Chapter 90: Demonic Beasts Attack the Island

A disciple of the Divine Wood Sect immediately took out pre-prepared Regeneration Talismans from his storage bag and reattached the arms of the two Qi Cultivators.

It was noted that while it was their first battle and everyone was still a bit green, it was a great relief that there were no fatalities.

Steward Wang motioned for the two injured Qi Cultivators to go back and rest. He told them they could return to the battle later if they wished, and their spirit stones would still be issued as usual.

One of them immediately shook his head, indicating he did not wish to participate in further combat.

The other hesitated, feeling that he hadn't been well-prepared this time, and was certain he wouldn't get injured again if the same situation arose next time, so he decided to stay.

Steward Wang was amiable towards the one who left. He not only had one of his junior disciples pilot a flying boat to take him back but also gave him two Regeneration Talismans for wound recovery.

The cultivator who chose to stay received five Regeneration Talismans and even an additional spirit stone as compensation.

Both were at the third level of Qi Cultivation, considered low in cultivation.

Steward Wang's generous actions, clearly demonstrating his appreciation for his people, significantly eased the somber atmosphere that had settled due to the injuries.

Steward Wang, whose name was Wang Yuanwu, had displayed powerful strength in the previous battle, earning him the general trust of the group. Therefore, everyone nodded in agreement when he proposed dividing the remaining 27 people into five small teams.

Each Divine Wood Sect disciple would serve as a team leader, and the remaining individuals would then freely form teams according to their own preferences.

Chen Mobai, however, was immediately pulled into Wang Yuanwu's own team. Besides him, there were three other rogue cultivators, including the one who had stayed after being injured, named Gao Tuo.

The other two members of the team were a brother and sister pair.

The male was Shi Pengyi, at the fifth level of Qi Cultivation.

The female was Luo Lin, at the third level of Qi Cultivation.

They were successors from a minor sect and were the two individuals Chen Mobai had protected earlier. They actively requested to join this team.

Wang Yuanwu said little, simply nodding in agreement.

Luo Lin expressed her gratitude to Chen Mobai, saying that without his intervention, she and her brother might have been injured.

Luo Lin appeared to be in her early twenties. Despite some bloodstains on her clothes, her bright eyes, white teeth, and excellent features made her a striking presence within their team.

Her cultivation was a bit low; if she had been in the mid-stage Qi Cultivation realm, she might have had many more admirers.

Cultivators in the Sky River Realm were very pragmatic; even when seeking a Dao Companion, they looked for someone with similar talent and cultivation.

This way, they could mutually promote each other and achieve positive synergistic effects.

Especially after mastering divine sense, the desire for physical beauty became very low. Of course, this didn't exclude those who particularly enjoyed such pleasures and deliberately retained these emotions for enjoyment.

Chen Mobai simply replied that it was nothing special and there was no need for such politeness.

After Chen Mobai spoke, Wang Yuanwu's junior disciple, who had gone to escort someone back, also returned. Wang Yuanwu assigned the remaining five rogue cultivators to him before turning back to his own team.

He first extended his regards to the injured Gao Tuo, then asked each member to introduce their proficient spells or magical artifacts, in order to formulate an initial coordination plan for their upcoming team battles.

Shi Pengyi possessed a flying sword inherited from his sect, along with five talismans, and was skilled in swordsmanship.

Luo Lin, being his sect sister, cultivated the same technique, but she did not have a flying sword. Instead, she possessed a shield bought from the Qingguang Island market, a defensive magical artifact refined from a Black Armored Turtle's shell.

Gao Tuo, as a rogue cultivator, also had a hook-shaped magical artifact, a hand crossbow, and eighteen matching spirit arrows, each reportedly powerful enough to kill cultivators below the third level of Qi Cultivation.

In terms of wealth, Gao Tuo surprisingly outranked Shi Pengyi and Luo Lin, making it no wonder he dared to stay despite an unfavorable start to the mission.

Chen Mobai conservatively stated that he possessed some talismans, as well as one offensive and one defensive magical artifact.

Earlier, he had used his Five Transformations Umbrella to block a wave of wind blade and wind arrow attacks, and he had also killed two Black Plague Birds with flying needles.

Shi Pengyi and Luo Lin had already witnessed his equipment and knew it was extraordinary.

Wang Yuanwu, however, asked the most crucial question: approximately how many talismans did Chen Mobai possess.

After the battle began, talismans became consumables, with each use reducing the total. He needed to know the exact number to gauge their true combat strength.

Chen Mobai hesitated for a moment but still did not reveal the exact truth, vaguely stating that he hadn't counted specifically, but probably had dozens.

Even so, this surprised all the cultivators in the team. After all, Wang Yuanwu, as the leader of this team protecting the Spirit Tree Array Flag, only had eighty talismans in total, including those issued by the sect.

Wang Yuanwu reassured Chen Mobai, promising to keep track of all talisman consumption during the battle and to apply to the sect for compensation once the demonic beasts were repelled.

Wang Yuanwu's words made Chen Mobai feel very comfortable. In reality, the five spirit stones he received daily already covered the cost of talisman loss during battle.

However, to boost morale, Wang Yuanwu was extremely generous, or perhaps it was simply because the sect was paying for the spirit stones, making it easy for him to make such promises.

"When our team fights," Wang Yuanwu proposed, "Fellow Daoist Chen and I will take the front and back, with the other three Fellow Daoists positioned between us. Does that work for everyone?"

Since it was their first time cooperating and they lacked synergy, this straightforward tactic was the most suitable.

Chen Mobai and the other three immediately nodded in agreement.

Just then.

With a whoosh!

A talisman flew before Wang Yuanwu, whose expression subtly changed as he promptly caught it.

"Prepare for battle!" Wang Yuanwu immediately shouted. "Large numbers of Water Python Oxen and Black Armored Turtles have been spotted in the water marsh on the east side of the island. This flock of Black Plague Birds might coordinate with them to attack the island."

The cultivators, who had been resting and meditating, wasted no time in popping a spiritual energy recovery pill into their mouths.

Subsequently, everyone took their positions according to their newly formed five teams, standing at the five cardinal points around the spirit tree, firmly occupying all areas of the cliff.

RUMBLE!

On the east side of Qingguang Island, five beams of Heavenly Wood Divine Light, like divine swords piercing the sky, heavily struck the vast expanse of the water marsh, stirring up colossal waves that carried countless fragmented demonic beast corpses crashing onto the shore.

Nearby, the remaining nearly one thousand Black Plague Birds rose from the desolate reefs, scattering widely, and swept towards them with angry, shrill screeches.

"These vile creatures really aren't afraid of death!" muttered one of the rogue cultivators. He spat, then picked up a Black Armored Shield, infused it with spiritual energy, and positioned it at the very front of their team.

Chen Mobai frowned slightly, surprised that such heavy casualties hadn't deterred the Black Plague Birds. Perhaps the death of their Bird King had driven these demonic beasts completely insane.

Regardless, the most important task now was to face the impending battle.

Within their large zone, five beams of Heavenly Wood Divine Light remained unused.

However, Wang Yuanwu had previously stated that they would absolutely not be used again unless a second-tier demonic beast attacked the island, or their western front was on the verge of collapse.

This meant they needed to hold out for at least two hours until the spirit tree array flag was fully recharged.

Chen Mobai instructed the three positioned between him and Wang Yuanwu, "Protect yourselves well; guarding the spirit tree will be handled by Steward Wang and me." Then, with the five fingers of his right hand, he gripped four Azure Arrow Talismans, activated his spiritual energy, and flung them into the air.

A total of 24 azure spiritual energy arrows materialized from the void behind him.