Chapter 214: Seeking Help, Returning to the Sky Rift Canyon, the Time Weaving Staff of Destiny (2-in-1)
Dugu Bo stood on the city gate, gazing into the distance.
At the forefront of the Heaven Dou Empire's forces was a group of Soul Masters who had unleashed their Vigorous Orangutan Martial Soul, likely members of the Strength Clan.
Following closely behind them were cavalry and infantry dressed in the Empire's standard uniforms, charging toward Tianshui City with long spears in hand.
Dugu Bo recalled the Four Single-Attribute Sects; apart from the Strength Clan, all the others had joined Spirit Hall and contributed significantly to its growth.
This time, they had learned in advance that the Strength Clan would participate, so none of the three halls were involved—this was the last shred of dignity they reserved for Tai Tan.
Of course, they also genuinely remembered their past friendship and were unwilling to personally end Tai Tan.
From Bibi Dong's perspective, this situation was quite normal; if Yang Wudi and the other two could achieve "righteousness over family," then Bibi Dong and the others would need to pay attention to Yang Wudi's situation.
One cannot be too ruthless as a person.
"Warriors, the time has come to demonstrate your loyalty to the Empire!" Dugu Bo waved his large hand, and the gates of Tianshui City opened. A large number of Soul Masters surged out.
Among them were not only the Soul Master Legion led by Dugu Bo but also members from Blazing Academy and God Wind Academy.
They had seen the notice posted by Dugu Bo, understood the importance of the points, and were very tempted.
Although they were not yet considered Spirit Hall members, they saw this as an opportunity to show their stance!
At that time, if Shui Tao or even Dugu Bo introduced them, the military merits gained from killing enemies would also be recognized.
This was only the first battle, so Qian Feng had dispatched just one hundred Angel Legion soldiers to assist in the rear; their mission was not to kill enemies but to provide healing support.
The Angel Martial Soul is an all-rounder; it can attack, defend, and assist.
The one hundred Angel soldiers Qian Feng sent out focused on healing.
Of course, this did not mean they could not use offensive and defensive soul skills—they must at least have one offensive soul ring and one defensive soul ring.
Qian Feng stood beside Dugu Bo, smiling. "Senior Dugu Bo, do you think we can win this vanguard battle?"
Dugu Bo replied calmly, "It's hard to say. The number of soldiers on our side is too small. Even with Tianshui City's original reserves, there are only about fifteen thousand Soul Masters, and half of them are below Soul King."
"In addition, Blazing City and God Wind City contributed six thousand soldiers, but even so, our numbers are still far fewer than the opponent's."
"And this time, the Heaven Dou Royal Family has come with a determination to win, at least one hundred thousand soldiers and full support from the Strength Clan. It will be difficult to win with just over twenty thousand Soul Masters."
Qian Feng also grew serious. "As long as my Angel Legion is here, we will do our best to protect the future of the Spirit Empire!"
This was his mission in Tianshui City.
Among these one thousand Angel soldiers, not a single one had a cultivation level below fifty, including five hundred Soul Emperors or higher, one hundred Soul Saints or higher, and three Soul Douluo-level powerhouses—including himself.
Although this number seemed small, they were all elites among elites.
"Of course, relying solely on our one thousand people isn't enough. Senior Dugu Bo, when do you plan to make your move?" Qian Feng knew that since Dugu Bo disliked war, he also disliked seeing excessive casualties.
Therefore, he would definitely act.
The pre-battle mobilization was just to remind these Soul Masters that they shouldn't rely solely on him, so they would maintain their fighting spirit and initiative.
Dugu Bo looked at the distant battlefield, his eyes narrowing slightly. "That depends on the situation. It could be as soon as three days from now, or as long as a month—who knows."
"During this time, you and I must carefully observe which of these newly joined Spirit Empire Soul Masters are truly loyal to Spirit Hall and which are spies sent by other forces. This is crucial."
Qian Feng nodded. "I understand!"
Meanwhile, on the other side.
As one of the commanders, Tai Tan naturally didn't go to the battlefield so easily.
He and the Heaven Dou Grand General looked into the distance together.
