The Eternal Way-Chapter 166: The Battle

On the battlefield, three Rank Eights clashed without end.

However, while fighting, the two demon Rank Eights weren't idle with their words.

An eagle-headed humanoid demon, suppressing the human Rank Eight, said, "Zhang Lan, if the Hundred Forests don't care about these people, why should you bother? Retreat now, and you might save your life."

The other demon, a terrifying giant ape wielding a stone club, roared, "Enough talk! This scum from the Righteous Sword Palace has already killed two of our brothers! He must die today!"

"Shut up!" The eagle-headed demon mentally cursed, whispering, "His cultivation is profound. Don't provoke him into a desperate fight. This mission to capture people—"

But before he could finish, the ape demon ignored him, directly using its divine ability to grab a nearby small mountain and yank it out!

The mountain, over a hundred meters tall, was home to various beasts. Their howls echoed through the air as the ground trembled. A silver light flashed across the mountain range, striking the ape demon, who caught it with one hand and crushed it, silencing it instantly.

"Haha, a Rank Nine Mountain God, not only didn't run but dared to block me?" The ape demon laughed, tossing aside the crushed silver lizard.

As the silver light faded, the once howling beasts fell silent. Then, the entire mountain was uprooted! The earth cracked, mountains collapsed, and the suppressed earth energies surged forth, all gathered by the divine ability into a snake coiling around the mountain.

With a mighty swing, the ape demon hurled the mountain at the human Rank Eight.

A whole mountain, carrying its earth energies, came crashing down!

The human Rank Eight, while fending off the eagle-headed demon's attacks, used a hand seal and whispered, "Go!"

Golden energy surged from his lungs, which belonged to metal, forming Golden Metal Sword Qi that shot out with his breath.

Initially a small golden sword, it expanded rapidly within twenty zhang, its immense sword intent like flowing rivers. Unavoidable, the sword qi soared skyward, the golden sword swelling until it matched the mountain's size, then slicing horizontally and vertically, cutting the mountain into four pieces!

Even the ground bore a massive cross-shaped groove, deep as a canyon. Below, the demon tide panicked, fleeing in terror. Those too slow were cut into four pieces, their wounds mirroring the canyon's cross shape.

Even the ape demon bore a deep cross-shaped wound, bleeding profusely, staining the ground red and forming small streams that disrupted some military formations.

For a moment, the ape demon collapsed, unable to catch its breath.

"I told you not to push him too far!" The eagle-headed demon growled, continuing his spellcasting.

He waved his hand, and the demon tide below seemed to receive orders, forming ranks instead of charging, gathering soldier energy into a solid defensive formation, dark and murky, yet with a crimson hue, drifting without wind.

The gathered soldier energy converged in the eagle-headed demon's hands, transforming into chaotic energy like birds flying wildly, descending upon the Golden Metal Sword Qi.

The once bright sword qi dimmed under this chaos. The blade wailed, even cracking slightly, its released energy creating a clear patch of sky amidst the battlefield.

Escaping energy rushed downward but was mostly blocked by the condensed demon soldier energy, affecting the demon formations minimally.

Seeing this, the human officers shouted desperately, "Assault Battalion, follow me! Give Master Zhang a chance to survive!"

About a thousand soldiers, abandoning their defenses, charged forward fearlessly, engaging the demon tide head-on.

Their clash intertwined both sides' soldier energies, preventing separation, allowing the Golden Metal Sword Qi to escape the chaos.

Human soldiers temporarily tied up the demon soldier energy, preventing combined pressure on the human called Zhang Lan, the Righteous Sword Palace cultivator.

However, the aggressive assault led to rapid losses among the soldiers, cries of pain filling the air. About a dozen Rank Nine officers struggled on the battlefield, outnumbered, each facing two or three demon Rank Nines.

The battle damage continued to increase; they couldn't hold out much longer.

Though the officers didn't give up, casualties mounted, bodies devoured by demons. The flesh of Rank Nine cultivators was highly nutritious!

Silent, the Rank Eight cultivator Zhang Lan above still urged his sword qi and deployed other divine abilities, trying to fend off his two opponents.

The outcome was clear.

Defeat was inevitable, and the millions behind would be unprotected.

This chapter is updated by freēwēbnovel.com.

Trembling in fear, the civilians hid wherever possible, crying and trembling, some attempting to flee but finding no escape from the overwhelming demon tide.

