No sooner had things calmed down in Luoxia City than news of an emergency at Iron Rock City to the north flew over as if it had grown wings, and the atmosphere of the entire city tightened up once again.

Fang Hao had just finished sorting out the Formation at Tiebi Pass, and before he could even settle into his seat, a transfer order shoved him into the reinforcement team heading north.

The scale of this reinforcement mission was not small.

Commander Lei had been promoted to Deputy General, and he brought his most formidable group of veteran soldiers, along with a selection of elites drawn from the Luoxia City garrison, totaling over three thousand men, marching in a grand procession.

There were also many Cultivators; besides Commander Lei himself, there were two other generals at the Early Golden Core Stage to hold the line.

On the side of the Guest Elders, Master Zhao led the way, followed by Fang Hao and seven or eight other Guest Elders at the Foundation Establishment Stage who were skilled in Formations, Alchemy, and Artifact Refining, serving as the technical support team.

On the day of departure, the sky was overcast, and the wind whipped against their faces like small knives.

The army assembled outside the city, a vast, dark mass with flags fluttering and thick Killing Intent.

General Li led the remaining troops to see them off at the city gate, his expression grim.

Everyone knew that the situation in the north was far worse than in the west, and they did not know how many would return alive from this journey.

Fang Hao mingled with the team of Guest Elders, stepping onto a medium-sized transport flying boat specifically allocated to them.

The flying boat was not fast, but it was spacious, packed full of various supplies and Materials.

He leaned against the railing, watching the mountains and rivers rapidly receding below, his heart heavy.

Iron Rock City... Late Nascent Soul Stage... just thinking about it made one’s scalp tingle.

The army traveled north, rushing day and night.

To save time, they took a direct route, flying specifically over desolate mountains and uninhabited areas, trying their best to avoid routes that might be monitored by enemy scouts.

Even so, along the way, they could see many refugees fleeing with their families, their faces full of terror, a sight that felt suffocating.

After flying for about three days, they entered a region called the "Withered Bone Wasteland".

This place was eerie; the ground was covered in grey-white gravel, dotted with sparse, withered, strange yellow grass, and not a single tree could be seen.

It was said that in ancient times, this was a battlefield where countless people had died, and the Yin Qi was extremely heavy; usually, not even birds would stop here.

The team flew very low, almost skimming the ground to avoid presenting too large a target.

Fang Hao sat in meditation on the flying boat to regulate his breath and consolidate his Great Perfection Foundation Establishment Realm, while simultaneously repeatedly deducing potential Formation problems he might encounter.

Just as he was pondering, suddenly, the entire flying boat jolted violently, as if it had slammed into something!

"What’s going on?"

"Enemy attack?!"

A commotion immediately broke out inside the flying boat.

Fang Hao jumped up in a start, rushing to the porthole to look outside.

He saw that the few scout boats leading the way seemed to have hit an invisible wall, instantly losing control and spinning as they fell!

Immediately afterward, the vanguard of the entire army also seemed to have fallen into a quagmire; their speed plummeted, and their Formation fell into chaos!

"Not good! It’s an ambush! It’s a Confinement Formation!"

Master Zhao, being experienced, changed expression and immediately saw what was happening.

Fang Hao also felt it—a powerful, cold, and eerie force of a Formation, like a giant cover, had silently enveloped their reinforcement troop!

This Formation was extremely stealthy and only revealed itself upon being triggered!

"All troops, be on guard! Form a defensive Formation! Formation Masters, immediately find the Formation eye and break the Formation!"

Commander Lei’s roar echoed through the entire team via the voice transmission Formation.

The well-trained army immediately took action; the various flying boats quickly converged, forming a circular Formation and raising defensive light shields.

The Cultivators one after another brought out their Magical Artifacts, vigilantly scanning the surrounding wasteland.

Fang Hao, Master Zhao, and several other Formation Masters did not dare to delay, immediately releasing their Divine Sense to carefully perceive the fluctuations of this Confinement Formation.

"It’s the ’Nine Nether Spirit Locking Formation’!"

Master Zhao quickly judged, his expression becoming even uglier, "This Formation can greatly suppress the circulation of spiritual power, weaken Divine Sense, and even spawn illusions; it is extremely troublesome! The person who set this up is highly skilled, and the Formation eye is hidden very deep!"

Indeed, Fang Hao tried to circulate his spiritual power and felt as if he had fallen into thick glue; his speed had slowed down significantly.

His Divine Sense also felt as if it had been covered by a veil, and his detection range was greatly reduced.

The surrounding wasteland began to blur, and faint sounds of ghosts wailing and wolves howling came through, disturbing his mind.

