A blanket of silence draped over the border of the human empire.
However, a mysterious and silent army was taking advantage of the night’s cover, quietly infiltrating the empire’s territory.
As tensions between the two nations reached a breaking point, the flames of war were ignited.
Large numbers of troops within the cities were being redeployed to the front lines to prepare for the coming fierce battles.
Because the humans had reached an important cooperation agreement with the border forces, the defensive measures of this border city were somewhat lax.
They never expected that a human city so close to the border would become a target for the enemy.
Jiyong City, as the largest city on the human empire’s border, held a vital strategic position.
Aside from the City Lord, half of the great army originally stationed there to defend against border threats had been sent to the front lines as reinforcements.
At this very moment, the city’s defenses were at their weakest.
The City Lord was currently immersed in his own pleasures.
Inside his palace, he held a beautiful human woman in his arms, indulging in the joys of the flesh.
Meanwhile, the guards outside the city watched their surroundings with their usual vigilance, but none of them noticed the impending crisis.
Suddenly, an earth-shaking roar shattered the tranquility.
A disciplined army of elves rushed out of the black mist at the border like ghosts.
They rode massive, fierce Giant Elks, galloping toward Jiyong City with a staggering momentum.
These elven warriors remained silent, yet they exuded a chilling aura.
They swiftly drew their sharp bows, and in the next moment, 10,000 arrows flew at once.
Countless arrows shot into the sky like dense raindrops, forming a cloud that blotted out the sun.
This deluge of arrows poured down with the speed of lightning.
By the time the human soldiers on the walls realized the danger, it was already too late.
The rain of arrows fell mercilessly, causing heavy casualties in an instant.
Screams and shouts echoed across the battlements as the once-sturdy defensive line became fragile in the face of this sudden assault.
A sharp, piercing alarm suddenly rang through the barracks.
Simultaneously, other warriors in the barracks surged toward the city walls like a tide, providing a continuous stream of reinforcements.
At that moment, an arrow flickering with Dark Energy crossed the city wall at an incredible speed.
Everyone assumed it was just another stray arrow.
However, a sharp-eyed soldier was shocked to find that the arrow was hurtling straight toward the palace in the center of the city — his City Lord’s residence!
At this moment, the City Lord might have been enjoying himself, perhaps at his most relaxed and defenseless…
Inside the palace, the City Lord seemed to sense something strange.
Originally lying naked on the bed, he leaped up in an instant, relying on instinct to dodge to the side.
The pitch-black arrow pierced through the wall like a bolt of lightning, appearing where the City Lord had been standing just a heartbeat before.
Fortunately, he was fast enough to escape by a hair’s breadth.
Sadly, the human woman was not so lucky.
She was pierced through the heart by the sudden arrow and died on the spot.
As the City Lord of the largest city in the border region, his cultivation was as high as the Legendary rank.
In contrast, the lords of smaller cities only possessed the strength of the King rank.
A Legendary rank expert would not be so easily killed by a hidden arrow.
Puchi!
A sudden, sharp sound cut through the air, followed by a flash of cold light.
An arrow struck from behind like a phantom, piercing his chest with lightning speed.
In an instant, crimson blood erupted like a fountain, splattering across the floor.
The City Lord’s eyes widened, his face filled with disbelief.
Just a moment ago, he had been fully focused and alert, yet he had been heavily wounded while off guard.
He struggled to turn his head, but his body felt incredibly heavy, as if suppressed by an invisible force.
Finally, he used all his strength to look back.
What he saw made his pupils shrink — the person who had attacked him was his most trusted adjutant!
“Why…” the City Lord gasped, his voice filled with despair and confusion.
He truly could not understand.
He had always held this adjutant in high regard, even treating him as a confidant.
Why would he betray him?
However, facing the City Lord’s questioning, the adjutant merely looked at him coldly, his eyes devoid of emotion or guilt.
“I always treated you well…”
The City Lord endured the intense pain, trying to continue his questioning.
But at this moment, the truth dawned on him.
This adjutant had been a spy lurking by his side all along!
What shocked him even more was that the adjutant had clearly hidden his true strength.
When he had first brought him back from the border, a Magic Detection test had confirmed he was only at the King rank.
‘Is it possible the detection results were wrong back then?’
“It is a pity you stood on the side of the humans,” the adjutant said coldly, his tone lacking any shred of pity.
Hearing this, the City Lord opened his mouth as if to say something, but only a hoarse whimper escaped his throat.
His heart was full of regret and indignation.
If he had only noticed the adjutant’s true face sooner, perhaps there would have been a chance to salvage everything…
“The border…” the City Lord muttered to himself as memories of the past flashed through his mind.
“You are wrong. I am not from the border.”
The adjutant, Qi Lin, curled his lips into a mocking smile.
“My true origin is that Continent of Ordinary Hegemony, the place you view as a piece of meat to be plundered at will.”
Qi Lin’s words hit the City Lord’s heart like a heavy hammer.
He stared with wide eyes, his face full of astonishment.
It turned out he had been kept in the dark the whole time, and this traitor was actually from that bullied subordinate continent!
‘Was there already a Legendary rank expert there?!’
The City Lord’s pupils contracted.
He was in disbelief, but he no longer had the chance to pass on this information.
As he lay dying, he only heard the other man shouting, “The City Lord has been assassinated!”
He understood.
The other man intended to use this to take his position. Were the armies outside also their doing?
Qi Lin looked at the City Lord struggling in his death throes, a look of decisiveness flashing across his face.
He pulled the arrow out without hesitation, allowing the City Lord’s body to collapse to the floor.
The bright red blood stained the ground like a blooming, demonic flower.
Before long, the palace was crowded with officials of various ranks from all over the city.
When they saw the dead City Lord, their faces turned pale with panic.
