Rumble—!!
As the black spheres fell from the sky and struck the ground, they instantly erupted with overwhelming force. What had moments ago seemed completely harmless now surged with a frenzy of destruction. The oppressive aura of death spread like wildfire through the heavens and earth, attacking the minds of the Evernight fiends, sending tremors through their souls and expressions of sheer panic across their faces. The sensation of impending doom was too intense, too sudden—there was no time to react.
Given their sheer numbers, it was almost impossible for them to avoid this sudden assault.
Each and every one of those spheres was a Yin-Yang Annihilation Bomb.
The moment they hit the ground, they exploded in dazzling bursts of black and white divine light. These opposing energies intertwined, forming a gray annihilation light, each thread of it as sharp as the deadliest needles of heaven and earth.
"No!!"
"Run!"
"Darknight Canopy!!"
"Mental Barrier!"
Sensing imminent death, countless Evernight fiends instinctively unleashed every defensive technique they knew. Layers of divine arts, spiritual barriers, and powerful protective artifacts were thrown up without hesitation in a desperate bid to fend off the doom and fear that gripped them.
But it was futile.
The gray annihilation light engulfed everything. The destructive force unleashed by the Yin-Yang Annihilation Bombs was overwhelming—each explosion linked to the next, compounding the devastation.
In mere moments, all Evernight fiends caught in the blast radius were torn apart, dismembered, and utterly obliterated. Even their souls were wiped out in the explosion. The affected area spanned dozens of miles in diameter.
One explosion after another echoed across the battlefield.Wave after wave of Evernight fiends perished.Casualties were catastrophic.
Intermixed with the Annihilation Bombs were Heavenly Poison Bombs. Those who survived the initial blasts succumbed to the virulent toxins that followed. Massive swaths of the Evernight army collapsed and died on the battlefield.
Simultaneously, strands of gray-white chains descended from the sky. These threads wrapped around the corpses on the ground, linking them together in long chains and then dragging them into the void above, vanishing into the dark clouds.
Those bodies were directly absorbed as nourishment for White Crow City, merging into its structure. Unnoticed, the city expanded once more, its form growing stronger in preparation for the next evolution.
Even the remaining souls were harvested and transformed into supplements for the Whitebone Nightcrows, feeding their growth.
"As expected, allying with the Great Yi Dynasty was a brilliant decision. The benefits are simply immeasurable. When else could we have harvested so many souls and bones?"
On the battlements of White Crow City, the Whitebone crow Emperor watched the swarms of Nightcrows collecting souls and remains, his expression radiating satisfaction and pride.
If not for his keen foresight, he would never have thought to ally with Great Yi. The Empire's legions were terrifying on the battlefield—utterly overwhelming. Their war machines alone inspired awe.
And now?They were simply gliding through the skies, casually dropping Yin-Yang Annihilation Bombs and harvesting hundreds of thousands—millions—of Evernight lives. It was effortless. Exhilarating.
He couldn't help but marvel at the sheer destructive power of the Yin-Yang Annihilation Bombs. One explosion could cause such devastating damage—it was like harvesting crops with divine precision, all without a single direct clash against the enemy.
"Damn it! Who did this?"
"The bastards! A sneak attack?! This isn't a divine technique. If it were, we would have sensed it. These are refined destructive artifacts. I was this close to being caught in the blast zone!"
Nearby survivors stared in horror at the destruction. They had never imagined disaster could rain from the heavens like this.
Rumble—!!
At regular intervals, as long as a sizable group of Evernight fiends was detected, another volley of Yin-Yang Annihilation Bombs fell from the sky, detonating across the battlefield.
Each drop claimed tens of thousands—hundreds of thousands.
After dozens of bombardments, the death toll reached into the tens of millions.
Spoils of war and military achievements skyrocketed.
Bombardment after bombardment.
Wherever White Crow City moved, destruction followed.
This unexpected retaliation wreaked havoc across the Evernight ranks. Most critical of all, their morale took a massive hit. No one had anticipated such a ferocious counterstrike. Many Evernight soldiers began to falter, confused and overwhelmed.
