In the war between Taoism and demons that will last for who knows how many years and seems to have no end, population resources will become an important factor in whether the human race can continue to persevere in the later stages.
From this perspective, protecting the evacuation of mortals is undoubtedly extremely necessary.
Lu Qingshan was also fully aware of the importance of the matter, so after taking over the inspection mission, the first thing he did was to improve the level of his mind.
"Consume 70 million experience points to upgrade [Mind's Eye]!"
"The mind's eye: the mind is like an eye. The mind's eye is unobstructed and can see the Tathagata from afar and see through all dharmas."
"Current effect: The flying sword's attack distance is increased by 10,000 miles."
Lu Qingshan's experience value has already exceeded one billion. If he wants, he can continue to improve the level of his mind.
It's just not necessary.
An attack distance of ten thousand miles is almost the limit of what his current cultivation level can support.
Once this distance is exceeded, although the flying sword can still be accurately guided with the support of the mind and eyes, its power cannot be guaranteed.
The flying sword's attack range of ten thousand miles, combined with his sword-controlling speed, is enough to ensure that he can achieve complete coverage of the fourteen city areas.
…
Lu Qingshan began daily circular patrols with Mo Yan. In fact, they were just circling the fourteen cities within the patrol range. At the same time, they also had a deeper understanding of the surrounding environment to see if they could find the demons hiding in the dark.
This aimless search is not very efficient and can even be said to be completely a matter of luck.
But Lu Qingshan would definitely not be happy to just wait for the demons to launch an attack.
Ten days passed in a flash.
News from the front line is coming in continuously.
Compared with ten days ago, the situation in the three cities of Tiger Head, Ox Horn and Horse Hoof has become much more tense.
The thousands-mile defense line formed by these three cities has become the first line of defense for the middle-level spiritual monks and reinforcements from the three realms to resist the demons.
The demon clan's terrifyingly large army was confronting the 300,000 monks organized by the middle-level human clan in a short period of time on the plains outside the three cities.
This is not a good choice for Zhongling.
Because this line of defense has neither natural barriers nor large formations - the establishment of a truly powerful formation requires the cooperation of countless formation masters and a considerable period of time.
But the middle spiritual monk had no choice.
Because if they fail to hold this line of defense, the vast territory from the three cities of Hutou, Niujiao and Mati to the east of the Changye Mountains will fall completely, and human casualties will be counted in the billions.
However, Lu Qingshan also knew that these three cities could not be defended for too long.
Because trying to hold such a line of defense would require too much sacrifice on the human side.
Three months is the bottom line for the human race.
When March comes, Dixin City on the Changye Mountains will be built. The human race will retreat to Dixin City and use the natural defenses of the Changye Mountains and the strong walls and formations of Dixin City to engage in a tug-of-war with the demons.
And in the back.
The evacuation of the human race and the establishment of Dixin City are proceeding rapidly.
Over the past ten days, I don’t know whether to say it’s good luck or bad luck, but within the area that Lu Qingshan and Mo Yan are responsible for patrolling, there has been no incident of demons attacking the flying boat.
This doesn't make sense.
Because the area of ​​​​the Fourteen Cities is already very large.
…
Outside Jianping City, tens of thousands of miles away from Langwei City.
"call."
Under the cover of darkness, several black-robed figures quietly appeared.
Their bodies were covered in robes, and their black eyes could be vaguely seen flickering inside.
The leading figure among them was looking far away in the direction of Jianping City.
It was now late at night, but the flying boats circling over Jianping City did not stop. The flashing lights were like shooting stars, illuminating the sky.
At the same time, many monks were busy.
These monks who came from other areas were not at a high level, and they were busy, so it was impossible for them to notice the black-robed figures who were quietly approaching from outside the city.
“Jianping…” the leader murmured.
"Sir, at this critical moment, we left the virtual world without permission and came to such a far place..."
The leader's eyes flickered with hatred. "The Lord of Jianping City robbed me of my opportunity in the Xuyou Secret Realm a hundred years ago. I will be angry if I don't take revenge. But he is a cultivator from Daxia, and his methods are fair and aboveboard. I couldn't do anything to him at that time, otherwise I would be held accountable by Daxia, so I have been patient for a hundred years."
"Now, I finally don't have to endure anymore..."
"But, once our mission is successfully completed, not only the Lord of Jianping City, but even Jianping City will cease to exist. Why would Your Excellency have to do it yourself?" The black-robed subordinate suggested cautiously.
