Chapter 132: Crumbling

Rumbling!

The earth shook with a deafening roar, like thunder splitting the sky or a raging river overflowing its banks.

Shen Changqing sat upright on his bed, his skin flushed an alarming shade of crimson.

Scattered around him were empty vials, the remnants of the medicinal pills he had consumed.

Finally, after an extended period, the violent fluctuations subsided.

Shen Changqing opened his eyes, and the already well-lit room seemed to brighten even further.

Calming his mind, he focused on his status panel:

Name: Shen Changqing
Faction: Great Qin Demon Suppression Division
Identity: Yellow-Rank Demon Slaying Envoy
Martial Arts: Invincible Golden Body, Heavenly Martial Gang Qi, Hundred Battle Saber Technique, Iron Sand Palm, Celestial Luo Stepping Gait, Mountain Opening Palm Technique, Willow Floss Movement Technique
Slaughter Points: 51

"The Invincible Golden Body is finally perfected!"

Shen Changqing observed the attributes on his panel, a faint smile gracing his face as he felt the surging power within his physical body.

Even with slaughter points accelerating his progress, future breakthroughs would still demand considerable time.

Over the course of the night, he had only managed to elevate the Invincible Golden Body from the tenth to the fifteenth level.

Throughout the advancement, he could hear the clamor of battle raging outside, but he refrained from intervening.

"Ordinary Grandmaster martial artists are of little consequence against an army of one hundred and twenty thousand, and Innate Outer Gang Realm experts fare no better – a dead end awaits them!"

"With the Barbarians besieging the city, the Black Tiger Army can only hold out for so long. If we hope to carve a path to survival, we must rely solely on ourselves."

Rely on oneself.

Shen Changqing’s objective was crystal clear.

The Black Tiger Army was strong, undoubtedly, but a mere twelve thousand soldiers were no match for the Barbarian horde of one hundred and twenty thousand.

Therefore, only by comprehensively enhancing his own strength could he possibly break the deadlock.

Now, the Invincible Golden Body had reached the fifteenth level, achieving a state of perfection after the Martial Arts Fusion for the first time.

A perfected external art, granting him a body as hard as metal.

Shen Changqing tested himself with the Cold Moon Saber, but it failed to leave even a scratch.

"With my current physical defense, no one in the Innate Realm can breach it. Whether I can withstand a Grandmaster’s attack, however, remains to be seen."

His current state could only be described as having unparalleled defense.

However, Shen Changqing understood that while his physical defense had reached a formidable level, it did not render him invulnerable on the battlefield.

Even the strongest defense had its weaknesses.

First, each attack he endured would deplete some of his Qi and blood. As his Qi and blood diminished, his physical defense would weaken accordingly.

Second, even if an attack couldn’t penetrate his physical defenses, an overwhelming force could still vibrate his internal organs.

Although the refinement of his internal organs had progressed alongside his physical body, they were still significantly weaker in comparison.

The third weakness, while not exactly a flaw, was the possibility of a supremely powerful expert exceeding his physical defense limits.

"Rumor has it that Mierba is a Grandmaster Middle Stage expert. With my current strength, I may not be able to contend with him. It’s not enough, not yet!"

Shen Changqing thought of Mierba.

Though he had never fought a Grandmaster expert, he preferred to overestimate them rather than underestimate them.

Most importantly, he still had fifty-one slaughter points remaining.

Those points could still significantly boost his strength.

"The perfection of the Invincible Golden Body has also completely resolved the overabundance of True Qi in my Dantian. It seems I can advance the Heavenly Martial Gang Qi again."

"It’s just a pity that I have yet to comprehend any Martial Arts True Intent!"

The thought of the Martial Arts True Intent caused Shen Changqing to shake his head in frustration.

Truth be told, he wasn’t even sure what realm he truly belonged to.

If he were to call himself a Martial Arts Grandmaster, he hadn’t comprehended any Martial Arts True Intent. Yet, if he were to identify as being in the Innate Realm, Shen Changqing felt he could defeat any Innate expert with a single punch.

"Forget it."

"There’s no need to dwell on it so much. The realm doesn’t matter; what truly matters is how much my strength improves!"

Taking a deep breath, Shen Changqing calmed his mind once more and prepared for the next round of enhancements.

The Invincible Golden Body had reached perfection, but that didn’t mean there was no room for improvement.

However, with his Dantian expanded, he was in no rush to enhance the Invincible Golden Body just yet. He could first improve the Heavenly Martial Gang Qi until the True Qi overflowed, then return to enhancing his external martial arts.

Focusing his thoughts, Shen Changqing didn’t consume any more pills. The fifteenth level of the Invincible Golden Body had already bolstered his Qi and blood to an astonishing degree.

In his opinion, there was no need to take pills for this advancement. His own foundation was sufficient to offset the consumption.

Soon, sixteen slaughter points vanished.

The Heavenly Martial Gang Qi directly transitioned from the sixteenth level to the seventeenth.

Whoosh!

