Qin Yi had reached the top of the cliff.
The valley was a thousand feet deep, and finding a way up was not easy, but compared to the difficulties he had faced before, this was nothing. Soon, he found a cave near a skeleton formation outside the barren mountains, which had a space crack leading to the top of the cliff.
Once he reached the top, it was snowing, and everything around was covered in white. The air was fresh and pleasant. The snow couldn’t settle in the valley; it had turned to water in the endless demonic energy that filled the area.
At the valley bottom, it was raining, while above, it was snowing. The difference between the two was like two different worlds.
Leaving behind the thick demonic energy and the atmosphere of slaughter, Qin Yi felt a mix of emotions as he saw the sunlight again. He scooped up some snow and rubbed it on his face, then excitedly flew south towards the border of the Southern Li Kingdom, disappearing in the blink of an eye.
After experiencing life and death multiple times, his cultivation had unknowingly grown.
He was now at the mid-stage of innate martial arts, with his body refinement perfected.
In the realm of immortality, he had reached the fourth layer of the Phoenix Initial stage, getting close to the ability to control magical tools.
He was now cultivating both martial and immortal paths, and it was taking shape.
While he was still feeling joyful, after flying less than a hundred miles, his expression changed.
Amidst the fresh and pleasant wind and snow, he caught a faint smell of blood. Although it was weak, to Qin Yi, it felt as if it was right in front of him.
He quickly followed the scent and soon saw a burned village, with corpses scattered everywhere inside and outside.
Holding his breath, Qin Yi moved closer and turned over a corpse to examine it. The body was already frozen stiff, indicating that this wasn’t a recent event; it had happened at least a few days ago.
His gaze focused on the neck of the corpse, where a fatal wound was visible, a scar left by a curved blade.
“West Wilderness invasion!”
Qin Yi’s mind exploded with this realization, and his hair stood on end. He quickly placed a movement talisman on himself and rushed towards Li Huo City at lightning speed.
How could they invade at such a time?
It would take at least two days to get back!
He hoped he would make it in time!
…
In the Southern Li Kingdom, at Hengshan County.
“Clang!” Li Qingjun’s spear shot out like a dragon, breaking through a general’s long sword and sending him tumbling off the city wall.
With the first attacker blocked, the enemy soldiers surged forward from both sides.
Her silver spear danced like pear blossoms, creating a spray of blood against the backdrop of falling snow, a stunning sight.
More than ten soldiers from the West Wilderness fell from the city wall.
Li Qingjun was covered in blood, her vision obscured by the enemy’s blood. She took a slight breath, wiped the blood from the corner of her eye, and looked down at her feet, which were piled with dismembered bodies and corpses.
The enemy was everywhere, and she couldn’t see the end of them.
This was the Hengshan County that Qin Yi had passed through when they were looking at the wanted posters, just a day’s ride from the capital, Li Huo. It was the last line of defense west of Li Huo City.
Li Qingjun had been holding this position for three days and nights, and her light armor was already stained red with blood.
The West Wilderness had invaded just a few days after Li Qingjun had wiped out the Eastern Hua rebels, shocking the court and the people. It wasn’t Li Qingjun’s fault; even seasoned generals like Xie Yuan hadn’t expected the West Wilderness to launch a large-scale attack in such harsh winter conditions, catching everyone off guard.
This was not how military strategy usually worked. In such icy weather, marching and camping in the wild was extremely difficult, and the chances of freezing to death increased. Moreover, attacking a city in such conditions, with slippery walls and ice everywhere, was very disadvantageous for the attackers. Small-scale skirmishes might be fine in winter, but mobilizing the entire country for war was quite extraordinary.
The most critical issue was that there were no alarms from the border; not even a signal fire was seen…
The reason was simple: the border general had defected, opening the gates for the enemy to enter.
Li Qingjun felt a deep sadness in her heart.
She had been involved in politics for a while and understood the situation well. The Southern Li Kingdom had been weakened by her father and the Eastern Hua prince over the years, not only failing to pay the border troops but also having West Wilderness infiltrators among them. It wasn’t surprising that the border general was swayed. Originally, they had hoped that Li Qinglin would set things right quickly, but Li Qinglin…
It wasn’t that he hadn’t done anything; he had indeed made some progress, but it wasn’t enough.
Some of his actions could only be seen as acceptable for an ordinary king in peaceful times. If it were a time of peace, he might be praised as a wise ruler, but the gap between people’s expectations of him, his past ambitions, and the performance he should have shown was too wide.
