Doomsday?

December 31, 9999 of the Yulan Calendar, the eve of the Yulan Festival.

Fenlai City was awash in joy. Colorful flags and garlands lined the streets, and candles burned at every doorway to pray for blessings. Children in new clothes ran and played in the snow, while adults gathered in taverns to drink. Above the Radiant Temple, magical displays shifted endlessly-seven-colored rainbows, dancing angels, blossoming flowers of light-adorning the entire Holy Capital like paradise.

An stood on the roof of his residence, overlooking the bustling city. The snow had stopped, and the sunset cast its last rays over the snow, bathing it in golden light. Linley stood beside him. Neither brother spoke.

A full year had passed since they killed Clayde. The Radiant Church was too deeply entrenched, its ranks filled with powerful fighters. The Pope of Light, Heidens, was himself a Saint-level Peak expert, far beyond An's current ability to oppose.

Night fell, and Fenlai City's celebrations reached their climax.

Tens of thousands gathered in the Radiant Temple's square, where the clergy conducted a grand Mass. Magical fireworks blossomed overhead, lighting the night as brightly as day. An and Linley stayed away from the crowds. They set out food and wine in their residence and celebrated with Yale and Reynolds.

"Third Brother, Fourth Brother, happy ten-thousandth Yulan Festival!" Yale raised his cup. "This marks the last day of 9999 and the first day of 10000. Getting to drink with my brothers on a day like this makes it all worthwhile!"

Reynolds drained his cup. "Boss Yale, don't get so sentimental. You nearly made me cry."

Yale shook his head with a laugh. "Fourth Brother, will you ever stop being so dramatic?"

All four brothers burst out laughing.

At midnight, the bells rang.

"Dong, dong, dong..."

The year 10000 had arrived.

All of Fenlai City erupted in celebration. People poured into the streets, embracing and exchanging blessings. The Radiant Temple's bell tower rang a hundred times, each peal echoing through the night sky.

An stood at the window, watching the fireworks outside, and was just about to raise his cup-

Boom!

A deep, thunderous crash came from afar, and the earth shook violently. Wine cups toppled across the table, spilling their contents onto the floor. Yale lost his balance and landed on his backside.

"What's happening?" Reynolds cried.

An's expression changed instantly.

He strode to the window, pushed it open, and looked toward the Radiant Temple.

Then he saw something he would never forget.

Above the Radiant Temple, an enormous golden-haired ape descended from the sky and landed with both feet in the temple square. The ground shattered, sending rubble flying. The ape stood eight stories tall, its purple eyes as large as wagon wheels, its golden fur glittering in the moonlight. It threw back its head and roared, speaking in a human tongue. "Hahaha! Kill! Kill them all! The more you kill, the more our king will reward you!"

A Saint-level magical beast-a Purple-Eyed Golden-Haired Ape.

An's heart clenched. The magical beast calamity had happened after all.

Then flying magical beasts filled the sky: Winged Bird Dragons, Two-Winged Pegasuses, Thunder-Winged Pegasuses, Azure-Eyed Thunder Eagles, Golden Sun Eagles, and dozens of enormous dragons. They surged in from every direction, their numbers blotting out the moon like storm clouds.

On the ground, deafening footfalls thundered from beyond Fenlai City's walls. An flew onto the roof and looked toward the walls. Densely packed Wind Wolves were pouring into the city, numbering at least several hundred thousand. Behind them came mammoths, Earth Dragons, Velociraptors, and all manner of magical beasts he could not name.

In mere minutes, Fenlai City went from a sea of joy to hell on earth.

"Doomsday..." An murmured.

Linley flew onto the roof as well. His face went white at the sight. "How could this happen? Why would the magical beasts of the Magical Beast Mountain Range suddenly attack Fenlai City?"

An did not answer. How had the seal been broken?

In the original story, Linley had discovered an enormous magic formation in a cavern in Mist Canyon. At its core was the Purple Blood Soft Sword. Linley had pulled the sword out, breaking the seal and releasing Dylan from the Planar Prison. But in this timeline, neither An nor Linley had ever entered that cavern.

Who had broken the seal?

An had no time to think it through. A Winged Bird Dragon had spotted them and was diving toward them.

"Linley, protect Yale and the others!" An shouted.

An channeled his Dragonblood Battle Qi and underwent his Dragon Transformation. Golden scales covered his body, his wings spread, and he shot toward the Winged Bird Dragon in a streak of golden light. The eighth-level magical beast was helpless against him. With one swipe of his dragon claws, he tore its head off. Its corpse crashed heavily into the courtyard.

