vstars Chapter 60 Star Palace Crisis 2
Chapter 60 Star Palace Crisis 2
On the city wall of Tianxing City, a righteous cultivator anxiously asked Ling Yunchen:
"Palace Master Ling, could you send someone to help from Kunwu Mountain? If the Three Elders of Kunwu were here, perhaps they could lift the siege of Tianxing City!"
Faced with the hopeful question from the righteous cultivator beside him, Ling Yunchen felt a bitter taste in his mouth, yet he had no choice but to confront reality. He slowly shook his head, his voice filled with deep weariness and helplessness:
"Kunwu Mountain? The human realm is engulfed in war, and the main force of the ancient demon army is launching a fierce attack on the Great Jin with forces several times larger than ours. The Kunwu Alliance and other major powers are too busy to defend themselves; it's already a miracle that they managed to hold onto Kunwu Mountain. Where would they find the strength to support our Chaotic Star Sea?"
These words extinguished the last flicker of hope that had ignited in the hearts of the surrounding cultivators, replacing it with even deeper despair. Even the Great Jin, the core of the human race, was on the verge of collapse; were they, in their isolated corner of the Chaotic Star Sea, destined to become mere pawns?
"Then... what about the Spirit Realm?" another cultivator pressed, his voice trembling. "Wasn't it said that the Upper Realm had already been notified? Are the powerful cultivators of the Upper Realm just going to stand by and watch the Human Realm fall?"
Ling Yunchen remained silent for a moment. How could he not yearn for reinforcements from the Spirit Realm? They were their last lifeline. But the messages from the spirit communication array remained vague, only stating that "discussions were underway," with no concrete indication of when they would arrive. Faced with this harsh reality, this indefinite wait was itself a form of torment.
Looking at the faces around him, filled with fear yet stubbornly refusing to give in, a sense of sorrow and responsibility welled up within him. As the Lord of the Star Palace, as the leader of the Chaotic Star Sea race, he could not reveal the truth at this moment and utterly crush their fighting spirit.
He took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the anxiety and helplessness in his heart, forced a determined look onto his face, and raised his voice slightly as he said loudly:
"The spirit realm will not stand idly by! The communication array has responded, and the seniors from the upper realm are aware of the crisis in the human world. Reinforcements... are on their way!"
He didn't say "when will we arrive" or "how many people will be there," but simply said "on the way," leaving everyone with a vague yet hopeful space for imagination.
"Fellow Daoists!" Ling Yunchen's gaze swept over the crowd. "Although Kunwu Mountain is powerless to provide support, and reinforcements from the Spirit Realm will take time, at this moment, we can only rely on ourselves! Tianxing City is our home, and behind us are our disciples, relatives, and friends! We must not allow the Ancient Demon to set foot in Tianxing City!"
Ling Yunchen secretly breathed a sigh of relief, knowing he had temporarily stabilized the morale of his troops. He looked up at the churning demonic clouds outside the formation, and at the particularly powerful figures deep within them. He knew that his words just now were half truth and half lie. The Spirit Realm might indeed respond, but when that would come was unknown. And the great formation… how much longer could it really hold out?
Outside Tianxing City.
Under the strict orders of Kong Yu, the ancient demon army launched another tidal wave of attacks.
This time, dozens of ancient demons at the Nascent Soul stage participated in the attack! Instead of attacking separately, they concentrated their strength and joined forces to unleash various powerful demonic abilities—a giant spear of pitch-black demonic fire, a torrent of highly corrosive acid, a giant demonic claw that tore through space... like a storm, they slammed into the protective array of Tianxing City.
Behind these Nascent Soul stage ancient demons, there was a formation of nearly a thousand Nascent Soul stage demons (including demonized cultivators and low-level ancient demons), which, like locusts, frantically attacked the weak points of the formation's light barrier.
"Boom—!"
The deafening roars continued unabated, and the entire Tianxing City trembled violently. The once relatively stable protective array's light barrier now shook and twisted violently, like a lake surface tossed with a boulder, and its light dimmed at a visible speed.
"Not good! Those demon bastards are going to fight to the death!" On the city wall, Ling Yunchen's expression changed drastically, and he shouted sharply, "All array masters, return to your positions immediately! All cultivators, pour all your mana into the array core! Stabilize the array at all costs!"
