Chapter 723: The Burning Imperial Capital

This is even more efficient than human explosions and arson; once a wind tornado catches fire, it often turns into a fire tornado, doubling its destructive power.

Zhu Zhu Xiuer asked in surprise, "Another half-immortal? Where did this one pop out from?"

He He Lingchuan and Dong Rui were both startled: "This avian demon is also a half-immortal?"

A demon's strength is usually proportional to its size—usually. In the current spiritual energy environment, ordinary avian demons simply cannot grow this large, nor could they cause such massive destruction—

The dozens of wind tornadoes it released caused more damage to this city than Fang Fang Canran's subordinates and the herd of Thunder-Qing Beasts combined.

It is just that each wind tornado does not last long, only about twenty or thirty breaths.

But this is already enough.

So, where did Fang Fang Canran find such a big fellow?

Zhu Zhu Xiuer watched for a while longer: "Hmm, the power is similar, but the divine ability is too singular."

Avian demons usually excel at spells; if this green bird has the ability to control wind, then releasing several other types of divine abilities casually should be effortless.

As the three spoke, the green bird flew over the Thunder-Qing Beasts, and the tornadoes swept in, tearing the Shadow Barrier spell to shreds.

With the barrier broken, the Thunder-Qing Beasts began to run again, causing wanton destruction.

Even more terrifyingly, it spat thunder at the wind tornadoes, turning them instantly into electric tornadoes; wherever they passed, they crackled with thunder beads, leaving a trail of death and injury! Fan Long, the Grand Commander of the Concentric Guard, was once again running alongside the herd of Thunder-Qing Beasts, directing the attack.

The giant beast knocked over a row of towers; Fan Long jerked his mount to a halt to dodge, accidentally avoiding a black light that struck from behind.

Huh, what is that? His heart skipped a beat, and out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of a strange object emerging from the ruins, arriving in a flash.

So fast!

Before he could clearly see what it was, the object was already upon him.

Fan Long drew his blade without a second thought.

With a resounding "clang," he parried a bizarre object; it was shaped like a flying disc, but its edges were lined with sharp teeth—once it struck flesh and blood, it would scrape meat and shave bone without hesitation.

The force of the rotation was so great that the black-spotted beast Fan Long was riding was knocked back two steps, letting out a long neigh, nearly collapsing into the ruins.

He flung the object away, but the spinning disc did not land; it circled twice, accelerated, and charged again! It was fully automated, flexible, and agile.

At the same time, with two "whoosh" sounds, two more spinning discs drifted in from the side. Fan Long barely dodged them, and suddenly two wind bullets struck down from the sky; one hit the feet of Fan Long's mount, the blast flipping it over, while the other broke the nearest crumbling wall, causing the entire structure to crash down on Fan Long's head!

The giant bird in mid-air, busy destroying the city and tearing up the streets, actually still had time to pay him extra attention.

Light flickered on Fan Long's body as his primordial power formed a shield; he leaped from the black-spotted beast, trying to spring out of the danger zone.

The two spinning discs hovered nearby like sharks circling a drowning man; seeing this, they lunged together, displaying remarkable coordination.

The black-spotted beast blocked the way, but the spinning discs did not dodge or weave, slicing it directly in two.

The process did not slow down in the slightest.

Watching his beloved mount of over ten years die a miserable death, Fan Long didn't even have time to grieve, for the three spinning discs were already in pursuit. If he didn't find a way, he would follow the same fate as the black-spotted beast! At the critical moment, Fan Long threw out a flying grapple to forcibly change his trajectory; the three spinning discs missed, circled in the distance, and continued to chase him.

It was unclear whether this thing had its own intelligence or was being controlled from behind.

But this level of flexibility already exceeded that of ordinary magic treasures.

Just as Fan Long landed, a short blade silently poked out from the shadows of the ruins, as if it had been waiting there all along.

This was the hidden killing blow!

The next second, blood splattered.

In the darkness and chaos, close-quarters combat meant every strike was a matter of life and death.

Fan Long's personal guards rushed to reinforce him; they were all battle-hardened soldiers, yet eight of them were slaughtered in succession within six breaths! Such precise point-killing—fast, accurate, and ruthless—would have left even He He Lingchuan overwhelmed.

To catch the bandits, one must first catch the leader; the sudden absence of the Concentric Guard's Grand Commander left several army units leaderless, greatly weakening the interception power of Spirit Void City.

The three spinning discs danced, shaking off the blood cleanly, then followed their master back into the ruins, where no one could find them no matter how they searched.

Under the cover of fire and turmoil, the phantom-like killer hurried toward the next target.

His prey were all key figures in the city defense battle.

The green bird in the sky launched large-scale attacks, while the shadow on the ground quietly harvested key lives!

And the running Thunder-Qing Beast herd attracted everyone's attention.

The results of this Spirit Void City turmoil must be expanded, expanded further!

He He Lingchuan and the others did not know that these thrilling secret battles were happening in the city's alleys, otherwise, Zhu Zhu Xiuer could have identified the second immortal. But they stood on Xingshan, silently witnessing the turmoil, flames, riots, and fear spreading through Spirit Void City.

With the intrusion of the giant beasts, the imperial capital, which had enjoyed six hundred years of peace, began to fall into chaos.

No, that's not right; the panic of the Spirit Void people had already begun back when Xushan was burning fiercely.

He He Lingchuan had let the Zuju burn down the Star-Plucking Tower, triggering a volcanic eruption;

Fang Fang Canran's team had caused massive destruction in Spirit Void City, filling the air with smoke and filth everywhere;

And Fang Fang Canran had then led the Thunder-Qing Beasts to trample Spirit Void City, dragging everyone in the city into a riot unseen in six hundred years.

