In chaotic times, skill points are added: from hunter to martial saint, only killing and no mercy!

The pale green poison, carried by the strong wind, continued to approach Li Yi and the others.

"Hurry up!"

"Hurry, hurry, hurry!"

Seeing this, Li Yi disregarded the trapped infantry and decisively led all the soldiers he could carry away to the side.

This is a battle against the wind speed; every step slower means being enveloped by more toxic fog.

And so, Li Yi led his many soldiers on a desperate run, heading towards the west side of Qiufeng Pass.

The poisonous fog was blown by the wind, and the only way to avoid it was to go to the west and use the valleys and forests there to block the fog.

In the distance, after discovering the poisonous fog, Liu Ye led his cavalry away from the Qing Kingdom camp, relying on their superior archery skills to block the pursuers in the Qing Kingdom camp.

With Liu Ye's cover and the Qiufeng Pass infantry battalion's rearguard action—who, knowing they couldn't escape, turned and risked their lives to hold off the zombie horde—Li Yi successfully led over a thousand elite Fenghu Battalion soldiers into the valley.

After entering the valley, for safety reasons, Li Yi did not rest, but led everyone to travel through the valley.

Several hours later, Li Yi and the others finally arrived at a valley.

Within this valley, there is a stream more than a meter wide, and on the slopes on both sides, there are many wild fruits.

Seeing this, Li Yi sent out scouts to investigate and, after confirming that the valley was safe, ordered the exhausted Wind Tiger Battalion soldiers to set up camp and rest on the spot.

The valley had water and wild fruits, and with the dry rations they brought, it was enough for Li Yi and the others to rest for several days.

After resting, they left the valley to meet up with Liu Ye and headed to Qiufeng Pass.

Under the arrangement of their respective village leaders, everyone in the Wind Tiger Battalion was busy. Some were picking wild fruits, some were fetching water to make soup, and others were treating the wounded...

Beside a bluestone, Li Yi summoned several trusted lieutenants to discuss matters together.

"What kind of method is this? Have you ever heard of it?"

The thought of the resurrected zombies on the battlefield and the poisonous mist hidden among the corpses filled everyone with lingering fear.

Before escaping into the valley, Li Yi looked back.

The soldiers who were poisoned by the fog were covered in sores and died in a gruesome manner.

"We are unaware of such methods; we have never heard of them before!"

These trusted lieutenants came from all over the Chen Kingdom, but none of them had ever heard of such methods.

"I've long heard that the Qing Kingdom is skilled in mechanical techniques. Could bringing the dead back to life also be considered a mechanical technique?"

Li Yi recalled the Soul-Devouring Thunder that the Qing Kingdom's vanguard had used when he was still in Blackstone Town.

Wu Chuansheng, a sergeant, died under this very mechanical contraption, leaving no trace of his body!

Listening to the discussion, Li Yi pondered for a moment, then addressed a general exuding an imposing aura:

"Lin Lei, you're fast on your feet and have the strength of the fifth level of Body Refinement. In a little while, you'll take a team of men back to Yanmen Pass and report the battle situation here to General Guan."

After a pause, Li Yi continued, "It is imperative to cremate the corpse and truthfully inform General Guan of the details, including the situation of that strange man in black robes!"

Since I can't find the answer myself, I might as well ask General Guan for help.

As the commander-in-chief of Yanmen Pass, General Guan's sources of information were far superior to Li Yi's. Moreover, General Guan also had the support of the Grand General!

As the general who commands most of the Chen Kingdom's military force, he must know the Qing Kingdom's secret information.

Besides his marksmanship, Lin Lei's greatest skill was actually the same Wind and Thunder Sword Technique as Li Xin. When Lin Lei used the Wind and Thunder Step that came with the Wind and Thunder Sword Technique, there were very few people in the entire Wind Tiger Camp who could surpass him in speed.

Upon receiving Li Yi's order, Lin Lei quickly cupped his hands and earnestly said to Li Yi:

"Please rest assured, Captain!"

"I will certainly bring the battle situation and military intelligence to Yanmen Pass and report it truthfully to General Guan."

After arranging all the matters, a simple meal was also prepared.

Seeing the hot soup, dried meat, and a few wild fruits brought by his guards, Li Yi, who had been fighting all day, didn't care about his image and grabbed a piece of dried meat to eat in big bites.

The rest of the Wind Tiger Battalion soldiers were also exhausted, eating dry rations and drinking hot soup in large mouthfuls.

