Before the portal, Lu Ye tucked Amber into the spirit beast sack, and with a swift motion, landed atop a Sacred Beetle, lifting its wings to conceal himself underneath. Constructing concealment, Breath-concealing Spirit Runes, it was all done in one fluid motion. Immediately, an order was sent from his heart, and each enslaved insect raced in succession through the portal, disappearing from sight. The Sacred Beetle carrying Lu Ye was mixed in the ranks, inconspicuous. As light and shadow changed, the suppressive feel of the origin magnetic field vanished without a trace. Lu Ye knew he had crossed the portal into the Great Secret Realm of the Insect Race. The sounds of crawling and the rustle of wings filled his ears, accompanied by the gurgling from mandibles. Lu Ye commanded the Sacred Beetle to fly skyward instantaneously. Reaching a certain height, he quietly peered down to see the vast array of varied insect races bustling before the portal, creating an awe-inspiring spectacle. Under such circumstances, the vanguard camp would first have to endure a slaughter to secure a foothold. But once the spirit force fluctuated, it would inevitably draw more insects persistently. Bingzhou had Lu Ye as the vanguard, leveraging the Insect Race and Explosive Fire Spirit Stones to distract the insects. The other Eight Great Provincial States lacked this tactic, making it more challenging for them to establish a front. It all depended on the methods of those vanguard camp experts. His mind sensed the position of his insect troops, issuing precise orders to each, sending them individually into the depths of the Insect Race's Great Secret Realm. Within just two hours, over two hundred Divine Sea Realm insects were dispersed within a range of 20 to 50 miles from the portal—not too close to be ineffective, not too distant to be futile. Outside 20 miles and within 50 miles marked the optimal range. Only then did Lu Ye send a message to the sect master: "The disciple is in position!" Now, it was time to wait. The assembly of the Nine Provinces army did not take long; those participating were all cultivators above the True Lake Realm, with each team having a Divine Sea Realm cultivator seated, ensuring efficiency was paramount. Along their path, they encountered nothing but scattered insects within their forked route. Upon reaching the paths traversed by the vanguard camp, they could swiftly advance. After two days, the Nine Provinces army gradually arrived, each provincial state lined up in a dragon formation. The head of the army had already merged with the vanguard camp before a portal, but perhaps the tail was only deep into the insect paths by several thousand distances, restricted by the terrain until those in front charged into the Insect Race's Great Secret Realm, limiting further advance. In waiting, Lu Ye received the sect master's transmission. The time for action had come! He instantly issued commands to his two hundred insect troops. Among the insect swarm, a Divine Sea Realm mantis insect suddenly swung its mantis saber, attacking its companion with rapid Sharpness, splitting many insects before realizing what happened. There were stronger insects that survived the cuts, which instinctively counterattacked against the mantis insects. Earlier, on his previous arrival at the Insect Race's Great Secret Realm, Lu Ye discovered that the insects here did not coexist harmoniously but aggressively fought—the stronger treating the weaker as prey and advancement resources, while the weaker instinctively retaliated when attacked. On the other hand, within the Nine Provinces, such insect conflicts were seldom visible, perhaps due to more enticing attractions outside. On another front, a hound insect began tearing into its companion, escalating the slaughter quickly. Simultaneously, a ten-foot-long centipede-like insect coiled around a companion, its mandibles twisting, chewing the carapace away to expose the flesh beneath. Chaos descended inadvertently, and not just in one place. The mutual slaughter among the insects inevitably triggered the Explosive Fire Spirit Stones carried on their bodies. The booming sounds fiercely erupted, accompanied by turbulent and volatile spirit force waves. To create sufficiently attractive spirit force fluctuations, each Divine Sea Realm insect under Lu Ye, at minimum, carried one hundred Explosive Fire Spirit Stones, with larger insects carrying more, such as that centipede-like insect, burdened with up to a thousand. Once a single stone's power was ignited, the remaining fire spirit stones would soon explode in succession. As the firelight surged skyward, it was like tossing a handful of salt into a pot of oil, instantly agitating the insect race within about 30 miles. Almost all insects sensing the spirit force unrest became roused, instinctively converging towards the origin of the spirit force fluctuations. The explosive sounds perpetuated continuously, as pillars of flame erupted towards the sky, making the locations of over two hundred Divine Sea Realm insects the focal points of the gathering insect armies. Not only were the insects on the ground attracted, but even those flying in the sky were drawn in. Originally, there were some insects fluttering around Lu Ye, but now the air was solemn and clear. Looking up, it was empty all around, leaving only the Sacred Beetle he was riding. Even