The somber sky was choked with messy, dark clouds, pressing down with an intangible weight, a suffocating gloom! Inside and out, the air buzzed with the frantic movements of soldiers!
"Faster! Quicker!"
"We need more logs for the West Wall."
"And the catapult ammunition."
"Get the fire oil and rockets to the platforms now."
"The magical traps outside the perimeter line must be set up immediately."
Several one-star Battle Generals directed the scene with visible tension.
Everyone understood clearly: what lay ahead was a grueling, hard-fought battle! The formation of the Black Flag Legion had long since echoed across the continent!
Any person with even a shred of common sense knew that if the Black Flag Legion intended to conquer the Demon-Sealing Continent, breaching Manchester was an absolute prerequisite!
In the past, Manchester had been defended by three main corps of the Tengshe Legion, bolstered by four heavily armored Battle Generals—a formidable fighting force indeed!
But that was only true under ordinary circumstances!
Everyone knew now that Byron's Legion had been absorbed into the Black Flag Legion, becoming the Byron Corps within it.
Though their rank seemed to have dropped a notch, their combat power had ascended to a level that inspired shocking awe!
Even more terrifying was the certainty that Jiuyao Shenzhen, the one who single-handedly annihilated six generals of the Aotian Legion, would certainly appear on the Manchester battlefield alongside the Byron Corps!
No one dared contemplate the fate that awaited the Tengshe Legion, led by the Archmage Tianhong, when facing such an opponent!
The terrifying legends surrounding Jiuyao Shenzhen were known intimately by every soldier and civilian across the Demon-Sealing Continent!
Rumor even circulated among the populace that this dreadful fiend possessed immortality! Furthermore, he commanded a truly horrifying mount—the fiercest, most savage beast on the continent, a mutated Mammoth King!
Perhaps only such a terrifying demon could tame such a savage beast as a personal steed!
Indeed! Jiuyao Shenzhen, the dreaded fiend, was a byword for death, slaughter, and annihilation. Now, this terrifying demon had personally forged the Black Flag Legion, an army whose sole operational purpose was pure killing and destruction!
Soon, the great black banners would crest the distant horizon!
This was all that the garrisoned soldiers of Manchester knew!
So much so that before the Black Flag Legion had even arrived, a palpable anxiety gripped the entire city!
Had it not been for the arrival of the Fengmo Empire’s strongest force, the Leiyan Legion, which stabilized the situation, Manchester might have scattered in fear long before the Black Flag Legion even arrived—just as other cities had done to evade the pillaging of the Blood Wolf Legion!
The people and soldiers of the Demon-Sealing Continent were equally familiar with the Leiyan Legion!
Hailed as invincible, the supreme corps, its young commander, Mo Luo Yinfeng, was lauded as an unparalleled, once-in-a-millennium genius whose martial skill and military strategy were unrivaled!
Perhaps only such a transcendent genius, possessed of extraordinary intellect and supreme martial power, could stand against a monstrous fiend like Jiuyao Shenzhen!
Thus, some vividly dubbed this conflict a contest between Genius and Monster!
No one knew who would prove stronger, but it was undeniable: the arrival of the Leiyan Legion and the appearance of Mo Luo Yinfeng had ignited the fighting spirit in every soldier within Manchester!
And the pre-battle defensive preparations were being organized with impeccable order!
Countless logs and catapult stones were being hauled up onto the ramparts by brawny warriors, positioned just within reach beneath the crenellations! Artisans nervously calibrated the giant ballistae and trebuchets mounted on the walls! All siege apparatus meant for defense!
Below the walls! Within the moat! Countless sharp wooden stakes littered the perimeter, turning the two-hundred-meter stretch of open ground inside the warning line into a perilous death zone! One could only imagine the horrendous cost required to fill that span once the fighting erupted!
Upon the battlements!
Gonggong Zhenqin, Chiyue Qinshuang, and the others stood against the wind like statues! Their shadowed eyes were fixed intently on the direction where the sun was rising in the East!
