They Appeared

The Sixteen-Eyed Monster's eyeballs followed the Soul-Fixing Banner, and even its head tilted slightly as it watched with intense concentration.

After waving the white banner for a while, the two young, strapping attendants, Bai Shan and Qingshui, were drenched in sweat.

But the Sixteen-Eyed Monster stopped moving, too. Its former savagery and suspicion gave way to confusion. The Soul-Summoning Banner before it drowned out all other signs of life and gave off a wave that delighted it, but focusing on the banner consumed too much soul power and made its already-clouded mind even hazier.

The banner affected it much like a sedative affected humans.

After a while, the Sixteen-Eyed Monster even scratched the back of its head in a thoroughly humanlike gesture, then turned and ambled away.

When it finally turned into black smoke and joined the main group in ascending to the sky, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

Bai Shan and Qingshui put away the Soul-Fixing Banner and sat down on the spot, trying to catch their breath, with no time to wipe the sweat pouring down their foreheads.

Waving the banner for such a short time had left them physically and mentally exhausted.

The resentful souls now emerging from the pool well were all enormous. They were big in stature but few in number, and each kept a certain distance from the others. Unlike the earlier resentful souls, which had crowded together in a great mass with no sense of personal space.

Small groups of resentful souls often trailed behind them, too, following close at their heels like attendants.

Seeing this, He Lingchuan understood that these creatures held relatively high power and rank among the resentful souls. Just like humans, those with status and influence never lacked underlings.

Fortunately, they weren't as perceptive as the Sixteen-Eyed Monster. Or perhaps they simply had no intention of looking down. Surrounded by the throng of souls, they rose into the sky.

Once they had all left, the pool well fell silent, and no more resentful souls emerged.

The Void Barrier's light began to weaken, too. Clearly, Sun Fuping hadn't been making excuses when he said it wouldn't last long.

Taking advantage of the lull, Nian Songyu quietly said to Sun Fuping, "Looks like they've all gone."

Sun Fuping was determined to be cautious. He shook his head, indicating that they should wait a little longer.

They were safe here and could still talk normally, but outside Coiling Dragon City, gale-force winds already swept the ground, driving sand and stones before them. Not an inch of calm remained. The Duhun Powder was still in effect, and everyone could clearly see the pillar of souls formed from tens of thousands of resentful souls erupting halfway into the sky before bursting apart like a spray. Each tiny black speck was a resentful soul, and specks blanketed the sky, riding the gale toward every corner of the Coiling Dragon Desert.

The Furious Sand Season had begun. This was the first time anyone had witnessed its birth.

Within half a day, the Furious Sand Season would sweep across the entire Coiling Dragon Desert, blotting out the sky for the long months to come.

At the sight, the entire party silently lowered their heads.

He Lingchuan turned his head and saw the solemn expression on He Chunhua's face.

Although September was only a few days away, and the regular travelers along Red Cliff Road knew the Coiling Dragon Desert's unpredictable, foul temper and would likely steer clear as early as possible, Sun Fuping had triggered the Furious Sand Season ahead of schedule. Many people must have died because of it.

Even setting everything else aside, the stations that hadn't had time to evacuate would certainly be wiped out.

But they hadn't learned of Sun Fuping's plan until after entering Coiling Dragon City, and his position was far above theirs. How could they defy him?

Afraid the old man was shouldering too much guilt, He Lingchuan quietly asked, "Dad, are you all right?"

"Mm." He Chunhua was gazing at the pool well, lost in thought, and answered absently, "Protect me. The real danger is probably only just beginning."

"Oh, all right."

No new resentful souls emerged from the pool well for quite some time.

The others asked the State Preceptor what to do.

While they had all been standing and watching, Sun Fuping hadn't been idle. He had already picked up a branch and started drawing a talismanic array on the ground.

The array was large enough to encompass everyone, yet the process of drawing it looked simple.

The lines were so plain, but the more He Chunhua watched, the more intrigued he became. He couldn't help asking, "State Preceptor, is this a summoning array?"

"That's right, just in case." Sun Fuping also felt they'd waited long enough and stopped what he was doing. "All right. Since nothing else is coming out of the pool, we'll get ready to—"

Before he could finish, the still pool water exploded without warning once more, and another mass of resentful souls surged out.

It was yet another army of the dead.

Among them were infantrymen carrying swords and shields, and cavalrymen riding horses with spears in hand. The moment they appeared, they brought with them a murderous aura that soared to the heavens!

Even from several yards away, He Lingchuan felt a chill creep across his back, raising goosebumps all over his skin.

Their anguished howls were the same, their eyes filled with the same hatred, yet onlookers couldn't help feeling that something was different.

They didn't look any better equipped or stronger than the other war spirits. In fact, many of the soldiers seemed even more frail. The arrows in some of their quivers had feathers of all different colors, as if they'd been scavenged from all kinds of birds. Some cavalrymen held lances made from freshly whittled white-wax wood, still bristling with splinters and not yet smoothed down. Most of the soldiers' armor was old, carrying the peculiar gray cast of well-worn things. The armor plates varied in color and size, clearly patched and repatched—perhaps even cobbled together by taking pieces from one suit to mend another.

But their eyes were as tough and savage as a pack of wolves roaming the mountains and plains.

Even the frailest among them ran with an unstoppable, fearless momentum.

The people of Blackwater City happened to be facing this army. Nearly everyone immediately lowered their heads and shut their eyes, not daring to meet the soldiers' gazes.

The edge honed through countless trials was so sharp that even Blackwater City's army, which had repelled enemy attacks time and again, and the hardened bandits who had roamed the desert with their lives on the line, dared not face it directly.

These resentful souls were truly different from all the ones before them.

He Lingchuan clenched his fists without a sound.

These had to be the Great Wind Army, right?

Sure enough, a standard-bearer appeared, confirming his guess.

The resentful soul rode a chestnut horse and raised a large banner. On its bright-red field was a single bold character, written with sweeping strokes like a dragon flying and a phoenix dancing:

Zhong!

He Lingchuan remembered that his own party was hiding a banner bearing the character "Zhong," and his heart filled with complicated feelings. His party carried the "Zhong" banner to avoid trouble and keep safe; these soldiers carried theirs into battle to kill the enemy.

This was the true Great Wind Army, a legendary force.

He could hear the people around him breathing heavily. Clearly, everyone present was stirred to the core.

He Lingchuan's eyes widened despite himself. He wanted to catch a glimpse of those two legendary figures.

He had already spotted several commanders among the ranks of war spirits. Did that mean Zhong Shengguang or the Red General would emerge from the pool well, too?

Unfortunately, he searched the vast, surging ranks until his eyes blurred, but found neither of them.

Just then, Sun Fuping said urgently, "The barrier can't hold on."

Nian Songyu and the others were badly startled. They looked again and saw that the Void Barrier really was wavering like a ship in a storm. Its ocher light flickered on and off, just like the temperamental ceiling lamp in the attic He Lingchuan had once rented.

He Lingchuan let out a strangled cry. "Can't it hold on a little longer?"

The Great Wind Army had just made its entrance! Alive or dead, they were equally ruthless killers.