December 6th, the second year of Da Han.
The fifth day after the ancient seal shattered, the second day of the Human Emperor Hall's territory falling, the Tian Yue Dynasty collapsed. This was the first dynasty annihilated by the Ancient Wilderness. Out of its hundreds of millions of people, less than one-fifth escaped Tian Yue and migrated to Bei Han.
When the news spread, the entire Southwest Region was plunged into grief. The collapse of the Tian Yue Dynasty was far more impactful than the fall of the Human Emperor Hall. This was a dynasty, a vast territory, home to hundreds of millions of humans. Now, Tian Yue was filled with mountains of corpses and ridges of bones.
At this moment, from the ten elders and the lords of the various dynasties to the sects of the martial world and the common folk, all cried out to the heavens. The intricately intertwined human race abandoned their internal conflicts, united in common hatred, and turned their gaze northward.
On that day, the humans of the entire Southwest Region poured into the streets, all looking towards the Tian Yue Dynasty. They spontaneously tied mourning bands to their foreheads. This was originally a ritual for deceased elders, but at this moment, every human warrior was filled with sorrow, wearing mourning bands not for any other reason, but for the four-fifths of the Tian Yue people who had died, observing silent mourning.
Not a single member of the Tian Yue royal lineage emerged alive from the Tian Yue Dynasty. From the court officials to the common people, none became traitors to their race and surrendered to the Ancient Wilderness. This further etched the dignity of the human race onto the Tian Yue lineage!
In the northern part of the Bei Han Dynasty, dense crowds of humans, clad in sackcloth and mourning, knelt with their knees on the ground, facing the direction of Tian Yue, weeping bitterly.
These were the warriors who had escaped from the Tian Yue Dynasty. Their eyes were filled with grief as they burned incense to honor their kin, friends, and their Human Emperor!
The demise of the Tian Yue lineage further exacerbated the plight of the Southwest Region, especially the Cang Mu Dynasty and the Bei Han Dynasty, which would face the armies of the Blazing Rhinos and Blood Pythons.
With the annihilation of Tian Yue, the Sheng Yuan Dynasty and the Tian Yuan Dynasty felt immense fear and pressure. If the Ancient Wilderness advanced further, the Cang Mu Dynasty and Bei Han Dynasty would fall, and the next to face their doom would be the Sheng Yuan Dynasty and the Tian Yuan Dynasty.
On that day, the ancestor of the Sheng Yuan Dynasty, Ying Yu, led fifty thousand troops to the front lines of the Cang Mu Dynasty. The Tian Yuan Dynasty deployed its remaining two Heaven Fusion realm experts and fifty thousand troops to the front lines.
Led by Elder Sheng, Elder Xue, and Elder Yue, the human forces, comprising the armies of the four great dynasties, faced the armies of the Blazing Rhinos and Blood Pythons head-on at the border between the Cang Mu Dynasty and the Bei Han Dynasty.
...
Meanwhile, in the Wei Yang Dynasty, the northern and eastern defense lines were merely pushed back by a thousand li. The warriors of Wei Yang were far more indignant and valiant than those of Tian Yue.
Countless sects and factions swarmed forward, joining the imperial army. Under the call to arms by the Wei Yang Empress herself, Wei Yang, with its own strength, forcefully blocked the Iron Lion Army within its borders.
On the eastern front line of Wei Yang.
Fan Zi Chen continuously moved and relocated her command tent. The Wei Yang lineage had no Heaven Connecting realm experts. Her strongest cultivation was at the eighth level of the Heaven Transformation realm. With the precious resources she brought from the Imperial Dynasty's secret treasury, the Wei Yang Empress had also stepped into the Heaven Transformation realm.
The Iron Lion tribe alone had seen five Heaven Connecting realm experts emerge in these past few days. Fan Zi Chen, knowing she was no match, relied on her fifty thousand strong army, with the Blood Robe Army at its core, to maneuver around and concentrate superior forces to annihilate the weak points of the Iron Lion army.
As a result, the Iron Lion tribe, at the cost of losing one hundred thousand troops, only managed to advance a thousand li into Wei Yang.
