Beneath the howling cold wind, snow and ice swept across the land.
In the border region between the Extreme North and the Tian Hun Empire, a lone city stood upon this desolate, snowy plain. It seemed as if white was the only dominant theme of this isolated city and this entire region.
Extreme North City, the northernmost city of the Tian Hun Empire.
Within this city, aside from teams that made a living hunting souls, only the Tian Hun Empire's army was stationed here. There were no civilians. Their mission was to defend against soul beasts from the Extreme North.
However, soul beasts from the Extreme North rarely invaded, which led to the garrison of Extreme North City becoming lax and complacent, turning the post into a sinecure. If not for the city's excessively harsh environment, it would likely have been the ideal posting for those who joined the military solely to embellish their resumes.
Little did they know, their nightmare was about to begin.
Concealed by the wind and snow, the three-hundred-strong Evil Monarch Soul Engineer Legion was advancing at a rapid pace. After a long, arduous journey, they had finally crossed a small section of the Extreme North.
At this moment, they were only a few kilometers away from Extreme North City.
"Full company, halt!"
A leading elder raised his hand, and the entire legion came to an immediate, disciplined stop. As this tall, burly elder turned around, his hooked nose, large eyes, fierce gaze, and an overall aura that screamed 'keep away' all indicated that he was not to be trifled with. This man was none other than Legion Commander Wang of the Evil Monarch Soul Engineer Legion.
His gaze was like a torch as he scanned the soldiers of his legion.
"Before us lies Extreme North City! Our legion's mission is to blitz the Tian Hun Empire with the utmost speed, strike directly at its heartland, even approach their imperial capital, and cripple the Tian Hun Empire! After that, we will capture Haibo City and create an opportunity for our Empire's navy!"
"Can we do it?!"
"Yes, we can!"
"Excellent."
Seeing that their morale was high, Legion Commander Wang glanced at the sky. Seeing that it would still be some time before the sunlight shone directly on Extreme North City, he simply had the entire legion conceal themselves and activate their soul tool jammers before resting on the spot, adjusting their physical condition to its peak.
Of course, he still dispatched a ten-man squad to scout the area near Extreme North City. They were to see just how many detection soul tools there were around the city and how they were deployed.
After all, their operation hinged on two key factors:
One, speed. The other, stealth.
A quarter of an hour later, "Legion Commander."
Legion Commander Wang opened his slightly narrowed eyes, looking at the ten-man squad who had returned unharmed and even looked a bit excited. "Report?"
"Extreme North City can be taken with ease."
A single sentence instantly invigorated Legion Commander Wang!
"Good!"
Having spent many years in the military and being with his subordinates day in and day out, he naturally knew his men would never make such a bold claim lightly. If they said it could be taken with ease, then it could!
He never expected that the great Extreme North City, the gateway to the Tian Hun Empire's north, would be so lax in its defenses. They deserved what was coming!
He glanced at the sky again, making a quick mental calculation.
"Prepare."
Legion Commander Wang's excited eyes instantly turned scorching hot. With a fierce glint, a light flashed on his storage soul tool, and a massive Fixed-Installation Soul Cannon was set up on the ground.
Simultaneously, the bottom of the cannon's casing shifted, instantly transforming into a disc-shaped base. Under the sunlight, the thick, ferocious barrel flashed with a glint of gold. At this moment, he installed one Sealed Milk Bottle after another into the base of the Fixed-Installation Soul Cannon. In an instant, a terrifying soul power fluctuation gathered at the cannon's muzzle.
Almost at the same time, each soldier of the Evil Monarch Soul Engineer Legion also took out their own Fixed-Installation Soul Cannons from their respective storage soul tools. And the moment they finished loading the cannon shells, over three hundred cannon muzzles were all aimed in the direction of Extreme North City.
Immediately after, "Ready!"
Legion Commander Wang raised his large hand, and the atmosphere in the surrounding area grew increasingly tense. The next second, he swung his hand down, "Fire!"
One after another, the prepared Fixed-Installation Soul Cannons all lit up. Immediately, soul power fluctuations mingled with the sweeping wind and snow. In that moment, the already strong cold wind evolved into a raging gale, and the surrounding ice and snow were directly pulverized. At the same time, an intense soul power fluctuation erupted violently. The heat generated by the soul cannons caused the ice and snow to melt. In the next instant, the three hundred or so streams of light shot into the air, all flying high into the sky, with their landing direction being none other than Extreme North City!
Three hundred Class 4 Fixed-Installation Soul Cannon Shells, plus the Fixed-Installation Soul Cannon personally controlled by Legion Commander Wang, a Class 9 Soul Engineer—the power of this first wave was enough to destroy a city wall.
