171: Chapter 171 The Seventh Company's Counterattack

The wall of flesh formed by the corpses of the Red-Scaled Earth Lizards had now, ironically, become an obstacle.

After the Beast Tamers of the Seventh Squad launched their counterattack, the newcomers, led by the veterans, climbed directly over the pile of corpses and advanced outward like a tide overflowing a levee.

Jiang Mo charged at the very front. His Pet Beast had not yet fully recovered, but he gripped a standard-issue long blade, energy surging along the blade. Even if it meant just using his blade, he was determined to be on the front line.

One of his pant legs was still rolled up, revealing a scar on his calf that had not yet fully faded, yet his pace was fiercer than anyone else's.

Lei Gang followed slightly behind him to the side. The Black Iron War Ape had grown to waist height, its silver-gray fur covered in dust and bloodstains.

Suddenly, the War Ape slammed a fist down. The head of a Red-Scaled Earth Lizard, which was struggling to escape in the pile of corpses, was smashed into the dirt the next moment. It twitched its limbs twice and then died completely.

Sun Lie's Ice-Armored Blazing Rhino charged at the very front.

The mutated dual ice-fire attributes truly displayed their power on the battlefield for the first time.

It bit down on the neck of a Red-Scaled Earth Lizard. Golden patterns on its dark red scales suddenly lit up, and a scorching breath erupted from its mouth. The Earth Lizard's scales shattered under the high heat, sending flesh and blood flying.

Sun Lie rode on its back, expressionless, but his eyes were terrifyingly bright.

Of the over a hundred Red-Scaled Earth Lizards, more than thirty were now dead.

The corpses were scattered within a radius of several hundred meters; some had their throats slit by Wind Blades, some had their abdomens ripped open by sharp claws, and some had been blown beyond recognition by the dual ice-fire attributes.

The air was thick with the scent of blood, mixed with the smell of gunpowder smoke and charred flesh, like a pot of boiling thick soup.

The remaining seventy or eighty Red-Scaled Earth Lizards were in complete chaos.

Some were still charging forward, trying to bite.

Some had already begun to retreat, looking around for an escape route.

Some stood in place, turning their heads blankly, not knowing which way to go.

Chaos.

Total chaos.

And this chaos was exactly what the Seventh Squad needed.

Qin Ce stood where he was, unmoving.

His gaze swept across the battlefield like a precision scanner, capturing every detail—where support was needed, where there was a gap, and which Pet Beast's energy was running low.

He did not shout; he simply waved his arms, issuing concise commands through pre-agreed gestures and whistle sounds.

Left hand raised, index and middle fingers together, pointing forward—this was the command to advance.

Right hand in a fist, thumb pointing down—this was the command to suppress.

Two whistle blasts meant a flanking maneuver on the left wing.

Three whistle blasts meant a maneuver around the right wing.

These commands, they had practiced countless times on the training ground.

During training, some felt annoyed, thinking it was superfluous, wondering how there could be time for such flashy things on the battlefield.

But now, as the roars of the fierce beasts exploded in their ears, and the collisions of energy and the chaotic situation filled the entire battlefield.

They realized how concise and efficient these commands were.

No need to think, no need to hesitate; listen to the order, follow it, and they would break through smoothly!

The Seventh Squad's formation began to operate like a precision machine.

On the left wing, five people and five Pet Beasts spread out in a fan shape.

Their Pet Beasts excelled in speed, weaving through the battlefield like the wind, forcing the Earth Lizards attempting to break out from the left wing back to the center one by one.

On the right wing, five people and five Pet Beasts, excelling in defense, lined up like a moving wall, blocking the Earth Lizards' charges time and again.

In the center, Jiang Mo led the remaining newcomers, advancing head-on, steady and solid, without haste.

In the rear, Sun Lie and the Ice-Armored Blazing Rhino acted as a mobile force, filling any gaps that appeared.

Melee, ranged, damage-soaking, avian, support—everything was covered.

There were no weak points anywhere.

A bronze low-grade Red-Scaled Earth Lizard attempted to break through from the right wing. It was a size larger than its peers, with thicker scales and faster speed, charging like an out-of-control truck.

The defensive formation on the right wing was pushed back two steps by its impact, but no one scattered.

