At this moment, seeing the City Lord of Nanhai City and the King of Xizi Kingdom advancing unopposed, like a broken bamboo.
Shui Fang and Ying Lu leaped out, intercepting the City Lord of Nanhai City, while Yue Jiuming and Liu Mei proactively moved to block the King of Xizi Kingdom.
The Vermilion Bird, facing the two individuals who had appeared before him, paid no mind to their origins, only showing interest in the items they held.
He recognized whose possessions they were.
"The Yu Shui Jin Jing Spear, the treasure of the Dragon King of Nanhai Yi, and the Blazing Sword, the weapon of a great general of the Demon Clan. It is unexpected that these treasures have ultimately fallen into the hands of the Demon Clan," Shui Fang said with displeasure.
"Forgive me for saying so, Your Majesty, but the grievances between the Ghostly Clan and the Four Cities are long-standing. However, we should not prolong this hatred into the present for the sake of past enmities. Even if the Ghostly Clan has sinned, after so many years, should they not have atoned?"
The Vermilion Bird looked at the two ignorant youths before him and chuckled coldly.
"You understand nothing, so how can you comprehend the suffering of the Four Cities? Only a small portion of the entire Divine Clan survived, living in obscurity, merely clinging to life. Yet, the Demon Clan remains unharmed and can even rename themselves the Ghostly Clan."
Ying Lu asked in confusion, "What exactly is the reason for your intense hatred of the Ghostly Clan?"
The Vermilion Bird spoke slowly.
"Ten thousand years ago, the main culprit of the Great Desolate War was the Demon Clan. Because they instigated battles between various races, they caused the annihilation of the Divine Clan. Therefore, our purpose for survival is to demand this blood debt from the Demon Clan."
Shui Fang said helplessly, "Ten thousand years have passed, and people still cannot coexist peacefully?"
The Vermilion Bird shook his head and explained.
"We do this to prevent what happened ten thousand years ago from recurring, yet we cannot escape such a fate. I see that you are not inherently evil. If you surrender now and cease your participation, I will spare your lives."
Ying Lu smiled slightly and refused him.
"Your Majesty's kindness is appreciated, but as generals of the Alliance Army, we are destined to live and die with the Alliance, and will never retreat from battle."
The Vermilion Bird greatly admired their integrity and said.
"Very well. Since that is the case, then come. Swords have no eyes. If you end up on the Yellow Springs Road, do not blame me for my ruthlessness."
Ying Lu replied, "This is precisely what we intend to say to you."
With that, the two of them charged forward rapidly. The Vermilion Bird met them with his sword. The divine artifacts clashed, neither side yielding. Sparks flew and lightning flashed.
At this moment, Yue Jiuming and Liu Mei also intercepted the City Lord of Nanhai City. The White Tiger was not unfamiliar with the two before him. The White Tiger said, "Are you Yue Jiuming?"
Yue Jiuming replied, "Indeed, I am."
"I have heard of you two. You killed my Northern Divine Capital generals and Xizi Kingdom generals, didn't you?"
"Yes," Yue Jiuming admitted.
"Good. Since you have fallen into the demonic path, I need not be polite."
Saying this, he waved his hands forward, creating a suction force that pulled the two towards him.
Liu Mei exclaimed in surprise, "What kind of technique is this?"
Yue Jiuming replied, "I don't know either, but it's best to be cautious. The King of Xizi Kingdom is not easily dealt with."
"Alright, I understand."
Just then, Ye Changfeng suddenly flew out and spewed earth fire from the Earth Fire Pearl towards the Vermilion Bird. The Vermilion Bird sensed danger and dodged in time, then swung a palm towards Ye Changfeng.
Ye Changfeng reacted swiftly, dodging to the side and then flinging out the God Slaying Sword. Liu Mei and Yue Jiuming also raised their swords and lunged at him.
The Vermilion Bird swung his cloak, blocking Ye Changfeng's sword, then spun and sent it back, which Ye Changfeng caught.
He then waved his hand towards the sword stuck in the ground, turned, and slashed at the two of them. He then leaped up and kicked them both in the chest.
