I run a casino in the immortal realm.

The candles in the back hall of the general's mansion burned until late at night.

Zheng Yifei stood in front of the huge sand table, his gaze sweeping over the small flags representing the enemy and his own side.

Gongsun Zhi, Pang Xun, Ye Xiao, Ouyang Zhan, Wang Changsheng, and Xu Zhenghai and Su Wanqing who stayed behind all stood behind him, holding their breath.

That's the situation.

Zheng Yifei turned around and looked at Xu Zhenghai and Su Wanqing: "Zhenghai, Wanqing, you two don't need to go to the ambush at Wanhun Valley this time."

Xu Zhenghai paused for a moment, then subconsciously tightened his grip on the hilt of his sword. His rugged face was filled with confusion: "Sir, this is our first major battle in the Western Frontier. All the brothers have gone, leaving me here in the city to guard the city?"

Su Wanqing also frowned slightly. She knew that what Zheng Yifei lacked most right now was high-level combat power. Although she was not good at large-scale battle formations, she was definitely a master in one-on-one combat and assassination.

"It's not about guarding the house, it's about suppression."

Zheng Yifei's tone was calm, but it carried an undeniable air: "To ensure the element of surprise in this ambush, I will take all three thousand elite troops that Pang Xun has reorganized with me."

All that remained in the city were the elderly, the infirm, the disabled, and Xu Qian's support staff who hadn't yet been reorganized. Pengcheng was essentially a ghost town.

Gongsun Zhi, who had been standing silently in the corner, stepped forward and added in a deep voice, "Lord Xu, Miss Su, the General's concerns are justified. Our departure from the city this time is a top-secret operation."

Within Pengcheng, we can't trust anyone except our own people, especially those two fifth-rank generals, General Zhao and General Ma.

Mentioning these two people, a cold glint flashed in Gongsun Zhi's eyes: "These two have been operating in Pengcheng for more than ten years, with deep roots and a lot of loyal personal guards under their command."

During the day, Pang Xun reorganized the North City Camp, cutting off their source of income from receiving salaries without working. They had long harbored deep resentment towards us.

If they find out that the General has taken all his elite troops to ambush at Wanhun Valley, they are very likely to cause trouble in the city and may even tip off the enemy.

"Stirring up trouble? Do they dare to rebel?"

Xu Zhenghai sneered.

"They don't have the guts to rebel, but they can incite the lower-ranking soldiers to mutiny, or use the pretext of guarding against orcs to forcibly close the city gates and take over the city's defenses."

Gongsun Zhi's analysis was clear and logical: "Once the battle at Wanhun Valley becomes stalemate, or if we need to retreat to Pengcheng and find that the city gates are locked by them, then we will be in a dead end, attacked from both sides."

Therefore, people must remain in the city, and they must be people who can keep things in order.

Zheng Yifei nodded and patted Xu Zhenghai on the shoulder: "Xu Qian's cultivation is low, and Hong Fei is good at accounting. They can handle logistics, but they can't control those thugs."

Zheng Hai, you and your men keep a close watch on Zhao and Ma's residences and the military camps they control.

"If they dare to make any move, without even asking for permission, just use the Prince of Pingxi's authority to execute first and report later, and chop off their heads."

Xu Zhenghai then realized the weight of his mission and solemnly clasped his hands in a fist salute: "Rest assured, sir, as long as they dare to show their faces, I guarantee they won't see the sun tomorrow."

Zheng Yifei then looked at Su Wanqing: "Wanqing, you are responsible for providing support from the center and protecting the safety of Xu Qian and Hong Fei. The supplies must not be compromised."

Su Wanqing nodded slightly: "Leave it to me."

After making the arrangements, Zheng Yifei looked at Pang Xun and asked, "How are the preparations for the three thousand elite troops going?"

Pang Xun stepped forward, his armor making a slight clanging sound: "Reporting to my lord, all three thousand men have been assembled. As you instructed, the horses are bound in the boots, the men are gagged, and all the weapons are wrapped in rags to prevent glare and collisions."

To maintain secrecy, I didn't tell them where I was going, only that it was a night shift change.

"Very good, let's go."

At midnight, the west gate of Pengcheng quietly opened a crack.

Three thousand strong soldiers, like a silent black serpent, swiftly slipped into the night outside the city under Pang Xun's leadership.

There were no torches, no commands, only the dull rustling of footsteps echoing across the wilderness.

These soldiers had just received a resettlement allowance of ten silver coins, and they were filled with a burning desire to prove themselves.

Although they didn't know what they would face, the promise of a great reward made their steps more resolute than ever before.

Zheng Yifei did not ride a horse, but concealed his presence and hovered in mid-air, following the group all the way.

Night Owl, Ouyang Zhan, and Wang Changsheng, each with their own men, were scattered around the group, acting as scouts and guards, keeping watch for any possible accidents.

While the distant horizon was still pitch black, the gourd-shaped entrance to the Valley of Ten Thousand Souls, resembling the gaping maw of a giant beast, had already come into view.

