Meanwhile, as the battle raged in Haicheng, the surrounding cities all began to pay close attention to the situation there.
As the first line of defense against the sea, Haicheng’s importance went without saying.
The very moment Haicheng’s defenses were breached, the imperial capital also received word from the city.
“Haicheng is under attack by a tide of mutant sea beasts. Mutated creatures from the ocean have come ashore and launched a fierce assault on the city.”
“Relying on heavy firepower suppression, this beast tide originating from outside the city poses no real threat to the city itself. Barring any unforeseen circumstances, they should be able to wipe out all the invading sea beasts within a day.”
Before the director of the Imperial Capital Spiritual Energy Bureau, a person in charge reported in a grave tone.
“But just when everyone thought this beast tide would end there—something unexpected happened!”
“A massive shadow appeared over the ocean. An unknown mutant sea beast—with just a single beam of light—tore through Haicheng’s defenses, causing countless civilian casualties.”
“Parts of Haicheng are now paralyzed, and the vast majority of its citizens have fallen into despair.”
“With the defenses breached, some of the mutant sea beasts have made their way into the city and begun a frenzy of slaughter. Although ability users are trying to hold them back, there are simply too many—they can’t suppress them all.”
“If this continues, the entire city of Haicheng will be overrun by mutant sea beasts, and countless humans will die at their claws.”
“We have to make a decision quickly and prevent that from happening.”
As the words trailed off, an extremely heavy silence fell over the room. Everyone was still processing the information.
As a coastal city, Haicheng had always been among the most economically prosperous in all of China. After the spiritual energy tide, it had even built specialized defenses—but no one expected them to fall so soon.
And the main reason for the breach was definitely not those mutant sea beasts—it was that enormous figure out in the ocean.
“What kind of mutant sea beast could fire that black beam…” murmured a member of the Spiritual Energy Bureau in disbelief.
With a single strike, it had shattered Haicheng’s defenses and crippled nearly half the city.
Even if that kind of firepower wasn’t quite on par with a nuclear bomb—that was just one attack!
Whether it was a casual flick or a full-powered blast was still anyone’s guess.
If you converted that into the strength of human powerhouses, it would definitely be on par with the likes of Qin Tian, Huo Yu, or Chen Bing.
“That mutant sea beast is certainly worth our attention, but the immediate problem right now is still those beasts that have already breached Haicheng.”
“They might not be overwhelmingly powerful individually, but there are far too many of them—and they pose a serious threat to the civilians in the city.”
“Taking advantage of the fact that that unknown sea beast shattered Haicheng’s defensive barrier, they’ve flooded into the city and are butchering people recklessly, growing even stronger in the process.”
“This is something we absolutely cannot accept.”
“Higher command has already issued orders for members of the Spiritual Energy Bureaus in cities surrounding Haicheng to rush over and provide support. But that alone isn’t enough.”
“To prevent that unknown sea beast from launching another attack, we must dispatch a first-wave team of top-tier ability users.”
“Qin Tian, Huo Yu, Chen Bing, Ning Guang…”
“Once they arrive, the people will finally feel at ease.”
The director of the Hangzhou Spiritual Energy Bureau spoke with a hint of emotion.
The people below listened in silence. This beast tide involved the lives of tens of millions of citizens in Haicheng—there was no room for the slightest mistake.
One after another, orders were issued and assigned. Countless ability users received the nation’s call.
Sea beast invasion—the city was hanging by a thread.
——–
Inside the training room, Qin Tian stared coldly at the documents that had come down from above. There was nothing else in them—just a summary of what was happening in Haicheng, along with some images and videos.
Millions of mutant sea beasts.
A black beam of light that had pierced Haicheng’s defenses, causing hundreds of thousands of casualties.
A colossal shadow in the ocean.
Humans killed by mutant sea beasts.
Citizens with faces full of despair.
At this point, Haicheng might not have been a literal hell on earth—but for the people still alive there, drowning in despair, fear, and the feeling of waiting for death, it was no different from one.
When disaster strikes, no one is spared.
Boom!
A warmth spread across his chest. Qin Tian touched the Fire Crystal embedded there.
“They… deserve to die.”
He stepped out of the training room, his body now fully encased in the Flame Dragon Armor.
With a twist of his waist and a thunderous roar, a streak of crimson light tore across the sky, piercing through the heavens and descending before him.
“Flame Dragon Steed!”
The moment he arrived—every single mutant sea beast in Haicheng would die!
——–
At the Hangzhou Spiritual Energy Bureau, Huo Yu stared at the current state of Haicheng, her eyes burning with nothing but killing intent.
From start to finish, she had never subscribed to the idea that all lives were equal.
She could find animals cute, think pets were fun, and acknowledge that dolphins and killer whales in the ocean were intelligent—but all of that was built on the premise that they posed no threat to humans. It was a condescending judgment from a position of superiority.
But once they gained the potential to threaten humanity—or worse, had already done so—
then without a doubt, in Huo Yu’s eyes, they were sentenced to death.
Humans are a complicated race. They can take reckless risks for profit, break the law, even abandon their families and brothers for gain; but they can also sacrifice everything for justice in their hearts, and devote all they have for their country.
When it comes to cruelty, humans are more ruthless than any creature.
When it comes to protection, humans are second to none.
The cruelty and righteousness of humanity know no boundaries—within the human race, there are even those who are truly selfless saints, transcending the boundaries of species to bring love to all living beings.
But Huo Yu was not one of them. Nor did she feel that such saints were any more noble than anyone else.
They had their ideals; she had her own way of thinking. This kind of thing wasn’t about being “great” or “not great.”
In her eyes, China came first. Chinese lives came first.
Anyone—whether human or beast—that dared to harm the lives of Chinese citizens deserved to die!
This era didn’t need so-called saints. What people needed were heroes—heroes who would annihilate every last one of those mutant creatures!
The disaster unfolding in Haicheng ignited a furious blaze within her heart.
That mutant sea beast lurking in the ocean—she wanted to see just how strong it really was.
Screech!
With a crisp, piercing cry, a crimson bird wreathed in flames appeared before Huo Yu.
Then, a streak of red light tore through the night sky, racing toward the distant horizon at breakneck speed.
——–
Tianhai City.
Chen Bing’s demeanor had grown colder than ever—she was like a block of ice devoid of any warmth.
Her ice-blue pupils held nothing but boundless killing intent toward those mutant sea beasts.
“Extreme Ice… Phoenix.”
Screech!
A crisp phoenix cry rang out as a figure of icy blue—magnificent and crystalline like pure ice—circled gracefully before Chen Bing.
“Let’s go.”
A blue radiance swept forward, carrying with it a bone-chilling cold that seeped through the air. In Tianhai City, the citizens sleeping soundly couldn’t help but shiver and pull their blankets a little higher.
For some reason, it had suddenly gotten so cold.
Almost like winter had arrived early.