The two were sent flying forward by the kicks, but were fortunately caught by Ye Changfeng in time.
The three of them were still no match for the Vermilion Bird. After all, he had lived for tens of thousands of years, and his strength was far beyond their reach.
Ye Changfeng suggested, "Let the three of us attack together."
"Agreed," the other two replied. The three then wielded their swords and flew up. Ye Changfeng knew that the combined strength of the three of them was still no match for him, so he took out the Earth Fire Pearl and attacked.
The Vermilion Bird dodged while swinging his sword. Finally, annoyed by Ye Changfeng, he sprinted and appeared behind him. Liu Mei sensed danger and urgently cried out.
"Brother Ye, be careful!"
Ye Changfeng immediately turned to face him, but the Vermilion Bird flipped over him, striking him on the head.
Liu Mei and Yue Jiuming rushed forward to help.
At this moment, Ye Changfeng's divine consciousness was shattered by the palm strike, his skull cracked, and his body went limp, collapsing to the ground.
The Earth Fire Pearl also rolled out of his hand and landed nearby. Pitiably, he died without even being able to utter a word.
The Vermilion Bird flipped behind Yue Jiuming and stabbed him in the back. Liu Mei cried out in grief, "Brother Jiu!"
She then furiously swung her sword forward. As her blade neared, it struck the Vermilion Bird's chest, but she could not pierce the armor.
The Vermilion Bird kicked her sword away, then grabbed her by the neck with one hand and choked her to death before discarding her body on the ground and turning to leave.
He did not take the Earth Fire Pearl. He always believed that strength did not require any additional accoutrements.
Meanwhile, the two fighting the White Tiger, despite the enhancement of divine artifacts, were far inferior to the White Tiger in terms of strength.
Shui Fang raised the Yu Shui Jin Jing Spear and unleashed a water column at the White Tiger. The White Tiger flicked his hand, and the entire stream of water instantly turned into ice pillars.
He then drew the cold ice towards him with both hands, rubbing it in front of him to form a large ice ball. Ying Lu hurriedly unleashed a blast of fire from the Blazing Sword towards the White Tiger.
The White Tiger dodged the attack with the ice ball, then waved his hands, splitting the ice ball into two large ice balls that he hurled at the two of them.
Shui Fang and Ying Lu dodged urgently, but the White Tiger commanded the large ice balls to pursue them relentlessly. Ying Lu then slashed at a large ice ball, only to have his sword stuck to it.
The White Tiger seized the opportunity, flew behind him, and pierced his back with his sword.
Shui Fang, seeing this, cried out in alarm, "Ying Lu!" and immediately rushed forward.
The White Tiger swung a blast of cold ice. While Shui Fang dodged, he drew his sword and flung it, striking Shui Fang and killing him.
The White Tiger looked at the divine artifacts in their hands and considered taking them back, but then decided against it and turned to leave.
At this moment, the army of the Northern Divine Capital had already reached the battlefield. Hei Feng and Zhu Yan were still fighting fiercely.
Hei Feng looked around and felt that many people were missing. He asked in confusion.
"I don't seem to see the Twenty-Four Mountain Lords or Tian Long."
Zhu Yan also looked confused. He scanned the surroundings and did not see his elder brother, Yue Jiuming, Shui Fang, or Ying Lu.
"Where did my elder brother go?"
"Could he have been scattered by the army?"
"Very likely."
As they were speaking, a troop of Northern Divine Capital cavalry suddenly charged towards them. Zhu Yan immediately stepped forward and said, "Let me handle this."
He then raised his great saber and shouted, "Kai Shan Po Dao!"
He swung it at the ground, and a surge of energy erupted, striking the cavalry and splitting them into two groups.
The cavalry quickly discovered them and then charged towards them.
Hei Feng transformed into a black whirlwind and charged towards them, entangling everyone. He then reverted to human form and drew his weapons to fight them.
Zhu Yan also quickly joined in, severing the enemy's spears and leaping onto his horse. With a sweep of his great saber, he slashed and kicked left and right, fighting with gusto.
Hei Feng also joined him, swinging his sword left and right. With a burst of strength, he slit an enemy's throat and kicked him off his horse.
