Chishui Royal City had almost become an empty city!
Ordinary subjects with no fighting strength had already fled.
The Demon-Subduing Army and the kingdom's other legions naturally could not flee and had to hold their ground in the city.
Some hot-blooded martial artists unwilling to submit had also chosen to stay, with no regrets even in death!
The king, Lin Changqing, was fairly merciful and had allowed most of the palace maids and eunuchs to leave ahead of time.
However, everyone in the palace who had reached the Purple Mansion Realm had to stay, whether man or woman.
Maintaining the Devil-Sealing Grand Formation required not only powerhouses like Martial Thearchs and Quasi-Gods; ordinary experts with lower cultivation could also be of use.
Perhaps he was too busy, or perhaps he felt the timing was wrong, but Lin Changqing had not sent anyone to escort Liu Ling'er out of the palace.
Fortunately!
Before the Devil Race's army reached Chishui Royal City, the God Realm powerhouse dispatched by the Great Xia Imperial Clan arrived first!
He was Duanmu Lan, a God Realm powerhouse who had made his name long ago.
Duanmu Lan was not a member of the Great Xia Imperial Clan, but a supreme elder of the Mystic Purity Sect, a top sect within the Great Xia Empire!
He was deeply dissatisfied with the Great Xia Imperial Clan's arrangement.
They had put him, a God Realm cultivator, in charge of holding back the entire Devil Race army. One careless move, and he could fall!
Duanmu Lan felt that the Great Xia Imperial Clan intended to kill him with a borrowed knife!
If he died in Chishui Royal City, the Mystic Purity Sect's overall strength would plummet. Not only would it no longer pose a threat to the Great Xia Imperial Clan, but it would also fall completely under the clan's control!
Despite such misgivings and dissatisfaction, Duanmu Lan had still gritted his teeth and come.
Faced with the invasion of the demon and devil races, he had to cooperate with the Great Xia Imperial Clan's command, or he would face criticism and blame from all sides of the human race.
"Welcome, Ancestor Duanmu. Thank you for your efforts!"
Lin Changqing welcomed Duanmu Lan into the Hall of Longevity and prepared to host a banquet in his honor.
"With you holding the fort in Chishui Royal City, Ancestor, we can rest easy!"
Su Song said flatteringly.
"Spare me the pleasantries, and there's no need for a banquet!"
Duanmu Lan, his hair and beard white as snow and dressed in a blue robe, said expressionlessly, "King of Chishui, gather everyone who needs to be taken away in one place. Once the Devil-Sealing Grand Formation is broken, I can take you all away more easily!"
When a God Realm powerhouse wanted to flee, it was not easy to force him to stay!
Moreover, with a God Realm powerhouse's divine abilities, he could also protect a group of people as they fled a dangerous place!
"All right, all right, all right!"
Lin Changqing dropped the pleasantries and immediately gave Xi Zhaoqu a meaningful look.
In truth, many of Chishui Kingdom's important figures had stayed because they knew a God Realm powerhouse would take them away at a critical moment.
Since they would not die anyway, why not stay and make themselves look a little braver?
Everyone understood that once the Devil-Sealing Grand Formation was breached, continuing to resist to the bitter end would only add to the casualties. If they fled, they would not be harshly blamed by the various factions of the human race.
What Lin Changqing and the others feared most was the arrival of a God Realm powerhouse who insisted on fighting to the death!
Xi Zhaoqu left the Hall of Longevity and began hurrying around the royal palace, notifying certain important people to gather outside the Hall of Longevity.
The Devil Race army was already close and could attack at any moment.
No one knew how long the Devil-Sealing Grand Formation, which had not been activated for many years, could hold back the Devil Race army.
Soon, Xi Zhaoqu arrived at the Heartwarming Pavilion!
He disliked Liu Ling'er intensely, but the little prince was here, so he had to make the trip!
"Chief Steward Xi."
Upon seeing Xi Zhaoqu, Hong San cupped his hands in greeting.
"Hong San, the king has given an order. Take the little prince and gather outside the Hall of Longevity!"
Xi Zhaoqu stopped, folded his arms across his chest, and looked down at Hong San.
