I established the Eternal Immortal Clan by taming beasts.

As dusk slowly descended from the western ridgeline into the valley, Fang Zhenshan made his final decision.

"Divide the troops."

Back at headquarters, Fang Zhenshan immediately ordered: "Draw two battalions from each of the White Tiger Army and the Azure Dragon Army to form an independent western front force, under the unified command of Fang Wushuang. Deploy them to the direction of Green Water Gorge to reinforce the defensive line before the allied forces of the demon beasts launch their general offensive. There is no need for an offensive; just guard the pass at the exit of Green Water Gorge to prevent those 300,000 demon beasts from breaking through to the Southern Plains."

"Commander, if we draw two battalions each from the White Tiger Army and the Azure Dragon Army, the siege force at the front will be weakened by nearly 20%." A general's voice carried obvious hesitation as his finger hovered over the area marked with the siege formation on the map. "The Hundred Herbs Valley's protective array is operating at maximum power. Weakening the siege force by one-fifth means it will take longer to break through the array, and the supply line problem hasn't been completely resolved yet. If these two things combine..."

"I know," Fang Zhenshan interrupted him, "but if the 300,000 demon beasts of Green Water Gorge break through the defense line from the flank at this time and enter the Southern Plains, our rear will be directly exposed to the threat. At that time, it will not only be our logistics line that will be attacked from both sides, but the entire allied forces. If the situation develops to that point, the defenders of Hundred Herbs Valley will not even need to take the initiative to leave the city. They can just hold back our main force and wait for the demon beast allied forces to complete the encirclement from the rear."

The general remained silent for a moment before slowly withdrawing his hand from above the map.

"Fang Wushuang, lead the western front troops to set off before dawn. After reaching Green Water Gorge, you do not need to advance to the entrance of the gorge. Establish a defensive line at the second pass outside the exit, leaving enough depth. If the monster alliance launches a general offensive, the first pass can be abandoned. Extend their formation to the second pass before intercepting them."

He paused for a moment, his gaze lingering on Fang Wushuang's face for a second: "You only have two battalions on your side, with limited manpower. Don't take the initiative to engage in battle. Just slow down their advance and drag it out until the outcome is decided at Baicao Valley."

"Understood." Fang Wushuang's reply was brief and to the point, and he turned and walked out of the command post.

At the same time, the protective array of Baicao Valley showed its first significant fluctuation as dusk fell.

Under continuous pressure, the light gray light curtain developed a brief, compressed indentation that lasted for about three breaths before being slowly pushed back into place by the array's self-healing mechanism.

The dent occurred at the southeast corner of the light curtain, which happens to be the area where the array base was subjected to the most concentrated impact.

During the repair process, the dent receded from the edge to the center at a visible speed, like an old crease being slowly smoothed out, leaving a mark on the surface of the light screen that was slightly lighter in color than the surrounding area.

Within a few breaths of the depression appearing, the garrison of Baicao Valley completed the recalibration of the spiritual path at the node.

Switching the spiritual energy input to the damaged area from the main vein to the backup branch vein caused the patterns on the surface of the light curtain to light up again at a visible speed during the repair process, restoring its original coverage density.

Upon observing the depression, the commander of the Fang family's allied forces immediately adjusted their attack rhythm.

The original frontal assault, primarily led by the Azure Dragon Army, was transformed into a sustained pressure campaign, alternating between the Vermilion Bird Army and the Black Tortoise Army, in an attempt to create new weak points on adjacent formation bases before the depression was fully repaired.

The archers' arrows were fired in alternating waves at the surface of the light barrier, with the impact points concentrated at the edge of the recessed area in the southeast corner. The arrows left continuous impact marks on the surface of the light barrier, causing the light gray light to become thinner and more transparent at the point of impact, and then regain its original thickness with the next replenishment of spiritual energy.

The response of the defenders of Baicao Valley was largely in line with the expectations of the Fang family's allied forces.

After noticing the change in the spiritual energy input to the southeast corner array base, they immediately drew some spiritual energy from the adjacent array base to replenish it.

However, this adjustment caused a brief decrease in the spiritual energy density of the adjacent array bases. Although the decrease was small, the scouts of the Fang family's allied forces observed uneven gaps in the flowing patterns on the surface of the light curtain from a height of several hundred feet away.

That night, the frontline generals of the Fang family's allied forces changed their siege rhythm from continuous pressure to intermittent heavy attacks, bombarding the light barrier every so often in an attempt to create a breach before the Hundred Herbs Valley defenders could complete their spiritual energy allocation...

…………

Eastern Front.

Before dusk completely sank below the horizon, the Lin family's airship fleet had already crossed the outer edge of Maple Leaf Ridge and was advancing south-southwest along the narrow passage between the eastern section of the Fulong Mountains and Green Water Gorge.

