At Ye Yunfei's command, the Tianxuan Army began its departure. Numerous flying ships soared into the sky, heading straight for the Zhao Family headquarters.
The Zhao Family headquarters had once served as the Corpse World army's main stronghold in the Eastern Barrens.
What's more, the Zhao Family was the first major power to align itself with the Corpse World. Rumors even suggested that the Beast Taming Sect, the Gan Family, the Meng Family, and the Lu Family only joined the Corpse World ranks under coercion from the Zhao Family.
Thus, the Zhao Family's ties to the Corpse World were exceptionally close.
Naturally, Ye Yunfei chose to take the Zhao Family first.
Rumble…
A dozen ships lined up in formation, blasting through the heavens high above the Eastern Barrens. Their procession was bold and massive, thundering toward the Zhao Family headquarters.
A ship at the forefront bore a great flag emblazoned with the four characters "Tian Xuan Da Jun" — the Tianxuan Army — its banner snapping majestically in the rushing winds.
Word soon spread. The Tianxuan Army was going to settle the score with the Zhao Family!
This news spread quickly through the Eastern Barrens, stirring excitement among many factions.
During the previous period, the Zhao Family and several other major powers, riding with the Corpse World army, had assaulted and captured numerous forces large and small across the Eastern Barrens. Some factions saw their members entirely captured and enslaved; others suffered total annihilation, leaving behind only corpses.
Consequently, many forces within the Eastern Barrens now viewed the Zhao Family and those other powers who sided with the Corpse World as mortal enemies whose offense could not be shared under the same sky. Upon hearing the Tianxuan Army was seeking vengeance upon the Zhao Family, these factions were naturally overjoyed.
"Move out!"
"We must also mobilize our forces and join the Tianxuan Army to settle accounts with the Zhao Family!"
"Nearly half our Tianyang Sect perished at the hands of the Corpse World army. The Zhao Family was part of that army. We naturally must seek our reckoning from them!"
"Our Zhao Clan Patriarch and over a dozen elders were killed resisting the Corpse World invasion. Mobilize our men immediately! We go to avenge the Patriarch!"
"The Tianhe Hall headquarters was destroyed. Half our members were slaughtered, the rest forced into exile. Now the time for vengeance has finally arrived! Forward! March on the Zhao Family headquarters!"
…
Gradually, many factions bearing grudges against the Corpse World army began assembling their forces and following behind the Tianxuan Army, all moving toward the Zhao Family headquarters.
Slowly, the various allied forces trailing the Tianxuan Army grew larger, surpassing the Tianxuan Army's own numbers, becoming a surging tidal wave.
Later, even Eastern Barrens factions that had not suffered direct invasion by the Corpse World army also began to join.
For the Corpse World had become the common enemy of the entire Eastern Barrens.
Every martial artist in the Eastern Barrens knew that had the Tianxuan Army not annihilated the Corpse World forces, the Corpse World would likely have already conquered the entire Eastern Barrens, turning it into a land for nurturing their corpses. By then, no martial artist in the Eastern Barrens could have possibly escaped.
In short, the terror inflicted upon the Eastern Barrens by the Corpse World in the preceding period was too great. The vast majority of factions, the vast majority of martial artists, held profound resentment and rejection toward the Corpse World.
Now that the Corpse World army was destroyed, the masses redirected their fury toward the Zhao Family and other major powers!
Ultimately, most forces in the Eastern Barrens dispatched their contingents, a shocking, vast number marching behind the Tianxuan Army.
From afar, it appeared as a seemingly endless ocean of flying ships, rumbling as they swept across the sky, dense and numerous like a swarm of locusts. Their shadows engulfed vast swaths of the Eastern Barrens' land.
On this day, the broad earth of the Eastern Barrens seemed to plunge prematurely into darkness.
Meanwhile, many other factions not traveling with the main force sped toward the Zhao Family headquarters from various directions, forming a tightening encirclement around the location.
Thus, on this day, a spectacle unfolded across the Eastern Barrens: massive fleets of ships advanced toward the Zhao Family headquarters from every direction.
Some factions located near the Zhao Family headquarters soon arrived in its vicinity, completely surrounding it.
Zhao City was the Zhao Family headquarters, a grand and imposing city.
On this day, contingents of forces appeared in every direction around Zhao City, one group after another.
"Young Master Su, look..."
Within the main ship of the Tianxuan Army fleet, Lü Yugang and the other commanders stared dumbfounded at the boundless sea of ships following them, then cast questioning glances toward Ye Yunfei.
"Let them be," chuckled the Demon Race Patriarch. "This is called the will of the people."
"Yes. Let them proceed," Ye Yunfei nodded.
Zhao Family Headquarters.
"Catastrophe! Patriarch! The Tianxuan Army is heading straight for our headquarters!"
Patriarch Zhao was in the great hall conferring with the Zhao Family's high-ranking elders about the current situation when a managing steward rushed in, his report frantic and panicked.
"Su Fei, that brat, is truly making a move against our Zhao Family!" Patriarch Zhao shot to his feet.
"Eldest Elder, have all our outstanding descendants been evacuated?" Patriarch Zhao asked the man standing beside him.
"They have been sent to the Central Divine Land," the Eldest Elder replied.
"Patriarch, what do we do now? That Su Fei brat possesses terrifying strength, and the Tianxuan Army's overall power is formidable. Our Zhao Family is likely no match," another Zhao elder asked, clearly unnerved.
"Immediately organize our people. Prepare to abandon the headquarters." Patriarch Zhao thought for a moment before making a decision. "Truthfully, our Zhao Family's strength is indeed no match for them."
"Also," Patriarch Zhao continued, "contact the Beast Taming Sect, the Gan Family, the Meng Family, and the Lu Family immediately. Have them dispatch forces to divert Su Fei's attention. Perhaps that way the brat won't target us alone."
"Understood! We will immediately muster all forces and prepare to depart at any moment!" Hearing the Patriarch's words, the other Zhao elders felt a surge of resolve. They understood his meaning: abandon the headquarters, avoid a direct confrontation with the Tianxuan Army.
Just then.
"Report! Patriarch! A terrible turn of events!"
"Not only the Tianxuan Army, but also masses of other factions from the Eastern Barrens are advancing on our headquarters! Every direction seems covered. Some are already arriving in our vicinity! It appears we are surrounded!"
Another steward charged in, his report frantic and disorganized.
"Report! Patriarch! We are surrounded!"
"At the very least, dozens of factions have stationed their forces around Zhao City. It appears none come with good intentions! And yet more factions are pouring toward our headquarters in a continuous stream!" Yet another steward rushed in.
"How could this happen?!"
"Our Zhao Family seems to have stirred up the collective fury of the Eastern Barrens!"
…
Inside the hall, the faces of each Zhao Family elder paled with fright.
"There is no place left for the Zhao Family in the Eastern Barrens." Patriarch Zhao collapsed back into his armchair, his face ashen. He murmured to himself, "Our Zhao Family… is finished."