In Flower Territory, riots began breaking out on streets throughout the city. They quickly spread from the outskirts of the territory to the Lord's Mansion.
For a while, the roars of men, the sobs of women, and the crackling of burning houses reached Lin Lei's ears from outside.
"Why haven't the City Defense Department's guards deployed yet?"
Hearing the screams outside, Lin Lei closed his eyes, unable to bear it. He knew he couldn't go out. His most important responsibility now was to hold the path to the inner courtyard and buy time for Alice's plan.
"Bang!"
A violent crash came from the front gate of the Lord's Mansion. Lin Lei's eyes snapped open, his gaze sharp.
He knew the enemy had arrived. All he had to do now was wait for them to approach, then cut them all down.
The first line of defense at the Lord's Mansion was Hera's troop of more than four hundred soldiers, stationed in every corner around the estate. The undead would encounter them first.
As the cries of battle grew louder and the enemy drew closer, Lin Lei, who had been standing at attention, mounted his warhorse.
"Quick, quick..."
Of the more than three hundred men, only four or five remained. They carried the badly wounded Hera past Lin Lei and the others, fleeing toward the secret passage deeper inside.
"Brothers, it's our turn."
With a thought, Lin Lei used the Guan Yu card in his system. As a mechanical notification sounded, his full suit of iron armor transformed into a green battle robe, and the Two-Bladed Three-Pointed Spear in his hands became the heavy Green Dragon Crescent Blade.
Red Hare, who had originally worn only a saddle, was now clad in armor. A dazzling light gleamed in his eyes.
"Whew."
Lin Lei had already experienced using the Yang Jian card once. It took him only a few minutes to get used to his suddenly soaring strength, and he quickly grew comfortable wielding the great blade as well.
Lin Lei assessed his strength. He was probably around the third tier of the Gold rank. Though that still left him a long way from the Platinum rank, Gold-rank strength was enough to face the Shadow Council's threat in the battle ahead.
"They're here."
A wave of darkness swept in. Black mist appeared in the direction from which the first line's remaining soldiers had fled, carrying chilling screams within it.
"Lady Moran!"
One of Lin Lei's subordinates cried out. Lin Lei followed his gaze.
A woman in a black dress stared at them expressionlessly, her face twisted with the same viciousness as the vengeful spirits.
"Th-this is Lady Moran? Wasn't she supposed to be the most beautiful woman in Flower Territory? How could she look like this?"
"Her features prove she's Lady Moran. This isn't how she used to look. She never had those venomous eyes or those terrifying bloody streaks before."
Henry spoke with certainty.
"That's right, I'm Moran. If you know what's good for you, step aside now, or you'll all die."
Moran's voice sounded normal at first, but grew stranger and more ethereal as she spoke.
"Careful! Watch out for her voice. She's using a mental spell!"
With his formidable strength, Lin Lei was the first to notice something wrong. He hurriedly warned the soldiers around him to cover their ears.
As Moran continued to chant where she stood, Lin Lei charged straight at her, forcing her to stop casting.
"Hmph."
Lady Moran gave a cold snort and lightly dodged Lin Lei's charge. But he had already accomplished his goal. The soldiers, who had been suffering miserably, were no longer in pain. They picked up the weapons they had dropped and charged at Moran's group.
"Xuanshui, Yishe, are you two old coots still not going to do anything?"
After her first appearance ended in failure, Lady Moran spoke to the two black-robed figures standing nearby and watching the show.
"Isn't this a chance for you to show off, madam? How could the two of us brothers interfere with your fight?"
Yishe, on the left, spoke with a false smile. Lady Moran seethed inwardly. The two of them were trying to take advantage of the situation and squeeze some benefits out of her.
"Damn you. Aren't you afraid the lord will punish you?"
"Heh. We brothers aren't in charge of this operation. Even if it fails, we probably won't be punished too harshly. Of course, if you give each of us a thousand souls, we might be willing to lend a hand."
Xuanshui, on the right, picked up where he left off.
"Fine."
Moran had no choice but to agree.
"Madam is certainly generous. Now, allow us brothers to show you what we can do."
With that, Xuanshui and Yishe took off their black robes, revealing their true appearances.
"Orcs!"
Lin Lei, who had been watching them warily, cried out in shock.
"Damn it, has the Beast Race invasion already begun?"
Lin Lei cursed inwardly.
"Heh."
Xuanshui and Yishe, now revealed in their true forms, wasted no more time. Like wild beasts, they charged at Lin Lei with simple, brutal movements.
"Bang!"
"Bang!"
Lin Lei had been prepared and barely managed to dodge their attacks. The soldiers beside him weren't so lucky. Xuanshui and Yishe grabbed them and hurled them into the air. They crashed to the ground, barely alive. It didn't look like they would make it.
Meanwhile, the Banshees accompanying Moran controlled the bewitched warriors and sent them to attack the shattered ranks of guards. The situation was critical.
"Damn it!"