Just then, several dark arrows flew from a distance, striking Zhu Yan in the back and arm, and Hei Feng in the leg and back.
After pulling out the arrows, the two turned to look around but could not see the archers. Zhu Yan asked in confusion, "Who is shooting arrows from the dark?"
Hei Feng felt a sense of unease and said.
"It seems someone is ambushing us. We should leave this place and go somewhere else."
Zhu Yan agreed and turned to leave with him. At that moment, dark arrows suddenly shot out from the shadows, aimed at the two of them.
Hei Feng grabbed a dark arrow and saw someone moving rapidly in the crowd. He immediately charged forward and killed that person with a sword.
Zhu Yan also caught up. He laughed and said, "So it was this person."
Before they could relax, several more arrows flew from the shadows, piercing the two of them. Then, cavalry emerged and surrounded them.
Hei Feng cursed, "Not good! We're surrounded!"
As he was about to turn and flee, a sky-covering volley of arrows suddenly flew towards them. The two had no choice but to stop, parrying with their swords while retreating.
However, they were now cornered. The cavalry had charged forward and surrounded them. Zhu Yan said.
"Since there's no way out, let's fight. At least we'll take some with us."
"Alright."
So the two fought with all their might, but the hidden archers also took the opportunity to shoot dark arrows at them.
Although the two could handle the cavalry with ease, they were hit by several arrows.
At this moment, a dark arrow flew and pierced Zhu Yan's left chest. Knowing that they would both die if they continued to linger, he said to Hei Feng.
"You go quickly, I'll hold them off."
Hei Feng shook his head and said, "We go together or not at all!" With that, he ran to help him up, fighting and breaking through their encirclement.
At this moment, he suddenly remembered the Buddhist beads his aunt had given him and took them off, placing them on Zhu Yan's hand. Zhu Yan asked in confusion, "What is this?"
"It's for safety."
"Then why are you giving it to me?"
"You have a strong life force, I need to borrow some of your luck."
"Alright, I will definitely get you out of here."
As he spoke, the cavalry charged forward with their spears. Hei Feng hurriedly slashed, and at that moment, two dark arrows shot towards his chest.
Zhu Yan quickly shouted, "Hei Feng, are you alright?"
Hei Feng forced himself to stand and said, "I'm fine."
At this moment, the cavalry dispersed, and a barrage of arrows flew towards them. As the two scrambled to defend themselves.
Suddenly, the cavalry threw spears at them from the front and back. In a moment of crisis, a white light flashed, protecting Zhu Yan.
As he curiously turned to look at Hei Feng, he saw that Hei Feng, riddled with arrows and struck by a spear, had fallen to the ground, dead.
Zhu Yan hugged Hei Feng's corpse, trying to revive him.
"Hei Feng, Hei Feng, wake up, wake up! I promised I'd take you out, why did you leave without me, why didn't you wait for me?"
With that, he rose in anger and roared at them, "I'll kill you all!"
However, as he raised his saber, several arrows shot from behind him and pierced his back. He endured the pain and took a step forward.
Then, several more arrows struck him. Zhu Yan, exhausted and unable to continue, finally fell to the ground with his last breath of unwillingness.
When Gui Ye, Fu Zimo, and Xue Ruyi arrived, they only saw two corpses lying beneath a hail of arrows.
Fu Zimo, unable to suppress his grief, cried out and ran towards one of the bodies.
"Second Brother! Second Brother! Why did you leave so suddenly, why did you leave so suddenly?"
He then collapsed beside Zhu Yan. Gui Ye, struggling to conceal the tears welling up in his eyes, slowly walked to Zhu Yan's side.
He then went to Hei Feng and touched his cold corpse, his heart filled with emotion.
Xue Ruyi also walked to Zhu Yan's side, touching his cold body, his heart aching with helplessness.
Gui Ye turned to look at the still weeping Fu Zimo and the sorrowful Xue Ruyi and said, "Zimo, Ruyi, are you afraid of death?"
Xue Ruyi slowly stood up and sighed, saying, "Death is not frightening. What is frightening is the pain of an unfinished great cause."
Fu Zimo also said, "I am not afraid of death."
