After several days of fierce attacks, the elite troops of the Spirit Hall Empire suffered heavy casualties. The corpses in front of the pass piled up like mountains, and even the flowing blood gathered into small pools of blood below the pass.
As the taxi soldiers of the Spirit Hall Empire looked at the still unmoving wall, their fighting spirit was gradually replaced by fear, and their steps became increasingly sluggish.
Meanwhile, the Heaven Dou military camp on the other side remained quiet. Yu Tianheng would simply climb the watchtower each day to observe the battle situation at Heavenly Star Pass with his telescope, occasionally exchanging a few words with his deputy in a low voice, but he never issued any orders to go into battle. His taxi drivers, who had initially been observing, eventually came to understand that their commander was determined to sit back and watch how the situation changed.
As dusk fell, when the final wave of attacks was thwarted by the " Zhuge Repeating Crossbow " on the city wall, Salas stood before the command tent, gazing at Tianxing Heavenly Star Pass, stained blood-red by the setting sun, and finally could not hold on any longer.
His silver-white robe was splattered with mud and blood, and his arrogance was completely replaced by exhaustion and resentment. His clenched fists were white at the knuckles.
"Your Excellency, if we continue the attack, our brothers will soon be unable to hold on..." The guard beside him said in a trembling voice, his tone filled with despair as he looked at the wounded soldiers being carried back one after another.
Salas took a deep breath, his chest heaving, and finally waved his hand dejectedly. "Never mind... Pass on my order to halt the attack."
After the soldiers withdrew, he went into the command tent alone, picked up a pen, and wrote rapidly on parchment. The handwriting was messy due to the force he used, but it clearly recorded the strange Hidden Weapon of Heavenly Star Pass, the heavy casualties of his own side, and the predicament of being unable to capture the pass after a long siege.
After writing the last word, he rolled up the letter, stuffed it into a copper tube, and handed it to his most trusted messenger. "Send this to Spirit City immediately and deliver it personally to Her Majesty the Empress. Tell Her Majesty that the Star Luo Empire's Hidden Weapon are too strange and ordinary troops are simply no match for them. Please send Titled Douluo -level expert immediately, otherwise, Heavenly Star Pass will never be able to be conquered!"
The messenger took his orders and left. Salas gazed at the deepening twilight outside the tent, a ruthless glint in his eyes. He knew that forcing Her Majesty the Empress to use such a trump card as Titled Douluo was tantamount to admitting his own incompetence, but now he had no other choice.
As night deepened, the city walls of Heavenly Star Pass remained brightly lit, the Tang Sect Hidden Weapons lurking in the shadows like venomous snakes, awaiting their next deadly strike. Meanwhile, in the direction of Spirit City, an even more violent storm was quietly brewing.
Inside the Empress's Palace deep within the Spirit Hall, Bibi Dong sat on her throne, her fingertips unconsciously stroking the armrest.
When the messenger trembled as he handed over the battle report from the front lines, she only glanced at it a few times before her Soul Power surged violently, and the glass lamp beside the throne instantly shattered into dust.
"Useless!" A cold voice, carrying murderous intent, slammed against the palace wall. " Heavenly Star Pass but a tiny place, yet it has kept our army locked in a stalemate for half a month?" She suddenly stood up, her purple-gold dress fluttering in the air, the crimson in her eyes almost overflowing—if she weren't at this crucial moment of undergoing the Rakshasa God Trial Assessment, she would have wanted to personally crush that pass.
Suppressing the urge to personally lead the expedition, Bibi Dong's gaze fell upon the several Titled Douluo waiting before His Highness: " Chrysanthemum Douluo, Ghost Douluo!"
"Your subject is here!" Yue Guan and Gui Mei stepped forward instantly, bowing in response.
"Lead the four Douluo —Pufferfish, Ghost Leopard, Snake Lance, and Qian Jun —and rush to the aid of Heavenly Star Pass immediately." Bibi Dong's voice was devoid of any warmth. "Within three days, I want to see the flag of Heavenly Star Pass replaced by the Black Dragon Flag of the Spirit Hall Empire. Otherwise, you need not return."
