Chapter 377: The Soul Beasts Attack the City
Di Tian initially aimed to undermine the morale of the Spirit Empire's troops, yet under the divine light of the Angel Statue, the defending soldiers seemed to gain a renewed sense of resolve, rallying together with even greater unity. Still, Qian Daoliu remained troubled; he had seen beast tides before but had never encountered one so strategically minded, suggesting this assault was far from ordinary.
With another roar from Di Tian, a massive wave of soul beasts surged forward, recklessly hurling themselves at the city walls with an apparent disregard for death. A swarm of flying soul beasts filled the skies, aiming directly at the defenders on the walls.
Qian Daoliu raised his hand and shouted, "Fight!" The defenders sprang into action. The city's soldiers, battle-hardened from past wars, responded with practiced efficiency. Arrows, crossbows, and stones rained down on the soul beasts. While these attacks did little to harm high-level soul beasts, they proved effective against the lesser ones. Even the thousand-year-old beasts, though durable, suffered when struck at vital points by well-aimed arrows.
Under the direction of the defensive commanders, boiling oil and massive stones were hurled over the walls, crushing numerous soul beasts below. When ignited by flaming arrows, the oil created a blazing inferno, engulfing the base of the city walls in fire. This, combined with the constant downpour of stones, left countless beasts dead or injured.
The aerial battle was no less intense. Flying soul beasts swooped toward the defenders on the walls, who were countered by soul masters and archers firing in unison. Led by Flame Hawk Douluo and Azure Luan Douluo, the flying soul masters clashed fiercely with the soul beasts in the air. Lightfeather Douluo, renowned for his skill with a bow, continuously fired from afar. His arrows, with extraordinary range, struck down beasts even at great distances. His attacks were particularly lethal to the high-ranking beasts, killing many of them with precise, fatal shots.
After about an hour, the piled corpses of soul beasts under the city walls nearly reached the towering height of the walls themselves. Yet, the soul beasts lacked enough high-level flying beasts to seize control of the skies, leaving Azure Luan Douluo and Flame Hawk Douluo's flying contingent in charge of the aerial battlefield.
Angered by the slow progress and the defenders' fierce determination, Di Tian issued a furious command, ordering ten-thousand-year beasts—and even a few hundred-thousand-year beasts—into the fray. The sight of these monstrous creatures, some towering tens of meters tall, striking relentlessly at the walls was awe-inspiring and terrifying. The smallest of these creatures displayed remarkable agility, dodging attacks with ease, while their larger counterparts were nearly impervious to soul skills used against them.
Leading the charge was the Darkgold Dreadclaw Bear, known for its brutal strength and unmatched resilience. This formidable beast's claws could rip through almost anything, and even Titled Douluo found it difficult to withstand its powerful swipes.
Seeing the walls under such relentless assault, Qian Daoliu realized the urgency. If the wall were to fall, the city would be left vulnerable, and the defending troops would be overrun. He immediately ordered the Spirit Empire's top fighters to engage, even if it meant risking their lives to repel the powerful soul beasts.
The confrontation with the Darkgold Dreadclaw Bear proved especially difficult. Even a Titled Douluo couldn't stand against it alone. Golden Crocodile Douluo roared as he transformed into a massive Golden Crocodile King and lashed out with his tail, striking the bear with enough force to draw blood. Yet, the bear retaliated, its steel-like claws tearing into Golden Crocodile Douluo's tail, leaving deep wounds. Although wounded, Golden Crocodile Douluo continued to fight on, bolstered by the healing light radiating from the Angel Statue, which surrounded his injuries in a golden glow.
One by one, all of the Empire's Titled Douluo entered the fray, each facing off against ten-thousand-year or even hundred-thousand-year soul beasts. Meanwhile, the city's Soul Sages and Soul Douluo formed groups to engage the most formidable of the ten-thousand-year beasts, which included numerous powerful creatures from the core regions of Star Dou Forest.
Despite Spirit Empire's effort to mobilize nearly all of its high-ranking spirit masters, the disparity in power was clear, especially when faced with so many high-level soul beasts. The six High Priests of Spirit Hall each found themselves fighting powerful beasts from Star Dou Forest's deepest regions.
The only defender who didn't join the direct battle was Lightfeather Douluo, who remained focused on providing support with his arrows, aiming his bow at key targets to assist the other Titled Douluo.
The battle raged on, with the defenders of Spirit City giving their all to repel the unending tide of beasts. As the sun began to set, both sides suffered heavy casualties, with no sign of either retreating. It was clear that this battle would be fought to the bitter end.
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