Chapter 1060: The Situation Is Decided

Chapter 1049: The Tide Has Turned

With a single strike, Fu Shanlie was impaled like a skewer.

He twisted the hilt outwards, widening the wound. Fu Shanlie heard a familiar voice whisper in his ear:

"I told you I'd sacrifice you to my blade!"

This person was, of course, He Lingchuan!

The technique he employed was not one learned in Pantalon City, but rather the trump card combat skill of the Wanqi uncle and nephew: Shadow Stride.

Previously, Wanqi Song had ambushed He Lingchuan, covering ten meters in a single step, appearing behind him from the roadside as if ignoring the distance.

Had the terrain not been open and He Lingchuan not prepared with a counter, he would have suffered a fatal blow.

Naturally, after experiencing such an effective combat skill, he asked Wanqi Feng to teach him.

The formation in the barbican prohibited escape arts, but not such combat skills.

After unblocking his upper Dantian, his thoughts flowed freely, and his true energy circulated smoothly. His overall strength had surpassed his level during the river battle, and he could even conceal his killing intent so perfectly that by the time Fu Shanlie noticed, it was already half a beat too late.

That half-beat was the difference between life and death.

He Lingchuan angled his blade, not pulling it back, but directly slicing into Fu Shanlie's left shoulder. The Fleeting Life Blade severed his collarbone, breaking free from the constraints of flesh and bone!

This was akin to slicing Fu Shanlie's body in half from the side. The excruciating pain made Fu Shanlie roar uncontrollably.

Amidst the spray of blood, the Fleeting Life Blade, seething with killing intent, aimed for his neck again!

But Fu Shanlie, enduring the intense pain, twisted his body and somehow produced a pestle, which clashed "clang" against the blade, blocking it.

The chilling blade aura cut a bloody line across his neck, but ultimately did not decapitate him.

At that moment, Fu Shanlie's close associates became aware of He Lingchuan's presence and shouted as they swung their blades at him.

He was surrounded by enemies; any one of them could have hacked him to pieces.

He Lingchuan, not daring to be overconfident, grabbed the impaled Fu Shanlie and swung him violently around.

The closest enemies were all knocked down.

The remaining four or five slashes were neutralized on the spot.

As the enemies pressed their attack again, He Lingchuan pulled out a large rectangular shield and slammed it down in front of him with a thud.

Immediately afterwards, battle cries thundered as Meng Shan, leading over a dozen Great Gale Army elites, rushed forward to relieve him.

As the Jade Balance Army flowed past He Lingchuan, the crisis naturally dissipated.

Someone in the Jade Balance Army immediately shouted, "Fu Shanlie is dead! Fu Shanlie is dead!"

One voice became a hundred, their shouts shaking the heavens.

At this point, the general's banner of the Western Ji puppet army had fallen. The hundreds of soldiers rushing forward were already disoriented in the darkness, and hearing the shouts that Fu Shanlie was dead, they immediately thought of retreating.

However, the barbican and the area outside the South Gate were blockaded by the Golden Tao army. Those who wanted to enter couldn't, and those who wanted to exit were trapped, creating utter chaos.

"He Lingchuan is here! Jade Balance Army, listen to my command: All units, attack!" He Lingchuan snatched a long spear from the ground, pointed its tip forward, and his voice boomed like spring thunder:

"No quarter for those who oppose me!"

In two strides, he reached the vanguard, throwing the long spear like a javelin, impaling several enemies in succession.

The crowded barbican was ideal for such a display.

Over the past six months, he had drilled the Jade Balance Army countless times. Upon hearing his voice, the soldiers immediately felt invigorated, their hesitation and doubt vanishing. They simply clutched their weapons and charged forward behind their leader.

Led by He Lingchuan, over a dozen Great Gale Army elites pierced the enemy lines like a blade, tearing apart their formation.

Two hundred Jade Balance Army soldiers poured in to fill the gaps, engaging the enemy in close-quarters combat.

The barbican was inherently narrow, and the Western Ji puppet army, seeing enemies wielding blades on all sides and hearing the thunderous battle cries, felt their scalps tingle.