Yale and Reynolds had already run outside. They froze at the sight of An's Dragon Transformation.

"Th-Third Brother, what's going on?" Yale stammered.

"No time for questions. Move!" An landed and returned to human form. "Boss Yale, where's your father? Where are the Dawson Chamber of Commerce's guards?"

Only then did Yale snap out of it. "My father's at the chamber's compound in the western part of the city. It's heavily guarded!"

"Let's go!" An seized Yale's arm, while Linley grabbed Reynolds. The four raced toward the western part of the city. Bebe perched on Linley's shoulder, his little eyes scanning their surroundings warily, ready to strike at any moment.

Fenlai City had descended into utter chaos.

Magical beasts and corpses filled the streets. A woman ran desperately with her child in her arms, but a Wind Wolf caught her from behind and bit through her neck. The child fell to the ground, wailing in anguish, only to be trampled to death by another magical beast moments later.

An old man knelt on the ground, his palms pressed together as he recited prayers to the God of Light. A Velociraptor stepped on him, crushing his body to pulp.

A patrol tried to organize resistance, but dozens of Winged Bird Dragons swooped down on them. Within a minute, every last soldier was dead.

Helplessness welled up inside An as he watched. He could not save everyone. He did not even know whether he would survive himself.

Boom!

A tremendous crash came from the direction of the Radiant Temple. An looked back. Its spire had collapsed, and the entire building had broken in two midway up. The upper half slid slowly down and smashed into the ground, throwing up clouds of dust.

The Radiant Church's defensive magic formation had been breached.

An's heart tightened. That formation had been built five thousand years ago, at the height of the Church's power. Supposedly, it could withstand an all-out attack from a Saint-level Peak expert. Only a God-level expert could break through it.

An eerily handsome young man stood suspended in the sky. He wore dark golden robes, with a vertical mark on his forehead and a faint smile on his lips. Behind him followed more than a dozen Saint-level magical beasts: a Blood-Eyed Mane Lion, a Tyrannosaurus, a Purple-Eyed Golden-Haired Ape, a Thunder Dragon... Each could easily destroy an entire city.

"A God-level magical beast," An said quietly.

Linley saw the strange young man too, and his pupils contracted. "A God-level magical beast?"

An nodded.

"Third Brother, stop looking! Run!" Yale tugged at An.

The four continued toward the western part of the city.

They encountered more and more magical beasts along the way. Seventh-level beasts were everywhere, eighth-level beasts were hardly uncommon, and they even spotted the occasional ninth-level beast. An and Linley had to fight repeatedly, but every beast they killed was replaced by more pouring in behind it. There was no end to them.

"This won't work," An said. "We have to fly."

He transformed again, grabbed Yale, spread his wings, and took to the air. Linley underwent Dragon Transformation as well and picked up Reynolds. The four men and one rat flew low, dodging the magical beasts overhead.

Seen from above, Fenlai City was even more horrifying.

The entire city was burning. Corpses littered the streets, their blood staining the snow red. The private troops of nobles who tried to resist were slaughtered, unable even to fight back. The Radiant Temple's knights had formed ranks in the square, but surrounded by hundreds of thousands of magical beasts, their defensive perimeter was shrinking rapidly.

They reached the Dawson Chamber of Commerce's compound in the western part of the city.

It was a three-story stone building surrounded by high walls. Dozens of guards stood atop the walls, firing crossbows at approaching magical beasts. Several Magic Crystal Cannons roared from the roof, each blast wiping out swathes of low-level beasts.

An landed in the courtyard and set Yale down. Linley landed as well.

"Father!" Yale shouted.

An enormously fat man rushed out of the stone building, drenched in blood and carrying a massive axe. He was Yale's father, the chairman of the Dawson Chamber of Commerce. Judging by his presence, he was at least a ninth-level expert.

"Yale!" The fat man swept his son into his arms. "Are you hurt?"

"I'm fine, Father. Linley and An saved me." Yale pointed toward them.

The fat man looked at An and Linley, his eyes filled with surprise. "The two boys from the Baruch family? You... were you the ones flying just now?"

An reversed his Dragon Transformation and returned to human form. The fat man's pupils contracted sharply. With his broad knowledge, he naturally knew that anyone capable of flight was at least Saint-level.

"Uncle Dawson, this isn't the time to talk," An said. "An army of magical beasts is attacking. Fenlai City won't hold. We have to evacuate immediately."

The fat man nodded. "I've already made arrangements. There's a secret passage in the northern part of the city that leads outside. We'll leave at once."

