Chapter 968

Wuguo, southern frontier, originally the territory of the southern ghost state.

The giant teleportation gate set up by the Fu Feng Divine Dynasty was tightly guarded by several layers of military cities; tens of thousands of demon troops gathered on the walls of the final military city, their bodies covered in wounds, looking humiliatingly and helplessly at the enemy outside.

Yin Wu Shuang fled back to the Supreme Demon Realm, and Li Ergouzi led a large force, wildly attacking the rear-guard demon troops left behind by Yin Wu Shuang.

Just as Li Ergouzi defended the city, his siege was purely a matter of throwing money at it.

A motley bunch of soldiers, wearing tattered armor, wielding broken weapons, forming ragged ranks, shouting nonsense slogans, and clumsily charging the city wall in a frenzied attack.

Relying on the high, thick city walls and the formations and restrictions set up there, the tens of thousands of demon troops left by Yin Wu Shuang to defend the place repeatedly repelled hundreds of fierce assaults by Li Ergouzi's so-called elite forces.

In just a few days, Li Ergouzi's "elite heroes" launched hundreds of fierce attacks, only to be repelled one by one by the demon troops.

The army under Li Ergouzi's command generally conducted sieges in the following manner:

Rise early, eat, eat and drink their fill, then gather tens of thousands of troops, form ranks, and march mightily toward the city wall.

On the wall, the demon troops loosed a volley; thousands of arrows whistled down, wounding a few hundred of Li Ergouzi's "elite" troops, whereupon the tens of thousands of soldiers gave a shout and turned to flee.

That wave of attack ended just like that.

Li Ergouzi immediately flew into a rage, ordering the commander of the siege to be thrown to the ground, publicly stripped of his armor and beaten with military sticks until his buttocks throbbed, his skin split and flesh torn, wailing and howling incessantly.

While the unfortunate commander was being beaten, the second wave of the siege army had already set out.

The mighty, imposing siege army was still seven or eight li from the city wall when the demon soldiers rained down another barrage of arrows.

Amid the wailing, large numbers of the "elite" discarded their helmets and armor, abandoned piles of broken weapons, and turned to flee.

Again, several unfortunate commanders were pressed before the formation and beaten with military sticks, and the third wave of attack followed close behind.

Thus, within a quarter of an hour, Li Ergouzi's army could launch five or six waves, with an average of a few hundred soldiers wounded per wave, yet astonishingly, not a single one was killed.

Despite this absurd tactic, Li Ergouzi's forces actually managed, in just a few short days, to breach several successive military cities, driving the demon troops left here by Yin Wu Shuang to the final wall, where they desperately held their ground.

The combat effectiveness of Li Ergouzi's troops was… the stationed demon troops couldn't even be bothered to comment on it.

But Li Ergouzi, he was… filthy rich!

He flung every sort of thunderfire for free, tossed every sort of talisman for free, smashed every sort of heavy cannon for free, bombarded with every sort of heavy crossbow for free…

To breach the first wall, Li Ergouzi actually had several hundred thousand soldiers draw the defending demon troops' attention, then he dispatched several dozen large warships to ram the wall in a suicidal strike!

The demon troops left by Yin Wu Shuang really wanted to say— they had done their best, but the enemy was simply too rich.

Tens of thousands of demon troops lost about half their number, and the remaining soldiers were all wounded, none intact. They hid in shame on the final wall, their eyes flashing Blood Light as they stared at Li Ergouzi brandishing his sword and roaring outside.

"A singular feat, a peerless feat, a peerless feat… Where is the Army Sergeant? Where is the Army Chief Clerk? Hurry, hurry, write a memorial to His Majesty… Say that an external demon lord has invaded, boundless, immeasurable, impossible to respond to swiftly, their total forces numbering over ten million… no, over a hundred million… no, over a billion!"

"I, Grandfather Dog, led the charge, fought bloody battles for ten days and ten nights against the external demon lord, personally beheading a million demon heads, my troops each like wolves and tigers, slaying countless demon foes."

"Hmm, you guys need to embellish it more; in short, Grandfather Dog's merit must be great, must be dazzling, must be enough to shock. Grandfather Dog is like one who stays silent then makes a stunning debut; Grandfather Dog is like three years without flight, then a single leap to the heavens."

"Hurry, send the military report to the Emperor, just say… well, well, run away!"

Li Ergouzi was still nagging and shouting when, inside the military city, the light curtain of the massive teleportation array surged violently, and vast crowds of heavily armored demon soldiers poured out like dark clouds.

The vanguard forces dispatched by Yin Wu Shuang, Yin Wu Zhi, and Yin Wu Yong— a full five hundred thousand elite demon troops— invaded Wuguo's territory through the giant teleportation array.

Li Ergouzi watched those demon elites soaring into the sky, let out a few strange cries, then turned and fled.

