192: Chapter 192 The Real Flowing Clouds and Waves

Just as Qin Ce had expected.

Just as the five teams appeared at the edges of their respective Silver Rank beast groups' territories, various situations began to occur within each group.

To the East, the nest of the Black-armored Marching Scorpions was bombed.

Someone had tied highly concentrated energy crystal cores to a Pet Beast, sent it deep into the nest, and detonated the cores.

Half of the nest collapsed, and dense swarms of Black-armored Marching Scorpions surged out from the ruins, their tails held high and poison stingers glinting with a faint blue light in the twilight.

Their compound eyes flickered with a furious red in the darkness as they surged toward Huhe Bay, following the lingering scent of humans in the air.

To the South, at the edge of the Silver-spotted Shadow Wolves' territory, several pups had gone missing.

While the shadow wolf pack was out hunting, someone had snuck into their nest, stuffed the nursing pups into special hide bags, and bolted toward Huhe Bay on a speed-type Pet Beast.

When the mother wolves returned, the nest was empty, leaving only an unfamiliar scent. They howled at the sky, their silver fur bristling in the moonlight like clusters of burning silver flames as they gave chase, following the scent.

To the West, the habitat of the Iron-Spined Crocodiles was set ablaze.

Someone used a fire-attribute skill to ignite the reeds along the riverbank, and the fire spread with the wind, turning the entire beach into scorched earth.

While Iron-Spined Crocodiles didn't fear fire, their eggs did. The eggs buried in the sand made faint cracking sounds under the high heat, like silent wails of grief.

The pack of Iron-Spined Crocodiles crawled out of the water, their dark yellow eyes fixed on Huhe Bay. They opened their mouths, revealing rows of sharp teeth, and let out low roars like muffled thunder.

To the North, the habitat of the Demonized Sparrows was disturbed. Someone broke into the withered forest where they lived and used fire to destroy their nests. The swarm of Demonized Sparrows exploded from the canopy, blotting out the sky like a moving black cloud, screaming as they lunged toward Huhe Bay.

To the Northwest, at the edge of the Poison-spine Porcupines' territory, someone deliberately stepped into a trap they had set and then bolted, leading over a dozen enraged Poison-spine Porcupines toward Huhe Bay. Those

porcupines' poison spines stood up like arrows, each step bringing a gust of foul-smelling wind.

Five teams, five directions, and five groups of enraged Silver Rank fierce beasts.

Qin Ce stood atop the castle, Nine-Star Insight operating at full power. In his vision, five dark torrents were surging toward Huhe Bay from different directions.

The corners of Qin Ce's mouth curled up slightly.

Those Wang Family scouts had indeed made their move.

They thought they were in the shadows, that their scheme was foolproof, and that Qin Ce would be overwhelmed by these five groups of Silver Rank fierce beasts. But they didn't know that this was exactly what Qin Ce was waiting for.

"Everyone, come back! Get on the city walls!"

Seeing the five groups of fierce beasts before they had even begun pulling monsters, the twenty-four figures ran straight back.

Twenty-four people and twenty-four Pet Beasts spread out across the walls like a row of fully drawn bows.

On the city walls, thanks to the resources provided by Qin Ce's relentless killing of fierce beasts over the past month regardless of cost or consumption, the Pet Beasts standing behind them were no longer the frail, half-dead creatures they once were.

Jiang Mo stood on the left wing, with the Nightmare he had received from Qin Ce crouching at his feet.

It had now grown to knee-height, its pitch-black fur shimmering with a dark luster under the moonlight. Its dual attributes of darkness and psychic allowed it to thrive in night battles.

Its eyes were dark purple, like two ghost fires, coldly staring at the black tide surging beneath the city walls.

Lei Gang stood on the right wing, with the Black Iron War Ape crouching behind him.

The silver-gray young ape from a month ago had now grown to two meters tall, its muscles bulging and its arms thicker than an adult's waist. Its fur had changed from silver-gray to deep gray, gleaming with a metallic luster—the result of being nourished by metal-attribute energy. Lei Gang patted its arm, and the war ape let out a low growl, slamming its fists into the ground, causing it to tremble slightly.