He had once been Hong San's trusted subordinate, as dutiful to him as a son, but things were very different now!
Now he was the chief steward of palace affairs!
Moreover, he was at the advanced stage of the Martial Emperor Realm, while Hong San's cultivation had fallen below the Martial Emperor Realm!
On the Divine Firmament Continent, strength had always done the talking!
"What about Liu... the little prince's mother? Should she come too?"
Hong San asked.
He was not at all surprised or angered by Xi Zhaoqu's current attitude, much less did he regret recommending Xi Zhaoqu to the king.
In someone else's place, they would most likely have done the same!
"She's nothing more than a commoner now. She should have been driven out of the palace already, and she's not qualified to go!"
Xi Zhaoqu said with a cold snort.
At that moment, Liu Ling'er walked out carrying Lin Heng and said indifferently, "Heng'er isn't going anywhere. He's very safe at my side. Go attend to your business, Chief Steward Xi!"
Liu Ling'er was naturally aware that the Devil Race army would soon arrive.
She did not know whether she could withstand the Devil Race army, but she was confident she could at least keep her son safe.
Of course, she would not choose to leave early.
Hadn't the Ancestral God bestowed his thundering divine grace so that she could resist foreign enemies?
If she fled, how could she be worthy of the favor the Ancestral God had bestowed?
"Liu Ling'er, if you want to die, don't drag the little prince down with you! He was only born recently, and a lifetime of glory and riches awaits him!"
Xi Zhaoqu declared self-righteously.
"Go away! I want to stay with Mother!"
Lin Heng could not help speaking up.
Grandma's legs, there's nowhere safer than beside my mother right now!
Hooo!!!
A horn sounded at that moment!
On the western horizon, devil clouds came rolling in!
The Devil Race army had arrived!
"Liu Ling'er, don't regret this!"
Xi Zhaoqu still had others to notify and could not linger here, so he hurried away from the Heartwarming Pavilion.
Liu Ling'er stood beneath the eaves and looked toward the western sky, her calm expression revealing a trace of awe-inspiring fighting spirit.
She was convinced that all of this had been foreseen by the Ancestral God, and that he had deliberately arranged for her to be where she was today.
Hong San, meanwhile, was watching her.
Hong San's heart surged. He felt that the Liu Ling'er he saw was different from usual!
Faced with the menacing Devil Race army, there was actually fighting spirit on her face!
Many Martial Thearchs and Quasi-Gods would be trembling with fear!
A startling guess suddenly surfaced in Hong San's mind-
Could Liu Ling'er be the goddess powerhouse who had slain three Devil Race Quasi-Gods that night?
It had to be her!
No wonder she had sent Nanny Xu, who was in the Martial Emperor Realm, flying with a casual wave of her hand!
Was she a formidable Quasi-God, or... in the God Realm?
"Eunuch Hong, here, hold the little prince."
Liu Ling'er placed Lin Heng in Hong San's arms and instructed him, "After the battle begins, don't leave the Heartwarming Pavilion. Take good care of Heng'er."
"This old servant obeys!"
Hong San nodded excitedly.
At that moment, he was completely certain that Liu Ling'er was that goddess!
Come to think of it, Liu Ling'er had saved his life!
Hooo...
The horn continued to sound, carrying throughout Chishui Royal City.
One figure after another soared high into the air from all over the city.
Rumble!!!
Suddenly, the entire Chishui Royal City shook violently!
Immediately afterward, a thick, multicolored barrier covered the whole royal city like a great pot!
Blazing divine light could be seen flowing across the surface of the shimmering barrier.
Within the divine light, lightning snaked and divine fire raged!
The Devil-Sealing Grand Formation had been activated!
Not only could it seal devils, but its defensive power was also extremely strong!
Any members of the Devil Race caught beneath it would be blasted to death by divine lightning and divine fire!
Members of the Devil Race who approached it from outside would likewise be attacked!
The foundation of the Devil-Sealing Grand Formation contained a large number of crystal stones. Once the energy in those stones was exhausted, the human powerhouses inside the formation would need to pour their power into it.
However, Duanmu Lan had already said that putting on a show would be enough!