The day they had been waiting for had finally arrived!
Ever since Jiuyao Shenzhen made his name during the Battle of Yuncheng, Mo Luo Yinfeng had a premonition that one day he would face this formidable opponent head-on!
It was instinct! A recognition of fate! He simply hadn't expected the day to arrive so swiftly!
Only four months had passed since the end of the Yuncheng Battle! Yet Jiuyao Shenzhen had, with unbelievable capability, marshaled a force powerful enough to match the Leiyan Legion! Now, this mighty adversary stood about to appear before him!
This filled Mo Luo Yinfeng with anticipation and excitement! Perhaps Heaven itself grew tired of leaving him too lonely!
Mo Luo Yinfeng took a deep breath, closing his eyes slightly, one hand resting on the parapet, the other gripping his sword hilt. His silver hair danced lightly in the wind, giving him an ethereal and transcendent air, yet the surging, profound fluctuations around his body were like a volcano on the verge of eruption—possessing a strange, deterrent power. It seemed the figure standing there was not a man, but a great beast emerging from the forest to hunt!
Gonggong Zhenqin and the others who knew him well understood that Mo Luo Yinfeng, both physically and mentally, was currently in a state of sublime peak condition!
At Missbi, in the Red Sea, in the Blue Sea, atop Gaola City—Mo Luo Yinfeng had always surveyed his approaching opponents with this same grim intensity, watching their every move, searching for the flaw, and then launching the most fatal, thunderous strike!
Over the past decade, whenever the Leiyan Legion faced a powerful foe, they had always seen this familiar silhouette. No matter how strong the opponent, they ultimately fell beneath his feet!
This time would be no exception!
Gonggong Zhenqin, Chiyue Qinshuang, and the others held this belief with unshakeable conviction!
Come forth! Jiuyao Shenzhen! Let us see just how strong you truly are!
Whooosh! Whooosh! Whooosh!
A deep blast of the war horn resonated across the heavens! Amidst the sound of the horn, a black shadow rapidly approached in the sky!
It was the alarm signal from the Thunder Eagle Air Cavalry! Mo Luo Yinfeng’s slightly closed eyes snapped open! He then looked toward the eastern horizon where the sun rose!
Behind him, Gonggong Zhenqin and the others also wore expressions of gravity, each unconsciously holding their breath!
Five minutes later!
Thump-thump-thump-thump-thump-thump!
On the distant horizon, a sheet of grey dust nearly obscured the skyline completely! A long line, stretching so far the eye could not find its end.
Accompanying it came faint tremors! The earth, the walls, and even everyone's hearts leaped erratically when this grey dust appeared!
The grey dust, like a slow-moving deluge, gradually drew nearer!
Only then did the onlookers clearly see that beneath the haze of grey dust were countless black figures! Vaguely visible, innumerable large black banners surged and waved in the indistinct mist, like black spray rising from a tidal wave of blackness—a sight that carried an alien impact and shock!
"The Black Flag Legion," Yin Nüquilei’s cold eyes flashed with a sharp murderous intent!
"The black banners," Chiyue Qinshuang instinctively reached for the hilt of his Dragon-Patterned Sword!
"Roar! They have finally arrived," Man Cang Qin Dian let out a guttural, inhuman growl, "The Blue Lightning, I have finally waited for you."
"..." Mo Luo Yinfeng remained terrifyingly grim! He merely raised a hand slightly!
The Deputy General beside him, Yin Kong, spoke in a deep voice, "All corps, maintain your combat posts."
"Yes!"
The mages on the battlements had long since taken formation, and long, deep chants of magic echoed into the sky!
The archers stood at the forefront of the walls, every one with an arrow nocked!
The catapults and giant ballistae had slightly adjusted their firing angles and directions! Everything appeared to be in meticulous order!
The overwhelming black flood drew ever closer! And as it approached, an intangible, heavy tidal wave of pressure surged forward! It made even breathing feel difficult!