In fact, he had done fewer serious things than Li Qingjun. More often, Li Qinglin was just focused on his cultivation. This made Li Qingjun want to convince herself that her brother was just aging and had lost his vigor.
Li Qingjun lacked experience and ability, and in such a short time, she was powerless to change the situation. Before she could even manage the border troops, the West Wilderness had already forcefully invaded during this harsh winter.
The Southern Li Kingdom was too small. Once the border was breached, the enemy army had already pointed their weapons at Hengshan County within days. Fortunately, at this moment, Li Qinglin reacted quickly, immediately sending the veteran general Xie Yuan with an elite force to rush to Hengshan County, blocking the West Wilderness army outside the county and preventing them from reaching the capital directly.
Li Qinglin also quickly ordered Li Qingjun to organize the troops and rush to Hengshan County for support, which finally stabilized the situation.
These two orders proved that Li Qinglin wasn’t completely out of touch, but how long could they hold on?
The reason the enemy invaded in winter soon became clear. They had several shamans who could work together to dry the city walls, negating many of the disadvantages of attacking in snowy weather.
In the past, they hadn’t had this capability. It was unclear whether they had secretly developed new techniques over the years or if the Eastern Hua prince had played a role.
The enemy had been preparing for years, sharpening their swords and gathering troops, and this time they had mobilized the entire country, with their army spread across the mountains.
And what about their side?
The two previous kings focused on cultivation, the treasury was empty, governance was corrupt, and the military had no fighting spirit. Even the people were indifferent, lacking any enthusiasm to resist together.
With the border troops lost, the Southern Li Kingdom’s best fighting force was all here. If Li Qingjun couldn’t hold on, the Southern Li Kingdom would be finished!
In the central army below the city, the West Wilderness prince Mang Zhan laughed to the sky: “Why does Princess Zhaoyang have to struggle so hard? My feelings for the princess have never changed. If the princess opens the city gates, I will make her my queen, and from then on, the people of Southern Li will be my subjects. Wouldn’t that be a lovely story?”
Li Qingjun remained silent, drawing her bow and nocking an arrow. With a whoosh, the arrow shot out like a shooting star, the powerful arrow energy blowing Mang Zhan’s banner far away.
Mang Zhan’s expression darkened, and he sneered: “Do you really think you can hold on? Hengshan County hasn’t been prepared for war; it’s not a complete defensive line. I’ve already sent generals to take a detour and rush to Li Huo City. By then, Hengshan County will be a lonely city, and even if you want to be a servant, you won’t be able to!”
Li Qingjun tightly pressed her lips together. Veteran general Xie Yuan had already informed her of this possibility, but she felt powerless. The enemy’s numbers far exceeded theirs, giving them the initiative.
All she could do was hope her brother would rally and eliminate the enemy troops rushing to Li Huo City.
Mang Zhan knew what she was thinking and smiled: “I know that although Li Qinglin is already out of touch, he’s not a fool and can’t be easily dismissed. So this army rushing to Li Huo is our country’s most elite blood warriors, led by General Mang You, all seasoned generals. If they were here, I’m afraid you, Princess Zhaoyang, wouldn’t have it so easy. How about it? Am I being considerate? Hahaha…”
Li Qingjun’s expression finally changed.
No wonder she hadn’t encountered any truly powerful enemy generals in the past three days; the enemy was mainly focused on surrounding them. The real elite troops were not here.
If they were here, it would be better. She was leading the Southern Li Kingdom’s best troops, and under the protection of the city, they might not be able to break through. In this harsh winter, it would be difficult for the enemy to set up camp, and dragging it out for a few days might still give them a chance to wear the enemy down. But the remaining troops at Li Huo City were far from elite, and with her brother’s current state, could they really stand against the West Wilderness’s famous generals leading their fiercest soldiers?
For a moment, Li Qingjun even regretted that it might have been better to abandon this line of defense from the start and perish together with Li Huo… Were her brother’s seemingly decisive orders actually wrong?
Mang Zhan stopped talking and waved his right hand.
The sound of horns rose, and another wave of attacks surged towards the city gate like a tide.
This was to apply pressure, preventing her from rushing to Li Huo. Li Qingjun looked at the enemy soldiers covering the mountains and felt a wave of exhaustion.
Qin Yi’s figure rose in her mind.
Are you still searching for a way to break the curse…
You had promised to return within six months; perhaps you never imagined that Southern Li wouldn’t even last two months.
(End of Chapter)