Chapter 1058: Against Two with One

**Chapter 1047: One Against Two**

The Xi Ji rebel army had a numerical advantage, but the Yuheng army was significantly aided by strong primal energy. Moreover, since the battle was confined to the narrow barbican, they held their ground from the very beginning.

The two hundred elite soldiers brought by He Lingchuan also joined the fray, further reducing the numerical disparity between the two sides and slowly tipping the scales of victory. Before long, the barbican's unique terrain, ironically, became the Xi Ji rebels' last resort, forcing them into a desperate, tooth-and-nail fight.

This was He Lingchuan's first ground battle against Fu Shanlie. Though known from over 160 years ago, this man was clearly several levels above Fu Shanyue. Fu Shanlie had no illustrious background, having fought his way to the rank of general solely through military merit. His demeanor, divine abilities, and combat skills were utterly unlike those of a pampered scion. The raw ferocity and ruthlessness that emanated from his very being, coupled with his insightful grasp of battle opportunities, were qualities Fu Shanyue simply lacked.

After dozens of exchanges, Fu Shanlie grew increasingly alarmed as the fight progressed. How could this young man be under twenty years old? Although the recent Imperial Dewfall events had been more frequent, those who reached Fu Shanlie's level of experience understood that cultivation did not always equate to combat power. Moreover, He Lingchuan possessed primal energy! That dark red primal energy directly boosted his combat abilities. Even Fu Shanlie's phantom-like movements seemed to slow down automatically in He Lingchuan's eyes.

Fu Shanlie, leading the Xi Ji rebels, possessed almost no primal energy himself. Thus, the longer he fought, the more he felt he was at a significant disadvantage. His failed sneak attack was now costing him dearly. Even if there was a gap between He Lingchuan and him, He Lingchuan's primal energy was rapidly closing it.

What exactly was going on with the primal energy in Panlong City? If a mere Yuheng City commander possessed such potent primal energy, Fu Shanlie couldn't even imagine how powerful General Hong's primal energy might be. Panlong City was merely a frontier town under Xiluo's jurisdiction; it should not possess such primal energy at all! There had to be a secret behind this. It was well known that Xiluo was so poor and weak that even the neighboring Beijia found it not worth conquering.

Just then, a buzzing sound erupted behind He Lingchuan. The swarm of black armored insects had returned. Earlier, the insect demon had harassed Liu Tiao, causing her to make a misstep that Fu Shanlie exploited. Now, it intended to use the same trick again.

The swarm landed on the ground, quickly coalescing into a new monster. When it stood still, its wings folded in front of its body and its head bowed, making it resemble a cloaked traveler. But once it shed its disguise, it looked like a hybrid of a spider and an ant. Its entire body shimmered with a dark golden luster. Its six claw tips were like steel needles. Two scythe-like forelimbs were held up at its sides, not touching the ground normally, but during an attack, they would jab forward rapidly. Its movements were not like a praying mantis, but rather like a pile driver.

When it ambushed He Lingchuan, it struck six times in a single breath, leaving six small pits gouged into the ground. A nearby Yuheng soldier got in the way, and the monstrous insect swung a scythe, piercing him through, then flung his corpse toward He Lingchuan.

This creature was inexplicably agile. Its coordination with Fu Shanlie, with one advancing and the other retreating, one swift and one stalling, was surprisingly seamless. Having dealt with the spider demon sisters for a long time, He Lingchuan was extra vigilant. Sure enough, the creature unexpectedly spat corrosive acid at him. He Lingchuan dodged it, but the stone wall behind him was corroded into several holes, hissing with white steam. My goodness, if that had hit his face, he truly would have ended up a "brother in misfortune" with Dong Rui. Now that he no longer enjoyed the "no damage" privilege when entering and exiting the Panlong world, he had to be more careful in battles. But this monstrous insect was far more fearless than he was.

