The memories of all humanity are awakening, except for mine.

The morale of the Hulao Army was high due to their previous minor victory.

But now, seeing this overwhelming demonic aura, everyone felt as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over them, and their morale instantly plummeted.

The soldiers looked at each other, uneasy.

Suddenly, Qinglin in Jiang Chuan's arms became restless, twisting and turning, appearing extremely uneasy.

Jiang Chuan looked down at Qing Lin, puzzled. Qing Lin seemed to have a special sensitivity to this demonic energy.

He recalled the scene of the Battle of Weicheng, when Qinglin unleashed astonishing power after absorbing demonic energy.

Jiang Chuan pondered to himself, what exactly is the origin of this Qing Lin? How could it have such a peculiar reaction to demonic energy?

Just as everyone was unsettled by the eerie demonic energy, Ye Xuan suddenly let out a scream. This scream instantly drew everyone's attention.

The soldiers on the city wall all looked in the direction Ye Xuan pointed. Under the two collapsed cloud ladders, the densely packed 20,000 demon soldiers were now being manipulated by an invisible force and began to rapidly assemble.

Everyone stared wide-eyed as the demonic soldiers piled up and combined, and in a short while, a huge giant appeared before them.

This giant towered into the clouds, its height reaching the same level as the city wall of Hulao Pass.

His two scarlet demonic eyes, radiating a chilling light, stared straight at the city wall.

The giant slowly stood up, and the ground beneath his feet trembled a few times.

He took a step, and his enormous body was already at the edge of the city wall.

A voice came from afar: "I am Xian Zhen, and I will surely break through Hulao Pass within three days!"

Xie Xuan's heart skipped a beat upon hearing this. He had underestimated Xian Zhen's strength. If the situation continued to develop as it was, Hulao Pass might not last more than three days.

He instinctively gripped his sword, ready to strike, but a powerful aura instantly locked onto him.

The aura was too powerful, and Xie Xuan dared not act rashly. Now was not the best time to make a move; he needed to wait for a more suitable opportunity.

Xie Xuan glanced back. Although there was no one behind him, the message he wanted to convey had already been sent out.

Inside the Chamber of Commerce study in Heyang City, Yu Youwei was playing chess with the swordsman in the straw raincoat.

But Yu Youwei was distracted at the moment, holding the chess piece in her hand without making a move for a long time.

Suddenly, the Zhu Yan, which had been quietly staying in the pen holder, darted out with a "whoosh." It then transformed into human form.

Zhu Yan looked at Yu Youwei and said, "Miss Yu, Xian Zhen's 200,000-strong army has already reached the gates of Hulao Pass. I'm afraid the Hulao army will soon be unable to hold out."

Upon hearing this, Yu Youwei looked at Zhu Yan and asked, "Zhu Yan, why are you stirring up this mess at Hulao Pass?"

Zhu Yan smiled and explained, "Our original plan was to have Xian Zhen come out of seclusion to clean up the mess over there, and then march north to take down Wang Lang in Handan. Although the plan has deviated somewhat, the final result will not be too far off."

Yu Youwei pondered to herself. Zhu Yan, like herself, was also scheming towards her ultimate goal.

Zhu Yan continued, "The reason we chose to help Xie Xuan instead of Li Tianxing is because we want to be heroes who eliminate demons and protect the righteous path, rather than villains who are despised for stealing the world."

In this way, once we succeed, our capture of Hulao Pass won't be too different from our initial plan. Moreover, Wang Lang, Zhao Dun, Mu Suifeng, and Xie Xuan will not die. They can still serve as a buffer in future battles.”

Listening to Zhu Yan's words, Yu Youwei realized that the northern border was likely to see a repeat of the national war of seventy years ago. Moreover, a new war was probably already brewing between the Song and Zheng states.

After a moment's thought, Yu Youwei said, "I need to send a letter to Grandmaster Tao Hongjing of Tianzhu Mountain." After saying that, she glanced at Zhu Yan.

Zhu Yan understood immediately and transformed back into its beast form.

In the study, only Yu Youwei and the swordsman in the straw raincoat remained.

Yu Youwei got up and quickly left the study.

The swordsman in the straw raincoat watched Yu Youwei's departing figure, then turned his head, quietly looked at the chessboard, and slowly placed a chess piece.

Meanwhile, at Hulao Pass, the giant had already begun his attack. He swung his enormous arm, sweeping it fiercely towards the city wall. Wherever his arm passed, the air hummed and buzzed.

Wu Lianjiang roared and charged at the giant's arm with his sword. His sword, brimming with fierce power, slashed straight at the giant's arm. With a sharp "crack," the giant's arm was severed by Wu Lianjiang's single strike.