"Look at that! The Evernight fiends are being slaughtered!"
"Incredible! Something fell from the sky and obliterated them. Who is doing this? If I find out, I'll buy them a drink myself!"
"Yes! Even though the Evernight armies always flood the battlefield at night, the more we kill, the better. This deserves admiration!"
From their vantage points, the other battle cities watched gleefully as the Evernight forces were bombarded—a moment of collective schadenfreude.
Unnoticed, White Crow City had already crossed a vast stretch of territory, even flying over numerous battle cities. Suddenly, an alert came from the city walls.
"Emperor, a large number of disorganized human troops have been spotted below. From their aura, they appear to be Evernight slaves—their numbers aren't small either."
Zhuge Liang spoke calmly.
Standing on the wall and looking down, they could clearly see the chaos. The scattered troops wore all kinds of mismatched armor—some black, some white, some iron, some leather. The entire scene reeked of disorder.
Yet their strength was anything but weak.
They came in all forms—swordsmen, spearmen, shield bearers, cavalry, halberdiers—gathered in clusters. Every single one emitted the aura of a cultivator. The weakest were in the Spirit Sea Realm, and some had reached the Life Aperture Realm, even Life Map Realm.
The only common factor was their chaotic madness, their eyes clouded by dense killing intent, their bodies reeking of Evernight's taint. They were entirely under Evernight's control, driven only by slaughter.
There were easily two to three million of them—an enormous mass of shadowy figures.
Their appearance—yellow skin, black hair, and black eyes—made it obvious: these were once descendants of Yan and Huang.
"Two to three million enslaved human troops. Now that we've found them, we mustn't let this opportunity slip by. We'll capture them all."
Yi Tianxing's eyes gleamed with determination.
This was a chance to reap major benefits—strategic and practical.
"The Emperor wishes to deploy the Eight-Gate Golden Lock Formation?" Zhuge Liang asked, fanning his feathers.
"Exactly. This formation can both kill and imprison. If we want to avoid killing them, we must trap them first—then purge the Evernight aura and restore their true selves," said Yi Tianxing with a nod.
"War Tiger Legion, report!" Zhuge Liang called out.
"Here! Ready for battle at any moment!" responded Wang Dahu, eyes burning with anticipation.
"Your War Tiger Legion has deployed this formation before—to swallow Evernight's enslaved forces. Repeat your feat this time and do it well," Zhuge Liang said with a grin.
"Rest assured, Emperor and Chief Advisor. A mere two or three million rabble? Even if they were multiplied several times, we'd still trap them all," Wang Dahu declared confidently."War Tiger Legion—march out! Formation deployment: Eight-Gate Golden Lock!!"
With the order given, five hundred thousand elite troops of the War Tiger Legion charged forth from White Crow City. They descended from the heavens, entering the battlefield midair while already forming their battle array.
Their movements synchronized.A massive ancient formation diagram appeared above them, linking each soldier's energy to it. The diagram began to merge invisibly with the battlefield.
Suddenly, thick white mist surged across the land, expanding at a terrifying pace and enveloping vast swathes of space. In seconds, the battlefield was covered in a fog that blocked out the sun.
"Eight-Gate Golden Lock—Rest Gate, open!!"
From within the fog came a clear cry.A golden ancient gate materialized, bearing the character 'Rest' (休), radiating mystical Daoist energy.
"Eight-Gate Golden Lock—Life Gate, open!!"
"Eight-Gate Golden Lock—Shock Gate, open!!"…
One shout after another.
More ancient gates appeared.In a blink, the entire War Tiger Legion had vanished—only the vast white mist and the eight floating ancient gates remained.
The Eight-Gate Golden Lock Formation—complete.
Inside the mist, hundreds of thousands of Evernight slave troops had already been swallowed.
"Kill! Kill!! Kill!!!"
Stirred from their stupor, the enslaved forces roared with bloodlust. Sensing the threat in the mist, they surged forward like a tidal wave—eyes filled with nothing but the urge to slaughter.