He Lingchuan's Floating Life Blade could cut through emptiness, but when it struck this monstrous insect, it was less effective than usual. Wounds inflicted by the Floating Life Blade did not heal easily, but the monstrous insect didn't need to heal at all. The injured parts would transform into dead black armored insects and fall off, and then new swarms would supplement its form. This monster constantly regenerated, giving it ample confidence to wear down its enemies indefinitely. This was He Lingchuan's first time encountering such an unreasonable opponent. Truly, the Northern Demon Kingdom was full of bizarre demonic species. However, after repeatedly hacking at the monster several times, he noticed that fewer black armored insects were flying in from the sky to replenish it. Good, it wasn't endless after all. But the key to defeating this thing was likely to find the main insect—the very one that had killed Zhao Linyang.

Meng Shan had also rushed to the South Gate with He Lingchuan. He was exceptionally brave. First, he led his team to push the Xi Ji rebels back into the barbican. Then, turning back, he saw He Lingchuan fighting two enemies alone, and with a roar, he moved to assist. In the midst of the intense battle, He Lingchuan still found time to stop him: "Don't come! Go and take down the alarm bell for me!"

"Take down... the alarm bell?" Meng Shan instinctively looked up at the corner of the city wall. The tower at the South Gate also had a large bronze alarm bell, nearly identical in size and weight to the one at the East Gate. Meng Shan had personally witnessed how Wen Daolun had used the alarm bell to repel the enemy earlier, so without hesitation, he charged onto the city wall. Coincidentally, the Xi Ji rebels had retreated back into the barbican, leaving the path to the wall open.

He quickly dashed to the tower, channeling his true energy and ringing the alarm bell, producing loud *dong dong dong* sounds. He also used primal energy, but unlike Wen Daolun, he hadn't drawn blood talismans beforehand. Thus, the bell's sound couldn't force out the black armored insects possessing the civilians. It was purely a wasted effort.

He Lingchuan, exasperated by the naive youth's actions, yelled: "Cut off the bell's support and push it down!" He had told Meng Shan to "take it down," not ring it.

"Oh." Meng Shan drew his axe and began chopping at the wooden pillar supporting the bell. To his surprise, the thing was incredibly tough. His Mountain-Cleaving Axe was no ordinary weapon, yet after several chops, it still wouldn't break through.

The monstrous insect raised a scythe-like leg and thudded it into his back. He Lingchuan hastily accelerated and leaped away, but his back armor was caught by the creature's barbed claw tip. With two clangs, he turned and cut down the monstrous insect's descending scythe.

A perfect opportunity! Fu Shanlie lunged, aiming directly for his back. Black Tiger Rips the Heart! If it connected, this battle would be decided today. As his claw tips grasped He Lingchuan's chest, the latter vanished with a soft *poof*, leaving behind only a cicada shell, which drifted lightly away with the wind. Fu Shanlie snatched the cicada shell, and gritted out a few words through his teeth: "Decoy!" But instead of worrying, he felt a surge of delight. Such life-saving techniques, once used by an opponent, could not be readily repeated.

Several Yuheng soldiers around them rushed forward, but they were no match for the two monsters. The battle between the three leaders left onlookers dazed and their scalps tingling, unsure where to intervene.

He Lingchuan emerged from the base of the wall and shouted upwards again: "Meng Shan!" Still not done? Fighting two such formidable opponents at once was truly strenuous. If not for the significant disparity in their primal energy, He Lingchuan would not have been able to fight unscathed for so long.

"Almost, almost!" Unable to chop through the pillar and urged on by He Lingchuan, Meng Shan grew desperate. He simply raised his axe and furiously chopped at the four corners of the bell tower a few times, then braced himself in a wide stance and slammed into the bell tower with all his might. *Bang!* The bell tower didn't budge an inch. Instead, his own shoulder ached from the impact. "Damn it, who built this tower so sturdily? Why didn't they cut corners back then?"