Chapter 145: General Zhan

"What should we do?!"

Facing the tide of approaching skeletons, everyone was momentarily overwhelmed. They instinctively looked toward Song Nianqiang, who stood at the center of the formation. Seeing everyone's eyes fixed on him, Song Nianqiang didn't know what to do for a moment.

"Old Niu, clear the path in front! Whoever has psychic powers, get right in the middle and throw up a protective shield for everyone. The rest of you, move into the positions I assigned earlier. Remember, absolutely do not break formation!!" With that, Song Nianqiang arranged everyone into an offensive and defensive Hexagram Formation, repeatedly warning them not to disrupt it. If the formation fell into chaos, the other five would immediately become targets, and under such an overwhelming barrage of sharp spears, no one would survive.

"Our destination is where the General is standing. Charge forward!!"

Having spoken, Song Nianqiang took his stance, and the eight of them began their charge, hacking a bloody path through the surging sea of skeletons.

Old Niu truly lived up to his reputation as the powerhouse of the group. The giant iron rod in his hands swept across the area with wide, sweeping motions. The skeletons were no match for a single blow and were sent flying in all directions, which effectively lightened the burden on the others behind him, especially since Rhino was already injured and struggling to keep up.

Throughout this life-or-death battle, Zhu Tianyi, who had remained inactive until now, displayed astonishing lethality. Being closest to Rhino, he helped absorb the brunt of the attacks directed at him, which only highlighted the sharpness of his offense. Right from the start, he had unslung the heavy iron sword from his back. In his hands, that massive blade became a veritable reaper of lives, sending skeletons flying in all directions as he hacked through them.

The group's forward progress was painfully slow. There was no helping it; the skeletons were simply too numerous. The moment one batch was chopped down, another surged forward to take its place. Soon, the ground beneath their feet was covered in a thick layer of bone fragments, which further hindered their movement and left them in a terrible dilemma—unable to retreat and unable to advance.

"Five Thunders Incantation!!"

At this critical juncture, Song Nianqiang stepped forward and cast the Five Thunders Incantation. He was no longer the novice who had just learned the Maoshan Taoist arts. This time, five massive blue bolts of lightning flashed across the sky, instantly enveloping a vast area of skeletons ahead. A thick, white cloud of smoke billowed out in all directions, causing everyone to cough violently.

However, sharp-eyed as they were, they noticed a large vacuum zone cleared out ahead and quickly rushed forward. As for the skeletons, they were completely stunned by Song Nianqiang's thunderous strike, standing mindlessly in place, at a loss for what to do.

"Get out of the way, you bastards!!!"

Old Niu, running at the very front, swung his heavy iron rod fiercely at the skeletons ahead. Instantly, a whole swathe of them was swept away, bowling over several others behind them. However, the skeletons soon recovered from their momentary shock and slowly resumed their advance, moving to attack Song Nianqiang and his companions once more.

"Push harder!! We're almost there!!"

By now, everyone understood why Song Nianqiang had urged them to head toward the General. No matter how aggressively the skeletons pushed, they absolutely dared not step foot onto the elevated platform where the General resided, not even daring to touch the steps below. To escape the relentless assault of the skeletons, the group had no choice but to push toward the General's position.

Yet, a lingering anxiety gnawed at everyone's minds. Judging by the General's appearance, his strength was formidable; otherwise, given Rhino's martial prowess, he wouldn't have had his arm severed by a single slash from the General—even if it had been a sneak attack.

"Ah~~~~"

Just as they were about to reach their destination, one of the members accidentally had his calf pierced by a skeleton's spear. Staggering, he nearly collapsed. His sudden movement disrupted the Hexagram Formation Song Nianqiang had meticulously set up, and instantly, perilous situations erupted all around them. Sharp spears materialized beside them out of nowhere, and the slightest lapse in concentration would cost them their lives.

