Chapter 1257: Endurance

“They’re coming!”
“Be careful!”
Although the troops of the Splendid Rivers and Mountains and the Heroic Alliance were focused on fighting against the Evil Emperor in the sky, many of them also kept a close eye on the movements of the forces from Shiva City. When they noticed those forces stirring and beginning to maneuver around them while advancing in an orderly formation, warnings were issued immediately, and the members of both factions quickly mobilized.
“Form up!”
“Arrange in a crane-wing formation!”
“Leader Lin, the sect leader orders that we maintain a defensive formation outside Shiva City and fight defensively until an attack order is given.”
“Understood.”
After receiving the message from Xiao Yue, Lin Xiao nodded and swiftly passed down this order to everyone in the Heroic Alliance.
“Defensive counterattack!”
“Hurry up!”
The massive formation of tens of thousands of troops quickly tightened…
The troops of the Heroic Alliance saw the people from the Splendid Rivers and Mountains quickly drawing shields and bows, learning how to use them properly; they built a dense defensive line…
Whoosh!
The bowstrings curved like full moons, aiming at the enemies approaching rapidly…
“Scatter and lock onto your targets!”
“Switch weapons after two rounds and fight again!”
Roars echoed across the army…
A regular arrow barrage usually involved at least three rounds of shooting, but against the fierce and powerful Wild Wolf Organization, after just two rounds, it would become extremely dangerous, requiring preparation for close combat.
“Fire arrows!”
With synchronized commands, the sound of bowstrings vibrating filled the air outside Shiva City…
Immediately afterward!
Swarms of black clouds shot toward the enemy…
Arrows fired in rapid succession from the level of Liberation to Non-Action, leaving the enemy with no chance to dodge from all directions—only to block with weapons and shields.
Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!!!
One or two arrows posed no threat; seven or eight could be blocked quickly in succession. But when dozens or even hundreds of arrows rained down densely, even the most skilled warriors would feel fear as if the end of the world had arrived, seeing an arrowstorm without pause.
Many were still mid-attack when countless arrows struck them, piercing their protective gear and armor, then their bodies…
The sound of flesh being pierced mixed with agonized screams filled the air!
Yet among the crowd, there were also figures with extraordinary skills, hidden among the masses.

Seeing the arrows shooting down from the sky, he crouched down, grabbed the body of his companion in front of him, and rushed forward at a steady pace.
One, two… ten… a hundred…
More and more people used corpses to block two waves of intense arrowfire, moving in and out like ghosts as they approached the defense lines built by the heroes of the Central Plains.
Behind the corpses…
A cold and ruthless glint flashed in his calm eyes; he shot several dark objects.
They didn’t hit the crowd but landed on the open ground in front of the defense lines…
Before the heroes of the Central Plains could figure out what those hidden weapons were, they saw them hit the ground and quickly release thick mist.
“Bad!”
“It’s smoke bombs!!”
“Quick! Blow away the smoke together—don’t let the Wild Wolves get close!”
Many people in the crowd cried out in alarm.
But at the same time, hundreds of smoke bombs were fired from the crowd, evenly distributed in front of the defense lines, exploding all at once at the perfect moment.
In the blink of an eye, most of the defense line was covered in smoke…
On the side of the Central Plains, countless people acted simultaneously—winds from their palms and sword energies rushed into the smoke, but it was as if they were trying to move mud through the sea.
The smoke rolled around but wasn’t dispersed; instead, it spread rapidly.
“Damn it!”
A moment of carelessness and misjudgment turned the situation upside down.
Dark shadows filled with murderous intent shot into the formation like lightning from the mist, triggering even more shouts of anger.
In the first clash…
Persia suffered at least a thousand casualties;
but the Wild Wolves took advantage of the thousands of Persian players’ corpses to break through the defenses and quickly create gaps in them.
Chaos erupted in the defense lines!
As more and more top experts from the Wild Wolves and Persian players rushed in, the defense lines descended into chaos.
The only area that remained orderly was the central zone!
This was where the top experts of Jinxiu Hexian gathered—Orochimaru, Mo Feng, Qingdeng Muyu, and Xuanfeng Xiao Li, each leading fifty top experts from the vanguard assault team.
Although a dozen unremarkable experts from the Wild Wolves tried to cause trouble here…
the mist was stopped by an invisible force halfway there.
As soon as the Wild Wolves’ experts rushed in, they were torn to pieces by the sword energies of dozens of top experts!
“The pressure on the flanks is huge, and casualties are high. How about I take my men over now?”
Qingdeng Muyu suggested solemnly, his gaze flickering.

