Chapter 403: Many Yaoguai Soldiers at the Gates

Third Third Third Shixiong also stood to Lin Jue's left; he too had learned Fire Dao techniques and was about to cast a spell to set the insects ablaze, but his Fire Dao was mediocre. Seeing his junior sister's blazing fire cloud and Wan Wan Xinrong spewing countless sparks, he decisively halted, conserving his strength.

The soldiers on the city wall also donned face masks.

This was because Lin Jue had previously dealt with demons and monsters capable of controlling poisonous insects and spewing black water, and over these past months had specifically warned everyone to prepare.

It was now perfectly suited to repel the insects.

But they had not expected this black cloud to surge forward—yet before it reached the ramparts, it vanished without a trace.

Only the ground remained, crawling with insects, emitting a charred fragrance.

The soldiers on the wall, though startled, immediately exhaled in relief.

Yet the enemy gave them no chance to catch their breath—

"Crack-crack-crack…"

The color fox on the wall tilted its head upward, its gaze frozen, its mouth snapping open and shut with a clicking sound.

Everyone followed its gaze.

Just as the poisonous insects vanished, another black cloud surged forth from the turbulent, churning mist.

Before the black cloud neared, a chaotic chorus of chirps and squawks erupted—countless beaks opening at once, filling hearts with irritation and dread.

"Bird flock!"

The junior sister cried out.

Some soldiers had already drawn their bows.

"Don't rush! Leave it to us!" Lin Jue shouted urgently, unwilling to let them waste strength and arrows—

This bird flock was simply too vast, endless, its black cloud nearly blotting out the sun. Not only were the birds small and hard to hit, but even if someone could hit one, how long would it take to shoot them all? How much strength and arrows would it consume?

Some soldiers lowered their bows and shouted in unison:

"Don't draw your bows!"

"Lin Lingqing Zhenren's order! Don't draw your bows!"

"Don't draw your bows…"

Hundreds of voices echoed along the wall.

Even as the cries reverberated, the black cloud drew near.

Even the birds themselves were now clearly visible—

Hawks, falcons, kites, owls, eagles, vultures, crows, shrikes—all fierce raptors, numbering in the tens of thousands, truly a black cloud crushing the city!

And this black cloud truly meant to destroy them!

How many soldiers had ever seen such a sight? All gritted their teeth, gripping bows and blades, unable to resist the urge to draw.

Then a thunderous shout rang out ahead:

"Fellow cultivators! You are mere earthly birds, spirits of mountain and stream—why do you heed demons, aid monsters in cruelty, and invite death? Withdraw at once!"

Everyone recognized the voice: Lin Lingqing Zhenren's.

They assumed it was merely a routine plea, a Daoist's habit and compassion, meant only for himself—yet when the voice rang out, it effortlessly spread across the entire sky, echoing endlessly like tidal waves:

"Withdraw at once…"

"Withdraw…"

"Withdraw…"

Something astonishing happened—

The distant black cloud, which had charged forward like the previous one against the gale, suddenly fell into chaos upon meeting Lin Lingqing Zhenren's voice.

Everyone clearly saw: with just those words, at least half the flock broke away, scattering in all directions.

The black cloud thinned dramatically.

Lin Jue, seeing this, was not surprised.

Humans have hearts—do birds not?

Though the enemy surely had demons capable of controlling birds, perhaps even bird demons themselves, such matters cannot be settled by power alone.

Some birds can discern good from evil, know who seeks to send them to die and who values their lives and urges them to flee—they naturally make their choice. Others decide by kinship and species, and so remain.

"The ones that stayed are mostly hawks and crows—the mist ahead must contain demons transformed into hawks and crows!" Third Third Third Shixiong gazed ahead.

"Mm."

As they spoke, the hawks and falcons drew near.

Just as before—

Lin Jue swung his arm; a vast cloud of yellow smoke surged from his sleeves.

The junior sister pushed forward; blazing fire clouds erupted.

Wan Wan Xinrong swallowed a small Yuan Dan given by Lin Jue, regained some Qi, and raised his lantern again, blowing out sparks like a river.

The gale also lent its aid!

Whether yellow smoke, fire clouds, or the river of sparks, all were blown by the wind toward the distance.

Yet these hawks and crows were far smarter than the previous insects: seeing the yellow smoke and fire clouds rush toward them, they knew that even a touch of yellow smoke would paralyze them, sending them crashing into the wall; the fire clouds, even without contact, killed many with sheer heat; the sparks, once touched, pierced through with blood holes, igniting white smoke—so they acted instantly: some beat their wings hard to rise higher against the wind, others veered left or right, splitting into three paths to bypass the smoke, fire, and star-river.

But the yellow smoke, fire clouds, and star-river were all under human control, shifting with the birds' movements.

Even the wind now sided with the Daoists—wherever the Daoists willed it to blow, it blew.

Only the fox was most cunning—

It too tilted its head, exhaling yellow smoke—but this time, the smoke was paler, brighter, and more illusory; any raptor that touched it grew dazed, and the world around it blurred, its own kin transforming into familiar prey.

Some raptors could no longer fly, unable to turn, and were blown down by the wind.

