Imperial Cultivation

Chapter 151: Chapter 149: Breaking the Formation

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His eyes were far sharper and brighter than ordinary people.

In Yujing City, this didn’t feel significant, but outside, especially on the grasslands, he sensed something unusual.

Others could only see two or three hundred meters ahead, but he could see two or three kilometers away, like an eagle’s eye.

He vaguely felt that this might be due to the Divine Dragon’s Thought, caused by Marrow Refining.

The silhouettes of these cavalry appeared within a kilometer range.

Chu Zhiyuan instantly recognized their identity.

Clad in dark green armor, their horses were also dark green, entirely dark green, blending with the grasslands in lush seasons.

This was exactly the same as the cavalry guards he had seen in Yujing led by Li Hongzhao, namely the Stepping Cloud Iron Cavalry, the fearsome and legendary Stepping Cloud Iron Cavalry of Da Meng!

Chu Mingrui looked at him.

Chu Zhiyuan nodded slowly, ”Stepping Cloud Iron Cavalry!”

He immediately asked in confusion, ”Why is the Stepping Cloud Iron Cavalry here? ...There’s still some distance to Gaoling Town, isn’t it?”

”About a hundred li,” Chu Mingrui said coldly.

His demeanor was completely different from his usual gentle attitude during the journey, as if he had become a different person.

His face, like Crown Jade, seemed to wear an iron mask—cold and austere.

They hurried on their way, needing only half a day’s journey to reach Gaoling Town by tomorrow, just before the Imperial Decree’s deadline.

But the appearance of the Stepping Cloud Iron Cavalry here filled Chu Mingrui with a sense of foreboding.

Could it be that Gaoling Town had fallen as well?

Chu Zhiyuan said, ”The Stepping Cloud Iron Cavalry, a hundred and twenty riders, Uncle Ten, it seems we must avoid their edge!”

The prowess of the Stepping Cloud Iron Cavalry needed no elaboration, though the power of the Thunder Spear Formation had yet to be tested.

At most, they could take on two at a time, but now they faced ten.

Chu Zhiyuan observed as the Stepping Cloud Iron Cavalry began to accelerate, evidently having noticed them, ”Uncle Ten, what should we do?”

”Confront them!” Chu Mingrui said coldly, ”Fourth Prince, step aside!”

He looked at Song Feiqiong, ”Mr. Song, I leave it to you.”

Song Feiqiong nodded, ”Rest assured, Prince, I will ensure the Princely Heir’s safety.”

The usually silent Guo Chi and others turned pale.

The faces of the two young eunuchs changed, appearing distressed.

What they feared had come true; they had been worried about encountering the Stepping Cloud Iron Cavalry throughout the journey, brigands not being a major concern, but they couldn’t believe they had actually encountered the Stepping Cloud Iron Cavalry.

Chu Zhiyuan glanced at the distant hundred and twenty riders approaching swiftly, sighing, ”Uncle Ten, we’re still a certain distance away, retreating shouldn’t be difficult.”

”They’re coming for us. In a tight spot, the brave win. We must charge!” Chu Mingrui said solemnly, ”We must not retreat!”

This was the Chasing Wind Cavalry’s first battle in the Northern Territory.

Retreating would mean losing courage.

Just as they had newly mastered the Thunder Spear Formation, it was time to test its power today!

The Thunder Spear Formation was least afraid of large numbers!

Chu Zhiyuan looked again at the hundred and twenty riders opposite, with his naked eye clearly identifying each rider’s eyes and the seamless unity of their formation.

Charging now wasn’t quite wise.

But even so, he couldn’t change Chu Mingrui’s decision, as he was merely the Princely Heir, while Chu Mingrui was the military god of Da Jing.

Chu Zhiyuan turned back to look at the eighteen young cavalrymen who were placid.

These eighteen riders were the first group he had trained, the ones he had tutored the longest, and were extremely familiar with.

How many of these eighteen young lives would remain after this battle?

If they were tense or excited or enthusiastic, Chu Zhiyuan wouldn’t feel as much. But seeing their calm and composed expressions facing death, he couldn’t help but be deeply touched.

He sighed, ”Ah... never mind, I’ll be the spearhead!”

Once the Thunder Spear Formation was formed, it wasn’t so rigid; it could incorporate one or two more people and still hold form.

”Fourth Prince, this is an army formation, not a Martial Arts brawl,” Chu Mingrui said solemnly, ”Don’t mess around, step back.”

Facing a charge from over a hundred Stepping Cloud Iron Cavalry, even a Grandmaster couldn’t withstand it and could only flee for their life.

The charging speed of the Stepping Cloud Iron Cavalry was astonishing; once they got close, even a Grandmaster’s Qinggong might not be able to escape.

The best option was to keep a distance and not let them get close.

”Uncle Ten, you know me, I wouldn’t do something I wasn’t confident in,” Chu Zhiyuan said, looking at the gradually approaching hundred and twenty riders, ”I won’t risk my own life... There’s no time to dally!”

He was a Grandmaster, protected by Gang Qi, and with the Dragon Transformation Technique mastered, he had immense strength and lightning speed, leaving these cavalry unable to pose a lethal threat to him.

Unless they wielded Breaking Gang Divine Weapons.

The military had such Breaking Gang Divine Weapons.

But not everyone could have one; he could just evade them.

With Super Sense, he could avoid them in advance.

Chu Mingrui looked at Song Feiqiong.

Song Feiqiong remained silent.

He let Chu Zhiyuan act out, not stopping him.

