Chapter 718: Unstoppable Torrent

He never expected such a beast stampede to occur anywhere other than the battlefield, especially not in Lingxu City!

Fortunately, although this greatest city in the world had no city walls, there were two massive natural rock walls outside its North Gate. All creatures approaching the North Gate, whether merchants, carriages, or Thunder Roc beasts, had to pass through the channel between these rock walls.

This channel was eleven zhang wide and exceptionally flat, facilitating the movement of carriages. However, it naturally couldn't stop the Thunder Roc herd.

Nevertheless, the earlier Mud Mire spell bought Lingxu City some time. Several powerful demons rushed to the scene and collectively cast spells, combining abilities like Mud Sculpture and Petrification to construct a thick wall at the end of the channel, directly in front of Lingxu City.

In the post-Immortal era, cultivators didn't possess the ability to move mountains or fill seas, but combining their magic to temporarily raise the ground was well within their capabilities.

The wall was eight zhang high and remarkably five zhang thick. Clearly, the powerful demons had considered the formidable impact force of the Thunder Roc beasts.

Although its surface was uneven and far from aesthetically pleasing, the fact that it was completed in just fifteen minutes still showcased Lingxu City's capabilities.

An expert could appreciate the effort, and He Lingchuan gave it a thumbs up. Given the unfolding crisis in the city behind them, Lingxu City's ability to dispatch these powerful demons here demonstrated a remarkably timely response.

Furthermore, this rock wall wasn't just haphazardly built; it utilized at least a mix ratio similar to "sanhetu" (a traditional Chinese concrete-like mixture). Several mages were also swiftly inscribing runes on its surface to create additional reinforcement arrays.

Before the beasts arrived, He Lingchuan even noticed a faint light rippling across the wall—the glow of primal energy.

Beijia's primal energy had already activated the rock wall. Although it was a hastily constructed barrier, it should have no problem withstanding continuous barrages from heavy artillery.

Rather than a wall, it was more like a dam. He Lingchuan recalled his first visit to the Panlong Ruins, where he had seen the land bridge outside the South Gate.

That structure had also been created using divine abilities, and at the time, his thought was how much he wished he could have witnessed its entire construction process.

Here and now, he was actually fortunate enough to see that wish fulfilled. Inside and outside the city, from the mountain to the plains below, everyone held their breath, waiting to see if the combined efforts of Lingxu's demons could stop the enraged Thunder Roc beasts.

The beasts galloped to the wall and were forced to stop. After all, the rock wall was taller than the leading giant beasts; they couldn't possibly fly over it.

The giant beast also pushed against the rock wall with its broken frontal bone plate, as if testing its thickness. The rock wall remained unmoving.

The herd grew agitated. Several giant beasts, disbelieving, went up and nudged it a few times. It was useless; they couldn't move it. Everyone watching breathed a sigh of relief, assuming the crisis was temporarily averted.

Only the leading Thunder Roc beast tilted its head, constantly sniffing the wall, its ears twitching. He Lingchuan was uncertain: "Is this behemoth... thinking?" It just stood there, snorting repeatedly in front of the land bridge.

Others weren't sure what it was doing, but Fan Long and those nearest could see clearly: with every snort, it sprayed tiny, deep-purple crystal clusters onto the rock wall.

The rock wall, created by divine abilities, appeared solid, but actually contained large internal bubbles and crevices. It had been hastily constructed and couldn't be as meticulously crafted as by artisans, who would have focused on various mechanical structures.

These small crystal clusters penetrated the rock upon contact, drilling into the rock wall as if conscious. Once they found a suitable position, they immediately settled and expanded rapidly.

Soon, the entire surface of the rock wall turned deep purple, with crystal clusters sprouting everywhere. From He Lingchuan's aesthetic perspective, he actually found the wall quite beautiful, the crystal clusters resembling valuable amethysts.

Fan Long, however, had no such appreciation. He was busy organizing the army to shoot arrows at the Danube beast herd. Lingxu City had a centuries-old tradition of hunting Danube beasts, and hunters had specially developed poison for them. As they were pursued and shot down along the way, a hundred Danube beasts had already fallen, creating a brutal scene.

However, the Thunder Roc giant beast's hide was too thick; typically, only large siege crossbows could penetrate its outer armor.

Several powerful demons from Lingxu City intervened, barely managing to breach its defenses. One yellow badger demon possessed the most peculiar spell: it could actually swap the Thunder Roc giant beast's hard outer armor with its relatively soft inner hide. Although this only lasted for four or five breaths, it was enough for others to shoot several more poisoned arrows.

He Lingchuan, standing on Almond Mountain and observing the scene below, also gasped. Fortunately, his ambush on Mount Xu tonight had been all about speed; the battle was over before the Heavenly Palace's reinforcements could arrive.

Otherwise, facing these powerful demons with their diverse and bizarre methods, how much chance of success would his plan have had?

The Thunder Roc giant beast's actions served as a preview for him, demonstrating the immense cost of a direct confrontation with Lingxu City.

Of course, at this point, the Thunder Roc giant beast also lost patience. After a few roars, it suddenly galloped out over a hundred zhang, then turned around and aimed its massive headplate at the rock wall... The other Thunder Roc beasts promptly made way for it.

Dong Rui watched intently from Almond Mountain: "This creature wouldn't really be that reckless, would it? That's a wall five zhang thick!"

Even a vassal demon king from the White Elephant Country wouldn't consider ramming it head-on.