"That's different," the black-robed leader showed a ferocious smile, "Killing him with your own hands can be called revenge..."
"Besides, I want to see with my own eyes how unwilling he is before he dies..."
The black-robed subordinate did not dare to raise any more unnecessary opinions. "Then we must act quickly, so as not to provoke the patrolling monks of the human race."
The appearance of human patrol monks caused severe damage to the demons that had sneaked into the rear area, and the news spread quickly.
The demons have become much more restrained during this period, and the number of attacks on flying boats has been greatly reduced.
The black-robed leader sneered upon hearing this and said disdainfully, "The cultivators of the human race who are above the eighth realm are either in the three frontline cities or in the Changye Mountains. The cultivators in charge of patrolling are at most at the seventh realm. Even if there are one or two eighth realm cultivators, they are responsible for patrolling key areas such as the state capital. How could they be here?"
“If he wasn’t an eighth-level cultivator, even though I have only controlled this body for over a hundred years, I have now reached the peak of the fusion realm. How could I take an ordinary seventh-level cultivator seriously?” The black-robed man was extremely confident.
"Don't worry, I'll move quickly and return to the virtual world immediately after killing the person. Nothing will happen."
At this point, the black-robed subordinates finally had nothing to say and stood obediently behind the black-robed leader.
"It is now late at night, and these monks have been busy for a long time and are extremely tired. It is a good time to attack. Let's start now."
The black-robed man watched Jianping City for a while, and after making sure that nothing was wrong, he immediately ordered: "You guys attack the human race first to help me divert attention, and at the same time check if there are any ambushes in secret!"
"yes."
"yes."
The black-robed men responded respectfully.
Soon, the three black-robed men followed their leader's command without hesitation and charged towards Jianping Prefecture.
The black-robed leader was hiding in the dark like a poisonous snake.
…
As soon as the three black-robed men made a move, their momentum immediately began to surge, with monstrous demonic energy surging around them.
Joining them in the attack were dozens of demon beasts that they released from their spirit beast bags.
Each monster had an unruly and ferocious look in its eyes and made ferocious roars.
What is even more horrifying is that in addition to the overwhelming demonic aura, these monsters also have demonic aura mixed in with them, making it impossible to tell whether they are demons or monsters.
The three men in black robes had no intention of concealing anything at all, and their momentum was extremely powerful.
…
Above Jianping City, a flying boat was carrying thousands of mortals.
At this time, the interior of the flying boat was very quiet. The mortals had their eyes half closed and were sleeping soundly.
The evacuation operation exhausted not only the monks, but the mortals as well.
After the initial novelty wears off, all that's left is fatigue and confusion.
"Be careful!" The monk who was controlling the flying boat seemed to sense something at this moment, and shouted without hesitation, waking up all the mortals.
Many people opened their eyes in confusion, not knowing why Shang Xiu had to yell and wake everyone up.
However, before they could ask any questions, the flying boat they were on seemed to have hit something and began to roll and shake violently.
A burst of screams spread out, and these mortals subconsciously grabbed whatever they could hold on to stabilize their bodies...
After a few breaths, the flying boat finally stopped after several collisions and tumbles.
There was a lot of wailing in the flying boat.
In the roll just now, some people had their bones broken, and some were even worse off and had their heads hit on the side of the boat, bleeding profusely.
The smell of blood and wailing mixed together, like hell.
"Damn it, it's the devil!" The leading monk who was operating the flying boat cursed, and without any hesitation said to the young monk beside him: "You control the flying boat, I'll go out and check the situation!"
Then he left the flying boat.
What caught his eyes were three figures of demons in black robes, with surging , as eye-catching as the sun in the dark night. In addition, there were dozens of powerful monsters.
The Lord of Jianping City, who was in charge of the overall situation, was originally still in the city. The moment he sensed the evil spirit, he shuddered and turned into a stream of light and rushed out in a flash.
"The demons are invading, organize the defense and protect the flying boat!" He looked embarrassed when he saw this scene, and immediately shouted orders loudly. At the same time, a white token appeared in his hand, and a wave appeared on the token.
He wanted to quickly pass the news of Jianping's attack to the patrolling monks and ask for support.
"Three seventh-grade demons and thirty-seven seventh-grade monster beasts..." The Lord of Jianping City was anxious and worried.