Beside a stream, several soldiers leaned against a tall wild tree, chewing on dried meat.

Because Li Yi had won many battles and made numerous meritorious contributions, the soldiers of his elite Wind Tiger Battalion were equipped with high-quality dried meat as their rations, instead of flatbreads with minced meat added.

A young soldier in his early twenties, tearing at a piece of dried meat, suddenly shifted his shoulder and complained:

"The dried meat is in the supply bag. Take it yourself when you're done eating."

After a few moments, the soldier frowned and said with displeasure, "I already said, help yourself if you want to eat. I twisted my ankle, so it's inconvenient for me to get it for you."

As he spoke, the young soldier turned to look behind him, and in an instant, the dissatisfaction on his face turned into terror.

"Ah! What is this?"

Behind him, a greenish-yellow vine, as thick as a baby's arm, was writhing.

Seeing the young soldier scream in fright, the vine lunged forward and tightly wrapped itself around him.

The vines tightened around his neck, his face turning red. He gripped the vines tightly with both hands, ignoring the pain in his feet as he kicked the ground repeatedly.

His colleagues, after he screamed in fright, turned to look at him.

Seeing their comrade about to be strangled by the vines, the soldiers froze for a few moments before rushing over, some pulling on the vines, others using their knives to cut them open, trying to rescue the soldier.

But a few breaths later, the soldier's body relaxed, and he had already been strangled to death by the vines.

Before the soldiers could react, the vines of the many large trees in the valley suddenly twisted their branches and attacked the soldiers around them.

A thick branch swept across, knocking a group of soldiers to the ground, and several vines burst forth from the ground, entangled the soldiers.

In an instant, the entire valley was thrown into chaos. The soldiers of the Wind Tiger Camp, who were eating and resting, were thrown into disarray by the sudden onset of strange trees and vines.

Having already been brought to life by the corpses, these soldiers were already on edge. Now, encountering these eerie trees and vines, their mental defenses completely collapsed. They screamed that it was a monster and gathered together in a panic.

"Third camp! Arrow rain!"

After gathering his men, a village chief, seeing the willow tree in front of him constantly waving its branches and striking people, quickly organized his archers to launch an attack.

Waves of arrows rained down, but were swept away by the willow branches. Some iron arrows managed to dodge the willow branches and hit the willow tree, but they didn't even pierce the bark before sliding to the ground.

On the other side, seven or eight soldiers lunged forward and pinned down a vine as thick as a forearm, while several other soldiers at the Body Refinement Realm raised their broadswords and unleashed the killing moves from the [Five Forms of Blood Battle], forcefully slicing the vine apart.

However, these Body Refinement Realm martial artists slashed until they were completely exhausted, until their broadswords were dulled, but they didn't leave even the slightest wound on the vines.

Upon noticing the warriors' exhaustion, the vines that the soldiers were holding down suddenly lashed out, sending the soldiers flying. The next second, the vines shot out, knocking away a warrior's broadsword and then smashing it down, fracturing the warrior's arm.

In a short while, the entire valley was in chaos, with a large number of soldiers injured or maimed by the strange tree vines, and some even losing their lives.

Li Yi stood on the bluestone, observing his surroundings, while his personal guards brandished their swords and spears, repelling the vines that reached towards the bluestone.

"His strength is comparable to a martial artist at the sixth or seventh level of Body Refinement; he is impervious to blades and spears, and his agility and strength are on par with Han Jia!"

"What exactly are these strange trees and vines?"

Looking at the trees and vines attacking the soldiers, Li Yi suddenly thought of the strange beast, the mountain demon, that he had killed.

"Could it be that if strange beasts can appear among animals, similar beings can also appear among plants?"

"Or perhaps, there are spirits and monsters in this world?"

Li Yi's mind raced, but the screams around him kept reminding him of his own pain.

The reactions of many soldiers have confirmed that ordinary attacks are useless. Even if they are strong, they are ultimately just stronger warriors, and there is no difference in essence.

Suddenly, Li Yi had a thought.

Since martial arts are useless, let's try something else!

Thinking of this, Li Yi took out the Seven Killings Frost Bow and then took out a unique, ice-white long arrow from his waist, nocking it onto the Seven Killings Frost Bow.

