Chapter 247: That Being the Case

Chapter 247: That Being the Case

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Liu Jin stands in front of the Grand Storm. Murong Bang and General Nie Dan are on his right and left side, respectively. Behind them are several thousand men. Of all those people, the only ones not staring at Liu Jins back are the ones who are too far behind to see him. Everyone is waiting for him to undo the Grand Storm so the attack on the Storm Dragon Palace can begin.

Liu Jin is still not sure if he can do that.

When he asked about it, Murong Bang laughed, slapped his back so hard he nearly knocked him over, and said that Liu Jin merely needed to shout his name really loudly and demand entrance. General Nie Dan rolled his eyes and said that merely touching the Grand Storm would do it.

Liu Jin is inclined to believe the latter.

Despite that, he has yet to make a move.

There is something humbling about standing in front of the Grand Storm. Now that he is but a few steps away from it, Liu Jin can appreciate how fierce the storm is. It should be impossible for him to not feel even the slightest gust of wind, but that is the reality. The immense power of the storm is perfectly contained within a set boundary, and it feels as if trying to cross it would result in him being instantly shredded by the winds.

Of course, that will not happen. Not to him. As everyone keeps reminding him lately, he is of royal blood. That single fact means he can do what others cannot. No matter how he feels about it, it is an undeniable truth.

Liu Jin takes a deep breath and sticks out his hand.

The Grand Storm howls.

It is like hundreds of thunderclaps going off at once. A roar reaching into the heavens. The power of the Grand Storm unleashed can be no less. However, that is also all it is. There is no shockwave. The army is not suddenly buffeted by the fierce winds and rain contained within. The Grand Storm does not actually explode.

It merely fades away,

It is no different from dirty glass being cleaned. Before Liu Jin even realizes it, there is nothing blocking his sight anymore. For the first time, he lays eyes on the Storm Dragons Palace and finds it familiar.

The large army standing in front of the palace is also familiar, albeit for different reasons.

About one-third of the army is made of soldiers of the Storm Dragon Empire. There have to be thousands of them. While Murong Bang and General Nie Dans armies were fighting their way here, General He Bin must have recalled all the soldiers stationed elsewhere for this battle.

The other two-thirds of the army is made of monsters.

There are, Liu Jin supposes, more than a few normal Spirit Beasts in the opposing army. Large lions with powerful claws and boars with tusks that can pierce grown men through their armor. However, thats a relative minority. By large, the enemy army is made up of the creatures of the Death Fashioning Scripture.

Some of the creatures tower over the whole army. Big shapes whose shadows turn day to night as they pass. There are also smaller monsters. Little critters all standing so close to each other that they look like a sea of flesh that wiggles and shivers every other second.

Though General Nie Dan and Murong Bangs soldiers have done their best to burn and destroy any corpses on their path, that has clearly not done as much to deprive the Fleshcrafter of resources as they would have liked. General He Bin must have been gathering corpses for him. Depending on how far back his alliance with the Death Fashioning Scripture stretches, he could have been doing it for years. All in case a moment like this ever arrived.

No one moves.

No one breathes.

For a single moment, there is a nearly perfect stillness. With the Grand Storm gone, the armies stare at each other for the first time. Soldiers on both sides gulp and tense up, waiting for an unspoken signal.

Murong Bang gladly gives it to them.

The man leaps to the front, making the earth tremble as he does, and unleashes a torrent of flames. The fire rages across the field, heading directly towards the palace gates. Man and beast alike are reduced to cinders the instant those flames touch them, and the earth is left as molten rock. Hundreds die in the blink of an eye.

However, Murong Bangs attack never reached the palace. Before his fire can get close, a new Qi rises and smothers Murong Bangs flames with the same ease someone would use to put out a common candle. Though Liu Jin is certain the Storm Dragon could have done that if he wanted to, this is not his work. This Qi is different.

This must be General He Bins Qi.

Rather than getting angry at the ease with which his attack is dealt with, Murong Bang laughs. He probably expected that outcome. The attack that easily killed hundreds was likely no more than a greeting. Not even close to his full power.

Well? Murong Bang roars. His Qi carries his voice across the land. What are you waiting for? Go kill!

Soldiers! Engage! General Dan orders at the same time.

Its only natural. There is not a single person who likes to be outdone by an amateur, Bright Sword says. However, it does present us with an exciting opportunity. It would be a waste not to take advantage of it, wouldn't you agree?"

Before Liu Jin can ask Bright Sword what he means by that, the older cultivator grabs him by his robes and throws him over his back like a sack of rice. Liu Jins dog barely has time to bite onto his clothes to avoid Jins left behind as Bright Sword leaps into the fray.

What are you doing? Liu Jin yells.

Oh? Is it not obvious? Bright Sword asks. The Fleshcrafter makes up the bulk of the enemy forces. The Fleshcrafter also clearly wants to kill you. That being the case, using you as bait seems to me like the most logical choice.

Bright Sword blurs across the battlefield as he speaks, taking down scores of men whenever he passes.

If the Fleshcrafter is focused on killing you, he will not be as effective fighting us, and well be able to break into the palace much sooner, Bright Sword continues. And if I manage to get you inside the palace while fighting him, all the better. No one ever said we had to wait for things to be settled out here.

As many issues as Liu Jin has with that idea, Bright Swords plan quickly proves effective. Wherever they pass, the Fleshcrafters creatures soon begin to give chase.

Qing Jin!

Qing Jin!

Qing Jin!

Within seconds, there is a veritable horde after them, all of them screaming his name. It might be killing anything in its path, but Bright Sword is also successfully leading it away from where the bulk of the fighting is taking place.

There is no possible way a single cultivator can control thousands of bodies at once with anything resembling precision, Bright Sword says as he cuts down a large bag of flesh that explodes into worms. In fact, with so many bodies, its impossible for the controllers inner thoughts and feelings to not bleed into the surface. In this case, his hatred for you.

And how does he know all that?

Liu Jin is about to ask when a giant worm leaps out from underground. Liu Jin waves his hand and manifests a giant snake that eats the worm and then rushes toward the horde to take down as many as it can.

The sky turns dark.

One of the Fleshcrafters massive creatures has finally reached them. It is a multi-headed thing with far too many tusks. Something that looks like a head swings in their general direction, aiming those tusks at them. Bright Sword quickly moves out of the way in time and runs up the beasts leg with Liu Jin on his back.

Once he reaches the top of the creature, Bright Sword stomps.

The creature is cleaved in half. There is a moment of stunned silence before both halves fall over, making the earth tremble from the sheer weight of the animal and crushing anyone who fails to get out of the way in time.

Despite that, the creature is not dead yet. The pieces of its body start moving and reshaping themselves. Hundreds of bug-like creatures rise from the dead flesh and swarm towards them.

A wall of ice blocks their way.

Big Sister Bai floats down in front of them, and though Liu Jin cannot see her face, he knows she is glaring at Bright Sword.

I do not approve of this, she says.

I was wondering how long itd take you to abandon your silly attempts to hide, disciple of the Divine Frozen Palace, Bright Sword says as he adjusts his grip on Liu Jin. However, what do you plan on doing? Do you think you can fight me in the middle of a war? That would be rather counter-productive.

Make no mistake. If I thought I had to, I would kill you where you stand, Big Sister Bai says. However, that is not what this situation calls for.

The wall begins cracking. The creatures of the Fleshcrafter have grown fangs and claws that they use to dig into the ice.

Rest assured, I will not let any harm come to you, she tells Liu Jin as she moves to stand next to Bright Sword.

The ice breaks.

The horde advances towards them.

Lets end this quickly, Bright Sword says. "The palace awaits."

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