Under the relentless assault of the werewolves and spider-demon coalition, the outer defenses were already teetering on the brink. With the cover of fierce combat and the night, innumerable small venomous spiders wreaked havoc among the mercenaries, turning the first line of defense into a sieve in an instant.
Another volley of flares shot into the sky over the defensive line, their light imbued with the power of dawn, a veritable nemesis to the tiny spiders. The small arachnids immediately began to smoke, screeching as they curled up and burned under the intense light.
Swarms of small spiders were roasted to death, and the mercenaries on the front line finally breathed a sigh of relief.
“Retreat! Fall back to the second line of defense!” the officers shouted at the top of their lungs.
The surviving mercenaries used the brief respite provided by the flares to flee to the second line of defense as quickly as possible. The dark warriors, however, driven mad by the scent of blood and charred flesh, charged relentlessly, roaring as they pursued their prey, heedless of their own injuries.
Suddenly, the previously silent second line of defense blazed with the light of primordial force, as energy bolts whistled through the air, aimed at the leading dark warriors. Heavy artillery roared once more, showering the area that had been the first line of defense with a torrent of shells from above.
This time, most of the dark race’s elite fighters were unable to intercept the incoming fire, forced to watch helplessly as the shells exploded, engulfing the forward dark warriors in flames and shockwaves.
The heavy bombardment was cruel and effective, even catching some mercenaries who had not managed to escape the blast radius and killing them along with the first line of defense. The leading dark warriors, of course, could not escape the shelling and were consumed by the explosions.
Seizing this opportunity, the surviving mercenaries on the front line successfully retreated to the second line of defense. The horde of dark warriors, after a brief pause, roared as they charged towards the second line.
This time, the hail of bullets came not only from the trenches but also from the ruins of buildings on both sides and behind the defensive line. The density of the defensive fire increased, forming a deadly crossfire that greatly increased the casualties among the dark warriors.
The watching werewolf marquess narrowed his eyes, while Leizong leapt up, exclaiming, “How can there be so many of them!”
From the firepower alone, it seemed the second line of defense was manned by twice the number of troops as the first. This deployment defied common sense, but it was proving incredibly effective, dealing a severe blow to the dark forces who had thought victory was within reach. Some of the casualties were simply due to being caught off guard.
The werewolf marquess said slowly, “It seems there are far more than just three or four thousand people in the city. Duke Prate may have hit a hard nut this time.”
“How could they possibly bring so many people?”
The werewolf marquess did not answer, his gaze falling on the massive spider demon at the center of the dark army.
Even under the ferocious bombardment of the second line of defense, the giant arachnid’s progress was slowed but not halted.
On a hovering warship far in the rear, Vice-Duke Prate, clad in dark blue finery, had just heard the report from his subordinate. He growled, “Impossible! The humans have such limited numbers, and they landed behind our lines. How could there be ten thousand of them? You useless fools, are you blind?”
The reporting viscount of the spider demons hesitated, not daring to say more.
Prate snorted, striding to the deck and standing at the bow, looking ahead. With all his effort, he could faintly make out the battle situation.
With the presence of the Hall of Heroes, his flagship dared not approach rashly; even two grand duke-class ships had been destroyed by the Hall of Heroes. His vice-duke class ship would be no different, wouldn’t it?
Thus, Prate now commanded a high-speed destroyer as his new flagship. This vessel dared not enter the combat zone at low altitude and could only observe from a distance.
Prate stood at the bow for a long time, genuinely surprised by the intensity of the battle at the second line of defense.
After a moment, his expression grew stern. “The humans cannot have so many people. They must have concentrated their main forces on the second line of defense, hoping to mislead us. Hmph, how could I, Prate, fall for such a ploy? Order: intensify the offensive!”
“Sir, the frontline units seem to be taking heavy losses.”
“Fools! Cannon fodder is cheap; we can just round up more from the lower continents. If we cannot take White City within half a day, Duke Romyel’s main forces will arrive. I do not wish to let that old vampire claim the glory!”
The werewolf viscount replied, “Yes, Sir! I will relay the order at once!”
Shortly after the werewolf viscount left, the frontline offensive intensified. Watching the increasing fires on the human defensive line, Prate nodded in satisfaction.
In the center of the dark army, the towering spider demon finally approached the human defensive line. Emerging from the flames and smoke, clad in thick steel armor, he marched forward, the barrage of bullets leaving only dents in the unarmored sections of his body, causing minor, insignificant wounds.
The spider demon held a three-barreled rotating primordial force gun in his right hand, each barrel large enough to fit a fist. The one-ton gun seemed as light as a child’s toy in his hands.
