Free Web NovelChapter 228: Chapter 227: Testing the Blade’s Edge
After hearing the report from the Demon Race patrol on the front lines, the Leader’s brow furrowed deeply. He paced back and forth on the high tower, hands clasped behind his back, and questioned the member of the patrol who had returned to report to him personally. "This squad has two leaders?"
"Yes. One has a scabbard at his waist, while the other has a longspear on his back and another in his hand. It’s highly likely he’s Hill!"
The Demon Race member answered truthfully.
In his eyes, the man with the spear had an air of fearless confidence, which meant he couldn’t be an ordinary Warrior. He had to be someone unique, at the very least.
’If not Hill, who else could it be?’
’Seven or eight hundred Warriors... Is this really the true size of the Human Race’s main force?’
The Leader was still hesitating. With the Human Race’s most powerful group, the West Ice Tribe, now annihilated, it was logical that the human squad coming to ascend the mountain would be weaker. It was perfectly normal that they couldn’t compare to the forces of previous years.
But seven or eight hundred... It still felt like too few.
’Am I really just being too suspicious?’
As he thought of this, a strong urge to call for reinforcements arose within the Leader. After all, he was facing an expert who could single-handedly slaughter the entire West Ice Tribe. Without help, he wouldn’t be able to hold out for long.
But he still hesitated. Just then, the latest intelligence came through the bloodline connection: "Leader, we followed the tracks of the Human Race squad and discovered a hidden, temporary gathering point. Judging by its size, it could house at least a thousand Human Race Warriors!"
’As I thought, the Human Race isn’t that simple. They’ve opted for the old feint-in-the-east-and-attack-in-the-west tactic. Those seven or eight hundred Warriors can’t be their entire force.’
The Leader came to a sudden realization and began to wonder where the other Human Race squad was, and from which direction they planned to ascend the mountain.
The Northern Boundary experienced heavy snowfall year-round, making it nearly impossible to determine a squad’s direction from their footprints, as the tracks would be buried very quickly.
’The biggest question now is, where has the other Human Race squad gone?’
’And at a time like this, why haven’t the other strongholds sent any messages?’
’Could it be that the other squad isn’t ready to attack?’
Just as he had this thought, a sudden call for help came through the bloodline connection. The Leader was stunned. "The stronghold to the Northwest is under attack?! Their leader is wielding a longspear and cutting through our forces like they aren’t even there!"
The call for help was completely unexpected. It seemed that even the Leader of that stronghold hadn’t anticipated an attack, and the key thing was how ferocious it was.
’That stronghold is over a hundred miles from here, and there’s another one in between!’
"Leader, has another stronghold been attacked?!" the patrol demon waiting for orders asked in alarm.
From the look on the Leader’s face, it was clear the other stronghold was suffering a tremendously fierce attack. If they didn’t send reinforcements soon, the entire place might be overrun!
"Request reinforcements! From the strongholds to the east!"
The Leader offered no explanation, simply relaying the request for help immediately.
Based on the information he’d just received, the full numbers of the Human Race forces had been revealed. It was impossible for them to have other squads trying to sneak past; their numbers would be too small, making it difficult to breach a stronghold.
Now, he just needed to determine which front Hill was on, which attack the Warriors from other strongholds should prioritize reinforcing, and which side should be the priority for the Great Witch’s blessing.
Ordinary clan members stood no chance of stopping a Chosen One, but the Northern Boundary Mountain Demon Clan had a Great Witch. Under his guidance, the ancient bloodline of the clan members could be stimulated to unleash its power, which was enough to hold back a Chosen One for a short period.
Of course, the price was steep. Furthermore, there was a limit to how many clan members the Great Witch could empower in a short amount of time. The more he empowered, the greater the strain on him. Thus, any information reported to him had to be handled with extreme caution.
Besides, Hill wasn’t the only threat in the Northern Boundary. While he might be the Chosen One who currently posed the greatest threat to Lord Extreme, were the other Demon Race Chosen Ones not threats as well?
They needed to eliminate as many of Lord Extreme’s rivals as possible to save him the trouble of wasting the Spirit Charm he had refined within his body.
And eliminating opponents on the level of a Chosen One undoubtedly required the Great Witch’s empowerment, which meant they couldn’t focus all their power on dealing with Hill...
This was why the Leader still had no intention of requesting the protection of the Ancestor’s power from the Great Witch, especially since the other besieged stronghold was still holding on.
But at that very moment, a new series of reports flooded his mind: "Leader, the Human Race squad is charging! We can’t stop them!"
"That sword-wielder, Fan, is too bizarre! Our clansmen are being cut down even when they are a hundred meters away from him!"
Hearing this, the Leader had already gathered all the demons in the stronghold. The Warriors on patrol outside were also returning at once, preparing to face the enemy.
He rose into the air and looked into the distance. Sure enough, a menacing Human Race squad was charging toward them. His clansmen who got close to them were like lambs to the slaughter, killed instantly as if they had stepped into a meat grinder.
’A situation like this could only mean one thing: their leader, Fan, is far too deadly!’
The earliest rumors about Fan of the East Shore Tribe painted him as a third-rate Chosen One who merely favored using a Sword. In the grand history of the Northern Boundary, he was considered lower-middle tier, perhaps not even strong enough to last through the entire competition for the Chosen.
But later, word came that this guy Fan had actually walked out of the North Sea Palace alive, which meant that Hill had spared him.
He had been given more time for Cultivation, allowing him to grow toward his Peak.
For a Chosen One, given that much time, what might have started as a laughable Sword Technique would now undoubtedly be razor-sharp!
And he was even more stunningly powerful than the Leader had imagined!
At the very front of the Human Race squad, Fan strode forward alone. In the blink of an eye, he cut down a Warrior of the Iron Flesh Realm. An expert at the Steel Bone Realm even fell from a hundred meters away.
It was impossible to see clearly how the man was killing demons. It seemed he would just make a casual flick of his sword, and a whole swathe of Demon Race Warriors before him would perish.
’Jade Sinew Realm?’
’Is that for real?!’
’I never heard anything about him absorbing his own tribe’s legacy, and he wasn’t the biggest beneficiary of the North Sea Palace either. So how could he have absorbed enough Spirit Charm to advance to the Jade Sinew Realm?!’
The Leader was horrified. He immediately summoned all his Warriors, had them take up the stronghold’s stored long-range weapons, and ordered them to take to the skies and proactively surround and attack the Human Race squad.
’Given the situation, even if the other person in this squad isn’t Hill, there’s no way the stronghold can hold!’
’What’s the point of scheming anymore?’
’A Chosen One who *isn’t* Hill is already this strong. If Hill himself were here, he’d be even more terrifying!’
’I’ve completely miscalculated. I never imagined the legendary Chosen Ones were actually this powerful.’
’You hear legends, but they don’t always feel real. It’s only when you see it with your own eyes that the shock sets in. A Chosen One truly lives up to the name!’
’Maybe Fan is fighting this hard just to help the other Chosen One beside him conserve stamina?’
’Forget a feint in the east to attack in the west—this is probably them turning my own trick against me!’
The Leader had a moment of clarity. He was just about to use his authority as the stronghold’s Leader to contact the Great Witch and request that he send down the Ancestor’s power when a cold wind suddenly brushed past his ear, followed by the hum of a sword!
"I have walked the Sword Dao for decades, yet never did I imagine it would be here, in the Great Secret Realm of the Northern Boundary, that I would comprehend my own Sword Intent. Now, let me test its edge!"
