Volume Four: Withering in the Human World - The Siege (I)

The fourth day of the Holy Spirit Festival

5:30--

At this time, most of the citizens who had been enjoying themselves at the Holy Spirit Festival were still fast asleep. As dawn broke, the warehouse district in the Sadington City was also peaceful.

The newly relieved patrolmen yawned and carried spirit stone lamps as they wandered among the large cargo containers, some of which were about two or three cubic meters in size, while others were as big as small villas.

"Old Xue, you look so listless. Did you take drugs again yesterday?"

"Screw your drugs, I just went to a brothel and had a few drinks. Do you think everyone's like you?"

"Tch, so you went to the brothel just to drink? Who are you trying to fool..."

The two patrolmen chatted idly as they walked deeper into the warehouse area.

"Hmm... is that all?"

"That's right, have none of these biggest guys been dealt with yet? They're really an eyesore here."

The deepest cargo containers are also the largest, some as big as small villas, so big that you have to crane your neck to see the signs.

"Let me see what this is... Hmm... The sign says 'second-hand books,' what's going on? Why are so many second-hand books piled up here?"

Splash!

"Hey? Did you hear anything?"

"Sound?"

"Hmm, the sound coming from these boxes is like someone... turning the pages of a book."

"Are you kidding me? Look how thick this sheet metal is! Even if there were really pages turning, how could that possibly travel outside? How many books would have to be turned at once?"

"--Many, many more."

Ta-da! Ta-da!

After two muffled thuds, the two unlucky men collapsed to the ground, behind them were two black-robed figures who had appeared out of nowhere.

"There are always some small fry getting in the way... How much time do we have left?"

"Almost there... 15 seconds, 14 seconds, 13, 12..."

"Ha, it seems like we two brothers are the ones who opened the door to a new era."

One of the men in black robes walked to the largest cargo box and unlocked it with a click of a key.

"...4, 3, 2, 1--Here it comes!!!"

"Good--!!!"

The two men pulled with all their might, and the door of the large cargo container quickly opened, immediately emitting the sound of countless pages turning. The pages of thousands of books moved without wind, emitting a dazzling golden-gray light. Within this light, countless figures emerged, the leader being a tall, upright young man carrying Greatsword. Upon seeing him, the two members of the Seventh Division immediately knelt on one knee in salute.

"Reporting to Lord Nid, the handover mission has been successfully completed. Please provide further instructions!"

"Very good..."

Nid stepped nimbly out of the cargo container, and it was only then that his two accomplices noticed his unusual demeanor— Nid usually carried only a simple Greatsword, but now he held Greatsword in his right hand, while his left hand held a rusty broadsword with jagged serrations, and behind him were three other enormous bladed weapons stacked in a star-shaped pattern. These weapons looked incredibly heavy; an ordinary person could barely lift one with all their might, yet Nid carried five at once without showing the slightest sign of fatigue.

Behind Nid was Uncle Brad, whose massive, wooden frame was clad in heavy armor, followed by Nid and Brad's personal guard.

"Brad, use your powers to set up an early warning and soundproof barrier."

"Clear."

Brad responded in a deep voice, clasped his hands together, and when he opened them again, a dark purple light scattered in all directions, quickly surrounding the warehouse area.

Nid nodded in satisfaction, then turned to look at the two men who had come to meet him.

"Both of you, lower your heads slightly."

"Yes, ma'am!"

Although they were a little confused for a moment, they did as instructed.

That instant--

--Zheng!!!!

The clang of swords rang out, and the two felt a gust of wind sweep past their heads, followed by a deafening tearing sound of metal behind them, and the clatter of heavy objects hitting the ground. Trembling, they turned around to find... their view had widened considerably?

To be precise, the countless large cargo containers that had been obstructing the view were gone, leaving only scrap metal and debris scattered all over the ground. A single powerful blow had leveled the entire warehouse area.

"Now the area is much more open—the main force, begin assembling!"

As he spoke, Nid slashed his Greatsword and cleaver to the sides simultaneously. Instantly, an invisible force swept across the entire area, as if a giant hand had swept away all the debris to the edges, clearing a large open space. This open space was quickly filled with countless soldiers in dark red uniforms. Xiao's efforts had not been in vain; the efficiency of the countless books transporting the soldiers was truly astonishing. But this was not all; new soldiers continued to emerge from the books.

"Very good..."

Nid scanned the entire area; his own strength and the power of his weapons combined to create an extremely powerful pressure. Everyone whose gaze fell upon him immediately gripped their weapons, preparing for battle.

"Time waits for no one! After long and meticulous preparations, we have finally reached the final step! If not now, when? Brave warriors, follow my lead! For the great revolution!!!"

For the great revolution!!!!!

In the Torres City, tens of thousands of books floated and connected, forming a huge gate of light, into which countless soldiers rushed.