Two damage-soaking Beast Tamers held the front, their Pet Beasts biting tightly onto both sides of the Earth Lizard, one on the left and one on the right.

The ranged Beast Tamers in the back row seized the opportunity; three avian beasts dived simultaneously, their sharp claws ripping open the Earth Lizard's abdomen with wind-element energy.

The bronze low-grade Earth Lizard let out a miserable scream, fell to the ground, twitched a few times, and then stopped moving.

The efficiency was more than double what it had been before.

The scouts of the Wuji Army nearby, squatting on a distant hillside, were dumbfounded.

They were still clutching the betting stubs in their hands.

And among the options on those stubs, not a single one suggested the Seventh Squad could complete this mission.

Let alone completing the mission, there wasn't even an option for "more than half survive."

In everyone's eyes, this squad, pieced together from the old, weak, sick, and disabled, along with fresh recruits, would be a miracle if half of them returned alive.

But now?

More than forty Earth Lizard corpses lay there, the Seventh Squad's formation was completely orderly, and casualties were zero.

Some were fighting, some were on guard, some were resting in the rear, some were clearing the battlefield—every link connected seamlessly, like a veteran unit that had been fighting for ten years.

"What... what kind of fighting style is this?" a scout muttered, dropping his betting ticket to the ground.

No one answered him.

Because no one had ever seen this kind of fighting style.

The tradition of the Wuji Army was the "gu" cultivation method—throw people onto the battlefield, and those who survived were good soldiers.

Coordination?

That was something forged over time, forged through one life-and-death struggle after another.

No one ever practiced coordination on the training ground, and even fewer took formation and discipline seriously.

But this squad before them had been fighting for an hour, and their formation had not scattered, nor had their rhythm been disrupted.

This was not the Wuji Army's style; this was the style of the elite Battle Academy in Fengling City.

No, it was even more standard than the elite Battle Academy.

The coordination at the elite Battle Academy relied on tacit understanding, the understanding between teammates, the understanding forged over four years of living together.

But the coordination of Qin Ce's squad did not rely on tacit understanding; it relied on discipline.

It was the discipline carved into their bones through hundreds of repetitions on the training ground.

Among those scouts, some were from Fengling City.

They had seen the teams from the elite Battle Academy, had seen the style of those favored children of heaven on the training ground.

But they had never seen anything like this—melee, ranged, damage-soaking, avian, support—someone in every position, everyone knowing what they were supposed to do, no one needing to think, their bodies moving on their own.

This was not tacit understanding; this was a machine.

One, two, three... the number of Red-Scaled Earth Lizards was rapidly decreasing.

Forty, fifty, sixty.

The moment the number of kills exceeded half, the remaining Earth Lizards finally collapsed.

The surviving Red-Scaled Earth Lizards, as if having their spines pulled out by something, turned and ran.

Their running posture was chaotic; some went east, some west, and some even charged two steps toward the Seventh Squad's formation before remembering they should run in the opposite direction.

The leader's hissing was still sounding, but no Earth Lizard was listening to it anymore.

The Seventh Squad did not pursue.

They stopped, standing in place, watching the fleeing Earth Lizards disappear into the twilight.

It wasn't because they didn't want to pursue; it was because they were waiting for orders.

Everyone's gaze turned to Qin Ce.

Qin Ce raised his right hand, spread his fingers, and swung down hard.

"Pursue!!!"

The five sub-squads, like five sharp knives, thrust out from five directions.

Their movements were clean and efficient, without hesitation, without doubt; no one even asked "how far to pursue" or "how long to pursue."

They simply executed the orders, just like on the training ground, just as Qin Ce had taught them.

The scouts were dumbfounded once again.

During the pursuit, the formation did not scatter.

Five sub-squads, five routes, echoing each other, covering each other.

"How long... has this squad been training?" a scout asked.

"One week," the person beside him replied.

"One week?"

"One week!"

The scout opened his mouth, but nothing came out.

In one week, turning from a group of the old, weak, sick, and disabled, along with fresh recruits, into a squad capable of fighting with coordination, discipline, and organization on the battlefield.

This was not training; this was turning stone into gold.

However, just as the five pursuit squads had run a few hundred meters.

A beast roar suddenly exploded from behind Qin Ce.