Before Guo Chi and the others could speak, Chu Zhiyuan swept his gaze over, silencing them.

They knew Chu Zhiyuan better, knowing his nature, and that he wouldn’t act recklessly if there was real danger.

”...Fine, you take the spearhead position!” Chu Mingrui gritted his teeth and ordered sternly, ”Fourth Prince will take the spearhead, form the Thunder Spear Formation!”

In the current era, there was probably no one who understood the Thunder Spear Formation better than Chu Zhiyuan, who knew its intricacies and how to wield it.

”Yes,” the riders responded in unison.

Chu Zhiyuan clamped his horse’s sides and slowly moved to the front, the eighteen riders forming the Thunder Spear Formation behind him.

Chu Zhiyuan said in a heavy voice, ”Follow me, do not break formation, or no one can save you!”

”Yes!”

Chu Zhiyuan tapped his horse’s sides and began to accelerate.

A sudden hawk’s screech echoed in the sky.

Chu Zhiyuan looked up.

His gaze met that of a golden eagle.

He realized this golden eagle was watching them, reminding him of Da Meng’s intelligence network.

Da Meng was skilled at raising eagles, using them as eyes.

This eagle was the eyes of the Stepping Cloud Iron Cavalry.

That’s why they could spot their group.

He launched a small stone from his sleeve with a ”hiss” towards the sky.

This small stone contained the concentrated force of his entire body in one strike.

Rich with Gang Qi, it pierced through the air resistance, its power relentless.

Finally striking the golden eagle at eight hundred meters in the air.

Using normal concealed weapon techniques wouldn’t allow such a long flight.

He used the Sword Control Technique of the Yu Xu Sword Sect.

This was a miraculous technique only cultivable at the Grandmaster Realm.

A technique that surpassed ordinary concealed weapon skills, comparable in power to the Heart Inquiry Saber Skill.

The Heart Inquiry Saber Skill had spiritual attacks, almost lethal in one strike.

Whereas the Sword Control Technique could control from a very far distance.

Wherever his gaze reached, where his spiritual power extended, all were within attack range.

”Bang!” The golden eagle fell, crashing heavily onto the grassland.

The hundred and twenty Stepping Cloud Iron Cavalry seeing the golden eagle fall began to accelerate, speeding ever faster.

Chu Zhiyuan led the eighteen riders, charging head-on towards the hundred and twenty Stepping Cloud Iron Cavalry, but not in a straight line, advancing in an arc.

He focused on the formation of the hundred and twenty riders opposite, looking for their weaknesses.

A formation of a hundred and twenty people couldn’t possibly be without flaws; it was just that on the battlefield, nearly no one could capture these weaknesses.

But they couldn’t escape Chu Zhiyuan.

Chu Zhiyuan’s speed increased.

Invisible power surged into his body, into the horse beneath him, accelerating both his and the horse’s speed.

This was the power of the Thunder Spear Formation.

The eighteen riders formed a seamless whole, with an invisible force descending from the sky, like raindrops, hitting them precisely.

Making their bodies light and powerful, speeding faster.

With both sides charging, in a blink, they were within two hundred meters.

Under Super Sense’s Insight, he discovered that above the Stepping Cloud Iron Cavalry, an invisible force also descended, falling onto their bodies and their horses, making them appear ethereal and unpredictable.

In an instant, the hundred and twenty riders on the opposite side seemed like a hundred and twenty dark clouds drifting away.

Chu Zhiyuan snorted, holding the hilt of the Qingying Sword, Qing Qi entered his body, instantly clearing his vision, showing the hundred and twenty riders as they were.

He drew the Qingying Sword, pointing it diagonally forward, leading the eighteen riders to snipe at the weakness of the Stepping Cloud Iron Cavalry.

The hundred and twenty Stepping Cloud Iron Cavalry looked at the nineteen riders opposite, revealing cruel smiles as if they saw nineteen dead men.

Chu Zhiyuan, galloping, shouted, ”Number Three, slow down a bit! ... Number Nine, move left a foot!”

During the gallop, he constantly corrected the Thunder Spear Formation.

With his adjustments, the Thunder Spear Formation became increasingly perfect, drawing down stronger forces, accelerating their speed and increasing their strength.

As the distance closed, Chu Zhiyuan subtly adjusted direction, seeking the Stepping Cloud Iron Cavalry’s weakest point.

While avoiding the Breaking Gang Divine Weapons.

There were five Divine Weapons in total.

Five Breaking Gang Divine Weapons!

This hundred and twenty Stepping Cloud Iron Cavalry was indeed targeting them.

”Kill!” Chu Zhiyuan shouted.

This shout was like thunder cracking the sky.

The eighteen riders accelerated once more, like a bolt of lightning firing into the midst of the Stepping Cloud Iron Cavalry.

Faced with this sudden increase in speed and ferocious impact, the Stepping Cloud Iron Cavalry’s movements seemed to slow, as if in slow motion.

Where the Thunder Spear Formation passed, Stepping Cloud Iron Cavalry were sent flying, with blades grazing their throats.

Heads flew, and horses charged onward with headless bodies, blood spurting skyward like fountains.

The air was instantly filled with the smell of blood.

The desolate grassland became brutally fierce.

In almost a blink, under Chu Zhiyuan’s lead, the eighteen riders pierced through the hundred and twenty and continued charging forward, drawing a curve before charging the Stepping Cloud Iron Cavalry once more.

The formation of the Stepping Cloud Iron Cavalry had broken.

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