Yang Jishan pondered for a moment, sighed, and said, "If there really are more than forty Iron Corpses and five thousand Walking Corpses, this must be Lu Chengyun’s final reserve..." Yang Jishan’s gaze swept across those present as he said in a deep voice: "This is the final battle. Whether we can kill Lu Chengyun and eradicate the Corpse King depends on this battle. I plead with all of you, don’t hold back any longer." Hold back? Mo Hua was startled upon hearing this. The expressions of the others also varied. Someone discontentedly said, "Leader Yang, why make such a statement? We have put our full effort into this battle and suffered many casualties. How can you say we are holding back?" "Indeed!" "Leader Yang’s words chill our hearts..." Yet Yang Jishan’s expression remained resolute as he said: "Among us here, many are from big families or major Sects of the Taoist State, Qian State, Kun State, etc., or they are affiliated with the Taoist Court’s Seven Stars Pavilion. With deep ancestral heritage and traditions, naturally, everyone has some trump cards at the bottom of the box..." "These methods, derived from either family heritage or personal opportunities, are not to be used unless absolutely necessary." With those words, nobody spoke. It’s undeniable that every Cultivator has their opportunities and trump cards. Yang Jishan continued: "Now, killing the Corpse King has reached a critical juncture." "If we win this battle, we will all rejoice." "But if we lose, letting Lu Chengyun escape and the Corpse King survive, and the Taoist Court holds us accountable, I, Yang, will naturally be the first to bear the brunt and face the Taoist Court Officials’ punishment. But everyone present here..." Yang Jishan looked around, "I’m afraid will not escape responsibility either!" Yang Jishan’s gaze darkened, "...if the Taoist Court assigns blame, the Noble Clans and Sects, their advancement in ranks for the next century, will be significantly delayed." "And among you, some who hail from the Taoist State and have connections to the Heaven Shu Pavilion should know what it truly means if the Corpse King survives." "If the situation fails, the responsibility will be great. The families of all present will be pursued by the Taoist Court!" "Would your clan vent their anger on you, remove you as Elders, reduce your treatment, and strip your rights?" Yang Jishan’s gaze turned solemn, his tone icy, "And that’s not even the worst-case scenario..." "The worst-case scenario is that Lu Chengyun, driven mad, lets the Corpse King run wild, triggering a real, large-scale Corpse Tide that wipes out South Yue City and even the entire state boundary." "By that time, should the state boundary become a domain of corpses, all living creatures would perish..." "And within the Corpse Tide, if several Iron Corpses coincidentally transform into Copper Corpses, I’m afraid not many among us could leave the Minor Wilderness State Boundary alive!" Yang Jishan said coldly, "At that time, your trump cards will only serve to press down the bottom of your coffins..." 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶 "And you might not even have coffins, either devoured alive, leaving no bones behind, or reduced to Walking Corpses, which would be worse than having no remains..." Yang Jishan’s speech turned everyone’s faces pale. Although his words were somewhat alarmist. Yet looking at the current situation, these things were not impossible... "Leader Yang, what do you intend to do?" an old Cultivator among them asked. He was very old, with white hair, but he was not concerned for himself, but for the younger generations of his clan. If they won this battle, his merits would pave the way for the clan’s advancement within a century. Your journey continues at freewebnovel This group of Disciples would certainly be valued. But if they lost and the Taoist Court sought accountability, causing a decline in their ranking, the efforts of three generations of Cultivators over several hundred years would have been in vain. And the future prospects of the younger Disciples of this group would no longer be valued by the clan. So even if he died, this battle had to be won! Yang Jishan said with firm conviction: "Relying on the resources of Noble Clans, no longer hiding our cards, bringing out all our trumps, we will directly kill Lu Chengyun, eradicate the Corpse King, and quell the corpse menace!" As he finished speaking, he took out a long spear from his storage bag. This spear was golden and shimmering, with gold-patterned grooves; Spiritual Power condensed around it, faintly emitting an imposing aura. As soon as the spear appeared, Cultivators in the know changed their expressions. Yang Jishan said, "This is my Yang Family’s Second Grade superior Spiritual Artifact, the Sunset Spear!" "This spear is precious, made through a special forging process, and extremely powerful. Used in conjunction with Yang Family Spear Technique, a single strike holds the power of the peak of Foundation Establishment, but it is easily worn out and can only be used three times." Yang Jishan looked at the golden spear, seemingly reluctant, but still said solemnly: "This Sunset Spear was bestowed by my grandfather for the purpose of saving my life, not to be used unless in a life-and-death situation." "But in this battle where victory and defeat decide life and death, I will use this spear to execute Lu Chengyun and kill the Corpse King!" The crowd was somewhat moved. Mo Hua was also surprised; though he didn’t know the backstory of the Sunset Spear, seeing the expressions of the others, he understood the spear was no small matter. It was very likely that even if they won this battle, the merits gained might not be worth as much as the spear. Yang Jishan set an example, and other Cultivators also fell into thought. Yang Jishan, coming from the Yang Family and leading the Taoist Soldiers, was proficient in warfare and knew well how Cultivators fought. If he had to use his trump card, it meant that unless they took swift and decisive action, they would face tremendous peril! When it was not the time to economize, one must not skimp at all. Otherwise, one might even economize one’s life away... After some Cultivators reflected, one spoke up: "Since Leader Yang has put it this way, I will not hide my cards either..." With a flip of his hand, he took out a black jade box, proudly saying: "I come from the Tang Family, possessing a set of Second Grade Spiritual Artifacts known as the Rainstorm Pear Blossom Needles. The box hides the needles, which, once released, rain down with Spiritual Power like showers, piercing like pear blossoms. It may be somewhat lacking against strong enemies, but thrown into a horde of corpses, its lethal force is immense..."