He ran at breakneck speed, and his soldiers were even quicker to yank off the jade talismans hanging from their waists; amid a series of booming explosions, a vast light enveloped the troops Li Ergouzi had brought, countless soldiers turning into showers of light and fleeing at lightning speed toward the First Hundred and Eighth City of Slaying Ghosts.

Before the vanguard sent by Yin Wu Shuang and company could even rush out of the city, Li Ergouzi had already vanished with his men.

During these days of siege, Li Ergouzi set up a sizable camp outside the city in proper fashion, stockpiling large quantities of military supplies and equipment.

These supplies suffered no loss whatsoever, falling completely into the hands of the demon troops inside the city.

Piles of grain like mountains, piles of fresh meat like mountains, piles of fine wine like mountains, piles of marching pills like mountains, piles of arrows, armor, weapons, heavy crossbows, essence crystals, and even hundreds of standard warships seven hundred zhang long— all were left by Li Ergouzi in the camp, with no time to take them away.

The demon troops were elated, like hungry wolves scenting blood, and they flew in pursuit toward the direction of the First Hundred and Eighth City of Slaying Ghosts.

At the same time, urgent military reports kept flowing back to Yin Wu Shuang's camp, urging Yin Wu Shuang, Yin Wu Zhi, and Yin Wu Yong to quickly mobilize their forces and launch a full-scale attack on this rich-but-feeble Wuguo.

In Yin Wu Shuang's camp, the three— Yin Wu Shuang, Yin Wu Zhi, and Yin Wu Yong— knelt on the ground, sweat pouring from their foreheads like rain, heads lowered, not daring to look at the person seated above them.

Directly before them, some ten zhang away, eight metal-cast chairs were arranged in a row, and the eight pacification envoys of the Supreme Demon Realm sat upright in them, also lined up.

Yin, Evil, Flight, Poison, Destitute, Ferocious, Grief, and Full— these eight clans are the top aristocratic houses of the Supreme Demon Realm, each possessing a demon-sovereign-level elder presiding over the clan.

Each clan also respectively controls one of the eight pacification envoys of the Supreme Demon Realm— east, south, west, north, northeast, southeast, northwest, southwest— commanding hundreds of millions of demon troops, suppressing the eight directions; they are the most frenzied, sharpest blades of the Supreme Demon Realm.

The current head of the Yin clan, the Supreme Demon Realm's incumbent Southeastern Pacification Envoy Yin Wu Jiu, sat black-faced in his chair, a grim look on his face as he gazed at the kneeling Yin Wu Shuang, Yin Wu Zhi, and Yin Wu Yong.

Yin Wu Jiu's heart… was bleeding.

If it weren't for the other seven pacification envoys watching from the side, he would really have personally sliced off Yin Wu Shuang's head.

A brand-new continent, a brand-new dynasty, yet its armaments are incomplete and its military strength feeble.

With such a splendid piece of meat, Yin Wu Shuang actually wanted to swallow it all himself?

After he himself bumped his head until it bled, he then teamed up with those two idiots, Yin Wu Zhi and Yin Wu Yong, leaking not a whisper to the clan, still hoping to keep it all for himself.

If they could actually swallow that huge piece of meat, then it would be fine.

The high echelons of the Supreme Demon Realm are all selfish and self-interested, instinctively monopolizing every benefit; Yin Wu Jiu can understand Yin Wu Shuang's thinking, he can well understand his actions, and he would not say anything just because of his selfishness.

But how did this become known to everyone under heaven? The other seven pacification envoys joined forces and showed up at his door, beating him so badly he was caught off guard. Clearly the Yin clan's exclusive benefit was now being forced to be shared with the other seven houses!

Yin Wu Jiu glanced suspiciously at the Blood Raven Daoist standing in the corner of the great tent.

Damn it, is this guy leaking the information after eating from the inside and betraying from the outside?

The one who reported the news of Wuguo's existence to Yin Wu Jiu was precisely the Blood Raven Daoist… this fellow, would he sell a single piece of information to all eight houses?

Yin Wu Jiu secretly calculated, he needed to find an opportunity to do away with the Blood Raven Daoist.

Hmm, regardless of whether he leaked the news to the other seven envoys, Yin Wu Jiu felt that doing away with him would bring his own mind to peace.

"Fortunately… for now, only we eight brothers know of this." The Eastern Pacification Envoy of the Evil house, E Qu, gave a "keke" laugh and glanced sideways at Yin Wu Jiu: "Those old fogies still don't know this news… we think…"

"Elder Brother E Qu is absolutely right." The Northeastern Pacification Envoy of the Flight house, Fei Liu Hua, a youth with a fair complexion and somewhat feminine features, laughed softly: "What delicacies have our clan elders not yet eaten their fill of? What fine things have they not yet seen? Tsk, it's about time we brothers got a share of the benefits."

"Let's be frank—I, too, want to become the revered patriarch!" The Poison house's Du Wu Xin said with a sinister tone: "This is an opportunity. In the Supreme Demon Realm, who dares entertain such a thought? Hehe… afraid the outcome wouldn't be good… but, a brand-new dynasty!"

