Chapter 285: North of the Great Liang (II)

The construction of the Great Wall in the Northern Frontier began during the Great Liang Dynasty. The founding emperor abhorred the demons in the North and had long wanted to annihilate the northern demons since his ascension to the throne. However, both he and the other founding meritorious officials understood that such an endeavor required not only the national strength of a dynasty at its very peak, but also the assistance of the cultivators from the foreign lands. At that time, neither of these conditions could be met. Hence, the founding emperor never initiated a war with the demons during his lifetime. Instead, he constructed the Great Wall to resist and change the situation where the demons frequently headed south to plunder civilians.

A magnificent Great Wall was gradually heightened over the years and stood firmly on this vast expanse of desolate north, becoming the final line of defense for the Great Liang Dynasty. During the reign of Emperor Taizong, numerous passes had been newly established before the desolate north's Great Wall, forming crucial choke points that the demons had to pass through when advancing south. Wars in previous years had all commenced from these passes too.

The segment of the Great Wall in the northeast, which Wan Shi guarded, was originally located beyond a pass called Yongcang Pass. However, in previous battles, Yongcang Pass had fallen and been occupied by the demons, leaving them directly facing the demons' attack without any protection.

After a long silence, Wan Shi regained his composure and said rather wearily, "How many storms and hardships has the Great General endured in his defense of the Northern Frontier these years? It's not that the Great General is getting old, but rather that he has sacrificed too much for the people of our Great Liang."

A Northern Frontier martial artist could live comfortably in any office of the Great Liang Dynasty, and he would certainly be respected too. Why bother coming to this Northern Frontier's Great Wall to brave the elements and face the constant risk of death in battle?

The deputy murmured softly, "The Great General should return to the Divine Capital now that his health is deteriorating."

He did not finish his sentence, but Wan Shi understood clearly; he meant return to the Divine Capital to spend the rest of his life peacefully, which might not be many more years.

"But if the desolate north loses the Great General, how can we ensure the morale of the troops? Even without considering troop morale, how can we resist the demons' southward advancement without the Great General?"

The deputy shook his head gently. After so many years, they had long grown accustomed to the times when the Great General was present. If the day came when the Great General was truly gone, who could succeed to the position of the Northern Frontier Great General might actually be the most difficult thing to consider.

Wan Shi remained silent, his gaze suddenly fixed on the distance.

At the far end of his line of sight, a dense black cloud suddenly appeared on the horizon!

The deputy suddenly shouted, "Enemy attack!"

There had already been a demon attack on the city wall before, but that attack had come and gone swiftly. Although they were curious, they did not think too much about it. But now, what was happening? The first wave of demons had just retreated, and now the second wave was arriving here.

The soldiers on the city wall became nervous, gripping the sabers in their hands as they watched the dark cloud floating closer and closer.

Wan Shi stood up, his expression grim as he looked in that direction.

After years of battling the demons in the north, he naturally knew what this black cloud meant.

"There's a great demon among them..."

The deputy took a sharp breath, voicing what Wan Shi wanted to say. In past major battles, whenever a dark cloud appeared in the sky, it meant that at least one great demon was leading the assault.

Although their section of the Great Wall was not considered a critical area, and they had never been lucky enough to encounter a great demon, it did not mean that they were unaware of the gravity of the situation.

"In that great battle last autumn, I was reassigned to Hangu Pass to obey orders. There, I glimpsed a world-shaking great demon from a distance. Its dharma idol could span thousands of feet, towering high in the sky. It was unbelievably terrifying. The demonic qi was so thick that it was likely equivalent to a demon army numbering in the tens of thousands.

The deputy slowly opened his mouth to say. He still had lingering fear in his heart to this day when mentioning that incident. Back then, if it had not been for the intervention of the powerhouses in the army, he would have long perished on the battlefield.

Wan Shi glanced casually in the direction not far away, where some fine golden threads had emerged on the beacon tower and then dissipated.

This was a communication method that the Ministry of Works had been improving over the years. When the golden threads dissipated, it meant that the message had been sent out. As for the response over there, and what kind of reinforcements would be sent to this side, it was not something Wan Shi could worry about. His mission was to stay here and ensure that not a single demon could climb on top of the city walls before he died.

