Chapter 2822: The Burden Lifted

The emperor returned and turned the tide of battle. Whether the Secret Realm has a master or not, the difference in power is truly heaven and earth.

And outside the city gate, not far away, Jia Lou Tian raised an eyebrow as he watched.

Why did the gate guardian beast's power surge? Why did the damage on the city walls recover so quickly?

Geng Yue Shen said from the side: "Both dragon carvings have recovered—this is bad. Now there are five!"

Yes, three more black dragon stone carvings have emerged from within the city walls, making a total of five now.

Their size has increased by at least thirty percent, and their abilities have suddenly surged. A heavenly demon was attempting to climb the wall, unaware that a third black dragon could suddenly emerge from behind and instantly bite off his leg!

If not for Geng Yue Shen's quick reflexes, forcibly pulling him back, he would have been torn apart by three dragons in the next second.

Moreover, the man-eating vines on the city walls, originally fixed to the wall surface, can now pull their roots free from the top of the wall, transforming into individual mobile vine demons that rush swiftly to attack enemies below the city.

They are slender and agile in movement, utterly different from the bulky and sluggish ordinary wood demons. Their vine texture rapidly lignifies, becoming harder, and their surface even gains a layer of black oily wax sheen—when the arm blades of the black caterpillar demons slash at them, they only leave a white mark.

After they leap over the wall, the original positions on the city wall are not left empty; instead, new man-eating vines grow there, then rapidly mature and grow, descending again...

Through this cycle, in no time a vast army of man-eating vines is generated.

The black caterpillar demons on the battlefield were instantly swept away, and the crisis facing Panlongcheng temporarily eased.

"Panlongcheng's power is rapidly increasing." Jia Lou Tian looked up at the battlements above, "Those few leaders are also gone."

What happened? Did these garrison troops find a new way to activate the energy of the Panlong Secret Realm, or...

Jia Lou Tian then asked Geng Yue Shen: "How much longer until Bai Zhan Tian and Tong Ming Zhenjun arrive?"

"Before we came in, he said it would be about fifteen minutes." Geng Yue Shen calculated the time silently, "It should be soon now?"

And behind the Panlong Great Gate, in the South Gate Square, He Yue also ran down from the city wall, leaving only Ling Jinbao guarding the original spot.

In battle, one cannot leave the city walls unguarded.

"Big brother!" He Yue rushed down in three steps made two, seeing his elder brother indeed standing here, genuine and undeniable, and couldn't help but redden his eye sockets.

The two brothers clasped arms, each giving the other an embrace.

After not seeing each other for many years, who would have thought they would meet again under such circumstances—how could one not feel sorrowful?

He Lingchuan immediately asked him: "Are you injured?"

Compared to the last time they met, He Yue has become much thinner, his cheekbones protruding, his face also darkened. The innocence and naivety of his youth are completely gone.

But when he looks at He Lingchuan, his gaze remains filled with sincerity and trust.

True brotherly affection, time cannot erase.

"Just a minor injury." He Yue looked at him in astonishment, "Big brother, what happened to your eyes?"

His elder brother's eyes are bloodshot, as if punched in the eye, red and swollen.

The question is, who has the gall and the ability to strike the Nine Abysses Great Emperor?

Others also saw it, but they merely dared not ask as bluntly as he did.

"Just a minor injury, no need to worry." He Lingchuan said lightly, "Are these all the people you brought?"

He is the mainstay of everyone here; his calmness allows others to remain composed.

He Yue gritted his teeth: "The Changshan guests and the Qing Shu Di Jun who marched with me have all sacrificed!"

The Changshan guest is that giant black eagle, also one of Shen State's immortal birds, entrusted by He Chunhua to accompany He Yue on campaign—who would have thought he would fall dead on the Mother Earth Plains.

Qing Shu Di Jun sacrificed! He Lingchuan was startled, looking toward Mingke Xianren. The latter also had a grim expression.

