Gu Fangchen could clearly perceive those consciousnesses connected to him rapidly extinguishing and flaring up again.
And each fluctuation represented the erasure of a life or the advancement of strength.
This was the result he had long foreseen.
Among the one hundred and fifty thousand, once the skill took effect, the worst possible outcome was the direct erasure of ninety thousand lives.
That was why he had previously lured part of the Qingman army into the valley, to first reduce as much of the enemy's strength as possible.
After all, according to later secret reports, the Qingman were serious this time. Their main forces had secretly reached Autumn Peace Road to provide support.
Do not be fooled by the appearance that there was only one fourth-rank Divine Path cultivator on the battlefield, that was because the third ranks were all maintaining the Blood River Repentance Formation to trap Xiao Yinghao.
Without exaggeration, losing one Xiao Yinghao meant the White Dragon Army's strength was instantly halved.
Naturally, they stood no chance against the Qingman forces who had prepared carefully and launched a surprise attack.
The White Dragon Army Formation that Gu Fangchen had activated, even with the Fire Essence spiritual energy from the mining protection array, could only reach about eighty percent of the power of the fully intact White Dragon Army Formation.
And it would not last long. At most six hours later, the mining array would collapse entirely.
Though feigned weakness was a lure for the enemy, it was also the reality.
As long as they could gamble and win one hundred cultivators of the seventh rank and above, the overall power of the White Dragon Army Formation would rise without falling.
The gap between the lower third rank and the middle third rank was itself a chasm of power.
The seventh-rank Blood Surge Realm, which was Gu Fangchen's current physical cultivation, enhanced the circulation of blood and qi, in other words, his endurance.
Reaching the sixth-rank Martial Courage Realm, which was Gu Lianxian's level, meant being able to solidify one's aura; every motion, every gesture, the mere presence alone could strike terror into hearts.
Simply put, a mere tremor of the body, and the enemy would kneel (physically).
At that level, killing was merely a matter of a glance.
Fighting one against a hundred, one against a thousand, was not a problem.
It could be imagined that in the heat of battle, the strength one seventh rank could unleash might exceed that of ten thousand ninth ranks.
Often, victory of the weak over the strong depended on breaking the enemy's morale in one decisive surge.
No matter how large, a rabble was still a rabble.
Moreover, there was a certain chance to gamble for limitless cultivation.
In theory, even gambling for a first rank was not impossible...
Though that probability was about the same as living on the third floor and getting pierced through by a runaway semi-trailer.
With one hundred and fifty thousand as the base number, the odds were far better than when he used those two thousand-character scriptures.
Fortunately, Gu Fangchen's luck had always been rather good.
After the floodwaters receded, from the raging chaos, eighty thousand life fires remained.
The White Dragon Army had originally possessed ten thousand graded cultivators, among whom a thousand were elite of eighth rank or higher.
Conversely, that meant the rest of the soldiers were mere mortals.
Their quality corresponded to the lowest "white" grade in the game, already at the bottom.
To Gu Fangchen, this was a guaranteed profit with no loss.
At this moment, in his perception, there were eight thousand ninth ranks, two thousand eighth ranks, fifteen hundred seventh ranks, and as many as one hundred and forty-six sixth ranks!
But not a single fifth rank.
The overall strength of the White Dragon Army had in fact more than doubled!
However, Gu Fangchen also sensed intense emotional fluctuations leaping among them. Exhaling deeply, he looked down at the battlefield, and with a single thought as the formation master, forcibly suppressed everyone's emotions.
This was the advantage of the army formation: as long as the majority's emotions were unified, the master could smooth out discrepancies and prevent collapse or retreat.
Gu Fangchen glanced at the cracks on his palm where glowing light leaked, raised his head without changing expression, and continued directing the remaining troops.
His sigh was almost drowned out by the roaring dragons and thunder above.
"The seventy thousand who vanished in the flood... let's just say their luck was bad."
Mercy cannot command armies; righteousness cannot manage wealth.
Gu Fangchen had done his utmost, turning a situation that should have cost over a hundred thousand lives into one where more than half survived, victory within reach.
With his current strength of seventh-rank Martial Path and eighth-rank Divine Path, this was already a feat against heaven itself.
