The War Begins

A dazzling, shimmering white lightning bolt ripped through the sky, like a divine sword of punishment, slashing down towards Si Ming and enveloping the entire manor in a shimmering white light. This was merely the prelude; immediately following, various weapons made of lightning rained down upon him.

In the blink of an eye, lightning crisscrossed and shattered the surrounding world.

Faced with this terrifying power, Si Ming was not afraid at all. His fierce fighting spirit was evident in his words. He had no intention of backing down, nor did he intend to use the Si Clan's secret techniques to resolve the situation. Instead, he wanted to meet strength with strength and take the blow head-on.

Immediately, his body swayed slightly, and he swung his arms, channeling the Vajra Demon-Subduing Power and the Asura Divine Power, unleashing punch after punch. The overlapping illusory fist shadows merged into one, and the vast energy condensed into thick pillars of energy, meeting the thunder in the sky and shattering the lightning weapons.

As deafening roars resounded, the earth trembled violently, and thunder exploded, cascading outwards like a shower of lightning, dazzling and magnificent. The fish in the artificial lake were unlucky, floating belly up to the surface one by one.

A moment later, Xing Daozhuang finished his attack and stood still for a while, then sighed, "The student has surpassed the master; Yan Jinghong has taught a fine disciple."

Si Ming quickly offered a few words of modesty.

"Since you have such capabilities, I can confidently entrust this task to you."

Xing Daozhuang took out a piece of paper and handed it to Si Ming, saying, "I've received information that the Demon Race may be planning a decapitation strike against us. The list on this paper is their potential target. So, after the battle begins, you will lead a team of Mohist Knight Guard to patrol the battlefields and ensure the safety of these people."

Si Ming took the paper and glanced at it. It contained the names of generals from various countries, some of whom were at the Spirit Transformation, and some were not. Their fame varied. He immediately understood the importance of this mission and also knew that it was a good mission that could bring him favor.

"I understand, I will do my best."

After Si Ming left, Xing Daozhuang withdrew his hands from behind his back, glanced at his palms, and said, "No wonder the Moth Emperor was defeated by this boy. Judging from his performance just now, he probably held back quite a bit of strength. Considering his age, it's even more terrifying. If my identity is ever exposed, I'll have to get rid of him first... But forget it, there's no use thinking about that now. Right now, I should just keep the Remote Heaven Society busy and unable to threaten me."

Chapter 679 The Beginning of the War

On a coast of Yi State, two massive armies, Human Race and Demon Race, faced off. The total number of troops on both sides reached 800,000, with the Demon Race outnumbering the Human Race by three times. As far as the eye could see, they were a dark, dense mass, seemingly covering the entire coastline.

The atmosphere was unusually heavy. Everyone held their breath, afraid that their loud breathing would attract the enemy's attention. On the battlefield, becoming the object of attention meant the end of one's life.

Soon, the sound of fierce drumming rang out from the Human Race army, while deafening roars echoed from the Demon Race army. A commotion broke out in both armies, and a great battle was about to erupt.

However, instead of deploying large armies and engaging in a hellish melee, both sides sent out a master warrior to duel on the battlefield.

This kind of fictionalized duel between generals was extremely common in the history of the Sea Continent, because the role of the strong was too great. In battles with fewer than 10,000 people, if one side had Spirit Transformation in charge and the other side did not, the latter would often choose to defend and dare not attack, or simply go around.

In addition, sending experts to duel to decide the outcome of the battle can effectively reduce casualties among civilian soldiers. After all, in this world with extraordinary martial prowess, it is too easy for the strong to carry out a massacre. Once both sides engage in a full-scale battle, the casualty rate often soars to over 40%, and after a few battles, everyone will be wiped out.

Of course, in a war like this one involving 800,000 troops, the outcome would no longer be decided by one or two generals, but the generals' performance would still affect the morale of both armies.

Neither side fielded their top generals in the first battle; the Human Race side had a top expert, while the Demon Race side had a male mantis demon Demon General.

The strength of the Demon General varies, with the weakest being equivalent to a first-rate master with Internal Cultivation Level Nine, and the strongest being at the initial stage of the Spirit Transformation realm. This mantis demon Demon General clearly has not reached the Spirit Transformation level.

After a fierce battle, neither side gained the upper hand. In the end, the Human Race expert, relying on the advantage of his weapon, managed to win by a single move, severing the mantis Demon General in half. However, he was also seriously injured and had to retreat back to his army.

Afterwards, both sides sent their generals to fight several more battles, with each side winning and losing. However, the Human Race won more often. It wasn't that the Demon Race lacked experts, but rather that the Demon Race didn't know how to forge weapons and could only rely on their strong bodies and ordinary weapons they had plundered. On the other hand, Human Race experts each possessed a divine weapon. This slight advantage became a crucial factor in tipping the scales in battle.

However, the Demon Race has a strict hierarchy, and humanoid Demon Race have absolute command over non-humanoid Demon Beast. Therefore, they don't care much about morale. Moreover, they have a numerical advantage, so they are guaranteed to win in terms of attrition. It wasn't until the Human Race sent a Nascent Spirit Transformation who killed three Demon General that the Demon Race stopped sending Demon General to their deaths.

