Demon Slaying, Gaining 60 Years of Cultivation From the Start

Chapter 272 The Last Battlefield_1

At the city gate, the battle raged on. The Duke of the Liang State had brought reinforcements of two hundred thousand men from Tiandu, and at this moment, they were fiercely engaging in close combat with the barbarian horde.

Meanwhile, the Xuantie Army, after several major battles, now numbered less than fifty thousand. The reason they could hold out until now was that the other two major mansions had diverted a significant force to rush to Yongxue City, joining the Xuantie Army in resisting the barbarian forces.

If the Duke of the Liang State had arrived even a step later, Yongxue City would have completely fallen, and the Great Mountain Range, where the barbarians were based, as well as the Yan State and even Da Xia itself, would have been left without any barriers or checkpoints, open to invasion.

"Kill!"

"Charge!"

At this moment, the sounds of slaughter were incessant both inside and outside of Yongxue City. The Duke of the Liang State, tall and burly in his armor, was like an aging lion, old yet still imposing.

"Duke of the Liang State, let's stand back a bit," said Chen Yu, who was closely guarding the Duke of the Liang State.

Beside them, there were also three martial arts grandmasters from the Yao Platform Sect standing here, solely to protect the personal safety of the Duke of the Liang State.

As for the battle outside the city, it was incredibly intense, with dozens of grandmasters involved.

Here, forces from the Jing Tian Department, the barbarians, the Holy Shadows Sect, the royal family, the Qiu family, the Yao Platform Sect, and the Feixue Sword Sect—a total of seven powers—had amassed.

The combined might of the seven powers had gathered, not to mention grandmasters—if even the Returning to True Stage martial arts grandmasters numbered as many as eleven, engaging in combat in the distance.

This battle, if it weren't for the aid extended by the royal family and the Yao Platform Sect, Da Xia would have undoubtedly suffered defeat, and the Yan State would have already fallen into the hands of the barbarians and the demonic cult.

At that moment, not far away, two figures appeared, walking slowly towards this location. It was the commander of the Xuantie Army, the Marquis of Pingxi.

Accompanying the Marquis of Pingxi was the vice commander of the Xuantie Army, Lin Zhan.

"Duke of the Liang State, long time no see," said the Marquis of Pingxi as he approached the Duke of the Liang State and bowed with clasped hands.

The Duke of the Liang State nodded slightly, looking at the Marquis of Pingxi and asked, "How are your injuries?"

The Marquis of Pingxi replied, "Thanks for your concern, Duke. I'm not dead yet. I'm truly ashamed to say that if I had not been so eager for quick success, the Yan State would not have come to this."

Upon hearing this, the Duke of the Liang State's snowy eyebrows furrowed slightly as he said, "I'm also quite curious. Given your character, Marquis, why would you act in such a way?"

The Marquis of Pingxi sighed softly, moved closer to the Duke of the Liang State, and in a whisper, said, "I'm ashamed to admit that the reason I did this was mainly because..."

Suddenly, the Marquis of Pingxi, who was bowing his head, had a flash of sinister black qi in his eyes that disappeared in an instant. Then, he fiercely slapped his palm towards the Duke of the Liang State's chest.

"Marquis of Pingxi!"

Seeing this, Chen Yu immediately turned pale with shock and reached out to stop him. But with only Returning to True Stage cultivation, how could he be a match for the Marquis of Pingxi, a grandmaster-level opponent? He was directly sent flying by the shock, blood spurting from his mouth.

"How dare you!"@@@@

At that moment, the three martial arts grandmasters from the Yao Platform Sect also changed their expressions in unison. They immediately made a move to stop the Marquis of Pingxi from committing the violent act.

"Scram!"

The Marquis of Pingxi roared angrily, and a cold and sinister black qi continuously surged from inside his body, and amidst it, a mournful scream rang in everyone's ears.

"Pu!"

The three martial arts grandmasters from the Yao Platform Sect immediately spat out blood and were sent flying backward, following in Chen Yu's footsteps.

After all, the Marquis of Pingxi was brought up by the Duke of the Liang State himself when he was young, seen as his successor, and had indeed not disappointed him. This was something the Duke had always taken pride in.

"Indeed!" the Marquis of Pingxi said coldly.

Towards the man who had once mentored him, the Marquis of Pingxi felt no burden in killing him.

"You old thing, stop trying to lecture me with your age; just die!" the Marquis of Pingxi scoffed.

"So this is your true face," the Duke of the Liang State's complexion grew even paler, his gaze gradually dimming.

Only at this moment did he truly see what kind of person the Marquis of Pingxi was.

All those years, it turned out the Marquis of Pingxi had always been pretending.

"Before long, the entire Yan State will fall, countless lives will become nourishment, and I, will break through to the Innate Realm and achieve the position of a grandmaster of martial arts!" As he reached this point, the Marquis of Pingxi couldn't help but become excited.

Upon hearing this, a vision of mountains of corpses and rivers of blood, the hellish scene of Yan State's suffering, suddenly flashed before the Duke of the Liang State.

With this thought, the light in his eyes grew fainter still.

"Yan State is in such a condition, who can save it, how can it be saved?" the Duke of the Liang State murmured.

In the last moments of his life, a ray of light pierced the dark world of the Duke of the Liang State; it was a young face, with loose black hair, handsome features, and eyes like stars beneath furrowed brows—Gu Chen.

"Gu Chen... the future of Da Xia... depends on you now..." With his last thought, the Duke of the Liang State's life force gradually faded, and his robust body suddenly fell backward.

"Duke of the Liang State!"

Upon witnessing this scene, Chen Yu's eyes almost burst from their sockets with rage.

"Cao Shuang!"

In the distance, sensing the death of the Duke of the Liang State, the Yan State garrison commander bellowed with fury, causing the heavens and earth to thunder, shaking the entirety of Yongxue City in that moment.

The Marquis of Pingxi also felt fear take root within him, but fortunately, the Yan State garrison commander was restrained by two Innate Realm grandmasters from the Holy Shadows Sect and the Black Sky Sect, unable to spare any effort, which somewhat relieved the Marquis of Pingxi.

"Well then, the plan is nearly complete. Issue my order, tell Xu Wei to commence," the Marquis of Pingxi said lightly.

"Yes!" Lin Zhan bowed in response.

But at this moment, the grand voice of the Yan State garrison commander suddenly resounded through the heavens and earth.

"Today, even if I die, I will not let you traitors succeed!"

With a resounding boom, dazzling light burst forth from the sky, as if floodwaters had broken through a dam, or a volcano had erupted, causing the earth to vibrate, the ground to crack, and countless boulders and trees to be hurled into the sky, nearly destroying the world, such was the terrifying power of it.

"Yan Qing, you seek a fight to the death?!"

"Retreat!"

Seeing that the Yan State's Jing Tian Department garrison commander, Yan Qing, was set on a suicidal attack, the group of Innate Realm martial grandmasters immediately issued a retreat command.

The Marquis of Pingxi frowned slightly upon seeing this but had no other choice than to follow suit.

He had hoped to kill everyone within Yongxue City in one fell swoop and then absorb their essence and blood.

Soon, the barbarian army, upon receiving the orders, retreated from outside of Yongxue City, leaving behind only the devastated city and a host of Da Xia soldiers whose spirits and vitality had been all but extinguished.