Even from a great distance, Shi Yongheng could smell the smoke of war.
The Xuanhuang Sky Rift lay where two mountain ranges met. Its terrain made it a natural fortress, easy to defend and hard to attack.
Above the Heavenly Ravine, bitterly cold winds raged year-round. Even an ordinary Dou Huang expert dared not touch them. The mountains flanking Xuanhuang Fortress looked as though a sharp giant axe had split them, leaving their faces unnaturally smooth. They were so imposing that even some Dou Huang experts could not fly straight over them.
Xuanhuang Fortress stood at the most vital point of the Xuanhuang Sky Rift. For a thousand miles around, it was the only place anyone could pass through.
Even the nearby minor empires had to pass through it to trade with one another. With terrain so favorable, the fortress's importance went without saying. No one knew how dearly the Flame Alliance had paid to seize it years ago.
Beyond Xuanhuang Fortress stretched a grassland with no end in sight. From the heights of the fortress, one could see anything that stirred across it.
Now, however, a vast black fog shrouded the grassland beyond. Beneath it came the faint roar of battle. A murderous aura surged skyward, leaving everyone atop Xuanhuang Fortress grim-faced.
Rumble!
Heavy storm clouds covered the Xuanhuang Sky Rift. Low thunder rolled within them, echoing for a hundred miles without cease...
Beyond Xuanhuang Fortress, the black fog began to recede. As it drew back, countless figures emerged from its depths. The sea of people stretched to the edge of sight. Battle cries thundered from the army, making the entire mountain range tremble.
Atop the fortress walls, hundreds of yards high, countless Flame Alliance warriors gazed grimly at that distant human tide. The alliance had faced many