Sun Lie sat atop the Ice-Armored Blazing Rhino, occupying the platform at the highest point of the castle. The Ice-Armored Blazing Rhino's size had increased again compared to a month ago, the golden patterns on its dark red scales becoming denser. The dual energies of ice and fire flowed alternately within its body, each breath creating a current of alternating heat and cold.

Its eyes were dark gold, coldly staring at the gray dark cloud surging from the North.

Feng Bao crouched behind the weakest section of the wall, with the Chi Tiger Beast lying beside him. The Chi Tiger Beast's Thunder Light Claw was more condensed than a month ago, the lightning crackling at its claws like tiny silver snakes coiling around its fingertips.

Five teams, twenty-four people, and twenty-four Pet Beasts, like a precisely operating machine with every gear tightly locked. A month of high-intensity combat, a month of Seven Kills Chaos cultivation, and a month of Reborn true qi nourishment had forged them from a group of old, weak, and disabled into true warriors.

The first to crash into the city wall were the Iron-Spined Crocodiles.

Clang—!!!

With a dull thud, the entire section of the wall trembled.

The heads of the Iron-Spined Crocodiles were covered in keratinized hard shells, acting like massive battering rams as they slammed hard against the wall.

Debris crumbled from the top of the wall, splashing into a cloud of dust as it hit the ground.

But the wall did not collapse. The three-meter-thick structure was built from a mixture of rock and ice. The outer layer was hard ice frozen by the Ice-Armored Blazing Rhino's ice energy at Qin Ce's command, while the inner layer consisted of giant stones hauled by Lei Gang and the others, with sand and rubble filling the middle.

This wall had been built over three days.

The Iron-Spined Crocodile was jolted back two steps and shook its head, its dark yellow eyes filled with confusion.

"Attack!"

Jiang Mo was the first to give the order.

The Nightmare leapt from his side, its dark purple eyes glowing brightly. An invisible Psychic Shock wave radiated from its head, accurately striking the Iron-Spined Crocodile's head. The crocodile's body stiffened abruptly, as if its soul were gripped by an invisible hand, unable to move.

Psychic Shock!

The Nightmare's control skill, while not as overbearing as Tianlu's Lumeng, had an extremely high hit rate against fierce beasts below the Silver Rank.

Lei Gang followed up immediately.

The Black Iron War Ape leapt down from the wall, clasping its fists together like a giant iron hammer and slamming them hard onto the Iron-Spined Crocodile's back.

Metal-attribute energy exploded on its fists, and fine cracks appeared on the Iron-Spined Crocodile's hard shell, with dark yellow blood seeping out from the fissures.

The Iron-Spined Crocodile let out a scream and tried to roll over, but the effect of the Psychic Shock hadn't worn off yet, and its body wouldn't obey.

Sun Lie stood at the highest point, and the Ice-Armored Blazing Rhino opened its mouth, a dark red Molten Lava Bomb condensing deep in its throat.

It didn't attack the Iron-Spined Crocodile—the crocodile still had plenty of health, and a single Molten Lava Bomb wouldn't kill it, which would be a waste.

It was waiting, waiting for Qin Ce's signal.

Qin Ce stood at the very top of the castle, overlooking the entire battlefield.

On the city walls, the battle had fully commenced.

The firepower of the twenty-four people intertwined, firmly suppressing the first wave of fierce beasts that reached the walls.

But Qin Ce gave them no further orders; they were not the main force today.

That green shadow in the sky was the true protagonist of this battle.

The Qingluan hung high in the air, its wings fully spread, its cyan-gold feathers shimmering with a faint luster in the sunlight.

Its eyes gleamed with cyan-gold.

A month of high-intensity combat and non-stop slaughter had brought the energy accumulated within its body to a critical point.

The aura of the peak Bronze Rank circulated around its body like a thin layer of golden mist. With every breath, that aura could be felt growing stronger, climbing, making its final sprint.

But this sprint still lacked an opportunity.

Qin Ce was waiting.

Behind the Qingluan, Phoenix Flow was condensing frantically.

A month ago, the Qingluan had pushed its body to the limit by condensing twenty-one Phoenix Flows.