However, as the dark cloud drew closer, Wan Shi could not help but feel nervous. The city wall had array formations that could contend with such powerhouses, but since the enemy dared to come, they must be prepared. It was likely difficult to hold out with just the few of them.

"Bring out the divine crossbows on the city wall first and see what their intentions are."

Wan Shi gave the order. Soon, a huge divine crossbow was brought to a high platform in the distance. Two soldiers lifted an enormous arrow and placed it on the crossbow. Then, with the cooperation of four people, they pulled the arm-thick bowstring, aiming at the dark cloud in the distance.

The divine crossbow now exuded a menacing aura, especially the arrow, which emitted an extremely terrifying aura.

It was a weapon that the Great Liang Dynasty had developed over the years specifically to deal with demons. Each arrow was quite complicated to forge, hence their immense power. If one of these arrows were shot, even an ordinary Great Beyond powerhouse would likely choose to avoid it temporarily.

"Fire!"

Wan Shi quickly ordered, his voice cold. As long as the demons dared to appear in front of the Great Wall, they would naturally be the enemy. Even if they were not yet at the Great Wall, they were still the enemy!

As the middle-aged sword cultivator spoke, countless pairs of eyes in the entire great hall fell on the Great General.

The old man slowly looked towards the vice-general on one side, nodded, and then calmly said, "After putting in so much effort in the early stages, this general naturally won't have any other thoughts. How to proceed will remain as planned. This is something that cannot be changed no matter who comes. However, at this point, there are some things I still want to say."

The old man stood up slowly and looked at everyone present with a calm expression.

"Leaving other matters aside, let's take Wan Shi that kid for example. This general and his grandfather once fought together, and then his father also served as my personal guard. Later, it became him. Several generations have been here, all for the sake of the people of the Great Liang. However, this general has never given that boy any special treatment. His rise to the rank of deputy general was all due to his own efforts. It's just that now, thinking about it, his dying on the battlefield feels quite fitting to this general. But dying like this as an abandoned pawn, this general feels somewhat reluctant."

His voice was light as he spoke, without any sense of authority, looking just like an ordinary and unremarkable old man.

The vice-general had originally intended to leave when he saw the Great General nod. However, suddenly hearing this, he did not leave straight away and probed, "Great General, if you felt reluctant earlier, why didn't you replace Wan Shi?"

Great General ignored him and just furrowed his brows.

Having followed the Great General for many years, the vice-general knew what the Great General meant. A tinge of regret and remorse flashed across his face, and he soon walked out of the grand hall with large strides.

Watching this vice-general leave, the generals who had been listening to the Great General's words tensely heaved sighs of relief.

With the departure of that vice-general, the dust was considered to have settled.

Great General looked at the people present and continued, "I'll repeat it, the situation cannot be changed, but personally, I must do something."

Upon hearing these words, those present understood the Great General's intent. The middle-aged sword cultivator immediately interjected, "Great General, you cannot go!"

He did not give a reason, just expressed his thoughts.

Everyone else was the same.

"Great General, since you can't let go of Wan Shi and don't want them to become so-called pawns, send someone out right now, maybe there's still a chance. The overall situation is set, and those outside of the chessboard can naturally do anything. I'm leaving right now to head to that section of the Great Wall."

The middle-aged sword cultivator spoke, his eyes determined, yet his expression was indifferent.

The Great General looked at him and similarly asked, "What about the rest aside from Wan Shi?"

......

......

The mass of dark clouds finally still closed in on the city walls, revealing an incomparably big and tall figure that loomed within the dark cloud. It was the great demon who had yet to show his face.

But his powerful aura was already displayed in its entirety at this moment.

The thick demonic qi continued to permeate the air, eventually reaching the city walls.

Wan Shi gripped the hilt of his saber and looked up.

He could feel an immensely oppressive aura currently moving towards the city walls. The defensive array on the city walls seemed to be on the brink of collapse at this moment.

Wan Shi glanced at the dark cloud and let out a sigh, knowing that there were certain things he could not perceive at the moment but definitely existed.

That figure emerged from the dark cloud and arrived on the city walls, locking eyes with Wan Shi.

Wan Shi sensed a very indifferent emotion.

That was a towering man clad in black robes, with an indifferent expression. He was not very different from a human. The only thing different was perhaps those pair of eyes. The pupils were green.

He was a demon.

A great demon