But no matter how lax the defenses of Extreme North City were, it was still built to defend against soul beast attacks and even beast tides from the Extreme North. So, the people might be incompetent, but that didn't mean the original defensive fortifications were. The moment the three hundred beams of light had just risen into the air, a soul protective shield automatically ascended.
But to the Evil Monarch Soul Engineer Legion, a Beast King-level legion from the Sun Moon Empire, this defense was like a mere decoration.
Boom, boom, boom—
The deafening roar of cannon fire shattered the silence of this frigid land. Inside Extreme North City, the soldiers who were still chatting, or the soul masters who were trading or walking about, were all drawn by this terrifying thunderous roar. When they unconsciously looked towards the sky, everyone in Extreme North City was horrified to see countless, indiscernible streaks of light shooting into the sky.
They only felt that as the soul protective shield rose, the snowy sky and the distant sun suddenly seemed to become much brighter, as if the sky was covered by a layer of light.
No!
That wasn't a light curtain!
It was...
"Enemy attack!"
Boom—
The soldiers on the northern city wall had only enough time to let out such a cry before the soul protective shield was instantly shattered by the terrifying cannon fire. A beam of soul power, as thick as a man's embrace, fell down, instantly piercing a massive hole in the northern city wall.
In this moment, panic seized Extreme North City.
"What in the world is happening!? Where is this enemy attack coming from!?"
From within the City Lord's Mansion of Extreme North City, a middle-aged man dressed in martial attire stormed out, his face filled with rage. His hair and beard bristled, making him look like a lion approaching the twilight of its years.
The moment he rushed out of the mansion, he roared his question.
"City Lord! The northern city is under attack! Preliminary judgment is that the attack came from the direction of the Extreme North! It's highly likely to be the Sun Moon Empire!"
The City Lord whipped his head around, his eyes wide with fury!
"Who!? The Sun Moon Empire!? How could they possibly have reached my Extreme North City!?" As his question landed, not caring if anyone could answer, the City Lord immediately ordered the soldiers within Extreme North City to organize a counterattack and to rally all the soul masters in the city to resist the invasion.
But even as they spoke, another series of violent explosions rang out from high in the sky. The terrifying soul power fluctuations created a magnificent display of fireworks across the entire sky.
Fortunately, most of the soul masters in Extreme North City were the type who dared to venture into the Extreme North—they were all highly skilled and bold. They barely managed to intercept this second, "smaller" wave of attacks.
Seeing this, the City Lord left a single order for someone to get out of the city and deliver the news, then immediately activated his Martial Soul Attachment.
Yellow, yellow, purple, purple, black, black, black, black!
Clearly, one couldn't be weak if they were to guard Extreme North City.
So, this City Lord of Extreme North City was also a Soul Douluo-level expert. With a step, he took to the air, rushing towards the northern city wall.
At the same time, the garrison of Extreme North City, after enduring two waves of cannon fire, had finally reacted. Facing the third wave of bombardment from outside the city, they immediately prepared a large amount of artillery to concentrate their interception, quickly forming a massive interception net in the air, attempting to block all the rising cannon shells.
At this moment, Extreme North City was thrown into complete chaos.
And at that very moment, "Whoosh—"
Suddenly, streaks of blue light shot into the sky. After climbing to the highest point directly above the center of Extreme North City, they fell like a meteor shower, covering the entire city and even the area several kilometers around it, beginning to rain down rapidly in all directions.
In an instant, a cage was formed.
In this moment, one could neither get out nor get in.
The City Lord saw this and originally intended to stop it. But the next second, all the hair on his body stood on end. His sixth soul ring lit up, his aura surging as he dodged to the side on pure instinct.
Swoosh—
A beam of light scraped past his cheek and landed in the distance.
"Who is it!?"
"Those who do not surrender will be killed without exception."
The City Lord looked towards the voice and saw an elder blocking his path. This elder was none other than Legion Commander Wang of the Evil Monarch Soul Engineer Legion. It was precisely because he was waiting for this City Lord of Extreme North City that the power of the attacks after the first wave had been reduced.
"Sun—Moon—Empire!"
After seeing Legion Commander Wang's attire, the City Lord glared at him with fury, even gritting his teeth as he spat out the four words, "Sun Moon Empire." But at the same time, no matter how much hatred and anger filled his heart, an immense pressure weighed upon him.
The next second, "Roar—"
Seventh Soul Skill, Martial Soul True Body!