"Save him!!!" In this moment of crisis, no one had the luxury of worrying about themselves. Among those present, only three were capable of rescuing the teammate whose calf had been impaled: Song Nianqiang was currently charging up a major spell to wipe out the blocking skeletons in one fell swoop, and Zhu Tianyi had to protect Rhino, leaving only Li Runze.

Clenching his teeth fiercely, Li Runze smashed the skull of a skeleton with a single blow, then arched his body slowly, resembling a cheetah poised to strike.

The teammate whose calf was impaled was a tough guy. Gritting his teeth, he managed to yank the spear out of his leg, then used it to fend off the skeletons lunging at him. Although the force behind the skeletons' spears wasn't overwhelming, they possessed an insidious trait: no matter where they attacked from, they did so silently and stealthily, appearing right in front of you before you knew it to deliver a blow.

Consequently, everyone's nerves were stretched to the absolute limit. At that moment, another spear thrust toward Li Runze's back. Yet, completely oblivious to it, Li Runze remained crouched in his ready stance. Just as the spear was about to pierce him, he moved.

Dressed in pristine white, he instantly transformed into a white afterimage. Under his blinding speed, the skeletons in front offered zero resistance and were sent flying away like chaff. For a moment, a clean vacuum path cleared out directly in front of Li Runze.

"Get on!!" His voice arrived before his body did. Hearing the shout, the fallen team member hurled his spear forward. It pierced straight through five or six skeletons before stopping, successfully buying him an opening. Seizing this golden opportunity, he pushed himself up. Catching sight of the white blur rushing toward him, he instinctively threw himself forward, landing squarely on Li Runze's back.

"Whoever can get up the stairs, do it as fast as you can!!!"

Song Nianqiang shouted to the others while continuing to fend off the tide of skeletons ahead. In truth, they didn't need to be told twice; staying down below was practically inviting death, so they scrambled desperately toward the steps.

To everyone's surprise, the first person to reach the stairs was the big fatty. Capitalizing fully on his physical build—and given that the skeletons had a limited attack range, meaning very few targeted the lower levels, and the fact that he had been stabbed earlier was sheer bad luck—the big fatty used his bulk like a living human bulldozer, bending forward and barreling straight up onto the platform. The skeletons blocking his path were knocked flying aside by his sheer momentum. Seeing this outcome, the rest of the group blushed with embarrassment; none of them had expected the weakest member of the group to be the first to reach the top.

Without hesitation, the others summoned their respective skills and climbed up one after the other. The last to ascend was Song Nianqiang. He had to maintain the bigger picture; as long as even one person remained below, he could not retreat. He had to remain on standby to render aid at a moment's notice.

Seeing the bedraggled state of his companions, Song Nianqiang let out a soft chuckle. However, his smile vanished almost as soon as it formed, for they were now facing a true life-or-death trial. Those mere skeletons from before were nothing more than appetizers compared to this General.

"Let me try!"

Zhu Tianyi took the lead, charging forward with his heavy iron sword in hand. *Clang~~~~* The iron sword clashed fiercely against the tiger-head broadsword. Zhu Tianyi was sent hurtling backward through the air, stumbling five or six steps upon landing before barely regaining his balance. Inspecting his iron sword, he saw a barely perceptible nick on the blade.

One had to know that Zhu Tianyi's iron sword was no ordinary weapon, yet it still proved inferior in hardness to the tiger-head broadsword. Even more concerning was that the General appeared completely unruffled by the clash, as if he had merely been amusing himself a moment before.

Glancing at the blood seeping from the web of his thumb and forefinger, Zhu Tianyi swallowed hard against the surging humiliation. He had never suffered such a defeat before. Gripping his sword with both hands, he charged forward once more. This time, however, he had learned his lesson; instead of meeting the General head-on, he unleashed a vicious slash aimed at the General's side.

Yet, Zhu Tianyi had underestimated his foe. The General, with his blood-red pupils, possessed not only terrifying strength but also astonishing agility. With effortless grace, the General parried and blocked Zhu Tianyi's strike once again.