Now, with just a thought, Phoenix Flow surged from all directions like a tide.

One, two, three—in less than ten seconds, nine Phoenix Flows were already swaying behind it, like nine cyan ribbons dancing in the night sky.

After a month of repeated tempering through Reborn, its meridians were more than twice as wide as before, capable of carrying more energy and withstanding greater pressure.

However, killing Silver Rank fierce beasts didn't require limit-breaking energy; three Phoenix Flows were enough to unleash Silver Rank attack power.

Thus, the Qingluan directly used the Phoenix Flow to unleash its attacks.

But just as three Phoenix Flows were absorbed into its body, five more Phoenix Flows were replenished behind it.

Then, the consumed and replenished Phoenix Flows formed an eternal, constantly flowing wave of energy behind the Qingluan.

This was the true form of the Flowing Cloud Wave Roll—not a one-time explosion, but a continuous, circulating, and never-ending intake and output of energy like the tides.

The Qingluan dove downward.

Its speed was so fast that it left a cyan-gold afterimage in the night sky, its wing-tip Wind Blades cutting through the air with sharp whistles.

It didn't use Spider-Web Wind Blade, Tethering Wind Blade, or any fancy skills.

It simply flew low to the ground, and the Flowing Cloud Wave Roll behind it transformed into silver Wind Blades.

Puchi. Puchi. Puchi.

A series of dull sounds as Wind Blades sliced into flesh.

The Qingluan's Phoenix Flow exploded along its flight path, turning into countless fine Wind Blades that, like invisible knives, precisely sliced through the scales, fur, and muscles of those Silver Rank fierce beasts.

The hard shells of the Black-armored Marching Scorpions were sliced open, and dark green bodily fluids gushed out.

The silver fur of the Silver-spotted Shadow Wolves was torn, and dark red blood trickled down along the patterns of their fur.

The thick skin of the Iron-Spined Crocodiles was ripped apart, revealing the stark white bones beneath.

The Qingluan did not stop.

It circled above the city walls, the Phoenix Flow constantly generating, consuming, and regenerating behind it like a never-ending meat grinder. With each circle, dozens of fierce beasts fell.

With every dive, an entire area was cleared.

And the number of fierce beasts surging toward the wall had significantly decreased after being harvested by the Qingluan for a round.

But they were not deterred. The Wang Family scouts' schemes were too ruthless—bombing nests, stealing pups, burning eggs, and disturbing habitats—every act struck where it hurt the beast groups most.

They hadn't come to hunt; they had come for revenge.

Hatred made them forget fear, forget to flee, and even disregard death.

They rushed toward the wall one after another; some had their legs severed by Wind Blades but continued to crawl forward with their remaining limbs.

Beneath the city walls, corpses soon piled up like mountains.

The aura on the Qingluan was growing stronger bit by bit through every dive, every harvest, and every intake and output of Phoenix Flow. The wind-attribute energy pouring into its body came not only from the Phoenix Flow but also from every kill. Every time a Wind Blade sliced into a fierce beast's body, a tiny amount of energy dissipated from the corpse, which was then absorbed, transformed, and compressed by the Qingluan's Wind Mastery talent.

It was accumulating.

It was on the verge of a breakthrough.

Qin Ce stood atop the castle, Nine-Star Insight constantly monitoring the Qingluan's status.

He could feel that the energy within the Qingluan had reached its limit, like a pot of water about to boil; it only needed one more spark to boil over completely.

But he didn't let the Qingluan break through yet.

He was waiting.

Waiting for the sun to set, waiting for night to fall.

The onslaught of the five beast groups lasted from the afternoon until evening. The originally massive tide of fierce beasts had been reduced by at least half under the Qingluan's day-long frantic harvesting.

Below the city walls, the corpses were piled higher than the walls themselves. The black shells of the Black-armored Marching Scorpions, the silver fur of the Silver-spotted Shadow Wolves, the dark yellow hides of the Iron-Spined Crocodiles, the gray feathers of the Demonized Sparrows, and the brown poison spines of the Poison-spine Porcupines were all mixed together like a gruesome abstract painting.

The five beast groups finally began to waver.

Not because their hatred had faded, but because they could no longer fight.

