Chapter 67: The Fierce Initial Clash

Zhao Jiandu finally turned around, eyeing Song Zining with some surprise.

This Seventh Young Master had always left a rather unreliable impression on him, especially after the Song Clan’s heir apparent examination. The two of them had developed a mutual dislike, even though they had to cooperate due to Qian Ye. Their collaborations were always brimming with tension. However, in hindsight, Song Zining, praised as the Empire’s Little War God, had never spoken falsely or formally asked for help like this before.

With this thought, Zhao Jiandu’s expression remained unchanged, his gaze slightly softening. “What do you need from me? Speak.”

“All of you have broken through to the Divine General level, and I, the old man, have an itch too. Recently, when I calculated the heavenly secrets, it was my turn to shine. So, here I am,” Song Zining said.

After hearing Song Zining’s frivolous words, Zhao Jiandu’s face showed no hint of a smile. “Guards, throw this charlatan out!”

The elite guards flanked him, ready to grab him.

Song Zining hastily called out, “Wait! I’m here to fight!”

“Of course, I know you’re here to fight. Otherwise, why would you come? If you don’t speak properly, I’ll order you to stay a hundred miles away.”

Zhao Jiandu’s every word was a command, and Song Zining knew there was no room for jest. “Let them step back first.”

Zhao Jiandu waved his hand, and the elite guards reluctantly retreated.

Once they were alone, Song Zining said, “This time, I will be on the front line.”

Zhao Jiandu was somewhat surprised, glancing at the large equipment box in Song Zining’s hand. “Are you serious?”

“Of course.”

Zhao Jiandu gave Song Zining a deep look and placed the documents in his hand on his chest. “These are the records of the beasts that came through the door. You should read them carefully, so you don’t die unprepared.”

Song Zining took the documents and pulled out a letter from his pocket, handing it to Zhao Jiandu. “Hold this for me.”

“What is this?”

“A will. If I die here, give it to Qian Ye.”

Zhao Jiandu frowned instead of being moved. “Why do you want to give your will to Qian Ye? Are you trying to use Xiao Wu again?”

Before Song Zining could explain, Zhao Jiandu tore open the envelope and pulled out the letter. Song Zining’s eyes twitched twice, but he didn’t stop him.

Zhao Jiandu glanced at it and said, “Is this really a will?”

“Could it be fake? I have no family or descendants now. If I die, I’d rather leave everything to Qian Ye than let those so-called relatives benefit.”

Zhao Jiandu snorted, igniting a green flame in his hand and burning the will to ashes. “First, live well. My Xiao Wu doesn’t need to worry about your little things.”

Song Zining raised an eyebrow, clearly not convinced, and was about to argue. Before he could, the door knocked, and an aide entered, handing Zhao Jiandu a document. “A secret message from the capital.”

Zhao Jiandu opened it, his expression easing slightly, and handed it to Song Zining. “Fortunately, no other doors have appeared on Qin Continent.”

“What about the other continents?”

“The news hasn’t come that fast.”

“Good. It seems we only need to deal with this one ‘door’ for now.”

Zhao Jiandu narrowed his eyes. “I fear that even just one door isn’t so easy to handle.”

“Easy or not, we’ll see after we fight.”

Song Zining set down his equipment box, opened it, and began to put on the armor inside.

At that moment, the fog area violently fluctuated, and a wave of beasts surged out, fiercely assaulting the imperial defenses. Gunfire erupted, and the battle became intense from the start.

A flash of light passed through Zhao Jiandu’s eyes. “The ‘door’ has opened!”

Already in silver armor and holding a long spear, Song Zining burst through the window and flew towards the battlefield.

“Indeed, quite urgent.” Zhao Jiandu shook his head, issued a series of commands, and set up defenses. He did not go to the front lines but stayed in the central command, directing the overall situation.

At that moment, the ‘door’ not only opened on Qin Continent but also on Yong Continent, Void, Evernight, Yue Continent, West Continent, and even Floating Continent. Countless beasts poured out from the fog, heading deep into the continents, harvesting lives.

Among the various continents, ghostly warships roamed, constantly hunting airships that carried intelligence between the continents. They vanished silently once the ‘doors’ appeared and opened.

The Empire had already noticed the disruption in information flow, with lost documents far exceeding normal losses, though they were yet to identify the cause. However, the ‘door’ on Qin Continent had been open for several days, drawing almost all attention. Massive supplies continued to arrive, and numerous top powerhouses gathered in the capital, closely monitoring the situation and preparing to assist at any moment.

On the day the ‘door’ opened, everyone was too preoccupied to care about anything else, for the intensity of the battle outside the ‘door’ was beyond all expectations.

Within less than an hour after the ‘door’ opened, the number of emerging beasts overwhelmed the imperial forces guarding the area. From the ground to the sky, beasts swarmed everywhere.

