Wu Si City

It was afternoon. The sun was slanting westward, yet the heat remained fierce.

Beneath the blazing sun, outside Wu Si City's western gate, gathered the City Lord's Mansion, the Four Great Families of Wu Si City and their affiliated family forces, along with 1,700 Dou Zhes from two mercenary groups.

Looking at this vast allied force, I had little confidence. My lips twitched as I stared speechlessly at the scene before me.

Of the 1,700 men, aside from the five hundred soldiers of the City Lord's Mansion, who had some discipline, the remaining thousand or so were a mess—an utter mess!

Though these thousand-plus men were all at least one-star Dou Zhes, they had never received military training. Alone, in groups of three to five, or in small groups of a dozen or so, they might fight well. But once their numbers reached the thousands—they were nothing more than a rabble!

Their so-called "assembly" meant standing together according to their respective factions. Those who knew one another gathered in groups of three or five, exchanging greetings and discussing today's events...

That alone would have been manageable, but some enemies met and immediately came to blows! People nearby either tried to break up the fight, egged them on, or joined in, making the scene even more chaotic.

And between the Four Great Families of Wu Si City and the City Lord's Mansion... things did not seem particularly harmonious either.

The City Lord of Wu Si had changed into military attire, a sharp sword at his waist and dozens of guards behind him. He looked every bit the imposing commander.

Yet there was no pride on his face, only utmost seriousness. His eyes were fixed on the four heads of the Four Great Families before him. Gritting his teeth, he forced out each word: "Four Patriarchs, Wu Si City now faces a catastrophe. Can you place your trust in Mo and allow me to command this battle in full?!"

The four patriarchs reacted differently. One who was close to Mo Wang agreed. Two were noncommittal, while the last turned to look at Yun Yun's back. After staring at her in a daze for a moment, he turned back and sneered, "City Lord Mo is far too timid. With the Yun Lan Sect Master here, what could possibly happen to Wu Si City?"

The words "Yun Lan Sect Master" seemed to possess some sort of magic. Upon hearing them, the two previously noncommittal patriarchs were immediately invigorated and paid Mo Wang no further heed.

I frowned. These people were far too optimistic. Perhaps the Yun Lan Sect's reputation was simply too great. To people whose highest cultivation was only Da Dou Shi, a Dou Emperor was undoubtedly a god of war descending from the heavens...

But I had seen Yun Yun fight the Amethyst Winged Lion King, and I knew she was no match for the Lion King. Irritation rose within me. With a cold snort, I walked between the five men.

They immediately stopped arguing and silently looked at me with unfriendly expressions. If I had not lured the magical beasts here, why would they be suffering through this ordeal?

I did not care in the slightest. Sweeping my cold gaze across them, I shouted, "This battle will be commanded by City Lord Mo Wang. Anyone who dares speak nonsense again will be executed without exception!"

They fell silent for a while, but none dared refute me. At this moment, I undoubtedly represented Yun Yun. One after another, they agreed.

I nodded and ignored them. Stepping to Yun Yun's side, I hesitated before asking, "Senior, what do you think our chances of victory are?"

Yun Yun turned her head and looked at the thousand-odd disorderly allied troops. After a moment of silence, she shook her head. "The Lion King's strength is about equal to mine. I cannot keep it here, but protecting myself will not be a problem."

She looked at me again and said softly, "Little fellow, this place is very dangerous. You should leave quickly."

I hesitated. Part of me wanted to stay, but the allied army truly gave me no confidence. Thinking of the vow I had made in the Lion King's lair, I gave an embarrassed smile. "In that case, Senior, I will wait for you inside Wu Si City."

Having obtained command, Mo Wang hurriedly issued order after order. The 1,700 men began to move, forming left, center, and right divisions. They barely began to look like an army, but it was still not enough to make me stay.

Shaking my head in disappointment, I went around the allied army and returned to Wu Si City alone.

I stood atop Wu Si City's walls and looked down at the city. Wu Si City was not large, with only several tens of thousands of residents, but at this moment, it resembled a boiling cauldron, chaotic and turbulent.

All because a world-ending, terrifying Rank 6 Magical Beast was coming.

I saw people rushing home, pulling their parents, wives, and children inside before tightly shutting their doors and windows. It was as though those low, crude houses were safe enough to withstand a Rank 6 Magical Beast.

I saw the large and small family factions bustling with activity. Half their carriages were loaded with money and treasures, while the other half carried women and children. Some rode horses, fleeing the city in a grand procession. At the slightest obstruction along the way, they lashed out with whips, as though they could outrun the Amethyst Winged Lion King and truly escape...

Many more took advantage of the chaos to smash, burn, loot, and pillage everywhere. Cackling grotesquely, they set house after house ablaze, thick black smoke rising into the sky. They pinned young maidens and married women beneath them, tearing away their clothes...

The desires they usually kept buried deep within their hearts were brutally unleashed at this moment—indeed, no matter the world, there would never be a shortage of such people.

Fortunately, the City Lord's Mansion had left some soldiers within the city. Its officials were leading those soldiers in an effort to maintain order. Though they seemed powerless and insignificant, they still gave the city's people a sliver of hope.