It is hard to say whose results were more fruitful.

He He Lingchuan shook his head secretly; do not be fooled by Fang Fang Canran's seemingly smooth and friendly exterior—in reality, he truly deserves the description "firm in character, ruthless in methods."

Of course, in the eyes of the Tiangong and the Demon Emperor, these two great achievements probably both belong to He He Lingchuan, who destroyed Xushan, right?

Dong Rui couldn't help but ask: "Where will these giant beasts eventually run to?"

He He Lingchuan pointed to the sky: "Don't you see they are approaching the Jinghong Ferry?"

How could Fang Fang Canran be satisfied with only disturbing the Lower City? But the floating island is the vital point of Spirit Void City; the Thunder-Qing Beasts would only die faster by doing that.

The ground suddenly trembled violently, and even the people on Xingshan felt unsteady.

Immediately after, several loud bangs rang out; the crowd looked north and saw flames soaring into the sky above Heavenly Pivot Peak, with two mushroom clouds rising—it was actually another volcanic eruption! Ever since He He Lingchuan left the Xushan territory, it had been quiet for quite a while; now that it erupted suddenly, had the talks between Zuju and the Tiangong broken down?

And in the center of the Spirit Void Lower City, several fireworks rose slowly, illuminating the night sky for a long time.

Everyone could see that after the thick clouds dispersed, a vast and wondrous scene suddenly appeared in the night sky: thousands of peaks with exquisite beauty, clear rivers winding like jade belts, and jade towers and palaces faintly visible atop the clouds, with hundreds of streams of light flying in and out—all were immortals traveling on magic treasures!

The elegance, tranquility, and beauty of this image formed a sharp contrast with the Spirit Void City burning in flames directly below.

Dong Rui watched intently, subconsciously feeling a sense of longing: "Where is that?"

He He Lingchuan did not answer, but an answer was on the tip of his tongue: Lingshan?

Was the image in the sky the two words he heard earlier under the Questioning Tree? In the dark, those many secrets seemed to interlock like an Ouroboros.

So, is the organization behind Fang Fang Canran related to Lingshan? What kind of declaration are they trying to make by creating such a big scene?

Are the immortals coming back?

Or is a change in the world order imminent?

What is certain is that the Tiangong and Spirit Void City must also be able to understand this declaration.

He He Lingchuan silently took a cold breath.

From the breaking of the Spirit-Gathering Array to the turmoil in Spirit Void City, less than three quarters of an hour had passed. Yet everything he had been familiar with for the past three months, and everything the people of Spirit Void City had been familiar with for the past six hundred years, was already in disarray.

The volcano erupted in the north, and the city in the south was in chaos.

The colors of blood and fire monopolized the imperial capital tonight.

And on the west side of Spirit Void City, Fang Fang Canran, standing halfway up the mountain, also looked down at the imperial capital and clicked his tongue in admiration: "A world-class painting."

The scene before his eyes was tragic yet spectacular; anyone who saw it with their own eyes would never forget it for the rest of their lives. The painting should be titled—

"The Burning Imperial Capital."

Their hatred had turned into blood and fire, knives and swords, intending to shred the hypocritical mask of Spirit Void City's six hundred years of prosperity!

Just then, the ground of Spirit Void City emitted a pale blue glow, as if some array had been activated.

Several angry long howls came from the floating island, as if some giant beasts were about to appear.

A snow-white giant bird was the first to fly down, with two natural red marks under its wings.

It passed through the Lingshan scene in mid-air, and this vast, beautiful sight soon dissipated into nothingness.

The white bird was far smaller than the green bird, but countless ice crystals followed in its wake; with a single flap of its wings, countless wind blades and frost swords shot directly toward the green bird.

Behind it followed numerous birds, dense and thick, almost blotting out the sky.

"Eh?" He He Lingchuan looked into the distance; could that be the Winter Palace State Preceptor he had never seen before? The green bird in the sky had flapped its wings everywhere and caused enough destruction; not wanting to linger in battle, it turned and retreated outside the city.

Its mission was complete; it was time to exit.

As luck would have it, it headed straight in the direction of He He Lingchuan and the others.

In mid-air, several more streams of light shot toward it.

Spirit Void City was thoroughly enraged, and the rhythm of the counterattack had only just begun.

Dong Rui immediately put away his spectator mindset: "Hey, hey, hey, it's coming, and the pursuers are coming too!"

He He Lingchuan subconsciously grabbed the divine bone necklace at his neck: "Go! It's time for us to exit."

The lid of the Great Square Pot was in his hands; this was a feat that the two predecessors of the three-piece set—King Yuan and Zhong Zhong Shengguang—had failed to complete.

But he had stayed until now precisely to observe Spirit Void City's reaction to a surprise attack.

Fighting an unprepared battle, and on one's own turf, would expose many underlying truths.

How long would it take for the war machine to start up? Facing the dual chaos of Xushan and the main city, how would Spirit Void City allocate its forces?

How long would it take for the heavenly gods and great demons to reach the battlefield? What practical and effective interception measures would be implemented? How would they evacuate and treat civilians? An expert looks at the methods. He would collect this precious intelligence and repeatedly scrutinize it later to see where the advantages and weaknesses of this powerful empire lay.

Now, the performance belonging to him, He He Lingchuan, had ended. Let this stage be left to Spirit Void City and Fang Fang Canran.

———— The main text of "The Demon's Utopia (Volume II)" ends here.

(End of this chapter)