A frenzied suction force erupted from his Dantian, and the Qi and blood flowing through his body produced sounds like rushing water.

The breakthrough had begun.

Woo!

The Barbarian horn sounded once more, signaling another attack. After resting for just over an hour, the Barbarians renewed their assault on Jincheng.

"The Barbarians are attacking! Everyone prepare for battle!"

"Enemy attack!"

"Enemy attack!"

Signals blared out, and the Black Tiger Army soldiers, who had been resting, grabbed their weapons and rushed to the city walls.

The Black Tiger Army soldiers stationed on the city walls launched their attacks without hesitation.

In his camp tent, Chu Ding opened his tightly shut eyes, and a glimmer of sharp light faded away.

"It begins!"

Redonning his armor, he grabbed his long spear and stepped out of the tent.

Outside, everyone was rushing towards the city gates.

"Elder Fang, do you think we have any chance of surviving this?"

Tang Hong listened to the blaring Barbarian horns, his expression complicated, his brows furrowed with fatigue.

Last night’s battle had left him mentally drained.

Though he hadn’t sustained any serious injuries, the mental strain was immense.

Beside him was Fang Xue of the Golden Toad Sect.

Fang Xue wasn’t required to participate in the fighting, as his primary task was to develop suitable poisons to inflict damage on the Barbarians.

However, after an entire night, he had failed to create any effective toxins, so there was no point in wasting any more time on it.

With the Barbarians attacking the city, one more Meridian Opening Realm martial artist was better than one less.

Hearing Tang Hong’s words, Fang Xue shook his head, his expression also melancholy.

"In the chaos of war, who can be certain of survival? All we can do is try our best to preserve ourselves!"

Die for the country!

To be honest, he had never entertained such notions.

However, with the Black Tiger Army forcing the issue, Fang Xue had no choice but to comply.

But if Jincheng were to fall, he wouldn’t die alongside it. With his skills, he was confident he could escape the battlefield.

"It seems Elder Fang is well-prepared!"

Tang Hong revealed a knowing smile.

Fang Xue smiled faintly. "Warden Tang is the same, no doubt."

Finally, they exchanged meaningful smiles, their intentions clear to each other.

Outside the city, the Barbarians launched their siege.

Compared to the previous night, the Barbarians had rested for more than an hour. Although their morale wasn’t as high as before, their attacks were even fiercer.

A dozen Giant Apes braved the rain of arrows, positioning themselves at the forefront.

Behind them, swarms of Barbarian soldiers carried siege ladders, placing them against the city walls and climbing upward.

"Release the fire arrows!"

"Don’t let the Giant Apes get close to the walls!"

Generals shouted loudly.

Immediately, fire arrows soared into the sky, arcing down towards the approaching Giant Apes.

The fire arrows struck them, not causing much damage, but the flames ignited their fur.

Even so, the Giant Apes didn’t retreat. Instead, their inner ferocity was fully unleashed, and they swung their massive fists, slamming them against the city walls.

Boom!

Each attack from the Giant Apes contained a force exceeding a thousand jun, causing the city walls to tremble violently and sending stone fragments falling.

In response, the Black Tiger Army continuously dropped kerosene and torches, as well as hurling large rocks, hoping to kill the Giant Apes.

Due to the close proximity, the cart crossbows were rendered useless.

Now, the entire Barbarian army was advancing, particularly those Barbarian generals who had pledged their loyalty to Mierba, frantically directing their troops to launch a relentless assault on Jincheng.

Arrows rained down.

The scent of slaughter permeated the air.

Corpses fell from the city walls, becoming part of the thousands of bodies scattered across the battlefield.

There were Barbarians, and there were Black Tiger Army soldiers.

Relatively speaking, however, more Barbarians were falling.

Sieges inevitably resulted in more casualties for the attacking side than for the defending side.

A long spear thrusted out, retracted, and drew a spray of blood, as a Barbarian warrior tumbled from the wall.

Chu Ding watched the relentless Barbarian army assaulting the city, his face grim.

"As expected, the Barbarians are attacking with even greater intensity after their rest. I fear our forces won’t be able to hold out for much longer!"

Every Black Tiger Army soldier falling in his sight filled his heart with pain.

These were men he had personally trained.

Now, they were all falling beneath the Barbarian blades. To say it didn’t hurt would be a lie.

But Chu Ding’s pain was accompanied by an even greater surge of murderous intent, an intent that nearly overwhelmed him.

"Kill!"

His long spear moved, instantly killing several Barbarians who had scaled the city walls.

Suddenly, the city wall shook, and cracks became visible.

"The city wall is collapsing!"

The thought flashed through Chu Ding’s mind, and he saw the Giant Apes below, relentlessly hammering at the wall.

Without hesitation, he leaped from the city wall. As he landed, his spear vibrated, and the spear aura pierced the air, instantly penetrating the hides of the Giant Apes and burying itself within their skulls.

Puchi!

The tip of the spear emerged from the back of their heads, spilling a mixture of red and white.

End of Chapter