Chapter 573: The War Begins
Blood Abyss Continent, the tenth blood nest in the Heavenly Realm.
As a first-level blood nest directly under the Blood Abyss Demon Sect, the city walls here are entirely made of "blood coagulation rock".
The outer wall is smooth as a mirror, without any protrusions or gaps to climb on, and it has a dull reddish tinge in the sunlight.
The city wall is forty meters high and sixty li in circumference. The entire Blood Nest is a perfect circle with four city gates.
The city gates are all of purple quality, and there are also sturdy barbicans built behind them.
On the city wall, a "Three Fiends Piercing Clouds Crossbow" is deployed every twenty meters. The three arrow slots are linked by a mechanism that can fire three giant black iron arrows at the same time, exuding a murderous aura.
Outer disciples of the Demonic Sect were patrolling back and forth along the city wall.
Some of them wielded green-quality black iron rods, while others had cultivated the intermediate martial art "Blood Coagulation Claw" and wore green-quality claw-type weapons.
During this time, inner disciples at the Innate Realm also used the "Blood Shadow Step" on the battlements, leaving afterimages as they moved, silently patrolling the city.
Surrounding the base of the city wall is a moat five meters wide and eight meters deep, the bottom of which is densely filled with barbed iron stakes.
At this moment, the four city gates opened, the drawbridges were lowered, and outer disciples from various blood nests were entering the city in an orderly manner.
The two million miscellaneous disciples were not qualified to enter the city and could only set up a large camp ten miles outside the west gate. As far as the eye could see, the camps stretched out in a continuous line, with banners obscuring the sun.
Above the West Gate tower, five figures stood in mid-air, silently overlooking the sect army below.
The man in the center is around forty years old, with a thin face, pale and almost translucent skin, and slightly graying temples.
He wore a dark red robe, with a blood-red jade pendant hanging at his waist. His hands were clean and slender, and he had a gentle smile on his face, just like a schoolteacher next door.
He was none other than Yin Xueyuan, the sect leader of the Blood Abyss Demon Sect and the first level of the Fifty-Three Shattered Void Realm.
Beside him stood four level 49 Celestial Realm experts lined up in a row.
Yin Xueyuan watched the procession passing through the city gate for a while, then spoke in a gentle tone: "How is the army's assembly going?"
Night Shadow stood about two steps to his left, wearing a simple, almost transparent gray robe. His light gray eyes gazed into the distance, and his voice was calm and even.
"Sect Master, all 716 true disciples and elders have arrived at Blood Nest No. 10, along with over 6,000 inner disciples and over 2,000 Mo Lingyuan, totaling over 8,000 innate combat power."
Six hundred thousand outer disciples and two million miscellaneous disciples have all arrived on time and are ready to begin the holy war at any time.
Yin Xueyuan nodded slightly, his pale face still bearing that gentle smile: "Very good. This time, I specially used two pieces of golden equipment to exchange for the 'Eye of the Blood Demon'."
It can help us pinpoint those nascent nightmare planes that haven't yet been conquered. This holy war is a do-or-die situation.
Li Zhan stood to Yin Xueyuan's right. Upon hearing this, he licked his lips, his eyes filled with a fervent thirst for battle.
"Sect Master, rest assured, my blade is already thirsting for blood. No matter what kind of monsters or demons are on the other side, I will cut them down with one strike."
"Two million for miscellaneous tasks and six hundred thousand for outer gates. They're piled up so high they'd kill the other side. If you ask me, let's not wait two more days; we can set off today."
Zanghua chuckled softly, her voice like a spring breeze brushing against a flower branch: "Senior Brother Lizhan is still so impatient. Since the sect leader has set it for two days later, there must be a reason for it. This battle concerns the sect's grand plan, so it's best to be cautious."
Her eyes crinkled as she spoke, as if she were genuinely thinking of Li Zhan's best interests, but there was no warmth in her beautiful eyes.
Nightshade remained taciturn and melancholic, saying softly, "The Nightmare Plane is not a rabble either; we must not be careless."
Zanghua's voice was as sweet as if she were discussing a tea party: "Yes, the sect leader went to great lengths to obtain the Blood Demon Eye, so naturally we must bring back a complete Plane Heart to repay the sect leader's cultivation."
