Responsibility

Qian Renxue stopped mid-sentence.

"That's my responsibility." Qian Xunji squatted down, placed his hands on Qian Renxue's shoulders, and looked at her at eye level. "I am your mother's husband, a member of the Spirit Hall, and it is my responsibility to defend the city."

"But your responsibility isn't here. The family needs you now. Xiao Xiao has lost her father, her aunt has to guard Xiao Xi's spirit, and her grandmother is still crying. You are the older sister, and you have to protect this family for your father. This is an order, not a matter for discussion."

Qian Renxue lowered her eyes, and slowly loosened her grip on his sleeve.

"Then you must come back safely."

Qian Xunji a deep breath, raised his hand and rubbed the top of her head, his tone finally softening. "Be good, wait for me to come back."

He straightened up and looked at Qian Daoliu standing in the doorway. "Dad, keep an eye on Xiao Xue."

Qian Daoliu nodded and reached out to pull Qian Renxue to his side.

"Xunji, you must come back safely."

"Good."

Qian Xunji turned around, pushed open the courtyard gate, and then flew towards the outer city.

Qian Renxue stood at the door, watching the familiar figure disappear into the distance until it was no longer visible, before turning around and going inside with Bi Dashan.

The room was so quiet it made one feel suffocated.

Ling Yuan sat in the corner of the living room, holding the Soul Storage Bottle in both hands.

She didn't cry or say anything; she just sat there, her eyes devoid of any expression.

Liu Xiulan sat beside her, tears streaming down her wrinkled face. She wiped them away, but they kept flowing.

Bi Xiaoxiao was curled up on the sofa, covered with Ling Yuan's outer robe, already asleep, but her light brows were tightly furrowed, as if she were in great pain even in her sleep.

The sounds of pots and pans clattering came from the kitchen.

Hu Liena stood on a small stool, tiptoeing as she stacked the washed bowls one by one into the cupboard.

Xie Yue stood in front of the stove, holding a spatula in her hand, while a simple vegetable porridge simmered in the pot.

Back in the village, he would cook while his parents worked.

Qian Renxue walked to the sofa, bent down and tucked back in the outer robe that Bi Xiaoxiao had kicked off halfway.

Qian Renxue sat on the sofa for a while, her eyes fixed on the stairs.

She pursed her lips, stood up, and said, "Grandpa, I'm going upstairs to rest for a bit."

Bi Dashan was sitting in the chair opposite the sofa. Hearing Qian Renxue's words, he said, "Xiao Xue, your father entrusted you to me before he left."

"If you climb out of the second-floor window, my old bones won't be able to catch you."

Bi Dashan stood up, walked to the sofa, picked up a folded blanket, shook it out, and spread it next to the sofa cushions. "Sleep on the sofa tonight. If you need to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night, Grandpa will go with you."

Qian Renxue turned around and met the calm, all-seeing eyes of Bi Dashan, then swallowed her words back.

She lowered her eyes, obediently walked back, took off her shoes, and lay down on the sofa.

When Qian Xunji landed on the city wall of the East Main Gate, the golden light of the Bright Lamp illuminated the wall, but beyond the light, the Black Mist had already pressed down again to a place less than five miles away from the city wall.

Because it was nighttime, the fog was even thicker than during the day, like a black tsunami hanging in mid-air, ready to crash down at any moment.

Tens of thousands of soldiers regrouped at the edge of the Black Mist, the lifeless taxi drivers gripping their spears, motionless.

"Uncle Golden Crocodile, how is the situation?" Qian Xunji to Golden Crocodile Douluo's side.

"There are no signs of an attack yet."

Qian Xunji at the artillerymen and Soul Master legions standing ready on the city wall. "Listen up, everyone, don't let your guard down, be on high alert."

"Yes!" came a unified reply from the city wall.

Soon, Qian Daoliu arrived as well.

Next came Azure Luan Douluo and Mighty Lion Douluo. The two elders flew down from the north and south directions onto the city wall, nodded to Qian Xunji and Qian Daoliu, and then returned to their respective positions.