He was the only seventh-level cultivator in the entire Jianping City. Even with the help of the city defense formation, there was such a huge gap in strength that he couldn't even hold on for half a quarter of an hour.
Can the patrolling monks really provide timely support within half a quarter of an hour?
Besides, can a mere group of patrolling monks really stop this lineup of demons?
The Lord of Jianping City was extremely pessimistic.
Logically speaking, the demons that attack humans are just a few in number, and the number usually does not exceed three.
It is really strange that the demons dispatched such a large lineup to attack Jianping City this time.
He couldn't figure it out.
But now is not the time to think about that.
"We have no choice but to fight!" the Lord of Jianping City said secretly.
The Lord of Jianping City did not know that the patrolling monks responsible for supporting their Jianping City were Lu Qingshan, the young master of the Sword Sect, and Mo Yan, the genius of the Candle Dragon Palace.
How the patrol monks are distributed is a secret and will not be told to them.
…
Wolf Tail City.
Mo Yan's heart seemed to be moved and he took out the token.
There was a flash of light on the white jade token.
"Hmm?" Lu Qingshan frowned.
Mo Yan, who had already refined the token, sensed the news from it at the first moment.
"Jianping City calls for help!" Mo Yan said in a deep voice.
On the map of fourteen cities behind the token, the location of Jianping City was flashing fiercely.
"Let's go!" Lu Qingshan's eyes suddenly turned cold and he spoke.
As soon as he thought about it, the peach blossom left his body.
Taking Mo Yan with him, Lu Qingshan controlled the sword light like a flash of lightning, crossing the sky under the night sky and quickly disappeared.
If he brings one more person along, Lu Qingshan's speed will be reduced to 80% of the usual speed.
But he still brought Mo Yan with him.
Because even if it was only 80% of his speed, it was still faster than Mo Yan using his full strength to perform the escape technique.
The escape techniques of sword cultivators, just like their flying swords, never require much logic.
…
Outside Jianping City.
In the darkness of the night, the flying boats and monks that kept traveling back and forth in the sky were like a long snake that had been hit in the vital spot and suddenly became paralyzed.
Many monks who were operating the flying boats left the boats in fear and checked the situation.
A gust of black evil wind swept past, and these monks silently turned into blood and melted, dying on the spot.
When the Lord of Jianping City saw this scene, although he felt sad, he had to endure it.
This is the gap between a seventh-grade demon and an ordinary cultivator. With just a casual attack, they can be crushed to death like ants.
At this time, the formation of Jianping City had already been activated, and under his command, the nearby flying boats had flown into the protection range of the formation as soon as possible.
"Here they come!" The Lord of Jianping City narrowed his eyes slightly and saw those monsters rushing towards Jianping City like phantoms.
He knew he had to fight hard this time.
For the people in the city behind me, I have to fight hard.
"I hope I can hold out until the patrolling monks arrive."
Although he knew the current situation, even if the patrolling monks came, it would most likely not play any role.
But this is the only hope and miracle that the Lord of Jianping City can see at the moment.
If there is no miracle, this will be a great catastrophe for Jianping City.
…
In Jianping city.
The monks had already taken their positions at various points of the formation, trying their best to activate the formation.
The formation is the only thing they can rely on.
Most of the cultivators in Jianping City are at the third or fourth realm. After all, they are only asked to help evacuate the human race, not to fight the demons, so there are no high requirements for their strength.
So when they saw the demons rapidly approaching outside the city, even with a large formation in place, the monks in Jianping City were still extremely nervous.
But no one chose to back down.
In fact, most of the attacks by the demons occurred in the wild, usually targeting only a small team of flying boats, with very few people and not very strong, only about the fifth or sixth rank.
It is very rare to see a gathering of seventeenth-grade demons like this and directly attack a city.
But once it appears, it will be difficult for humans to deal with it.
"Don't be afraid. As long as we hold on for a while, the patrolling monks will arrive. Besides, we still have a large formation." On the top of the city wall, the Lord of Jianping City was boosting morale.
Most of the monks here saw the demons for the first time in their lives.
"Spread out the attack, find the weak point of the formation, and then concentrate your attack on the weak point!" On the other side, three demon cultivators were also giving orders.
They are also very familiar with the human race's formations, and the decisions they make are those that can destroy the formations in the shortest time possible.
Boom boom boom!
In an instant, ripples began to flicker on the light of the formation, and it looked like it was about to collapse.
The Lord of Jianping City, who was in the center presiding over the formation, turned pale.
