Chapter 293 : The Demon Tide Approaches

After reading the letter, Xavier Xu furrowed his brow and said with concern, "The Earth Lion Demon King has advanced to the Golden Core Late Stage, and the Golden Lion Mastiff has also broken through to the Demon King realm."

"Coupled with the Black Flood Dragon Demon King from Heavenly Python Lake, wouldn't we be facing three Golden Core Demon King?"

Everyone's expressions turned grave. Since the information in the letter was obtained through Exquisite Jiang's investigation, there was no doubt about its accuracy.

The strength of the Demon Race was likely even greater than what was written on paper, and their numbers were certainly not fewer.

"Although the Demon Race is powerful, we are not weak either,"

Eldrin Chen spoke up. He conjured a topographic map with his magic power, his gaze fixed on Scorching Sun Mountain and Heavenly Ruins Mountain as he continued.

"As long as we hold Heavenly Ruins Mountain and Scorching Sun Mountain, using these two key Spiritual Vein as a pincer formation, we should be able to weather this Beast Tide."

"Scorching Sun Mountain and Heavenly Ruins Mountain..."

Upon hearing this, everyone frowned. After a moment of contemplation, Patriarch Fang inquired, "Then how shall we deploy our forces?"

"Let us entrust Heavenly Ruins Mountain to the several great Immortal Clan of Border Province." Read the full novel exclusively on audio_novel.com.

Exquisite Jiang spoke, her gaze sweeping over the assembled cultivators from Border Province. "With the three Pseudo-Core Realm combatants from the Chen Clan and Xu Clan stationed there, and the Fourth-Rank Formation at Heavenly Ruins Mountain, Border Province is more than capable of holding back the Black Flood Dragon Demon King."

"However, the pressure from Earth Lion Ridge on Scorching Sun Ridge necessitates my personal presence. I will lead the Immortal Clan forces from the Green Sun Two Provinces to reinforce that front."

Once the overall strategy for the coming conflict was settled and the finer operational details debated, the council finally drew to a close.

After the others had departed, Eldrin Chen and Exquisite Jiang remained, their gazes fixed on the map spread before them, lost in deep contemplation.

After a long silence, Exquisite Jiang broke the quiet. "With the covert support of Azure Wave Lake, the Demon Race will surely come fully prepared. The spiritual energy of a Third Rank Superior Grade Spiritual Vein [a high-quality vein of spiritual energy] is not infinite. Merely holding our ground may not be enough."

"If we scatter our forces purely on defense, even victory would yield little gain. We must concentrate our strength and shatter one of their prongs decisively."

Eldrin Chen smiled, a glint of sharp insight flashing in his eyes. "I suspect those Demon King [powerful demon lords] are thinking exactly the same thing."

As his words hung in the air, they exchanged a knowing look, their focus shifting in unison toward Heavenly Ruins Mountain on the map.

"..."

Not lingering long at Green Sun Mountain, Eldrin Chen immediately took to his sword and returned to Yu County to begin his final preparations for the coming battle.

After returning to Spirit Isle Lake [a spiritual lake region], he began to take advantage of the two years he had left, finding time to refine various medicinal pills for recovery, such as the Purple Essence Pill [a pill that mends internal injuries and replenishes spiritual essence] and the Energy-Restoring Origin Pill [a pill that rapidly restores expended spiritual energy].

His alchemical skill was now quite advanced. His success rate in refining these mid-to-low grade third-rank pills was no longer considered low; for the Purple Essence Pill, his success rate had even reached seventy to eighty percent.

Simultaneously, cultivators from the Chen Clan [the Chen family of cultivators] were being continuously conscripted. Most of those called to fight were sent to the front lines at Heavenly Ruins Mountain [a mountain range scarred by ancient celestial battles], while a portion remained in Yu County [Yu County] to garrison the Sunward Market [a major trading hub facing the sunrise].

The entire war machine of the Heavenly Ruins Alliance [a coalition of forces centered around Heavenly Ruins Mountain] began to turn. With the nest overturned, no egg remains whole. Nearly every cultivator across the three provinces—whether rogue cultivators or members of established families—received the conscription call, destined to participate in this great conflict that occurs only once a century.

A year passed in the blink of an eye. Eldrin Chen finally departed ahead of schedule for Heavenly Ruins Mountain.

Upon arriving at Heavenly Ruins Mountain, he discovered that the mountain, now a mustering point for the war, had already gathered a force of fifty thousand cultivators.

It could be said that for this battle, the major Immortal Clans [powerful cultivation families] of the Three Counties of Border Province [the three border counties] had poured out nearly their full strength, mobilizing over seventy percent of their cultivators.