Within the Valley of Ten Thousand Souls, a chilling wind howled, as if countless wronged souls were wailing on the cliffs.

A faint miasma permeated the valley, making one feel nauseous.

The group stopped at the mouth of the valley.

Pang Xun turned around and, in a low voice, gave the final instructions to the captains and lieutenants behind him.

"Everyone, move into the designated positions on either side of the cliff. Once you're down, don't make a sound unless I give you the order! Even if you have a knife to your throat! Anyone who exposes their position, I'll chop them up first!"

The three thousand soldiers quickly dispersed, disappearing into the rugged rocks and bushes on both sides of the Valley of Ten Thousand Souls, like drops of water merging into the ocean.

Wang Changsheng, along with a hundred array masters, had been waiting in the valley for quite some time.

Upon seeing Zheng Yifei and Gongsun Zhi arrive, Wang Changsheng immediately went to greet them.

"My lord, strategist, the formation has been fully set up."

Wang Changsheng's eyes showed a hint of fatigue, but more so excitement. "The Bewitching Array, the Trapping Array, the Chain Killing Array—all the array bases have been filled with low-grade spirit stones, and the array patterns have also been disguised."

Gongsun Zhi looked up at the sky; there was still an hour until dawn.

"Lord Wang, activate the concealment formation for one last test. Once it's light, there absolutely cannot be any more fluctuations in spiritual energy."

Wang Changsheng nodded and took out a palm-sized array plate from his pocket.

He formed a complex hand seal, and a faint ray of spiritual light entered the array plate.

"Buzz—"

A barely perceptible tremor resounded in the air, followed by a layer of transparent ripples that rapidly spread outwards from Wang Changsheng, instantly enveloping the entire Valley of Ten Thousand Souls.

Zheng Yifei closed his eyes and released his divine sense to carefully perceive the surroundings.

The spiritual energy, which was originally slightly disordered due to the formation, was now forcibly smoothed out by an invisible force, and perfectly blended with the natural atmosphere of the surrounding wilderness.

Not only spiritual energy, but even the breathing and heartbeats of the three thousand soldiers ambushed on the cliff were suppressed to the lowest point by this concealment formation.

"A sixth-order concealment array, truly deserving of its name."

Zheng Yifei nodded approvingly.

Seeing that the formation was correct, Gongsun Zhi immediately began to arrange the specific positions of the troops.

"Lord Night Owl."

Gongsun Zhi looked at Night Owl, who was dressed in black: "I'm leaving Hulu Pass to you. The hundred men you're leading are like the ropes that tie up a sack. When the wolf soldiers enter the valley, you must not move. Even if they walk right past your noses, you must endure it."

Only after the last wolf soldier steps into the canyon should you lead your men to seal off the canyon entrance and cut off their retreat.

Night Owl didn't speak, but simply nodded coldly. With a flicker of his figure, he led a hundred Nascent Soul stage members and disappeared into the shadows on both sides of the valley entrance like ghosts, leaving not a trace of his presence.

"Lord Ouyang."

Gongsun Zhi then turned to Ouyang Zhan: "The gourd tail is the last line of defense to prevent the enemy from resorting to desperate measures. Once the orcs find themselves trapped, they will frantically search for a way out."

Your mission is to be like a nail, firmly planted there, and no matter how they try to break through, you must not let them escape from Ten Thousand Souls Valley and threaten Pengcheng.

Don't worry.

Ouyang Zhan grinned and patted the huge Xuanhua axe on his back: "With me here, not even a fly can fly out of the gourd tail."

After saying that, Ouyang Zhan led his men and strode into the depths of the canyon.

"Lord Wang, you and your array masters will stay at the core of the array in the valley, ready to obey my orders and control the array's changes at any time."

Gongsun Zhi finally spoke to Wang Changsheng.

Wang Changsheng bowed and accepted the order, then led his men into the cave where the array's core was located.

Everything was arranged. Gongsun Zhi took a deep breath, walked to a cliff with a wide view, and lay down behind a boulder.

Zheng Yifei then rose from the ground and soared into the sky, completely concealing his spiritual energy fluctuations. He seemed to transform into a wisp of cloud, quietly hovering thousands of feet above the Valley of Ten Thousand Souls, overlooking the entire situation.

The Valley of Ten Thousand Souls returned to its deathly silence, with only the mournful sound of the wind whistling through the canyon.

Time slips away, bit by bit.

The east was gradually turning a pale white.

The morning mist rose into the canyon, making the dark red rocks look even more eerie.

As dawn broke, a biting chill filled the air.

The soldiers lying on the cliff had a fine layer of white frost on their eyelashes, but none of them dared to move.

"They're here."

High in the sky, Zheng Yifei, with his powerful eyesight at the Void Refinement stage, was the first to notice the anomaly.

Several tiny black dots appeared on the western horizon. The dots moved extremely fast, even creating a sharp tearing sound in the air.

Within a few breaths, the black spot enlarged.

Those were three orcs.