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"Report!"
The silence of the strategic council hall was shattered as a Star Luo scout burst through the heavy doors. Stumbling into the center of the room, he dropped to one knee before Emperor Dai Pojun, his voice breathless and urgent.
"Your Majesty! Our scouts have confirmed the movement of the Spirit Empire. Qian Renxue has dispatched the Green Phoenix Douluo and the Light Feather Douluo to lead separate assaults on the cities flanking the Jincheng Fortress. The sovereigns of the Hadrian Kingdom and the Star Brilliance Principality have sent desperate pleas for reinforcements. They fear their defenses will not hold without our aid. These are their official letters of request."
"I see. You are dismissed. Return to your post and continue the surveillance," Dai Pojun said, his voice heavy with a bone-deep exhaustion. He waved a weary hand, signaling the scout to leave after the letters were placed upon the map-strewn table.
Just as the soldier turned to leave, Pojun's eyes sharpened with a flicker of intensity. "Wait. Regarding Qian Renxue—monitor her every move with absolute precision. I will not tolerate a single oversight. If there is any lapse in intelligence regarding her location, I shall have your head. Do I make myself clear?"
"By your command, Your Majesty!"
The scout, trembling under the Emperor's cold gaze, bowed hurriedly and retreated. Once again, the hall fell into a stifling, deathly silence, broken only by the long, heavy sigh that escaped Pojun's lips.
He looked around the room at the gathered figures and felt a pang of despair. Aside from himself, only his parents—the former Emperor Dai Tianxing and his wife—and Zhu Yaqin remained. These four were the only Title Douluo left in the Star Luo Empire who were still capable of standing on a battlefield.
It was a grim realization. Only a year ago, Star Luo had boasted a formidable lineup of twelve Title Douluo. Now, after the brutal attrition of this war, they were reduced to a mere third of their strength.
Dugu Bo, the Poison Douluo, and Lie Tianhu were both confined to their beds, their bodies so ravaged by injuries that they could barely move, let alone fight. Even more devastating was the loss of Chen Xin, the Sword Douluo, and the Second Elder of the Clear Sky Sect. Both had fallen in battle.
Months ago, after Qian Renxue had completely annexed the territories of the former Heaven Dou Empire and rechristened it the Spirit Empire, she had ascended as its first Empress. With the power of the Angel God at her command, her march into Star Luo had been nothing short of a catastrophe for their defenders. She was an unstoppable force of nature.
Even when Dai Tianxing and the other Title Douluo had joined forces to ambush her, she had held them off with ease, eventually counter-killing both Chen Xin and the Second Elder. The legendary Sword Douluo, a man who had stood at the pinnacle of swordsmanship, could not escape his destiny; he had perished under the radiant light of the Angelic flames, his legacy ending as a mere handful of dust.
Under normal circumstances, Dai Pojun might have felt a glimmer of political relief at the weakening of the Clear Sky and Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sects. Without their Title Douluo, they would have been forced into absolute submission to the Imperial Crown. But these were not normal times. Every fallen powerhouse was a nail in the coffin of the Star Luo Empire. They were simply running out of shields to block Qian Renxue's blade.
And Qian Renxue was not alone. Behind her stood the terrifying Golden Crocodile Douluo and the enigmatic Chrysanthemum Douluo, Yue Guan, backed by hundreds of thousands of elite troops.
"I wonder when Dean Lin and the others will return..." Zhu Yaqin sighed, her voice laced with worry. "If Davis and Anna could just make it back in time, perhaps there would still be a sliver of hope for us."
"Don't lose heart, you two," Dai Tianxing said, forcing a smile that looked more like a grimace. He tried to offer a word of comfort. "Davis and Anna will return eventually. When they do, the tide will turn! But until that moment, we must fulfill our duty. We must hold the line, stall the Spirit Empire, and protect every inch of Star Luo soil we have left..."
