Chapter 2199: Support

Since Lu Ye couldn't secure the Hawk missions and all those at the Fourteenth Path had gone into hiding, his only option for obtaining Dao Bones was to fight on the battlefield.

As he had to fight on the battlefield anyway, it made no difference to him which war zone he entered.

When Zi Ying made a request, Lu Ye was naturally happy to oblige, as the Lord Guardian had previously offered him significant assistance.

After receiving Zi Ying's message, Lu Ye glanced at it, then consulted the star map. Once he confirmed the location, he immediately took off.

It took a full ten days for Lu Ye to reach his destination.

The Yellow Springs Battle Star!

It was an enormous, earthy-yellow star. From space, the entire battle star looked like a giant sphere of loess, encircled by a band of countless meteorites, resembling a flowing skirt.

Following the guidance of Zi Ying's message, Lu Ye entered the Yellow Springs Battle Star through the sole rift in the encircling ring. He was immediately struck by what he saw.

The Yellow Springs Battle Star was, surprisingly, a rare realm where even ordinary living beings could survive.

However, no ordinary beings actually inhabited such a battle star; it was the frontline of the Human Race War Alliance's conflict with the Blood Clan. Only cultivators with significant power moved in and out.

"Commander!" a voice suddenly called out from the side.

Lu Ye halted, turned his head, and revealed a look of surprise.

The person swiftly approached, a joyful smile on his face, and saluted with cupped fists. "Greetings, Commander! Lord Guardian mentioned your arrival, and the brothers have been eagerly awaiting you!"

"Wang Xun..." Lu Ye nodded slightly.

The person who approached was none other than Wang Xun of the Crane Wing Battalion, one of the few members of the original battalion who possessed Dao artifacts.

"Did Lord Guardian transfer the entire Crane Wing Battalion here?" Lu Ye asked. Since Wang Xun was present and had just mentioned "the brothers," Lu Ye naturally had a suspicion.

It seemed Zi Ying's intention in bringing him here was for him to reassume command of the Crane Wing Battalion.

This was only natural. While the power of the Fourteenth Path was indeed formidable, its effectiveness on a true major battlefield was limited. However, the Crane Wing Battalion under his command was different; it was a force capable of altering the course of local engagements.

"Yes," Wang Xun nodded. "The Crane Wing Battalion has been reorganized, but most of the brothers remained, and Lord Guardian also brought in some elites to reinforce us."

"Where is Lord Guardian?"

"She is at a frontline outpost and is not currently on Yellow Springs," Wang Xun replied. "She instructed that once you arrived, the Crane Wing Battalion would be under your command, and we should hurry to meet her."

Lu Ye understood. It appeared the Crane Wing Battalion had only recently arrived at Yellow Springs and were specifically waiting for him.

"Where are the others?" Lu Ye asked.

Wang Xun led the way. "They're over here, Commander. Follow me."

Before long, Wang Xun led Lu Ye down onto a spirit peak, where nearly a hundred figures were scattered about, engaged in lively conversations.

"The Commander is here!" someone shouted. Instantly, all eyes turned toward Lu Ye.

"Commander, long time no see."

"Greetings, Commander!"

After a flurry of excited chatter, Lu Ye's gaze swept over the group, recognizing many familiar faces. Though his time with the Crane Wing Battalion hadn't been long, they had endured a bloody battle together. In that conflict, the Crane Wing Battalion had made immense contributions and achieved massive gains with very low casualties—a testament to Lu Ye's leadership.

What the cultivators regretted, however, was that after that battle, Blue Water had become peaceful, and with Lu Ye's departure, the Crane Wing Battalion had effectively ceased to exist.

Zi Ying's decision to transfer them here this time perfectly aligned with their desires, as it meant they could once again follow Lu Ye into battle and unleash devastation. Everyone was incredibly excited.

Besides the familiar faces, there were also some he hadn't seen before.

While the original Crane Wing Battalion was composed of Blue Water elites, it still included some cultivators at the Eighth Path, as Zi Ying hadn't foreseen the battalion's extraordinary performance in battle.

This time, she was prepared and replaced all the Eighth Path cultivators with those at the Ninth Path.

In other words, every cultivator in the current Crane Wing Battalion was at the Ninth Path, making it a truly elite force. A team composed entirely of Ninth Path cultivators was exceptionally rare in any war zone.

At this moment, expressions of fanaticism and expectation flickered across the familiar faces, while curiosity was more apparent on the unfamiliar ones.

They had already heard about the power of the Crane Shadow Formation from their companions, but as it was only hearsay and they hadn't experienced it firsthand, they lacked a deep appreciation for it.

Under everyone's gaze, Lu Ye felt he should say something. After a brief pause, he began, "My name is Lu Ye. By order of Lord Guardian Zi Ying, I am taking command of the Crane Wing Battalion. From today onward, I expect you all to follow my orders!"

"We shall follow the Commander's lead!" someone shouted loudly.

The others followed suit.

Lu Ye nodded, then turned to Wang Xun beside him. "Have the new brothers familiarized themselves with the Crane Wing Formation?"

Wang Xun immediately replied, "Commander, rest assured. We arrived three days ago, and everyone who needed to familiarize themselves has done so."

The difficulty of the Crane Wing Formation lay in connecting everyone's Qi energy. Once that was resolved, everything else was simple. Three days was more than enough time.

Even back then, Lu Ye and the original Crane Wing Battalion had only taken three days to familiarize themselves with each other.