Seeing that Spirit Hall had the assistance of the Angel Legion, Tai Tan frowned slightly. "Grand General, the opponent has the Angel Legion. We need to prepare catapults."
The Angel Legion was flying in the air, which was very tricky. The people of the Strength Clan had no means of long-range attack.
As for the soldiers—ordinary people with soul power.
Despite having one hundred thousand or even two hundred thousand soldiers, only a few thousand had Martial Souls with soul power and a cultivation level above twenty.
Among two hundred thousand people, half didn't even have the cultivation of a soul warrior.
Individually, they were all cannon fodder.
But they had one advantage: their numbers. They also possessed battle formations.
For example, when facing long-range attacks from enemy Soul Masters, thirty of them could gather their limited soul power to form a defensive battle formation.
(This method was used by the Imperial Guards during the Soul Master Grand Competition in the anime, on their way to Spirit City. It is called a battle formation here.)
Even with such a formation, their defenses wouldn't be very strong, as individual strength was pitifully low.
But even so, there were many of them!
If Tai Tan were to fight them one by one, with his soul power reserves and strength, he could kill fewer than a thousand at once.
Then, his soul power would be exhausted. What's the difference between a Soul Master without soul power and an ordinary person?
This is also why the Two Great Empires have been able to stand on the continent all along—because even high-level Soul Masters are not invincible and still fear human wave tactics.
Grand General: "I will have people prepare as soon as possible, but… I have a bad feeling."
"Spirit Hall has the Speed Clan with them. With the Speed Clan's speed and reconnaissance abilities, they should have already known our troop numbers."
"But according to our scouts, the number of Soul Masters in Tianshui City, even with the additions from Blazing City and God Wind City, is just over twenty thousand."
"However, they have a significant number of high-level combat Soul Masters—at least six Soul Douluo—and the leader this time is Dugu Bo!"
The Grand General did not include the Angel Legion in the count of the three Soul Douluo-level powerhouses, as their scouts were not yet capable of detecting them. The Angel Legion had only arrived yesterday and had not yet engaged in battle, so they remained hidden.
These three Soul Douluo, the City Lords of Tianshui, Blazing, and God Wind Cities, and the Hall Masters of the local Sub-Halls, were all formidable.
Only Titled Douluo-level experts could guard the main cities of the Heaven Dou Empire.
Dugu Bo!
Tai Tan's previously calm expression turned solemn.
When he heard there were six Soul Douluo-level powerhouses, his face barely changed.
As mentioned before, even Soul Douluo and Titled Douluo have limits to their soul power. They could pile up corpses to win!
But Dugu Bo was different.
Dugu Bo was famous for his poison. Some even said he was the weakest Titled Douluo, but on the battlefield, he was the strongest.
If you brought out one of Spirit Hall's Priests to compare kills, only Qian Daoliu might have a chance; the other Priests were out of the question.
Even Qian Daoliu's area-of-effect abilities might be useless—he would need to use Angel divine power to surpass Dugu Bo in kill count.
Of course, this was an ideal comparison. If the enemy soldiers kept coming in endless waves, they simply wouldn't be able to break through Dugu Bo's poison barrier.
Over time, they would die from poison naturally.
In the original work, Dugu Bo used his ninth Soul Skill to slaughter a city in a short period!
Even Qian Daoliu, if he came, might not succeed—his Soul Skill could not cover an entire city.
Tai Tan frowned. "This is bad. If the opponent is Dugu Bo, we cannot fight head-on. Once he sets up his poison barrier on the battlefield, we will have lost half the battle."
"Immediately send people to monitor Dugu Bo's every move. We must prevent him from setting up. Also, send troops to Thunder City and Thunder Academy—see if they can help!"
Tai Tan knew that the people behind Thunder Academy were precisely the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan.
Although the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan had never admitted it, Yu Yuanzhen's grandson, Yu Tianxin, was studying there.
Moreover, besides the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, who else could establish such a thunder-element Academy?
Thunder Academy was different from other elemental academies.
Soul Masters who awakened thunder-attribute Martial Souls were very rare, and their innate soul power would generally not be low.