Wherever the spinning barrels pointed, explosions erupted, flinging nearby human warriors into the air, vaporizing those at the center of the blasts, and leveling any obstacles in the way.
In his left hand, the spider demon carried a massive, door-like cleaver, its broad, square blade capable of slicing a war chariot in half.
“Concentrate fire, take down that behemoth!” a mercenary general screamed hysterically, raising a hand cannon and firing a burst of red light.
The shell hit the spider demon squarely in the chest, exploding into a massive fireball. However, the arachnid was only slightly singed, its combat capability unimpaired.
Enraged, the spider demon leaped dozens of meters, landing in front of the mercenary general, and swung the massive cleaver down.
Desperation filled the general’s face as he raised the hand cannon in a futile attempt to resist. The cleaver easily cut through both the cannon and the man.
The fallen general was the commander of the second line of defense. After his death, the spider demon’s ferocity surged, pounding his chest and roaring in a voice that drowned out the sound of the artillery, “I am Earl Maddros of Cade! Who dares to challenge me!?”
His roar echoed across the battlefield, striking fear and despair into the hearts of the mercenaries, while the dark warriors were invigorated, charging forth with renewed vigor.
At that moment, Maddros noticed a figure—a not particularly tall, somewhat frail-looking individual. At first glance, the figure appeared to be a bloodsucker, the very kind Maddros despised the most.
What was a bloodsucker doing in the human defensive line?
Maddros, fueled by the heat of battle, was slow to react. As he pondered this, the figure suddenly appeared before him!
Seeing the heavy sword descending, Maddros, without hesitation, raised the massive cleaver to meet it. But he never expected that this seemingly fragile opponent would dare to engage him head-on!
The heavy sword and the massive cleaver clashed, and the tremendous weight of the East Mountain instantly changed Maddros’s expression. But there was no time to dodge; he could only watch as the East Mountain sliced from his brow to his spider abdomen.
Maddros’s enormous body froze for a moment before crashing to the ground. Even as he died, he couldn’t understand how this slender figure could possess such overwhelming power.
Qian Ye landed lightly on Maddros’s corpse like a falling feather. Even in death, the spider demon lord’s body was like a small mountain. Standing atop it, Qian Ye looked down over the entire battlefield.
The battle had reached its most intense point, with multiple breaches in the second line of defense under the onslaught of the dark tide. The smell of blood and smoke had unleashed the primal savagery in every dark warrior, driving them to attack any visible target instinctively.
Standing on Maddros’s corpse, Qian Ye was a striking target.
Almost simultaneously, all the dark warriors converged on Qian Ye like a dark wave, surging forward.
Holding the sword steady, Qian Ye created an invisible wall, stopping the foremost dark warriors in their tracks. The warriors behind, unaware, continued to charge, crashing into their comrades.
In moments, the dark warriors were packed tightly around Qian Ye, some jumping up, trampling over the heads and shoulders of their fellows to reach him.
Once the dark warriors had gathered, Qian Ye smiled coldly, lowering the primordial force barrier. The dark warriors, losing their balance, stumbled and fell before Maddros’s corpse.
Taking a deep breath, Qian Ye held the East Mountain with both hands and struck six times in quick succession, each strike swift and silent. The sword’s path left the dark warriors rigid, then collapsing, their bodies oozing blood, though none could see where they were wounded.
In an instant, the area around Qian Ye became a field of death, with only a few dark warriors still standing.
On the dark race’s flagship, a silence fell, broken only by the sound of glass shattering as Prate crushed his favorite wine glass in his hand, oblivious to the act.
Standing amidst hundreds of corpses and a handful of surviving dark warriors, Qian Ye felt a slight regret. This “Eight Directions Strike” was a powerful technique he had honed, perfect for group battles.
But because of its immense power, it was also exceedingly difficult to control. Even with Qian Ye’s current martial skills and primordial force cultivation, he could only manage six strikes, far from the eight required to sweep all directions.
Still, even with these few blind spots, no dark warrior could withstand a single hit. Any who were touched by the sword qi were instantly killed, save for the lucky few who happened to stand in the gaps.
Qian Ye’s gaze fell on the remaining dark warriors, and he snorted. Though soft, the sound boomed in their ears, causing them to turn and flee, their innate savagery subdued by overwhelming power.
As the dark warriors retreated, the momentum of the attack dissipated.
Qian Ye turned and vanished into the maze of buildings.
Prate stood dumbfounded for a moment, then leapt up, shouting, “Attack! Continue the attack! He’s bluffing, press on with full force!”
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