Published: August 10, 2026
Dark clouds pressed over the city as if it were about to collapse; armor glinted in the sun like golden scales. The Black Wind Ridge Defensive Line was made up of a Hundred-Zhang Immortal City and the commanding heights on both sides.
Because of the special terrain here, both flanks were difficult ground, and the Human Race had long since stationed heavy forces there, leaving the demonic race only able to attack from the front and rear.
But once they attacked from the front and rear, the cultivators already deployed on the flanks could echo the Immortal City from both sides, attacking from a distance with spells and magical artifacts.
In this way, a solid defensive line was formed, one that had held the demonic race at bay for months.
"Crackle, rustle—"
Flags fluttered in the wind atop the city walls.
It was a lull in the demonic race's assault, and the exhausted cultivators defending the city simply sat down on the ground, seizing the chance to recover their magical power.
A glance around showed that months of continuous war had already worn many cultivators down, both body and mind. Fatigue was written all over their faces.
Driven on by demonic cultivators, the Low-Level Demonic Beasts were fearless in battle, making the defense extraordinarily difficult.
Fortunately, a batch of reinforcements had arrived a few days ago, rotating out some of the cultivators who had fought for too long. Only then had they been able to hold on.
And Jiang Yifei, without any backing, was among this batch of reinforcements, assigned to the very front line.
Because he was a disciple of Yuan Yang Sect, he was held in somewhat higher regard here and became a small squad leader, with nine qi refinement stage loose cultivators under him.
"Although the flanking firepoints can provide support, this batch of reinforcements is limited. But the demonic beasts attacking the city don't fear death. If this goes on, things will turn bad..."
After recovering his magical power, Jiang Yifei patrolled the walls and felt a bad premonition in his heart.
After making a full circuit and seeing the weary state of the defending cultivators, he faintly felt something was off and quietly became more guarded.
"At a time like this, I wonder what Junior Sister is doing?"
"If I can make merits in battle and receive a foundation establishment pill as a reward, that'll be easy enough. Then..."
Back with his team, Jiang Yifei sat down cross-legged. Very soon, a deep weariness washed over him, putting him into a half-asleep, half-awake state as he began to imagine a bright future.
The pressure of reality was too great, but in dreams he could indulge his fantasies to the fullest.
What felt like a long time in the dream was only a short moment in reality before Jiang Yifei was awakened by a sudden alarm.
"Enemy attack!!!"
At the sound of the warning, he instantly opened his eyes. After a brief moment of confusion, his mind quickly cleared.
While calling out to the members of his squad, he looked down from the city walls.
Following Jiang Yifei's gaze, countless demonic beasts surged forward like a tidal wave, pouring over the mountains and fields.
Even the ground beneath their feet trembled, and the sturdy Immortal City seemed to sway slightly.
Below the city and among the forests, everywhere he could see were the ferocious figures of demonic beasts.
On the high ground on both sides, demonic beasts had already climbed halfway up. Looking at the situation, they were determined to take it.
"Damn it!!!"
"Damn it all, where the hell were the patrol cultivators? They actually let the demonic beasts get this close!"
At that moment, countless cultivators mentally greeted the patrol team's ancestors, every curse as foul as could be.
But curse as they might, they still had no choice but to cast spells and unleash magical artifacts to block the demonic beasts' advance.
Having defended here for months, most cultivators had gained experience, and so they were not too panicked yet.
But they soon realized that because the demonic beasts had suddenly approached too close to the Immortal City, and because they feared death without the slightest hesitation, their momentum could not be checked for the moment.