Mingke Xianren said in a solemn voice: "Qing Shu and Changshan guest sacrificed themselves to cover our retreat—unfortunately fallen in battle!"

He Yue's eyes were filled with bloodshot: "The heavenly demons killed my son just for today's scheme! Big brother, I share no sky with them!"

They had previously stubbornly held the Mother Earth Plains and the Panlong Secret Realm, originally resolved to die embracing the enemy, but the moment He Lingchuan appeared, their qi and blood surged, their hearts stirred, unable to restrain themselves.

The Nine Abysses Great Emperor is the mainstay of everyone; his presence means everything is under his command.

He Yue and Mingke Xianren both felt that the thousand-jin burden on their shoulders had suddenly been lifted.

He Lingchuan's face was expressionless, but a blue vein twitched at his temple:

"Blood debts must be repaid in blood!"

Under heaven, only He Lingchuan dares to speak such wild words against the heavenly demons without seeming out of place.

At present, the Panlong Secret Realm urgently needs to resolve two issues: first, to hold the gate of Panlongcheng; second, to clarify what has happened to Mother Earth.

"I reinforced the Nancheng Gate." He used the power of the Great Expansion Heavenly Pearl to suppress the Nancheng Gate and city wall, "Concentrating all the Secret Realm's power into the Nancheng Gate, making it impregnable in a short time."

The power of the Great Expansion Heavenly Pearl is beyond ordinary imagination; when it was still imperfect, Miao Zhantian and Qianhuan True Person, within the sea of consciousness formed inside the Great Expansion Heavenly Pearl, fought fiercely but failed to break it. After He Lingchuan obtained this pearl, he first let it follow him on southern and northern campaigns, after establishing the state, he let it stay in the Ju City of Cangyan's capital for fifteen years, absorbing the power of the mortal world.

From Panlong Ancient City to the capital of Yao State, then to Ju City in Cangyan, this Great Expansion Heavenly Pearl changed hands several times, underwent two hundred years of arduous cultivation before finally achieving completion, and with the help of the Great Square Vessel, condensed into the Panlong Secret Realm.

The power it contains cannot be broken by ordinary immortals or demons.

And with He Lingchuan's return, the entire Secret Realm seems to have come alive, emitting an unfriendly aura toward enemies.

However, speaking of which, He Lingchuan pouring all the power of the Great Expansion Heavenly Pearl into the Nancheng Gate amounts to designating the Nancheng Gate as the "formation eye" of the Secret Realm—if the heavenly demons break the Nancheng Gate, the Panlong Secret Realm will also be broken simultaneously, thus dissipating.

Hmm, as long as.

"How many troops remain in the city?"

Yang Sheng replied: "The Black Armor Army, plus the Shen State forces, totals two thousand one hundred."

In pursuing the first two routes of heavenly demons, they had already suffered considerable losses; their third attempt at repeating old tricks resulted in kicking against Bai Zhan Tian's iron plate, instantly losing over a thousand men!

Also due to insufficient remaining troops, Yang Sheng dared not send armies out of the city during the Secret Realm battle.

Facing vast numbers of immortals and demons, sending out this number of troops would be suicide.

He Lingchuan turned to ask He Yue: "Where is your great army?"

"In the southwest of Kunlong Moat, I have ordered them to come here, to arrive within an hour." The Shen State's main force indeed numbers one hundred thousand!

If they have the advantage on the Mother Earth Plains, they might not be without a fighting chance against immortals and demons.

This is also one of the reasons that supported everyone's stubborn persistence until now.

He Lingchuan nodded: "Very good."

Once these one hundred thousand troops enter the Mother Earth Plain, they will become an unstoppable powerful force and an important bargaining chip in the fight against the heavenly demons. He Yuet keenly grasped the contradiction and mobilized the main force in advance to come here, which greatly pleased He Lingchuan.

(End of Chapter)