Chapter 2190: Ziying's Intention

Wind Rises in Kyushu

After three cultivators fell in battle, the Crane Wing Camp clearly became much more cautious. They realized that while their formation was powerful, it wasn't invincible; carelessness could still lead to their demise.

Seeing no signs of the formation breaking, the surrounding cultivators of the Insect and Blood races found themselves in a dilemma. However, under the Insect Mother's command, they gritted their teeth and charged forward.

At this point, they had no choice but to fight with all they had; there was no room for retreat.

Additionally, under the Insect Mother's coordination, nearby Insect and Blood race cultivators were rapidly converging on the location. The Insect Mother had clearly realized that below the Integration level, this formation was too potent; if they didn't find a way to neutralize it, their forces would suffer immense casualties.

Witnessing this, the Commander flew into a rage and hastily ordered nearby cultivators to mobilize and provide assistance.

In an instant, the area around the Divine Crane became the focal point of the military engagement between the two sides.

Within this mere few thousand li radius, cultivators from both sides were falling in battle almost every moment.

Under such circumstances, even the Crane Wing Camp found it difficult to disengage. Lu Ye could only lead his cultivators in a desperate struggle.

Before the great battle began, no one could have predicted the conflict would escalate to this extent. It simply evolved into this as the fighting continued. In such a situation, not only was the Commander unable to exert control, but the Insect Mother found herself in the same predicament.

The forces of both sides were continuously pouring into this area.

The Crane Wing Camp also gradually began to incur casualties. On such a battlefield, even Dao Entry cultivators were not immortal; even someone like Wang Xun was injured, let alone the others.

Then, at a certain moment, the armies of the Insect and Blood races suddenly retreated like a tide. Such a move was undoubtedly unwise, akin to one side suddenly disengaging during a tug-of-war, which would inevitably lead to heavy losses.

Yet, the Insect Mother did just that.

The reason was simple: cultivators from Gigascale Star had finally arrived on the battlefield!

It wasn't that they were slow; rather, Zi Ying had moved too quickly, directly using her mobile palace to transport all of Azure's forces and launching an immediate offensive upon arrival.

Zi Ying had considered having Gigascale Star move first, allowing both sides to arrive on the battlefield simultaneously. This coordinated approach would undoubtedly have been more secure.

However, the Insect Mother's intelligence network was too secretive; any movement from Gigascale Star would not escape her detection. Thus, regardless of whether Gigascale Star moved first, the Insect Mother would become aware and begin precautions as soon as it stirred.

Therefore, they could only allow Azure to launch a preemptive strike, denying the Insect Mother further time to perfect her deployment, while waiting for Gigascale to rendezvous.

Beside the mobile palace, the Commander let out a long breath, continuously issuing orders for the army to pursue. The first phase of the mission was considered complete. Although Azure had paid a considerable price, thanks to the Crane Wing Camp, their losses were much lighter than anticipated.

This time, the Crane Wing Camp had rendered great service in the star assault.

A moment later, led by more than ten towering giant cultivators, numerous cultivators from Gigascale Star arrived on the battlefield. Without needing any communication, they fiercely charged forward, joining the battle.

As the battle raged intensely, the Crane Wing Camp swiftly retreated from the front lines.

On the outskirts of the battlefield, the cultivators of the camp sat quietly, each holding two fresh Dao bones and desperately refining them for absorption.

Lu Ye was doing the same, though merely pretending.

Yet, his entire body was steaming, his skin flushed red, as if he were a cooked shrimp.

After less than an hour of intense fighting, everyone in the Crane Wing Camp was severely depleted. In such fierce combat, no one dared to hold back, and the consumption of spiritual power was more severe than ever.

As the core of the formation, Lu Ye bore all the pressure. Any other cultivator at the Dao Entry level would have long since collapsed, but even with his current foundation, he had been pushed close to his limit.

That's why he led his forces to withdraw.

Fewer than ten cultivators in the entire Crane Wing Camp had fallen, which was not a significant casualty count. With Gigascale's reinforcements now present, the Insect and Blood races were clearly losing ground.

However, Lu Ye's attention was drawn to the battle raging in another direction.

It was too far to see, but fierce aftershocks continuously emanated from that direction like rolling waves.

That was the battlefield of Zi Ying and Fei Lian!

He had never known Zi Ying's true purpose for launching this star assault. If it was merely to retaliate for the previous conflict, it clearly didn't make sense.

He vaguely felt that Zi Ying had a plan in mind, but he had no way of knowing what it was.

Lu Ye couldn't concern himself with the considerations of Integration-level cultivators. His focus was on figuring out how to maximize his own gains.

Suddenly, he turned his head and looked in a particular direction.

Because in that direction, a powerful aura suddenly appeared, rapidly sweeping towards the battlefield where Zi Ying and Fei Lian were fighting.

It was an Integration-level cultivator!

Enemy reinforcements?

No, that's not right. Even if the Insect Mother had called for timely reinforcements, an enemy Integration-level cultivator wouldn't arrive so quickly. If that was the case, then there was only one possibility.

It was the giant Integration-level cultivator from Gigascale Star!

Lu Ye was secretly astonished. Not only had Azure Star deployed all its forces, but Gigascale Star might also have gone all out!

Were they trying to kill Fei Lian?

Zi Ying and Fei Lian were evenly matched in strength. With the addition of this giant Integration-level cultivator, there might be a chance, but only a chance.