The Demon General transformed into human form, has gained intelligence, unlike the lower-level Demon Beast who only obediently follow orders. Although they would not openly disobey their superiors' orders, they would still feel dissatisfied if the Demon Marshal ordered them to their deaths. At worst, they would go through the motions, pretend to fight a few moves, and then feign defeat and flee back to their formation.

Unable to win in a one-on-one duel with the generals, the Demon Race commander mobilized his demon army to launch an offensive. This Demon Marshal was clearly knowledgeable in military strategy; instead of directly ordering all the Demon Beast to charge forward, he mobilized an elite force to launch an attack on the western defense line, while not sending a single Demon Beast to the eastern defense line.

The Human Race reacted swiftly, and soon an elite force composed of experts at Internal Energy Level Seven arrived at the western defense line. Clad in armor and wielding massive sabers, they showed no fear in the face of the surging horde of Devil Beast.

"First move, Gang Qi Slash!"

Fifty experts charged forward with their swords drawn, then suddenly stopped just ten meters from the horde of Demon Beast. Their swords, brimming with true True Qi, swung forward with a fierce slash, unleashing elongated, crescent-shaped blades of light that skimmed the ground, slicing through the Demon Beast and spraying out liquids of various colors. The Demon Beast fell like wheat being harvested, cleaved in two.

The fifty blades of energy flew for over thirty meters before disappearing, killing countless Demon Beast along the way. Even in this one-sided massacre, the Demon Beast did not change course, continuing to surge forward like towering waves crashing against the dark blue-green reef-like defensive line, ultimately futilely disintegrating into scattered sprays of water.

"Second column, Gang Qi Slash!"

"Third column, Gang Qi Slash!"

Although unleashing such a powerful blade aura consumes less than 20% of one's True Qi, it still requires replenishment. Therefore, alternating formations become a necessary tactic.

The first row of warriors who had just unleashed their sword energy retreated, while the second row charged forward, wielding their sabers. They then took turns with the third row, and the cycle repeated.

This kind of sword energy formation does not slash vertically, but horizontally. This is because a vertical slash can only cut a line, while a horizontal slash can cut an area. This way, the killing area is wider, enough to cover the battlefield within 30 meters in front. Unless the enemy leaps upwards at the moment the sword energy is slashed, they will only be cut in half at the waist.

This kill rate is far greater than that of the musketeers; a large number of enemies are wiped out in a flash, guaranteeing no survivors, unless the enemy can glue their severed bodies back together.

In this world of extraordinary martial prowess, even ordinary experts are capable of inflicting massacres on ordinary people without the need for Spirit Transformation stage experts to intervene. This is why people prefer to settle scores through duels between generals; otherwise, the casualty rate would be far too high, so high that no country could afford the consequences of defeat.

Of course, there's no need to be so polite with the Demon Race.

Upon seeing this, the Demon Race commander immediately dispatched additional troops, sending a large number of wasp-like demons to launch an attack from the air. These wasp-like Demon Beast were not as powerful as the Demon General, but they were still the size of basketballs. Their sharp stingers on their abdomens ensured that each strike would leave a hole. They cooperated with the Demon Beast below to launch a dual air and land offensive.

The Human Race leader quickly responded, withdrawing the sword-wielding team and replacing them with Divine Arts team. In terms of lethality, weapons are ultimately no match for Technique Method.

This group of Divine Arts were all believers in the fire god Zhurong. Each of them wore a crimson robe. Together, they summoned the fire god, transforming their True Qi into divine power. In the blink of an eye, crimson fiery clouds appeared in the sky, scattering large swaths of fiery rainbows downwards.

In that instant, it was as if the gates of purgatory had opened and the end of the world had arrived. Those wasp spirits were no match for the scorching flames. Even a tiny spark would set them ablaze as if they had been doused with oil, and within a few breaths, they would be reduced to charcoal and fall to the ground.

The Demon Beast running below were even more unlucky. They didn't even get close to their enemies before being engulfed in a raging sea of fire. In particular, the wasp spirits that were set ablaze turned into giant fireballs, acting as accelerants and amplifying the power of the Divine Arts.

Faced with this overwhelming attack from above, the Demon Beast on land were like rats in a bellows, completely disoriented. They could only dart around a few times before their tendons, unable to withstand the continuous burning of the high-temperature flames, immediately atrophied and broke, causing them to fall heavily to the ground and be squeezed into two piles of roasted meat.

In two clashes, humanity emerged victorious with zero casualties—a triumph of tactics and martial arts systems.

However, humanity's good fortune ended there. The next moment, the sea surface suddenly bulged upwards, as if the tide were rising, and the nearby beaches shook. When the seawater was raised to thirty meters, a huge creature leaped out of the water, which turned out to be a Baxia.

Baxia's appearance is very similar to that of a tortoise, with only minor differences. For example, tortoises do not have teeth, while Baxia has a row of sharp teeth. It is also much more ferocious than a tortoise. Its first reaction when encountering danger is not to retract its head, but to bite its enemy hard.

This Baxia is comparable to a small island, standing thirty meters tall, its entire body covered in scales, its shell on its back the size of four football fields, and its four legs as large as warships; every step it takes makes the earth tremble.

This was Demon Beast of such size that humans had never encountered before, and they were immediately somewhat flustered. The large Demon Beast they had encountered in the past were at most at the level of giant whales, but compared to Baxia, a giant whale was only the size of one leg.