"Yes, sir!" The six Titled Douluo answered in unison, their Soul Ring lighting up simultaneously, their powerful aura causing the air in the hall to freeze.
After they left, Bibi Dong looked towards the side hall. " Nana."
Hu Liena stepped forward in response, her serene expression accentuated by her saintly red dress. "Your Majesty."
"You will accompany the six Douluo to the front lines," Bibi Dong softened her tone, "To bring provisions and medicine, to comfort the soldiers, and to tell them that the Empire will not forget every person who shed blood for the Black Dragon Banner."
Hu Liena nodded slightly. "Yes, Your Majesty."
Watching Hu Liena's departing figure, Bibi Dong sat back on her throne. The Soul Power at her fingertips gradually subsided, but the coldness in her eyes still silently revealed her absolute desire for victory.
Several days later.
The crisp sound of horses' hooves crushing the morning dew had not yet faded, and the first light of dawn had just spread over the city walls of Heavenly Star Pass when the reinforcements from the Spirit Hall Empire surged towards the pass like a black tide.
In order to break through Heavenly Star Pass, the Spirit Hall Empire dispatched six Titled Douluo in one go, showing that they would not give up until they took Heavenly Star Pass.
The carriage, with its gilded beast head, came to a stop on the vast plains before the pass, Hu Liena, the Holy Maiden of the Spirit Hall Empire, stepped down.
"Greetings, Saintess!"
A deafening roar suddenly erupted, and nearly ten thousand soldiers simultaneously knelt on one knee. The clatter of their armor clashing together created a continuous sound, as if the air itself was being pressed down by the sound wave.
The silver-armored guards in the front row had bulging veins on their foreheads, and their knuckles turned white from gripping their spears so tightly; the auxiliary soldiers in the back row trembled slightly, but stared intently at the ground, not daring to look up, while only Hu Liena remained calm.
"Rise."
Her voice wasn't loud, but it seemed to pierce through the wall of people like some kind of Soul Skill, each word striking the soldiers' ears. The kneeling crowd rose and fell like the receding tide, the black armor scraping against the ground with a soft rustling sound, only the few generals in the front row maintained their bowed posture.
Subsequently, under the guidance of these generals, Hu Liena entered the military camp.
The military tent was brightly lit by candlelight, and a sheepskin map was spread out on the table, its dense markings clearly outlining the terrain around Heavenly Star Pass.
As soon as Salas lowered the tent flap, he eagerly stepped forward, his scarlet bishop's robe sweeping across the felt carpet on the ground, raising a fine cloud of dust.
" Your Saintess Hall, you've finally arrived!" His face was filled with anxiety as he pointed heavily at the blue flag representing the Heaven Dou army on the map. "That Yu Tianheng is simply outrageous! We've been fighting the Star Luo Empire to the death at the pass, and his Heaven Dou army has been holed up in a mountain valley thirty miles away for half a month. He hasn't sent any troops to help, not even a single scout!"
Hu Liena walked to the table, her fingertips lightly tracing the edge of the map, her crimson eyes remaining calm. "They're holding back?"
"It's more than just standing still!" Salas raised his voice, his tone full of resentment. "Our army has suffered heavy casualties recently, and when I sent someone to the Heaven Dou army camp to request reinforcements, that brat Yu Tianheng only sent a reply saying 'act on your own.' This is clearly a case of sitting on the sidelines and watching the tigers fight, waiting for us to be exhausted so he can reap the benefits!"
He grew angrier as he spoke, grabbing the teacup on the table and gulping it down before slamming it down again. "If it weren't for Her Majesty the Empress's orders, I would have already led troops to confront him! Our reinforcements have just arrived, and our forces haven't been fully deployed yet. His indifferent attitude is practically handing a knife to the Star Luo Empire!"