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The earth suddenly buckled. A series of earth-shattering explosions roared through the fortress, causing the very foundation of the council hall to shudder violently. Fissures, some stretching nearly twenty feet long, tore through the stone floor like the jagged teeth of a beast. It felt as if a massive earthquake had struck the mountain itself.
"What is happening?! Report!" Dai Pojun shouted, gripping the edge of the table to steady himself.
Another scout scrambled into the hall, his face pale with terror. "Your Majesty! The Spirit Empire has begun their assault on the walls! The Chrysanthemum Douluo and the Golden Crocodile Douluo are personally leading the charge! Our frontline casualties are mounting by the second!"
"Reporting, Sire! The Golden Crocodile Douluo has activated his Martial Soul Avatar! He is hammering at the left flank of the fortress walls. At this rate, the fortifications will collapse within the hour!"
"What?!"
Dai Pojun slammed his fist onto the table, his body springing upward like a coiled serpent. "We move now! We cannot allow them to breach the walls!"
If the fortress walls were torn open, the Spirit Empire's heavy cavalry would pour through the gap like a flood. They would lose their height advantage, and the battle would turn into a slaughter in the streets.
"Father, we have to help!"
"Indeed!" Dai Tianxing's eyes suddenly ignited with a fierce, predatory battle intent. "It's time this old man saw just how tough that Golden Crocodile really is!"
The four Title Douluo vanished from the hall, reappearing moments later atop the high battlements of the fortress. Below them, the scene was one of chaos. A gargantuan figure, the Golden Crocodile Douluo in his Golden Crocodile King form, was relentlessly bashing against the stone.
"Your Majesty, you've arrived. The walls won't hold much longer," Ning Fengzhi reported, rushing to meet them. His spirit power had reached the peak of the eighty-eighth rank, nearing the threshold of a Title Douluo, but his face held no joy—only grim determination.
"Understood, Sect Master Ning. Leave the Golden Crocodile to me and my wife. We need you to provide us with your support."
As soon as the words left his mouth, Dai Tianxing and the former Empress leaped from the battlements. In mid-air, their bodies erupted with brilliant, contrasting light.
Netherworld White Tiger!
A massive, spectral white tiger—even larger and more imposing than the Golden Crocodile King—materialized in the sky. It hovered before the Golden Crocodile Douluo like a vengeful god, letting out a roar that shook the very atmosphere.
"Golden Crocodile Douluo! You dare show your face here?!"
The Golden Crocodile Douluo looked up, his reptilian eyes narrowing before he let out a mocking laugh. "Ho ho! And here I was wondering who would come out to play. If it isn't you two old fossils!"
"Hmph, you have some nerve calling us fossils," the White Tiger's dual-toned voice rumbled. "Don't forget, Golden Crocodile, you're significantly older than both of us. If we are 'old fossils,' what does that make you? Ancient ruins?"
"Hahaha! I have no interest in trading insults with the dying," the Golden Crocodile Douluo sneered. "My Young Lady has already ascended as the supreme Angel God. You have only two choices left: Submit... or perish!"
He looked at the towering tiger with a playful, mocking glint in his eyes. "Well? Which will it be?"
"Hahaha! Every man must face death eventually," Dai Tianxing's voice boomed from within the tiger. "I have lived for over a century; do you truly think I am a coward who fears the grave? If I must fall, I will drag as many of your Spirit Empire curs down to hell with me as I can! And you, Golden Crocodile... you seem like a fine choice for a burial companion!"
Whoosh!
In an instant, the wind howled as the Netherworld White Tiger pounced. Its powerful limbs propelled it across the distance in a blur, appearing before the Golden Crocodile Douluo in the blink of an eye. It reared back, extending its obsidian-black, razor-sharp claws, and swiped downward with the speed of a lightning bolt.
The claws were like massive spears, intended to skewer the Golden Crocodile's armored hide!
"Childish tricks..." The Golden Crocodile Douluo smirked. Soul power surged through his body like a tidal wave, and his eighth soul ring suddenly erupted with a brilliant, blinding light.
"Eighth Soul Skill: Celestial Astral Golden Shield!"
(End of Chapter)