng Fan and the others nodded and followed behind Murong Xue into the mountain range. Zeng Fan looked around; broken trees were everywhere, and the ground was pockmarked with craters, all signs of fierce combat. However, he didn't see any Demonic Beast corpses, likely having been collected.

The Spirit Control realm cultivators had orders to push deep into the mountain range. Therefore, they would ignore any lower-level Demonic Beasts they encountered along the way unless they foolishly stumbled into their path. Those below the Spirit Control realm were left for disciples like Murong Xue and Zeng Fan to handle.

The group on the path soon encountered resistance. A massive figure suddenly lunged from the side, attempting to ambush Murong Xue, its claws aiming for her head. If this strike had landed, she would have been severely injured, if not killed.

Fortunately, Murong Xue was constantly vigilant. The moment the figure appeared, she struck. Her right fist, empowered with spiritual energy, collided with the claw. The impact of the claw and fist sent dust flying, and both sides retreated.

As the dust settled, a wolf-like Demonic Beast appeared before them. It was covered in gray fur, and the cold, sharp claws on its four limbs indicated its lethality. A blow from it would undoubtedly be unpleasant.

"Gray Wolf Beast!" Zeng Fan's gaze was solemn as he looked at the beast. This Demonic Beast wasn't particularly strong among those in the Spirit Gathering realm. What made it troublesome was its pack-hunting nature.

As expected, seeing its ambush fail, the Gray Wolf Beast let out a long howl. From behind it, five more wolves emerged. However, their auras were significantly weaker than their leader's; they were likely all at the Body Tempering Blood realm.

"You focus on that wolf; we three will handle the rest!" Zeng Fan's eyes were fixed on the beast in front of him as he spoke to Murong Xue.

Murong Xue nodded. Although the three of them were outnumbered three to five, none of them were ordinary Body Tempering realm cultivators. Her priority now was to kill the Gray Wolf Beast before her; dealing with the remaining Body Tempering realm Gray Wolves would be a simple matter afterward.

With this thought, Murong Xue's eyes sharpened. Spiritual energy surged from her body, and she shot forward like a cannonball towards the Gray Wolf Beast. The Gray Wolf Beast, undeterred, let out a low growl and met Murong Xue's charge. The smaller Gray Wolves also lunged towards Zeng Fan and the others.

"I'll hold off two; you two handle the remaining three," Zeng Fan commanded Yuan Jin and Wang Beichen. He twitched his spear and lunged towards one of the wolves. Black and gray light condensed around him as he unleashed Ironwood Body. Simultaneously, he threw a punch at another Gray Wolf, taking the initiative to intercept two of them. After all, his defense was the strongest among the three, so even if he couldn't kill them, he could at least hold them off.

Yuan Jin and Wang Beichen also exerted their full strength, intercepting the other three Gray Wolves. The fight was now divided into three separate engagements: Murong Xue against the Spirit Gathering realm Gray Wolf, Wang Beichen and Yuan Jin against three Gray Wolves, and Zeng Fan against two Gray Wolves. Whichever battle was resolved first would snowball, crushing the other two, regardless of whether it was for the Demonic Beasts or the humans.

In Zeng Fan's engagement, the Gray Wolf's claws met Zeng Fan's black fists with a sharp crack. The Gray Wolf's claws actually developed a fine crack. The formidable power of Ironwood Body was finally evident; Demonic Beasts of the same realm couldn't even break through the defense of his skin.

A hint of astonishment appeared in the Demonic Beast's eyes. How could this human's skin be so tough? It was starting to become unclear who the Demonic Beast was.

Zeng Fan was also somewhat surprised by this development. After breaking through to Body Tempering Blood, the strength of Ironwood Body far exceeded his expectations. This meant there was hope of dealing with these two Demonic Beasts.

Thoughts raced through his mind, but in reality, only a few breaths had passed. Another Gray Wolf Beast swatted away the spear Zeng Fan had thrown. Zeng Fan accelerated, grabbing the spear as it flew back, flicked it, and faced the two Demonic Beasts once more.

The two Demonic Beasts stared at Zeng Fan, one on each side. Although the defense of Zeng Fan's body was formidable, the two Demonic Beasts showed no signs of giving up, baring their teeth and letting out threatening growls.

Exchanging a glance, the two Gray Wolves attacked again, coming at Zeng Fan from left and right. Zeng Fan already had a plan. Seeing them attack from both sides, he shifted his body, sliding through the gap in their attacks like a swimming fish. At the same time, he swung his spear towards the waist of one of the Gray Wolves.

"Copper head, iron bones, tofu waist" – this saying described wolves, their waists being their weak point. The Gray Wolf couldn't dodge in time and could only watch as the spear sliced through the air and slammed into its waist. The Gray Wolf let out a yelp of pain, sent flying by the force of the spear.

Seeing this, the other Gray Wolf leaped directly above Zeng Fan's head, opening its mouth to bite down fiercely. Zeng Fan held the spear horizontally, directly blocking the wolf's mouth. Zeng Fan could even feel the hot breath from the Gray Wolf's mouth spraying onto him.

Falling backward, Zeng Fan pushed off with his feet, kicking the Gray Wolf away. A pained howl came from the wolf in mid-air, but it quickly disappeared as a spear pierced directly through its mouth, impaling its body.

He pulled out the spear and casually flicked off the blood. "One more left!" Zeng Fan slowly walked towards the other Gray Wolf.

Seeing its companion's miserable death, the Gray Wolf didn't flee. Instead, it ignited its ferocity and lunged at Zeng Fan again. However, its movements were not as agile as before, clearly indicating that the blow to its waist had caused significant damage.

Reaching Zeng Fan, the Gray Wolf changed its attack strategy, moving rapidly around Zeng Fan, attempting to evade his attacks while finding his weakness.

Zeng Fan sneered, "You want to compete with me in agility?" Zeng Fan's figure vanished from the Gray Wolf's sight, and he silently appeared behind it. Fish Dragon Dance's speed is no slower than yours, Demonic Beasts, Zeng Fan chanted inwardly, his hands not stopping. He thrust his spear directly towards the Gray Wolf's abdomen.

Unexpectedly, the Gray Wolf desperately twisted its body, causing Zeng Fan's spear to stab its leg, and blood immediately splattered.

Two screams rang out. One was from the Gray Wolf in front of him. Zeng Fan turned his head. The other scream was surprisingly from that Spirit Gathering Realm Demonic Beast. Murong Xue was panting heavily. Before her lay the dead Spirit Gathering Realm Gray Wolf Beast! The fatal wound was a hole in its head, and judging by the size of the hole, it was clearly caused by Murong Xue's fist.

The sound of slightly panicked running reached Zeng Fan's ears. Zeng Fan looked back. While he was looking at Murong Xue, the injured Gray Wolf beside him saw its leader's tragic death. The fear of death finally overcame its already limited intelligence. This Gray Wolf abandoned its companions and fled!

Zeng Fan was torn between helping them deal with the remaining three Gray Wolves or chasing the one in front of him. Murong Xue had already recovered and shouted at Zeng Fan, "You go! I'll handle these remaining few!"

"Alright!"

Hearing Murong Xue's voice, Zeng Fan knew the remaining Gray Wolves were no longer a problem. He then brandished his spear and pursued the injured Gray Wolf Beast.