Chapter 3419

Everyone knew that their promotions and newfound wealth were entirely due to the benefits they had gained by associating with Ye Liuyun.

So during the meal, they all took turns toasting him. Liao Yaotian even joked that Ye Liuyun was their lucky charm; ever since Ye Liuyun had arrived, his good luck had never run out.

The meal also brought them much closer to Xiao Han, who was no longer as stiff and serious as he had been in the army.

“I really envy you guys for being able to go out and hone yourselves by fighting powerful opponents!” He voiced his envy as well.

“Then once the fighting is over, the few of us can often go out and train!” Ye Liuyun knew that Xiao Han also wanted to improve his strength through combat, so he made the suggestion.

Xiao Han also told them, “There will be fighting again soon. According to Grand Commander Haotai, Zhenwuhou flew into a rage after failing to find his daughter. He has already ordered the entire army to prepare for battle. We’ll conduct a thorough sweep of the entire planet and clear out all the exiles and refugees here. We’ll be setting out again soon.

“So after we return, we’ll probably be assigned new posts and then report to our new armies. As for whether I’ll be able to go into battle with you, that will depend on the circumstances!”

“What? We’re going to war again? Then we’d better hurry back! My injuries haven’t fully healed, and my true essence hasn’t recovered either!” Liao Yaotian was the first to cry out.

“It won’t be that soon. Sweeping the entire planet will certainly require some preparation. The Grand Commander said we still have more than ten days, which should be enough time for you to recover!

“You should also hurry up and make use of the rewards you were given. Try to improve your strength as much as possible. The gains from the next battle may be even greater, and opportunities like this will be hard to come by afterward!”

Xiao Han took the opportunity to remind them.

After hearing this, none of them had any appetite left. They hastily finished the meal and returned to the military camp, where they reported for duty, took over their new teams, familiarized themselves with the situation, and hurried to cultivate.

Liao Tianyang and the others were all assigned to serve under Ye Liuyun. With them there, Ye Liuyun no longer had to worry about military affairs and left everything to them. He immediately returned to the spatial world to cultivate.

The few of them took on all the responsibilities for him, hoping that he could become stronger. After all, Ye Liuyun was the main force when they went out to fight. Even though they were injured, as long as Ye Liuyun led them, they would not be in much danger.

By now, the garrison camp in Cloudsoar City was already bustling with activity. All the commanders were organizing their troops and preparing for battle.

Grand Commander Haotai was extremely satisfied with Ye Liuyun and the others’ performance in the previous battle, so he had deliberately given them a little more time to recover as quickly as possible and continue earning merit in the next battle.

As for the search, Zhenwuhou had also sent his eldest son, Zhao Yuanpei, to investigate and interrogate the prisoners they had captured one by one. In the end, they merely narrowed it down to the group of bandits led by Meng Yunshan, but they still could not find anyone.

Zhao Yuanpei would also accompany the army as a military supervisor this time. By now, Zhenwuhou Zhao Yuan’an, his eldest son Zhao Yuanpei, Grand Commander Haotai, and Xiao Han had all lost hope.

A young woman who had fallen into the hands of those bandits would not have been much better off even if she were still alive. Finding her might actually be worse than not finding her.

Thus, their purpose was no longer to find her; they were all using the matter to pursue their own agendas. Zhao Yuan’an wanted to give the Thousand Spirit Sect an explanation, avenge his daughter, and save face.

Zhao Yuanpei wanted to use the opportunity to broaden his horizons and accumulate more experience commanding troops. Haotai, meanwhile, intended to seize the chance to be transferred away from the Exile Planet and receive a further promotion. He could also take the opportunity to recommend talented people to Zhao Yuan’an and pave the way for his own future.

Xiao Han wanted to prove his abilities, show that he could stand out without relying on his family background, earn more merit, and get promoted as quickly as possible.

Ye Liuyun, meanwhile, used the time spent recuperating to spar extensively with the prisoners they had captured, making up for his shortcomings. Before setting out, his power of heaven and earth had improved considerably, and his Spatial Force had finally reached the barrier to the second layer of the Void.

“As the vanguard force for this battle, we’ll be the first to leave the city!” As soon as Ye Liuyun emerged, Xiao Han told him the news.

Liao Yaotian and the others had already fully recovered from their injuries, and they were all eager to try their mettle.

Ye Liuyun felt that this suited him perfectly. He wanted to find a few second-level Taixu martial cultivators to practice against and see the results of his cultivation over the past few days.

Thus, he immediately led Liao Yaotian and the other four out of the city to scout the situation. Xiao Han followed behind Ye Liuyun with ten thousand soldiers.

Only after they had left the city did Haotai begin assembling the main army and lead it out of Cloudsoar City.

Although they claimed they would sweep the entire planet, the number of exiles on the planet far exceeded the number of soldiers. They could not venture too far from the city. Otherwise, if all their opponents were at the third or fourth level of Taixu, the army’s casualties would be severe.

When that happened, let alone sweeping the planet, they might not even be able to hold on to the city.

Therefore, the route Haotai assigned them only covered areas inhabited by first- and second-level Taixu martial cultivators. However, these cultivators were also the most numerous.

When Ye Liuyun and the others encountered a small number of bandits, they attacked them directly to hone their skills. When there were too many, they summoned Xiao Han and had him bring the soldiers to deal with them. Whenever they encountered an area teeming with bandits, Xiao Han would request reinforcements from Haotai to keep his own soldiers’ casualties from becoming too high.

The main army steadily advanced, sweeping across the planet from side to side. With Ye Liuyun and the others scouting the way, their casualties remained low, but their gains were substantial. In just one month, they had captured more than twenty thousand prisoners.

The few of them had also undergone extensive combat training. Qi Tianlin, Qiang Shi, and Qin Yuan were all suppressing their cultivation realms; otherwise, they would already have broken through.

In every battle, Ye Liuyun specifically sought out second-level Taixu martial cultivators to practice against. First-level Taixu martial cultivators no longer presented much of a challenge to him.

However, because they had been fighting nonstop, the few of them had also expended a great deal of energy and had no choice but to return to the main army to cultivate and recover. The main army also temporarily rested where it was to allow the soldiers to recuperate.

At this time, Zhao Yuanpei took the initiative to ask Haotai for permission to lead a squad of soldiers to scout the area occupied by third-level Taixu martial cultivators.

He was at the fourth level of Taixu, and following the main army made him feel extremely bored. He had no chance to fight at all. Moreover, these battles were far too easy and did not require Haotai to make any arrangements. They had no technical value, and he could not learn anything from them, so he decided to go out and practice.

Worried that something might happen to Zhao Yuanpei again, Haotai immediately assigned his own guard unit to him. These guards could all be considered strong among the army. Most of them were at the second level of Taixu, and two of them were soldiers at the third level.

With these helpers, Zhao Yuanpei found it even easier to kill the refugees. He led them deeper and deeper until they entered the territory occupied by fourth-level Taixu martial cultivators.