New Yu Era, Year 1333, June 10th, night

Jizhou, Xiling Tao City

After being managed by Leiyin Temple for over a thousand years, the scale of Xiling Tao City is considered large among all the Tao Cities in the world. Its four city walls are coated in bronze, with Buddhist scriptures left by the Leiyin Temple high monks. Even in the deep of night, anyone who sees the city walls would feel an inexplicable calm, serenity, and awe.

Of course, that's speaking of the past.

At this very moment, Xiling Tao City is anything but calm.

From a distance in the night sky, the air above Xiling Tao City is already filled with a mist of blood, stretching from the heavens to the earth. It's impossible to discern its full extent, but martial artists with high cultivation can tell at a glance that the blood aura spans at least a hundred miles across the sky.

The entire city perimeter is illuminated by countless torches. The formidable aura from martial artists emanating Ling Light, Divine Origin, True Yuan, and Gang Qi can be sensed clearly even from dozens of miles away.

In the pitch-black land, Xiling Tao City has become the most radiant presence. Martial artists with high cultivation could notice even from hundreds of miles away: Xiling Tao City is undergoing an unimaginably terrifying battle.

The truth is, indeed:

"By the Great King's order, those who first breach the city will be promoted three ranks!"

"The west gate is broken, brothers, follow me around the side and charge into the city!"

"The defenders at the gate tower are retreating, continue the assault..."

"Kill them..."

...…

At Xiling Tao City's east gate, roars erupted in succession. Both inside and outside the gate, as well as on the city walls, are filled with a seemingly endless amount of Gang Qi, True Qi, and even the Yin and Yang dual-colored Ling Light. Innumerable soldiers continue to climb the city walls, armed with sharp blades, and engage in a death struggle with the defending Jizhou soldiers. Bloodshed and chaos have become the only melody here.

Two immense streams of blood aura clashed in the sky, with all soldiers inside the city walls clad in blue armor of the Jizhou troops, while those outside are in black-golden armor of the Tianwei Army. Just by a glance, the combined forces gathered here number at least ten million.

However, it is apparent that the ratio of defenders to attackers is roughly two to eight. Even though they rely on the advantage of defending the city, holding the Tianwei Army outside for the time being, as time passes, they clearly begin to show signs of fatigue and their formation starts to slacken.

"How could they advance so quickly, where is our army in Dongyuan Path?"

"Aren't the six armies of Dongyuan Path all allies? How did the Tianwei Army get here without us receiving any news!"

"Where is the Holy Land army from Hedong, are they ignoring us?"

"Xiling Tao City is only over five hundred miles from Jidu, Hou Jing clearly intends to head for Jidu. Why hasn't the Villa sent reinforcements?"

"The Great Mansion Master and Second Villa Master have gone to the Divine Capital, hasn't the Third Villa Master gone to Dongyuan Path with the army? Why hasn't he sent word back?"

"It's over, the west gate...has fallen!"

...…

The defending Jizhou soldiers, in their speech, are filled with disbelief, and their faces are all unable to conceal their panic, especially as the Tianwei Army grows denser and more of the front line falls. This emotion only grows more rapidly.

This siege battle has lasted for more than two hours, they have been fighting the Tianwei Army for more than two hours, yet even now, their minds are in a fog, there are so many things they can't comprehend.

"The west army circumvented to the east gate!"

"The city is breached."

"It's futile, retreat for now."

"The Jidu great army will not stand by and do nothing. Go to Jidu, once the villa's army arrives, they will have nowhere to go but death!"

...

However, no matter how hard they find it to understand, at this moment, the fact that Xiling Tao City is critically breached cannot be changed. A series of orders from the Jizhou army commanders quickly spread among the crowd, and the retreat command was swiftly communicated to everyone's ears.

It is not that they are afraid of death, but truly unable to hold.

They have already done their utmost, holding the east gate against eight million of the Tianwei Army with their two million troops. However, the Tianwei Army consists of more than these eight million, and another two million are attacking the west gate. With the west gate falling, the Tianwei Army has already entered the city. If the incoming troops converge with the outside army, those confined within the city walls would truly be isolated without aid, left with no choice but death.

This is the final retreat plan, they must seize it.

Where there is life, there is hope. If they escape early, they can still retreat to Jidu to report. They are the villa's elite lineage; as long as they explain the situation clearly, it is not regarded as cowardice and desertion, they won't be punished.

"Retreat, as many as possible!"

The commander finally clearly issued the retreat order, though the tone was despondent, for the Jizhou soldiers still holding the walls, it was akin to the sound of nature.

"Run quickly!"

"Retreat...…"

...…

In a frenzy, all the Jizhou soldiers fled madly, desperately escaping to both sides, breaking contact with the Tianwei Army, and directly leaping off the city walls in a bid to flee.

As the army collapses like a mountain, their wishful thinking is naturally not accomplished so easily. The already high-spirited Tianwei Army had long noticed when they heard the defending commander issue the retreat order, and began to pull back on both sides.

This withdrawal, however, was not to let the Jizhou army escape.

They were like a giant beast opening its mouth, allowing the Jizhou army the chance to scatter and flee, then suddenly clamping from both sides. Hence, another more ferocious slaughter began once again.