After the Seven Kill Bow was reforged using the horn of the Frost Snow Bull, the new Seven Kill Frost Bow comes with a chilling attack. The ice-white long arrows are made from the horn of the Frost Snow Bull and are the matching arrowheads for the Seven Kill Frost Bow.

Li Yi nocked the long arrow onto the Seven Kill Cold Bow and simultaneously activated his breathing technique. Streams of powerful blood energy, like dragons and tigers, continuously emerged from his body and empowered the long arrow.

The guards under the bluestone, sensing Li Yi's imposing aura, did their utmost to block the trees and vines, preventing them from interfering with Li Yi.

A moment later, a crisp sound rang out, and Li Yi, who had finished gathering his strength, suddenly released his grip. The icy white arrow slashed through the valley and arrived at the strange willow tree in an instant.

Perhaps sensing something amiss, the branches of the strange willow swayed even more swiftly, attempting to block the attacks from all around.

However, gusts of cold air emanated from the icy white arrow, freezing the branches in an instant.

"It really works!"

Li Yi was overjoyed at the sight.

Under everyone's watchful eyes, the icy white arrow pierced through the branches affected by the cold air and flew straight towards the trunk of the strange willow tree.

boom!

With a loud bang, the ice-white arrow pierced the trunk of the willow tree. The powerful energy contained within it suddenly erupted, and chilling air spread from the arrow shaft, gradually covering the entire willow tree.

The lush green branches and leaves of the strange willow gradually lost their vitality. Before long, all the branches drooped to the ground, and countless cracks appeared on the thick trunk.

[Gain experience points with the Breaking Army Bow Technique]

The familiar panel notification definitively announced the result.

"I never expected that the Seven Killings Frost Bow and the Frost Arrows, when combined, could actually kill these strange trees!"

Li Yi was overjoyed and immediately shouted:

"Get out of the way quickly! Protecting yourselves is the top priority. Don't fight these strange trees!"

After Li Yi successfully killed a strange willow tree, the panicked soldiers finally found their leader, gradually regained their senses, and, led by their respective officers, withdrew from the attack range of the strange tree vines.

As the soldiers retreated, Li Yi's gaze remained fixed on the skill panel.

A brand new secondary skill appeared on the screen.

Skills like [Reconnaissance and Concealment] and [Hunting] are secondary skills, while skills like [Wind-Breathing Breathing Technique] and [Wind-Splitting Spear] are primary skills.

【Demon Identification (Beginner): 10/100】

[Effect: Allows you to obtain some basic information about monsters]

"This skill seems to have been unlocked after defeating the Strange Willow. It seems these strange trees and vines are indeed related to monsters and beasts!"

Upon realizing this, Li Yi quickly used his skill and focused his attention on the strange willow he had just killed.

The heartwood of the slain century-old willow tree spirit can be used for crafting weapons and medicine!

This is actually a hundred-year-old willow tree spirit?!

Li Yi was taken aback, and then turned his attention to the other trees.

【70-year-old chicken blood vine extract】

The Spirit of a 130-Year-Old Locust Tree

[A 140-year-old hawthorn tree spirit]

……

What you see is a dozen or so tree spirits in this valley!

"Go and retrieve the long arrow!"

After figuring out the situation in the valley, Li Yi realized that if he didn't kill these strange tree spirits, his soldiers would suffer heavy losses!

Moreover, the materials from these spirits seem to be useful as resources for cultivation!

Thinking of this, Li Yi arranged for his personal guards to retrieve the Snow Arrow that had been shot, while he took out another Snow Arrow, nocked it on the Seven Kill Frost Bow, and fired an arrow at the Seventy-Year Chicken Blood Vine Spirit in the distance.

Whoosh whoosh~

The seventy-year-old chicken blood vine spirit, which had been hit in the core, struggled for a while before being killed by the power attached to the Cold Snow Bow.

As Li Yi fired arrow after arrow, the many tree spirits in the valley were gradually killed.

A quarter of an hour later, the entire valley fell silent. All the strange trees that had launched the sneak attack earlier had died under Li Yi's arrows.

"The Captain is invincible!"

"Li, the Unrivaled God of Slaughter!"

In an instant, cheers from many soldiers resounded throughout the valley.

After using the [Demon Identification] skill to check and confirm that there were no more escapees in the valley, Li Yi quickly ordered his guards to retrieve and preserve some materials from the tree spirits.

After this battle, Li Yi's newly acquired secondary skill, [Demon Identification], gained a large amount of experience points, advancing from the beginner level to the entry level.

