"Careful, their spirit beasts are about to move out," Yi Zhongtian warned in a low voice. He felt no relief at the retreat of the giant bears; instead, his brow furrowed even tighter.

"Brother Yi, these city walls are incredibly sturdy," He Yiming remarked casually.

Yi Zhongtian quickly turned his head. "These walls were custom-made by the Ice Palace. It's precisely because of their obstruction that we can resist the beast horde's attacks."

He Yiming nodded slightly. He certainly didn't expect Yi Zhongtian to reveal the secret of constructing such marvelous walls. Knowing they were built by the Ice Palace was enough. With his status, discovering that secret would hardly be difficult.

Zhang Bailin's eyebrow twitched slightly. "Brother He, the number of spirit beasts is too high. We will need you to strike down a few shortly." He paused, then gritted his teeth. "If we can secure the innate inner cores, how about we split them evenly?"

Chen Linxi and his wife exchanged a look and both nodded slightly.

After seeing the sheer number of enemy spirit beasts, their initial confidence had vanished. Fortunately, they had a formidable and unfathomable individual by their side. But expecting him to act for free seemed unlikely, so Zhang Bailin and the other two reluctantly made a concession.

He Yiming let out a faint laugh. "This He will naturally not stand idly by, but let's forgo the innate inner cores."

Zhang Bailin and the others exchanged confused glances, unsure if He Yiming was being sincere.

Indeed, over a dozen figures charged out from the horde of beasts. Leading them was the same millennium spirit beast that had previously tried to accelerate toward the city wall. Its mouth split wide open, emitting a chilling roar before it charged forward.

Behind it, the ten-plus other spirit beasts also broke away from the main body, roaring mightily as they rushed forward.

However, they still hadn't covered enough distance. Even a newcomer like He Yiming could see they certainly couldn't inflict any damage on the wall.

Yet, the expressions of Yi Zhongtian and Xu Jun were quite grim. They moved to the top of the wall, preparing cautiously. Even Zhang Bailin and his companions drew their weapons, adopting a posture of facing a grave enemy.

Just as He Yiming was about to ask why, the giant bears, upon nearing the wall, leaped high into the air.

In an instant, they cleared the height of the wall and landed upon it.

He Yiming inwardly chastised himself. These giant beasts were not ordinary wild animals, but spirit beasts possessing immense power. He had mistaken them for simple, brainless brutes, thinking they intended to attack the wall fruitlessly.

Still, it wasn't entirely his fault. Anyone witnessing countless giant bears battering a wall for the first time would instinctively form such an impression. Furthermore, he was genuinely unfamiliar with the varieties of Northern Frontier spirit beasts, so his failure to discern the subtlety was understandable.

Yi Zhongtian and the others were already prepared. With a fierce shout, he and Xu Jun advanced, engaging the tallest and most powerful millennium spirit beast right there on the wall.

In terms of raw strength, the two of them were far from a match for the millennium spirit beast. But the twin-bladed swords in Xu Jun's hands possessed a peculiar mystery that made the beast extremely wary, unwilling to clash directly. Thus, after a stalemate, although Yi Zhongtian and Xu Jun couldn't force the giant bear off the ramparts, they managed to pin it down firmly.

Meanwhile, Zhang Bailin and the other two wielded their weapons, cornering four innate spirit beasts that were over five centuries old.

The coordination between the three was flawless; it was clear this was not their first time fighting together. Their martial skills complemented each other, multiplying their combined power when working in tandem. Otherwise, three figures at the Innate Realm couldn't possibly surround four Innate spirit beasts.

On the ramparts, there were also over ten suicide squads composed of Post-Heaven cultivators at the ninth and tenth layers of Inner Strength. Each squad was small, numbering no more than ten individuals. They seemed fully prepared: as soon as the spirit beasts scaled the wall, the squads swarmed forward, each team effectively tying down one ordinary spirit beast.

Their coordination grew increasingly practiced, managing to intercept every single beast that scaled the wall.

However, among these beasts, there were still two Innate spirit beasts. Their destructive power was far beyond what ordinary humans could withstand. Without Innate masters to restrain them, these two beasts charged heedlessly through the crowd, ruthlessly sweeping aside the humans near them.

The Post-Heaven cultivators, around the ninth or tenth layer of Inner Strength, seemed as fragile as paper before them; they could not stand against them at all.

One Innate spirit beast opened its massive jaws and spewed forth a beam of cyan light. People scattered to evade, but many were still touched by the ray. Wherever the light grazed the skin, it instantly tore the flesh away, sending blood and bone fragments flying, rapidly dyeing that section of the rampart a dark crimson.