The giant lost his balance, his massive body swayed a few times, and he headlong towards Hulao Pass.

Just then, Zhang Wei unleashed a burst of energy from behind. This energy, carrying immense power, instantly pierced the giant's chest, snapping it in half at the waist. The giant's upper body collapsed onto the city wall, raising a cloud of dust.

Meanwhile, the army of the dead who had been following the giant surged madly onto the city walls.

The Hulao Army on the city wall instantly engaged in a desperate battle.

The army of the dead came with overwhelming force, quickly breaking through the Hulao Army's formation and surging towards the city walls.

Jiang Chuan, clad in black armor, resembled a war god, wielding the Qing Shuang sword and charging bravely at the forefront.

The Azure Frost Sword in his hand had a blade aura that was three inches long. At this moment, Jiang Chuan was already close to the threshold of the Sword Intent Realm, just one step away from stepping into the even more profound Sword Qi Realm.

This seemingly small step gave him immense power and prestige on the battlefield.

The standard-issue sabers of the army of the dead shattered under the sharp edge of the Frost Sword, turning into piles of scrap metal.

Countless dead were cut down by his sharp sword light, losing their ability to move and forced to crawl painfully on the ground.

This is the absolute crushing of the realm of subtle knowledge over the realms of suffering and the other shore. Jiang Chuan is like the Grim Reaper who harvests lives, leaving only deathly silence wherever he goes.

Jiang Chuan's bravery boosted the morale of the Hulao Army.

The morale, which had been somewhat low due to the face of the army of the dead, was now burning brightly.

The soldiers followed closely in Jiang Chuan's footsteps, charging towards the army of the dead.

Every soldier fought with all their might, wielding their weapons with fierce force, as if venting their anger through each attack.

Meanwhile, the giant's severed arm fell into the barbican and strangely transformed into a demonic soldier, rising up once more.

This barbican, located between the outer and inner city walls of Hulao Pass, was an important passage for the Hulao army to support the outer city.

The Hulao Army continuously sent troops to the outer city through the passages in the barbican walls.

However, a large number of the dead rushed into the barbican, and the situation became extremely critical.

Shen Mojun, the deputy commander of the Hulao Army, stood atop the barbican, watching the ferocious army of the dead, his face showing anxiety. But he quickly calmed down and decisively ordered: "Open the city gates! Six hundred cavalrymen charge out and launch a fierce attack!"

At his command, the city gates slowly opened, and six hundred cavalrymen fired at the army of the dead.

The cavalrymen rode tall warhorses, their lances gleaming coldly. They charged towards the enemy with an aura that seemed to shake the heavens and earth.

After a charge, the battlefield was a scene of devastation. The army of the dead lost a third of its strength, but the Hulao Army's cavalry also paid a heavy price, with fifty brave cavalrymen falling forever on this land.

The cavalry captain was filled with grief and indignation as he looked at the carnage on the battlefield.

He gripped the reins tightly and shouted, "Prepare for the second charge!" Meanwhile, the catapults in the inner city were in constant motion.

The huge stone was thrown high into the air, arcing through the air, and hurtling towards the enemy outside the pass.

The two sides went back and forth, constantly throwing huge stones at each other.

In the end, they even sent people to pick up the stones thrown at them and continue using them, which shows how fierce the battle was.

At the top of Hulao Pass, an even fiercer tug-of-war ensued.

The Hulao Army and the demon soldiers who rushed up the city wall fought fiercely, each advancing and retreating, locked in a deadly battle.

Jiang Chuan began this fierce battle as soon as the sun rose and fought until the sun was high in the sky, a full hour later.

His black armor was already stained red with blood, which trickled down his body.

The soldiers were also bloodthirsty, their voices had long since become hoarse and they could no longer utter a sound.

On the battlefield, only the sounds of drums and clashing weapons remained. The soldiers of the Hulao Army numbly formed ranks and charged into battle.

The once neat formation of fifteen men could no longer be maintained. The soldiers were exhausted, and their arms were swollen from wielding weapons for a long time.

The undead, however, showed no signs of fatigue, continuing their relentless charge. Finally, Ye Xuan beheaded the last demonic soldier on the city wall. The survivors looked at each other; the city wall was piled high with corpses.

There were soldiers from the Hulao Army and demon soldiers; their blood stained the ground dark red.

At the end of the first battle, the Hulao Army suffered as many as 7,000 casualties, and the number of dead who fell was more than twice that of the Hulao Army.

Despite the victory, none of the survivors felt excited.