The distance between the flying boats narrowed slightly after crossing Maple Leaf Ridge, from the original two hundred zhang to one hundred and fifty zhang, to adapt to the terrain changes as the mountain walls on both sides of the passage gradually narrowed.

The aura array on the boat dimmed further after entering the passage, from reducing the brightness to almost completely extinguishing it, leaving only the basic aura needed for the engine to run, creating a low visibility state in the narrow valley that was almost indistinguishable from the dark gray of the rock walls on both sides.

The surfaces of these stone walls are covered with dark moss and weathered layers, which, under the moonlight, present a gray hue similar to that of the flying boat's aura array, making the entire formation seem to blend into the shadows of the rock walls themselves as it passes through that passage.

The Lin family's fleet of flying ships was built at great expense, equipped with a large number of functional runes to cope with various situations and terrains, all in order to enable the troops to reach the target location as quickly as possible.

And they don't feel bad about spending any money on it.

The troops have all been trained, so there must be airships to transport them, right?

Otherwise, how could we possibly get to the battlefield on foot?

How much spiritual energy would that consume for a cultivator?

How can one quickly engage in combat once on the battlefield?

Therefore, the Lin family also applied to the Fang family for a batch of funds to build the flying boat.

In addition to this Tier 4 main ship, there are also construction costs for ten Tier 3 warships, which, of course, are reported as double the cost.

To appease the Lin family, the Fang family did not hesitate at all, and the Fang family elder in charge of this matter approved it directly.

Looking back now, the Fang family were truly kind people!

Standing at the bow of the main ship, Lin Che looked into the distance and felt a pang of guilt.

However, this feeling of guilt was short-lived. For the sake of the Lin family's grand plan, they had no choice but to make things difficult for the Fang family first.

"Father, the scouts have reported back." Lin Xuanjing's voice came from behind. He quickly walked to Lin Che's side. "The allied forces of monsters from the direction of Green Water Gorge have begun to advance towards the pass. The vanguard is about 50,000, mainly scaled monsters. They are advancing in formation along the direction of the gorge."

The Fang family's garrison had about 35,000 men stationed in the defensive positions they had built at the pass, mainly consisting of shield-bearers and archers. Their formation was mainly horizontal, spreading out in an arc along both sides of the pass.

The demonic alliance is advancing faster than expected, and its vanguard is projected to reach the outer perimeter of the first pass by tomorrow morning.

Lin Che took the jade slip and carefully read through the detailed information: "The vanguard of the demon beast alliance is mainly composed of Earth-Splitting Bears and Ironclad Rhinoceroses, which means that their formation is based on heavy advance. These types of demon beasts have a strong ability to break through in open terrain, but their mobility will be limited in narrow terrain such as passes."

Moreover, although the allied forces of the demon beasts numbered 300,000, the narrow and long terrain of Green Water Gorge meant that the distance between the demon beast armies would be at least two hours' journey. They could only launch a sustained attack from one point, making a full-scale attack like the one that occurred at Chuyang City impossible. This is why Green Water Gorge has not been captured for so long.

He closed the jade slip and handed it back to Lin Xuanjing. He then looked up from the jade slip and down to the outline of the valley that was faintly visible in the moonlight in the distance.

"We need to block Fang Wushuang's reinforcements, but our main goal is to preserve our strength. The aim is to buy time, increase the damage to the Green Water Gorge defense line, attract the attention of the allied forces, and at the same time keep this reinforcement force firmly in check."

"Once the Green Water Gorge defense line suffers more than half its losses, we must withdraw immediately. We cannot allow the 300,000-strong demon beast alliance to flood into the Southern Plains; that would be out of control for the entire battle."

Lin Xuanjing was silent for a moment, then put the jade slip into his sleeve: "So how should we arrange our deployment? Should we ambush and intercept Fang Wushuang's reinforcements behind the pass, or intercept them directly at the entrance of the passage on the other side? Fang Wushuang's troops set off before dawn, and at their marching speed, they should be approaching the outer perimeter of Green Water Gorge around noon tomorrow."

"Deploy in two phases." Lin Che's gaze lingered for a moment on the faint outline of the valley on the horizon. "The first phase will be deployed in the middle of the passage, with a small number of elite Dawn Army troops creating contact in front, without engaging in combat, only revealing their positions."

When Fang Wushuang sees the Lin family's troops ahead, his first reaction will be to slow down the march and confirm the size and intentions of our forces. This assessment process will take at least half an hour.

Half an hour is enough time for the Green Water Gorge defense line, which is being attacked by the monster alliance, to raise the casualty figures of the defenders to another level.

The second segment is deployed around the exit of the passage, mainly using airship formations. Once Fang Wushuang's troops resume their advance, we will cut in from the air, disrupting their march and forcing them to halt and deploy. Whether they choose to engage or bypass us, it will take time.