"In that case..." Lu Ye stopped mid-sentence, suddenly turning his head to look in one direction. A figure was rapidly approaching from there and soon arrived, asking, "Which one is Commander Lu Ye?"

Lu Ye stepped forward. "That's me!"

The cultivator immediately declared in a low voice, "I am Wang Xiu, the Yellow Springs Adjutant. Lu Ye of the Crane Wing Battalion, hear my order: Fengtai Outpost is in distress! Crane Wing Battalion, proceed immediately to reinforce it!"

After saying that, Wang Xiu added, "This deployment order was issued by the Yellow Springs Guardian, and Lord Guardian Zi Ying has already been informed. Commander Lu can send a message to confirm!"

Lu Ye nodded. "Please wait!"

As he spoke, he took out his Alliance Guard token and messaged Zi Ying to inquire. He quickly received Zi Ying's reply, confirming the matter.

Since it was Zi Ying's intention, he naturally had to comply. Putting away his Alliance Guard token, he swept his gaze over the group and issued a low command: "Crane Wing Battalion, follow me!"

"Crane Wing Battalion, attack!" Wang Xun echoed.

A moment later, a hundred streaks of light shot out of the Yellow Springs Battle Star, heading directly towards Fengtai Outpost.

Lu Ye led the way, with Wang Xun close beside him and the others following like shadows.

It wasn't just the Crane Wing Battalion; other cultivators were also flying out of the Yellow Springs Battle Star and heading in the same direction, clearly all bound for Fengtai Outpost as reinforcements.

Wang Xun transmitted a message to Lu Ye: "Commander, have you ever been to a major war zone?"

"I've heard of them, but I haven't been," Lu Ye replied. He had indeed ventured into many war zones while undertaking those red-level Hawk missions, but he truly hadn't been to a major war zone.

He knew, however, that the war zones within Bao Lan were distinct, divided into major and minor categories.

For instance, the war zone around Blue Water was considered minor, while the one around Yellow Springs was major.

The distinction between major and minor wasn't based on the size of the war zone, but on the intensity of the conflict!

Wang Xun had clearly been instructed by Zi Ying and, fearing Lu Ye might not be aware of these details, diligently explained them to him.

Lu Ye wasn't entirely unaware; after all, he had been in Bao Lan for quite some time and was no longer a newcomer who knew nothing. Nevertheless, he didn't interrupt Wang Xun and instead listened carefully, knowing that gaining more knowledge was always beneficial.

"In major war zones like Yellow Springs," Wang Xun explained, "there's more than one Dao Integration Guardian. In this war zone alone, our Human Race War Alliance has as many as eight Dao Integration powerhouses. It was because one such expert recently fell in battle that the Alliance transferred Lord Zi Ying here to fill the vacancy. With so many Dao Integration cultivators, besides one guarding the battle star, the others are dispersed among various outposts throughout the war zone. Some of these outposts are barren or dead stars, some are massive floating landmasses, and some are even located in fields of meteorites. While they might not have much inherent value, the confrontations there hold significant strategic importance. Therefore, they cannot easily be lost and absolutely require a Dao Integration expert to guard them."

Lu Ye nodded in understanding. If these outposts were captured, the enemy could gradually restrict the cultivators' operational space and then use those outposts as launching pads for a full assault on the Yellow Springs Battle Star.

The destination they were currently heading to was one of these outposts. It must be in a state of crisis, which was why the Yellow Springs Battle Star had to dispatch personnel for reinforcement.

A crisis like this likely didn't signify a failure at the Dao Integration level, but rather a disadvantage in conflicts at the Dao Entry level. If it were a Dao Integration level failure, the entire outpost might not be salvageable, rendering reinforcements meaningless.

A disadvantage solely at the Dao Entry level, however, presented a significant opportunity for the Crane Wing Battalion.

"Commander," Wang Xun asked, "should we have the new brothers practice forming the array beforehand? Given the current situation, they'll likely join the battle upon arrival, so familiarizing themselves with the formation in advance would be beneficial."

Lu Ye pondered for a moment, then nodded. "Yes!"

Wang Xun acknowledged the order, immediately flashed back into the ranks, and shouted, "Crane Wing Battalion, form up!"

At his command, nearly a hundred cultivators spread out, instantly moving to their positions in an orderly manner. Once everyone had arranged themselves, Lu Ye, who had been leading, was now in the center.

Lu Ye immediately constructed a 'Connected Qi' Dao pattern on himself. His divine sense surged, transmitting a message in all directions: "Come!"

The next moment, ninety-nine streams of Qi extended from all directions, converging on him and, with the Dao pattern as the core, interconnected and merged with each other.

A crane's cry seemed to sound as the hundred people rushing forward instantly transformed into a colossal bird flying with outstretched wings.

The Divine Crane reappeared!

Although the veterans who had once fought alongside Lu Ye showed excited expressions, it wasn't their first time experiencing this, so they managed to suppress their emotions.

However, the newcomers who had been brought in all showed expressions of profound shock.

Even though they had long known about the profundity of the Crane Wing Formation from Wang Xun and others, and despite knowing that with Lu Ye as commander, the Crane Wing Battalion could easily form it, they simply couldn't fully believe it until they experienced it firsthand.

But now they had truly effortlessly formed a colossal formation, mighty in its momentum and vast in its power. Instantly, an invincible sense of pride welled up in everyone's hearts.