As he spoke, his gaze swept over the faces of Xiao Li, Mo Feng, and the others, finally settling on Orochimaru.
Before leaving, Kai Xin had instructed that this area should be left in the hands of Orochimaru and Mo Feng, but so far neither of them had shown any signs of taking action.
Hearing this, Orochimaru and Mo Feng didn’t even turn their heads, continuing to focus on the battlefield.
Mo Feng frowned slightly, gripping her divine weapon tightly, feeling an urge to charge forward immediately, yet hesitating…
Although Kai Xin had tasked her with overseeing everything here before leaving, it wasn’t her who gave the orders—someone else was in charge!
Xiao Yue!
One of the top skilled fighters who was eliminated early in the sect competition!
Though she performed well in the competition, her brilliance was overshadowed by Silver Fox and the others, as well as Xiao Li, Qing Deng Mu Yu, Mo Feng, and Orochimaru…
After all, Mo Feng was once the leader of the Xiyi Sect and now a senior in the Jinxiu Heshan faction, holding a higher position than Xiao Yue. It was somewhat unbearable for her to be ordered around by someone in a lower rank.
But!
A phrase Kai Xin had said to her before leaving still served as a reminder, helping her suppress her fierce fighting spirit.
“With your determination and talent, reaching the level of an emperor isn’t difficult. But if you can’t control your emotions, fail to grasp the essence of things, and let them dictate your actions, your strength will remain below Orochimaru’s, and you’ll never be a match for Meng Yun.”
Over the past few years, Mo Feng had spent time reflecting, realizing that Kai Xin’s assessment was very accurate. So, even though she saw the top fighters from the Wolf Pack charging into the battlefield and wanted to rush in immediately, thinking of Kai Xin’s evaluation of her and Orochimaru, who had outmaneuvered her during the sect competition, she restrained herself and waited for Xiao Yue’s message.
As for Orochimaru…
Regarding Qing Deng Mu Yu’s suggestion, he simply uttered three words:
“No rush.”
Indeed, there was no rush…
Understand the essence of everything.
As long as they eliminated the 2,000 top fighters from the Wolf Pack in this battle, they would succeed!
It might seem like Jinxiu Heshan and the Xiyi Alliance were in trouble, but in reality, there were top fighters in every region, keeping their defenses in disarray but not collapsed.
Although the Wolf Pack was cunning and fierce, they hadn’t caused many casualties so far…
The heroes of the Central Plains had their backs covered!
Glancing past the gradually dissipating dark mist, Orochimaru saw more and more Persian fighters following the Wolf Pack and approaching the defense lines.
The Persian fighters gathered densely outside the defense lines, forming a vast crowd.
Their strength was generally slightly inferior to that of the Central Plains fighters, so they weren’t a threat.

At this moment, Orochimaru had almost guessed that the reason why Xiao Yue had not yet ordered a counterattack or allowed his men to take action was that he was waiting for all the reinforcements to arrive. If it were him, with the successor of the Six-Fingered Demon’s teachings, Feng Ling, in charge, he would also create an illusion of weakness to make the enemy think they had an opportunity to overwhelm them with more troops. In that way, the counterattack would be even more effective! In the chaos, even the members of the Wild Wolf Organization would find it difficult to notice immediately. Moreover, who could threaten Feng Ling amidst the melee? Even if the enemy retreated upon realizing the situation was unfavorable, it would be hard for them to succeed. “This Xiao Yue is quite remarkable,” Orochimaru took a deep breath, a glint appearing in his narrow, cold eyes. Although he didn’t know Xiao Yue’s exact location, given his clear thinking and calm demeanor, given time, he would surely become someone capable of competing with him. With this thought, Orochimaru suddenly remembered something that alarmed him! For such an important battle, Kai Xin had abandoned trusting people to take command and instead handed it over to a subordinate of the Ji Fengyuan gang—a person who had never shone under Ji Feng’s influence. At this thought, Orochimaru fell silent. The noisy sounds of the chaotic battle continued to fill his ears—arrows, clashing weapons, and various screams and roars forming a symphony of death, slowly advancing from outside the defense lines inward. The Wild Wolf Organization’s combat strength and tactical skills were truly remarkable; even under the tight defense of the elite forces from Jinxiu Heshan and the Heroic Alliance, they still managed to maintain a certain advantage, proving their formidable strength. Xiao Yue still showed no signs of movement! No orders for a counterattack came… As the two sides’ troops neared each other, the situation became more chaotic. Xiao Yue remained motionless. A faint sense of unease spread in Orochimaru’s heart. He gradually became restless… Just then! Someone in the crowd couldn’t hold back and sent a message: “Orochimaru, what are you waiting for?” Although Qingdeng Muyu preferred a more chaotic situation, the continuous arrow rain from the rear of their formation was causing heavy casualties among the Persian players, while the casualties on the Central Plains side of the defense line weren’t very noticeable. If this continued, before the more than 30,000 troops from both gangs were wiped out, it was likely that the allied gangs inside Shiva City would be the first to collapse. In Qingdeng Muyu’s view, the current chaos was the best time to act… Orochimaru frowned slightly.

Just as he was about to reply via telepathy, he suddenly heard Xiao Yue’s message: “There’s a problem with the wings. It’s the Great Ban Law of the Wild Wolf Organization; they’re about to take action!”