As black light shone, a vast lion's roar shook the heavens. A gigantic lion stood tall, its hair and mane bristling as it charged directly towards Legion Commander Wang.
A terrifying might was unleashed upon the sky at this moment!
"Roar—"
"Eighth Soul Skill, Myriad Beast Terror!"
Right from the start, the City Lord of Extreme North City used his strongest eighth soul skill. He knew that the fall of Extreme North City was likely a foregone conclusion, but no matter what, the news had to be delivered. Therefore, he had to temporarily repel this Class 9 Soul Engineer from the Sun Moon Empire to buy himself a sliver of a chance to break through this soul cage.
But, obviously, this was just a foolish dream.
No matter how he struggled, a Class 9 Soul Engineer was a Title Douluo, and even stronger than an ordinary Title Douluo.
The City Lord of Extreme North City was merely a Soul Douluo. How could he possibly be a match for Legion Commander Wang? And so, in less than half a quarter-hour, the lion's roar gradually weakened, and then... "Thud—"
A muffled sound rang out as a massive object fell to the ground.
A gigantic lion's head was seen smashed viciously against the remains of the northern city wall, ferocious yet desolate.
In this moment, the morale within Extreme North City plummeted to freezing point.
Meanwhile, on the side of the Evil Monarch Soul Engineer Legion, with Legion Commander Wang's return and the remaining corpse he brought back, their morale soared to its peak. This also signaled the beginning of the all-out assault.
Returning outside the city, Legion Commander Wang came to the main cannon. With a press of his hand, it underwent a transformation. The main cannon, which had a single muzzle, instantly became a terrifying Fixed-Installation Soul Cannon with multiple muzzles.
After completing the soul power recharge, "Fire!"
Amidst the terrifying bombardment of the Fixed-Installation Soul Cannon shells, beams of laser light also poured out frantically from the main cannon's muzzles.
Rumble, rumble—
Rumble, rumble—
Accompanied by earth-shattering, immense roars, the continuous, brilliant flames spread out in vast swathes across the snowy plain.
The vast flames shot into the sky. The ground of Extreme North City was continuously blasted apart, and buildings within the city were leveled one after another. Countless soldiers were incinerated in the explosions.
Everything before their eyes seemed to have transformed into a purgatory on earth. This was the firepower coverage of the Evil Monarch Soul Engineer Legion! A terrifying attack, like scrubbing the ground clean!
The surviving soldiers and soul masters stared dumbfoundedly at the trembling earth, at Extreme North City, which had been transformed from a land of ice and snow into a sea of fire. The shock and fear on their faces were beyond words.
This was the first time they had ever witnessed such firepower. To them, the attack of the Evil Monarch Soul Engineer Legion was... like a natural disaster!
And then, what followed was, "Those who do not surrender will be killed without exception!!!" x N
The great roars instantly shattered the will of the survivors. Some who feared death even more chose to surrender directly.
And so... after half an hour.
This Extreme North City, built to withstand the beast tides of the Extreme North, was completely taken by the three-hundred-strong Evil Monarch Soul Engineer Legion.
After dealing with the prisoners, the Evil Monarch Soul Engineer Legion continued south, even bringing the head of the City Lord of Extreme North City with them.
He intended to use it to demoralize the defending city lords and soldiers who might stubbornly resist. Of course, he also had his men loot the armor of the city's defending soldiers and then, under the cover of the dark, windy night, they moved on to the next city of the Tian Hun Empire. Taking advantage of the dark night and high winds, they captured another city even more smoothly.
And so, the Evil Monarch Soul Engineer Legion did the same thing again overnight.
In less than a day, the Evil Monarch Soul Engineer Legion had already conquered several cities in succession. Before the surrounding city lords could even react, the cities targeted by the Evil Monarch Soul Engineer Legion had completely fallen, with no way to even send out a message.
It was not until the early morning of the third day that this news was learned by an exceptionally clever merchant who happened to be passing by a captured city. The merchant then informed the guards of a nearby city.
But by now, the Evil Monarch Soul Engineer Legion was already approaching Tian Dou City. In fact, once they captured one last city, the next city would be the capital of the Tian Hun Empire, the ten-thousand-year-old ancient city—Tian Dou City!
At this moment, this ancient city seemed to be in peril.
Of course, it only seemed to be.
But at the same time, the Evil Monarch Soul Engineer Legion's "Surprise Attack on Tian Hun, Blitz on Tian Dou" operation, as well as the losses the Tian Hun Empire had now suffered and the cities that had fallen, were all reported to the Tian Hun Emperor, who was on his way back to the capital.
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