Like a horde of savage apes, they stormed across the battlefield—fierce, unrelenting, and monstrous in stature. With every breath, they surged forward, covering vast distances, flooding the battlefield like a tidal wave of frost and death.
"I'll form the head!!"
"I'll form the torso!!"
"I'll form the arms!!"
One shout after another rang out through the chaos as masses of Icecrystal warriors charged forward and merged together. In mere moments, they transformed into towering war gods of crystalline ice. Even the smallest among them stood more than seventy to eighty zhang tall. They appeared as enormous ice giants, exuding an overwhelming, wild pressure that left onlookers breathless and awestruck.
"It's the Icecrystal Clan again. They've come, and this time, there are even more of them. Their momentum is terrifying. This is clearly a do-or-die assault—they're attacking without regard for the cost. Their timing is deliberate—they're striking while the Iron-Blood Great Wall can't raise its defensive barrier. They're aiming to breach it!"
"We cannot let them succeed. No matter what, we must hold them off!"
Upon the walls, countless soldiers gazed down grimly. They understood this would be the most brutal battle they had ever faced. No one could say for certain whether the wall would hold. The sight of the endless enemy horde exerted a suffocating, visible pressure, bearing down like a falling sky.
"Archers, prepare!!"
"Ballistae, ready!!"
"Rune spear formations, in position!!"
The Iron-Blood Great Wall burst into coordinated action. Every soldier sprang to position without hesitation. Though daunted by the enemy's numbers, not one of them showed fear. On the contrary, their battle will surged. Even if they were to die here, they would do so with honor and joy.
This time, in anticipation of the Icecrystal Clan's formidable defenses, large numbers of ballistae had been deployed along the wall. These weapons had terrifying penetration force—enough to wound even the ice giants formed from Icecrystal battle bodies.
Suddenly, Wu Yong spoke up.
"Where's Green Emperor? Bring him here! With his abilities, he could shatter the Icecrystal army's morale and take a hefty toll on them."
As unreliable and ridiculous as the Green Emperor could be—especially his absurd singing—there was no denying that he was like a living nuclear weapon on the battlefield. He had proven it before. The results had been astonishing, his presence game-changing.
Zhuge Liang shook his head.
"He's already left with His Majesty for Qingshan Immortal Sect. Not here. With his temperament, he's probably wandered off somewhere in Snow Continent by now. Only the Emperor could find him if he wished."
Indeed, Green Emperor was notoriously unreliable. Finding him now would be nigh impossible.
Zhuge Liang turned, eyes gleaming.
"Even without Green Emperor, we still have our aces. Since the Icecrystal Clan wants war, let them see the true might of the Great Yi Dynasty. Summon General Wushuang Ghost, General Cheng, and General Zhang to the watchtower. Sound the war drums. Let our soldiers know: the time to kill has come!!"
These three were among the most powerful warriors in the army—each one a battle-hardened general with superhuman strength and indomitable courage.
"Yes!"
"Let's do it!!"
With roars of excitement, the three rushed up the watchtower. At its peak stood a massive war drum, made from the hide of some unknown beast, exuding a wild, ancient aura.
"Let's beat the drum together—for the glory of Great Yi!!"
Zhang Fei let out a booming laugh, tearing off his upper armor and shirt, revealing a bulging, muscular torso that gleamed like black steel under the sunlight. His hand gripped the drum mallet as his fighting spirit soared.
Cheng Yaojin chuckled.
"This is a fine treasure. I've heard of it, but never seen it in person. They say it's at the peak of the Mysterious Grade (玄阶) and could ascend to Earth Grade (地阶) at any time. If it becomes a congenital spiritual treasure, none of us could hope to control it."
The war drum was none other than the legendary Ten Thousand Beasts Blood Spirit Drum (万兽血灵鼓)—once a treasured war relic of the Beast King Court. After the court's destruction, the drum fell into the hands of the Great Yi Dynasty. Since then, it had been nurtured meticulously, becoming a core weapon of the empire—rarely used, always feared.
It was a war-dominating artifact.
The three generals exchanged a look, then simultaneously raised their mallets and struck the drum.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!!
The drum's thunderous beats echoed across the battlefield. With each strike, divine light flared across its surface. Illusions of countless beasts—ferocious and divine—materialized, roaring alongside the drumbeats and sweeping outward in waves of blood-red light.
That blood light engulfed every Great Yi soldier it touched. Regardless of their cultivation, each one felt their internal energy surge explosively, their strength nearly doubling in an instant.
This was the Ten Thousand Beasts Blood Spirit Drum's true power. Its sound invoked the War Chant of Ten Thousand Beasts (万兽战音), which triggered the Blood Spirit Curse (血灵咒) upon all allied troops. Their vitality surged, their battle will ignited, their flesh strengthened, and their combat power increased by over a full tier. Most crucially—it had no side effects. Their minds remained clear; their techniques remained controlled.
In the context of war, doubling a soldier's power was like flipping the heavens.
It could change the course of a battle.
In its early stages at Yellow Grade 1, the drum granted a 10% power boost. At Grade 9, 90%. Once it hit Mysterious Grade, it broke the ceiling—giving over 100% boost. Now, at Mysterious Grade 9, it was nearing the ultimate limit. This artifact, painstakingly upgraded through blood, essence, and beast souls, was now nearly on par with a congenital spiritual treasure.
"Incredible… this power boost is unreal!"
General Guan Yu couldn't help but praise it aloud.
Swish! Swish! Swish!
Without delay, the archers pulled their bows. Empowered by the drum's blessing, they fired arrow after arrow imbued with a blood-red aura, brimming with raw, destructive power.
Bang!!
One of the towering Icecrystal battle bodies was pierced straight through the chest, shattered by a single arrow. This overwhelming force, fueled by the war drum, caught the Icecrystal Clan completely off guard.
More arrows rained down like falling stars, glowing in crimson light. Each one was a special armor-piercing arrow, forged for just this kind of enemy.
"What is this… That drum is boosting the humans' strength?!"
"If we had such a treasure, our Icecrystal Clan would be unstoppable. We could conquer the world!!"
On the Icecrystal War Fortress, the general Xuanbing gazed at the drum with greedy, feverish eyes. It was a weapon of war beyond imagination.
Suddenly—Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
The Icecrystal Clan launched a counterattack. Massive ice spears hurtled through the air, streaking toward the city walls like lightning bolts, each one carrying terrifying destructive power.
"Fire! Fire! Fire!!"
Ballistae fired in response, launching giant bolts that intercepted the spears midair. Explosions rang out across the sky, but many ice spears still broke through.
"Shields!!"
A wave of tower shield soldiers stepped forward—hulking, immovable, radiating an aura of unshakable resolve. Their golden-glowing shields rose to meet the falling frost.