Chapter 489: Response, the Deep Sea Demon Whale King Heads North
"What? The Star Luo Empire's army of five hundred thousand was completely annihilated, with not a single survivor?"
After being urgently summoned by Emperor Xue Ye, even the usually composed Ning Fengzhi could not prevent his expression from changing drastically upon hearing the news.
"The Deep Sea Demon Whale King made his move, didn't he?"
Yu Tianlin, however, was not surprised. A sharp glint flashed in his eyes as he looked directly at Emperor Xue Ye.
"As far as I know, several Titled Douluo should have been stationed with the Star Luo Empire's army. Yet there has been no news of them either. They must have perished as well."
Emperor Xue Ye could not give Yu Tianlin a definite answer.
"Because there were no survivors, we still do not know exactly what happened. We only know that approximately half a day ago, a monstrous tidal wave surged in from the sea and completely annihilated the Star Luo Empire's army of five hundred thousand."
"Countless Sea Spirit Beasts have now entered the Star Luo Empire's interior through the rivers. After losing its entire western army, the Star Luo Empire is struggling to resist them."
"Even if the Star Luo Emperor immediately mobilizes the five hundred thousand soldiers stationed in the north and sends them south, it is already too late. They will need at least two days to reach the areas where the Sea Spirit Beasts are rampaging."
"After this disaster, the Star Luo Empire can already be considered half crippled."
On the Douluo Continent, major powers could transmit information extremely quickly.
Furthermore, the Star Luo Empire had made no attempt to conceal the disaster. Even if it had wanted to, an incident of this scale could not possibly have been hidden.
Because of this, the Heaven Dou Empire quickly learned what had happened on the other side of the continent.
"A monstrous tidal wave annihilated five hundred thousand soldiers..."
Although Ning Fengzhi had not witnessed it personally, those words alone were enough for him to imagine the terror of that moment.
What kind of overwhelming power could accomplish such a feat?
Could human strength truly resist it?
Ning Fengzhi immediately spoke.
"Your Majesty, the power of such a tidal wave is beyond human resistance. I suggest ordering the army to withdraw inland immediately, at least twenty li away from the coast, so we do not repeat the Star Luo Empire's mistake."
In Ning Fengzhi's view, this was their only reasonable course of action, and it had to be carried out as quickly as possible.
Otherwise, if the Deep Sea Demon Whale King arrived and used the same method here, the Heaven Dou Empire's army would also be completely annihilated.
Retreating inland and defending the river channels farther from the coast was undoubtedly the safest strategy.
Yu Tianlin remained silent regarding Ning Fengzhi's suggestion.
As for how the army should be deployed, Emperor Xue Ye and Ning Fengzhi could decide for themselves.
Yu Tianlin only needed to deal with the Deep Sea Demon Whale King.
Although Ning Fengzhi's proposal was reasonable, Emperor Xue Ye was reluctant to accept it.
If the army withdrew inland, they would be forced to surrender control of the estuaries along the western coast.
Once the estuaries were lost, the Sea Spirit Beasts would be able to enter the mainland continuously through the rivers.
And just how numerous were the Sea Spirit Beasts?
Emperor Xue Ye could already imagine how much more difficult defending the rivers would become once the enemy gained access to them.
It was precisely because of this that he did not wish to retreat.
After struggling internally for a moment, Emperor Xue Ye turned toward Yu Tianlin.
"Nephew Tianlin, if a monstrous tidal wave of the same scale as the one that struck the Star Luo Empire appeared here, would you... have a way to stop it?"
Emperor Xue Ye also believed that resisting the power of nature through human strength sounded like a fantasy.
However, he suddenly remembered the terrifying thunder that had erupted above the Sunset Forest half a year ago.
Even from a hundred li away, its might had caused his heart to tremble.
According to Yu Yuanzhen, that enormous disturbance had been caused entirely by Yu Tianlin.
Since Yu Tianlin could summon such terrifying lightning, perhaps, just perhaps, he might also possess a way to stop a monstrous tidal wave.
Emperor Xue Ye could only place his hopes on him.
"Me? It won't be a problem."
Yu Tianlin answered without hesitation.
"In my presence, the Deep Sea Demon Whale King will not be able to unleash an attack of that scale."
As long as the Deep Sea Demon Whale King approached, Yu Tianlin would immediately sense him. There would be no possibility of a surprise attack.
Furthermore, if the Deep Sea Demon Whale King attempted to create another monstrous tidal wave and use it to destroy a vast area, Yu Tianlin was completely confident that he could stop it.
Emperor Xue Ye stared directly into Yu Tianlin's eyes, attempting to determine whether he was merely boasting or truly possessed such confidence.
Yu Tianlin calmly returned his gaze.
After a long silence, Emperor Xue Ye finally made his decision.
"Nephew Tianlin, I believe you."
He let out a long breath before speaking firmly.
"We will not retreat. The army will remain in position, and we must maintain control over the estuaries!"
Having ruled as Emperor for so many years, Xue Ye still possessed the courage to make such a decisive choice.
"Thank you for Your Majesty's trust."
Seeing that Emperor Xue Ye had made his decision, Yu Tianlin continued, "However, I would like to know the Deep Sea Demon Whale King's movements after the attack."
"After annihilating the Star Luo Empire's army of five hundred thousand, did he not take the opportunity to continue attacking the Star Luo Empire?"
"No."
Emperor Xue Ye shook his head.
"Afterward, only a large number of Sea Spirit Beasts entered the Star Luo Empire through the rivers. The Deep Sea Demon Whale King himself never appeared again."
"Because of that, although the Star Luo Empire's situation is extremely difficult, it is still doing everything possible to resist."
If the Deep Sea Demon Whale King had personally advanced into the Star Luo Empire alongside the Sea Spirit Beast army, there would have been no point in resisting.
The Star Luo Empire might as well have surrendered immediately.
However, the Deep Sea Demon Whale King likely believed that he had already destroyed all meaningful resistance within the Star Luo Empire. The remaining matters could simply be handled by his subordinates, so he did not bother attacking personally again.
"He should be... heading north now."
Emperor Xue Ye's tone grew heavy.
"Half a day has already passed since the Star Luo Empire's army was annihilated. Unless something unexpected occurred, he should have reached the Spirit Empire's territory by now."
"After that, he will come for us."
"It would be best if the Spirit Empire could delay the Deep Sea Demon Whale King."
The Spirit Empire currently possessed three exceptionally powerful combatants.
Qian Daoliu and Qian Renxue both possessed strength at the level of Limit Douluo. Bibi Dong also wielded the Divine Artifact known as the Rakshasa Demonic Scythe, placing her combat strength above that of an ordinary Limit Douluo.
Their combined strength could not be underestimated.
Even so, Yu Tianlin was not optimistic about the Spirit Empire's chances.
If the Deep Sea Demon Whale King had not obtained the Sea God Trident, Qian Daoliu, Qian Renxue, and Bibi Dong might have been able to fight him together.
It would not have been completely impossible for them to repel him.
However, the Deep Sea Demon Whale King had already seized the Sea God Trident.
Against him now, the three of them would essentially stand no chance.
Of course, even if they could not defeat the Deep Sea Demon Whale King, the Spirit Empire would still fare better than the Star Luo Empire.
At the very least, its army would not be annihilated in a single attack.
As it turned out, Yu Tianlin's judgment was correct.
.....
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