Directly beneath the Gate of Light, Xiao Zheng held her thick book, struggling to maintain the gate's existence. This was the first time she had used her advanced ability to teleport so many people, which put considerable pressure on her.

"Sister, are you alright?"

"I'm a little tired... but I've never felt this motivated before!"

Indeed, although Xiao was already panting heavily, her eyes were shining brightly.

"But please be mindful of your abilities..."

"Don't worry, Little Ying. But you... are you really going to join the war?"

"Of course! I'm not the same person I used to be. I'm very confident now!"

Little Ying tugged at her dark red military uniform. To be honest, the heroic style of the uniform didn't suit her at all; it was like a little girl secretly using her mother's cosmetics.

"... Destroy both friendly and enemy forces?"

"What are you talking about?! My control over explosions is now at its peak! I can completely control the power and range of the explosion!"

"... But no matter how well you can control it, what will you do if friendly forces and enemy forces are locked in combat?"

"Let's see how it goes?"

"That can't be right!!!"

No! We absolutely cannot send her to the battlefield! It would be disastrous in every way!

"Don't worry, Miss Xiao."

"Loxue?"

Loxue still had that gentle smile, and patted Xiao's shoulder to reassure her not to worry.

"'Anyone with ability should be put to good use' -- this is my principle for employing people. Little Ying's special ability is indeed very dangerous, but as long as she is bombed at specific locations under our command, she can become a powerful fighting force. Moreover, Little Ying can now control her bubbles to carry out long-range bombing, so there is no need to worry about her being at the forefront."

"Well..."

"Okay, I'm off now. Good luck, sister!"

"Wait a minute... tsk, be careful! Don't take this lightly!"

"Alert! Alert! A large number of the Rebel Army have suddenly appeared in Sadington City! Repeat, Sadington City— "

"--Shut up!"

Xiao Wu punched the noisy alarm so hard it shattered, and before the fragments even hit the ground, she had already shot dozens of meters away. Behind her was Sasin, who was constantly moving between shadows, and he was extremely anxious at this moment.

"Wait, wait, Xiao Wu! Destroying the alarm directly will be noticed--"

"Just take care of it before they can react!"

Bang! Thud! Crash! Boom!

Xiao Wu flashed past the guards who rushed out of the room like a black and white lightning bolt, and everyone collapsed to the ground unconscious.

"All done, let's move on to the next stop!"

Xiao Wu had long since left the rest of the Seventh Division behind; only Sasin could barely keep up with her speed. He was truly amazed this time; faced with overwhelming power, the necessity of "making a plan" might even be reduced to zero.

"Then there are three more security doors connected together ahead--"

"Form 192: Twin Dragons!"

With her dragon-like fists, she thrust them out, forcefully inserting them into the gaps of the security door. Then, with a powerful tug, she ripped the several-ton metal door, protected by countless divine spells, into two twisted pieces of scrap metal. But her actions didn't stop there. She nimbly grabbed the two large pieces of scrap metal, deflecting the countless arrows of light that shot towards her from behind the door. Then, with a low roar, she slammed the two massive lumps of mass forward! After a series of wailing screams, no one was left standing except for her and Sasin.

"... So, this is the last one?"

This enormous facility originally consisted of dozens of control rooms and guard posts built around the large teleportation array, but thanks to Xiao Wu's actions, all of these places have now been completely destroyed.

"Hmm, Xiao Wu is amazing. We never even considered using brute force before..."

"I have some experience with stealth, but I don't want to waste time against a lineup like this... Never mind that, have all the locations been secured?"

"Don't worry, the most important control rooms and the storerooms for storing Spirit Marrow are already under our control."

"That's good..."

Xiao Wu nodded slightly, but seemed a little distracted.

"Xiao Wu, is something on your mind?"

"I'm just worried about a certain little girl... Never mind all that! Compared to all that, why bother 'controlling' the large teleportation array? Wouldn't it be better to just destroy it once and for all?"

"We'd like to too, but Xiao Wu, please sense the fluctuations underground."

"Underground?"

Xiao Wu placed her hand on the ground and carefully sensed it. To her surprise, countless points of light, symbolizing spiritual power, flowed continuously underground, converging into a massive torrent of light!

"A spiritual vein!?"

"That's right! The super-large cities and many strategic locations of the West Saint Continent were built along spiritual veins. Although the energy that powers the teleportation arrays is the Spirit Marrow, it is the underground spiritual veins that have sustained the teleportation arrays for thousands of years! As long as the spiritual veins don't fail, the teleportation arrays can continuously repair themselves!"

"Destroying a spiritual vein is extremely difficult, and the disastrous consequences are unpredictable, so destroying the teleportation array was never an option in the first place... Tsk, what a hassle."

"Don't panic, Ms. Xiao Wu. We're halfway through our mission. Many more comrades will be arriving to reinforce us. Hold this place and prevent the enemy from taking it back!"

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