Chapter 641 - 7: Two Shores

Chapter 641: Chapter 7: Two Shores

"Master, in this battle, we killed or captured a total of 47,863 Demons and 103,559 Demon Cultivators."

After taking stock, Iron Head reported to Yang Jing.

This was the nature of battles at sea; the losing side was often completely annihilated with no way out. The numbers Iron Head had tallied only included those whose bodies could be found. An unknown number of Demons and Demon Cultivators had been utterly obliterated, body and Divine Soul, by the Divine Light that descended from the heavens.

"The Demons mostly fought to the bitter end, so we killed far more than we captured. As for the Demon Cultivators, nearly thirty percent chose to surrender."

These Demons from the Western Continent’s Demon Court were incredibly fierce. Even when cornered, they refused to surrender. Some even chose to detonate their Demon Pills in an attempt to take our forces down with them, causing the Rescue Army considerable losses.

Although Demon Cultivators and Cultivators are mortal enemies, some of the more craven Demon Cultivators, unwilling to die, chose to surrender to the Rescue Army.

Yang Jing nodded.

"From the captured Demons and Demon Cultivators, select those at the Golden Core level or higher and bring them to Wanhua Child for interrogation. Most of our intel on the Western Continent comes from the Six Sects and is long outdated. We should be able to learn more about the Demon Court’s current situation from them."

Intelligence gathering on the Demon Court was primarily handled by the Taixu Sword Sect, one of the Six Sects. Before heading out to sea, Yang Jing’s rank within the Five Elements True Spirit Sect hadn’t been high enough to access such information.

This left him with only vague memories from his past life to go on, a significant disadvantage for the battles to come.

"As you command."

Although the Demons from the Western Continent’s Demon Court were fierce, their Divine Souls were muddled from inhaling Muddy Qi, leaving them with almost no resistance to Wanhua Child’s Demonic Qi. They soon spilled everything they knew.

These Demons had been conscripted from various states within the Demon Court, which unexpectedly gave Yang Jing a great deal of intelligence on those very states.

Yang Jing sat cross-legged on a Meditation Cushion. Before him was a landscape map condensed from Nine Illusion Mirage Demon Qi, displaying the territory ruled by the Northern Domain’s Demon Court.

One-third of the map was highly detailed, drawn from the memories of the captured Demons. Another sixth was somewhat rough and blurry, while the remaining half was completely black, shrouded in mist.

The Demon Court was currently engaged in a series of major battles with the Six Sects Alliance Army on the front lines and had already conscripted Soldiers from its various subordinate Demon Countries multiple times. As a result, the Demon Countries in the rear were left extremely vulnerable, their military forces having been largely depleted.

Among the Golden Core Demons killed or captured this time, there were even a few who were the Sovereigns of small Demon Countries.

Under the Demon Court’s strict orders, even the Sovereigns of Demon Countries had no choice but to take up arms and march into battle.

This gave Yang Jing an idea. ’Instead of landing south of the Western Continent and joining the Six Sects Alliance Army in the meat grinder between them and the Demon Court... what if we land west of the continent?’ He could leverage the Rescue Army’s mobile Flying Boats to strike deep into the Demon Court’s heartland. This would force the Demon Court to pull back its forces to defend, which could have a much greater impact on the overall situation.

But such a campaign would be like walking a tightrope. One wrong move, and they would be engulfed by an endless sea of demons.

The Rescue Army was strong, but it was still far too weak to face the entire Demon Court.

After a long moment of deliberation, Yang Jing summoned Ji Feng and Yellow Foot.

***

「Western Continent, Miao River.」

This place was already deep in the heartland of the Western Continent. A Tier Three Spirit Vein ran through the river, and it was jointly managed by seven Immortal Cultivation Clans that raised aquatic life and operated a Marketplace. It might not have been a major hub in the Western Continent, but within a thousand-li radius, it was considered a top-tier location.

Now, however, the original seven Immortal Cultivation Clans had long since either fled or disbanded, and the place was a shadow of its former self.

The Demon Court’s army and the Six Sects Alliance Army had fought several brutal battles along the Miao River. The Demon Court’s forces had broken through the defensive lines multiple times to invade the eastern bank, only to be repelled by the Alliance Army each time.

In the seesaw of attacks and counterattacks, countless corpses of both Demons and Cultivators had sunk into the Miao River, staining the great waterway red with blood.

The riverbed glittered with specks of light—the shattered remains of Magical Artifacts reflecting the sun.

On the eastern bank of the Miao River, the Six Sects Alliance Army had laid one Array after another. They had used all sorts of Magic to construct sturdy fortresses, turning over a hundred li of the riverbank into an impenetrable line of defense.

Just a few days ago, the Demon Court’s army had launched an offensive, destroying seven fortresses before retreating. Now, the Six Sects Alliance Army was scrambling to repair the fortifications in preparation for the next assault.

The western bank of the Miao River, in contrast, was a complete mess.

The Demon Court’s army, conscripted from various Demon Countries, was poorly disciplined. They had pitched a sprawling camp that stretched for over twenty li, situated just three or four li from the river.

Squadrons of Demon Race cavalry scouts patrolled along the riverbank, wary of surprise attacks from the Six Sects.

A month ago, the Six Sects Alliance Army had gathered a group of Cultivators skilled in Water Techniques and laid a Grand Array at the bottom of the Miao River. They suddenly unleashed a massive flood that crashed into the Demon Court’s encampment. Using the water as their weapon, they seized the opportunity to launch a major assault, dealing the Demon Court a rare and heavy blow.

The Cultivators repairing the fortresses and re-laying the Arrays worked while keeping a wary eye on the sky and the Demon Race cavalry on the opposite bank.

The Miao River alone couldn’t stop those Demon Race scouts. The beasts could walk on water and tread through the air, crossing the river in a matter of moments to kill and plunder before returning to the western bank.

These Demon Race cavalry squads were formidable. Their captains were all Golden Core Demon Kings, and even the regular riders were Foundation Establishment Great Demons.

If they charged across the river, they could slaughter all the workers in seconds.

Just as the Cultivators were at their most tense, the Demon Race cavalry on the opposite bank suddenly fell into chaos. Several squadrons gathered together and galloped west.

"What’s with those demon whelps?"

a Cultivator using the Mud to Stone technique asked curiously.

"Who knows? Maybe some big shot from the Demon Court arrived, or maybe they’re chasing after our scouts," another Cultivator, who was inscribing Array Patterns on the stone wall, replied.

"It’s the Blood Shadow Divine Monarch, Shao Zhongguang!"

A sharp-eyed Cultivator could already see Blood Shadows flitting across the western bank. The Demon Race cavalry were terrified of these Blood Shadows. Even with their captains yelling orders from behind, they were unwilling to stand in the way.

But while they refused to block the Blood Shadows, the Blood Shadows had no intention of letting them go.

A dozen riders were pounced upon by a Blood Shadow. In an instant, both demon and mount had all their Essence Blood drained, leaving nothing but withered husks behind.

The dense Demon Qi cloaking their bodies offered no protection whatsoever.

The morale of the remaining Demon Race cavalry completely collapsed. They cleared a path, allowing the Blood Shadows to fly unimpeded across the Miao River.

"Only the Blood Shadow Divine Monarch, Shao Zhongguang, can split into so many Blood Shadows at once. It’s a shame the Blood Spirit Scripture is so difficult to master, or I’d cultivate it myself," one Cultivator said, looking up at the Blood Shadows in the sky with envy.

"Get real. To cultivate that scripture, you have to peel off your own skin. Only someone with superhuman willpower could even attempt it. We’d be better off just focusing on our work so we can get rotated to the rear sooner."