In clashes between cultivators of the same level, the Blood race was not easily killed. Their Blood Sea could conceal their figures, and Blood Escape Arts could be used for evasion. Unless an inescapable net was laid out in advance, even Zi Ying and the giant Integration-level cultivator might not succeed in a combined effort, as Fei Lian was not a fool; if he couldn't win, he would certainly flee.

Just as Lu Ye was thinking this, the aftershocks of the conflict there suddenly intensified, indicating that the giant Integration-level cultivator had joined the battle.

Although he couldn't clearly see the situation, with one against two, Fei Lian was likely not faring well and was probably feeling overwhelmed.

Lu Ye secretly frowned. If he were the giant Integration-level cultivator, he definitely wouldn't join Zi Ying's confrontation at this moment; instead, he would charge into the main battlefield and wreak havoc.

Compared to a Blood race Integration-level cultivator who might not be killable, those Dao Entry cultivators were undoubtedly easier to eliminate.

However, as if hearing his thoughts, a powerful aura suddenly branched off from that fierce battlefield, sweeping directly towards Blood Cloud Star.

Then Lu Ye saw a streak of light engulfing a swift figure, crashing into Blood Cloud Star!

At this moment, Lu Ye finally understood Zi Ying's true intention.

Her target was never Fei Lian, as she knew how troublesome the Blood race could be; even teaming up with the giant Integration-level cultivator might not guarantee success against him.

Therefore, her goal from beginning to end had always been singular.

It was the Insect Mother, hidden within Blood Cloud Star!

Unlike Fei Lian, who could flee at any moment, the Insect Mother could not easily escape. Her Insect Nest was her foundation, but also her confinement.

At this moment, a look of alarm flashed across Lu Ye's face, and he quickly shouted, "Be careful, everyone!"

If Zi Ying intended to kill the Insect Mother, the ensuing battle would inevitably have significant repercussions.

Unlike the clash with Fei Lian, where the aftershocks were distant and wouldn't affect this area, Blood Cloud Star was nearby, so the repercussions there would certainly be fierce.

Furthermore, Lu Ye also knew that confronting the Insect Mother was not a physical struggle, but a life-or-death battle of souls!

Due to the Insect Mother's unique nature, she generally wouldn't easily leave the Insect Nest. Furthermore, even as an Integration-level cultivator, her physical body had little combat ability. In contrast to her lack of physical prowess, the Insect Mother's true power lay in her soul!

Therefore, this would be a battle of souls.

Zi Ying... how brave! If her confrontation with Fei Lian still allowed for some margin of error, then choosing to face the Insect Mother meant a fight to the death, with no third possibility.

Lu Ye, however, did not show too much worry, knowing that since Zi Ying had made this choice, she must have been confident.

As expected, as Zi Ying's figure descended into Blood Cloud Star, the entire battle star violently shook. Soon, powerful soul energy fluctuations emanated from deep within the star; however, due to the Insect Nest's isolation, these fluctuations did not significantly affect the outside world.

Lu Ye wanted to see what was happening, but he knew the power gap was too great; recklessly approaching would surely lead to a dire outcome. He could only suppress his urge and wait quietly.

On the battlefield, with the arrival of Gigascale's reinforcements, the already disadvantaged armies of the Insect and Blood races became even more overwhelmed. If not for the insects' complete loyalty to the Insect Mother, some would likely have already fled by now.

Since the insects didn't flee and Fei Lian hadn't given the order, the Blood race naturally wouldn't flee either. Cultivators from both races desperately organized defenses outside the battle star, but their lines were constantly breached.

Inside Blood Cloud Star, the soul energy fluctuations continuously surged and waned.

After a full half-hour, an extremely fierce surge of soul energy suddenly swept out. The soul energy was like countless invisible needles, impacting all directions.

Even the members of the Crane Wing Camp resting on the outskirts of the battlefield felt a slight pain in their minds from the impact of these aftershocks.

The din of the entire battlefield suddenly fell silent for a moment. Everyone, friend or foe, had their movements become incredibly stiff at that instant.

Lu Ye's expression became stern; he realized that the confrontation between the two within the Insect Nest must have reached a critical moment, otherwise such a dramatic change wouldn't have occurred.

Moreover, this situation very likely meant the Insect Mother was at a disadvantage, because the armies of the Insect and Blood races were closer to the Insect Nest and thus felt a greater impact. If the Insect Mother still controlled the pace of the battle, she wouldn't have allowed such a thing to happen.

The aftershocks of the soul battle grew fiercer, with green ethereal light undulating from deep within the Insect Nest, spreading outwards in layers like ripples.

Lu Ye and the others felt as if they had suddenly fallen into an boundless ocean, their bodies rising and falling with the waves, momentarily disoriented and unable to concentrate.

If this was the situation for them, then the cultivators of both sides clashing on the battlefield were even worse off. Many were dazed and haphazardly lost their lives.

The ethereal light continued to undulate. After an unknown period, it finally erupted into a fierce torrent.

At the same time, a piercing shriek emanated from deep within the Insect Nest, lasting for several breaths before abruptly stopping. On the battlefield, everyone, without exception, had pained expressions and pale faces.

Lu Ye suddenly stood up, forcing himself to endure his discomfort, and gazed at Blood Cloud Star.

The entire battle star was like an egg with a crack, from which a faint light subtly refracted.