While panic gave way to greed, several cultivators prepared for the recruitment and defense of the city, being assigned to areas and other vital tasks. The various influential forces did not stand still; under the orders of their leaders, squads of cultivators rushed to take positions, strengthen defenses, and prepare for combat, while their leaders gathered to discuss.
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City Lord's Manor
The solemnity in the great hall was just a thin layer of ice over a sea of impatience. Leaders of the city's most prominent forces surrounded the Lord's chair; some were sitting, others stood, and the tension was visible in every gesture. Each seat represented power, but one of them, that of the Tang Family, remained empty.
— "Lord Feng, how much longer must we wait for Patriarch Tang?" — the unctuous voice of Patriarch Shang broke the silence. — "We have little time to deliberate. Every second lost can cost lives!"
Immediately, other voices joined in a chorus of agreement, most aligned with the Shangs. Seeing the situation escalate, Patriarch Xing, an elegant middle-aged man, intervened with diplomacy: — "Although I dislike the idea of excluding the Tang Family, the situation could worsen at any minute. Why don't we define the protection tasks and just inform them afterward? I believe Patriarch Tang, being a committed man, will understand our dilemma given his delay."
Lord Feng, in the central seat, felt his patience draining away. Just as he was about to give in, a servant rushed in and whispered in his ear, handing him a note. A heavy silence fell over the room.
The hall doors opened immediately afterward, and a figure entered without ceremony. It wasn't Tang Wei. It was Chen Wei, the mysterious expert who had become the talk of the city after the auction. His presence was like a stone thrown into a calm lake, spreading invisible shockwaves. He walked calmly, sat in the empty chair of the Tangs, and subtly released the pressure of his cultivation realm.
— "Apologies for the delay. Patriarch Tang could not attend. I am here on his behalf."
Chen Wei remained expressionless as all eyes bore into him, but internally a sneer formed: "Never seen a man like me? Admire as much as you like."
— "I see." — said Lord Feng, finishing the letter. Chen Wei's arrival had changed the atmosphere in the hall. — "Patriarch Tang has left you in charge of the family forces. Since everyone is now present, we can begin."
Across the room, Patriarch Shang's eyes narrowed. 'As the elder said, this man would be a problem... But not for long. Soon, the Tang Family will disappear from this world!' — He had already prepared everything. The stampede was a divine gift: if the disaster didn't kill Tang Wei, those evil cultivators would.
The irony was that he never considered that his own daughter, who was in the forest, might not return. For him, the destiny was already sealed: when the city lord departed and his daughter married young Feng, all that remained was to get rid of this troublesome variable. He delighted in the thought, ignoring the danger posed by the tide. He knew that dealing with the demon brothers and this tide was risky and that, if something went wrong, it could mean his death…
Still, he was reluctant to give up everything, all the years of planning.
The discussion resumed, but now there was a new and unpredictable variable in the game.
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In one of the affected cities...
The situation on the walls was not a battle; it was hell. The stampede of spiritual animals was a force of nature, a living tide of fangs, claws, and blind fury that trampled and destroyed everything in its path.
The walls, damaged by the tremors, groaned with every impact. Each clash was like a punch to the gut for the defenders, a pulsating reminder of their mortality.
— "DON'T LET THEM THROUGH!"
— "DIE, FILTHY BEAST!"
— "BAM... CRACK!"
Thousands of cultivators, positioned on every inch of the wall, launched an endless stream of talismans, spiritual arrows, and techniques. Even their leaders did not stop acting and casting spells.
But everything seemed insignificant. For every beast that fell, ten others surged up, their eyes red with panic, climbing over the bodies of their peers, attacking as if what was behind them was even more terrifying.
Near the ground, the struggle was a blur of blood, sweat, and guts. A young guard, in his first real battle, plunged his spear into the skull of a demonic wolf, only to be hit from the side by the horn of an armored boar. His scream was swallowed by the roar of the horde. A single mistake was the difference between life and becoming part of the red mud under the beasts' paws.
