System: After the fortune telling, my cultivation level skyrocketed.

"Hahahaha!"

"Hahaha……"

Jiang Xiong looked at the man whose face was covered in saliva and blood, and laughed heartily, not even bothering to utter a single word of mockery.

"Crazy, crazy!"

The man, his face spitting filth, staggered back, glaring at Jiang Xiong with vicious anger and cursing.

In the past two days, he had exhausted all the torture methods he could use, even resorting to palace intrigue and divisive tactics. However, the interrogation methods that had worked every time before were completely ineffective against Jiang Xiong.

"Hmph, Jiang Xiong, just keep pretending. If you still refuse to tell the truth before dusk, then you don't need to waste any more food in my Ruan family."

The man threw away the blood-stained rattan whip in his hand, turned around and strode out of the dungeon, shouting sternly, "Keep a close eye on him, don't give him a bite to eat or drink, until he confesses!"

"Yes, my lord!"

As the Nguyen family leaders left, the dungeon door was slammed shut.

At this moment, Jiang Xiong, with disheveled hair and covered in countless skin and flesh wounds, slowly raised his head, his face full of disdain.

“Although I, Jiang Xiong, am dull-witted, I would never betray my tribe, even if it meant my soul would be scattered. You are dreaming if you think you can torture me with such methods.”

As he spoke, Jiang Xiong looked up toward the Jiang clan's territory, his eyes revealing a complex light.

"A powerful demon from the Myriad Manifestations Realm, a girl in white, wielding a sword..."

Jiang Xiong's deep eyes flickered as he recalled the scene of his side being forced into battle during the last border struggle.

"When the battle formation was broken, I was captured by a group of experts from the Ruan family. The five people who went to hunt down Jiang Ming were strangers. Could it be that those five were rescued after failing to kill Jiang Ming?"

“Zelin Sea…and the heart of Zelin Sea is Chen Xuan’s Longxia tribe. The white-clad sword-wielding girl transformed from the Great Demon of the Myriad Manifestations Realm…could she be the black-clad girl from before?”

"It was she who saved Jiang Ming around Zelinhai, which is why Madam Ruan is so furious and tortures me with all sorts of methods, trying to make me reveal the girl's background?"

Jiang Xiong frowned, deep in thought. "In other words, Jiang Ming has most likely escaped successfully. In that case, news of the border war and that unfamiliar team of cultivators will soon reach the Ancestor."

After careful deduction, Jiang Xiong had a better understanding of the situation. "The three overlords have joined forces, and there is also a small, unfamiliar team supporting them. If the ancestor learns of this, he will surely be able to discern the three overlords' ambition to divide up the Jiang clan's territory, and thus take precautions."

Although Jiang Xiong was reprimanded by the elder Jiang Tianxiao in front of everyone and even stripped of his position as elder, he never had any desire for revenge, let alone betrayed the tribe's core secrets.

As the dominant figures living on this land, each of them knew that their tribe was their foundation and their everything.

At dusk, about fifty miles ahead of the southeastern defense line of Zelinhai, lies the last strategic pass of the three major defensive lines.

Within a radius of fifty miles, there was only one mountain peak. This peak grew in a twisted and twisted manner, with jagged rocks, resembling a huge rib with an arc angled and inserted into the earth. Moreover, the rocks were mostly the color of white marble. Therefore, Chen Xuan temporarily named this mountain "White Bone Peak".

After much deliberation, Chen Xuan still felt that it was most appropriate to place his final trump card, the True Eye of the Array, here.

After two days of intense preparations, the Jiang family has made ample preparations to cope with the upcoming storm.

At this moment, Chen Xuan, Jiang Ming, Jiang Tianxiao, and Jiang Shan were all gathered on White Bone Peak.

Chen Xuan and his three companions discussed the battle plan again in detail to ensure that everything went smoothly.

“Young friend Chen Xuan, since our ambush at the forefront has given us the upper hand, why not seize the opportunity to completely annihilate the enemy's army of cultivators, instead of choosing to use Dao talismans to escape after the chance for a great victory has arisen?”

Jiang Tianxiao had already made arrangements; once his team launched an attack, they had no intention of returning alive.

Unexpectedly, Chen Xuan disagreed with this decision.

In this life-or-death battle, since our side has the geographical and initiative advantages, we should take advantage of the situation to expand our chances of victory.

Of course, out of respect for Chen Xuan's unique insights, Jiang Tianxiao only asked the question symbolically.

Jiang Ming and Jiang Shan remained silent, simply watching the decision-maker, Chen Xuan.

Chen Xuan drank a cup of Ice and Fire Brew, smiled and looked at Jiang Tianxiao, saying, "The essence of battle formations lies in plunder and expansion. True war is never about annihilating the enemy's army, but about making the enemy feel the pain so intensely that they cannot bear the loss, thus forcing them to give up or admit defeat, thereby achieving one's own goal."

Chen Xuan continued, "What is our purpose? It is simply to continue living peacefully on this land. What we want is not the territory of the three major families, is it?"

Jiang Tianxiao was taken aback upon hearing this, and subconsciously nodded. He vaguely sensed that Chen Xuan's understanding of war seemed to be completely different from his own.

"What can ensure the stable reproduction of the tribe is not the large number of Innate Realm Crimson Armor Guards, nor the more Jiang Clan Black Armor Guards, but high-level Pifu Realm experts like you."

"In order to kill a few thousand more enemies at the Innate Realm, or even one or two at the Foundation Establishment Realm, must we risk our lives against them? And in the years following this battle, will the Jiang Clan be able to replenish the losses of these Foundation Establishment Realm cultivators?"

"If not, how many Pifu Realm cultivators can the Jiang family mobilize next time they face such a desperate situation?"

Chen Xuan's words left Jiang Tianxiao speechless, and Jiang Ming and Jiang Shan were even more shocked.

"Yes, in order to win, we always think about taking the initiative and killing as many enemy troops as possible, but we have never considered the situation of the Jiang Clan after this battle. If most of our eighteen Pifu Realm cultivators are lost, then after this battle, if a similar situation occurs again, the Jiang Clan will still fall under the intimidation of the overlords again because of the weakness of its top combat power."

Fourth Elder Jiang Shan looked at Chen Xuan and analyzed with a frown.

Since there are supporters, there will inevitably be those who question it.

Jiang Tianxiao then spoke according to his own thoughts: "The three major tribes have joined forces, and behind them is the Cangyunling Sect, whose strength is unfathomable. Faced with such a desperate situation, young friend Chen Xuan, where do you get the confidence that my Jiang Clan can survive, or even have a future?"

Although it was inappropriate for a tribal chief to say such things, it was indeed the truth. Since being severely taught a lesson about military capabilities by Chen Xuan last time, Jiang Tianxiao had become much more composed.

"Regardless of the outcome of this war, we must consider the future and think about our descendants."

Chen Xuan confidently surveyed the crowd and said, "Don't blame me for speaking harshly, but your thinking is still at the family level, while my thinking is at the national strategic level. Even if you have a good hand, you can't play it all."

Everyone was taken aback upon hearing this. It was the first time they had ever heard the word "strategy," and they found it both novel and awe-inspiring.