Top-level Qi Luck: Leading My Clan to Cultivate Chapter 2187: 1118: Army at the Gates (2)

At this moment, Xiao Chen moved forward with a few measured steps, offering a respectful bow toward Song Chufeng.

Subsequently, Xiao Chen cast his gaze toward the mountains in the distance, which marked the location of the Lin Family Clan Grounds.

“Reporting to you, Second Elder, those distant peaks fall within the boundaries of the Lin Family Clan Grounds.”

“We have officially reached the perimeter of their domain.”

“Provided nothing unforeseen occurs, a short distance further will bring us directly against the Lin Family’s Mountain Protection Array.”

“Therefore, I suggest we halt here briefly. Once the troops have recovered their strength, we can initiate our assault on the formation.”

Song Chufeng offered a slight nod, acknowledging the suggestion.

He immediately turned his attention to Xiao Chen, stating: “Nephew Xiao, you are one of the rare Third Order Formation Masters serving in our alliance, and you presently hold the rank of leader among the Five Great Protectors.”

“What is your assessment of the Lin Family’s Mountain Protection Array?”

“If you were to seek out the flaws within the formation, how confident are you in your ability to succeed?”

“And what is your estimate for how long that would take?”

Song Chufeng rained a series of questions upon him, revealing his deep anxiety concerning the defensive capabilities of the Lin Family. He was particularly concerned about whether a formation master of the Blood Red Alliance could expose a weakness that would allow them to bypass or shatter the defense.

The goal was simple: if a critical vulnerability could be identified, they might dismantle the Lin Family Mountain Gate with the same efficiency they displayed at the Yang Family’s estate.

Even if that level of speed proved impossible, any significant reduction in the expected time to break the formation would bolster their chances toward a successful outcome.

Song Chufeng recognized that time was a luxury the Blood Red Alliance did not possess.

The possibility remained that Lin Tianming was currently attempting to breakthrough into the Nascent Soul Stage.

Should Lin Tianming succeed, Song Chufeng accepted that he would lack the raw power required to suppress the Lin Family.

Having crossed paths with him previously, Song Chufeng held a healthy fear for Lin Tianming’s tactical brilliance and cunning maneuvers.

Driven by this urgent need to eliminate the Lin threat before the breakthrough completed, Song Chufeng felt the pressure mounting.

Even if complete annihilation proved impossible, merely ruining Lin Tianming’s advancement would constitute a major strategic win.

This, precisely, was the primary motivation behind the current expedition.

Consequently, the breach of the Lin Family’s Mountain Gate was the fundamental first move in his comprehensive plan.

If they failed to clear this first hurdle, every other ambition would simply crumble into useless speculation.

Fully aware of the stakes, Song Chufeng awaited Xiao Chen’s professional opinion on the siege.

Xiao Chen contemplated the matter for an extended silence.

Finally, he broke his quiet: “Reporting to you, Second Elder, the Lin Family Mountain Gate is quite aged; it was the original stronghold of the ancient Yuanchen Sect.”

“The Yuanchen Sect was an influential power in Qingzhou, possessing a deep heritage and an incredibly solidified foundation.”

“Now that the Lin Family has occupied these grounds and implemented their own modifications, I suspect this current Mountain Protection Array is vastly superior to the one used by the Yuanchen Sect.”

“In that regard, this is fundamentally different from the Yang Family Mountain Gate we cleared just a few days ago.”

“As such, attempting to breach this particular gate will be exponentially more difficult.”

“My recent inspection has served to confirm these fears.”

“By my estimations, the Mountain Protection Array guarding this gate is immensely durable, with almost no identifiable weaknesses.”

“Given our current circumstances, even with your support, I doubt we could break the formation in any less than ten days to half a month.”

Xiao Chen spoke with obvious trepidation, fearful that his assessment might draw Song Chufeng’s wrath.

Surprisingly, although Song Chufeng felt a wave of internal dissatisfaction at the news, he did not lash out.

He recognized the reality: the Lin Family clearly outmatched the Yang Family in both overall strength and structural foundation.

Successfully dismantling such a potent Defensive Great Formation would push even his capabilities of leadership and technical support to the limit.

With his own level of experience, Song Chufeng understood these inherent logistical challenges.

Therefore, despite his lingering frustration, he refrained from placing the blame on Xiao Chen.

Instead, he offered a curt nod.

Song Chufeng then turned to address the group of over ten Blood Red Alliance elites waiting behind him.

“Esteemed juniors, the obstacles Xiao Chen has just presented are well-known to me.”

“However, the difficulty is irrelevant. We must dismantle the Lin Family’s Mountain Protection Array regardless of the resistance.”

“Henceforth, I shall initiate intermittent barrages against their defenses.”

“During those windows, Xiao Chen, you and the other formation masters must labor to pinpoint any openings or faults in their barrier.”

“While I pause to recover my Qi, the ranks will continue to pressure the formation until its collapse is inevitable.”

“Is that understood?”

As his command echoed, Song Chufeng cast a sharp gaze over the gathered cultivators, particularly focusing on the ten or so Golden Core Stage practitioners, including Xiao Chen.

Among this group sat two Third Order Formation Masters: Xiao Chen, and another practitioner by the name of Xie Feng, who held a position as a Mid Stage Golden Core and also ranked among the new generation of Five Great Golden Elixir Protectors.

However, Xie Feng lacked the technical mastery that distinguished Xiao Chen, and when combined with the gap in their cultivation levels, it was only natural that Xiao Chen had been selected as the leader of the Five Great Protectors.

Of the remaining Golden Core cultivators present, most had reached the Mid Stage of the Golden Core Realm. Only Xiao Chen and three others presently occupied the Late Stage Golden Core level.

Only three of their number remained at the Early Stage Golden Core level.

Despite this, this group represented the vital pillars of the Blood Red Alliance, especially now.

The catastrophe within the Ancient Demon Secret Realm had claimed almost all of their most promising disciples.

Those casualties included figures such as the Saint Heir Situ Jian, and others like Zhao Yang—who had reached Golden Core Great Completion—all of whom were the elite cream of their sect's talent.

With such a heavy loss, the Blood Red Alliance faced an undeniable void in their top-tier Golden Core population.

Currently, the organization lacked a single cultivator at the Golden Core Great Completion level.

This unfortunate reality had propelled Xiao Chen, with his Late Stage Golden Core cultivation, into his current leadership role.

Furthermore, these individuals represented nearly half of the surviving elite disciples within the entire Blood Red Alliance.

The remaining half stayed behind at the alliance headquarters or were occupied with duties assigned by the sect.

Among those present, Song Chufeng had handpicked the strongest remaining disciples for this campaign.

The other members were finishing the cleanup operations in the former Yang Family territory, tasked with plundering their remaining hidden treasures and resources.

Once their objectives in the Yang Family territory were finalized, those units would reinforce Song Chufeng’s vanguard.

Following his strategy, he and his Golden Core subordinates would operate in two alternating waves of attack to maintain constant pressure on the Lin Family Mountain Gate.

Meanwhile, Xiao Chen and Xie Feng would exploit the ongoing barrage to scan for fatal flaws in the array.

Once a breach was identified, he would launch a devastating strike to finish the job for good.