Chapter 181: The Situation in Great Zhou

Zhang Junfeng's face was more wrinkled, and he looked even older, but he smiled happily. "I've got one foot in the grave, and I still managed to slay a fourth-level sky demon! This is the strongest opponent I've ever killed in my life."

"Me too!" Yang Fang said with a smile, shouldering his double axes. "Before, these fourth-level sky demons were very cunning, making them hard to encounter. Now that Marquis Godfiends are garrisoned in various medium-sized city passes, they've finally dared to emerge. And this time, with Senior Brother Zhang and Junior Brother Meng, the three of us teamed up to kill a fourth-level sky demon, a feat beyond our usual capability."

"Without the two of you, Senior Brothers, I would have had no choice but to flee from him," Meng Chuan said with a chuckle.

"Without Junior Brother Meng, he would have escaped long ago," Yang Fang countered.

"Let's stop flattering each other! Killing the Blackwater Cave Lord was a joint effort from all three of us," Zhang Junfeng said, smiling.

"Hmm?" Meng Chuan and the other two suddenly looked up.

A man with a pair of true essence wings on his back swooped down.

"Greetings, Senior Brothers," the winged man said as he landed. Some Godfiends at the Great Sun realm can cultivate 'true essence wings'; for instance, Liu Qiyue, with her Phoenix God Body, can naturally manifest them.

"Junior Brother Mo," Zhang Junfeng, Meng Chuan, and Yang Fang all looked at him.

"We've been hunting down demon kings and sky demons throughout Jiangzhou City," the winged man reported. "We received intelligence that the highest leader among this group of demon kings and sky demons is the fourth-level sky demon, 'Blackwater Cave Lord.' So, Dean Chang immediately dispatched me here. I noticed Senior Brother Zhang's domain covering several miles around, and the tremors from the battle made the ground shake. Were you dealing with the Blackwater Cave Lord?"

Zhang Junfeng chuckled, "That's right. But the trouble has already been resolved."

"Resolved? What about the Blackwater Cave Lord then? Did he escape?" the winged man pressed.

"He didn't escape; he's right there," Zhang Junfeng said, pointing nearby where items like a water-splitting trident remained.

The winged man looked confused.

"His weapons and other belongings are still here, but as for his body, it turned to ash," Zhang Junfeng said, his old face beaming with satisfaction. Then he asked, "By the way, how are things in other parts of the city?"

Meng Chuan and Yang Fang were not in a hurry, as their tokens indicated that there were no further Godfiend casualties within the city.

"The situation is quite good," the winged man explained quickly. "In the South City, Junior Brother Meng swiftly slew a group of demon kings, and the danger in the East City was also resolved by the three of you. The rest of us Godfiends primarily dealt with the North and West Cities... Overall, our strength holds an advantage, and the Great Sun realm Godfiends are relatively more powerful. Now, only a very few sky demons and demon kings are still at large."

"Only in the East City, at the very beginning, we suffered too many Godfiend casualties," the winged man whispered.

Zhang Junfeng, Meng Chuan, and the other two sighed inwardly.

"When faced with the Blackwater Cave Lord, most of them couldn't escape even if they wanted to," Zhang Junfeng shook his head.

Meng Chuan nodded as well. Even he had nearly lost his life when ambushed by the Blackwater Cave Lord, let alone other ordinary Godfiends.

"Senior Brother Zhang, Senior Brother Yang, I'll go check other parts of the city," Meng Chuan said. "I'll patrol again and help eliminate all demons as quickly as possible."

"Be careful, Junior Brother," Zhang Junfeng said with a smile.

"Young people truly are different; he just used a Godfiend forbidden art and is already ready to fight again," Yang Fang chuckled.

Meng Chuan nodded. Lightning erupted from his body, turning him into a blurry streak that shot across the sky, covering four or five miles instantly. Having reached the second level of the lightning demon-mark, his speed had surged once more.

If he could become a Marquis Godfiend, his speed would be unparalleled throughout the world!

"Let's see if there are any stragglers left," Meng Chuan continued his pursuit. He hadn't used the Godfiend forbidden art for long; he only truly employed it during the siege after reaching the peak of his blade soul. His use of the forbidden art was shorter than both Senior Brother Zhang and Senior Brother Yang. Furthermore, he was young, and his body-cultivation lineage made Meng Chuan's physical vitality exceptionally strong, allowing him to fully recover within three to four hours.

He was currently only lightly injured.

Jiangzhou City was entering its mop-up phase.

Meanwhile, the war across the entire world raged fiercely!

Yuanchu Mountain.

Venerable Qin Wu sat within a grand hall. On the hall walls was a vast map of the human world, with the Great Zhou Dynasty's map being exceptionally detailed, showing various areas flickering with light.

Red light, deep red light, dim light...

Different colors represented different levels of danger.