The demons came more ferociously and more powerful than he had imagined.
The half a quarter of an hour he had estimated earlier seemed like a fantasy at this moment.
They can only hold out for fifty breaths at most!
Can the patrolling monks arrive in fifty breaths?
Obviously impossible.
… …
A flash of lightning streaked across the sky and in an instant it spanned a hundred miles.
whoosh whoosh whoosh!
Lu Qingshan was riding his sword and moving forward rapidly.
He didn't know what the situation was like in Jianping City, but he could predict that it would not be good.
Because this is a rare attack by the demons on a city.
Unusual situations often mean bad things.
At this moment, Lu Qingshan was really running like lightning, rushing towards Jianping City at an astonishing speed.
But that’s not enough.
When they were still thousands of miles away from Jianping City, Lu Qingshan had an idea.
boom!
A stream of fiery red light shot out from his body, brighter than a meteor, soared into the sky, and shot rapidly towards the direction of Jianping City.
The mind has a range of thousands of miles.
Lu Qingshan sent out a flying sword across thousands of miles.
The speed of the flying sword is far superior to the monks' escape techniques.
Therefore, this sword will reach Jianping City before Lu Qingshan.
Mo Yan, who was surrounded by the sword light, sensed Lu Qingshan's sword and his heart couldn't help but tremble. His eyes subconsciously followed the sword light until it quickly disappeared from his sight.
"This is a distance of ten thousand miles?!"
He can draw his sword from thousands of miles away. What kind of swordsman is this?
At least Mo Yan had never seen it.
…
Outside Jianping City.
The battle has lasted for ten breaths.
In just ten breaths, the demons found the weak point of the formation and are now focusing their fire on it.
The great formation is shaking constantly.
Inside the formation, the low-level cultivator who was in charge of the formation looked pale, and blood had begun to seep from the corners of his mouth.
The Lord of Jianping City is trying his best to adjust the formation.
Even though he had extraordinary skills, rich experience, and excellent methods, he was still no match for the demons who were dozens of times stronger than him.
At this point, he realized that the fifty breaths he had thought of before was actually just wishful thinking.
Let alone fifty breaths, in another five breaths, the formation would be broken.
The situation is extremely critical.
In this situation, he no longer had any hope that the patrolling monks would arrive.
Of course, this cannot be blamed on the patrolling monks, but only on the fact that the demon attack was too unexpected and unusual.
At this point, the Lord of Jianping City couldn't help but sigh in his heart and smile bitterly.
Ever since the demons entered the area, he has been restless all day long, worried about Zhong Ling's future, and even unable to concentrate on his practice.
If I die here today, I won’t have to worry about Zhong Ling’s future anymore. It’s better to put it all to rest!
But his last thought did not come true!
The space stagnated.
I saw a flash of red sword light in the sky, brighter than a meteor.
Before he could react to what the flying sword light was, the head of a wolf demon hundreds of feet in size had already burst open, and brains and blood spurted out like a firework.
Things are not over yet. After killing the wolf demon, the sword light's momentum has not diminished. Instead, it turns around and sweeps towards another wolf demon on the side.
The wolf demon, alerted by the death of his companion, finally took precautions and tried his best to fight back.
But in the sword light, the state of mind of annihilation changed, the true meaning of destruction burst out, countless powers grew, and passed through his head again... Another blood-red firework exploded.
The Lord of Jianping City, who was ready to return with the city, stood there in a daze, unable to react for a moment.
He didn't know what was going on, but he knew that his thought of ending it all and feeling relieved was ultimately in vain.
His heart still has to continue to worry about Zhong Ling!
Boom! Boom!
At this moment, a thunderstorm like a calamity suddenly arose.
It's as if the dubbing is delayed.
The sword arrives first, the sound comes later.
This is the Dragon Bird Flying Sword that Lu Qingshan launched from a distance of thousands of miles.
It took no more than fifteen breaths for the demons to appear and attack.
But these fifteen breaths of time allowed Lu Qingshan to cross the long distance from Langwei City to Jianping City!
The demon that was coming with great force was stunned by the flying sword. He subconsciously stopped his attack and switched to defense.
At the same time, their eyes wandered across the sky, looking for the flying sword.
In the vast space of thousands of miles, yin and yang were deflected, the moonlight was dim, and only a ray of red sword light was moving around.
Do you know that the cicada senses the coming of autumn wind before it blows? What will you do with the sword now that you have it?