"What's going on? Why are two Northern Dynasty armies fighting each other?"
"Gasp—it's the Great Gate Army's banner. That unit is the Northern Dynasty's Great Gate Army."
"Tuoba Guanghe has reached the capital. Has Linxia fallen?!"
The night was dark, horns blared long and loud, and war drums thundered. The soldiers guarding the northern gate stared in shock at the two armies battling outside the city.
One was the Northern Dynasty army that had arrived beneath the walls not long ago. They had surrounded the city without attacking, remaining locked in a standoff with the defenders.
The other had only just arrived. Through the flickering firelight, sharp-eyed soldiers made out the Great Gate Army's banner. Just as terror chilled them to the bone, they saw the two forces begin fighting outside the city.
Rather than a battle, it was more like a one-sided slaughter.
The defenders did not understand why the Northern Dynasty army had turned on itself, but they were happy to watch the tigers fight from the mountain. They beat the drums to sound the alarm and began preparing for battle.
War raged outside the city, but things within were no better. Heavenly Secrets Tower had turned into a haunted tower, unleashing corpse demons and Spirit Servants. Driven by their bloodthirsty instincts, they slaughtered anyone they encountered in the city. Some broke into private homes and massacred their occupants.
Others engaged the city defense forces in fierce combat.
Meanwhile, the Imperial City Directorate loyal to the Zheng Family, along with some of the city defense force's higher-ranking officers, had fallen into confusion and indecision. Zheng Wenhan was dead.
They knew full well that Zheng Wenhan had harbored treasonous ambitions, and they knew they had been committing crimes grave enough to exterminate their clans. Now that Zheng Wenhan had