53: NATO troops are pressing in.

The messenger rushed into the command room, his tone urgent: "Abnormality detected at the North Gate! A large number of light spots have appeared on the horizon, moving, and there are many of them!"

Shen Xiaochuan turned immediately and walked quickly out of the main control room. He didn't check the screen or give any orders, but walked straight toward the city wall.

The morning wind brushed over the city wall. Old Karl was already waiting at the observation tower. Holding a stack of registers, he hurried forward when he saw Shen Xiaochuan arrive.

"Boss, something happened!"

Old Karl's expression was grave. "It's not a small enemy force; it's a massive army approaching! Over three hundred thousand combatants, plus more than fifteen hundred gods, are surrounding us from four directions!"

Shen Xiaochuan stood on the city wall, his gaze directed toward the north. In the distance, dust billowed, and metallic reflections formed a continuous sheet, surging forward like ocean waves.

The enemy ranks were neat, with flags standing tall like a forest. At the very front, a hovering war chariot moved slowly, with a man in a suit standing on it—Trump.

Shen Xiaochuan stared at that figure, his voice calm and firm: "They've finally come."

Old Karl patted his shoulder and whispered, "Boss, it's not just the warriors who want to fight. The common people said it too: this is their home, and they won't let outsiders take a single step inside even if they die!"

On the streets below the city wall, people had already begun to move quietly. Men carried supply boxes toward the barracks, women boiled hot porridge at the stoves, and children carefully packed arrows into quivers.

No one cried, no one complained; only the sound of footsteps and low conversations echoed through the alleys.

A white-haired old man walked to the sentry box and put down a bag of iron nails: "I've repaired roads all my life; now it's time to repair the city walls. I'll do my part."

Shen Xiaochuan watched all this silently without a word. He walked down from the wall and through the streets. Someone recognized him and stopped to salute. He nodded in response and walked all the way to the high platform in front of the city gate.

He pulled out the sky-rending blade and thrust the tip of the blade into the ground.

"Everyone, listen up!"

His voice wasn't loud, but it spread clearly throughout the city. "Today's battle is not for rankings, nor for resources, but only to defend our home!"

The crowd fell silent.

"Participants, regardless of victory or defeat, will be allocated housing after the battle."

He said, "As long as you have hands and feet, you can move into a new home. This is what I promised."

After a brief silence, shouts erupted from the crowd.

"Defend the home!"

"Defend the land!"

"Fight alongside the Boss!"

Shen Xiaochuan raised his hand, and the crowd immediately quieted down.

"Chen Yan will stay in the city to manage the dispatch of supplies. Yang Lie will lead the Inner City Guard to prevent sneak attacks and protect the passages. The remaining fourteen thousand Believers, follow me out of the city to form ranks!"

The orders were given, and the army assembled quickly. Amidst the clatter of armor, the troops marched out from the four city gates and set up a Formation five miles outside the city: shield-bearers in front, spearmen in the middle, and Archers at the rear, with battle flags fluttering.

Shen Xiaochuan boarded a war chariot and stood at the very front.

The enemy was also advancing. The ground shook more and more intensely, and the sound of footsteps came like a rolling torrent of iron. The South Alliance joint forces completed the encirclement, with flags of over thirty countries intermingled and gods distributed in an orderly fashion.

On the central hovering war chariot, Trump held a scepter and wore a silver-gray robe, his face cold and expressionless.

The two armies were three hundred meters apart and stopped at the same time.

No birds flew in the sky, and even the wind seemed to have stopped.

"Shen Xiaochuan, look clearly! You only have over ten thousand people, and I have three hundred thousand! If you surrender now, your life can still be spared; if you dare to resist, there is only one path: death!"

Shen Xiaochuan sneered.

He slowly raised his right hand, palm up.

The faith points began to tick up:

682431

682432

682433

Increasing by one point every second.

He gripped the sky-rending blade, pointing the tip toward the sky, his voice clear and firm: "If you want to talk, the door is open; if you want to fight, I will accompany you to the end and never retreat!"

Before he finished speaking, the blade slashed down fiercely!