The [Breaking Army Bow Technique], which had been practiced diligently for a long time, gained a lot of experience when killing these monsters and was successfully upgraded.

[Breaking Army Bow Technique (Perfect): 1300/3200]

[Effect: Unlocks exclusive combat skill "Piercing Clouds and Shattering the Moon"!]

After Li Yi broke through from the Great Completion to the Perfection of the [Breaking Army Bow Technique], he mastered a new arrow technique called [Breaking Army Seven Kills], and also unlocked a skill trait.

[Piercing Clouds and Breaking Through Armor: Greatly enhances armor-piercing ability, ignoring the protection of a martial artist's Qi and Blood!]

While the guards were harvesting materials from the monster, Li Yi was also on the side, testing the effects of this new skill's characteristics.

It can be said that if Li Yi had mastered this skill's characteristics before engaging these spirits, he wouldn't even need the Seven Kill Frost Bow to inflict effective damage on these tree spirits.

Of course, its power is not as great as the combination of the Seven Killings Cold Bow and the Frost Arrow.

"This 'Piercing Clouds and Breaking Through the罡' (a powerful technique) is already this strong; I wonder what kind of amazing unique combat skill it will be when it unlocks after its breakthrough!"

Soon, the guards removed the various materials from the tree spirits as Li Yi had requested.

Looking at the dozen or so strange materials in front of him, Li Yi's eyes were filled with joy.

With these, I can further improve my skills!

After Li Yi killed these monsters, the many garrison commanders led their soldiers to deal with the aftermath. Some wounded soldiers needed to be treated in time, and the bodies of the soldiers who unfortunately died at the hands of the tree spirits also needed to be properly disposed of.

While his subordinates were busy, Li Yi wrote a letter and had some tree spirit remains brought to Lin Lei.

"Let's go, we must bring these things back to Yanmen Pass and hand them over to General Guan!"

Lin Lei, along with a dozen or so scouts he had selected, received the secret letter and the remains of the tree spirit. After repeatedly assuring Li Yi, he led his men and quietly left the valley, heading towards Yanmen Pass.

Two days later, Li Yi led the well-rested and refreshed Fenghu Battalion soldiers out of the valley area and headed towards Qiufeng Pass.

After enduring attacks from both zombies and poisonous fog, as well as a sneak attack from tree spirits in the valley, Li Yi and Qiu Fengguan suffered heavy losses.

Of the 3,000 elite Wind Tiger Battalion soldiers brought from Yanmen Pass, 20% have already been lost, leaving only 2,400 men.

It should be noted that these were elite soldiers whom Li Yi had trained with considerable resources.

The supplies used for one soldier in the Wind Tiger Battalion are enough to cover the expenses of more than a dozen ordinary soldiers!

The loss of these six hundred men was like a piece of Li Yi's flesh and blood, causing him immense heartache.

The two thousand infantrymen sent by Qiufeng Pass to assist Li Yi were also killed by the zombies and poisonous fog, with only one or two hundred escaping back to Qiufeng Pass.

Now, in the autumn winds of Guanzhong, there are only three thousand soldiers left to guard the area!

After exchanging intelligence with the scouts sent by Qiufeng Pass, Li Yi's expression became quite solemn.

Qiufeng Pass and its own Fenghu Camp together have a force of just over five thousand men, while the Qing Kingdom's army also has about five thousand soldiers.

Both sides appear to have the same number of people, and Li Yi even seems to have an advantage.

However, the black-robed man who brought the corpses back to life is a huge variable!

With him there, even if Li Yi had twice the number of troops, he still wouldn't be able to defeat this Qing Kingdom army.

After all, this black-robed man can control corpses; with this ability, the opponent essentially has an endless supply of soldiers.

Moreover, Li Yi had not forgotten the tree spirit that had ambushed him in the valley.

It's still possible for one or two tree spirits to live together.

However, more than ten different types of spirits, with different cultivation levels and different growth environments, gathered in a valley and launched an attack on him.

This is incredibly eerie!

"It seems that the Qing Kingdom not only possesses the extraordinary craftsmanship to control corpses, but also the ability to command spirits and strange beasts!"

"In the upcoming battles against the Qing Kingdom, we must be wary of the presence of these strange beasts."

As Li Yi pondered, he hurried toward a hillside following the intelligence provided by the scouts at Qiufeng Pass.

After most of the day had passed, Li Yi spotted a hillside in the distance.

