Immortal Martial Saint, something's wrong with my entry.

"Come on, the meat is ready, come and get it."

Luo Jingshan was flipping the grilled meat on the rack while calling out to the people not far away.

Li Youan darted to the barbecue grill, took the plate handed to him by Luo Jingshan, and said, "Captain, do you need to change it? I'll grill for a while."

"No need, no need. I just said I'm in charge of grilling today. It's no big deal. I quite enjoy it myself."

After shooing Li Youan away, Luo Jingshan continued to fiddle with the meat on the barbecue grill.

The commotion lasted for an hour before it finally ended, and everyone sat by the lake, looking at the calm surface of the water.

Luo Jingshan distributed the miasma-clearing pills that Manager Liu had given him to each member of the team.

"We've all been through a mission before, so we can trust each other as teammates. We can't let our guard down this time either."

Everyone nodded. Having gone through these thrilling battles, they were all teammates who had shared life and death experiences, so they felt quite at ease.

The group had indeed been worried about the newcomers, Li Youan and Dongfang Jinghong, since they were relatively weak and had connections.

However, they discovered that Li Youan was exceptionally skilled; his array formations were truly astonishing. While Dongfang Jinghong, due to his somewhat aloof personality, didn't interact much with the others, his weapon-refining techniques were so impressive that they rarely needed to repair magical artifacts anymore; Dongfang Jinghong could handle everything.

However, none of them were short of spirit stones, and they earned a lot from each mission. The key reason for this was that Dongfang Jinghong didn't have the bad habits of a scion of a powerful family, nor did he act like a young master. He got along quite well with everyone.

"Alright, today is the ninth day of our rest. Tomorrow, everyone should purchase some necessary supplies."

Luo Jingshan looked at the team members who needed to purchase items, "Same as always, I agree to reimburse the team's expenses. We'll set off promptly at 6 a.m. the day after tomorrow."

"clear."

The crowd responded in unison.

After finishing their business, the group chatted for a few more minutes before returning to the outpost to plan what they needed to bring for their mission.

"I'll be going out on a mission again tomorrow."

Li Youan stood on the platform at the top of Outpost No. 1, looking at the distant horizon.

However, since this wasn't his first mission and he was already a complete novice, Li Youan didn't feel nervous at all; instead, he felt a little excited.

Although the Forest of Ten Thousand Demons is extremely dangerous, it is also the best place to hone one's strength.

Thinking that he had so many chances to win the lottery, all thanks to these monsters, Li Youan became even more excited. This time, he was determined to accumulate even more chances to win.

At this moment, Dongfang Jinghong was also standing beside him, admiring the scenery of the Ten Thousand Demon Forest.

"This Miasma Valley... I've heard Aunt Zhou talk about it. The miasma there greatly suppresses a cultivator's vision and spiritual sense. You must be extra careful when setting up the formation."

Upon hearing Dongfang Jinghong's words, Li Youan nodded, then seemed to remember something and turned to look at her.

"Thank you for the reminder, Dongfang. But in this environment, your Illusion Sword Technique would be more advantageous, since the poisonous miasma also enhances it."

After observing the sky for a while, Li Youan and Dongfang Jinghong returned to their respective rooms.

Li Youan took out all the pills and items he had previously purchased from the Tian Shu Ring and examined them.

After confirming there were no problems, Li Youan sat down to meditate and begin practicing his martial arts. Before heading out, he needed to get himself into peak condition to face any potential challenges ahead.

The lights around Outpost No. 1 gradually came on, while in the pitch-black Forest of Ten Thousand Demons, unknown dangers and opportunities were hidden, waiting for the cultivators to discover them.

Early the next morning, the members of the 13th team had already gathered in the hall, and Luo Jingshan reminded them once again.

"Let's double-check that you have all your belongings before we set off."

Li Youan quickly and carefully checked the array plate, array flags, and the Bloodthirsty Whip at his waist. After confirming that everything was in order, he waited for the order to set off.

Seeing that everyone was looking at him, Luo Jingshan waved his hand, turned around and led everyone towards the top platform.

Upon reaching the top platform, Li Youan discovered that besides them, there were two other teams preparing to depart for other missions, along with some returning teams, making the rooftop platform quite busy.

