As preparations were underway on Xuanyue Island, word came from Giant Whale City that they were also mobilizing. All their strong cultivators, from the Giant Spirit Realm and above, were being conscripted, forming an army of several thousand. Among them were hundreds of Core Condensation Realm cultivators. This massive army was divided into several teams, each led by a Golden Core Realm cultivator. Such a formidable force, with each team capable of easily crushing a backward region like the Heavenly Mountain Domain, suddenly made the situation in Xuanyue Sea tense.
When this news reached Xuanyue Island, all its strong cultivators felt an immense pressure, almost suffocating them. They had no idea Giant Whale City was so powerful. It seemed they had been preparing for a long time to annex Xuanyue Island, accumulating such strength.
Upon receiving the news, Xuan Sheng immediately convened all the strong cultivators from the Island Lord's Mansion and the guest elders to discuss countermeasures. Soon, Xuanyue Island made its response. However, when they mustered all their cultivators from the Giant Spirit Realm and above, they found their numbers were far inferior to Giant Whale City's, barely a fraction. They had only a few hundred Martial Kings of the Giant Spirit Realm, less than a hundred in the Core Condensation Realm, and a mere six in the Golden Core Realm. Even with Ling Fan, they had only seven Golden Core level combatants. Whether in terms of high-level strength or mid-tier power, they were no match for Giant Whale City.
A sense of despair began to spread across Xuanyue Island. Soon, voices advocating surrender emerged, including many guest elders like Li Mobing, and even within the Island Lord's Mansion. The young Island Lord, Xuan Ye, was already preparing to surrender. If the situation became untenable, he would immediately pledge allegiance to Giant Whale City to secure his own wealth and status, caring nothing for the lives of Xuanyue Island's countless citizens. To this end, Xuan Ye subtly probed his father, Xuan Sheng, about his intentions, only to be sternly rebuked. Xuan Sheng suppressed the voices of surrender within Xuanyue Island, being acutely aware that, given Giant Whale City's methods, surrender would lead to a fate far worse than a fight to the death.
Ling Fan greatly admired this resolve. "Everyone, Xuanyue Island is in grave danger. The lives and fortunes of all hang by a thread. If Giant Whale City attacks, we can only fight to the death, with no retreat possible!" Xuan Sheng declared, looking at the cultivators of the Island Lord's Mansion and the guest elders. His eyes hardened. "I, Xuan Sheng, will not allow anyone to disrupt morale! Once the battle begins, whoever dares to retreat or surrender, I, Xuan Sheng, will kill them first, even if it costs me my life! Do not blame me for disregarding our past relations then!" Xuan Sheng, like a roused lion revealing its might, his eyes radiating a chilling glare, swept his gaze across them. Those with ulterior motives immediately lowered their heads guiltily, not daring to meet his gaze. The other cultivators, especially the younger ones, were filled with fervor and fighting spirit, ready to die. Xuan Ye watched with a grim expression, his thoughts unknown.
Seeing that the situation was finally under control, Xuan Sheng felt a slight relief. He then instructed Xuan Ye to arrange the distribution of all cultivators from the Giant Spirit Realm and above, assigning them to the Golden Core cultivators. Ling Fan, as a powerful Golden Core combatant, was naturally assigned a team. However, upon receiving his team, a flicker of anger arose within him. Xuan Ye, that insidious villain, had tampered with the assignments. The cultivators assigned to him were all a motley crew. Among them were many peak Heavenly Origin Realm cultivators, not even in the Giant Spirit Realm, who were crammed into his team to make up the numbers.
Hama immediately jumped up and cursed, "Damn it, is that bastard young Island Lord Xuan Ye looking for trouble with a lantern? He's repeatedly playing these dirty tricks to provoke us. Does he think we're easy to mess with? I'll go reason with him right now and crack open his pig brain to see what sewage is inside." Wei Bin pulled him back and said, "Don't get agitated, let's see what Brother Ling says." Ling Fan smiled coldly and glanced at the nearly hundred-strong team before him. While their combat power was negligible to him, Xuan Ye's disgusting and despicable actions had truly ignited his killing intent. If it weren't for Xuan Sheng and Xuan Na, he would have killed such a jealous, malicious, and despicable scoundrel a thousand times over. He wanted to see what other tricks Xuan Ye could pull. He wondered who could protect him then.
Ling Fan remained indifferent, saying nothing. The team below began to whisper amongst themselves. One said, "What bad luck, why was I assigned to him! Although he has Golden Core combat strength, he's not a true Golden Core cultivator. Who knows if he can withstand Giant Whale City's Golden Core Realm cultivators in a life-and-death battle? Moreover, the battlefield is brutal and fierce. Following an experienced Golden Core cultivator would greatly increase survival chances. He's too young, and doesn't seem reliable. What if he abandons us and flees?" Another said, "No, I need to find some connections and pull some strings to see if I can transfer to another team. I don't want to wait here to die." A cultivator said pessimistically, "His strength is probably unquestionable, after all, his record is brilliant, having defeated two Golden Core cultivators from Giant Whale City. But the battlefield is different from sparring. Although he is a peerless prodigy, he is too young and likely lacks leadership skills. When the great battle begins, he'll probably be blind, not even knowing what needs to be done, let alone commanding us." Similar voices arose one after another. Hama's eyes widened, about to scold these people. Ling Fan stopped him. He looked down and said, "You think I'm too young to lead you, is that it?" "Yes!" A disheveled middle-aged man with a full beard said from below, "Guest Elder Ling, you are a top-tier combatant, we don't doubt that, but you, being so young, absolutely cannot be a qualified commander. How about this, you hand over the command to me, and you just focus on dealing with Giant Whale City's Golden Core cultivators. How about it? This isn't looking down on you, it's just that you can't convince the masses." Speaking of this, the disheveled middle-aged man's eyes shone as he spoke eloquently, "A battle of cultivators is entirely different from a one-on-one fight. While individual combat strength is important, among hundreds or thousands of cultivators, even a Golden Core Realm cultivator can be exhausted to death by sheer numbers! In this regard, formations are extremely important. How to form them, how to defend, how to advance, how to retreat, when to attack, when to hold, how to maximize everyone's abilities, to defeat the many with the few, and the weak with the strong – these are all profound studies, which I believe you absolutely do not understand!"