377: Demons outside the wall

Wan Lin slowly recovered from his shock.

On the snow-covered prairie, the endless black Great Wall stretched out, everything felt so epic.

“Is this the Desperate Great Wall that the Yao Race painstakingly built after enduring countless hardships?”

Wan Lin had already imagined an epic tale.

The Yao Race, oppressed by the Yuyao Kingdom, constantly fled north from prosperous cities and peaceful villages, reaching the vast prairie. Through the sacrifices of their predecessors, they managed to build a towering Great Wall, relying on Formations for defense, thus ensuring their continued existence.

He couldn't help but empathize, even excitedly clenching his fist.

“No.”

The Sheep Demon, however, seemed a bit embarrassed: “This wasn't built by our Yao Race, but by the ancestors of the Yuyao Kingdom.”

“Hmm?”

Wan Lin only felt bewildered, a bit at a loss.

These days, he had become familiar with the Yuyao Kingdom.

The Yuyao Kingdom’s system was Throne - Envoy - Servant.

Below these three tiers were the lowest-ranking Yao Beasts and Yao Race, who held no rights whatsoever.

The entire Yuyao Kingdom treated the Yao Race with disdain, seeing them merely as tools, never acknowledging them.

When encountering uncontrollable Yao Race members during southern campaigns, they would become furious and try every means to slaughter them.

With such an attitude, it was hard to imagine them actively building city walls to protect the northern Yao Race.

“That was a very, very long time ago. Back then, the Yuyao Kingdom wasn't called the Yuyao Kingdom; what was it called... I don't know either.

“At that time, our Yao Race was very prosperous, dominating this northern great prairie, and every now and then we would raid south for resources.

“To resist the Yao Race, the Human Race built high walls and set up Formations, reinforcing them repeatedly over long years. Eventually, they could even withstand the combined attacks of Fourth-Rank experts.”

The Sheep Demon showed a look of reverie, seemingly recalling the prosperity of the Yao Race at that time, and also perhaps marveling at the Human Race's resilience.

“Relying on the Great Wall, the Human Race in the south ushered in years of stable development. After an unknown period, their counterattack came…” That was the nightmare of the Yao Race.

“After that, the Yuyao Kingdom was established, and countless members of the Yao Race became the lowest-class slaves, with Yao Beasts treated even like livestock.

“The ironic thing is, the Yao Beasts and Yao Race ruled by the Yuyao Kingdom actually proliferated even more, their numbers increasing with each generation…”

Wan Lin and the Sheep Demon continued walking towards the Great Wall. He listened to the story while thinking, and curiously asked:

“So how did you manage to occupy the Great Wall?”

“The arrogant Yuyao Kingdom charged south and ran into a great flood dragon from the East Sea. Many Thrones fell in that great battle, reducing the northern defenses.

“The dormant Yao Race immediately rose up, desperately occupying the Great Wall, thereby returning the northern prairie to Yao Race rule, and multiplying there.

“However, we have always been unable to resist the Yuyao Kingdom’s methods of controlling Yao. We can only huddle in the north, not daring to go south, not daring to rescue our enslaved compatriots.”

The Sheep Demon sighed again as he spoke: “We are on the verge of defeat.”

By this time, the two had arrived beneath the tall city wall. They saw no gate, nor any elevators or similar devices.

Wan Lin looked left and right, still not knowing how to enter, and stared at the Sheep Demon in bewilderment.

“The bricks and tiles of the Great Wall are merely superficial; what truly supports it is the grand Formation constantly reinforced over long years. If the grand Formation isn't opened, no one can enter.”

The Sheep Demon led Wan Lin to stand beneath the city wall, seemingly waiting for something.

Suddenly, an invisible force enveloped Wan Lin.

“Relax your mind, don’t move.”

Listening to the Sheep Demon’s warning, Wan Lin quickly stood still and stopped moving.

The next moment, ripples of void appeared, undetectable by the naked eye, and even low-level Spiritual Sense could not perceive them.

Wan Lin felt as if he had instantly shifted position, and the black Great Wall appeared behind him.

“This is… a teleportation Formation?”

“A similar principle, but much safer.”

The Sheep Demon pointed ahead: “Let’s go. Our Yao Race currently has few members and no decent large cities. Please excuse the humble sight.”

Wan Lin looked ahead; the terrain no longer sloped upwards, gradually becoming level, but the altitude was very high, and the prairie was covered in snow.

As far as the eye could see, there were no cities, not even a decent flagstone road, only winding dirt paths that looked like they had been directly trampled out.

Wan Lin was silent for a moment, then suddenly felt that betraying the Yuyao Kingdom and coming to the Yao Race territory seemed like a mistake.

He had already conversed with a Throne of the Yuyao Kingdom, meaning he had caught the eye of the higher-ups. Someone had even taken him on a tour of the Yuyao Kingdom. As long as he agreed to become an Envoy, his future would surely be limitless.

But because he disliked the Yuyao Kingdom's cultivation method, he hesitated.

That hesitation led to him being approached by the Yao Race, who were lurking in the Yuyao Kingdom.

After several months of preparation, he successfully left the Yuyao Kingdom and arrived here, but this place was… not quite what he had imagined.

“I say, do you really have pure Body Tempering methods?”

“Of course we do.”

Wan Lin walked and asked: “I won’t ask about your exact numbers, but judging from this environment, your numbers are probably so withered that you’re on the verge of collapse.

“That’s why you had no choice but to approach me, a Human Race member.

“According to our records, the Yuyao Kingdom should be a power that existed ten thousand years ago. It should have been around the same time that the great flood dragon went north, and you seized the Great Wall.

“Let’s estimate half of that, say five thousand years.

“You’ve developed for five thousand years, and it’s still just like this… I find it hard to believe how powerful your Body Tempering methods could be.”

The Sheep Demon led the way and said: “Powerful Legacies have nothing to do with numbers, nor with the scale of a power.

“Many terrifying Legacies are taken by some young upstart in an uninhabited Secret Realm. When he takes it, would he worry about not having Senior Brothers?

“Comparatively, our Yao Race outside the wall are already quite reliable.”

Wan Lin looked at the endless prairie to the north and said:

“I understand the reasoning, but aren't there other members of the Yao Race coming to meet me?”

“Apologies, many of the elder Yao in the clan still don’t quite trust you…”

The Sheep Demon continued leading Wan Lin north.

After some time, Wan Lin saw a series of stone tablets appearing ahead, seemingly huge stones directly piled up, without any pattern, and he didn't know what they were for.

“Those are tombstones, commemorating our compatriots who died during the Wall Seizing War.”

“Oh? The Yao Race also has a sacrificial culture?”

The Sheep Demon stopped, pointed at the scattered group of stone tablets, and asked: “Do you know why they are scattered?”

“Why?”

“Because whenever we are on the verge of collapse, we open a tomb and dig out well-preserved remains from it, allowing the younger generation to consume them to continue their strength.”

Wan Lin couldn't help but feel a chill: “Is this how you treat your fallen heroes?”

The Sheep Demon's expression was serious: “If not for this, our Yao Race outside the wall would have long since vanished. How could we speak of continuation?

“You already know our predicament. We are indeed in need of your help and are willing to entrust our Legacy to you, and to the clan behind you.

“We hope you can live up to our trust.”