They knew they couldn't falter. If they failed, they would lose their fortress, their families, their friends. The mountains, once seen as a resource, were now the mouth of an unstoppable beast, and they were the prey!
Many of those who had run into the forest in search of rewards had already been turned into pulp, their lives cut short with little to no resistance. Those who were closer to the epicenter of the stampede were almost all dead.
—-------------------------------------------
A few kilometers from Moonlit Grove City.
A group in worn and dirty clothes emerged from the forest. Their destination was the city gates.
— "Captain, we made it... sniff... sniff... we arrived..." — lamented the youngest in the group, emotional. From the earthquake to the escape, they had only survived thanks to the speed of the Fire Crest Horses herd.
The tension on Captain Wu's face lessened, but his group's situation was far from encouraging. — "Now is not the time to celebrate, we need to get into the city as quickly as possible!" — he ordered firmly. He was also injured: his broken arm was secured with a makeshift bandage.
Two seriously wounded members were carried on the backs of companions. Worse still, Wu Jian knew the stampede would soon reach the city. But there was good news: besides that part of the mountains not being as affected by the earthquake, the city's remote location meant that only a fraction of the tide would reach the gates, the mountainous terrain acting as a natural barrier.
"The cities at the mountain forks must be suffering the worst... I hope none fall!" — he thought, comforting himself with the luck that the Fire Crest Horses followed the most difficult path and did not join the main stampede.
Amidst such thoughts, they finally reached the city gate, where they met another group in better condition: five cultivators from the Spiritual Herb Valley Sect. Among them, Wu Jian recognized Shang Hua-Yen. The two groups only looked at each other briefly.
After a few minutes of anxious waiting, the city gates opened to let them in.
—--------------------------------------------------------
Some time later...
In the city lord's manor, the lords of the various forces in the city returned from their preparations after hearing the news.
Shang Hua-Yen was recounting on behalf of the elder what they had been through and witnessed. Of course, she hid certain details.
—"Thank you for sharing your information," — the city lord spoke with a certain kindness, relief, and satisfaction as he looked at her, and then quickly shifted his gaze to Captain Wu.
Captain Wu barely had time to clean up and put on decent clothes, and he reported what he witnessed moments before Shang Hua Yen.
Lord Feng looked away from them and added: —"And as we suspected, we will only have to deal with a smaller part of the tide." — he noticed the obviously relieved expressions of almost everyone in the room.
Although somewhat cruel on everyone's part, this took a load off everyone, including himself. After all, who hadn't heard of the bloody battles against the tide of beasts — which occurred in the Dark Forest Region, and which were frequent and well-known!
'Now all we have to do is hope that the hardest-hit cities don't fall! But even if they fall, they should greatly weaken the tide!' — this thought passed through everyone's mind, but no one would be foolish enough to say it out loud.
Before anyone else could speak, the doors of the room opened, and Elder Xi entered:
— "Excuse the delay," — he commented, drawing the reaction of everyone in the room, who stood up to greet him.
The city lord stood up and spoke: — "No problem, we all understand. Please have a seat. We were discussing what Miss Shang and Captain Wu told us and would love your opinion on everything."
Elder Xi sat down in front of the city lord and spoke to everyone: — "From what I saw on my way here, I believe all preparations are going very well, and when the tide of beasts reaches here, my disciples and I, as members of a righteous sect, will fight to protect it," — he concluded; he knew this was what everyone wanted to hear, and whether he liked it or not, he had to act to defend the city. His mere presence served to solidify the leaders' morale.
— "With the help of the Elder of the Spiritual Herb Valley Sect, we are certain that Moonlit Grove City will resist!" — Lord Feng declared, his voice resonating with contagious optimism.
A chorus of agreement filled the hall, but something caught Elder Xi's attention, or rather, Chen Wei sitting silently next to him caught his attention: 'Who could this be? His aura and attitude…'
These thoughts only flashed for a few moments in his mind before Patriarch Shang approached and pulled him aside to talk; these doubts would wait for another time. Now he should not give his enemies excuses to act.