I gently shook my head, withdrew my gaze, and let out a faint sigh. After this battle, regardless of victory or defeat, Wu Si City would likely need ten years before it could recover its strength...

Just then, a sharp cry suddenly rang out beyond the city. It was Yun Yun's warning.

My heart stirred. Raising my head, I gazed into the distance and saw a black dot drawing closer and closer—had it finally come?!

Looking down again, I saw the 1,700 allied troops divided into left, center, and right divisions, surrounding Yun Yun in a U-shaped formation.

At Yun Yun's warning, the entire allied army shuddered. A constant clamor rose up. Some fearless men, boiling with hot blood, were shouting wildly; those who were afraid were shouting wildly as well, making my head ache.

Fortunately, officers at every level shouted loudly and resorted to punches and kicks, finally suppressing the soldiers' unease.

"Roar!"

A shrill roar came from the distant sky, followed by the descent of an enormous figure.

It was thirty feet long, with wings spanning fifty feet. It circled high in the air, looking down upon the allied army below.

Yun Yun also formed her Azure Wings and flew thirty feet into the air. Looking up at the Amethyst Winged Lion King, she called softly, "Lion King, this is human territory. You should not have come. Return to the Monster Mountain Range."

The Amethyst Winged Lion King let out an enraged roar. Its blood-red eyes glared fixedly at Yun Yun as it bellowed, "Humans, you killed my child. You must die!"

It roared toward the sky, and a purple fireball came crashing down. Its body followed close behind the fireball, diving straight toward Yun Yun.

Yun Yun gently shook her head and said nothing more. She used a battle skill to block the fireball, then took the opportunity to descend into the middle of the allied army. The Amethyst Winged Lion King followed Yun Yun down, landing right within the army's encirclement.

Mo Wang's eyes widened as he stared fixedly at the Amethyst Winged Lion King. When it entered the range of most of the archers, he immediately gathered his Dou Qi and shouted, "Fire!"

At once, two Dragon Hunting Crossbows, four catapults, and nearly two hundred Dragon Slayer Crossbows were fired simultaneously, launching their attack on the Amethyst Winged Lion King.

The Amethyst Winged Lion King growled lowly and raised a forepaw to swat aside the more threatening Dragon Hunting Crossbow bolts. Then the purple flames over its entire body suddenly surged. Even I could faintly feel the intense scorching heat, and a sense of foreboding arose in my heart.

Sure enough, the Dragon Slayer Crossbow bolts melted into molten iron the moment they approached the Amethyst Winged Lion King!

Streams of scalding molten iron fell feebly from the sky, glowing red as they burned the wheat in the fields below into ash.

"Where a great army passes, thorns will surely grow. This fertile land will likely become a haunted domain littered with corpses..."

I could not help sighing. I remembered the crisscrossing paths outside Wu Si City whenever I had entered or left it, the endless wheat fields stretching as far as the eye could see, villages standing in the distance, and hundreds or thousands of farmers scattered through the nearby fields, plowing with oxen...

And now?

The 1,700 allied troops had formed ranks. The roads were certainly not enough to hold them, so they had formed up throughout the wheat fields. Stalk after stalk of ripening wheat had been trampled into the ground, leaving a complete mess.

Even more terrifying was the Amethyst Winged Lion King, a fire-attributed Rank 6 Magical Beast. Once its purple flames fell and spread through the fields, would they burn for dozens of miles? Or hundreds before finally stopping?

This winter would be a hard one for Wu Si City...

"Javelins!"

At that moment, a sharp shout jolted me awake. It was Mo Wang. Looking down, I saw that the allied troops at the front and on both flanks each held a refined iron javelin. At Mo Wang's command, they divided into three groups and threw them in succession.

In an instant, 1,500 javelins traced arcs through the air, raining down continuously upon the Amethyst Winged Lion King. The sky darkened.

Bang! Bang!

From time to time, two or several javelins collided in midair, producing ear-piercing clangs and showers of sparks. They then ricocheted away, disrupting even more javelins.

But most of the javelins still fell toward the Amethyst Winged Lion King. Before this saturation attack, the proud Lion King that had pursued us all the way from the Monster Mountain Range seemed to feel a trace of fear.

With a roar, it beat its wings and tried to soar upward. But at some point, Yun Yun had already circled above it, a cold streak of sword light thrusting straight toward its back.

The Lion King opened its mouth and spat out a purple fireball. The fireball collided with the sword light and exploded with a boom. As the shockwave rippled outward, both Yun Yun and the Lion King staggered back several steps.

Thus, the Lion King fell back into the mass of javelins. Seeing that it could not evade them, brutality flashed in its eyes, and the purple flames around its body surged again.

But even as a Rank 6 Magical Beast with vast Dou Qi reserves, it was limited by the width of its meridians. There was a threshold to how much Dou Qi it could use at once.

After melting roughly a thousand javelins, the purple flames on its body finally began to gradually die down.

Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang...

The remaining three hundred or so javelins finally struck the Lion King. Refined iron collided with the purple outer layer of its body, which seemed neither fur nor scales, producing the sound of steel striking steel!

The Amethyst Winged Lion King's body merely trembled a few times. The successive attacks of more than three hundred javelins had failed to break through its defenses!