The remaining thirty percent simply could not be mobilized, as the various family enterprises and assets still required personnel to guard them.

A full century had passed since the last Beast Tide [a periodic, massive invasion by demonic beasts]. Most of the Vital Essence Refinement [the first major stage of body and energy refinement] cultivators who fought in that last war had already exhausted their natural lifespans.

Those who still lived had either broken through to the Foundation Establishment [the stage of solidifying one's cultivation foundation] realm, or had only a few years of life remaining, utterly incapable of participating in this new conflict.

Even many of the Foundation Establishment Realm cultivators who participated in the battle back then have now mostly perished. Those who still live do not have much of their lifespan remaining.

Eldrin Chen stood atop the peak of Heavenly Ruins Mountain, gazing down with a touch of emotion at the bustling throngs of cultivators below.

This was both a war and a once-in-a-century grand gathering for the cultivation world.

For cultivators usually spent most of their time in secluded cultivation. It was rare for even a hundred cultivators to gather for trade in a single market town. Now, with tens of thousands of low-level cultivators assembled, it was truly a spectacle seen only once every hundred years.

Everyone seized this opportunity to sell unneeded treasures, while others sought to purchase coveted items.

In ordinary times, many items were exceedingly difficult to find. Low-level cultivators without backing often had to travel over a hundred thousand Li-lengths [one Li-length equals five hundred meters] and spend years to acquire a single desired treasure. Read, share, and discuss at audio-novel-dot-com.

But now, with tens of thousands of cultivators gathered at Heavenly Ruins Mountain, for Vital Essence Refinement cultivators, the issue was rarely about availability, but rather about affordability.

Even Violet Sanctum Patriarchs and Foundation Establishment Cultivators took advantage of the occasion to host Barter Conventions, hoping to trade for treasures that met their desires.

"How swiftly time flows,"

Eldrin Chen sighed at the fleeting nature of time, his heart also filled with nostalgia for the events of days gone by.

A hurried century passed, and the Mortal Realm remained as bustling and crowded as ever, though the faces in the crowd were a new generation.

The great war of a century ago seemed as if it were just yesterday. Back then, Heavenly Ruins Mountain was also this lively, with cultivators from all corners of the Border Province gathering and trading treasures with similar fervor.

Beside him, Old Patriarch, Xavier Xu, and the others also felt a pang of nostalgia. A hundred years had flowed by, and they had weathered two or three Beast Tide in that time. They could well understand the sentiment in Eldrin Chen's heart.

At that very moment, a streak of light flew from the distance and landed before the group.

The arrival was none other than Star Grace Meng. The Meng Clan had exhausted centuries of accumulated resources, depleting their family's foundational reserves to purchase two Five Elements Treasure Crystal from the Chen Clan. This finally allowed her cultivation to advance to the Violet Sanctum Realm.

Seeing her land, Eldrin Chen inquired, "What is the situation?"

Star Grace Meng cultivated a Divine Ability [a supernatural power or technique] specialized in concealing one's aura, making her exceptionally suited for gathering intelligence. This time, she had been dispatched to scout the movements of the demonic beasts.

"The Black Flood Dragon Demon King has mobilized his forces. Their spearhead is aimed directly at Heavenly Ruins Mountain," she reported.

She glanced at Eldrin Chen and offered a slight bow before continuing.

Eldrin Chen pondered for a moment, then asked further, "How many troops has Heavenly Python Lake dispatched this time? And approximately how long until they arrive?"

"The demon beast horde is currently still one hundred thousand Li-length [one Li-length equals five hundred meters] away from us. At their current pace, it will take at least three more months for them to arrive."

Star Grace Meng stated, then added, "To avoid detection by the Demon King [a powerful ruler among demon beasts], I did not venture deep into the heart of the horde. However, my preliminary estimate suggests their numbers are no fewer than three hundred thousand."

"Among them, I identified twelve Violet Sanctum Demonic Beast [demonic beasts equivalent to the Violet Sanctum cultivation realm]. The main force consists of three from the Six-Winged Golden Butterfly lineage, two from the Golden-Horned Savage Bull lineage, and two from the demon wolf clan."

"The remainder are from the demon python clan of Heavenly Python Lake and the Violet Sanctum Demon Crocodile. Among them is one at the Violet Sanctum Late Stage."

Eldrin Chen nodded. In its prime, under the rule of the Heavenly Python Demon King, Heavenly Python Lake had commanded over thirty Violet Sanctum Demonic Beast. Find this and other novels at audio-novel-dot-com.