Chapter 5335, Reconnaissance Duty Translator: Silavin & Ashish Translation Checker: PewPewLazerGun Editor and Proofreader: Leo of Zion Mountain & Dhael Ligerkeys Every battle with the Black Ink Clan was extremely dangerous. This war was related to survival of the two Races, so everyone had a reason to kill the enemy. Right then, Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao’s clear and sonorous voice reverberated from the forefront, “More than 360 years ago, the Great Evolution East-West Army was established at Wind and Cloud Pass, and the North-South Army was established at Azure Void Pass. The two Armies marched together towards Great Evolution Theatre, and after a lengthy war spanning over 150 years, we finally managed to regain Great Evolution Pass. Both Armies suffered heavy losses, but… all of their sacrifices were worth it.” “Retaking Great Evolution Pass means that the Human Race’s line of defence no longer has any flaws! But retaking Great Evolution Pass wasn’t our ultimate goal, it was just the starting point! Perhaps many of you have heard of a crusade over the years and have been eagerly anticipating it. Today, Great Evolution Pass is ready, as are all the other Great Passes.” “The Black Ink Clan has wreaked havoc on the Black Ink Battlefield for countless millennia, and we Humans have been forced to passively defend the various Great Passes all this time. Although we have paid a great price and sacrificed countless lives, we had no choice but to remain passive, incapable of going on offence. It is not that we did not want to, it was that we simply could not afford to!” “However, defending alone will not solve anything. Again and again, each generation has left the problem to the next, but it is our era now. Should we leave this problem to the next generation, and let them take care of it? No one wants to see their children and grandchildren fight the Black Ink Clan on the Black Ink Battlefield, unable to see any hope of victory.” “Our ancestors didn’t want this either. They already did their best, and without their persistence, effort, and sacrifice, we wouldn’t be standing here today and speaking such nonsense!” “That is why we must embark on this crusade! We now have everything necessary to do so!” “We are born in a good era, because we will be the generation that completely eradicates the Black Ink Clan. We will witness the end of this great war that has lasted for countless aeons, and every single one of you will play an important role in it.” “This time, we will trample flat the Royal City and slaughter every single enemy. Not one will be spared!” Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao’s voice gradually became louder as her slender figure rose high up, giving off a noble and majestic aura. “Kill!” Xiang Shan, who was standing behind her, shouted. “Kill!” The Eighth-Order Division Commander Masters shouted in unison. “Kill!” “Kill!” “Kill!” The voices of the tens of thousands of soldiers shook the world as the entire Great Evolution Pass was enveloped in a palpable murderous intent. Every soldier felt their blood boil and couldn’t wait to find Black Ink Clansmen to kill. Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao raised her hand and the battle cries instantly stopped. Her eyes swept across the entire Army as she gently stated, “The dead cannot bear witness to victory. Only by surviving can we see the end of the Black Ink Clan!” Saying so, she bowed to the tens of thousands of soldiers. The several dozen Eighth-Order Division Commander Masters behind her also bowed. She was paying her respects to all the soldiers who had sacrificed themselves for countless years all so the upcoming crusade could be possible. Tens of thousands of soldiers bowed in return! Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao straightened up and shouted, “Everyone, prepare yourselves! The crusade… has begun!” Her figure flickered and disappeared. The other Eighth-Order Masters also quickly dispersed. Although Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao had said that they would begin the crusade today, Great Evolution Pass was still quite far from the Royal City, so it would take some time for them to reach there. When the Great Evolution East-West Army retreated from the Royal City towards Great Evolution Pass, it took them a full month to return, and that was travelling in a straight line without any kind of obstructions. Just as Yang Kai was about to take a step forward, a voice suddenly called out to him, causing him to turn his head and nod slightly. After instructing the people from the Dawn to leave, Yang Kai made his way to the Eastern Army Headquarters. The one who had sent him a transmission just now was Xiang Shan. Yang Kai wasn’t the only one summoned. There were several others as well. Old Turtle Squad Leader, Chai Fang, Profound Wind Squad Leader, Ma Gao, Snow Wolves Squad Leader, Yao Kang Cheng. Counting Yang Kai’s Dawn Squad, all four of Great Evolution Army’s Special Operations Squads had been called up. Each of these elite Squads possessed combat power that far exceeded other Squads. Among them, the Old Turtle Squad was the same as the Dawn, conscripted from Blue Sky Pass while the Profound Wind and Snow Wolves Squads came from other Passes. Be that as it may, they became members of the Great Evolution Army after being assigned here, no matter their origins. Yang Kai had cooperated with these two Squads before. When the Great Evolution East-West Army attacked the Black Ink Clan’s rear, he had been ordered by Xiang Shan to head towards Great Evolution Pass in search of the North-South Army. After completing his mission, Yang Kai did not immediately leave and instead joined the North-South Army to block the Black Ink Clan at Great Evolution Pass. During that battle, he had led these two elite Squads to cut across the battlefield several times, breaking through the Black Ink Clan’s lines and scattering them into more manageable groups. In that battle, he had used Golden Crow Casts the Sun many times to open the path, killing countless Black Ink Clansmen in the process. Ma Gao and Yao Kang Cheng were extremely impressed by Yang Kai. They too were veteran Seventh-Order Masters; otherwise, they wouldn’t have been able to become Squad Leaders of Special Operations Squads. But they had never anyone as fierce as Yang Kai in their long career on the Black Ink Battlefield. Although Yang Kai had rarely shown himself over the years, he had interacted with these two, so he was no stranger to them. The crowd of tens of thousands of soldiers had already dispersed by now. Since the crusade had begun, they naturally had to make preparations