He turned and ordered the guards, "Everyone, prepare to evacuate! Take the Magic Crystal Cannons. Destroy any you can't carry!"

The guards sprang into action.

Just then, a deafening roar came from the distance.

An turned to see an enormous Tyrannosaurus charging toward the western part of the city. It stood thirty meters tall and nearly a hundred meters long, its jet-black scales like rock. Every step shook the earth, and buildings along its path crumbled beneath its feet.

Hundreds of Velociraptors and Earth Dragons followed behind the Tyrannosaurus.

"A Saint-level magical beast!" The fat man's expression changed.

An turned to Linley. "Linley, take them through the passage. I'll hold it off."

Linley grew frantic. "An, that's a Saint-level magical beast!"

"So am I," An said. "I'm only at the early stage, but I can hold it off for a while. Go!"

Linley gritted his teeth. Knowing he could not change An's mind, he led Yale, Reynolds, and the fat man toward the northern part of the city.

An drew a deep breath, channeled his Dragonblood Battle Qi, and fully entered Dragon Transformation. Golden scales covered his entire body, his wings spread, his dragon horns rose, and sharp spikes bristled along his spine.

The Tyrannosaurus stopped, fixing its dark golden, slit-pupiled eyes on An.

"A Saint Warrior?" The Tyrannosaurus spoke in a human tongue, its voice rolling like thunder. "Interesting. But you've only just reached the Saint level. You're no match for me. Stand aside, and I'll spare your life."

An said nothing. He simply drew the saber at his waist, Slaughter.

The Tyrannosaurus grew furious. "You're courting death!"

It opened its enormous jaws and spewed a torrent of searing dragon breath. An beat his wings and shot skyward, evading it. The breath struck the ground and instantly vaporized a stone building.

An dove from the sky, thrusting Slaughter toward the Tyrannosaurus's eye. The beast tilted its head, and the saber struck its cheek in a shower of sparks. It left only a faint white mark on the scales.

"Too weak!" The Tyrannosaurus lashed out with a claw.

Unable to dodge in time, An took the blow squarely in the chest. He flew backward through three stone buildings before coming to a stop. He climbed to his feet, pain lancing through his chest. Several cracks had appeared in his scales.

The gap between the early and peak stages of the Saint level was enormous indeed. But An's defenses had inherited the Golden Dragon's extraordinary toughness. Any other early-stage Saint-level fighter would have been severely injured by that blow.

The Tyrannosaurus sounded somewhat surprised. "Impressive defenses. But how many more hits can you take?"

An did not answer. He put away his saber and gathered Wind Element essence in his hands. He was an eighth-level wind mage. Eighth-level magic would do little against a Saint-level magical beast, but it could still obscure its vision.

"Funeral of the Wind!"

Hundreds of Wind Blades swept toward the Tyrannosaurus in a vast barrage. It merely closed its eyes in disdain, letting the blades strike its scales. A flurry of metallic clinks rang out. They failed to leave so much as a white mark.

But that instant when it closed its eyes was exactly what An wanted.

He became a streak of golden light, shot between the Tyrannosaurus's legs, and flew toward the northern part of the city.

The Tyrannosaurus opened its eyes and found An already far away. It let out a furious roar. "Crafty human!"

But it did not pursue him. Its task was to conquer Fenlai City, not chase down an early-stage Saint-level Dragonblood Warrior.

An flew to the northern part of the city and found traces of Linley's group. The secret passage lay inside an unremarkable house. Its entrance had been blown up, but those inside should already have made it out. An spread his wings and flew north.

Half an hour later, he found Linley and the others on a hill fifteen kilometers north of Fenlai City.

"An!" Linley ran over. "Are you all right?"

An shook his head, reversed his Dragon Transformation, and dropped onto the ground. He had wounds all over his body, but none were deep. His early-stage Saint-level defenses were certainly no joke.

"What about that Tyrannosaurus?" Reynolds asked.

"I couldn't beat it. Luckily, it didn't chase me, so I got away." An smiled wryly.

The fat man approached and bowed solemnly to An. "Young Master An, we owe our survival to you. The Dawson Family owes you a life."

An waved a hand. "No need to be so formal, Uncle Dawson. Yale is my brother. It was only right."

Yale walked over and clapped An hard on the shoulder. "Third Brother, well done."

An smiled without speaking. He turned toward Fenlai City. The city was burning, thick smoke billowing skyward. From time to time, the roars of magical beasts and human screams reached them.

After tonight, this prosperous Holy Capital would cease to exist.

"Let's go." An stood. "It isn't safe here. We need somewhere to stay."

The group headed north. Behind them, Fenlai City burned.