Chapter 2391: Face-to-Face Showdown

The enemy's city layout and paths can change at any moment; what significance does our pre-planned route have?

"But the stratum where that white house sits shouldn't change, right?"

"Heard it doesn't change. Heard."

"Good. Only by seizing the Earth Mother's vital point will it admit defeat and compromise." True Person Si Hai took a deep breath. "Any new movements from the Heavenly Demon?"

That's also the key point — their opponents aren't just the Earth Mother and Yujing City.

The other immortals shook their heads.

Ling Jinbao once again hesitated, wanting to speak but stopping.

True Person Si Hai grew impatient: "If you have something to say, say it. Don't hem and haw!"

"I just thought..." Ling Jinbao coughed lightly. "The situation on the wasteland is so tense, all three sides keep sending reinforcements. But isn't the Panlong Ruins most closely connected to Cang Yan's Nine Nether Emperor? Why don't we see any Cang Yan forces here?"

"This place is too far from Cang Yan." True Person Si Hai replied without thinking. "Even if they planted spies here, Cang Yan's mighty figures would need much longer to rush over."

Between Cang Yan and the Panlong Wasteland lay the vast Mu Kingdom, Beijia, and also a Shen Kingdom. In an era of declining spiritual qi, a person might not walk such a distance in a lifetime.

"Hmm." Judging by Ling Jinbao's expression, he wasn't convinced.

The previous two Panlong Ruins expeditions both ultimately benefited He Lingchuan. Once could be called an accident; twice both him — it's very likely because this person excels at setting up schemes.

True Person Si Hai countered: "Otherwise?"

"Could Cang Yan have already sent people to lie in wait?"

"Not impossible." But True Person Si Hai's next words didn't come out — Mingyao Shangzun interrupted him:

"Stop. The Earth Mother is very likely about to act!"

Everyone was startled: "Now?"

"Yes. The withered leaf butterflies I left in the ruins alerted me — Yujing City has already appeared directly opposite Panlong Ruins, separated from it by only a moat!"

Last time the Earth Mother approached Panlong Ruins, both sides were still ten-odd li apart. Now, it intends to go face-to-face.

Each side held the ends of the Panlong Wasteland and the Chipá Plateau, confronting each other.

"This is too fast. Weren't there still three days?"

Immortal Mingke immediately said: "Looks like another change occurred. The Earth Mother judges Panlong Ruins powerless to resist and prepares to take it down right now."

Leisurely time ended. True Person Si Hai strode outside. A red light shot skyward, exploding into red smoke like a great tree, branching and spreading leaves in midair — spectacular.

Others' command arrows are just a trail of red smoke; his is this conspicuous — no one can ignore it.

Mingyao Shangzun also came out, tossing a golden leaf forward.

With a soft "bang," the golden leaf enlarged a hundredfold, resembling a small boat. Veins exceptionally clear, it nearly blinded eyes under the sun.

"Let's go. Can't let the Earth Mother truly succeed."

Everyone boarded the golden leaf boat. This thing whooshed toward the wasteland, light and swift as an arrow leaving the bow.

And in Heishuicheng, over ten streaks of rainbow light soon rose, each carrying many people, tightly following behind them.

These were all Ling Mountain people. Seeing True Person Si Hai's signal, they dropped what they were doing and followed the immortals to crusade.

First the fire trees exploded, then flying rainbows ascended — such a commotion naturally couldn't escape Heishuicheng's officials.

Roughly two quarter-hours later, the Shen army also advanced toward the ruins.

They weren't originally garrisoned inside the city, but thirty li north of it — this saved the trouble of exiting the city, and they even used rapid-march formation artifacts, adding speed to their mounts.

Though not as swift as those flying above, their gallop was still wind-swift and lightning-fast, incomparable to ten-odd years ago.

$$$$$

Several withered leaf butterflies perched on the gate tower of Panlong Ruins' south gate, taking in the scene below.

Yujing City truly came.

Accompanied by violent earthquakes, this huge, magnificent ghost city slowly arched up from underground. First mountain peaks and the Gao Ta showed their heads, then continuous building clusters emerged, spectacular beyond compare against the slanting sun and sky-full of yellow sand.

Due to the barrier, massive amounts of sand and stone were blocked outside; Yujing City's city interface remained neat and dry as ever. Wondrously, it joined seamlessly with the surrounding land, creating no messy scene of overturned earth — instead looking as if it had always grown together with the wasteland beneath.

Now, it and the Panlong Ancient City — the bridgehead of the Chipá Plateau — were separated by only a river: Panlong Ruins' moat.

Two massive cities faced each other; combined they could be called vast. But one side desolate, one lush; one side decayed, one rich — visually extremely shocking.

The withered leaf butterflies looked down clearly from their height. The terrain difference between wasteland and plateau let Panlong Ruins occupy the high ground, as if overlooking Yujing City below.

In Heishuicheng, Mingyao Shangzun, about to depart, asked his junior martial brother: "What is the ghost city waiting for? Can it not attack upward?"

Immortal Mingke shook his head: "Can't attack up. The two sides are currently wrestling. If the Earth Mother can't also seize the Chipá Plateau, it has no way to directly ascend the plateau and approach Panlong Ruins."

He further explained: "I just went to Shao City a few days ago. Its walls were completely crushed flat — visible proof the ghost city emerged from underground, directly crushing Shao City's outer walls. If the Earth Mother cannot assimilate the land around Panlong Ruins — that is, the Chipá Plateau's land — it cannot replicate the same method."

"Then what to do?"

"Assimilate, of course. Using various methods." Immortal Mingke's face was grave. "The Earth Mother has rich experience devouring relics. I also really want to see its techniques."

And at the end of the Panlong Wasteland, after Yujing City surfaced and briefly reorganized, it prepared to attack!

The Earth Mother acted early because it discovered the power guarding the Panlong Wasteland had suddenly vanished!

Like two people wrestling, one suddenly loses strength — his opponent naturally detects it instantly and exploits the opening.

The Earth Mother didn't believe this power was naturally exhausted — too sudden, too deliberate. But it couldn't miss this chance, so it followed anyway.

Sure enough, the moment its black corrosion power reached the Chipá Plateau, it was blocked back.

Panlong Ruins hadn't exhausted its power — it just wanted to lure the Earth Mother over. Fine, it also wanted to see what true ability this place had to block the Heavenly Demon for over a hundred seventy years.

The Earth Mother issued an order; the myriad monsters and ghosts behind the gates together turned the windlass.

Amid the clanging of metal cables, the Yujing Gate slowly opened.

Just as Immortal Mingke judged: since the Chipá Plateau wasn't corroded, Yujing City couldn't directly ascend this plateau, couldn't directly crush Panlong Ruins.

So Yujing City now has a siege battle to fight.

First, cross this moat — a natural chasm.

Formerly a rift valley, now with water it became a river. But the river is very wide, the current very swift, and the opposite bank is a hundred-zhang dangerous cliff, steep enough that monkeys would struggle to climb.