"Cut the chatter, sign a life-and-death contract." Yin Wu Jiu said in a dark voice: "The eight houses join forces to seize this opportunity… it's just us eight, just us eight, plus these close confidants of ours. Anyone else who tries to stick a foot in, we'll join forces to exterminate them."

"What if there is a venerable old monster on the other side?" Qiong Jia's Qiong Tu hesitated a bit.

"If there is a venerable old monster on the other side, we will lure them to the Supreme Demon State. Naturally, the elders of each family will deal with them." Yin Wujiu said bluntly: "As long as we ourselves gain some benefit… what does it matter if the world is flooded?"

Inside the central commander's tent, the eight expedition envoys smiled at the same time, each glancing at their close aides nearby, then they said in unison: "Good, we will advance and retreat together, share joys and hardships; if danger arises, we will bear it together."

Yin Wujiu took out the military intelligence sent back by the vanguard army that Yin Wushuang and the two others had just dispatched.

"Take a look, brothers, this is the military intelligence sent back from over there."

"Their army is not worth a blow…… their military funds can be described as filthy rich."

"We brothers should temporarily halt our attack on the Fufeng Divine Dynasty." Yin Wujiu said in a deep voice: "The Fufeng Divine Dynasty has already suffered grave vital damage; it's completely a rib of little use. Even if we conquer it, how much benefit could we gain? Those benefits would surely be snatched away by the old fogies of each family."

"Moreover, even if we annihilate the Fufeng Divine Dynasty, what could we obtain? Our cultivation could not advance any further."

Yin Wujiu said in a deep voice: "So, gather our forces, leave part of the troops to make a show of continuous attack, but our main force will join hands to invade Wuguo…… This plan is straightforward, direct, clean and decisive; what do you few brothers think?"

Qiong Tu said in a deep voice: "At the fastest speed, slaughter a batch…… then, as long as we eight can achieve promotion…… we will have nothing to fear."

Du Mou Xin gave a light chuckle: "If we can smoothly achieve promotion, do we still need to return to the Supreme Demon State?"

The eight individuals quickly exchanged a glance; Yin Wujiu took out a blood-red dragon-skin scroll and said in a deep voice: "As for the rest, let's discuss it later, sign the life-and-death contract. We eight brothers trust each other…… but what about you……"

Inside the great tent, the Eight Directions Expedition Envoys, taking the lead, first placed their soul seals upon the life-and-death contract.

Afterwards, their trusted subordinate commanders, along with their personal attendants, retainers, and so on, also had their eyes gleam, each signing the life-and-death contract.

Yin Wujiu kicked Yin Wushuang, sending him flying several zhang away, and said in a deep voice: "Yin Wushuang, considering you are my clansman brother, I give you a chance to earn merit and atone. I give each of you three idiots a million elite troops; go all out and attack fiercely."

"While storming cities and seizing strongholds, pay attention to gathering all kinds of information about Wuguo."

"Get lost…… hurry up! If you delay our grand plan, no matter how many heads you have, I will personally chop them off."

Yin Wushuang spat out a mouthful of blood, not daring to say another word, and together with Yin Wuzhi and Yin Wuyong, he slipped away in a puff of smoke.

The three felt a great hatred in their hearts, hatred reaching the extreme.

Just which damned bastard leaked the existence of Wuguo?

"Fufeng Divine Dynasty?" Yin Wushuang burst out of the great tent, then muttered darkly: "Damn it, it must be them…… besides them, who else here could possibly leak even a word? Those sects, families, and loose demons who came in response to the summons have no idea at all!"

The eight individuals led by Yin Wujiu acted with extremely high efficiency.

Under the threat of their military orders, Li Er Gouzi had just brought a large force fleeing back to the 108th City of Slaying Ghosts when, in the span of a few hours, a series of demonic thunderclaps boomed in the southern sky, and eight huge blood-red demon flags unfurled with a clatter high above.

Yin Wushuang, Yin Wuzhi, and Yin Wuyong rode single-horned skeleton horses, wielding great blades, leading millions of black-armored demon troops, soaring through clouds and mist beneath the eight great banners.

"Supreme Demon State, Vanguard General Yin Wushuang of the Eight Directions Expedition Envoys is here……" Yin Wushuang, gritting his teeth, glared at Li Er Gouzi on the city wall and snarled angrily: "If you don't open the gates and surrender, once the city falls, every one of you will die."

Li Er Gouzi stood on the battlements, unhurriedly giving Yin Wushuang a smile: "Hey there, big guy, you're back again?"

"Come on, come attack the city…… big guy, come on!"

"Heh heh, this old dog of mine really has nothing left…… really…… I'm staking everything I have and fighting you to the bitter end!"

Yin Wushuang's eyes flushed red repeatedly; hearing Li Er Gouzi's familiar words, how could he not feel like vomiting blood?