Chapter 299
In their eyes, a greenish flame flickered, and after yesterday's battle, their presence seemed even more vast and powerful.
The warriors of the southern tribes had bloodshot eyes, their bodies already displaying various beastly traits of calamity.
They had merged the totems of their clans, a process known as "zǔ líng jiā shēn" (祖灵加身), or "embodiment of ancestral spirits."
The martial arts of the Hundred Beasts Hall of the Demon Summoning Sect had originated from this method, modified by Han Zhen.
A black tide surged like a wave towards Qingmu City, making the city appear as if it might collapse at any moment.
Han Zhen stood atop the temple palace, hands clasped behind his back.
The exposed skin on his body seemed to shimmer with ancient, dark red patterns.
Today's battle would undoubtedly be even more brutal.
Everyone on both sides held their breath.
Perhaps this battle would determine the victor?
Boom—
Boom boom—
Boom boom boom—
The sound of the thunder beast skin drum suddenly erupted, the heart of Qingmu City pulsing with a powerful rhythm that shook the very ground.
The defensive array on the city walls flickered in and out of existence.
At that moment, the city gates swung open.
Like a sudden storm, the sound of hooves thundered as a large contingent of Qingmu City soldiers, mounted on exotic warhorses, charged out.
"The Qingmu defenders dare to take the initiative?!"
"Haha, relying on their natural defenses and choosing to leave the city? They’re asking for death!"
The attacking side rejoiced, howling with excitement.
Hmm?
Han Zhen narrowed his eyes, sensing something was off.
"Could it be that they want to create a diversion to allow someone to break through?" the master of the Hundred Beasts Hall pondered.
That "someone" was, of course, Ying Bing and Li Mo.
Just then, he caught sight of a figure at the forefront, riding a white cloud warhorse.
Li Mo?!
The master of the Hundred Beasts Hall was taken aback.
"Is Li Mo insane? He’s leading the Qingmu defenders into madness?!"
Even Han Zhen couldn't understand why Li Mo would abandon the city’s defense and charge out with the cavalry, taking the lead.
Moreover, his gaze was intense, the fiery golden light piercing through the throng of soldiers.
He was looking at Han Zhen.
This was yet another perplexing matter.
But recalling the cunning trap laid yesterday, Han Zhen clenched his fists.
"All troops, stand down from the assault!!"
Right, with Li Mo charging ahead, what about Ying Bing...
Clang—
At that moment, the sound of the thunder beast skin drum on the city wall became rapid.
The resonant notes of war echoed across the battlefield, the powerful melody of slaughter drowning out all other noise.
Ying Bing sat atop the city wall, her jade-like face cold, fingers gliding over the zither.
She was doing two things.
First, she commanded the thunder beast skin war drum, playing the "Tian Wang Po Zhen Qu" (天王破阵曲), and unimaginably combined it with the other, creating an unparalleled sound of slaughter that bolstered her side and intimidated the enemy.
Second, she used the "xiá huáng qì" (霞凰气), directing the military formation.
The cavalry that charged out was divided into two groups.
Besides Li Mo, the other group was personally led by Qu Sheng.
"Surround and annihilate them!"
Han Zhen's sharp voice pierced through the battlefield.
All the towering war spirits and the dark mass of enemy troops, along with various high-grade calamity beasts, gathered in an instant.
The war giants exuded an ancient and savage aura, while the enemy clashed their weapons against their vine armor, the calamity beasts displaying grotesque and terrifying forms.
Compared to these, the two groups of cavalry seemed insignificant, even somewhat small.
There were only so many horses.
With eighty thousand men, how many cavalry could they realistically expect?
Even with the infantry following closely behind, it still felt insufficient.
"Whoosh..."
The sound of the wind swept by.
As Li Mo listened to the clangor of war, he felt the Qi Tian Dou Zhan Mi (齐天斗战秘) activate silently within him.
His blood felt as if it had been ignited.
The hammer in his hand was burning hot.
He suddenly recalled memories from a past life, of an old retired soldier upstairs who loved to listen to opera in the morning sun, preventing him from sleeping in.
Just like now, he charged into battle against the rising sun.
What was the old man’s favorite song again?
The powerful roar of Peking opera echoed in his ears:
"Relatives in distress, rage soaring three thousand feet; charging into the enemy ranks, battling the demons."