The Iron Lion Chieftain was furious. For two consecutive days, he dispatched Heaven Connecting realm experts to infiltrate Wei Yang to capture Fan Zi Chen, the Marquis of Blood Robe. However, Fan Zi Chen successfully evaded the ambushes of the Heaven Connecting realm experts by creating fake command tents.
Until today, they were surrounded by the Iron Lion army in a valley.
"Kill!"
In the valley, the remaining forty thousand Wei Yang soldiers defended the only entrance to the valley, desperately resisting the onslaught of the Iron Lion army.
Outside the valley, within a large tent, five burly and imposing figures sat facing the center of the hall. The leader among them was exceptionally tall, reaching two zhang, with a head full of yellow hair cascading over his shoulders. This person was the commander of the Iron Lion's eastern front and the current elder of the Iron Lion tribe – Tie Gu Sheng, a fifth-level Heaven Connecting realm expert.
"Elder, I request to fight and capture Fan Zi Chen alive!"
A deep voice echoed through the tent.
Tie Gu Sheng looked at the speaker and said calmly, "Fan Zi Chen is the number two figure of the Wei Yang Dynasty. Although this woman is of the female gender, her command skills are far superior to all of us here. This battle must be won with thunderous speed!"
"Elder!"
The figure showed a hint of unwillingness.
"Attack. In this battle, my Iron Lion tribe will give Fan Zi Chen the fight she deserves!"
Tie Gu Sheng smiled. He greatly admired Fan Zi Chen. A mere Heaven Transformation realm cultivator had kept him occupied for four days, dragging his eastern army to this spot. Such formidable battle command skills were something his Iron Lion tribe sorely lacked. If properly utilized, they would undoubtedly elevate the combat strength of the Iron Lion army.
"Kill!"
The sounds of the Iron Lion army surged, and waves of air swept into the valley. Iron Lion soldiers, wielding nine-ringed sabers, charged into the valley.
"Slash!"
Blood flowed!
The Wei Yang army's Blood Robe Army stood at the forefront, holding back the Iron Lion army. Behind them, countless soldiers, armed with long spears, thrust them at the Iron Lion soldiers. Some Wei Yang soldiers wore ordinary martial arts attire, without armor, but their morale was not diminished in the slightest. Each human soldier fought desperately, vying to be at the front to engage the Iron Lions in combat.
Fan Zi Chen looked towards the direction of the Iron Lions. The enemy commander had not yet appeared. She knew she could not escape. There were Heaven Connecting realm experts of the Iron Lions here, but she showed no fear. Standing in the air, she grasped her long sword and roared, "Wei Yang!"
"We will fight to the death, never retreat!"
"Kill!"
Countless Wei Yang soldiers raised their heads, gazing at Fan Zi Chen, and shouted, "Kill!"
"Kill!"
"Kill!"
A magnificent momentum arose, and countless soldiers surged into the valley.
Tie Gu Sheng emerged from the tent. "Fan Zi Chen, I respect you. Will you join my Iron Lion tribe? I promise that once you join my Iron Lion tribe, you will be an honored elder, and you can command my Iron Lion's million-strong army!"
"Our strong alliance will surely allow us to fight across the land!"
"Audacious!"
Fan Zi Chen glared at Tie Gu Sheng. His powerful aura was like an ocean, and Fan Zi Chen could not discern his cultivation level.
"I, Fan Zi Chen, will die before I surrender!"
Tie Gu Sheng looked at Fan Zi Chen, his expression unchanged. "Inform the entire army to charge. Capture Fan Zi Chen alive for me!"
"Kill!"
At the elder's command, the Iron Lion army roared, and they all fought with full ferocity. In almost an instant, they pushed a hundred paces deeper into the valley.
These hundred paces were littered with corpses, blood flowing freely, forming a small stream that flowed out of the valley.
The Iron Lion army's morale was soaring, their momentum awe-inspiring. To the Wei Yang army, the Iron Lion army were essentially demonic beasts, warriors who had emerged from a sea of blood. Now, the pent-up rage of several days was unleashed.