to engage the Black Ink Clan. Only the four Squad Leaders headed towards the Eastern Army Headquarters. They looked at each other before Chai Fang asked, grinning, “Can you guess why Big Head Xiang is looking for us?” The corner of Yang Kai’s brow twitched. Ma Gao and Yao Kang Cheng were even more shocked by Chai Fang’s address… Although the Big Head Xiang and Big Head Mi monikers started from the Old Ancestor and had already spread across Great Evolution Pass, everyone only used them in private. There really weren’t many people like Chai Fang who blatantly used them in public. The Old Ancestor felt that Xiang Shan and Mi Jing Lun were both people with thoughts as vast as the sea, so they must have big heads. However, even if the Old Ancestor and Ou Yang Lie could call them as such, the Seventh-Order Masters could not use such monikers freely. If Xiang Shan heard them, they would be in big trouble. Chai Fang didn’t take it seriously, however, and just stated, “‘Big Head’ is the Old Ancestor’s praise for those two, what does it matter even if they hear it?” As soon as he finished speaking, an azure hand suddenly stretched out from the Eastern Army Headquarters, grabbing towards Chai Fang. Chai Fang was beside himself in shock. Just as he was about to dodge, an invisible force restrained him. The giant hand grabbed him and ruthlessly threw him out. Chai Fang disappeared from everyone’s sight, accompanied by his distancing scream. Yang Kai and the other two shot a furtive glance at the fading figure, but their expressions remained unchanged even after seeing this. They acted like they didn’t see anything! Ma Gao asked, “Brother Chai asked a good question, why did the higher-ups summon us this time? Brother Yang, do you know something?” In the entire Great Evolution Pass, not to mention the Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters, not even the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters would come into such frequent contact with the Old Ancestor like Yang Kai. So, if anyone knew something, it would be Yang Kai. However, Yang Kai just shook his head in response, “I haven’t heard anything, but since all four of us were called here, it must be related to something only our Squads can do. If I had to guess, they’re calling us to scout out the route, spy on enemy movements, or something similar.” Yao Kang Cheng nodded in agreement after hearing this, “That makes sense. I heard from my Martial Uncle that since Great Evolution Pass’ Core has been found, the Great Pass can now be mobilized. But even the Old Ancestor alone won’t be able to move such a massive Mobile Palace Artifact. At least 60 Eighth-Order Masters would be needed to help her for things to go smoothly.” “60!?” Ma Gao’s face was filled with surprise, “Right now, there are a total of 74 Eighth-Order Masters in Great Evolution Pass. With 60 of them gone, doesn’t that mean that only 14 Eighth-Order Division Commanders will be able to move freely?” “That’s right,” Yao Kang Cheng nodded in agreement, “Those 14 Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters probably need to guard the Pass to prevent any accidents, so the responsibility of scouting will probably fall on us. Brother Yang’s guess should be correct.” Yang Kai suddenly thought of another problem, “Great Evolution Pass’ movement requires the combined efforts of the Old Ancestor and 60 Eighth-Order Masters, so wouldn’t it be the same for other Passes? If so, most of the Passes’ strength will be greatly reduced during the crusade. If they run into the Black Ink Clan Army, they will definitely be thrown into confusion.” There were currently 74 Eighth-Order Masters in Great Evolution Pass, but that was because there had been 120 Eight-Order Masters when the Great Evolution Army was first established. Although many of them had died in battle, the number of remaining Eight-Order Masters far exceeded the average in the other Great Passes. It was doubtful whether all the other Great Passes even had 60 Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters. If so many Masters were required to drive the Great Passes, these Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters would not be able to easily take action. For example, Blue Sky Pass which Yang Kai was most familiar with. Originally, it had about 60 Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters, but after transferring Xiang Shan and four other Eighth-Order Masters, it definitely did not have enough. He had only made a casual guess on why Xiang Shan had summoned the four Squad Leaders over, but by the looks of it, his guess might be spot on. An Eighth-Order Master could not be easily dispatched, but scouts would be needed to reconnaissance missions during the crusade. The Special Operations Squads were perfectly suited for this kind of mission. An Army always needed scouts. Even when Great Evolution’s East-West Army retreated from the Royal City, scouts still led the way. Not to mention, this was the Human Race’s crusade. As they spoke, they arrived at the Army Headquarters of the Eastern Army. The one guarding the door was an old acquaintance, Xiang Shan’s adjutant, Li Xing. When he saw the Squad Leaders arrive, he stated with a smile, “The Army Commander is waiting for everyone, please go in.” There was no need to report anything. A moment later, Yang Kai and the others saw Xiang Shan standing with his hands behind his back inside the Army Headquarters. A Universe Chart was floating in front of Xiang Shan, his Divine Sense happened to be surging as if he was studying something. Yang Kai and the others didn’t disturb him. After waiting for a moment, Xiang Shan finally put away the Universe Chart and placed it on the table before speaking, “Your guesses are correct. I called you here because I want you to leave first and act as scouts.” The corners of the trio’s brows twitched. [How much free time do you have on your hands? You heard everything we were talking about on our way. Were you eavesdropping?] No wonder Chai Fang had been thrown out of Great Evolution Pass when he called out Big Head Xiang. “On Great Evolution’s side, the Old Ancestor and many other Eighth-Order Masters will need to work together to activate the Core and drive the Great Pass. As such, not many Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters are left who can move about freely, and the few who can have their own responsibilities and cannot be dispatched easily. After much deliberation, we concluded that your Squads would be the best to scout the way ahead and identify enemy positions.” Yang Kai and the others nodded and cupped their fists, “Sir, please explain what we should do.”