"Hold!"
"Hold them back!"
The city guards shouted as they swung their swords and sabers. A group of about three or four hundred stood in several messy rows. Their formation stretched from the side of one building, across the street, until it touched the building on the other side. This way, they blocked the away stopping the bandit army in its tracks.
Similar scenes occurred along several other streets. The city guard forces, having retreated from the west and the south, made the House of the Paradise and the Zhou Clan Headquarters their castle. Since they were important locations, they were constructed with greater defenses than residential buildings. Ordinary bandits couldn't break in and had to push through the streets and directly clash against the well-prepared guards.
"How are we doing?" Zhou Ziyun asked.
She stood atop a horse carriage in the center of an intersection. Here, she could see the battles happening in several streets.
"Clan head, defenses are holding. We have suffered some losses but they are manageable." The one who replied was Zhou Weizi.
He was the governor of Thousand Flower City. He had also come out to fight for the city. He had a full head of graying hair and a trimmed beard. He was tall and strong despite his age.
As he spoke, a cart carrying four wounded fighters clattered past them. The cart rushed to the entrance of the House of Paradise where several women rushed out. The wounded were carried inside for treatment.
Zhou Weizi scowled, "The bandits are still not giving up. They have to know that they will all die here if they stay any longer."
"Maybe that is their intention." Zhou Ziyun replied, "What about our reinforcements."
"Those from the northern garrison will arrive in ten minutes. Those from the eastern garrison will arrive slightly after."
Zhou Ziyun furrowed her brow, "Why are they so slow? Things might get a little difficult."
Right as she said that, loud shouts arose from all directions. Killing intent filled the air along with the scent of blood. The bandits, seemingly having gone crazy, launched furious assaults on all of the defensive lines at the same time.
"Not good!" Zhou Weizi drew his saber.
"Go!" Zhou Ziyun urged as she continued to observe.
Soon, she found what she was looking for. A powerful spiritual aura arrived at the defensive line closest to the House of Paradise. Peng Lingxi and Wu Qianyu were already there but Zhou Ziyun rushed over anyway.
This battle was a test. This whole affair with the bandits and the hidden forces across the city was a test. Unknown forces wanted to see how Ten Thousand Flower Valley would react to a crisis. Most importantly, they wanted to see what hidden powers Chen Wentian held that could protect his disciples.
Now, it was the final test. The enemies couldn't keep fighting forever. City reinforcements were pouring in from all directions. This was their final struggle!
Zhou Ziyun arrived at the end of the street and saw a terrible scene. A group of enemies wearing white skull masks had killed way through the defensive line. Over a hundred city guards had perished. Many of them were members of the Zhou Clan. Those that remained weren't in good shape either.
Wu Qianyu and Peng Lingxi were clashing with the expert at the Lesser Realm of the Spiritual Awakening. Their swords flashed with white and purple light as they collided with a black sword. Around them, the other skull masks were engaged in vicious slaughter with the remaining defenders.
Zhou Ziyun raced over. The Insightful Swallow flew out. Turning a stream of silver, it streaked toward the strongest skull mask. That person sensed the danger and hurried retreated.
Zhou Ziyun didn't chase and directed the saber toward another group of skull masks. None of them were weak cultivators so they scattered in all directions. However, the saber was still too fast and managed to chop one of them in half in the blink of an eye.
The Insightful Swallow returned to Zhou Ziyun's hand. She became the focus of several enemies who had hatred in their eyes. However, with Peng Lingxi and Wu Qianyu present, the assassins didn't dare to get careless.
"Sister Ziyun, what's the situation?" Peng Lingxi asked.
Her face was pouring sweat. Her grey clothes were splattered with blood. Her usually cool countenance was gone, replaced by slight panic in her eyes.
"Not good. They are launching an all-out attack on all sides. We have to hold on. If we can hold them back for ten minutes, our reinforcements will arrive!" Zhou Ziyun said.
Saying that, she slashed out with her saber, launching the might of the Flying Dragon Saber Art. Two skull masks were forced to stop and quickly retreat, saving several wounded Zhou Clan members.
"Thank you, clan head."
"Clan head…"
"Retreat, go! Tend to your wounds!" Zhou Ziyun said as she slashed at another bunch of enemies.
A few moments later, Wu Qianyu broke off from her foes and retreated beside Zhou Ziyun. Her face was pale and her aura was unstable. She was beyond exhausted. She was covered in wounds, both fresh and old. She had already fought a difficult battle against the Four Devils of Ping Nan Province. Asking her to fight the White Face Clan was too much. She had already done what she could.
Her ability to fight through pain and draw strength from pain was a one-off. Once summoned and expended, she could not call upon it again until after she had fully recovered. She didn't have a bottomless pit of energy to call upon.
"Ziyun…" Wu Qianyu gasped after catching her breath, "Should we use our weapons? We can't hold them off like this."
She was speaking of utilizing the full strength of their weapons at the Spirit Lord Realm. Doing so would, of course, easily chop through these foes like killing chickens. But it would also reveal that they held precious treasures to the world. A Spirit Lord Realm weapon was something that most Spirit Lords didn't have. It was difficult to tell just how many would be tempted enough to break the unspoken rules and do something underhanded.
"I am leaning towards that as well…" Zhou Ziyun muttered. She grimaced as another Zhou Clan member lost their life in front of her. "Is there a need to be so stingy?"
She understood his reasoning. He only cared about her and the other disciples. Other mortals were probably insignificant in his eyes. Even so, these people dying were her people, people of the Zhou Clan. She didn't want to see them get slaughtered for nothing.
"I'll do it!" Zhou Ziyun said with a steely expression.
She raised the Insightful Swallow Saber, ready to unleash its full strength.
"Wait, sis! Wait!" A voice called out from behind them.
Zhou Ziyun, Wu Qianyu, and even Peng Lingxi looked back to see a golden blur race out of the House of Paradise toward them.
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