Chapter 66

Cangyu City.

Besides the Demon-Suppressing Division and the City Lord's Mansion, there were three major families entrenched there, with the Liu family at the head, having taken root in Cangyu City for over a hundred years.

The other two, the Qi family and the Zhao family, rose later; the Qi family was a branch of a family from another city that had migrated over, and after one generation of operating here, they had built a not-insignificant foundation in just a few decades.

At this moment, the news of monsters attacking the city had already reached the hands of the heads of the three families.

Upon seeing the news, all three families were somewhat shocked; for nearly a hundred years, Cangyu City had never seen a situation where monsters attacked the city.

The most sensational incident was thirty years ago, when several Great Demons entered the city and caused trouble, resulting in countless deaths and injuries, which had caused a sensation at the time.

But today, only some old people still had an impression of it.

"The military report cannot be false; Old Zhang, go and take a look quickly."

The head of the Liu family, Liu Shunqing, immediately sent a family retainer to investigate the truth.

The other two families also sent people to investigate at the same time, and soon brought back one piece of authentic news after another.

A large number of monsters were appearing from the north and sweeping over; a rough estimate was at least forty to fifty thousand in number.

All kinds of mountain spirits and ghosts were mixed among them, clearly commanded by Great Demons.

These monsters occupied the official roads and also blocked several other paths; it was heard that on the commercial road in the south, two escort agencies had been robbed and killed, and jewelry hidden in grain shipments had been found on the road.

Monsters blocking the road, Great Demons pressing on the border; this was a momentum to attack the city! "The north? Could it not be that group of monsters from the Black Wind Mountain Range?"

"Are these monsters crazy? They are so bold that they actually dare to invade; are they not afraid that the Xia family will descend in anger and wipe them all out!"

"Damn it, what is Yue Shuhong doing? Could it be that he offended a Demon King?"

"Has anyone seen people from the Xia family?"

The three major families were all somewhat panicked; forty to fifty thousand monsters, what kind of concept was that? The entire military defense force of Cangyu City only had twenty thousand soldiers.

The fact that the number of monsters was double was secondary; since these monsters intended to attack the city, they naturally had great certainty and were fully prepared.

And the Great Demon who could command such a large number must be at least in the Shenyou Realm, or even the Fifteen-Li Realm!...

At the same time, in the north, the black demonic clouds were already pressing in.

The mountain rain was about to come, and the whole city was on high alert.

As the purple wolf smoke was lit and rose into the sky, all four city gates were sealed, and the city defense troops on rotation all put on their battle armor and arrived at the city walls.

At this moment, looking from the northern city wall, the expressions of many soldiers changed.

They saw that the dense demonic clouds, mixed with a touch of crimson in the ink-black, were swirling in the sky above the north and were approaching at an astonishing speed.

"Are these demons crazy? They actually dare to attack the city!"

Many of the city defense troops found it hard to believe; this was the Great Yu, and although it was a border city, it was not the city on the very edge of the border. The other party actually dared to cross the border to commit an offense; were they not afraid of angering the Imperial Clan and sending a large army to crusade against them? In their decades of impression as city defense troops, these monsters, besides occasional disturbances in the suburbs, were usually nowhere to be seen; where had they ever seen such a large formation?

The news of monsters attacking the city spread throughout the city; with the sealed city gates and the city defense troops running and mobilizing throughout the city, the news could not be hidden even if they wanted to.

Every household was ordered not to go out, and only the sound of galloping horse hooves remained on the streets.

Many inns, restaurants, teahouses, and shops had also closed their doors.

Some people were worried that the monsters would break through the city defenses and were filled with anxiety; some were complaining that the goddamn monsters were affecting their business; and others had already had their families pack up gold, silver, and valuables, and had sent servants to prepare carriages, ready to abandon the city and flee at any time.

However, some wealthy families in the city also used their connections to send messages to the city defense officials, asking what help was needed and expressing their willingness to donate gold, silver, and supplies to jointly resist the demons.

Under the disaster, the various states of all living beings were fully revealed.

At this time, in the City Lord's Mansion.

In a dark underground basement that looked like a dungeon in the backyard of the towering mansion.

Yue Shuhong stood here, gazing at a painting before him.

He was tall and slender, wearing a Confucian robe, and carried a scholarly air, but at this moment, half of his face was hidden in the shadow of an oil lamp, making it impossible to see clearly.

In this painting was a woman wearing a light green dress, her eyes looking around with grace; the painting technique was exquisite, so the person in the painting was lifelike.

Suddenly, a streak of black smoke appeared from the shadow behind him, twisted slightly, and changed into the appearance of a burly and massive strong man.

The other party had a broad face and large eyes, with thick whiskers at the corners of his mouth, and his eyes in the darkness unexpectedly revealed a hint of red light.