Luo Jingshan had spent quite some time at Outpost No. 1, and he knew many of these people. After greeting those he knew, he led the group off.

Standing atop Li Youan's Sky-Piercing Shuttle, Luo Jingshan glanced at the towering Outpost No. 1 behind him, turned, and waved his right hand, "Let's go!"

Under Li Youan's control, the Sky Shuttle flew rapidly towards the mission location. After flying for a while longer until the outpost behind them could no longer be seen, it finally landed in the Ten Thousand Demon Forest.

Without exchanging any words, the thirteen figures quickly formed a battle formation and disappeared into the lush Forest of Ten Thousand Demons.

The light shone throughout the entire Demon Forest, filtering through layers of leaves and being cut into patches of light that fell on the ground. The light in this forest was somewhat dim, and the only sounds were birdsong and insect chirping, along with the occasional rustling of leaves in the wind.

Unbeknownst to them, shortly after they flew away from Outpost No. 1, a small brown-furred monkey was observing the outpost from the top of an ancient tree not far to the northwest.

The little monkey hid in the leaves, cautiously poked its head out, and stared at the direction they flew away for a while before nimbly emerging from the tree branch.

After a howl, several other brown-furred monkeys quickly appeared around the little monkey.

After chattering amongst themselves for a while, the monkeys rushed off together in a completely different direction from Ghost Howl Gorge and Black Wind Cliff—Miasma Valley.

In the Forest of Ten Thousand Demons, an ambush targeting the entire 13th Squad has been set up.

The 13th squad, led by Li Youan, has been identified by Hou Da and Ying Xiang as a target that must be eliminated as soon as possible.

The entire group walked step by step into the large net that Monkey and Eagle had laid out.

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The Forest of Ten Thousand Demons is filled with ancient trees reaching for the sky.

Half a day had passed since the 13th squad left the outpost, yet they still maintained their standard advancing formation.

Luo Jingshan and Wei Xiao led the way, Qi Xuan and He Xiaoluo guarded the rear, Wei Feng, Zheng Xuan, Kang Ping and Fu Ming provided support in the middle, and Feng Lin, Luo Yao and Luo Hui protected the two flanks.

Zhao Jing stayed in the very center with Li Youan and Dongfang Jinghong, where she could receive the best protection and be close to either of them at any time.

This route of advance was planned by Luo Jingshan long ago. Starting from Outpost No. 1, the route proceeded in a roundabout manner towards the northwest.

To ensure the mission's secrecy and reduce unnecessary trouble, they had already avoided several known monster lairs along the way, led by Luo Jingshan.

Finally, on the third day, the 13th squad arrived at the outer area of ​​the Miasma Valley, ready to begin its outer reconnaissance mission.

"Everyone, gather here. We need to be careful on this mission. Let's shorten our formation now."

Under Luo Jingshan's command, although the positions of the group remained unchanged, the distance between them had been reduced to a very small area.

"Be careful around every bush. Most of the monsters here like to ambush, and they all have some resistance to poison."

Through telepathic communication, Luo Jingshan directed each team member. This type of mission was relatively rare for the entire thirteenth squad, so he took it very seriously.

After advancing a short distance, the bushes on the left side of the squad suddenly trembled, and two gray figures darted out like lightning, their targets Kang Ping and Fu Ming on the left flank of the squad.

Li Youan had been observing the surroundings of the entire group. When the two gray shadows were halfway out, he had already discovered that they were two shadow leopards at the ninth level of the Kaiyuan Realm.

The Shadow Leopard is a type of demonic beast known for its speed and stealthy attacks, making it the kind of beast that cultivators least want to face alone.

However, it was mentioned that it was a one-on-one matchup, and they clearly have the numerical advantage now.

Moreover, Kang Ping is also known for his speed.

"Good timing!"

Kang Ping reacted extremely quickly, drawing his two swords rapidly and slashing upwards in mid-air to precisely block the claws of one of the shadow leopards.

Although Fu Ming reacted a little slower, he still managed to block the attack of another shadow leopard with his longsword. The tip of his sword, which he thrust out diagonally, was trembling slightly.

These two shadow leopards were extremely intelligent. Seeing that their attack had failed, they immediately used the force of the two men's recoil to retreat quickly.

The shadow leopard's figure blended back into the shadows of the forest, attempting to find another opportunity to launch a sneak attack.