"Not good." Seeing the sky-covering giant soul-powered hand, Yue Liqun's previously excited expression immediately faded, and he sighed regretfully. "I nearly forgot, Shen Zhixing is a Seventh-Level Awakening Realm expert!"
In Soul Martial cultivation, no matter the race, everyone starts with the foundational three realms: Viscera Refining, Blood Refining, and Form Refining, each divided into nine levels. Then come the three Martial Realms: Nirvana Realm, Void Breaking Realm, and Life-and-Death Realm. Like the foundational realms, Nirvana is divided into nine levels. The Void Breaking Realm also has nine levels, with an additional Sky-Level beyond the ninth. The Life-and-Death Realm is divided into four stages: Body, Power, Soul, and Mind. Beyond this is the Transformative Three Realms, where the Soul Martial practitioner undergoes a full-body transformation.
The Awakening Realm, the first of the Transformative Three Realms, is also divided into nine levels. However, the Awakening Realm has a saying, "Each level is a world apart." Levels 1-3 are considered lower Awakening Realm, while levels 4-6 are higher Awakening Realm.
The difference between the third and fourth levels is as vast as the difference between the Awakening Realm and the Life-and-Death Realm. The jump from the seventh to the eighth level is even more significant, with each level representing an entire world of difference.
A seventh-level Awakening Realm practitioner is powerful enough to establish a sect, while an eighth-level practitioner is considered a hero, and a ninth-level practitioner is qualified to dominate a region. As a Seventh-Level Awakening Realm expert, Shen Zhixing possesses what is known as Grandmaster-level strength.
Yue Liqun was deeply regretful. He realized his anger had clouded his judgment, and he hadn't warned Lin Qian in time about Shen Zhixing's level.
"Even though this is the lowest tier of Huaxia Empire's Assault Warships, after accelerating over a hundred miles and with the array's propulsion, his strength won't be able to stop it." Seeing Yue Liqun's expression, Lin Qian smiled confidently. "You'll see more of this in the future. Watch closely and learn what the Huaxia Empire is truly capable of."
Hearing Lin Qian's confident words, Yue Liqun turned his gaze back to the front.
"What...?" The scene that unfolded in the sky the next moment completely shattered Yue Liqun's expectations.
The seemingly formidable soul-powered giant hand was torn apart the instant it tried to grasp the Assault Warship. It disintegrated into countless fragments of soul energy, which then dissipated into the surrounding air.
This outcome surprised everyone, including Shen Zhixing, who had launched the attack.
He had expected that his soul-powered hand would easily crush the ship-like object into a ball of scrap metal and discard it effortlessly.
But reality struck him hard. Not only did the object remain intact, but his attack failed to stop it for even a second.
"Run!" Staring at the terrifying steel beast approaching, Shen Zhixing gulped and had only one thought in his mind. His soul energy surged as he desperately fled upwards.
At the same time, the thirteen Awakening Realm Blackhorn warriors who were on duty also quickly ascended into the sky.
Their only chance to survive was to flee upward as fast as they could.
Whirr!
As Shen Zhixing fled, the spinning drill head at the front of the Assault Warship collided violently with the array barrier surrounding the royal city.
The once-resilient barrier began to twist and distort under the assault of the spinning drill, transforming into a vortex.
In just three seconds, the barrier that the Blackhorn warriors had believed to be impregnable was torn apart, disintegrating completely.
With a resounding crack, the pale purple barrier protecting the royal city shattered into countless specks of light, scattering like stardust.
Bathed in the glow of the shattered barrier, the Huaxia Empire's Class C Assault Warship made its final impact with Shen Zhixing's royal city.
The Blackhorn soldiers patrolling outside the city had no time to react. They were instantly obliterated by the warship, disappearing from the world without a trace.
The Assault Warship, like a massive meat grinder, plowed through the royal city with overwhelming force, devouring everything in its path.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The deafening explosions echoed through the heavens as the warship crashed into the royal city. The once-proud mountain fortress was engulfed by the metallic beast, its central structure obliterated.
Massive rocks were sent flying in all directions, and the patrolling Blackhorn soldiers within the city were among the first to be crushed, vanishing in the ensuing stone rain.
Thick clouds of dust began to rise, but they couldn't hide the terrifying destructive power of the metallic monster.
Inside the royal city, many Blackhorn warriors who had been meditating or resting barely had time to comprehend what was happening. They felt the ground tremble beneath them, and the deafening roar of destruction filled the air.
As they turned towards the source of the chaos, they saw the monstrous metal beast crashing through the crumbling mountain walls, bearing down on them.
"What is that?" The Blackhorn warriors barely had time to question before they were crushed under the Assault Warship.
Even the Awakening Realm warriors of lower levels were instantly pulverized, while the higher-level warriors only managed to survive for a brief moment before meeting the same fate. Only a handful of sixth-level Awakening Realm warriors managed to escape, unwilling to face the warship head-on.
The few who survived could only watch helplessly as the metal behemoth tore through a third of the royal city, leaving behind a gaping hole in the heart of the mountain.
Clatter!
As rubble continued to fall, Yue Liqun stood in stunned silence, his mouth agape. The royal city's formidable defenses had been breached in an instant, with a third of the city now reduced to ruins. In its place was a massive hole, piercing through the mountain.
"That... that's incredible!" Yue Liqun clenched his fists tightly, his voice trembling with excitement as he shouted in disbelief.
"Don't get too excited. It's not over yet." Lin Qian's tone was cold as he stared at the ruined city. "I said I would shatter it. It's been hit, but it hasn't shattered yet."
"Huh?" Yue Liqun was momentarily confused by Lin Qian's words. He quickly turned his gaze back to the front.
At that moment, through the massive hole in the mountain, he saw dozens of bright red lights igniting along the surface of the Huaxia Empire's Class C Assault Warship.
"What is that?" Yue Liqun muttered to himself, but as soon as the words left his mouth, he remembered the terrifying cannon barrels he had seen on the warship earlier.
Cold sweat broke out on Yue Liqun's forehead as he looked at Lin Qian, stammering, "Your Majesty, are those three hundred barrels the same heavy soul cannons we saw before?"
"To be precise, what you saw before was called a Siege-Type Heavy Soul Cannon," Lin Qian replied with a smile, his gaze fixed on the Assault Warship. "What's mounted on this warship is something else. It's called the Melting Flame Soul Cannon."