And only now did the soldiers of the Leiyan Legion and the Tengshe Legion witness the Byron Corps—the former Byron Legion, famous fifty years ago, now the Byron Corps—and the terrifying Saber-toothed Dragon Knights that struck fear into all hearts!
That heart-palpitating, nearly suffocating black tide was composed of immense Saber-toothed Dragon Beasts!
Even from a distance, their long, sharp tusks caught the faint, chilling gleam of the rising sun through the hazy grey mist, instilling dread!
But within this black tide, a single white spot stood out like an invisible black hole, drawing all eyes!
"It's him, Jiuyao Shenzhen," Zhu Rong Mingyan and Jibo Yuanfeng exclaimed simultaneously. Though far away, everyone knew the legends of Jiuyao Shenzhen and his incredibly fierce mount, the Mammoth King!
That mutated Mammoth King was entirely snow-white and unimaginably huge! Its sudden appearance as a streak of white amidst the uniform black tide made it impossible not to notice!
"Finally!" Mo Luo Yinfeng seemed to sense a strange rhythm, and a bizarre smile flickered across his grim face: "Jiuyao Shenzhen, don't disappoint me."
Closer, ever closer!
The distant city walls were clearly visible! Especially beneath that single golden banner, I could feel a scorching gaze, as if unconstrained by spatial distance, piercing through me, stimulating every nerve in my body!
It's him! Mo Luo Yinfeng?
I muttered inwardly, startled! What potent willpower!
This commander, hailed as the most brilliant on the Mafa Continent since the Holy Word True Soul, now finally stood before me!
A trace of panic and unease surfaced! But deep in my heart surged an irrepressible excitement, a restless anticipation! It was the most intense desire rising from the depths of the soul, like a volcano about to erupt—turbulent and soaring!
So much so that the previous unease and fear were instantly shattered into fragments! The mighty Mammoth King became restless and violent, seeming on the verge of losing control!
"Big fellow, aren't you excited?" I gently patted its massive head. "Don't rush; we'll surely have a good fight today."
Beside me, Yin He approached: "Marshal, that is Manchester." Yin He’s voice held an undeniable tremor: "For fifty years, this impregnable city has been like the iron door of a prison, trapping our Byron Tribe on the eastern grasslands, unable to move."
"Is that so?" I took a deep breath. "Before long, all of this will become history." I turned to Yin He. "Because this fortress will soon be utterly destroyed and razed to the ground by us."
Saying this, I looked back at the generals behind me: "Who can tell me what stands before us?"
"It is Manchester," Elder Yin Hui stated solemnly!
"Manchester, famed as the city that can never be taken," Jidu replied.
"And within the city lies the strongest Leiyan Legion and the continent’s strongest commander, Mo Luo Yinfeng," Cangyue Qianyu added gravely.
"The most solid fortress, the strongest Leiyan Legion, the strongest commander Mo Luo Yinfeng." I didn't know what state I was in—my mind was extremely chaotic yet hyper-excited, as if everything had become a primal expression. Every glance, every action, every word was no longer processed by the brain, seemingly obeying only another, primitive thought and desire deep in my mind: "Yes, they are strong, exceptionally strong. But we are stronger, because we are the Black Flag Army. If we take it, all of us will be recorded in history, eternally immortal. There is no strongest, only stronger."
"Black Flag Victory!" Chi Hao beside me couldn't help but roar out.
"Death and Destruction, Death and Destruction!" Chi Ming was almost maniacal, his eyes blazing with burning battle lust!
"Roar! Roar!" The mighty Mammoth King seemed to sense something and let out an earth-shattering roar beyond control!
"Black Flag Victory! Black Flag Victory!"
"Death and Destruction! Death and Destruction!"
The other Saber-toothed Dragon Knights were frenzied, roaring in unison!
"Roar! Destroy! Roar! Destroy! Destroy!" The sky-rending shouts mixed with the roars of countless Saber-toothed Dragon Beasts, like the furious waves of an ocean, echoing with a strange rhythm, wave after wave, piercing the earth and shaking the heavens!
