64: Beset by internal and external troubles

Just as Qin Feng erupted at the medical hall camp and slew the Barbarian paratrooper elites, Xia Xue had already led a rapid response force, composed of City Guard elites and some Grand Martial Masters rotated off the walls, down from the battlements. Like a sharp blade, they pierced deep into the chaotic battle within the city.

"Units of small teams, clear out all isolated Barbarians! Prioritize civilian protection and evacuate towards the inner city!" Xia Xue's silver armor was stained with blood; streaks of fierce Sword Qi crisscrossed as she swung her longsword, slaying two Barbarian Martial Masters who were chasing women and children. Her clear voice carried through the chaotic streets, bringing a glimmer of hope to the despairing populace.

"It's the Young Miss!"

"Follow Young Miss Summer and kill the Barbarians!"

The City Guard's morale was greatly boosted, and they acted according to orders, quickly isolating and surrounding those scattered Barbarian paratroopers. Although these Barbarians were strong individually, once they fell into the city, lost their formation, and were separated, they began to suffer casualties under the encirclement of the organized defenders.

However, the ferocity of the Barbarian elites far exceeded imagination. They often grouped together for a last-ditch struggle, and their deathbed counterattacks could still cause significant losses to the defenders.

"Young Miss, be careful!"

Just as Xia Xue was leading several Grand Martial Master personal guards to clear a main road, five dark shadows suddenly erupted from the ruins of a collapsed house nearby! They did not hold ordinary weapons, but rather refined Iron Claws that flickered with a ghostly blue cold light. Their speed was astonishing; they were clearly experts at ambushes and assassinations! The Iron Claws tore through the air with a piercing screech, aiming directly for Xia Xue's vital points!

"Protect the Young Miss!"

The two Grand Martial Master personal guards beside her reacted extremely quickly, stepping forward to parry.

"Clang! Clang!"

The sound of clashing metal exploded. The strange internal force contained within those Iron Claws actually knocked their weapons aside, and a yin-cold Qi even seeped in along the weapons!

"Pfft!"

The two Grand Martial Masters groaned, their arms instantly becoming black and swollen. The blood overflowing from the corners of their mouths carried a hint of black; they were clearly heavily poisoned! Their figures staggered back, instantly losing their combat effectiveness.

"Hehe, little girl, meet your death!" Cruelty and lewdness flickered in the eyes of the leading Iron Claw Barbarian chief. The five of them coordinated perfectly, their Iron Claws weaving a web of death that completely enveloped Xia Xue.

Xia Xue's expression changed slightly. Individually, these five might not be as strong as her, but their combined attack technique was strange and malicious, and their weapons were poisoned, instantly putting her in an extremely dangerous situation! Her sword light danced like a ring, barely protecting her body, but she was already in grave danger. Her arm armor was slashed by the Iron Claws, leaving several bloody gashes, and that yin-cold poisonous Qi began to try to invade.

At this critical moment—

"Swoosh!"

A cloud of pale yellow powder was scattered from the side without warning, accurately enveloping the five Iron Claw Barbarians!

"Ah! My eyes!"

"What is this?!"

As the powder touched their skin and was inhaled into their nasal cavities, it instantly brought a burning sting and intense itching, making their vision blur and tears flow! Their movements involuntarily stalled, and a flaw instantly appeared in their tight combined attack formation!

An opportunity!

A streak of green sword light, like a sudden thunderclap in the darkness, cut in at an incredibly tricky angle!

"Qingfeng Sword Art — Fleeting Shadow!"

The sword light was like silk threads yet fast as lightning. In the moment the five Barbarians were confused by the poison powder's interference, it accurately sliced across their wrists and ankles! They weren't fatal wounds, but they instantly severed their tendons and hamstrings!

"Ugh, ah!"

Screams rang out as the five Iron Claw Barbarians collapsed to the ground like they had their bones removed, losing all combat effectiveness. The poison-coated Iron Claws in their hands also fell with a "clatter."

Xia Xue's pressure suddenly diminished, and she looked at the person who had intervened with lingering fear.

She saw that Qin Feng had appeared at the edge of the battlefield at some unknown point, with the Azure Edge Sword in his hand pointing diagonally at the ground, his expression calm. What he had just flicked out was precisely the mixed irritant poison powder he had meticulously prepared; although not fatal, it could greatly interfere with senses and movement.

"Qin Feng?" Xia Xue's beautiful eyes were filled with unbelievable shock. "You... you're actually a Grand Martial Master?!"

She clearly felt the fluctuations of an Early Stage Grand Martial Master's aura that had not yet fully settled on Qin Feng's body! How was this possible? He looked to be about the same age as her, only around eighteen years old, yet he had actually reached the Grand Martial Master Realm?! Moreover, he had been hiding in the Huichun Medical Hall as an ordinary physician disciple? This Heart-Nature, this endurance... Qin Feng ignored her shock and stepped forward quickly, first stuffing two Antidote Pills into the mouths of the two poisoned guards, then tossing a porcelain bottle to Xia Xue. "This is top-grade Golden Sore Ointment and Poison-Clearing Powder. Tend to your wounds and suppress the poison first."