The Qingluan's high-intensity slaughter had forced every beast group to pay a heavy price.

The number of Black-armored Marching Scorpions had dropped from several hundred to less than a hundred, the Silver-spotted Shadow Wolves from nearly a hundred to over thirty, the Iron-Spined Crocodiles from dozens to over a dozen, the Demonized Sparrows from a dense cloud to a few scattered flocks, and the Poison-spine Porcupines from dozens to less than ten.

They retreated beyond the range of the city walls, gathering in their respective directions like five groups of defeated remnants, panting heavily, licking their wounds, and staring at the humans on the wall and the green bird in the sky with hateful eyes. They hadn't given up yet, but they needed time to recover.

This was exactly the moment Qin Ce had been waiting for.

The last trace of the sunset's afterglow disappeared below the horizon.

Night covered Huhe Bay.

Qin Ce stood atop the castle, looking at the team members on the wall who were covered in blood and exhausted but whose eyes remained bright, looking at the Qingluan in the sky whose cyan-gold light was now so bright it was almost transparent, and looking at the beast groups in the distance that had shrunk back but not retreated.

"Qingluan," Qin Ce's voice wasn't loud, but in the dead silence of the battlefield, everyone heard him clearly, "Level up."

The Qingluan let out a long cry toward the sky.

That sound was not the clear, metallic chirp from before, but a deeper screech, as if squeezed from the depths of its chest, carrying the energy suppressed throughout the entire afternoon. At this moment, the Phoenix Flows behind it all exploded, and twenty-one Phoenix Flows surged into its body simultaneously.

The Qingluan's body began to glow.

It wasn't the white light from being overfilled with energy or the burning golden flames of a breakthrough, but a purer, brighter silver light like liquid metal.

That light shone through the Qingluan's bones, its muscles, and its feathers, dyeing its entire body into a ball of silver flame.

The threshold from peak Bronze to Silver Low-grade had been crossed.

The aura on the Qingluan underwent a qualitative change at that moment.

Silver energy exploded from the Qingluan, turning into countless tiny, feather-shaped silver points of light, covering the entire battlefield like a sudden blizzard.

Those silver feathers drifted down from the sky, landing on the city walls, the piles of corpses, and the beast groups that had retreated into the distance.

Then, they exploded.

The moment each silver feather touched the ground, it exploded into a silver energy storm, transforming into countless tiny Wind Blades that spread in all directions.

The explosion range of a single feather wasn't large—only a few meters. But with thousands of feathers exploding simultaneously, they covered the entirety of Huhe Bay. The silver Wind Blades intertwined in the night sky into a massive, airtight net, enveloping all five beast groups.

Puchi. Puchi. Puchi.

The sound of Wind Blades slicing through flesh was as dense as raindrops hitting leaves.

The black shells of the Black-armored Marching Scorpions were like paper before the silver Wind Blades, sliced into fragments.

The Silver-spotted Shadow Wolves tried their best to dodge, but there were too many Wind Blades and nowhere to hide; they fell one by one.

The thick skin and hard shells of the Iron-Spined Crocodiles were the sturdiest among the five beast groups, but the power of the silver Wind Blades far exceeded the previous Bronze Rank attacks. Wound after wound exploded on them, deep enough to show bone.

The Demonized Sparrows flew the fastest, but the silver feathers scattered in the sky were denser, broader, and more impossible to escape.

The poison spines all over the Poison-spine Porcupines were blown away in the energy storm, and their exposed tender flesh was sliced into a bloody mess in an instant.

Panic. Utter panic.

"Now is the time! All forces, attack!"

Qin Ce's voice boomed across the city walls.

Twenty-four figures leapt down from the walls like twenty-four unsheathed blades, chasing after the fleeing fierce beasts.

The siege by the five Silver Rank fierce beast groups was completely reversed at this moment.

In the distance, those few figures hidden in the wasteland could only see the skill lights flickering incessantly toward Huhe Bay under the cover of night. They heard the roars of fierce beasts, the explosions of skills, and the shouts of humans all mixed together, sounding extremely intense.

They didn't know the situation inside; they only knew that the battle was still going on, and it was even more intense than before.

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