Chapter 680: He Walked Into the Fire

Chen Ling didn't know how long he had waited. He only knew that the distant war fires were burning ever more fiercely, and that the rain in Willow Town was growing colder and more biting. At that moment, he realized they might not come back.

Chen Ling slowly rose from the chair, feeling an emptiness in his heart. Just as he was about to head back to the Twilight Society's house, a faint sound of footsteps came from the house behind him.

An old woman, leaning on a cane, walked under the eaves and looked at the red-clad figure in the rain.

Chen Ling paused slightly when he saw the old woman.

"Oh, I know you!" The old woman examined Chen Ling for a long time, a smile appearing on her wrinkled face. "You're my grandson's friend who collects firewood! You're the Clown! I recognize you even without your makeup!"

Chen Ling had met this old woman during his first visit here. She was Li Qingshan's grandmother, and her false eye had left a deep impression on him. It seemed that despite her age, her memory was quite good.

Seeing this, Chen Ling immediately asked:

"Grandma, have Li Qingshan and the others returned?"

"You're looking for my dear grandson? He did come back... but then he left again. He said that if any friends came looking for him, they should be brought inside to rest first..."

Chen Ling's heart skipped a beat.

"Where is he then? Where did he go?"

"He..."

The old woman slowly turned her head, and her cloudy eyes reflected the soaring war fires in the distance.

She shakily raised her finger and pointed there, saying:

"...He went into the raging fire."

The Red Dust Main City.

Continuous showers of fire rained down from the dark clouds, clinging to the muddy ground and withered forests, turning the area outside the city walls into a sea of flames!

The raging fire, like a tidal wave, fiercely struck the city walls but was unable to break through. Above the city walls, several Architects collaboratively activated their Divine Paths, forming a massive colorful scroll that acted like a screen, barely resisting the fiery erosion.

"Damn it... how did they get here so fast?!" an Architect exclaimed, sweat pouring down his face.

"The front lines must have completely collapsed. All the Halls have lost contact... I'm afraid..."

"Even the Halls have failed. Can we, with our limited numbers, hold them back??"

"How could we possibly hold them back... Why don't we just run?"

"Run? The Boundless Realm's people are everywhere. Where would you even run? Even if you escaped, could you traverse thousands of miles through the Grey Realm to another realm?"

"We have no retreat. If we can't hold them, we die together!!"

Many Architects gritted their teeth, pushing their Divine Paths to their limits. Immediately after, black-robed sorcerers descended from the fiery sky, bringing various bizarre skills with them as they crashed onto the city walls!

Boom, boom, boom—!!

A continuous roar echoed through the sky, and the entire battlefield had devolved into chaos.

The fierce battle between the Azure Divine Path and the Sorcerer's Divine Path turned the entire length of the city wall into ruins. Amidst this chaos, tall silver figures, moving at astonishing speed, passed through the flames and surged into the main city like swarming locusts, then quickly dispersed.

The Living Scroll faction had limited personnel. While resisting the Sorcerer's Association, they had no time to stop those silver monstrous figures, only watching helplessly as they charged into the city and began slaughtering along the streets.

"The Mortal Realm... it's over," an Architect murmured, despair flashing in his eyes as he witnessed this.

At the same time, a figure riding a wild goose swiftly swept across the sky!

It was a pale-faced young man. He stood on a wild goose conjured by a paintbrush, looking down at the war-torn city walls below, his expression extremely grim.

His fingertips rapidly sketched in the air. The next moment, a V-shaped formation of wild geese swiftly dived, crashing into some of the silver monstrous figures that hadn't yet dispersed. Roaring explosions swept across the battlefield, directly blasting them into pieces!

Dazzling fire tore a gap in the battlefield, and terrifying aura fluctuations rippled outwards. All the Living Scroll Architects were stunned, looking up at the sky in bewilderment.

The young man leaped down from the back of the wild goose.

As his body lightly landed, the ground beneath him suddenly distorted, and a vast domain unfolded!

The battlefield in front of the city wall seemed to be forcibly compressed and flattened, gradually transforming into a thin scroll painting. Everyone, in a dizzying whirl, saw the young man's figure rapidly grow taller... He seemed to stand outside this space-time, holding an entirely black paintbrush, his eyes burning like the scorching sun!

"I am Lin Xi, from the Ninth Hall of the Living Scroll faction," the young man's voice boomed like thunder.

"From now on, I will command this battlefield!"

As his voice fell, the young man's paintbrush, as large as a building, tore through the scroll painting and instantly struck the nearest black-robed sorcerer. The sorcerer's body exploded on the spot, blood mingling with colorful ink splattering everywhere, eventually transforming into countless birds and swimming snakes that rushed towards various parts of the battlefield.

"The Ninth Hall?!"

Hearing these words, many Living Scroll members were startled, while some newer recruits looked bewildered.

"Didn't he defect? How is he here?"

"He seems to be on our side... Regardless, he was once a Hall Master, so he shouldn't turn against the Mortal Realm and attack us."

"Aside from the Chief, he should be the last Hall Master of the Mortal Realm..."

As the fires of war raged, no one had time to question Clubs 8. They quickly began to fill the gaps in the city wall according to his deployment, fighting against the black-robed sorcerers attacking from all directions.

Clubs 8, with his domain unleashed, stood independently above the battlefield, possessing authority similar to that of the Second Hall, capable of overseeing the entire situation...

While this still couldn't reverse the numerical disadvantage, it could at least reduce the number of enemies breaking into the Red Dust Main City and buy the Chief a bit more time.

As Clubs 8 fought valiantly, he seemed to sense something and turned his gaze towards a certain direction.

He saw a tall figure, clad in theatrical robes and armor, break through the sea of flames and rapidly approach. Behind him, majestic general's banners fluttered wildly in the wind!

"Is that him?!" An Architect exclaimed, surprise flashing in his eyes upon seeing the figure.

"Didn't he run away... Why is he back?"

The sudden appearance of a Theatrical Divine Path figure on the battlefield between the Azure Divine Path and the Sorcerer's Divine Path certainly drew much attention. Li Qingshan's gaze swept over the battlefield but didn't linger. Instead, he locked onto the group of silver monstrous figures that had infiltrated the main city and dispersed in all directions, then unhesitatingly charged into the city!

Li Qingshan knew very well that with his rank, it would be difficult to survive on the battlefield outside the city; a casual domain clash from an opponent would be too much for him to handle.

Since that was the case, he might as well directly enter the city and pursue those silver monstrous figures. Although somewhat challenging, Li Qingshan wasn't incapable of fighting them.

Seeing the figure with the general's banners approaching the main city, many Architects hesitated whether to stop him.

But the next moment, Clubs 8's voice came from the sky:

"...Let him in."