"Brother Yue, thinking of your sister-in-law again."

The broad-faced man grinned slightly, smiling without a smile.

Yue Shuhong did not look back, but his expression seemed to move slightly, coming back to his senses from his thoughts. He sighed lightly and said: "Brother Hu Pao, how long have we known each other?"

"It has been over twenty years," the broad-faced man said.

"Twenty years..."

Yue Shuhong whispered to himself, saying: "I am fifty-three this year; at the age of thirty, I entered the Shenyou Realm, full of spirit, and was transferred here to serve as the City Garrison Commander. In the blink of an eye, it has actually been twenty years."

The man who was once thirty and standing tall, still wearing a sword at his waist, now had nothing at his waist.

The broad-faced man nodded slightly, his eyes also filled with a hint of nostalgia, as well as a trace of envy and jealousy:

"You humans are naturally intelligent, standing above all races; in just a few decades, you can cultivate to the Shenyou Realm, while we demon clan monsters need hundreds of years of breathing the sun and moon to cultivate to this degree; it really makes me so jealous!"

Yue Shuhong's mouth twitched slightly, saying: "But Brother Hu Pao, have you ever seen how many of us humans can live to be hundreds of years old?"

The broad-faced man shook his head, his eyes carrying a hint of disdain: "Reaching the Shenyou Realm, one can live for nearly a thousand years, but you humans prefer to seek your own deaths. Look at those guys from the Divine General's Mansion; they could clearly live in comfort and longevity, yet they insist on fighting to the death with our demon clan at the border. And in the end? They all died young."

Yue Shuhong couldn't help but smile:

"Yes, perhaps this is the difference between us humans and your demon clan; the billions of subjects of the Great Yu, the vast land of the Nineteen Provinces, every inch of soil is soaked with the blood of those prodigies."

"Because some people died, more people could survive!"

The broad-faced man narrowed his eyes slightly, saying: "Brother Yue, you shouldn't be as stupid as those foolish guys, right?"

Yue Shuhong turned around, and the half of his elegant face that was originally illuminated by the warm light of the oil lamp was now also hidden in the darkness.

"For these twenty years, I have provided you with human flesh, trying my best to satisfy your needs; why, in the end, must it still come to this?"

His voice was very soft, as if talking to himself.

The broad-faced man stared at him deeply, sighed lightly, and said: "This trip is not my wish either; that Red-Browed Taoist has woken up from seclusion and is hungry. Moreover, the purpose of this trip is not entirely to fill our stomachs; targeting your Cangyu City, its true purpose is the Xia family."

"The Xia family?"

"That's right. You asked the Xia family for help, but the Xia family didn't dare to come, only because they are facing even more troublesome problems and dare not be distracted. At this time, if Cangyu City in the rear falls and the whole city is wiped out, it will definitely affect them. If your Emperor, who sits in the palace, is angered by this and punishes the Xia family, that would be even better."

The broad-faced man said softly: "So, Cangyu City... you cannot protect it."

Yue Shuhong took a deep breath and closed his eyes slightly.

So, the demon clan was playing such a game of chess.

"Brother Yue, I came here this trip to let you open the northern city gate. The destruction of Cangyu City is certain. If you open the city gate, I can help you say a few words in front of the Red-Browed Daoist and give you a way to survive," the broad-faced man said.

Yue Shuhong opened his eyes, a smile appearing on his face: "Many thanks, Brother Brother Hu Pao."

"You should do it right away," the broad-faced man said: "Our friendship is here; I will definitely protect you with all my might."

"Hmm."

Yue Shuhong nodded, then turned and walked to the side, but not to the desk, but to the weapon sword rack.

"Brother Yue?"

"Brother Brother Hu Pao."

"So that's how it is."

The red light in the broad-faced man's eyes became much more intense, and his mouth grinned slightly: "Brother Yue, you really make me very sad doing this!"

"I am also very sad, sad for you."

Yue Shuhong smiled lightly: "Brother Brother Hu Pao, for this twenty-year friendship, I will definitely use your tiger head to brew the best wine."

"Many thanks."

The teeth in the broad-faced man's mouth gradually extended and became sharp: "I will also slowly savor you."

As the auras on the two of them gradually became vigorous, their primordial spirits were both revealed; Yue Shuhong's primordial spirit gathered above his head, while behind the broad-faced strong man, a ferocious and massive fierce tiger was faintly revealed.

"So you are here."

Suddenly, a voice rang out beside the two of them.

Immediately following, the space above the basement suddenly cracked open, and a figure slowly drifted down, standing in the center of the two confronting each other.

Wearing a black uniform and holding a broken black blade, the person who came was precisely Li Hao, who had rushed back to the city.

(End of chapter)