Qing Hong climbed out of the pocket and grew into a mount.
Ji Xinghuo rode it toward the Blood Fury Tribe’s camp, while Xia Qingyu dared not show his face on the streets and stealthily followed in the shadows.
They soon arrived at the location.
In the Blood Fury Tribe’s camp, already more than a thousand people had gathered.
All of them had accepted employment from the Blood Fury Tribe.
With a casual sweep of his electromagnetic induction, Ji Xinghuo noted that every individual here, regardless of their race or profession, was an elite among the Fourth-Rank Evolvers. Most formed teams, their numbers varying, generally between five and ten, and very few teams had fewer than three people, making Solo Hunters even rarer.
The battlefield was unlike wilderness hunting; Solo Hunters had no advantages here.
The more people, the safer it was.
The mercenaries eyed each other warily, their expressions carrying a mix of caution and even hostility.
He Yan had mentioned that the number of Red Emperor Blood Crystals produced in this blood battle would be around two hundred, and the Blood Fury Tribe would keep most of the crystals. Although they promised that every surviving team from the winning side would receive a Blood Crystal, the number of survivors would certainly be small.
The people present were not only competitors but could also be enemies!
Among them, there were inevitably spies planted by the Biao Clan.
Xia Qingyu was taken aback upon seeing the numerous teams in the camp and immediately regretted participating in this blood battle.
Misha also looked grave.
The two rode a six-legged horned horse, following Ji Xinghuo in a corner of the camp, observing the others.
"This blood battle is bigger than I expected," Xia Qingyu whispered, "Normally a tribe hires about two to three hundred outsiders, never as many as today. I heard we are just the first batch, and there will be two more batches of mercenaries."
Misha spoke as well, "Yesterday, I received news that the Blood Fury Tribe has formed alliances with the ’Fangtooth’ and ’Heart Devouring Claw’ tribes, who will send troops to participate in the blood battle."
Ji Xinghuo, having spent these days at Sky Falling Cliff, was somewhat familiar with the surrounding forces.
Fangtooth and Heart Devouring Claw, these two Highlander Tribes were also devotees of the Red Emperor, with populations and strengths somewhat inferior to that of Blood Fury but still significant forces in the eastern highlands.
The three tribes were enemies but had formed an alliance this time.
"Shall we find a chance to back out?" Xia Qingyu lowered his voice, "We could lay low somewhere for a few years and then come back. The Blood Fury Tribe can’t do much to us."
Before Ji Xinghuo could reply, Misha cast him a scornful look.
"You want to be a coward?"
Highlanders revered bravery; even those who were not devotees of the Red Emperor disdained such avoidance of battle.
Xia Qingyu was not swayed by this reasoning and retorted, "This is a wise move, and you, you breast-heavy but brainless woman, know nothing."
"Dare you touch them again after saying that." Misha immediately became furious.
Ji Xinghuo could not help but glance at her. Her chest muscles were indeed grotesque, but her strong physique, standing nearly six feet three inches tall — taller than most men — resembled a big, muscular brother if one discounted her chest muscles and face. Xia Qingyu, with his idiosyncratic tastes, would be the type to like her.
Xia Qingyu shamelessly begged for forgiveness, "I misspoke, Misha; you are the smartest woman I have met."
Ji Xinghuo was speechless.
He could only say, "If this blood battle proves too intense and dangerous, we don’t have to fight to the death; we need to retreat in time when necessary."
"That’s good; I don’t want to throw my life away," Xia Qingyu breathed a sigh of relief.
He Yan, the Blood Warrior of the Blood Fury Tribe, appeared, and as soon as he did, the place fell silent.
He Yan asked a Highlander responsible for counting the mercenaries, and upon receiving an affirmative answer, he spoke without further ado, "Let’s depart! Within three days, everyone must reach the Blood Fury Tribe."
With that said, he leapt onto his own mount, a massive terror wolf that had evolved to a superior monster, with horns growing on its head, being a Wolf King among terror wolves.
He Yan led over two thousand Highlander warriors.
Everyone rode a six-legged horned horse, yet less than one-tenth were Fourth Rank.
