Chapter 2507 - 2505: A Difficult Defense of the City
A Demon King asked incredulously, "Who is the Daoist on the city wall? How does he possess such divine power?"
The Golden Eagle King introduced, "He is Wu Zhi, the general of Yang Valley Pass, born with divine strength, the most outstanding heir of the Wu Family bloodline."
"What’s so special about the Wu Family bloodline?"
The Demon King was puzzled.
The Golden Eagle King explained, "The Wu Family are descendants of divine blood, born with divine strength, possessing such great power without the need for cultivation."
The Demon King realized, "No wonder I sensed no mana fluctuation from him; turns out he’s a body cultivator."
The Roaring Sky Tiger King said darkly, "It was his brother who killed my son, and I must settle this account with him."
Before his words fell, three feather arrows, like lightning, exploded on the Demon Clan’s catapults.
Another three catapults were shattered amidst the dust and noise.
A Demon King with deer horns cursed, "That kid, does he really take us for air?"
He raised his hand and summoned a five-colored deer antler.
Before the cheers on the city wall died away, Wu Zhi released three more arrows, resembling lightning bolts charging towards the battlefield.
"Woosh!"
The Deer Demon King raised his hand, swept out five mysterious lights with the five-colored deer antler, and enveloped the three Feather Swords.
Bang, bang, bang, three loud explosions.
The three Feather Swords were swept down to the ground by the Deer Demon King, the immense power shaking the earth and creating three large pits.
Wu Zhi was startled and hurriedly retrieved the arrows.
A Demon King had already taken out a magical treasure and was about to collect the Feather Arrow.
Seeing Wu Zhi retrieve it, he snorted lightly, "Good thing you retrieved it quickly; a mere mortal, even with divine blood, isn’t any different!"
For they are cultivators, capable of controlling the world with cultivation.
A descendant of divine blood is nothing in their eyes.
Wu Zhi knew the power of these Demon Kings and dared not easily release more arrows.
This is why he sent Wu Song to seek Song Gongming’s help; facing these cultivators, ordinary people like them are far behind.
Even possessing divine power is not enough.
Although there are cultivators in the army, none can match the cultivation levels of these Demon Kings.
Standing beside Wu Zhi, they sighed lightly, "The Demon Kings of the Seventy-Two Mountains live up to their names; their cultivation is definitely at the Void Insight Realm."
"If a Demon King from a small mountain has such fortune, imagine how powerful the Demon Kings of famous mountains and great rivers must be!"
"Isn’t the Black Dragon King one of them? It’s rumored he’s already at the Mahayana Celestial Venerate Realm."
"If he were here, Yang Valley Pass would truly be in danger."
"..."
Wu Zhi listened, furrowing his brows, only hoping that the expert from the past wasn’t deceiving them.
As dusk approached, Wu Song returned from Qizhou, using the teleportation channel to re-enter the city.
Between major cities, official families have established teleportation channels, providing great convenience.
He ascended the city wall to meet Wu Zhi.
Wu Zhi quickly asked, "How is the situation?"
Wu Song took a big drink from a bowl of wine, wiped his mouth, and said, "It succeeded. Today happens to be the Duke of Qi’s daughter’s one-month celebration. He promised to bring people to help us tomorrow."
Wu Zhi slapped the city wall and shouted, "They say Duke of Qi is generous and just, known as the Timely Rain of Qizhou. Truly lives up to his reputation."
Wu Song glanced at the Demon Clan outside the city and said, "We will probably have to hold out here for the night."
Wu Zhi replied, "No matter, with the city’s array, holding out for the night is not a problem."
While the brothers were talking, the sound of drums reverberated outside the city.
The Demon Army had already advanced three thousand zhang, setting up formations over a thousand meters away.
The catapults emitted loud winch noises as a group of demon soldiers collaborated to place large stones on the launch pots.
These stone holders, resembling large black pots, were all crafted from refined steel.
These massive stones were mined nearby by demon soldiers.