After all, if even the powerful City Lord could not escape death, how could they survive while the elven army was attacking?
Without a doubt, this had to be an act of revenge by the elves.
They had actually managed to sneak into the city through the border and launch a surprise attack on the junction of the human empire.
Qi Lin’s words sent the crowd into an even deeper state of panic.
“If they intend to massacre the city, they could easily push the blame onto the border tribes, thereby destroying our alliance!”
Upon hearing this, the people around him immediately asked anxiously, “Lord Adjutant, what should we do now?”
Faced with their questions, Qi Lin turned around and scanned everyone in the room.
“We are deeply grieved by the City Lord’s unfortunate passing, but we have no time to mourn. The current situation is urgent and brooks no delay. We must immediately elect a new City Lord to step forward and take command of the overall situation,” he said with a firm tone.
The crowd looked at each other in silence.
Those who had originally coveted the position of City Lord chose to remain quiet at this moment.
Given the current tension, stepping forward meant leading the charge, and there was a high probability of losing one’s life.
No one wanted to die so easily.
More importantly, it was unknown whether this temporary City Lord would be recognized by the empire.
Of course, if they won this war, everything would naturally be fine.
However, the reality was that their strongest leader had been killed.
Even if these King rank officials took the top spot, how much of a difference could they make?
This was undoubtedly a fight with a 90% chance of death, unless the elves voluntarily gave up their attack, which was highly unlikely.
Seeing everyone’s wavering spirits and how they were consumed by fear, Qi Lin spoke again.
“The City Lord favored me greatly, entrusting me with the position of adjutant. To be honest with you all, I have already stepped into the Legendary rank. The City Lord intended to train me as his successor, but fearing I would be targeted, he kept it a secret until now. Now that the City Lord has met with disaster, it is only right that I take up this heavy responsibility with my strength!”
As soon as he finished speaking, the other adjutants wanted to argue, but they immediately felt a terrifying pressure erupting toward them.
There was no doubt about it — this aura belonged to the Legendary rank!
Seeing this, everyone wisely shut their mouths.
The civil officials reacted as if they had caught a final lifeline, kneeling on the ground without hesitation and shouting in unison, “We pay our respects to the City Lord!”
With a Legendary rank expert personally presiding over the city, a glimmer of hope ignited in their hearts.
Perhaps the outcome of this war would not be as bad as they imagined.
After all, with the unparalleled strength of a Legendary rank expert, even if he couldn’t completely crush the aggressive elven army outside, holding the city until reinforcements arrived should not be difficult.
Such was the massive influence of a Legendary figure.
As for the legendary Saint Realm experts… one must realize that even within the entire elven race, such powerhouses were as rare as phoenix feathers or unicorn horns.
It was virtually impossible for them to dispatch such a top-tier combat force to attack an insignificant border town like this.
“Everyone, please rise! There is no need for such formalities. The most urgent task is to resolve the crisis before us,” Qi Lin shouted righteously.
He then waved his hand and declared loudly, “Follow me out of the city to meet the enemy!”
As Qi Lin led the massive army out of the city like a tiger descending a mountain, the surging and unstoppable elven offensive was finally suppressed to some extent.
However, faced with the ruthless trampling of those massive and powerful elven mounts, the human soldiers still struggled to cope, remaining at a disadvantage.
Qi Lin led from the front, bravely charging into the enemy ranks and fighting hard.
Everyone assumed that with the strength of a Legendary rank expert, he would be able to turn the tide of the battle.
But to their surprise, another expert of mysterious and profound strength was hidden within the enemy camp.
Two top-tier experts met on the narrow path, engaging in a thrilling and breathtaking duel to the death.
The two sides fought for hundreds of rounds without a clear winner.
They displayed their divine abilities, and with every move, the shadows of blades and swords interlaced, creating a dizzying spectacle.
At this critical moment, the only Legendary rank expert on the human side was pinned down, unable to break away.
The rest of the humans were left in a helpless predicament.
Seeing the situation spiral out of control and continue to worsen, despair began to well up in everyone’s hearts.
Was the once-impregnable Jiyong City about to fall so easily?
Just when everyone felt completely disheartened, a miracle suddenly occurred.
A mysterious human army galloped in from another direction like soldiers descending from the heavens.
These warriors were all mounted on majestic griffins, soaring through the sky like messengers from heaven.
In an instant, countless sharp arrows and spears poured down from the sky like dense rain, quickly disrupting the elven army’s orderly formation.
Although hitting the agile and elusive elves was no easy task, killing the massive Giant Elks was simple.
More importantly, since this human army held air superiority, even the arrows shot by the elves could not pose a substantial threat to them.
In an instant, the situation on the battlefield underwent a world-shaking change.
The elven army, which had been advancing triumphantly, suffered a heavy blow with massive casualties.
The leading commander immediately forced Qi Lin back.
No one noticed that as the two separated, they shared a brief look.
“Retreat!”
The elven command was given, and the army quickly retreated toward the border.
Qi Lin also ordered the pursuit to stop at that moment.
The commander of the Griffin Cavalry landed and immediately came before Qi Lin with respect.
“Reporting to the City Lord! This subordinate was ordered to come from Storm City to provide support!”
“The elves could return at any time. Jiyong City’s position is vital, so you shall temporarily be stationed within the city,” Qi Lin said calmly.
The other party naturally had no problem with this.
As for the officials within the city, they were beyond excited.
At the very least, they no longer had to worry about their lives being in danger.
“Ou Xi, immediately report the results of this battle to the empire.”
Qi Lin began to direct the aftermath of the battle, and the army was logically integrated into the city under his command.
Barring any accidents, he would rightfully become the City Lord after this battle.
Yet, this was merely a single instance on the border of the human empire.
No one knew how many other cities were currently experiencing the exact same thing.