Inside the allied camp of the two tribes, Jiang Kechang and Tuoba Rong were both present, their faces grim.
"This time we miscalculated; Chen Village had so many hidden tricks up his sleeve that we hadn't used yet."
" Tuoba Rong, have you received any news about the puppets you sent to the Talisman Puppet Sect?"
Jiang Kechang asked Tuoba Rong.
The puppets in Chen Village are very different from those made by other talisman masters. The puppets made by other talisman masters are very rigid, their combat power is far inferior to that of martial artists of the same level, and they do not know how to cooperate. They are not suitable to become an army and can at most act as special small units.
However, the puppets made by Chen Village were not only individually powerful and agile, but also obeyed orders and could easily coordinate as a group, making them complete killing machines.
On the battlefield, the combat power of the Chen Village puppets completely surpasses that of martial arts armies of the same level. Moreover, the puppets' tactics are unpredictable and varied, making them more difficult to deal with than ordinary legions. This is what Jiang Kechang fears most right now.
"No, a bunch of useless people! They say it will take at least several months to make any progress."
Tuoba Rong snorted coldly, extremely annoyed.
"It seems we need to change our strategy; the tactics from now on will focus on attrition."
In terms of accumulated resources and capabilities, they have no chance of defeating us.
Jiang Kechang tapped his fingers lightly on the table, his expression gloomy.
Tuoba Rong glanced at Jiang Kechang, then nodded as if he had remembered something.
"That's true. Without a constant supply of Rune Artifacts, Chen Village is nothing to worry about."
Once we gradually deplete their stockpiles, wiping them out will be a piece of cake; there's no need to rush.
They had already received news from Jiang Ji that Chen Mu was trapped in the Ancient Desolate Mining Area and could no longer pose a threat to them.
The development of puppetry and Rune Artifacts in Chen Village was almost entirely built by Chen Mu. Now that Chen Mu is gone, Chen Village will surely decline very quickly.
Because they knew this news, they weren't too worried even though the front lines were collapsing.
Chen Village front line, inside the military camp.
Chen Zihu, Nan Huaiyuan, Chen Jianfeng, Chen Duo, and more than a dozen other high-ranking military officials were discussing the army's next course of action.
"We can no longer expand; the territory we currently occupy has reached the limit of what we can govern."
We need at least three months to rest and recuperate, to appease the people who have submitted to us, and to maintain control of the reorganized army. Otherwise, if the rear becomes unstable, the front lines will become very dangerous.
Besides military affairs, domestic affairs are also a difficult matter to handle. Chen Village is relatively lacking in talent in this area, so it has to spend more manpower and energy to deal with it.
I agree!
I agree!
Chen Zihu's opinion received unanimous support, so Chen Zihu focused his plans on defense deployment.
The formation battalion led by Nan Huaiyuan was under great pressure as a result, as they needed to set up formations in many locations. However, Nan Huaiyuan was actually very happy because it was finally his time to shine.
The meeting lasted for more than an hour, and after everyone understood their tasks, the meeting ended.
" Duoduo, is there any news about A Mu?"
Seeing that everyone else had left, Chen Zihu asked Chen Duo what was going on.
Chen Duo shook her head, her expression worried.
"Okay, don't worry too much. You know A Mu's abilities; I believe he won't get into trouble so easily."
"Um."
Chen Duo nodded.
At that moment, the communication jade pendant on her waist lit up. Her face lit up with joy, and she quickly activated the communication.
Brother! Is that you?
However, the voice coming from the communication jade tablet was that of another man.
" Duoduo, it's me."
The voice was deep and husky, as if it had been through many hardships, possessing a unique masculine magnetism and cheerfulness.
Chen Duo froze, her eyes reddening, and it took her a while to recover.
What do you want? Is something wrong?
"It seems we can't contact A Mu. Is he not in the Wilderness?"
"I don't know either; he's been missing for over ten days."
There was a pause on the other end of the communication jade tablet, clearly as they were processing Chen Duo's message.
Okay, I understand.
I'll be heading into the Wilderness in a few days, and I'll bring some people back with me. We'll talk about the rest when we meet."
After speaking, A Huo disconnected the communication.
Within the Ancient Desolate Mining Area.
After Chen Mu was trapped in the mining area, he was unable to discern directions due to the purple mist and could only wander aimlessly in one direction.
The purple mist stretched endlessly, and there was no distinction between day and night. He himself didn't know how long he had been walking; perhaps three or four days, perhaps seven or eight. In any case, he kept walking forward, and finally one day, he passed through the purple mist.
"Here..."
Chen Mu was completely stunned by the scene before him. The place was beautiful, with clear waters, lush trees, and stunning scenery—it was practically a paradise on earth.
Not far ahead, there was a small village where many people were working.
The village is surrounded by a stone wall, and judging from its size, the population inside must be no less than several thousand, which is truly unexpected.
Just as Chen Mu was marveling at the scene before him, an unexpected change suddenly occurred ahead.
"Howl~~!!"
Dozens of powerful monsters rushed out of the forest and launched an attack on the village.
The leader of this group of demonic beasts was a demonic wolf that had reached the Demon King Realm. It had bluish-brown fur that was seven or eight meters long, a blue face with fangs, and a ferocious appearance that sent chills down one's spine.
The villagers near the village reacted quickly, immediately fleeing back to the village and building an effective defensive military structure using stone buildings.
Boom! Clang clang clang.
A group of powerful martial artists rushed out first, standing in front of the demonic beast and engaging it in a fierce battle.
Then, to Chen Mu's surprise, a group of tiny people of various colors flew out of the village.
" The Divine Soul True Body... they are all Divine Soul True Body!"
This was no small matter; soul cultivators were extremely rare, perhaps one in ten thousand.
Only those who reach the Solid Realm can possess Divine Soul True Body; in other words, all of these dozens here possess Divine Soul that are at or above the Solid Realm.
Chen Mu suspected that there might not be as many Soul Cultivators who had reached the Solid Realm Soul Cultivation in the entire Wilderness as there were here.
Boom! Bang bang bang!
After the Divine Soul True Body flew out, the demonic beasts did encounter obstacles, but not as easily as Chen Mu had imagined.
He discovered that these Solid Realm Divine Soul moved stiffly and had rudimentary combat skills, completely failing to unleash the destructive power that Divine Soul True Body should possess.
The strongest of the golden divine Divine Soul was barely able to fight the Demon Wolf King to a standstill, and was completely unable to spare any effort to help the others.
After a long and fierce battle, the human martial artists began to suffer casualties. Although the demon beasts also suffered heavy losses, their thick hides and swift movements meant they were about to break into the village.
The village is inhabited by the elderly, women, and children, who are weak in combat. If the monsters were to break in, there would likely be significant casualties.
At this moment, Chen Mu felt too embarrassed to hide any longer. He stepped off the ground and immediately took to the air, flying towards the site of the fierce battle.