"What if Fang Wushuang chooses to force her way through and not get entangled with us? If she judges that we are just stalling for time, she may leave some troops to hold us back while the main force continues to advance towards Green Water Gorge."

"Then we'll give chase." Lin Che's voice was calm. "We don't necessarily have to intercept her, but we need to slow down her march. She runs ahead, and we follow behind. When she stops to set up her formation, we wait. When she restarts, we follow. This continuous pressure will force her to constantly adjust her formation as she marches. Each adjustment takes time. How long the Green Water Gorge defense line can hold out depends on how long we can hold off Fang Wushuang. As long as we hold out until the defense line is halved, we will have achieved our objective."

Lin Xuanjing nodded and turned to walk towards the inside of the flying boat.

Two elite squads of the Dawn Army completed their deployment in the middle section of the other side of the passage around midnight.

They were positioned low on the gentle slopes on both sides of the passage, clinging to the rock face. Their dark spirit armor was almost indistinguishable from the surrounding weathered rock surface under the moonlight. Their spears were laid flat at their sides, with the tips pointing outwards.

Their mission was simply to reveal their position as Fang Wushuang's troops passed by. They didn't need to attack or make contact; all they had to do was let Fang Wushuang's scouts discover their presence as they passed by.

At 2:45 AM, the Lin family's airship fleet began to slowly move towards the exit of the passage, propelling itself forward at a power level below cruising speed. The hum of the engines left almost no trace in the night wind that could be detected by distant sentries.

The main ship's aura array had been completely extinguished, with only the power array at the stern retaining a minimal amount of operational light, leaving a thin trail of light behind the main ship that was dimmer than moonlight.

Fang Wushuang's troops crossed the Qiansongpo supply station at 3:45 AM and continued westward along the supply line without stopping.

The marching column was mainly lightly equipped, without carrying heavy siege equipment, and the number of spirit beast mounts was significantly greater than that of the regular formation, making the entire army march faster than expected.

At the beginning of the morning, the scouts spotted the silhouettes of people lying in a low position on the gentle slopes on both sides of the middle section of the passage.

Or rather, these Dawn Army soldiers didn't hide at all; they wanted to be exposed to the enemy's view.

Scouts report: There are Lin family troops deployed directly ahead, the number is unknown, but they have completed the initial control of the terrain on both sides of the middle section of the passage.

Fang Wushuang's troops stopped at the entrance of the passage, and the vanguard formation immediately turned into a guard formation.

The shield-bearers spread out in a horizontal defensive line in front of the formation, while the archers crouched behind them, their arrows pointed diagonally at the valley that was gradually brightening in the morning light.

During this period, three groups of scouts were dispatched to climb up the rock walls on both sides of the passage in an attempt to confirm whether the Lin family's troops had more ambushes on both sides of the passage.

After confirming the size of the Lin family's forces in the middle of the passage, Fang Wushuang decisively ordered an attack.

However, the Dawn Army squad had already begun to retreat before the enemy entered their firing range. The speed of their retreat was subtly synchronized with the speed of Fang Wushuang's troops' advance, always maintaining a distance between the two forces that the enemy could not directly attack, yet could not give up the pursuit.

Fang Wushuang's troops were thus forced to constantly adjust their formation, and each adjustment consumed time, causing them to enter the passage exit almost an hour later than expected.

When Fang Wushuang's troops finally arrived at the exit of the passage, the Lin family's airship formation had already deployed in the airspace outside the exit.

Three rows of flying boats hovered in a horizontal array about two hundred feet above the passage exit. The crossbows at the bows of the boats had been calibrated, and the arrowheads flashed with a fixed frequency in the afternoon light.

Fang Wushuang's troops stopped at the exit of the passage. The vanguard turned into a defensive formation as they stopped, while the troops behind them stopped one by one inside the passage.

Fang Wushuang appeared at the front of the formation, his silver-white general's robe gleaming with a dark luster in the afternoon light.

Her gaze passed through the open space that was radiating heat under the sun and landed on the airship formation that was hovering in the air.

He neither ordered an attack nor a retreat, but simply ordered the troops to remain in a standby position at the exit of the passage for about half an incense stick's time.

Lin Che stood at the bow of the main ship, facing Fang Wushuang across the open space that was shimmering with heat under the sunlight.

He did not order an attack either, but simply kept the airship formation in its current hovering position.

Based on the tactics employed by that unit, Fang Wushuang understood the Lin family's intentions.

The other side had no intention of engaging in a direct confrontation with them.

It's obvious I'm telling her, are you going to attack me or come to my aid?

If you hit me, I'll run; if you want to come to my aid, I'll chase you. It's up to you to decide!

Time flowed forward at an extremely slow pace during that standoff, each breath pushing the battle in the direction of Green Water Gorge into a deeper state of attrition.

……