"Venerable One, Chifeng Prefecture in Yunzhou has requested aid again. The threat is at the fourth-level sky demon tier. This is the ninth request within just fifteen minutes," reported a group of people nearby, who were also meticulously observing the map on the hall wall.

"Tell them to abandon it," Venerable Qin Wu said coldly. "Tell them to abandon it immediately."

"They are unwilling to abandon it," an elder whispered. "They still want to fight on."

Venerable Qin Wu calmly stated, "Tell them again, there will be no rescue! Make them abandon it!"

As he made the decision, Venerable Qin Wu sighed inwardly, "Yunzhou is too remote, and Chifeng Prefecture is even more so. It would take a King Godfiend six thousand miles to reach it. We cannot jeopardize the entire world's rescue efforts for the sake of one prefecture."

The demon race and the Sky Demon Gate operate in the shadows, able to choose any location to launch a sneak attack.

Yuanchu Mountain, however, needed to guard all the prefectures and provinces of the Great Zhou Dynasty. Even though they held an absolute advantage in the human world, once their forces were dispersed, that advantage diminished significantly.

"Venerable One, Donggang Prefecture has requested aid again! The danger is at the fourth-level sky demon tier!" another disciple urgently called out.

"King Donghe is en route and will arrive shortly; tell them to hold on," Venerable Qin Wu instructed.

This time... To protect the vast number of mortals in hundreds of city passes, Marquis Godfiends had to be stationed in medium-sized passes, and even then, it wasn't enough; a few medium-sized passes relied on the deterrent power of treasures. However, this time, all King Godfiends were mobilized! This included the Yuanchu Mountain Master and Elder Yi, all descending the mountain to guard crucial areas throughout the Great Zhou Dynasty.

For example, the five provinces surrounding Wuzhou were guarded by King Donghe.

However, the demon attacks were simultaneous, and even a King Godfiend could not be everywhere at once. He had to prioritize rescue efforts based on importance and proximity. King Donghe was particularly busy because Wuzhou, Jiangzhou, and Huangzhou—the areas under his responsibility—were all key targets for the demon race. His first rescue mission was Wuzhou City, followed by heading to Donggang Prefecture. Although Donggang Prefecture was not a provincial capital, it had a population of over three million.

As for Jiangzhou City? Jiangzhou City could handle itself, so King Donghe naturally went to rescue those who couldn't.

"Venerable One," someone anxiously said, "Five King Godfiends are stationed in five regions of the Great Zhou Dynasty. But currently, the demon race is primarily attacking only six provinces... Some King Godfiends aren't truly putting their strength to use. Should we reallocate the King Godfiends?"

"No!" someone immediately retorted. "The demon race is extremely cunning. Feinting is a common tactic. It was like this before: after attacking several provincial capitals like Wuzhou City and Jiangzhou City, they immediately followed up by attacking some densely populated prefectural cities, rendering the King Godfiends unable to be in multiple places at once. I'm concerned that if we reallocate King Godfiends from other areas, the demon race will suddenly attack those other regions."

"Continue to manage the situations in your respective areas. Report any new developments immediately," Venerable Qin Wu commanded icily.

Venerable Qin Wu was also under immense pressure.

He knew very well that he had to station the five King Godfiends he could mobilize in the most crucial areas to prevent any major collapse.

Once the overall situation was stable, what about sudden changes in specific locations? There were also guardian treasures for those.

"Venerable One," someone suddenly reported excitedly, "The danger in Jiangzhou City has been lifted! The fourth-level sky demon threat has been slain!"

The others in the hall were somewhat surprised.

"Slain?" "A fourth-level sky demon or demon king, slain?" "Jiangzhou City's situation was stable; they weren't forced to use a guardian treasure, yet they managed to slay a fourth-level threat?"

They were very surprised.

Venerable Qin Wu had experienced many storms and had even seen Great Sun realm Godfiends slay fourth-level demon kings in one-on-one battles, a feat beyond their usual tier. However, his eyes still lit up, and he felt a surge of joy, as it was finally some good news.

"Mobilize Zhang Junfeng and Meng Chuan to immediately reinforce Changfeng Prefecture in Jiangzhou!" Venerable Qin Wu commanded.

"Yes," the disciple responsible for Jiangzhou immediately began making the arrangements.

From Venerable Qin Wu's perspective, he truly understood the current situation of the entire Great Zhou Dynasty. From a purely pragmatic viewpoint, allowing the populations of hundreds of city passes to migrate and fend for themselves would result in the fewest Godfiend casualties. However, Venerable Qin Wu also understood that such a decision would deeply impact the 'spirit' of countless Godfiends. Generations of Godfiends had dedicated themselves and stood firm, forging a lineage of unwavering belief.

To pass on the torch and protect humanity! If they were to abandon the population of almost an entire province without even a fight, then Godfiends would no longer be Godfiends. Those who fought heaven and earth for humanity's sake—those were true Godfiends!