He placed his hands on the central array eye, and the pure magical power within his body surged into the array like a river bursting its banks. Other Nascent Soul cultivators followed suit, and various colored lights shone from the city wall, converging into a massive torrent of energy to support the crumbling city-protecting array.
The protective array of Tianxing City was, after all, painstakingly arranged and reinforced by generations of Nascent Soul cultivators of the Star Palace, possessing profound foundations. Under the maintenance of Ling Yunchen and others, although it swayed and its light flickered, it still stubbornly withstood the first wave of fierce attacks from the ancient demons and was not immediately breached.
"Hmph! A desperate struggle!" The figure above the demonic cloud sneered, a hint of impatience flashing in his eyes. "Send the order to use the 'Formation-Breaking Cone'! I want to see how long this tortoise shell can hold out!"
With a command from Kong Yu, three gigantic bone cones, each a hundred feet long, pitch black, and covered with jagged barbs, slowly emerged from the depths of the demonic clouds, propelled by the combined efforts of dozens of Nascent Soul Ancient Demons. The tips of these bone cones condensed a terrifying, destructive energy, aimed at several key nodes of the Heavenly Star City's protective formation.
An aura of destruction instantly enveloped the entire battlefield. Everyone could sense that the next attack would be earth-shattering!
"That's... a demonic artifact that breaks through formations!" Ling Yunchen's pupils shrank sharply. He could clearly feel the terrifying power contained within those three bone cones. Could the city's protective formation withstand it?
This thought gnawed at his Dao heart like a venomous snake. He watched helplessly as the three array-breaking cones, imbued with terrifying demonic energy, slowly changed direction under the urging of dozens of Nascent Soul Ancient Demons, locking onto the most vulnerable nodes of the city's protective array.
"Palace Master! The array core spirit stones are about to run out!" an array master shouted hoarsely, his voice trembling with tears.
At this critical moment, a sudden change occurred!
It didn't come from outside the city, but from the top of that towering holy mountain in the center of Tianxing City!
A dazzling silver pillar of light, seemingly imbued with the power of the stars, shot up from the summit of the sacred mountain without warning, piercing the clouds! Wherever the pillar passed, the protective array's light screen, which had been violently fluctuating and on the verge of collapse, instantly became solid and heavy, as if infused with boundless vitality!
Immediately afterwards, a vast, ancient, and majestic aura, like a colossal beast awakening from its slumber, emanated from the depths of the sacred mountain and instantly enveloped the entire Tianxing City!
"This is... a contingency plan left behind by the Star Palace ancestors?!" Ling Yunchen was stunned at first, then overjoyed. Beneath the Holy Mountain truly lay a contingency plan left behind by the successive palace masters!
This sudden turn of events caused the ancient demon army outside the city, which was preparing to launch a fatal attack, to pause in surprise.
Above the demonic cloud, Kong Yu's face instantly darkened. He could clearly feel that the city's defensive strength had increased several levels in an instant! The stellar power contained in that pillar of light was pure and vast, and had a natural restraining effect on the demonic energy under his command.
"Hmph! A desperate struggle! So what if the formation is strengthened? Let's see how long you can hold out!" Kong Yu roared, "Keep attacking! Shatter that pillar of light at all costs!"
The ancient demon army roared and launched another attack, unleashing a torrential downpour of demonic fire, acid, and bone spears. However, this time, these attacks struck the newly stabilized starlight barrier, only creating ripples that could not shake its foundation.
At the summit of the sacred mountain, the pillar of light continued to shine, as if proclaiming to the world the indomitable will of the Star Palace.
Seeing this, Ling Yunchen's hope was rekindled. He knew that while this backup plan was powerful, its energy was ultimately finite and couldn't be maintained forever. But at least it had bought them precious time!
"Everyone! Take the pills immediately to restore your mana! Array masters, channel the power of the stars to reinforce the array!" Ling Yunchen shouted, his voice now full of renewed strength.
The cultivators of Tianxing City also recovered from their despair, and sat down cross-legged to seize this rare opportunity to catch their breath and restore their strength.
However, Ling Yunchen knew in his heart that this was only a temporary relief. Once the backup plan was exhausted, Tianxing City would still be doomed. The only hope remained the faint hope of reinforcements from the Spirit Realm.