"It will," He Lingchuan replied. "The Thunder Roc giant beast dared to directly confront even the sandstorms of the Freud Realm; it was incredibly stubborn. What was a mere wall in the human world to it?"

Indeed, as soon as He Lingchuan spoke, the Thunder Roc giant beast accelerated forward and slammed head-on into the rock wall. A dull, colossal thud echoed all the way to Almond Mountain.

It was unclear what force caused the shock, but the crystal clusters within the rock wall suddenly exploded simultaneously. The scene was spectacular, almost indescribable.

Thousands of crystals splattered simultaneously, affecting the army thirty zhang away and sending people and horses tumbling in chaos. The rock wall was instantly leveled, collapsing with a roar!

This was power that erupted from within the rock wall; the reinforcement arrays and primal energy were rendered useless. He Lingchuan truly hadn't expected this lord-level giant beast to be so versatile, not only capable of grand levitation but also construction demolition.

The beast herd successfully broke through once more. In fact, within the few dozen breaths they had stopped, the demons had jointly killed dozens more Danube beasts.

The efficiency of their spellcasting was textbook-level. However, the remaining more than three hundred giant beasts had now broken free and continued to advance, following their leader.

This time, they finally surged into Lingxu City—the unprotected Lingxu City! The army stationed behind the rock wall actually had no good way to stop them.

He Lingchuan stood on the high ground, witnessing firsthand the chaos caused by the beasts. The northwest corner of Lingxu City, invaded by the Danube beasts, immediately dissolved into utter pandemonium.

He Lingchuan could almost hear the screams coming from there. He also saw many buildings engulfed in flames.

The crimson lightning from the Thunder Roc giant beast's body, once it touched wood, paper, or fuel, would instantly ignite, setting everything ablaze.

Dong Rui pointed towards the city: "Wow, these monsters are running fast." Wherever the fires burned, it inversely indicated how far the beast herd had charged.

In such a short time, they had already penetrated seven or eight li deep, moving in a serpentine path without any warning.

Wherever they passed, houses collapsed, people died, and flames soared skyward. The beast herd was like a sharp knife, piercing directly into Lingxu City's soft underbelly.

The capital, peaceful for six hundred years, had never witnessed such a spectacle. Many residents were so terrified they stared blankly, not even knowing to flee, until they were crushed into pulp by the beasts.

This indiscriminate attack caused the most destruction. He Lingchuan exhaled a cold breath: "Fang Canran is truly ruthless." As long as he could severely damage Lingxu City, Fang Canran seemed to care nothing about the casualties.

Dong Rui shrugged: "Whose fault is it that Lingxu City has no walls? Perhaps they were too arrogant." Zhu Erniang, however, let out a snicker: "Good, excellent! Lingxu City hasn't been this lively in a long time, has it?"

It had no good impression of Beijia. Lingxu City had even shamelessly stolen its immortal exuviae. As long as Lingxu City was uncomfortable, it was content.

"Don't be fooled by the Thunder Roc giant beast's intimidating aura; it's only a temporary show of power," He Lingchuan said soberly.

"Against Lingxu City, it has no chance of winning." A monster of the Thunder Roc giant beast's magnitude, leading hundreds of Danube beasts, could easily destroy a small city.

But this was Lingxu City. These Danube beasts looked imposing now only because Lingxu City had been caught off guard, and many military elites and powerful demons had already rushed to Mount Xu.

Once Lingxu City truly freed up its forces, the fate of these Danube beasts would surely be tragic. Of course, the three on Almond Mountain didn't know that Fang Canran's earlier commanded operation had specifically targeted Lingxu City's grassroots government offices, material warehouses, and the families of important figures on the Floating Island.

Once chaos erupted, whether for firefighting, rescue, or setting up roadblocks, the lower levels of the city fell into a dire situation: personnel were unorganized, and supplies had nowhere to be transported.

Orders from above were issued layer by layer but got stuck at this point, with no one to execute them. Dong Rui sighed, "If only I could get a few of them for research, that would be great."

True to form, Dong Rui never strayed from his specialty. He Lingchuan admired him: "You can make demon puppets even from beasts not native to this realm?"

"Just try it," Dong Rui shrugged. "There's no harm in trying. Maybe I can even create a new species?"

"Don't demon puppets also have the blood of gods flowing in them?" Such a statement was practically blasphemous, but He Lingchuan knew this had always been his way.

"Danube beasts cannot survive long in the human world," He Lingchuan pointed out. "There's no food for them here."

"I was just thinking about it," Dong Rui replied. "There's no harm in just thinking, is there?" Just then, the Thunder Roc giant beast's speed seemed to slow, and it led the herd back, continuously moving in large circles.

It seemed several powerful demons had arrived and jointly cast an illusion barrier spell on its inevitable path. In simple terms, it was a "ghost wall" that made them walk in circles.

These behemoths had astonishing destructive power when running, but low intelligence. If they could be trapped in a maze and made to wander in circles, the damage to Lingxu City would be greatly reduced.

Once they were exhausted, they would be easily annihilated. It must be said that devising such a method in haste was the mark of true talent.

Just then, a cyan figure flew down from mid-air, circling and letting out a clear cry. It was a large bird, resembling both a stork and a crane, with a wingspan of at least twenty zhang, a very long tail, and a crest on its head.

Even in the dark night sky, its silhouette was clearly visible. Wherever it passed, one tornado after another would sweep across the ground.