Lin Lei glared furiously and squeezed his legs against Red Hare's flanks, urging him to gallop.
"Iron Cavalry Charge!"
Lin Lei shouted. A mysterious power surged around him, and cold Black Knights appeared on all sides, charging alongside him toward the Banshees' ranks.
Under Lady Moran's disbelieving gaze, her Banshee troops were trampled into chaos. The twenty or thirty Silver-rank Banshees were wiped out, and the controlled warriors gradually regained their senses.
These charmers had been sent straight to the battlefield as cannon fodder, and their enchantment wasn't very strong. The wicked Banshees wouldn't openly deploy those who had been completely robbed of their senses.
After using Iron Cavalry Charge, Lin Lei felt an endless stream of power sustaining him. Without hesitation, he continued his charge toward Moran.
"Ah!"
Feeling her life in danger, Moran stopped holding back and unleashed her signature ability, Banshee Wail.
Banshee Wail ignored physical defenses. It pierced straight into the heart and attacked the soul. Caught off guard, Lin Lei clutched his head and fell from Red Hare.
Moran's Banshee Wail continued without pause. Even the soldiers and warriors far away from them couldn't help clutching their heads and rolling on the ground.
Even Xuanshui and Yishe, who were on her side, weren't much better off. Their steps were unsteady, and they looked like drunken men.
The entire battlefield fell still under Lady Moran's spell.
"Power of Holy Light!"
A streak of golden light shot over from the depths of the inner courtyard and struck Moran, who had been wailing without pause.
"Ah!"
Lady Moran stopped casting and let out a piteous scream. A large patch of her once-fair skin had been burned away, leaving a rotting wound.
"Who is it?"
As Lin Lei gradually recovered, he looked toward the direction from which the spell had come.
"Knights of the Church of Dawn."
Lin Lei recognized them. He had encountered these knights on the way to Flower Territory. Their uniform black armor and Holy Light marked them out.
As the knights advanced step by step, Xuanshui and Yishe, who had been so ferocious before, warily retreated until they stood beside Lady Moran.
"Who are you?"
"Yaduo De of the Dawn Knights."
At Yaduo De's words, Moran, who had still been screaming, fell silent. Her pupils contracted sharply, and the two Orcs looked no better.
These evil creatures had clearly all heard of Yaduo De's reputation as a righteous knight.
"This is bad, Yishe."
Xuanshui and Yishe exchanged a glance, understanding what the other was thinking.
"Demon Gate!"
The two Orcs began reciting an ancient, wicked incantation. Their muscular bodies started to shrink, and the two men, each over two meters tall, became dwarfs less than one and a half meters high.
"Stop them! They're Warlocks. They can summon demons from Outland!"
A student of history, Lin Lei knew what they were about to do as soon as he heard their chanting.
"What?"
Yaduo De, who had been pressing forward, immediately swung his warhammer and charged toward Xuanshui and Yishe. As he ran, he used Power of Holy Light, trying to disrupt their ritual.
"Ah!"
Lady Moran knew how important their ritual was. Forgetting the grudge between them, she used her body to take the brunt of Yaduo De's divine spell.
"Damn it, we're too late."
As the last drop of energy fell, a sinister spatial portal appeared in the air.
"Roar!"
Amid countless howls, demons began pouring out of the portal. Among them were evil members of the Beast Race, ferocious beasts, Blood Demons, and Evil Walkers. Every one of them had a hideous face and a vicious, wicked nature.
But amid the misfortune, there was one stroke of luck: Yishe and Xuanshui only had enough magic to keep the portal open for a minute.
A minute later, the portal, shrouded in an aura of destruction, vanished. In the space where it had stood were more than a hundred soldiers of the Destruction Legion, each at least in the first tier of the Silver rank.
"Thank goodness, thank goodness."
Looking at the densely packed soldiers of the Destruction Legion, Lin Lei didn't see any Demon Lords, Dreadlords, or Queens of Pain among them, so he felt a little better.
"Kill!"
Faced with the soldiers who had suddenly appeared, Lin Lei didn't freeze. Taking advantage of the demons' confusion as they adjusted to their new surroundings, he charged into their ranks alone.
"Bang!"
With a tremendous crash, Lin Lei sent a gigantic ferocious beast flying. It hit the ground with a gaping wound in its purple hide, purple blood gushing everywhere.
"Roar!"
These creatures, born to destroy, knew no fear. They felt nothing at all as they watched their comrade die, and launched their attack on Lin Lei and the others.
The human soldiers, who had initially outnumbered the demons, also roared and charged at them, inspired by Lin Lei's slaughter.
The soldiers' courage was admirable, but courage alone couldn't make up for the difference in strength. It often took five soldiers to bring down one Long-Horned Demon, and ten to take out one Evil Walker.
Lin Lei and Yaduo De could kill the demons, but their efforts barely made a difference.
Just as Lady Moran and her group were gloating, Alice and the others emerged from the underground passage.
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