Others lost feathers, or were burned through by sparks, falling to the ground; some hawks even fought each other midair.

Hawks kept falling.

Others dove onto the wall, striking soldiers' vital points with talons and beaks, swift as lightning.

But the soldiers had already donned face masks, avoiding vital spots; with swords and halberds, they easily overcame them.

Even at the junior sister's feet, the color fox pinned a hawk, biting its throat tightly.

Lin Jue began to be glad he had sent Fourth Third Third Shixiong and Seventh Third Third Shixiong to Jiguang County for aid.

If such a scene had occurred in Jiguang County…

Seventh Third Third Shixiong's Fire Dao was mediocre—his technique might match Third Third Third Shixiong's, slightly better than Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Third Shixiong Brothers—but he had made many wooden puppets, skilled in animating them with magic and making them spit fire. Add to that An Gong from the Southern Heaven Sect, who excelled in Fire Dao, and they could surely hold back the poisonous insects.

Fourth Third Third Shixiong's ability to summon and command beasts surpassed Lin Jue's—he could surely persuade these raptors to flee.

But this was merely an appetizer.

Nothing was wrong with the content of one look!

It was merely draining their Qi and energy.

The bird flock was not yet wiped out, fighting still raged on the wall, the great five-tailed white fox leaped across the ramparts chasing the largest group of raptors, the color fox had locked its jaws around the fourth hawk, yet from the mist like a sky-wall, waves of demons now surged forth.

Lin Jue saw demons clad in robes and armor, human-like soldiers emerging from the mist; he saw black bears, two or three zhang tall, sprinting forward; giant serpents like dragons slithered across the earth.

There were giant tree demons with faces.

Stone giants, dozens of zhang tall.

Towering tigers stood upright, trailed by ghostly spirits, following wolf demons; winged bird-soldiers flew beside them.

Even demons rode on horseback and ox-back!

These were true demons.

These demons not only had higher cultivation than the fish and shrimp under Tu Long Wang or the demon soldiers under Bao Wang—they were also highly organized—

Some smaller demons rode atop larger ones, using magic to augment their strength, coordinating perfectly.

Some transformed into human form, roughly human-sized, clad in armor or riding on unknown spirit-possessed oxen and horses, serving as cavalry.

Some with weak combat ability followed behind the stone giants, giant bears, and giant serpents.

Though their sizes varied wildly, they still grouped and paired themselves neatly, truly resembling an army.

Especially the demons transformed into human form, clad in silver-white armor—glancing at them, save for the lack of divine radiance, they resembled heavenly soldiers' armor, likely the "heavenly soldiers and generals" used by Wang Mu to deceive believers and amplify her divine authority.

"Boom-boom-boom…"

The mist was held back by the gale, yet the demon soldiers charged forward, their footsteps shaking the earth with thunder.

But the fastest to arrive were still the bird demons.

Some transformed into human form, wielding bows and arrows; others remained in their true forms, blotting out the sky—this force dwarfed Bao Wang's army from the northwest by far.

Had Wang Mu sent out her entire force?

The soldiers on the wall were truly frightened now.

"Shoot your arrows!"

"Aim at the bird demons!"

"Aim before you fire!"

Third Third Third Shixiong shouted.

He reached into his robe, pulled out a handful of beans, and tossed them skyward—the beans swelled in the wind, transforming into dozens of armored soldiers who crashed to the ground, each wielding different weapons.

Counting them, there were over a hundred.

He then drew a small sword from his waist, seemingly a pendant—but the moment it touched his hand, it instantly grew into a great sword, which he swung toward the distance:

"Shhh!"

A brilliant blade of light shot through the air.

No one knew how far it flew, but the fastest, largest hawk ahead suddenly froze, as if struck, bursting into a spray of blood before plummeting down.

The generals and captains on the wall then shouted together: "Archers lead, halberdiers guard—draw and fire!"

The wall was chaotic, with sounds ringing incessantly.

The bloodlust of the battlefield surged accordingly.

Lin Jue's left hand also scattered a handful of beans, transforming them into armored soldiers: the previous forty, plus seven newly made over the past two months, totaling forty-seven, like celestial troops, crashing down upon the wall.

This greatly boosted the soldiers' morale.

Then Lin Jue's right hand still clutched a handful of beans, his eyes fixed on the ground below and the sky ahead, as he began chanting:

"Endless heavens, boundless earth; great mountains hold power, surpassing dragons and tigers; the primal spirit of xuan and huang, now emerge fully; become mountain gods, aid me!"

As he chanted, the remaining stones beneath the wall began to tremble and roll, gradually piling upward into two stone giants nearly three zhang tall, joining the previous four, making six in total.

"Eliminate these giant demons first—do not let them damage the wall!"

"Understood!"

The junior sister nodded firmly.

No sooner had the words ended than the six stone giants moved.

The earth trembled beneath their footsteps.

Lin Jue watched the distance of the flying bird demons; when he judged it right, he cast the beans in his right hand.

A flurry of brilliant, gleaming swords!

"Destroy the bird demons in the sky!"

The swords spun automatically, adjusting their trajectories, each locking onto a target, streaking through the air.

(End of Chapter)