the Sacred Beetle, which he had implanted with the Soul Taming Psyche, was somewhat attracted by the spirit force fluctuations. If he hadn't ordered it to suppress the urge, it might have carried him towards the nearest source of spirit force fluctuations. If that really happened, it would have been quite amusing. Glancing down, what was once a bustling portal became completely empty; not a single insect was in sight. The execution of the plan was much smoother than anticipated. The explosive sounds continued, and more than two hundred Divine Sea Realm insects scattered in different locations couldn't all move at the same time, which naturally allowed for better time delay. The void within the portal trembled slightly, and several figures rushed out from the portal almost simultaneously, led by Pang Zhen and Long Bai. Uncertain of the situation here, they were all prepared for action. However, upon charging in, they found no insects around; the nearest ones were miles away, quickly moving farther away. This sudden scene left them a bit stunned, but they quickly realized it was Lu Ye's doing. Pang Zhen couldn't help but shout, "Well done!" At the grand council meeting, although Lu Ye's proposal was passed, no one knew if it would work or how effective it would be. It wasn't until now that they realized Lu Ye's proposal had a much greater impact than imagined. Without mentioning anything else, the absence of insects in front of the portal allowed the vanguard camp to unleash their full potential. More figures passed through the portal, entering the Insect Race's Great Secret Realm. In just a few heartbeats, hundreds of strong members of the vanguard camp had all passed through. "Act according to plan!" With Long Bai's orders, the group of hundreds immediately spread out, slowly advancing outwards in a fan shape. The tremors in the portal void had never ceased; after the vanguard camp, the cultivators responsible for constructing the defense line were the first to reach the Insect Race's Great Secret Realm. The cultivators varied in cultivation, some in the Divine Sea Realm, others in the True Lake Realm. They were array cultivators, and their task was to set up various big arrays in front of the portal. In this situation, the faster they set up enough formations, the more they could alleviate the pressure on the vanguard camp, which undoubtedly tested their proficiency in the Array Path. As the array cultivators started setting up, the spirit force fluctuations became chaotic. Some insects had already sensed the spirit force fluctuations and were redirecting their path towards them. It was foreseeable that more and more insects would assault, eventually forming a massive insect plague to impact the human race's positions. Lu Ye descended from the sky on the Sacred Beetle, joining the ranks of the vanguard camp. The sect master was on the left, and Nian Yuexian on the right, providing a sense of security. Amber was taken out from the spirit beast sack and placed on his shoulder, while Yiyi also flashed out and moved to the sect master's side, saying, "Master." After glancing at Yiyi and sensing her spirit force fluctuations, the sect master nodded in satisfaction, "Good job!" Yiyi's growth, evident after not seeing her for a long time, pleased the sect master greatly. "Stay by my side and watch me slaughter on all sides!" The sect master declared with great ambition. Yiyi clapped her hands and said, "Disciple will support the master!" On the other side, Nian Yuexian transmitted a message to Lu Ye, "Don't stray too far from me." Lu Ye chuckled, "Senior Sister, I'm not a child anymore, and I'm a combat cultivator!" As a combat cultivator, it's only natural to take up the sword and fight rather than always remain under protection. Nian Yuexian smirked and said no more. Though the vanguard camp's forward movement wasn't fast, it wasn't slow either. They quickly advanced to a position five miles from the portal, essentially claiming territory. The rear area thus claimed would become the Bingzhou army's position. Until the defense line was fully constructed, these vanguard strong cultivators had to withstand the Insect Race's attacks, buying time for the army to build a defense line. The hundreds of individuals spread across a five-mile semicircular periphery, not too close to each other, which demanded high individual ability. This was why the vanguard camp only selected cultivators above Level 7. A lower level of cultivation would make it difficult to shoulder the responsibility. If the Insect Race broke through the defense line, it could impact the rear. The land claim operation on the Bingzhou side proceeded extremely smoothly without encountering any obstruction, all thanks to Lu Ye's proposal. The explosive fire spirit stones carried by the more than two hundred Divine Sea Realm insects, scattered apart, had drawn much attention from the Insect Race, giving Bingzhou sufficient preparation time. However, the other Eight Great Provinces didn't have such capabilities. To claim land, they could only kill all the insects in front of them. At each portal, the war had already started from the moment the vanguard camp charged into the Insect Race's Great Secret Realm, needing to kill and advance simultaneously, expanding their territory until they stabilized a base and made room for the arrival of the main army.