Chapter 44: Perilous Situation

Xu Ziyan’s face suddenly flushed even redder. Her gaze dropped straight down, and she stopped looking at Xu Li and Xu Qingxue. Breaking free from their pestering, she ran toward the rest area. Before she had run more than a few steps, she heard a voice filled with jealousy from the side:

“Fox spirit!”

Xu Ziyan’s steps faltered because she felt the comment was directed at her. Turning to look, she saw Xu Dongxue gazing at her with envy. When Xu Dongxue noticed Xu Ziyan looking back, her expression quickly turned to scorn. She even spat fiercely on the ground.

Xu Ziyan’s face immediately turned crimson again, but this time it was from anger, not embarrassment. She forced herself to hold back her temper because she knew now was not the time to confront her. But in her heart, she was determined: if Xu Dongxue survived this Beast Tide, she would teach her a harsh lesson.

Glaring fiercely at Xu Dongxue, a wave of pity suddenly surfaced on Xu Ziyan’s face:

“What’s wrong with being a fox spirit? At least it’s better than being an ugly freak! Your ugliness isn’t your fault—it’s your parents’ fault. But coming out to scare people? That’s definitely your mistake!”

After saying this, Xu Ziyan didn’t give Xu Dongxue a chance to respond. She turned and walked toward the rest area. From behind, she heard Xu Dongxue grinding her teeth:

“You…”

Xu Li and Xu Qingxue saw Xu Dongxue’s livid face, then turned to watch Xu Ziyan’s retreating back. Xu Li couldn’t help but burst into loud laughter and ran after Xu Ziyan. Xu Qingxue, completely unprepared for Xu Ziyan’s sharp retort, stood stunned for a moment. Then, after a brief pause, she let out a sudden giggle and hurried after Xu Ziyan as well.

“Rooaaar——!”

A unified chorus of beastly roars came from above, shaking the mountain trees until they rustled violently. In an instant, snow cascaded down from the leaves.

Following the coordinated roars came the thunderous, synchronized charge of the Monster Beasts. Instead of attacking sporadically and individually as before, the beasts now moved as a dense, unified mass, crashing toward the Xu Clan’s defenses.

The defenses the Xu Clan had erected were temporary—not very tall or sturdy. Under the cover of the Monster Beasts’ spell attacks, some beasts assaulted the barricades fiercely. It looked as though the defenses were about to be breached. If the barricades fell, likely few of the Xu Clan’s thousand-plus members would survive.

Xu Haobo, while casting spells, shouted sternly: “Outer Hall Disciples, come forward! Inner Hall Disciples, use long-range spells to suppress the Monster Beasts’ magic! Outer Hall Disciples, use Talismans to eliminate any beasts that get too close!”

The Outer Hall Disciples, who had just retreated, rushed back to the defenses in a hurry. Seeing many beasts already pressing near, they hurriedly tore the Talismans in their hands and threw them at the Monster Beasts. A dazzling light flashed before the crowd, and the beasts that had closed in screamed and fell.

Just as everyone breathed a sigh of relief, they saw swarms of Monster Beasts charging forward again. Taking advantage of the momentary clearance from the Talisman explosions, Xu Ziyan looked into the distance. Behind the beasts, a tall Four-Armed Ape stood, roaring continuously. Driven by its cries, the Monster Beasts surged viciously toward the Xu Clan Disciples, fighting desperately.

By now, the night had passed, and the heavy snowfall had stopped. The sun rose at the edge of the dawn sky, casting a bloody red glow.

“Could that Four-Armed Ape be the leader of this Beast Tide?” Xu Ziyan narrowed her eyes slightly, gazing at the distant Four-Armed Ape.

The Monster Beasts’ assault grew fiercer, and the distance shrank. Xu Haobo also spotted the Four-Armed Ape in the distance. A sharp glint flashed in his eyes, and he decisively turned and shouted:

“Seventeenth Brother, take command here! Third Brother, Fourth Brother, Twelfth Brother—come with me to kill that Four-Armed Ape!”

With those words, his figure whooshed upward as he mounted his Sword Flight, soaring toward the distant Four-Armed Ape. Simultaneously, three others rose into the air—whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—close behind Xu Haobo, charging at the Four-Armed Ape.

Meanwhile, in Zhongdu City, the battle raged fiercely as well. The City Lord’s Manor and the various Clans set aside their individual schemes, throwing themselves fully into resisting the Monster Beasts. Vast quantities of supplies were sent to the city walls: arrows, rolling logs, stone missiles, Talismans, and various Artifacts were launched densely at the beasts. An inevitable war of attrition unfolded—even so, some Monster Beasts managed to scale the walls.

Tongyou Valley.

Above the Monster Beasts, the four experts led by Xu Haobo surrounded the Four-Armed Ape, attacking incessantly. The Four-Armed Ape roared, its four arms swinging powerfully through the air. Xu Haobo and the other three couldn’t get close—they could only attack from a distance with Spells. The Four-Armed Ape’s body was exceptionally tough; the assaults from Xu Haobo’s group caused little damage. Instead, they were harried by the Spells spewed from the ape’s mouth.

Down at the Tongyou Valley defenses, the fighting was even more intense. This Beast Tide seemed large in scale—reaching the level of a mid-level Beast Tide—but in reality, it wasn’t. A mid-level Beast Tide required many mid-rank Monster Beasts, and a large-scale Beast Tide required high-rank Monster Beasts.

Although this Beast Tide was sizable, it included few mid-rank Monster Beasts, let alone high-rank ones. Any mid-rank beasts that existed had mostly gone to Zhongdu City. Here in Tongyou Valley, only one Fourth-Rank Demonic Beast—the Four-Armed Ape—remained. If there had been one more fourth-rank beast, Tongyou Valley would likely have fallen already.

Even so, Tongyou Valley was in grave danger. The intense combat rapidly drained the Xu Clan Disciples’ resources. After one hour, Xu Haobo and his companions still hadn’t killed the Four-Armed Ape, but the Xu Clan Disciples were nearly exhausted. The serious problem wasn’t just that the Inner Hall Disciples had mostly depleted their True Essence—even the Outer Hall Disciples were down to their last Talisman.

“Boom——!”

A fireball shot from a fire lion’s mouth and exploded against Xu Dongxue’s chest. The Xu Clan Disciples on the defense line watched in grim silence as Xu Dongxue collapsed, instantly burned to ashes.

Xu Ziyan had thought about teaching Xu Dongxue a lesson, but she never imagined she would die like this.

“Boom——! Boom——! Boom——!”

Another wave of Spells shot toward the Xu Clan Disciples. Additionally, some earth-attribute Monster Beasts cast Earth Spikes directly under the Disciples’ feet. Many Xu Clan Disciples couldn’t dodge in time; the suddenly rising Earth Spikes pierced through them from below, lifting them high into the air, impaled.

The Xu Clan Disciples stared wide-eyed with fury. Their hands, clutching Talismans, trembled uncontrollably—whether from fear or hatred, no one could tell. The entire Tongyou Valley was thick with tension…