214: Chapter 214 The Fall of Three Counties

After the earth-shaking battle at Chimang Ridge concluded, Hongshi County ushered in a brief and precious breathing period.

During the first month, the entire county was immersed in intense reconstruction and recuperation.

Wang Daoyuan acted decisively and swiftly, breaking up the newly arrived reinforcement Cultivators and incorporating them into various defense zones like salt dissolving into water, before immediately plunging into the repair work of the frontal positions at Chimang Ridge.

Previously, the thunderbolt beads had wreaked havoc, causing the triple Formations and Restrictions to completely collapse. The Formation foundations were shattered into dust, and the underground Spiritual Veins were tangled in utter chaos; the difficulty of repair far exceeded setting up a Formation from scratch.

Several Tier 2 Formation Masters dispatched by the Tianxuan Sect led the Qi Refining Cultivators from the Xiao Family and various forces to work day and night, until on the fifteenth day, the spiritual light of the first trapping and killing Formation finally lit up again at the mountain pass.

By the thirtieth day, the core of the burning spirit Formation Plate had finished being refined. When that familiar, scorching spiritual light once again enshrouded the mountain pass, all the Cultivators participating in the reconstruction let out a long sigh of relief, their tense nerves relaxing slightly.

During this period, observant Cultivators caught sight of Master Xuanyue's figure wandering around the Chimang Ridge mountain pass several times with a solemn expression, as if he were deducing something.

In the direction of Eagle Beak Mountain in the western section, Li Xuanji led fifty members of the Li Family and still held their ground.

Under the coordination of Clan Leader Li Huaming, the newly supplemented twenty Qi Refining Cultivators and one hundred Innate Martial Artists were incorporated into the defensive sequence of Eagle Beak Mountain, under the unified command of Li Xuanji, making the defense line increasingly stable.

In the second month after the war, the entirety of Hongshi County still maintained an eerie calm.

With the changing seasons, the water level of the Falling Star River rose from the spring flood to the summer flood, becoming nearly twice as wide as when the Righteous-Demonic War first began. The turbid river water, carrying withered branches and fallen leaves, surged eastward.

Inside the courtyard of the county town's defense zone, Li Changqing's daily routine was so regular it bordered on rigid.

Making Talismans, cultivating, and patrolling every day formed a strict, unshakeable routine.

Since there was no war on the front lines, he poured a vast amount of energy into his own cultivation and the study of Formations.

As his cultivation daily progressed and his Lifespan increased, learning a second cultivation profession had become imperative.

He could rely on Zhang Yuxi for Alchemy, and have others handle Artifact Refining, but when it came to the path of Formations, he could often only rely on himself to break a deadlock while exploring Secret Realms or fighting for survival in desperate situations.

His experience in the Taixu Secret Realm made him even more deeply aware of the importance of Formations.

After two months of bitter cultivation, he was pleasantly surprised to find that his talent in the path of Formations had transformed from "mediocre" during his Qi Refinement Stage testing to "decent talent" now.

Li Changqing secretly speculated that this might stem from two points: First, although the creation immortal liquid he consumed only increased his Spiritual Root by an inch, it elevated his Aptitude in all aspects. The efficiency of cultivating Spells and spiritual arts previously far exceeded the past, and now the progress in his Formation Aptitude could be confirmed once again.

Second, his powerful Divine Sense at the Golden Core Stage gave him minute perception of spiritual power circulation, allowing him to rank among the Tier 1 Medium Grade Formation Masters in a mere two months.

During this period, Yuan Xiuwen, the injured Foundation Establishment Middle Stage Cultivator from the Yuan Family, had visited twice.

One time was for official business, coming to find Li Changqing to purchase a Tier 3 Talisman; the other time was for personal matters, bringing two jars of self-brewed spiritual wine from the Yuan Family to drink deeply with Clan Leader Li Huaming until late at night.

The two chatted about everything under the sun, from cultivation insights to Family management, and from the terrain of Hongshi County to the battle situation in Hongshan Prefecture, tacitly avoiding only the two words "war".

In the eighth month of the Demonic Path invasion, coinciding with midsummer in August, this peace that Hongshi County had enjoyed for several months was finally shattered.

It was not that the defense line of Hongshi County was in critical condition, but rather that bad news had come from other parts of Tianxuan Prefecture.

In mid-August, three expedited battle situation reports from the frontline headquarters of the Tianxuan Sect, like three boulders dropped into a deep pool, were simultaneously distributed to the hands of various forces in Hongshi County.

