Chapter 1037 - 320: Unexpected Turns

Miraculously, the demon race’s general had his head severed by Lauren, and his body collapsed onto the ground without much struggle; his life force rapidly faded away.

The demon race’s general was so easily beheaded by a mere soldier, unable to rise again, as his flesh quickly turned to ashes, leaving only a skeleton, as if scorched by flames, with the smell of burnt feathers.

The death of the demon race’s general did not bring an end to the war, but the absence of such a powerful force gave humans a clear advantage.

After personally beheading the demon race’s general, Lauren seemed to grow even more valiant, with seven blessings bestowed on him: Blessing of resilience, Blessing of protection, Swift Blessing, Purification Blessing, Sharp Blessing, Frenzy Blessing, and Rhythm Blessing.

Each blessing greatly enhanced him in certain aspects, coupled with the longsword in his hand, which was a weapon strengthened by faith, forming a combat power sufficient to sever the general’s neck.

Finally.

They did not allow the demon race to completely enter the inner city; rather, at the final stage of the war, they drove the demon army out step by step, killing them in the outer city.

The longer the time dragged on, the greater their advantage became, as the legion magic continually inflicted considerable casualties on the demon race army. Although the Mage Legion was in a state of magic power exhaustion, magic power always recovers; it just takes time.

This was why the demon race army was so eager to break into the inner city; the longer the time dragged on, the more demons would die under the magic storm sweeping down from the sky.

Magic itself had its advantages, capable of easily causing large-scale devastating damage. If those demons did not have high magic resistance, how could they be opponents of the Human Empire?

These demons seemed to have been created specifically against the humans of this world. In themselves, they were not so terrifying but entirely occupied the position of a natural enemy.

The battle continued into the night, with the demon army trapped in the outer city, numbering only a few thousand, yet still fiercely resisting.

These monsters did not understand what fear was at all.

The war drew to a close, the outcome was set; no matter how these remaining demons resisted, it was no use, merely a struggle of trapped beasts.

Linda also completely relaxed, knowing they had thoroughly defended this time, at least for a short while, without worrying about the demon army’s attack.

At this moment, her junior Roy rushed over from the direction of the church.

Seeing this, Linda asked, "What happened to make you so anxious?"

Roy ran, panting heavily, with black blood staining his clothes. He handed an opened letter to Linda, saying:

"News has come that the demon race army has already broken through Wuhe City."

Linda widened her eyes, immediately saying, "Impossible! Even if it was breached, it shouldn’t be so fast!"

Wuhe City itself was a military stronghold, with two whole army corps stationed there, along with two Mage Legions; it was the Empire’s most confident defense line.

Normally, Wuhe City, even if breached, shouldn’t happen now, nor so quickly. Based on the time, it should have barely arrived.

Roy shook his head, "Look at the letter from your teacher, it’s not that it was breached, but that Wuhe City surrendered. The City Lord, Yawei Li, betrayed, leading nearly a million soldiers and civilians from top to bottom in the city to join the demon race!"

Linda quickly opened the envelope to check the contents. The teacher did not explain much, but it seemed that the marshals of the two army corps and even the City Lord of Wuhe City had already betrayed beforehand.

The demon race army came, faced no resistance, and completely took over Wuhe City.

The White Tiger Legion, still on the way and yet to arrive, had to retreat, stationed at Reed City across the river.

Such news was undoubtedly a disaster for the current Empire; no one knew how the demon race managed it, making nearly a million soldiers and civilians from Wuhe City surrender.

"Damn it, how could they side with the demon race, this is terrible, the demon army might potentially march south from the north, and the cities along the way might not hold against them."

Linda furrowed her brows tightly, unsure how to face such a situation; continuing like this, half of the Empire might fall.

After all, besides the army, most ordinary civilians possessed little combat capability when faced with the demon army; they could either flee or face death.

Linda made a swift decision, taking a deep breath, "The teacher has already led people over; we must leave right away."

Roy, hesitating, said as he looked at his senior sister, "We’re going now? Senior sister, perhaps you should rest a bit, otherwise there really could be death."

"Previously, we heard about mages dying suddenly from magic power exhaustion..."

Linda mercilessly said, "Enough talk, we’re leaving now, we can rest along the way."

Soon, Linda took part of the church’s believers ready to depart, receiving another piece of news from City Lord Dale; Count Fengye led his army north to resist the demon race.

"Only when reaching the cliff edge does the entire Empire unite," she sighed.

The Empire, seemingly grand and strong, had actually long started to decay internally. All forces were wary of each other, even facing imminent threats, still harbored their own agendas.

If placed in an earlier era, all the Empire’s armies and mages might have rushed to the front line for a desperate fight, not holding back like now.

The Forbidden Guard still stationed at the Imperial Capital, seemingly guarding it but actually confronting Count Fengye; and in the Empire’s rear, a whole army group stationed just to fend off neighboring country invasions.

