Chapter 447: Escape

Inside the vast palace, the hundred or so remaining townspeople were all pale with terror, completely at a loss.

Listening to the roars of the Purgatory monsters relentlessly ramming the palace gates, they couldn’t find a single shred of hope in their hearts.

“Where’s the Divine Army!? Where’s the Star City Divine Army!? They wouldn’t just leave us to die! There are so many survivors here! Did the message get out?”

The guardian giant, Lin, spoke in her booming voice.

She had been a giant for less than fifty years, yet she’d run into a disaster the likes of which hadn’t been seen in a millennium. She had only taken this post as a formality for a future promotion, and her heart was filled with panic.

Although her body was gigantic, her strength and defenses enhanced a thousandfold, she was completely inept at combat. She had only volunteered because serving as a guardian giant was a required step for a top-level transfer in the future.

But now…

The Divine Army officer stationed with her, Li Hongye, was sitting on the ground nearby, tending to his wounds.

He had been outside holding back the monster horde. Under the relentless assault from a sea of monsters so dense there wasn’t a single gap, he had fought frantically, killing no fewer than tens of thousands. However, in the chaos, he was caught off guard by a powerful, humanoid monster with a scorpion tail and wounded in the abdomen.

Now, his abdomen was red and swollen, bleeding incessantly.

Waves of a burning sensation radiated outward from the wound. It seemed to be getting worse.

“We can’t go on like this. We have to lead a breakout. Waiting here is a death sentence,” Li Hongye said grimly, gritting his teeth as he covered the wound with his clothes.

“Lin, you clear the way! I’ll cover the rear! We’ll charge together!” Li Hongye stood up.

“I… I…” Beads of sweat dripped down from Lin’s enormous head.

“Who’s willing to break out with me?” Seeing this, Li Hongye knew he couldn’t count on the giant.

‘No matter how great the power, it’s useless without the control and will to fight that should accompany it.’

He turned and shouted to the remaining townspeople instead.

“I am!” A tall man stood up and raised his hand.

“Me. I used to be a corporal in the Outer Realm forces of the Divine Army,” a woman stood up.

“I’m a Cultivation enthusiast, a student at Duoshilan University.”

“I’m the head of security for the Human Realm’s Third Branch Biopharmaceutical Group!”

One by one, volunteers rose to their feet. Among them were Ding Luo, Qinqin, and others.

A quick glance revealed that over twenty people had stood up.

“Good! Everyone, with me! I’ll be in front. Form up and charge together!” Li Hongye scanned the crowd, then walked over to a girl, tore a strip from her long red dress, and tied it to his arm.

“Use this red as a marker! Don’t fall behind!”

“Yes!” “Alright!!”

From the shadows, Lin Hui watched as morale surged through the group. He felt a measure of admiration for Li Hongye’s composure in the face of crisis.

He knew full well that Li Hongye must already be aware of his own fate.

The corruption of Purgatory’s power hadn’t just started. Many residents had been corrupted before, transforming into Purgatory monsters and turning on their own people.

Li Hongye must have seen it happen, so he knew his time was short. With every second he delayed, the greater the chance he would turn into a monster himself.

‘Li Hongye’s strength is barely at the Third Ring level. With that kind of power, breaking through the encirclement of what must be at least several million Purgatory monsters is virtually impossible…’

‘But that doesn’t matter.’

Lin Hui stood outside the palace, and the countless Purgatory monsters around him seemed completely unable to perceive him, as if he didn’t exist in this world at all.

The effect of the Heart Source Demon Emperor’s crown was on full display.

He just stood off to the side, watching Li Hongye lead Ding Luo and the others in their charge.

The group formed a long, snake-like line.

Ding Luo took the lead. As a Second Ring, she was by no means weak among this group.

Qinqin and Mosha were with her, also surprisingly at the Second Ring level. The few others were all First Ring.

The strength of the Divine Race was easy to identify. The number of white, runic rings floating behind their backs indicated their Ring level.

The burst of Divine Power from different Ring counts showed a clear, massive difference.

It was as if the runic rings on their backs were some kind of Divine Power amplifier.

“Sis!! I never knew you were so strong!!” Ding Yiran, following behind, watched with his jaw dropped as his sister, Ding Luo, slammed her palm forward. A wave of golden energy shot from her hand, instantly pulverizing and vaporizing more than ten spider-like Purgatory monsters pouncing from the side.

Only after starting his own Cultivation could he truly appreciate just how ridiculously powerful she was.

Seeing his sister deal with so many monsters so easily, he was eager to try, and swung his blade with all his might.

CLANG!

The blade bent, and the recoil sent him stumbling back, nearly crashing into Chen Xiehe behind him.

“You should just stay back. Get behind me,” Chen Xiehe said with a sigh, grabbing Ding Yiran and pulling him back.

He didn’t know why Qinqin had brought this guy along in the first place.

‘He’s just an ordinary human. Even if he wants to save Sister Luo and is willing to die trying, he’s completely useless. If Sister Luo hadn’t asked, I wouldn’t have bothered with him at all.’

Ding Yiran’s face flushed red, but he couldn’t argue. He could only grit his teeth and let Chen Xiehe drag him by the arm as they hurried forward.

If it weren’t for him, Ding Yiran wouldn’t even be able to keep up with the group at his speed.

The group formed an oval-shaped formation, rushing at top speed toward the Star City entrance.

But Qinqin, Mosha, and the others were secretly communicating, already waiting for a chance to “accidentally” get separated and escape through their own illicit channels.

They understood that charging toward the Star City entrance, knowing full well it was blocked by the monster horde, was an act of desperation.