Even if Xiao Yinghao were here, she could only admit, impressive.
"At this rate, in about four hours, the battle should temporarily end."
"All thanks to the third-rank Divine Path cultivators besieging Xiao Yinghao, otherwise, it wouldn't have been this easy..."
The Qingman third ranks had trapped Xiao Yinghao, but in another sense, were they not trapped by her instead?
Estimating based on prior experience commanding through formations, Gu Fangchen found he still had some leeway.
He exhaled in relief, finally feeling the pain spreading through his body, his expression twisting slightly.
Although not as painful as when inserting the Demon-Suppressing Nails, it was still comparable to a mild flaying.
"Since there's still leeway, that means the Fire Essence Ore veins powering the array... still have reserves."
Gritting his teeth, Gu Fangchen closed his eyes as the Demon-Suppressing Nails across his body lit with blood-red light.
He drew the fiery dragon energy and forced it into his body.
"Since I'm already in pain, it must not be for nothing!"
"Using this spirit energy and pain, I'll temper my flesh and break through to the sixth rank!"
...
Xiao Yinghao gazed at the images emerging within the blood river.
From the moment Gu Fangchen claimed to be her imperial consort, to activating the White Dragon Army Formation, to diverting the river into the valley and miraculously reversing the situation.
Perhaps the Qingman were too eager to see her Dao heart collapse.
Each image was displayed vividly, as clear as witnessing it firsthand.
At first, Xiao Yinghao frowned coldly, believing him to be a Qingman plant using Ding Xingfeng's name to deceive her trust.
When Gu Fangchen declared that they were betrothed by family promise, killing intent flared sharply in her eyes.
She had lived her life across countless campaigns, what kind of thief dared impersonate her fiancé, tarnishing her honor?!
Utterly shameless!
And to boast that the White Dragon Army Formation was taught by her!
A joke!
Her self-created army formation, how could she have taught it to a complete stranger?
Then she watched as Gu Fangchen commanded the White Dragon Army Formation, maneuvering across the battlefield, cooperating flawlessly with her White Dragon Army.
Xiao Yinghao: "..."
Perhaps she had been trapped in this blood river too long; for a fleeting moment, she doubted herself,
Could it be... that she truly had taught him once?
Fortunately, when Gu Fangchen used the Marshlands of Dreaming Clouds to divert the river, Xiao Yinghao was startled awake again, her brows furrowing deeply.
That move was perilous beyond measure, nearly mutual destruction!
If cornered, perhaps it could be attempted, but now that the White Dragon Army had just rekindled its morale, they clearly still had strength to fight.
A foolish move!
Xiao Yinghao sighed inwardly.
This man had some strange cleverness but clearly lacked the talent of a true commander, with little experience leading troops.
The White Dragon Army in this battle seemed doomed beyond saving...
As she thought so, demonic murmurs filled her heart, but then she froze, eyes fixed firmly on the image in the blood river.
"How is that possible?!"
The Qingman Heavenly Sa who maintained the Blood River Repentance Formation suddenly lost composure, shouting in disbelief and fury:
"The White Dragon Army's strength has suddenly surged, over a thousand seventh ranks, over a hundred sixth ranks appearing out of nowhere?!"
"Impossible! Impossible!"
The Qingman Heavenly Sa's voice trembled; he felt as though he himself were trapped inside the Blood River Repentance Formation, hearing illusions.
Only one thought remained in his mind: they had fallen into a grand trap laid by the Wei people. He cursed furiously:
"The Wei are treacherous and vile! Never to be trusted!"
The enormous fiery dragon pierced through the clouds, carrying the mist and rain, its roar echoing across the battlefield.
Xiao Yinghao stared in stunned silence, deeply moved.
She too could not comprehend it, yet she knew... because of this unknown man, the White Dragon Army was saved.
She pressed her lips together, suddenly drew her sword, and pointed it at the sky above the blood river, her eyes bright, her smile wild:
"Old Qingman dog, you can't even defeat my consort, and you dare dream of challenging Great Wei? You might as well wash up and sleep!"
Her long hair streamed like silk, sword intent soared like a rainbow, slicing through the false heavens above.
"Rumble..."
The Blood River Repentance Formation shuddered violently.