Suddenly—

Two golden lines appeared in the battlefield!

These lines stretched for miles, glowing brightly.

They swiftly crossed several miles, unseen by both soldiers and demons, then returned in mere moments.

As the lines faded, hundreds of demons found themselves marked with two blood lines. As they moved, these lines split open, their bodies collapsing into several pieces without realizing what happened, muscles twitching, eyes rolling.

"A high-level expert is helping us! I am Lin Ye, commander of the Thousand Soldiers Battalion of the Hundred Forests, thanking you! Brothers, charge with me!" An officer, seeing the demons vanish, cheered and charged again.

Demons panicked, even some Rank Nine leaders retreating.

However, the two golden lines struck again.

In the sky, the eagle-headed demon narrowed his eyes and tapped downwards. Extracted soldier energy returned, enhanced, boosting the demons' power, overwhelming the army.

Excess soldier energy formed a protective barrier, impenetrable like a fortress.

The two golden lines collided with it, losing strength and revealing their true form—two small knives moving so fast they left persistent trails.

Demon soldier energy halted these knives, preventing further attacks.

But, this allowed Zhang Lan a breather. Seizing the opportunity, he retreated, took a pill, healing significantly.

The previously injured ape demon also stopped bleeding, standing up.

Just when the situation seemed balanced, the appearance of the two golden lines paused the demon assault.

"Why does someone want to meddle here? Come out and show yourself!" The eagle-headed demon landed on the ape demon's shoulder, calling out.

"Roar!" The ape demon, enraged, wanted to attack Zhang Lan but restrained himself due to the eagle-headed demon on his shoulder, glaring angrily around.

Then, a dragon horse descended from the sky, ridden by a young man with darker skin, neat clothes, and an alert demeanor. He greeted the three Rank Eights, "Greetings, seniors. I am honored."

"A mere Rank Nine? I thought you were Rank Eight because of that artifact. How dare you interfere? Afraid of death?" The eagle-headed demon frowned but didn't attack.

The ape demon focused solely on Zhang Lan, ignoring everything else.

Seeing Li Qi, Zhang Lan felt relieved but sighed after noticing his cultivation, "Young friend... go quickly. With me here, they can't break through immediately. Take as many people as you can."

Li Qi calmly advanced, asking the eagle-headed demon, "Why are you so calm? Afraid I have reinforcements?"

"Haha, interesting. Without confidence, we wouldn't stand here," the eagle-headed demon laughed.

He didn't rush to attack, waiting for the ape demon's full recovery.

During their conversation, the battle worsened, the demons pushing back the humans despite Li Qi's initial help.

"Oh, I understand." Li Qi clapped, understandingly, "Seniors wouldn't act unless there's another powerful Rank Eight demon nearby, monitoring for strong reinforcements. If any appear, you'd retreat immediately, right?"

"You're perceptive, but useless. A mere Rank Nine shouldn't speak here. Leave," the eagle-headed demon, sensing the ape demon's recovery, waved dismissively.

Li Qi felt immense pressure, dodging frantically, eventually using his golden qi to resist, sustaining minor injuries.

This surprised the others—a mere Rank Nine resisting a Rank Eight's casual strike.

"Interesting. What about this?" The eagle-headed demon prepared another attack.

Zhang Lan intervened, slightly delayed, almost failing to stop the strike.

If unsuccessful, Li Qi would be thrown into the demon horde, surrounded by multiple Rank Nines.

But Li Qi remained calm, bowing politely, "Senior, look behind you. Is that your backup?"

The eagle-headed demon, laughing at Zhang Lan's hesitation, turned to see a crescent moon emitting clear light, where a beautiful woman stood holding a silver-furred rat.

Both demons looked horrified, immediately escaping—one turning into a streak of light, the other burrowing into the earth.

Zhang Lan wanted to chase but was stopped by Li Qi, "Senior, wait. No need to pursue. We must protect the people."

Nodding, Zhang Lan joined Li Qi in slaughtering the demons. Without Rank Eight support and with human soldier energy entangled with demon soldier energy, the battlefield became a slaughterhouse.

Li Qi controlled his golden qi, weaving through the battlefield, while Zhang Lan's sword qi tore through countless demons effortlessly.

Shen Shuibei, appearing earlier, stood motionless throughout.

Within minutes, the battle ended, leaving only cleanup remaining.