Down the hillside, squads of cavalry were patrolling the area.

This is the cavalry led by Liu Ye!

Soon, Li Yi led his archers to join forces with Liu Ye's cavalry, and the Wind Tiger Camp was restored to its full strength.

"This is?"

Beside Liu Ye was an old man dressed in a Taoist robe.

Seeing Li Yi ask the question, Liu Ye quickly explained:

"My lord, this is Daoist Mu Xingzi of the Qingyun Sect."

"After covering your retreat, I led the cavalry towards Qiufeng Pass, where we encountered Master Muxingzi on the way."

"Master Jupiter's journey here is to assist the army in dealing with the Qing Kingdom."

"After hearing about you, he insisted on seeing you!"

After Liu Ye finished speaking, Mu Xingzi stepped forward and bowed to Li Yi.

"This humble Taoist priest, Mu Xingzi, greets Commandant Li!"

Li Yi learned about the Qingyun Sect from General Guan when Shui Chengzi of Baiyun Temple came to his door to accept disciples.

The Qingyun Sect is one of the Three Clouds, and it is the most prominent and active of the three. It sends its disciples out year-round to assist the Chen Kingdom in governing the country and fighting against foreign enemies.

Li Yi looked at Mu Xingzi with a solemn expression in his eyes.

This Jupiter appears old, but his strength is quite profound, even stronger than that of the Water Spirit back then.

This made Li Yi dare not be negligent, and he quickly said sincerely:

"Master, you flatter me greatly! I cannot accept such a generous gift!"

After exchanging pleasantries, some people went into their tents.

After chatting for a while and discussing the recent battle situation, Li Yi pondered for a moment and then told Mu Xingzi all about the many strange things he had encountered and the questions in his mind.

Listening to Li Yi's words, Mu Xingzi stroked his long beard and slowly said:

"If my suspicions are correct, this man in black robes should be a cultivator from the Black Wind Sect of the Azure Kingdom."

"Black Wind Sect?" Li Yi was slightly taken aback.

He had learned about the situation in Qing Kingdom, but had never heard of the Black Wind Sect.

Could it be that the Black Wind Sect is similar to the Three Clouds Sect of the Azure Cloud Sect?

Jupiter nodded and continued:

"The Black Wind Sect is one of the top sects in the Qing Kingdom, and also one of the forces that support the Qing Kingdom's foothold in the world."

This sect follows unorthodox and unorthodox methods, not only excelling in numerous bizarre and erotic techniques, but also deeply entrenched in some evil ways.

"The living corpses you saw that day were likely the corpse-controlling techniques they used!"

"As for the poisonous fog, I have not seen it with my own eyes, so I dare not make any conclusions."

With Mu Xingzi's introduction, Li Yi gained a better understanding of some of the secrets of Qing and Chen.

Among these factors, some unknown power dynamics led Li Yi to decide to adjust some of his future plans.

"May I ask, Master, do you have a way to deal with these evil cultivators from the Black Wind Sect?"

The thought of those bizarre living corpses made Li Yi's face darken.

This is the biggest loss Li Yi has suffered since joining the army!

Compared to Li Yi's serious expression, Mu Xingzi chuckled and said confidently:

"Captain Li, please act freely. I have my own methods to deal with the Black Wind Sect's corpse-controlling techniques!"

Upon hearing this, Li Yi felt reassured and immediately began to think about how to annihilate the remaining five thousand Qing Kingdom soldiers.

Just as Li Yi was thinking, Mu Xingzi's gaze wandered over Li Yi.

After a long while, Li Yi snapped out of his thoughts and saw Mu Xingzi staring at him, which puzzled him for a moment.

"I wonder if there's anything you need to tell me, Chief?"

Li Yi treated Mu Xingzi, a remarkable figure from the Qingyun Sect whose strength far surpassed that of Shui Chengzi, with a rather proper attitude.

Seeing Li Yi's upright expression, Mu Xingzi smiled slightly and said to Li Yi:

"This humble Taoist would like to ask, does Commandant Li have a master?"

Upon hearing this, Li Yi was taken aback, then quickly replied:

"All my skills were learned in the military; I had no formal teacher!"

Hearing Li Yi's words, Mu Xingzi nodded slightly. The next moment, Mu Xingzi looked at Li Yi solemnly and said in a deep voice:

"Then, I wonder if Captain Li would be willing to join my Qingyun Sect?"