"At your command, Your Majesty!" With Lin Qian's order, all the gathered generals and beast commanders surged forward, their forms streaking across the sky as they rushed toward their target.
Directly in their path stood Yun Zhi, the strongest of the three Yun family elders.
"Is it really wise to target the strongest one right away?" Emperor Lin asked, his face still showing concern as he watched the scene unfold.
Lin Qian replied confidently, "Of course. To defeat the bandits, you first capture their leader."
"But, Qian'er," Yun Yunyan added, her voice full of worry, "your subordinates are all at the peak of the Awakening Realm. None of them have reached the Transcendence Realm. Can they really defeat someone like Yun Zhi?"
Lin Qian smiled reassuringly, understanding his mother's concerns. "Don't worry. You'll soon see the Huaxia Empire's true way of battle."
Reassured by Lin Qian's confidence, both Emperor Lin and Yun Yunyan stood by, curious to witness what their son meant by the "Huaxia way of battle."
"Plans are made in the tent, but victories are won in the field!" Lin Qian shouted as a brilliant golden light enveloped the generals and beast commanders, further amplifying their already formidable strength.
At the same time, the two scholars stationed within the wooden hut began examining the array of tactical frameworks in front of them, and they soon turned to Lin Qian. "Your Majesty, the Soul Cannons are fully operational. They can begin firing at your command."
"Good," Lin Qian nodded, his eyes scanning the tactical map that showed the Soul Cannons' positions. "Wait for my signal and be ready to provide fire support."
"All units, prepare to engage the enemy. Form the Huaxia Battle Formation!" Lin Qian's voice boomed as he closely watched the map, where his troops were rapidly closing in on Yun Zhi.
Counting down silently, he prepared for the inevitable clash.
Three.
Two.
One.
"The Soul of Huaxia!" Lin Qian roared.
"Hua-XIA!" echoed the combined voices of the generals and beast commanders, their battle cries shaking the air as their soul force and qi merged into one. Led by Zhao Long, they became a golden dragon, charging toward Yun Zhi with terrifying speed.
The unified roar of the army made them seem like a single, unstoppable entity, their collective aura surging to unimaginable heights.
Yun Zhi, who had been flying forward, suddenly froze, his expression turning to one of shock. He sensed an overwhelming presence ahead—one that seemed like the concentrated power of a single person—but why was it coming from a vast army?
Instinctively, he tried to dodge, but Zhao Long and his thousand-strong force were too fast. There was no escape.
Boom!
Zhao Long's spear pierced through the sky, aiming straight for Yun Zhi's face.
Clang!
Soul force exploded from Yun Zhi's body as he caught the shaft of the spear with his hand, stopping it just in time.
However...
"Such strength!" Yun Zhi's face twisted in shock. He was being pushed back by the sheer power of this collective force, unable to stop the momentum. Despite being a Transcendence Realm expert, it took all of his might to resist, and even then, he was slowly being forced backward.
Emperor Lin and Yun Yunyan, watching from the tactical display, were equally astonished. The gulf between cultivation realms was usually insurmountable. Yun Zhi, an elder who had reached the Transcendence Realm a thousand years ago, should have been unbeatable, even for a talented genius like Emperor Lin. Yet here he was, being overwhelmed by the coordinated assault of Awakening Realm warriors.
"Soul Cannons, fire!" Lin Qian commanded.
The two scholars nodded. "At once, Your Majesty!"
In the virtual display, Emperor Lin and Yun Yunyan saw beams of soul energy shoot forth from hidden positions in the forest and the mountains. The concentrated blasts targeted Yun Zhi, who was being pushed backward by Zhao Long and his forces.
As Yun Zhi struggled to maintain his footing, a barrage of soul energy cannons bombarded him from behind, hitting the same spot over and over. Even as a Transcendence Realm expert, the compounded force of the attacks began to overwhelm him.
His front was completely occupied with fending off the united strength of the Huaxia formation, leaving him vulnerable to the repeated strikes from behind.
"How can mere Awakening Realm warriors possess such immense power? And what are these strange energy blasts?" Yun Zhi growled in disbelief. The strength of the coordinated attack was far beyond what he could have imagined.
"Your Majesty, the Class Three Destruction Impact Cannons are fully charged. Shall we fire?" one of the scholars asked from the wooden hut.
Lin Qian glanced at the display, where three separate views of the massive Destruction Impact Cannons atop distant peaks were shown. These massive, metallic weapons gleamed with a deadly light, their menacing barrels aimed at Yun Zhi.
Emperor Lin took a deep breath as he watched the display, his voice heavy with awe. "Qian'er, what are these things?"
"They're weapons that gather spiritual energy and convert it into soul power for a devastating attack," Lin Qian explained with a smirk. "These cannons can be used repeatedly, and they can be disassembled and moved. Now, let's see how Yun Zhi plans to survive this."
"Fire!"
At Lin Qian's command, the Destruction Impact Cannons roared to life, launching torrents of soul power toward Yun Zhi from three different directions.
The destructive force bore down on Yun Zhi, who, realizing the imminent danger, felt his heart skip a beat.
The soul energy from the cannons rapidly closed in on him, even as the brilliance of Zhao Long's army blinded him from the front.
Boom!
A deafening explosion tore through the battlefield. Blinding light consumed the virtual display as the concentrated soul energy detonated around Yun Zhi.
"Instant annihilation," Lin Qian said with a satisfied grin, spreading his arms. "After that, that old fool should be badly wounded, if not worse."