Breathing out such an attack was a heavy burden even for an average Innate spirit beast. Although the strength of Northern Frontier spirit beasts generally surpassed their Inland counterparts, this giant bear was left panting heavily, its tongue hanging out after the blast.

Nevertheless, the power of the breath attack was immense. Before it, the area was swept clear; apart from piercing screams, no human remained standing.

However, its eyes immediately narrowed, for abruptly, a human figure strode into its view.

In the eyes of the spirit beasts, human faces were largely similar; it couldn't distinguish their features. But this did not affect its instincts.

For some unknown reason, the moment it saw this human, it sensed an extreme danger.

All the hair on its body instantly stood on end. It emitted a low growl, seemingly attempting to frighten the human away.

Yet, its action was completely disregarded by the person before it. He continued to advance slowly and steadily, as if what stood before him was not the powerful spirit beast that had just unleashed such divine might and slain countless Post-Heaven masters, but some common stray dog or cat, something utterly beneath consideration.

The spirit beast's pride was fiercely provoked. It opened its mouth again, and a ball of cyan energy began to form within.

This was its most potent offensive capability; once released, it was utterly unstoppable.

Though it had used it moments before, facing this seemingly fragile creature, it instinctively unleashed its greatest power without hesitation.

"Roar..."

The cyan energy ball was spat out accompanied by a colossal roar. But something far stranger occurred.

The human raised a single finger and tapped gently forward. The cyan light immediately reversed its course. Not only did it fail to touch the man, but it swept the attacker into its flow.

The giant bear spirit beast shrieked in terror and agonizing pain. It immediately realized that this returning breath force seemed far stronger—hundreds of times more powerful than its own breath.

It couldn't comprehend why this was happening. Before it could fathom the mystery, its skin, fur, bone, and flesh began to explode outward, instantly splattering across the rampart.

A massive head rolled across the ground with a thump, finally stopping before a common guard.

"Keep its head safe; Yi Zhongtian will reward you," He Yiming said leisurely, then lifted his foot and walked toward the other Innate spirit beast still rampaging on the other side of the wall.

The guard stared blankly after He Yiming's departing figure. He rubbed his eyes. If not for the terrifying giant bear head lying near his feet, he would have sworn he was dreaming.

This man had effortlessly annihilated an Innate spirit beast by merely extending a single finger. Such an almost unbelievable event, even when witnessed firsthand, was hard to accept.

Not just him, but all the guards in that vicinity stood rigidly still, as if possessed. They seemed to have forgotten the battle raging on the wall, instead gazing with horrified eyes at the man's retreating back.

He Yiming, naturally, paid no mind to others' gazes as he strode toward the other unrestrained Innate spirit beast on the wall. His pace was not fast, and there were still crowds obstructing his path. Yet, he walked forward calmly. When it seemed he would inevitably collide with the people in front of him, he simply walked through them. No one could discern how he bypassed the obstructions; even staring intently, they gained nothing.

Every witness secretly shuddered. Had they seen a ghost?

He Yiming carried no aura indicative of a supreme powerhouse. He appeared just like some ordinary Post-Heaven cultivator on the wall; had he not been positioned near Yi Zhongtian and the others, no one would have noticed his presence.

But in that moment, no one dared underestimate the young man again. They finally understood that this person was the true master.

In just a few strides, He Yiming reached the other Innate spirit beast. He smiled faintly, advancing as if he hadn't noticed the giant bear at all.

The spirit beast roared fiercely, raising a palm as wide as a cattail fan and slamming it down hard. The sharp whistle of displaced air was piercing.

Then, everyone sensed a flash of light. That unparalleled speed surpassed their capacity to react. The only thing observers could register was a flash of light that briefly materialized and vanished.

Then, He Yiming continued moving forward, passing the side of the giant bear spirit beast. The beast's body swayed slightly, like a candle flame flickering in the wind, before it finally crashed to the ground with a heavy thud.

No one saw exactly how He Yiming struck, just as they couldn't comprehend how he could ignore the spirit beast's breath attack. When the surrounding people recovered from their extreme shock, He Yiming was already gone. He elegantly walked past Zhang Bailin and the others.

After he passed, the movements of the four giant bear spirit beasts immediately slowed. They staggered like drunken men, losing all semblance of threat.

A massive flash of light sliced across the necks of these spirit beasts. When Zhang Bailin and his companions swung their blades down to sever the four massive heads, they still hadn't grasped why these beasts had suddenly turned into mere pulp.

And at that moment, He Yiming had arrived before the ferocious millennium giant bear spirit beast...

Ps: Ugh... Only four chapters today, please forgive me! I have to go out tomorrow, so Bai He can only manage three chapters, but I guarantee five chapters on the day after tomorrow, Saturday. I hope the exchange is acceptable. ^_^