However, Fu Shanlie was ultimately rescued by his confidants and brought out of Jade Balance City.

He couldn't stand steadily, so his trusted aide quickly supported him.

Fu Shanlie, clutching his chest, said hoarsely, "Charge in! He Lingchuan has few men!"

For anyone else, being stabbed in the heart and then having the blade twisted would mean immediate death. But a Ba was a Ba, a living corpse. Though the wound was severe, it was not immediately fatal.

Despite the chaotic situation and his severe injuries, his mind remained clear:

He Lingchuan had indeed returned in time, but the Jade Balance Army at the South Gate numbered only three hundred. The Western Ji puppet army, combined with the Golden Tao army, totaled a formidable three thousand!

As long as they withstood He Lingchuan's assault and cleared the bottleneck at the barbican, Jade Balance City would still be his once their main force poured into the streets!

"Ah, it hurts so much."

However, the barbican's terrain was like a bottle's neck: a single man could hold back ten thousand. He Lingchuan was that "stopper," firmly blocking the gate. Many strong warriors from the enemy army rushed forward only to be repelled by him.

The numerical superiority of the Western Ji Legion and the Golden Tao Army could not be utilized.

The Jade Balance City troops also climbed the gate tower, firing arrows downwards.

The stalemate lasted for over fifteen minutes. The Western Ji army made no progress, instead being pushed back step by step.

With Fu Shanlie severely wounded, there was no general in their army who could match He Lingchuan.

After another few dozen breaths, battle cries suddenly thundered from the western hillside, and an army charged towards the city gate—

The eight hundred infantry brought back by Cai Qiyong had finally arrived.

Hearing this, He Lingchuan's spirits lifted. He ordered the city's troops to press forward—

Before the reinforcements arrived, the city's troops had primarily focused on defense; with the eight hundred infantry now present, they immediately shifted from defense to offense.

Due to Fu Shanlie's severe injuries, the morale of the two sides shifted: theirs plummeted, while Jade Balance's soared.

Although he tried his best to command, they ultimately lacked several formidable generals.

Coordinating their efforts from inside and outside, the Jade Balance Army gradually "squeezed" the enemy out of the barbican and drove them down the pontoon bridge.

Seeing that victory was no longer possible, Fu Shanlie sighed deeply and had no choice but to order a retreat.

The Jade Balance Army from inside and outside the city converged, pursuing the retreating enemy in triumph all the way to the Golden Tao border before He Lingchuan called off the chase and returned.

In this battle, the crisis was averted. The Western Ji puppet army and the Golden Tao army suffered a crushing defeat, fleeing in panic and being relentlessly pursued by the Jade Balance Army.

By dawn, the Jade Balance Army had killed or wounded over 1,300 enemy soldiers and captured more than 400.

The opponents had gathered a total of over 2,800 troops, losing more than half in this single battle.

He Lingchuan didn't wait for his subordinates to tally the results of the battle; instead, he rode his horse back into the city.

The Bilu worm demon remained trapped inside the bell. No one disturbed the large bell itself; instead, more formations were added to it to prevent the demon from escaping.

The challenge of dealing with the worm demon would be entrusted to Pantalon City.

This demon was powerful and unusual; it was likely a registered greater demon in Beiga, and Pantalon City's alchemists would be very interested.

Engineers were already repairing the city gate mechanisms and the pontoon bridge. Willow and other wounded soldiers were carried into the nearest inn for emergency treatment.

When He Lingchuan arrived, Willow had claimed a private room. White bandages were wrapped around her neck and shoulder, and her broken arm had been set.

She looked utterly exhausted. Although her confrontation with Fu Shanlie and the worm demon was brief, it was the greatest danger she had ever faced in her life, requiring absolute concentration and allowing no room for error.

Seeing He Lingchuan approach, Willow smiled at him. "Did we win?" she asked.

"Of course."

Alo, standing nearby, said, "The medicine was administered promptly, and with both internal and external application of Emperor Dew, it's very beneficial for the injuries."

This night had been too long; the Emperor Dew phenomenon hadn't even ended yet. Alo used the freshest Emperor Dew to treat the wounded, achieving twice the result with half the effort and producing remarkably good effects.