They nearly collapsed from exhaustion atop the city walls, gasping for breath. They gazed in despair at the vast, swarming army of the dead stretching across the plains beyond the pass, a sense of powerlessness washing over them. Yet, they refused to surrender; their pride sustained them as they stood firm atop the walls.

The bugle call to retreat sounded in the enemy's central ranks. The demon soldiers began their orderly withdrawal.

Xian Zhen remained arrogantly seated atop his skeletal warhorse, his figure sending chills down one's spine.

The army of the dead temporarily halted its attack, and Hulao Pass finally gained a brief respite.

As night fell, Xian Zhen still did not launch a second attack, as if the siege battle in the morning was just a joke he had played on a whim.

This peaceful night only made the garrison at Hulao Pass more uneasy. They had no idea what kind of conspiracy the enemy was plotting in the darkness.

Night falls on the Hulao Pass city tower.

The strategist Yuan Zhe stood quietly on the city wall, gazing at the massive cloud ladders of the central army outside the pass.

The cloud ladder was surrounded by demonic energy, making it eerie and unsettling.

The fire in the barbican was still raging, burning the corpses of seven thousand people to prevent them from rising up and becoming terrifying red-eyed demon soldiers.

The soldiers, suppressing their grief and nausea, threw the corpses into the fire pit one by one.

Yet some corpses still struggled to crawl out of the fire, unwilling to die. The soldiers cremating the bodies could only use their lances to push them back in.

The stench of burning corpses permeated the entire Hulao Pass, making everyone nauseous. Except for Ye Xuan, all the other soldiers burning the bodies couldn't help but vomit.

Lieutenant General Shen Mojun, his hand on the sword at his waist, looked worried.

He walked up to Yuan Zhe and said, "Seven thousand men died in battle, and two thousand cleaned up the battlefield. Throwing their former comrades into the fire and watching their corpses crawl out of the flames was a huge blow to them."

The morale of the entire army had plummeted to rock bottom after this battle.

"If we don't fight, we'll die; if we fight, we might have a chance to survive. We can't give up; we must hold Hulao Pass." After saying this, Yuan Zhe turned around and slowly descended the city wall.

Tonight, it was Shen Mojun's turn to be on duty, guarding the outer city of Hulao Pass. Standing on the city wall, looking at the gloomy, dead army on the plains beyond the pass, his mind was filled with countless thoughts. In this battle, although the Hulao army had temporarily repelled the enemy's attack, the price they paid was far too high.

He didn't know how long this fierce battle could last, or whether Hulao Pass could be held.

While no one was paying attention, the moat outside Hulao Pass, which was already frozen solid, was secretly dug up.

One after another, several dark figures emerged from the icy pit and cautiously slipped into the frigid river water, heading upstream towards the drainage ditch.

The drainage canals inside Hulao Pass are connected to the moat. Three iron gates block the drainage outlets, which can only allow three adult men to pass through at the same time.

On the plains beyond the Great Wall, on the central army's cloud ladder.

Li Tianxing stood at the very top, gazing at Hulao Pass. Looking at the battered and bruised pass, he sneered to himself, "How long can an army that has lost its morale hold out? Hulao Pass cannot be held, and the moment you emerge will be the moment the Nine Provinces Sword Emperor perishes!"

The surrounding demonic energy grew increasingly dense, and a massive demonic array, centered on the cloud ladder, radiated outwards in all directions. An eerie light flowed within the array.

Li Tianxing looked up at the sky and sighed, opening his arms as if to embrace the cold moon. His figure appeared particularly ferocious under the surrounding demonic energy.

Meanwhile, in Heyang City, 25,000 cavalrymen quickly assembled the moment they received Xie Xuan's secret letter.

Tao Hongjing, the Grandmaster of Tianzhu Mountain, personally came to the front of the battle to give instructions.

He shaved off his unkempt beard, making him look dashing and imposing.

He stood on the high platform, looking at the soldiers before him, and declared in a resounding voice: "Warriors of the Southern Region! The demonic army is pressing in, and Hulao Pass is in imminent danger. As the guardians of the Southern Region, we bear the heavy responsibility of protecting our homeland, eliminating demons, upholding justice, and protecting the righteous path."

We cannot back down; we must forge ahead and defend our homeland with our blood and lives!

Upon hearing his words, the soldiers were filled with fervor. They brandished their weapons and shouted, "Defend our homeland! Eliminate evil and uphold justice!"

Twenty-five thousand cavalrymen mounted their horses in perfect formation and arrayed themselves in the vast circular square of Heyang City. Their figures appeared exceptionally imposing in the moonlight. (End of Chapter)