The Attack of the Monster Army

The demon beast army charged toward the North Heavenly Gate.

At this moment, the Beast Lord suddenly paled slightly, his hands condensing a massive sphere of demonic energy, compressed into an immense concentration of power.

He had been gathering this energy long before launching the attack.

The Beast Lord had no intention of striking immediately—as their leader, he had no need to rush into battle.

But now, at the onset of war, he could deliver a "welcoming gift."

And this gift had cost him a tremendous amount of demonic energy.

The Beast Lord continued compressing the sphere, molding it into a small pellet.

Then, he swallowed it whole.

Without a moment’s delay, a devastating blast erupted from his mouth.

"Demon God Storm Piercer!"

A colossal beam of energy shot toward the North Heavenly Gate.

Blindingly fast, overwhelmingly powerful.

The Beast Lord was confident—this sudden, unexpected strike would shatter the North Heavenly Gate’s defensive formations.

If not completely, at least enough to breach through and inflict heavy casualties inside.

This attack had been brewing for quite some time, its sheer force designed to strike first before the battle truly began.

And his aim wasn’t Di Haoran’s position—it was the leftmost corner.

Let’s see how they defend against this.

The Beast Lord turned away, needing to retreat and recover. Once restored to his peak, he would join the fray.

This strike had drained him greatly—but its power was worth it.

Yet, the anticipated explosion never came.

What?

The Beast Lord turned back, his expression darkening.

At the point of impact stood a mighty sword.

A single blade’s might clashed against his Demon God Storm Piercer.

Nangong Xiyun was there—but not alone. Many other powerful figures stood with her, resisting the attack together.

Nangong Xiyun was the core of their defense.

In the original timeline, she alone had reacted to this sudden strike, bearing its full force and suffering grievous injuries, forcing her out of the battle prematurely.

But now, armed with the diary’s knowledge, Nangong Xiyun feigned ignorance, trusting Li Siyi to make the necessary arrangements.

And just as she expected, Li Siyi, having read the diary, had prepared accordingly.

She deployed additional reinforcements to support Nangong Xiyun, dispersing the pressure.

Thus, the sudden assault was neutralized.

And Nangong Xiyun remained battle-ready.

The Beast Lord never imagined his surprise attack would be countered like this.

It fell far short of his intended devastation.

This made no sense. He had initially unleashed his oppressive aura to draw the human experts into a defensive formation.

Then, he struck without warning.

Yet, they still blocked it.

Humans… truly not to be underestimated.

Fine. Let’s see how you handle the next move.

The demon beast army continued its advance. The Beast Lord no longer planned to attack personally—but he had other schemes in play.

The frontlines of the demon beast forces were not what they seemed. Hidden among them were special beasts in disguise.

Reflection Foxes.

Their combat strength was lacking, but they possessed a unique ability—to reflect spells back at their caster.

Of course, reflection wasn’t absolute. Its effectiveness depended on the fox’s own power.

Overwhelming attacks couldn’t be fully reflected, but their reflective nature could still drastically weaken even the strongest spells.

Every Reflection Fox from the Wildlands now stood at the forefront.

The Beast Lord had anticipated the humans’ first offensive—a barrage of long-range spells.

With the demon beast army still far from the North Heavenly Gate, the humans wouldn’t pass up the chance to strike from a distance.

The Beast Lord intended to exploit this. The humans’ opening salvo would be reflected back at them.

Meanwhile, other long-range specialist beasts would seize the moment to counterattack.

The humans would never expect their first wave to rebound—followed immediately by the beasts’ own assault.

All of this would ensure the humans paid dearly.

And it would buy time for more of the demon beast army to close the distance, minimizing losses.

A flawless plan.

The Beast Lord wasn’t disheartened by the failure of his initial strike. The real show was just beginning.

Here it comes.

The Beast Lord couldn’t help but smirk—long-range spells, just as expected. Though… why were they so weak?

Shouldn’t the first wave be devastating? Do they even know how to fight?

Countless water orbs soared through the air.

Just water orbs—utterly harmless.

The Reflection Foxes shed their disguises, revealing their true forms at the vanguard of the demon beast army.

As the water orbs rained down, the foxes activated their reflection ability.

But these orbs were nothing more than ordinary water. Reflected, they simply dissipated, lacking any real force.

The foxes were baffled. This wasn’t how things were supposed to go.

As the water orbs vanished, what they had concealed inside fell to the ground.

But these hidden objects weren’t spells—they were physical. The foxes couldn’t reflect them.

The objects smashed onto the foxes’ heads, releasing a foul stench upon impact.

These were Rotten Core fruits—a toxic fruit especially potent against Reflection Foxes.

The moment the foxes inhaled the scent of the shattered fruits, they foamed at the mouth, collapsing in weakness.

It was like a severe allergic reaction. Even the strongest foxes could barely stay standing.

And behind them was a charging demon beast army. The fallen foxes were trampled beneath the stampede.

The rest of the army hadn’t expected the foxes to drop so suddenly—their minds were fixed solely on the charge.

Though not all foxes were poisoned, over eighty percent were incapacitated.

With the Reflection Foxes neutralized, the humans’ true first wave of attacks was just now being unleashed.

This time, it wasn’t just water orbs.

"Blazing Fireball!"

"Sword Radiance!"

"Heavenly Thunderfall!"

A storm of spells rained upon the demon beast army.

The beasts retaliated with long-range attacks of their own.

The two sides exchanged volleys, but the demon beast army pressed forward relentlessly.

The Beast Lord’s expression darkened once more.

Why had the humans led with Rotten Core fruits?

How did they know about the Reflection Foxes? Their disguises had been flawless.

And even if they knew, how could they have procured so many Rotten Cores so quickly?

The Beast Lord couldn’t comprehend it.

It was as if the humans had foreseen their entire strategy. Had there been a traitor in their ranks?

He quickly dismissed the thought. He trusted his kin.

This could only mean one thing—the humans were masters of strategy, deducing the traits of his beasts and anticipating his every move.

Humans… truly formidable.

The Beast Lord handed command over to the Grand Priest. He needed to recover swiftly—he couldn’t let the humans dominate this battle.

The Grand Priest took charge, though the battle plan had been laid out long before the fighting began.

Still, neither of their surprise tactics had succeeded.

When it came to cunning, humans were indeed superior.

But the Grand Priest wasn’t disheartened. Once close combat began, the demon beast army’s true advantage would emerge.

At equal levels of cultivation, human physiques were no match for demon beasts.

The Grand Priest kept his focus on the battlefield. His abilities were better suited for command than the Beast Lord’s.