"We must break the Formation as soon as possible! Otherwise, if we are trapped for too long, the morale of the army will collapse, and it will be dangerous if the enemy takes the opportunity to attack!"

Commander Lei urged anxiously.

Several Formation Masters each displayed their own unique abilities, desperately searching for the Formation eye.

But this Formation was indeed powerful; the energy circulation was obscure and unclear, the Formation eyes seemed to be more than one, and they were constantly moving and changing, making them impossible to find in a short time!

Just at this moment, another unexpected change occurred!

"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—!"

From behind the sand dunes around the wasteland, countless pitch-black arrows suddenly shot out!

These arrows were extremely fast, their tips flickering with a ghostly light, and they could easily penetrate the defensive light shields of the flying boats!

"It’s the Armor-Piercing Yin Fiend Arrows! Watch out!"

A general exclaimed!

"Pfft, pfft, pfft!"

The arrows fell like raindrops!

Many soldiers and low-level Cultivators were caught off guard; upon being struck by the arrows, their wounds immediately turned black and festered, and they let out shrill screams!

The Formation immediately fell into chaos!

"Hold steady! Archers, return fire! Use area-of-effect Spell coverage!"

Commander Lei remained calm in the face of danger, shouting commands.

The army began to counterattack; a rain of arrows and beams of Spell light covered the direction from which the arrows were shot, causing gravel to fly on the sand dunes.

But the enemy was hiding in the dark, retreating after one strike, making it difficult to cause effective damage.

Fang Hao hid behind the protective Formation of the flying boat, watching the chaotic scene outside, feeling extremely anxious.

If the Confinement Formation was not broken, the army would be a sitting duck!

He forced himself to calm down, operating his Clear Spring Spirit Eyes to the limit, ignoring the stinging pain of his suppressed Divine Sense, and stared intently at the subtle flow of the Formation’s energy.

The Ethereal Art also quietly operated, attempting to sense the hidden spatial nodes.

"This isn’t right... the energy source of this Formation doesn’t seem to be in one place..."

Fang Hao keenly sensed that the Formation’s energy was not evenly distributed, but rather had several relatively concentrated points that were slowly moving, like wandering Formation eyes!

"It’s a mobile Formation eye! The person who set the Formation is nearby controlling it!"

Fang Hao immediately transmitted his discovery to Master Zhao via voice transmission.

Upon hearing this, Master Zhao was invigorated: "A mobile Formation eye? No wonder it’s so hard to find! Guest Official Ning, can you determine its approximate location?"

"I’ll try!"

Fang Hao gritted his teeth, condensing his Divine Sense into threads, extending them out like antennae, struggling to track those few obscure energy sources.

Suddenly, he felt that under a sand dune about three hundred zhang to the front left, the energy fluctuation was unusually active!

"Three hundred zhang to the front left! Under the sand dune! There is one!"

Fang Hao shouted immediately!

"Good!"

Commander Lei also heard it and, without hesitation, ordered: "First Assault Team! Target the sand dune three hundred zhang to the front left, blast it open for me!"

A flying boat equipped with heavy ballistae immediately changed direction, and several thick beams of light slammed fiercely into that sand dune!

"Rumble!"

The sand dune was blasted into a large pit, and smoke and dust filled the air!

In the smoke and dust, a black shadow could be vaguely seen fleeing in a hurry!

At the same time, everyone clearly felt that the surrounding suppression force had weakened by a fraction!

"It’s working! Keep looking!"

Commander Lei was overjoyed.

Encouraged, Fang Hao perceived even more intently.

Soon, he successively pointed out several other positions, such as the rear right and directly in front!

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

The assault team, following Fang Hao’s guidance, continuously bombarded the suspicious locations; one by one, the hidden Formation bases were destroyed, and the power of the Confinement Formation continued to decline.

The pressure on the army was greatly reduced, and the counterattack became increasingly powerful.

However, just as the Confinement Formation was about to be broken, the enemy clearly could no longer sit still.

A sharp whistle sounded!

From deep within the wasteland, hundreds of figures suddenly rushed out!

These people were dressed in uniform black tight-fitting outfits, wearing evil ghost masks on their faces, with eerie movement techniques and cold auras; they were all Cultivators at the middle to late Foundation Establishment Stage, and the leaders among them exuded the powerful pressure of the Golden Core Stage!

"It’s the ’Shadow Fiends’! The assassination unit of the Great Qin Empire!"

Commander Lei’s expression changed drastically, and he shouted sternly, "All troops, engage the enemy! Protect the Formation Masters!"

The real bloody battle began!