After all, even if the city was not within the sect's sphere of influence, if he ignored the situation and left, his reputation would be ruined!
But the meeting was interrupted when a messenger entered the room with a solemn expression; the various representatives had a premonition at the same moment.
— "It's a few minutes away…
—---—--------------------------------
While the fighting and resistance were taking place in the cities, a figure moved across the crushed earth, through the flattened grass and the twisted pieces of trees, amidst the scattered groups of animals that, sensing the danger receding, began to return to the depths.
The further Tang Wei advanced, the more the signs of disaster diminished, until finally, after passing by what had been a dozens-of-meters-long river that Tang Chun Xi had crossed days before, only a shallow, muddy layer remained.
The terrain that hours ago had been devastated now showed low vegetation and some young trees growing sporadically, a silent testament to nature's life force and a phenomenon...
Tang Wei, his clothes filthy and torn, would not have been able to pass through the stampede if not for a concealment talisman and a light-body talisman that made him almost a ghost amidst the fury.
'This is great!' — he thought, and almost laughed when he noticed the glow of the lamp in his hand. 'My daughter, you are going to scare me to death yet!' — The flame had returned to its original color, stronger and more vibrant than before.
His daughter had gone through one of the worst imaginable trials and survived! The thought of this filled him with such great relief that his legs almost gave way.He was exhausted; he only had half of his spiritual power left.
But now that the immediate situation was over, he could finally think clearly. 'But the thing is... it's very dangerous here. What if the disaster happens again?! Or the animal stampede returns, or worse!!'
At that moment, he couldn't imagine that his daughter was the cause of the disaster. If he knew, perhaps he wouldn't be so worried, or he would be even more so!
But now, instead of worrying about his own situation, the only thing filling his mind was his daughter. He had already been scared enough: 'I wish I could go look for her... but...' — Both his daughter's bracelet and communication talisman had been destroyed. Wherever she was, she was unprotected!
While these worries filled his mind, he felt an alert signal coming from his right side. Without thinking, he took several steps to the side, narrowly dodging.
— Ting!
It was a golden thorn spell that plunged into the earth to his right, leaving a smoking hole.
— "Should I be impressed that you managed to follow me here?" — he commented, seeing his attackers in the distance: the three evil cultivators who had been pursuing him!
Their auras were no longer hidden. He could feel the palpable, dense, and corrupted presence of evil from afar. He knew he was the target, and by the feeling of their hungry gazes, he was the precious resource they coveted.
'Judging by their auras, all three are at the ninth level of the Primal Origin! I need to act fast!' — Although the situation was extremely dangerous, he had enough experience not to be overcome by fear. His mind was already formulating a desperate plan.
Two evil cultivators launched themselves to attack him. The shortest one, a skinny man with a rotten-toothed smile and a thin sword, spoke in a voice that made Tang Wei's hair stand on end. — "Little sheep, play with your brother for a bit. I guarantee you'll never feel anything like it! Rare…"
Tang Wei dodged instantly, disgust tying a knot in his stomach. He drew his Taoist weapon from his Dantian, the Golden Steel Rock Sword.
His figure and his golden sword were quickly covered by a heavy, constant metallic aura that collided head-on with the second cultivator, a broad-shouldered brute wielding a massive hammer. The noise of the impact dragged through the air.
— Triiiinnnngggg… — The surrounding terrain suffered the impact of the clash, with leaves, branches, and dust flying in an explosive cloud.
The same disgusting voice of the short man came from the side. — "Why resist? If you satisfy me, I might consider letting you live. Besides, I heard you have a very pretty daughter, why not invite her to play...?" — The sound was followed by a nauseating licking noise: Mlem!