In this world, cutting mountains and stones is a simple task.
Therefore, there is no need for technological advancement; no need to develop machinery.
Tasks beyond human capacity don’t require machinery; just having cultivators step in suffices.
The catapults were loaded with giant stones and doused in fire oil.
A demon soldier waved a command banner, and immediately others lit the fire oil.
The Roaring Sky Tiger King squinted, raised his hand, and waved.
The demon soldiers shouted loudly, "Release!"
The catapults on the battlefield and those on either side of the mountain erupted with loud roars.
Each of these multiple-thousand-jin stones was launched by this massive machine, and as they flew through the air, they traced fiery red trails.
During the dusk, the sky appeared gray.
In the city, people collectively looked up at these falling stones like meteors, all shouting in terror, rushing into their houses to hide.
Suddenly, there’s a dull rumble in the sky as a giant defensive barrier over Yang Valley Pass activated.
This barrier appeared khaki-colored, resembling a large pot covering the city.
Hundreds of boulders continuously hit it, resembling impacts on the water, producing rumbling sounds, creating ripples on the shield, and ultimately rolling off one by one.
Below the city walls, it rained giant stones within moments.
Bang, bang, bang, the ground trembled with loud sounds, creating large pits over a dozen meters deep.
The soldiers defending the city wall watched in awe, secretly swallowing saliva, thinking to themselves what it would feel like if this array were broken.
Such gigantic stones falling directly on one’s head, one can’t imagine the sensation.
The city’s residents, having not encountered war for a long time, first panicked, and upon seeing the stones unfallen, boldly ventured outside to watch.
In the chaos, the Magistrate of Yang Valley Pass quickly found Wu Zhi and informed him, "General, the array is consuming Spirit Stones too quickly; our city’s stockpile cannot hold on much longer."
He was a civil official, overseeing affairs in Yang Valley Pass and several surrounding counties.
Wu Zhi was in charge of military affairs and didn’t intervene in civil matters.
In terms of rank, Wu Zhi was a second-grade military official, while the Magistrate was a fourth-grade official, four ranks lower than Wu Zhi.
Thus, the Magistrate usually consulted Wu Zhi for significant matters in the city.
Wu Zhi raised his brows and asked the Magistrate, "Does our city’s warehouse have only this amount of Spirit Stones?"
The Magistrate lamented, "General, you don’t know the cost of firewood and rice since you’re not managing a household. Our Yang Valley Pass is a poor place, usually relying only on toll fees from merchants for finances. Look around; it’s all barren mountains and rugged areas, just a canyon with no resources!"
The stones in the sky didn’t stop, falling like raindrops with loud crashes.
The Magistrate ran calculations with Wu Zhi, informing him that the city’s array consumes fifty to sixty thousand Spirit Stones with each incense time.
In two hours, it would consume four to five hundred thousand Spirit Stones.
The warehouse has tens of thousands of Spirit Stones; in such a powerful attack, it wouldn’t last long.
Wu Zhi summoned his subordinate staff officer, instructing him to escort the Magistrate to the commander-in-chief’s residence to find the Madam.
There are still some Spirit Stones in the commander-in-chief’s residence that can support a few more hours.
Wu Song, pondering a solution, said, "Brother, our family doesn’t have much money to last the night. I’ll gather people and have everyone donate something. Together, a single Spirit Stone from each of the millions of citizens will outweigh us alone!"
The Magistrate quickly nodded, "Yes, yes, that’s a method. If everyone donates one Spirit Stone, we’ll have a million Spirit Stones available."
Wu Zhi agreed with Wu Song, "Go ahead! But remember, if they want to donate, let them; if not, don’t force it."
"Understood!"
Wu Song nodded and immediately left with some men.
Wu Zhi’s eyes focused ahead as he raised his bow and arrow, searching for targets on either side of the mountain.
The Demon Kings were all gathered at the front, with no Demon Kings on either side of the mountain, so there was no fear of them seizing the Feather Arrows.