Chongshan remained silent, only nodding heavily, his right hand resting on the rusty greatsword behind him, demonstrating his stance through his actions.
Hearing the four people's responses, Yin Xueyuan nodded in satisfaction: "The entire army will rest for two days. After two days, I will personally open the dimensional gate and officially begin the dimensional war."
"Yes, sir!" the four replied in unison, their voices echoing above the city wall.
...
Hangu Pass, the council hall.
A full month has passed since Lin Feng returned to the Blue Star plane from Eternal Night City.
During this month, the entire Fenghuo Territory was like a war machine wound up tightly, with legions at all levels training day and night, and the city defenses of Hangu Pass being reinforced three times.
Lin Feng sat in the main seat, flipping through a proposal handed to him by Jiang Zhaoyue.
Upon opening it, I found it filled with densely packed logistical suggestions.
The details of each item—transferring provisions, supplying arrows, evacuating the wounded, repairing equipment, and rotating pack animals—are listed in great detail.
At the end of the proposal, Jiang Zhaoyue also emphasized two suggestions.
Firstly, if we really want to attack the enemy's stronghold, we should conscript 300,000 county soldiers to accompany the army and be in charge of logistics and supplies, so as not to let the front-line combat power be distracted by trivial matters.
Secondly, once it is confirmed that the Terracotta Army can revive Awakened Ones, a large number of Awakened Ones below level ten should be recruited to undertake auxiliary tasks in order to cope with possible attrition warfare.
Lin Feng pondered for a moment, then picked up his pen and wrote a single word at the end of the proposal: "Accurate".
Just as he was about to pick up another proposal, a cold, mechanical system notification suddenly exploded in his mind.
【WARNING! The Blood Abyss Dimension has locked onto Dimension H5-307, and the dimensional war is about to begin!】
【H5-307 Lord of the Dimension, please select Duel Mode.】
"It's finally here."
Lin Feng's face remained expressionless, though a fleeting glint of coldness flashed in his eyes.
He had been waiting for this day for far too long.
He decisively chose the second option, muttering to himself, "Since you're all in such a hurry to die, don't blame me for being impolite."
【Lin Feng, the Lord of Dimension H5-307, has selected Dimensional War Mode.】
【Victory condition: Destroy the opponent's dimensional core.】
【Rule restriction: Neither lord can personally intervene; the battle will be fought only by combat forces below level 50 from both sides.】
【Time Limit Rule: If no victor emerges within three years of the start of the war, the war will automatically end in a draw.】
【Sealed Protection: The first 3 months are the sealing period, during which both the Harmony of Heaven and Man mode and the Awakening of Destiny mode are disabled.】
【The interdimensional war... now officially begins!】
The moment the notification tone ended, Lin Feng felt a blur before his eyes, and the scenery around him suddenly changed.
He found himself forcibly teleported to the core of the territory of Beacon City.
【During the war, the dimensional rulers were locked in place by the will of the universe, confined to the core area of their territories and unable to leave.】
Lin Feng frowned slightly, and, refusing to believe it, walked to the second-floor window and jumped out.
However, just as his feet left the windowsill, an invisible force pulled him back sharply, and the next second, he was standing steadily in front of the core of the territory.
"Come on, that's really strict."
Lin Feng shook his head and gave up trying.
He closed his eyes and instantly switched his consciousness to the beacon fire avatar on the second floor of the Hangu Pass council hall.
"Buzz!"
In the instant his consciousness merged, he discovered that he could perfectly control this clone!
"Hahaha...Good! Good!" Lin Feng couldn't help but burst into laughter.
He quickly familiarized himself with the three-dimensional attributes of this level 39 clone. Strength, agility, and physique were perfectly balanced. Although it was much weaker than the original body, it was more than enough to command the battlefield and restrain an opponent at the Celestial Realm level.
He didn't delay any longer and went downstairs immediately.
At the entrance, a messenger stood ramrod straight. Upon seeing Lin Feng emerge, he quickly clasped his hands in a salute.
"The interdimensional war has begun! Order all armies to immediately move into their designated combat positions!"
"Yes, sir!" The messenger clasped his hands in acceptance, turned, and ran off.
Lin Feng took a deep breath, his figure leaped into the air, transforming into a streak of light, and sped towards the north gate of Hangu Pass.