Over three thousand people left the camp in a grand procession, passing through the streets of Sky Falling Cliff, causing a stir among pedestrians who stopped to watch at the sidewalk. They reached the north side of Sky Falling Cliff and took an elevator, spending over an hour to move from the cliff top to the bottom.
After regrouping, they headed north.
The Blood Fury Tribe was over fifteen hundred kilometers away from Sky Falling Cliff. If Ji Xinghuo had been alone, Qing Hong could have sped along, reaching there in one Star Realm Day.
However, with over three thousand people marching, the speed inevitably slowed down.
Hexapedal corner horses were renowned for their high load capacity, good stamina, and fierce, battle-ready temperament, but they were not particularly fast, especially when compared to Qing Hong.
On the first day, they covered nearly six hundred kilometers. After nightfall, they camped to rest for seven to eight hours before continuing their journey under the starlight.
Along the way, Ji Xinghuo nearly always had his electromagnetic induction activated, and as expected, he often detected unknown individuals skilled in stealth and tracking nearby. Marching with over three thousand individuals, it was impossible to avoid being watched, but that was not for him to worry about.
For two consecutive days, they progressed without incident. He Yan led the way, steering clear of other tribes and dangerous areas as they moved closer to the Blood Fury Tribe’s territory.
Traveling under the starlight, just before dawn, Ji Xinghuo’s eyes widened in horror.
He whispered to Xia Qingyu and Misha beside him.
"What’s wrong?" Xia Qingyu looked around. At that moment, the procession was moving forward on a wide, flat highland, with an unobstructed view ahead. Even though the starlight was dim, it was still possible to see far into the distance, and no immediate danger was evident. The high peaks on the left were also five or six kilometers away.
Before Ji Xinghuo could respond, they heard He Yan shouting loudly, "Scatter!"
The Highlanders and mercenaries were all confused.
Suddenly, a massive figure appeared in the dim sky above, growing larger under the silver glow as it swiftly approached. It soon became clear that it was a dragon!
Its wingspan exceeded thirty meters, and its body was covered in grayish-white scales. Its overall shape somewhat resembled a bat. Its massive body was shrouded in a smog-like black smoke, with each flap of its wings stirring billows of black fog that seemed to burn, obscuring its true form and making it appear intermittently.
Someone immediately recognized the dragon species overhead, and everyone scattered in panic.
Forewarned, Ji Xinghuo and his companions, Qing Hong, swiftly sprinted to one side of the formation, followed by Xia Qingyu and Misha who vigorously spurred their hexapedal corner horses to keep up.
"Damn it, why is there a Fog Hidden Dragon!" Xia Qingyu cursed.
"It’s a Dragon Lord."
His electromagnetic induction had detected the approaching Fog Hidden Dragon, which was a True Dragon of "Shock" level, situated between the Fifth and Sixth Rank.
There was a man on its back, clearly a Dragon Lord.
This Dragon Lord was merely Legendary.
He was less powerful than the dragon itself, but this did not diminish his formidable deterrence, as he dared to challenge even a Heavenly King with his dragon alone.
The Fog Hidden Dragon immediately began its dive as it appeared, moving incredibly fast and spewing a breath of dragon fire toward the ground troops.
A hundred-meter-long black fog swept over like a waterfall.
Anyone caught in the dragon’s breath had the black fog infiltrate their bodies through every orifice, immediately causing their bodies to stiffen, their skin to turn pale within seconds as if drained of blood, and they collapsed limply, their eyes devoid of life, turning into corpses.
Just one breath from the Fog Hidden Dragon killed over two hundred people.
Spiritual Origin Ability +10
Spiritual Origin Ability +8
Spiritual Origin Ability +13
In Ji Xinghuo’s vision, a flurry of messages crazily flashed, causing his mind to swell with pain, but before he could feel relieved, a terrifying sense of impending danger rushed over him.
A violent wind howled from behind.
In midair, the Fog Hidden Dragon, after unleashing its first breath attack, turned around and was now heading straight towards him, its gigantic mouth open and preparing to unleash another dragon breath.
Seeing this scene, Xia Qingyu turned back and was utterly terrified.