If possible, they would try to join the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, which was renowned for thunder, rather than an ordinary Academy.
Academies were a second choice; their cultivation resources were usually controlled by sects and clans of all sizes.
The Grand General hesitated. "It's said that the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan and Spirit Hall have been very close recently. The Royal Family also sent people over before, but they didn't give a clear stance."
Tai Tan said firmly, "We have to try. Otherwise, everything is over!"
The Grand General sighed. "Understood."
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Sky-Rending Grand Canyon and the Sky Rift
This canyon had been discovered previously; it was where Xie Yue obtained a spatial soul ring.
Now, they had returned to explore further and see if there were any spatial-attribute Soul Beasts suitable for Xie Tian.
If they couldn't find a spatial attribute Soul Beast of eighty thousand years or more, they could only look for Dragon-type Soul Beasts.
Compared to spatial attribute Soul Beasts, Dragon-type Soul Beasts were easier to find.
In the Sky-Rending Grand Canyon, small spatial cracks were everywhere. During their few days there, they encountered many Soul Beasts emerging from the cracks.
However, the age of these Soul Beasts was not very high, so they continued to explore deeper.
Tianmeng Iceworm mentioned that for the ninth soul ring, it didn't need to be one hundred thousand years old—eighty thousand years or more was sufficient, and he could use life essence to increase its age.
But greed was human nature.
When Hu Bai visited the Sky-Rending Grand Canyon last time, he found it very mysterious—so many spatial attribute Soul Beasts appeared here.
Perhaps, there was a one-hundred-thousand-year spatial attribute Soul Beast Dominator inside?
The location of the Grand Canyon, under his mental detection, was very close to the core area.
To reach Tianshui City in time, Hu Bai knew this mission had to be quick. The Staff of Fate Weaving had already appeared in his hand.
Hu Bai silently chanted in his heart, consuming a large amount of soul and mental power, and the astrolabe on the Staff of Fate Weaving emitted a dazzling white light.
"If there is a Hundred Thousand Year Soul Beast in this canyon, please guide me to it! If not, then lead us to find the most powerful spatial attribute Soul Beast here!"
In an instant, Hu Bai's soul and mental power were drained by more than half, but a white line shot out from the astrolabe and floated in one direction.
"Xiao Bai, are you alright?"
Hu Leyao saw her son's face turn pale and felt worried.
Hu Bai shook his head. "I'm fine. Hurry and follow me—this power of fate will disappear soon."
In the Spiritual Sea,
"Holy crap! Xiao Bai, can your Divine Artifact be used like this?" Tianmeng Iceworm exclaimed, his face full of amazement.
This time was different from giving Yu Xiaogang bad luck; this time, it could guide them through the power of fate without knowing the opponent's name!
It was almost like divine power.
Oh, wait—Tianmeng Iceworm suddenly realized—this was a Divine Artifact to begin with!
Hu Bai chuckled. "I just had a sudden thought—what if it succeeded? Although it did, it consumed sixty percent of my soul and mental power. The cost is a bit high!"
Hu Bai was now a Soul Saint powerhouse, with a very strong soul ring and Soul Bone configurations.
But even so, such a huge consumption was normal.
After all, the power of fate was the number one attribute!
Even if the time element appeared, a single use of the power of fate could reverse time immediately.
Within the Divine Artifact of Fate, the Law of Time was included!
As Hu Bai and the others delved deeper, they passed through a barrier and finally arrived at a lake shimmering with starlight.
Xie Tian looked around and said with surprise, "Is this still the Star Dou Great Forest?"
He could hardly believe such a large lake was hidden within the canyon.
Perhaps this was the Soul Beast he sought!
But there was no sign of Soul Beasts around—only the land near the edge was covered with many silver-glowing flowers and Spiritual Plants.
Xie Tian swallowed and said, "Xiao Bai, look at these flowers and Spiritual Plants—they're emitting spatial fluctuations. Could they be spatial-attribute Spiritual Plants, or even Immortal Herbs?"
He knew that during their last visit, they found stones emitting spatial energy—Void Gazer Stones.
—
End of Chapter