The rising casualties forced Zhao Jiandu, who had been calmly sitting in the center, to stand up. “Armor, bring it! Sword, bring it!”

In moments, Zhao Jiandu was fully armored, and with a flash, he appeared in the midst of the beasts. Eight streams of purple energy shot up, each controlling an area, freezing the beasts within a hundred-meter radius. One particularly fierce beast struggled and broke free, but before it could roar, its body exploded into a bloody rain.

The explosion of the first beast ignited a chain reaction. Within the sealed area, beasts began to explode one after another, and in a short time, Zhao Jiandu cleared a vast space in the middle of the swarm.

After many days, having ascended to the Divine General level, Zhao Jiandu’s Eight Directional Sealing Technique reappeared, more powerful than ever. Thousands of beasts were eradicated in one go.

The beasts’ assault paused, and the elite troops stationed there quickly mobilized, reinforcing the weak spots. When the next wave of beasts came, the originally shaky defense line became strong and dense.

However, Zhao Jiandu’s expression did not ease; it grew more solemn. Soon, the eight pillars of purple energy reappeared, towering and slaying the beasts.

But this time, it didn’t last long. In just half an hour, the incoming beasts forced Zhao Jiandu to activate the Eight Directional Sealing Technique again. This time, the pillars were thinner, and their power diminished, leaving hundreds of beasts alive.

Using the technique three times in succession left Zhao Jiandu pale, sweat dripping from his forehead. He gritted his teeth and faced the beasts, engaging in a life-or-death battle.

After what felt like an eternity, Zhao Jiandu decapitated a beast, and suddenly, there was a break. He looked up and saw Song Zining, leaning on his spear, panting. The usually elegant Seventh Young Master was now covered in blood, wounds of various sizes on his body, and two deep claw marks on his face.

Song Zining shook his head at Zhao Jiandu, indicating that his injuries were not severe. It seemed he didn’t even want to speak.

Zhao Jiandu looked back. The defensive positions were still fighting, but without reinforcements, the beasts were gradually reduced. The sound of battle faded, and the imperial guard was thinning, with corpses littering the ground, mostly beasts, but many imperial soldiers as well.

Just a glance told Zhao Jiandu the extent of the casualties, and though he had expected it, his face darkened.

He walked slowly through the battlefield, silently inspecting everything.

No more beasts emerged from the fog, and the reserve forces had moved to the front, setting up new defenses. On the battlefield, they began rescuing the wounded and clearing the area, while engineers rushed to repair the fortifications.

With the presence of flying beasts, the battlefield had no front or rear. Fighting occurred everywhere, with smoke and corpses scattered throughout.

Song Zining approached, walking with him to the rear. Two medics followed, tending to his wounds. His silver spear now served as a crutch, but even with it, his steps were heavy and slow.

Zhao Jiandu said, “A mere ten thousand beasts, and it’s already like this.”

Song Zining smiled, the action causing him pain. “They are an army, not a regular horde. You’ve wiped out an entire Night Eternal legion. Isn’t that enough?”

Zhao Jiandu nodded, but his grim expression did not fade. “You really fought hard. Are your injuries serious?”

“Just flesh wounds, nothing serious.” But his pained expression told a different story.

As they crossed the defense line, Zhao Jiandu said, “No, I need to request reinforcements.”

Song Zining frowned but did not object. In the initial battle, the fortress defenders had already lost one-tenth of their force. At this rate, they wouldn’t last long.

Song Zining gazed at the fog. “Have you sent scouts in?”

“Yes, but none could penetrate deeply. I can’t either. Only those with extremely pure origin power can enter, and I’m not among them.”

“Perhaps I can try,” Song Zining replied thoughtfully after hearing Zhao Jiandu’s assessment.

“We’ll see after you recover. I don’t want you to die here.”

“We need to find a way to deal with the white fog.”

Zhao Jiandu furrowed his brows. “We’ll have to wait and see what the military research team comes up with.”

“By the way, Jiandu, the Empire doesn’t have many reserve forces left, does it?”

With his current status, Zhao Jiandu knew the Empire’s core secrets. “Yes, the Floating Continent battle nearly mobilized all our mobile forces. Afterward, private armies returned to their owners, and many veterans retired. Even if we wanted to re-enlist, it would take time. The Floating Continent’s defenses also require a lot of troops, so we truly don’t have many mobile forces left.”

“What if other continents also have ‘doors’?”

Zhao Jiandu stopped. “Why do you say that?”

“Don’t you think the reports from other continents have been unusually sparse lately? And when they do come, they’re outdated. What if, hypothetically, other continents also have ‘doors’…?”

“That would be a disaster,” Zhao Jiandu sighed.