The entire world seemed to be torn apart by these mad roars and howls!
And at this moment, even battle-hardened veterans like Jidu and Cangyue Zhenxian were dumbfounded, staring at the Saber-toothed Dragon Knights roaring like a volcanic eruption!
Just a few simple words had turned all the Saber-toothed Dragon Knights into something possessed by demons. No one dared doubt that, at this moment, even a god standing in their way would be crushed and scattered by their charge!
In the center of the army!
Yin Shuang and the others were equally agitated! Standing amidst this thunderous roar, they felt as if their very bodies were about to be ripped apart, yet a wild desire spontaneously arose within them, driving every person and every Saber-toothed Dragon Beast to roar and rage madly!
Like a raging fire ignited, it burned hotter and hotter!
"As expected of the Marshal!" Yin Hui struggled to suppress the urge to charge forth on his mount. "The fighting spirit of everyone has been completely ignited by just a few words from the Marshal."
"This is our Marshal of the Black Flag Army. As long as he is here, we will definitely win," Yin Shuang stated, looking toward the massive white silhouette ahead with absolute certainty!
The heaven-shaking roars and earth-shattering howls seemed to shed the constraints of space and distance! They transformed into surging, furious, towering waves constantly crashing against the morale and will of all the Manchester defenders on the walls!
Everyone felt that within that overwhelming black tide in the distance lay a terrifying power capable of tearing everything apart!
"This is the Black Flag Army," Gonggong Zhenqin's face instantly turned ashen!
"Such intense killing aura," Yin Nüquilei also showed a flicker of unease.
"Very strong, truly strong," Mo Luo Yinfeng knew that yielding ground in morale meant the battle was already lost. And only now did Mo Luo Yinfeng finally gain an indescribable, personal experience.
This feeling was exactly what Yin Shuang had discovered on Jiuyao Shenzhen!
Yes, Jiuyao Shenzhen’s power, beyond personal valor, lay in that terrifying, subtle power of influence!
Just look at this moment! Two million Saber-toothed Dragon Knights seemed completely ignited by Jiuyao Shenzhen—everyone was burning madly!
Mo Luo Yinfeng was not unfamiliar with such a scene; in fact, he himself was a master at galvanizing morale, but!
No one had ever been able to stir the most profound, subconscious, warlike, bloodthirsty essence of his soldiers the way Jiuyao Shenzhen did!
Destruction and death were not just aimed at their enemies, but also at themselves!
Simple slogans carried fatal persuasive power and infectious influence!
Even from a distance, Mo Luo Yinfeng could clearly sense that the Saber-toothed Dragon Knights before him had been completely demonized by Jiuyao Shenzhen! Mo Luo Yinfeng didn't know how Jiuyao Shenzhen achieved it, but he was certain!
Even if a solid wall of copper and iron stood before them, these riders would crash into it without hesitation, willing to be pulverized into dust without regret!
He drew the gleaming Frost-Condensing Greatsword in a swift motion: "My men, we of Leiyan are the strongest! Let those black devils see just how strong the ultimate Leiyan Legion truly is!"
Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! The earth-shaking war drums echoed into the sky!
"Roar! Leiyan Invincible!" All the soldiers of the Manchester garrison roared with all their might, striking their shields with their weapons, blending with the furious shouts and the booming drums!
"Leiyan Rumble Invincible! Leiyan Invincible!"
The two intense waves of sound collided fiercely like two invisible torrents of killing intent under the gloomy sky!
The sky and the earth seemed to be torn apart by the furious shouts of these two clashing, entangled, and battling torrents!
"As expected of Mo Luo Yinfeng," Yin He stated solemnly.
"Battle!" The Dragon Shadow Sword was drawn, and six strange dragon shadows shot up into the sky!
Roar!
The Mammoth King also stretched its neck and roared!
Amidst the thunderous roar!
The six dragon shadows flew wildly back and forth, forming countless dazzling, shifting trails of light, like myriad colorful light dragons, guiding the direction of the warriors' charge!