Xia Xue took the medicine bottle, her complex gaze lingering on Qin Feng's face for a moment, filled with shock, doubt, and an indescribable emotion. But she knew this was not the time for questioning, so she suppressed the turmoil in her heart and quickly applied the medicine to the injured guards and herself.

"Now is not the time to talk about this." Qin Feng looked at the battles and cries still breaking out sporadically in the city and said in a deep voice, "We must clear the Barbarians from the city as quickly as possible and stabilize the people's hearts; otherwise, if panic spreads, the consequences will be unimaginable."

Xia Xue took a deep breath and nodded, her eyes becoming sharp again. "You're right! Everyone, hear my command: speed up the clearing operations! Qin... Qin Feng, are you willing to act with me?" She issued an invitation; a Grand Martial Master of unknown background but formidable strength was a huge asset at this time.

"It is my duty." Qin Feng responded briefly and followed with his sword.

With Qin Feng as a fresh force, especially with his elusive poisoning methods and sharp, precise swordplay, the clearing efficiency greatly improved. He would often first interfere with poison powder and then defeat the enemy with a fast sword, coordinating with Xia Xue's fierce and powerful swordplay in a strange sort of unspoken understanding. The two of them swept through the streets like a whirlwind; wherever they went, the stubbornly resisting Barbarians were decapitated... High in the sky, the Martial King battle group.

City Lord forced back the Warlord of the Canglang Tribe's wild slash with a sword strike, but faint screams and explosions from the city below kept reaching his ears. Especially when his gaze swept down and saw the team led by his daughter, Xia Xue, fighting fiercely with the Barbarians in the streets and facing grave danger, his heart burned with even greater anxiety.

"Hehehe... City Lord, you still dare to be distracted?" The Warlord of the Canglang Tribe keenly captured his emotional fluctuations and grinned as he swung his giant axe wildly, his offensive becoming even more frenzied. "Just listen well! Listen to the sound of your subjects being slaughtered one by one! Listen to the bad news that your precious daughter might lose her life in the next second! Hahaha!"

"Dammit!" Fury rose in City Lord's heart, and his swordplay showed a trace of imperceptible disorder. The Warlord of the Canglang Tribe seized the opportunity, his axe strike making City Lord's blood and Qi churn, nearly being hit by the subsequent axe energy.

On the other side, Mu Shan was still fighting one against two, entangling Wumuzha and Batu. However, he was advanced in years after all, and after a long battle, his aura had become somewhat heavy, defending more than attacking. The battle between the Vice City Lord and Tulu was also in a state of stalemate, with neither able to overcome the other.

Although the four Barbarian Martial Kings were temporarily held back, their goal had been partially achieved—to pin down the high-end combat power of Star South City and create opportunities for the general offensive on the ground and the paratrooper sabotage within the city.

And at this moment, after the initial chaos and resistance, the battle situation on the city walls began to tilt in a direction unfavorable to the defenders.

Under the continuous high-intensity combat, the defenders were approaching their limits in both physical strength and spirit. The Eagle Cavalry's aerial suppression never ceased, as defenders were constantly shot down by cold arrows or snatched off the wall by giant eagles. The Barbarian army on the ground was like a tide, wave after wave, seemingly endless.

More fatally, in several sectors, because the defender casualties were too high and reinforcements could not arrive in time, gaps appeared in the defenses!

"Rumble!"

A crenel finally collapsed under the fierce attack of the Barbarians' concentrated strength! Dozens of ferocious Barbarian elites howled as they surged up through this gap!

"Hold them! Quickly, hold them back!" The general responsible for that section of the defense line roared at the top of his lungs, leading his personal guards to charge forward, instantly falling into a tragic melee.

But this was like a signal.

Following closely, two or three other sections of the wall also became critical! Like sharks smelling blood, the Barbarians frantically surged toward these weak points.

Atop the city walls, the defenders' line began to waver, showing signs of collapse!

"City Lord! East Third Section has fallen!"

"West Fifth Section requests support! We can't hold on much longer!"

Bad news reached the ears of the City Lord, who was fighting in the air, like snowflakes.

City Lord's heart sank straight down.

The city interior was not yet fully settled, yet the city walls were already in imminent danger!

Star South City had truly reached the final moment of life and death!

His gaze swept across the field, watching Mu Shan and the Vice City Lord struggling to hold on, seeing the soldiers fighting bloodily and falling on the wall, and observing the smoke of war that had yet to dissipate in the city below... A massive sense of powerlessness surged in his heart.

Could it be that the three million soldiers and civilians of Star South City are truly destined to perish here today?