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Chapter 325: The Clash
The distant echoes of Peking opera still lingered in Li Mo's ears.
The biting wind brushed against his face, making the dark enemy formation seem like a lake stirred by a sudden wave, filled with the bizarre and fierce divine intentions of various shamanic totems.
What came next in the song?
His memory was hazy, and he had no time to think further.
Crash—
He charged headlong into the enemy ranks, the power of sixty formations making him feel like a god. The force he unleashed created a gale that shattered dozens of soldiers imbued with totemic power, turning them into a rain of blood, ultimately blocked by a protective totem of a malevolent turtle spirit.
Red mist sprayed forth, still warm and lingering.
He was like a sharp spearhead, thrusting fiercely into the heart of the bloody melee, charging towards his target.
The sounds of armor shattering, flesh being torn apart, and the roars of totemic spirits blended into a chaotic symphony.
"Avenging the young clan leader!"
A figure, towering at two men’s height, burst forth from behind a shield, clad in heavy armor, with hard shells sprouting from exposed skin, the malevolent turtle totem flickering behind him.
He was akin to an inner scene warrior, but without his own inner landscape; everything he had was devoted to the spirit, which became his inner essence.
He swung a long-handled golden hammer, crashing down with the roar of the malevolent turtle.
Clang—
The sound was like the earth shaking and mountains trembling.
The golden hammer shattered under the force of forty strikes, sending shards piercing through dozens of vine armors, and its wielder met the same fate as Helian Wu.
Even the malevolent turtle spirit flickered violently.
The war giants did not move quickly.
But now, four distinct ones stood in their path, making it unrealistic to maneuver around them.
"Roar—"
One was a human-faced serpent, another a calamity beast, a third a Zhu Yan, and the last the black water malevolent turtle. They amplified the strength of their respective warriors while mechanically advancing towards this group of cavalry.
It was like a small mountain collapsing from all sides.
Their targets were not just Li Mo, but also the Qingmu Iron Cavalry charging alongside him.
As long as they could reduce the cavalry's numbers, the military formation power supporting him would naturally weaken. At that point, he would be surrounded and slaughtered, even if he was merely observing the divine.
"Stabilize the mountains!"
Li Mo urged his cloud horse, making the already slow-moving malevolent turtle giant even more sluggish, as the cloud horse charged straight up its pillar-like leg.
With one hammer strike, powered by the military formation, a tremendous force spread across the hard bronze, instantly creating a web of cracks, releasing a massive shockwave.
This bronze statue, which had endured for thousands of years, let out a mournful cry under the strain, toppling mountains and shattering pillars.
The shattered life force transformed into black souls, rushing out with the shockwave.
"The turtle spirit's statue shattered?!"
In front of the palace, the master of the Hundred Beasts Hall crossed his arms, his pupils trembling in disbelief.
Even an external scene expert would find it difficult to break a shamanic giant.
This kid actually managed to fully absorb the military formation power of those thousands of cavalry?
"And that's not all."
Han Zhen's blood-marked arm continued to absorb the blood energy from both sides.
Just the military formation power of the Qingmu Iron Cavalry, combined with the enhancement of the slaughtering melody, shouldn't have been enough to achieve this.
That kid had a secret within him that rivaled the ancestral spirits!
"What on earth does he want?"
The shaman of the Great Wind Clan's eyes flickered.
As long as the shamanic spirits existed, with enough life force, they could achieve immortality. But if no one worshipped them, they would fade away.
The malevolent turtle had once hoped to revive, but now that its spirit statue was broken, if the national master did not intervene to reconstruct it, it might never reappear in the world.
Similarly, if their shamanic statue also took a hammer from that kid...
"It’s me."
Han Zhen's expression darkened, suddenly throwing his head back and laughing, blood energy surging:
"He, a mere observer, dares to..."
"Kill this seat!!?"
The calamity beast avatars changed their expressions.
If Han Zhen died, who would gather the fortunes of the Great Shang? Who would repair the bronze divine tree?
Many of them had been awakened by Han Zhen.
In their eyes reflected the figure standing amidst the black tide, growing closer, an indomitable will that could not be extinguished.
"Bring that kid's head back, and present it to the national master as a toast!"
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