Just then, urgent reports came through the Soul-Guided Communicator from the guards on duty at both the North and West Gate gates.

"This is bad! Two Peak Douluo are attacking at the same time!"

Qian Xunji, "Which two are they?"

"It's Sword Douluo Chen Xin, and Bone Douluo Gu Rong."

"Elder Ju and Elder Ghost are barely holding back Bone Douluo using their Martial Soul Fusion Skill, the Polarity Stillness Domain."

"The Jiang Mo Offering and the Qian Jun Offering have been connected with Sword Douluo."

Golden Crocodile Douluo said, "The North Gate and West Gate are under attack at the same time. Should we send troops to provide support?"

Qian Xunji looked thoughtful. The North Gate and the West Gate were under attack, but the East Gate, the main battlefield where the daytime fighting was most intense, showed no signs of attack except for the Black Mist slowly advancing.

He quickly calculated in his mind: Spirit City includes both inner and outer cities, and its area is even larger than that of Heaven Dou City. It would take him several minutes to fly from the East Main Gate to the North Gate at his fastest speed, so the round trip would take twice as long.

If that woman in black were to launch a full-scale attack on the East Main Gate while he was away, Qian Daoliu alone might not be able to stop her, and even with Golden Crocodile, they would only barely hold on.

This doesn't seem like a dispersed attack; it's more like luring the snake out of its hole or diverting the tiger away from its mountain.

However, if those two Peak Douluo really launch a full-scale attack regardless of the cost, Beimen and West Gate really wouldn't be able to hold out for long.

"Third brother, fourth brother."

At this moment, Qian Daoliu spoke up, "You two go and help, one at the north gate and one at the West Gate."

"If that woman in black appears over there, don't fight her head-on. Notify us immediately using your Soul-Guided Communicator, and we'll head over right away."

Azure Luan Douluo and Mighty Lion Douluo responded simultaneously, "Okay."

Not long after the two left, the Heaven Dou army suddenly moved.

Hundreds of thousands of soldiers simultaneously shifted from a standstill to a charge.

The formation was impeccable. The front row of heavy shield bearers advanced their waist-high black iron shields side by side, while the rear row of spearmen peered through the gaps in the shields, their spear tips densely packed, and the archers' arrows were already nocked.

This army also included a mixed formation of Soul Master legions directly under the Heaven Dou Empire and disciples dressed in the uniforms of the Clear Sky Sect and the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, making them far more ferocious than ordinary soldiers.

Qian Xunji stood at the forefront of the city wall at the East Main Gate: "Soul Guidance Cannon fire simultaneously across the entire gate! Angel Legion, Soul Tool Legion, launch attacks in waves, infiltrate in small teams, don't bother engaging the enemy Soul Master, focus on striking the enemy's core formation!"

On the city wall, thousands of Soul Guidance Cannon fired simultaneously.

Shells rained down on the charging army.

But this time, the army did not fall in droves as they had during the day.

The Soul Master of the Heaven Dou faction simultaneously unleashed their defensive Soul Skill, layering various Soul Power shields in front of them, blocking most of the Soul Guidance Cannon's firepower.

Disciples of the Clear Sky Sect, wielding Clear Sky Hammer, burst out from the gaps in the shield formation.

The gates of Spirit City were wide open.

The Angel Legion's knights, in teams of six, used their aerial and elemental advantages to disrupt the rhythm of the opposing Soul Master.

The Soul Tool Legion followed closely behind, carrying mobile Soul Guidance Cannon on their shoulders, specifically targeting the gathering point of the enemy's Clear Sky Sect disciples. With a single shot, several Hammer Sect disciples were blown to pieces.

However, the Heaven Dou Soul Master Legion was equally well-trained. Their defensive Soul Master held off the first wave of attack, while their Power Attack System Soul Master took advantage of the Angel Knights' change of formation to break in and engage in close combat.

Qian Xunji's gaze swept across the chaotic battlefield, locking onto a white-haired old man in the enemy's central position who was directing the Clear Sky Sect disciples in their formation.

He recognized this person; it was none other than the Clear Sky Sect First Elder.