...

"Has Wuhe fallen?"

The Emperor’s expression changed drastically upon hearing this news, furious, "That coward actually sacrificed all of Wuhe just to save his own skin."

Things were far more strange than they sounded—Wuhe City seemed to have shown no resistance, gladly accepting the fact of surrender.

The occurrence of such events frightened not only him but all the ministers, as the news, once spread, might trigger turmoil.

Wuhe City is very close to the Imperial Capital. If not intercepted, the Demon Race army could threaten the capital within days, and once the Imperial City is breached, the fall of the entire Empire wouldn’t be far off.

The hall was silent, completely different from its previous bustling state, as the Prime Minister spoke under pressure:

"Your Majesty, now might be the time to send the Forbidden Guard north to join forces with Count Fengye to fend off the Demon Race army, while relocating two legions to the Imperial City as a precaution."

The owl on the dead tree called out once again.

"Good news!"

"Good news!"

...

Everyone was stunned, thinking that the war in Luo Han might have reached a conclusion, and upon hearing it was good news, relaxed somewhat, yet couldn’t be genuinely happy.

A messenger adorned with green feathers rushed into the hall from outside, shouting, "Luo Han has successfully defended against the Demon Race’s attack with the help of the All Beings Sect, and has slain the Demon Race’s grand commander."

Upon hearing this, the Emperor’s expression finally improved a bit, even though it was anticipated, it only felt assured once the news was confirmed. He then asked Lune:

"What’s President Takka’s response?"

Lune stepped forward and said, "He has already hastened north promptly, Viduo City is essentially safe now, guarded by a Divine Envoy."

The Emperor nodded, said steadily, "We’ll proceed as the Prime Minister suggested, sending the Forbidden Guard north to rendezvous with the White Tiger Legion, contacting Count Fengye, and repelling the Demon Race army together."

...

Su Changxing also didn’t expect that the military stronghold in the Empire’s north surrendered so easily, catching even him off guard.

These Demons’ abilities exceeded his expectations, not only attacking directly but also using strategies. As it’s said, the highest strategy is to win without fighting, which the Demon Race managed to achieve.

Moreover, they didn’t massacre the city but rather assimilated its people into the Demon Race in some manner.

Becoming a Demon is a way to survive, which for the city’s inhabitants, seemed a better path than death, anyway.

...

Linda, accompanied by her followers, arrived at the nearest town to Luo Han. Despite being daytime, there seemed to be few people in town, seemingly somewhat desolate.

Linda frowned, "There aren’t many people, huh?"

Lauren, following, explained, "This is quite close to Luo Han, many people don’t believe Luo Han can hold out, so those who could leave have left, fleeing for their lives."

Linda nodded, lamenting, "But once the Empire falls, where can they escape to?"

Roy looked around, perplexed, "Aren’t we heading north? Why are we coming here?"

Linda glanced at him and said, "Heading north is indeed the plan, but more crucially, we must develop Faith in the All Beings Sect. Only with the help of the God can we resist the Demon Race."

Now she finally has some awareness as a Saintess, at least prioritizing the Church’s matters regardless of the ultimate purpose.

Of course, this is partly thanks to Su Changxing’s subtle guidance and hints; otherwise, the Saint might have done something unbecoming of a Saintess.

He wouldn’t let such a large Empire fall, not even a single city, as these are all foundational to the Faith. Each city has at least tens of thousands of people, representing a vast amount of Faith.

Roy instinctively looked up at the sky, catching up with Linda’s pace, asking, "Will a church fall from the sky again?"

Linda turned back and looked at him, mysteriously saying, "Guess."

Roy was speechless, unable to restrain himself, "Is this child’s play? Still guessing?"

Linda cast a threatening glance, "Who are you calling a child?"

Roy instantly chickened out, awkwardly smiling, "I’m talking about myself, just myself, Holy Maiden, don’t misunderstand me."

Sure enough, shortly after they arrived, a small church plummeted from the sky into the town.

Everyone in town was astonished, amazed, with some older folks bowing on the ground without waiting for guidance.

Linda was also somewhat puzzled, wondering, "These people seem to already know of the Divine Spirit, as if they’re its believers."

Lauren, on the other hand, knew a bit about this, saying, "In relatively remote areas like these, there are legends about the Divine Spirit; some people even worship it secretly."

Roy, curious, asked, "How do you know so much about this?"

Lauren hesitated briefly, saying, "I grew up from such a place. These organizations, once they grow stronger, get labeled as cults, and military forces conduct regular clean-ups annually."

Linda conducted an initial baptismal oath, leaving several believers as priests to organize the work, then departed the town with her people, heading to the next place.

Su Changxing also realized that, in such small towns, although fewer people are present, it’s relatively easier to gather Faith and nurture loyal believers.

Especially those elderly plagued with illnesses, as the All Beings Sect’s church inherently possesses the ability to heal diseases and alleviate pain.