Tang Wei emitted a strong killing intent for the first time, so dense that the air seemed to freeze. He responded with his ability [Earthen Bronze Cut]. The metallic aura on his figure thickened several folds, and the most surprising thing was the change in his sword! It was covered in a copper-yellow tone, with an effect that seemed to cut the surrounding debris, even at a distance.
This surprised the three cultivators. — "You are a swordsman... and you gave rise to sword energy!" — In shock, they received several potent cuts from the sword.
They barely had time to activate their defenses. The leader, a pale-faced man with sunken eyes, wearing a hood that barely concealed old scars, finally acted. He activated an earth spell, and an earthen barrier rose from the ground, taking the impact of the first blows. — "Ziiiiiii… Ziiii…" — The crescent-shaped cuts left deep marks, and the wall collapsed, revealing the two who managed to react.
— "Little sheep, you are getting more and more interesting." — The disgusting voice sounded with obvious excitement as the short man launched several second-level talismans at him. With a flash, they dispersed into vines that grew from the ground, trying to ensnare him.
This only trapped him for a moment before being cut by the sharp energy of the sword in his hand, but this delay was the goal. Tang Wei realized this and raised his sword to receive the attack.
The cultivator with the hammer launched into an energetic attack, wielding his weapon with brutal force!
— Tring... Tring...
The earth shattered with the various impacts and clashes between the two weapons. The nature around them, barely recovered, suffered from the high-intensity battle. With a strong blow, the sword energy seemed to lengthen, leaving cutting trails on the earth, and the cultivator was forced to retreat.
Before Tang Wei could seize the opportunity, he had to dodge the attack of the short cultivator, who seemed about to speak again, but Tang Wei interrupted him with another sword strike.
Tang Wei continued to dodge and exchange blows, seemingly expressionless, but inside he was disgusted. While resisting another round of attacks from the two, he had already reached a conclusion: 'Every time I'm close to dealing with one, the other appears. I need an opportunity to kill one before all three unite!'
'I dare to bet they practice some kind of technique that steals male Yang energy, and if so, they must have a way to capture me alive…' — His thoughts raced a thousand miles a minute, as he felt his low energy drain away. Worse, as he pushed harder in the fight, the poison in his heart stirred. A dark vein pulsed in his neck. 'If I could use my maximum power, I would have won the fight already!'
Meanwhile, a few meters away, the leader watched Tang Wei's every move with growing lust, his eyes scanning his body and face. 'That sharp, cutting sword energy, that pure aura, and this temperament... It was really worth following him here!! Hehehe…'
Tang Wei felt increasingly disgusted. With a lateral movement, he dodged, scraping his sword against the opponent's weapon. The cutting energy left bloody trails on the short man's body. — Trinck! — The evil cultivator's sword could not withstand the impact and cracked, but Tang Wei's back was vulnerable to the hammer attack!
— Shing! — A noise of flesh being struck was heard. Tang Wei stifled his pain, swallowed the blood he almost vomited, as he was thrown several meters forward. Taking advantage of the opening, he pulled out several second-level talismans and activated them one by one, launching them at the three opponents.
His movement was extremely fast and seemed like it would take them by surprise, but Tang Wei mentally shouted: 'It's a trap!' — as he saw the leader, who had been standing still, smile and launch a small object at him, pulsing with a vicious and bloody aura!
Tang Wei acted instinctively, launching the only ability he could at that moment. But the object arrived above his head in an instant…
Time seemed to rush back. Tang Wei fell to the ground, and the talisman attacks hit the cultivators. A cloud of smoke rose from the ground.
A voice came from the leader's direction: — "Formidable! Even so exhausted, you still managed to hurt us!" — commented the leader, emerging from the smoke debris. His face was now completely revealed: a slender, pale face, with snake eyes and a smile that distorted his thin lips, revealing slightly pointed teeth. He emanated an aura of calculating cruelty.
The hammer cultivator spoke with his hoarse, discordant voice, a deep cut in his belly, bleeding. He was frantically taking several pills and herbs. — "I'll make sure you feel every moment! I'll go find your daughter and have fun while you can only watch!" — His gaze fixed on Tang Wei's frozen figure was pure malice.