Gui Ye sighed and said.
"Since we chose to join Black Mountain and the Ghostly Clan, we must live and die with the Ghostly Clan and the Demon King. Now that Second Brother has gone ahead, and Elder Brother is missing, and our brothers are dying one by one, it will eventually be our turn. So, let's make a grand effort before we die."
Xue Ruyi, hearing his words, felt a surge of desire. He said, "Alright, then let's make a grand effort."
Gui Ye extended his hand and pulled Fu Zimo up. Fu Zimo looked up at him, seeing the tenderness and determination in his eyes.
Fu Zimo nodded and said, "Alright, Third Brother, I'll make one last grand effort with you."
Gui Ye nodded, and the three of them then ran into the midst of the fighting. Gui Ye unleashed threads to entangle the soldiers of the Northern Divine Capital, Fu Zimo threw his Shore Flower, unleashing a hundred swords to assassinate them, while Xue Ruyi weaved through the crowd, assassinating them.
At this moment, four generals of the Northern Divine Capital and a general of Xizi Kingdom charged from behind with their swords. Gui Ye turned and entangled the four with his threads.
Fu Zimo also turned and used his Shore Flower to trap them. Suddenly, two swords flew from mid-air and struck Gui Ye and Fu Zimo.
Gui Ye swayed slightly and slowly walked towards Fu Zimo, taking his hand and saying, "Zimo, let's go together."
Fu Zimo nodded slightly, closed his eyes with satisfaction, and fell forward.
At this moment, two swords flew out, and Gui Ye, unable to hold on, collapsed and died.
Xue Ruyi looked back. The two behind him had already died from sword wounds. His heart filled with grief, he drew his sword and charged forward.
At this moment, the White Tiger and the Vermilion Bird emerged from the crowd. They each raised their hands, and their swords flew back into their hands. Seeing Xue Ruyi charging at them, they sent their flying swords to stab him again.
However, they only struck his illusory clone. Xue Ruyi had already reached the White Tiger's back and slashed at him. However, the hard armor, like ancient iron, caused his hand to sting.
The Vermilion Bird attacked with his sword, but he escaped again. At this moment, the White Tiger stopped the Vermilion Bird, slapped the ground, and ice crystals emerged, rushing towards Xue Ruyi.
Knowing that he could not evade, Xue Ruyi swung his sword towards the White Tiger, but the Vermilion Bird flashed behind him and stabbed him in the chest.
Then, the White Tiger delivered another blow. Xue Ruyi smiled slightly, thinking.
"Demon King, I can only do this much."
Then, as both of them drew their swords, he fell heavily to the ground, meeting his demise.
At this moment, the White Tiger said, "The forces of the Ten Thousand Demon King have been largely cleared."
The Vermilion Bird pointed to two white-robed figures dancing among the soldiers of the Northern Divine Capital in the distance and said.
"These two were descendants of the Divine Clan, yet they are so indiscriminate, falling into the demonic path."
The White Tiger asked, "Should we kill them?"
"If they are willing to repent, spare their lives. Otherwise, we will make further plans."
The White Tiger found this reasonable and nodded slightly in agreement.
As for me, the Ten Thousand Demon King, and the City Lord of the Northern Divine Capital, and the Town Lord of Dongyue, we fought for a long time before managing to scratch their armor and wound their skin.
Their strength was not inferior to Liu Xiang's. It seemed difficult to resolve them.
The City Lord of the Northern Divine Capital, Qing Long, shouted, "Ten Thousand Demon King, how long do you intend to fight us like this? You cannot win against us."
I firmly thought to myself, "No! I will definitely defeat you."
"You are still as stubborn as you were ten thousand years ago."
As soon as he spoke, a doubt arose in my heart, and I asked him, "What about ten thousand years ago?"
"Perhaps that Liu Muye is not you, but merely looks somewhat alike. Come, take this."
Saying this, he unleashed a powerful sword wind towards me. I immediately raised my sword and unleashed my dual-sword ultimate skills, "Dragon's Roar" and "Crimson Blood Break."
The two sword energies collided, creating a strong whirlwind. Then, the sword energies fought within the wind and exploded.