Boom—

A bolt of lightning tore through the air along the blade's path, striking the ground. The earth exploded, cracks spreading for more than ten meters, and charred marks extended straight forward.

The entire army raised their weapons and shouted: "Defend the home! Defend the land!"

Horns blared in unison, and war drums shook the heavens.

Trump's expression changed slightly, but he quickly regained his composure. He waved his scepter: "Vanguard, stand by; rear, prepare the summoning Formation; activate 'Law Barrier' and implement suppression!"

The order was passed down. The front-row soldiers didn't budge, while the rear began to set up the Formation. Dozens of gods took out rune stones and formed a circle, and complex patterns appeared on the ground.

Shen Xiaochuan narrowed his eyes.

That was the Anti-Magic Formation, which could weaken skill effects and shorten the duration of heroic spirit possession. The opponent intended to use rules to wear them down.

"Prepare the daredevils horn," he ordered in a low voice.

The adjutant immediately took out a bronze horn and waited for instructions.

"The shield of perseverance is charging and will be available in three minutes," someone reported.

Shen Xiaochuan nodded. He was in no hurry. Although the enemy was numerous, the true elites were only a few thousand; the rest were mostly novice gods and ordinary soldiers. As long as the Formation remained stable, there would be a chance to break the situation.

He looked toward the distant flagship.

Trump stood at a high point, his gaze cold. He thought numbers could determine the outcome, and that intimidation could force people to submit.

He was wrong.

The people of Skydome City were not fighting for a god, but for themselves.

Behind him, fourteen thousand Believers stood solemnly. Among them were workers, farmers, students, and vagrants. They once had nothing, but now they had a place to live and a sense of belonging, and their names were even carved on the city walls.

They would not retreat.

Shen Xiaochuan raised his left hand and gently patted the war chariot.

There was a line of words carved there: "Those who violate Huaxia, however far they may be, must be punished."

This was the war chariot left by Zhao Wuwei, and it was also the first steel vehicle to charge into the enemy ranks.

"Wait for the signal."

He said, "If they don't move, we won't move."

Time passed slowly.

The Formation at the enemy's rear was about to be completed, its light growing brighter. The frontline soldiers remained stationary.

Shen Xiaochuan understood that the opponent was waiting for the Huaxia army to charge first so they could counterattack.

Then wait.

He stood on the war chariot, his back to the city and his face toward the enemy. The morning breeze blew the hem of his work clothes, and the copper gear pendant on his sleeve swayed slightly.

Behind him was the city, the lights, and the wisps of cooking smoke that had just risen.

In front of him were thousands of troops, chilling killing intent, and the approaching torrent of iron hooves.

He did not move.

The entire army did not move.

Tens of thousands of people faced off, subtle energy fluctuations flickering in the air, and the earth seemed frozen.

Suddenly, there was a commotion on the enemy's left wing.

A black horse galloped out from the flank, the rider in full black armor, holding dual blades, charging straight between the two armies.

Shen Xiaochuan frowned slightly.

That person was not in South Alliance uniform.

The knight reined in the horse in front of the Formation and took off her helmet.

It was a woman. Blonde hair, blue eyes, with an old scar on her face.

She raised her right hand, holding a damaged badge—the symbol of an Advanced commander of the South Alliance.

"I am Alicia."

Her voice spread across the battlefield, "I no longer serve the South Alliance."

The entire field was shocked.

Trump suddenly stood up: "Traitor! Capture her!"

Two gods soared into the air, pouncing straight toward Alicia.

Her expression remained calm as she took a crystal from her bosom and held it high.

"I announce that I am joining Skydome City and swearing fealty to Shen Xiaochuan!"

The crystal suddenly shattered, and a white light shot into the sky.

Shen Xiaochuan's pupils shrank, and his gaze tightened.

He understood instantly—that was a Space-Time Anchoring Device, which could briefly freeze space to gain a three-second window. Alicia hadn't come to surrender.

She had come to deliver a message.

Just as the two gods were about to touch her, her figure began to blur.

Before disappearing, she looked at Shen Xiaochuan, her lips moving slightly.

He saw the sentence clearly:

"They're going to use a Faith Virus to attack the Core of the Divine Realm."