The short man, who had lost an arm, commented eagerly, his mouth watering. — "Brother, let me start! I know exactly how to make him obey…"
They walked towards Tang Wei, who looked like a statue. The metallic aura that previously covered his sword and figure had dispersed, and he seemed unable to move, with the evil object floating menacingly above his head.
— "Little sheep, you should have accepted my proposal!" — commented the short man, with a hooked nose and an expression full of malice. — "Now things won't be very comfortable for you!"
The three insinuated themselves, approaching the young Patriarch Tang, who seemed immobile. They seemed to anticipate or hope to see humiliation on his face. They loved to step on those who were better, more handsome, more talented than them…
They sought any sign of panic in his eyes, but there was none. His figure remained straight as a bamboo, holding the sword in the same previous position, but now a bloody, dense, and cold aura covered his figure, and its source was the object floating above him!
They were getting closer and closer: three meters... two meters... one meter!
It was at this moment of carelessness, or their arrogance, that cost them dearly! Tang Wei launched his ability that was on standby: [Triple Condensed Point]! Catching them by surprise, they were too close to escape.
The sword lit up with his full energy, in red, brown, and finally yellow tones, and the yellow covered the entire blade. With a swing from Tang Wei, three energetic cuts filled with sharp sword energy were fired at the three!
It was at this moment that one of them reacted in a disgusting way. The short man pulled the large man with the hammer, who was next to him, and used him as a shield, kicking him and using his body as a springboard to escape the approaching attack.
'How did it not work? That always worked! How did he escape the resentful blood pressure of more than ten thousand mortals?!' — the hammer cultivator screamed in his head, but was cut in half by the attack and died without ever knowing the answer.
With the death of the hammer cultivator, the leader, who had used the distraction to dodge, was the next to be hit. He was cut and fell, incredulous. As for the short man, although he escaped death, he lost an arm.
The other attack continued cutting the air, targetless, for several meters ahead until it consumed itself, leaving a very large trail of destruction.
Tang Wei knelt, leaning on his sword, his body trembling. The sweat, the dirt on his body, and the rapid movement of his chest indicated how exhausted he was.
Moments ago, when the object flashed over his head and a bloody pressure tried to lock his body, dispensing his power, his hidden talent that had kept him alive all these years activated its most specific ability: [Increased Pressure Resistance]. Thus, he felt the pressure decrease significantly, and all his aura continued to be condensed inside the Golden Steel Cliff Sword! It had been hidden all this time, waiting for the right moment.
It was hard to say if it was arrogance, or if this trick had always worked, leading them to completely drop their guard against him. He just needed to wait. He confessed that he almost lost control and attacked them when they talked about his daughter, but he barely held back!
But now he had another problem. He had used too much power. When his heart released his ability, the suppression he exerted on the poison loosened, and now it was escaping from his heart faster and faster! Tang Wei felt it run through his veins like acid under his skin, an unbearable sensation. A network of dark, bulging veins began to appear on his neck and arms.
Tang Wei felt his vision failing, and he seemed to return to that day when he was betrayed and poisoned, the day he should have died, but his Earthen Heart saved him. 'I'm sorry, my dear... cough... cough...' — Images of his wife, L'ian, and his daughter flashed quickly in his head. 'I hope you are well, daughter…'
— "Bastard! You killed my brothers... I heard you love your daughter, that waste! I don't usually mess with girls, but I'll make an exception!" — As he spat blood and felt his body losing strength, the short cultivator, who barely survived, limped towards him with madness and wrath in his eyes. Without an arm, he sensed Tang Wei's weakness and this time would make him pay.
Tang Wei struggled to get up and look at the cultivator. He would die in a few minutes anyway, but he would take that cultivator with him. He was already at his limit, and the most he could do was self-destruct along with him! His daughter's safety was everything now!