The first report: Bailu Prefecture, on the southwest border of Tianxuan Prefecture, fell on July 19th.

The Corpse Refining Sect, uniting with its affiliated Sects, the Blood Bone Gate and the Eagle Evil Hall, dispatched a total of forty-five Golden Core Cultivators to fiercely attack Bailu Prefecture.

At that time, there were only twenty-five Golden Core Cultivators stationed within Bailu Prefecture. With a stark disparity in strength, the defense line completely collapsed after struggling to hold on for a few days.

On the day the prefecture city fell, tens of thousands of Cultivators and over three million Mortals were brutally slaughtered. Bailu River was dyed crimson with blood, and bones piled up like mountains.

Aside from a small number of high-tier Cultivators who broke through the encirclement, the rest of the local forces in Bailu Prefecture were completely wiped out.

The second report: Cangwu Prefecture, on the true southern border of Tianxuan Prefecture, was lost on August 12th.

This battle was personally led by the Corpse Refining Sect's number one Golden Core combat power, the Peak Golden Core Cultivator Chimo, who led the main force to attack. Over fifty Golden Core Cultivators swarmed out in full force, and Cangwu Prefecture's defense line shattered like paper.

After the prefecture city was breached, Demonic Path Cultivators used the lives of the entire city's beings for a blood sacrifice to refine corpses. Cangwu Prefecture city, along with its surrounding six counties and over eight hundred villages and towns, all were reduced to deadlands.

The third report: Qingshi Prefecture, on the southeast border of Tianxuan Prefecture, was breached on August 15th.

This battle was the most tragic. All sixteen Golden Core Cultivators of the prefecture city died in battle, and not a single Mortal or Martial Artist in the city survived.

However, this battle also severely dealt a heavy blow to the Demonic Path's offensive, desperately slaying thirteen Demonic Path Golden Cores and hundreds of Foundation Establishment Cultivators, buying precious deployment time for the surrounding prefecture cities.

Three prefectures fell in succession, plunging hundreds of millions of living beings into misery.

On the evening of the day the reports were issued, Master Xuanyue urgently summoned various forces of Hongshi County to dispatch one Foundation Establishment Cultivator each to discuss matters.

Inside the meeting room, the atmosphere was so heavy it felt as though water could be wrung out of it.

Master Xuanyue read the three reports word by word. When recalling the tragic state of Bailu Prefecture, although his voice had no ripples, the knuckles holding the dossier had already turned slightly white.

After a moment of silence, his gaze swept across the crowd, unfurling a full map of Tianxuan Prefecture condensed from spiritual power, and his finger drew heavily across the southern line: "Bailu, Cangwu, Qingshi, all three prefectures are located on the border. Among them, Cangwu Prefecture is even the hub of the southern defense line."

"The loss of Cangwu means that the southern defense line of Tianxuan Prefecture has been torn open by a huge gap."

"Currently, our Sect has urgently dispatched fifty Golden Core Cultivators to reinforce the southern line and transferred subsequent troops from inner prefecture cities. In the short term, the gap will not continue to expand, but the Demonic Path offensive is showing a trend of spreading to the eastern and western flanks."

His finger slid from the southern line to the eastern and western sides, finally stopping at the location of Hongshan Prefecture, tapping it lightly: "Although Hongshan Prefecture is currently stable, with none of its five large passes and eighteen small passes lost, this does not mean absolute safety."

"Over these past eight months, on the frontal battlefield of Hongshi Prefecture, our side has already lost six Golden Core Cultivators and over three hundred Foundation Establishment Cultivators."

"The fall of Cangwu Prefecture illustrates a cruel fact—the Golden Core combat power assembled by the Demonic Path in local battlefields already surpasses our side."

"According to the latest intelligence, the Corpse Refining Sect and its affiliated Sects still have about two thousand one hundred and fifty Golden Core Cultivators remaining within the territory of Tianxuan Prefecture; whereas all Golden Core Cultivators of our Tianxuan Prefecture, according to the latest statistics, number only one thousand eight hundred and fifty-six."

"The numerical disadvantage at the Golden Core level is a pressure we constantly face. Today they can concentrate dozens of Golden Cores on the southern line, and tomorrow they can repeat the same trick on the northern line."

Master Xuanyue withdrew his finger and swept his gaze over the crowd, his tone solemn: "Do not assume that you can sit back and relax just because Hongshi County has been peaceful for the past three months. Danger is always close to us."

Inside the meeting room, it was deathly silent, and the dropping of a needle could be heard.