The garrison in the Demon Capital was not large, only fifty thousand in total, of which twenty thousand were Sea Clan troops and thirty thousand were human collaborators.
The nearest city, Langdon City, housed nearly one hundred thousand puppet troops. These so-called puppet troops were formed from human surrenderers and their combat strength was frankly pitiful.
The True Demon Empire had probably never imagined that an army of this scale would appear from the direction of the Divine Phoenix Continent. They had deployed most of their forces along the border facing the Northern Han Kingdom.
Especially in recent days, with frequent movements from Northern Han, they had just transferred ten thousand elite troops from the Demon Capital to reinforce the border.
Now the capital stood virtually undefended. If the enemy launched a full assault, it would probably be impossible to hold.
The army finally came into full view, halting about one li from the city walls.
A unit of light cavalry rode forward and stopped roughly two hundred metres from the walls.
“People and puppet troops of the Demon Capital, listen well. The Chosen of Heaven leads a great army to reclaim the capital. Surrender at once, or the day the city falls will be the day you die.”
Ling Xiao was human, yet if some insisted on being dogs for the Sea Clan, he would slaughter them without the slightest hesitation or mercy.
The one shouting was Meng Tong. His voice was not only loud but infused with abundant celestial yuan force, so almost the entire Demon Capital could hear him. It boomed like thunder.
“It’s really war!”
This time, everyone finally realised it was no illusion. The army outside harboured hostile intent.
Yet their objective appeared to be the overthrow of the True Demon Empire.
For many humans, this was something they had dreamed of for a long time. Still, when the moment actually arrived, tension was inevitable.
Most people chose to wait and watch. Those who had planned to head to the square hurriedly returned home and hid.
A portion who had long hoped the Chosen of Heaven would attack the capital began moving in secret, preparing to coordinate from within and drive out the Sea Clan.
Some of them genuinely refused to endure Sea Clan oppression any longer.
Of course, others simply wanted to secure political capital early.
If the Demon Capital fell, the True Demon Empire would not be far from destruction. The Chosen of Heaven would surely establish a new dynasty, and those who joined early would rise quickly.
“What do we do, Captain?”
On the city walls, many people panicked.
“Pfft!”
Suddenly, a flash of light appeared without warning, and the panicking human soldier was run clean through.
A Sea Clan general had speared him with a trident, hoisted him aloft, and roared, “Useless trash! Anyone who boosts the enemy’s morale and crushes our own will be killed by me!”
The human soldiers seethed with anger but dared not speak.
This was hardly the first time someone had been killed.
The reason was absurd.
That soldier had only shown fear; he had said nothing treasonous, yet he was executed on the spot like a chicken.
“What are you staring at? Get the archers organised and prepare to fire!”
The Sea Clan general clearly outranked the guard captain, and being Sea Clan, his orders were unquestionable.
“Pfft!”
What the Sea Clan general never expected was that Ling Xiao had arrived in the Demon Capital two days earlier and had already coordinated with the Restoration Society, placing his own people inside.
Before his order could be carried out, his head was cleanly lopped off by a sword.
The attacker was a soldier with an extremely delicate, almost girlish appearance.
In fact, she was a girl in disguise.
Her true identity was Leng Mei.
With her present, the city defences were effectively meaningless.
“Open the gates and let the army in, or I will kill every last one of you.”
Leng Mei had always been direct. She lacked Ling Xiao’s gift for words, so she relied on the threat of force.
“Open the gates! Didn’t you hear?”
The guards snapped to attention and shouted urgently.
The person before them had effortlessly killed a Sea Clan general. Slaughtering them would be child’s play.
“Very good. Cooperate, and the Chosen of Heaven will surely reward you.”
Leng Mei watched the massive gates slowly swing open and the army pour in, finally letting out a breath of relief.
This had been the task Ling Xiao assigned her. If she failed, she would feel she had let him down.
…
Almost simultaneously, someone reached the imperial palace.
At that very moment, the Sea Emperor Jiao Batian, now under Ling Xiao’s control, was hosting a grand banquet for his officials.
The Heroes Assembly was about to begin, supposedly to reward the civil and military officials for their hard work.
This, of course, was a plan Ling Xiao had prepared in advance.
He had invited Sea Clan officials from every nearby city to the Demon Capital, intending to wipe them all out in one fell swoop.
Although neither the Demon Capital lord Jiao Mo nor the Langdon City lord Jiao Lie had attended, causing some suspicion and indignation, no one yet realised the two were already dead. They merely thought the pair were showing disrespect to Jiao Batian.
After all, they were all from the same clan and had similar cultivation levels. Jiao Batian was the Sea Emperor while they were only city lords, so resentment was to be expected.
“Your Majesty, disaster! Disaster!”
Perhaps the palace was built too sturdily, or the soundproofing was too effective, or the banquet hall was simply too noisy, but none of those present had sensed what was happening outside the city.
They had not heard Meng Tong’s voice either.
Only when a eunuch stumbled in, rolling and crawling in panic, did everyone realise something was wrong.
“What is it? Panicking like this, where are your manners! Do you not know His Majesty is holding a grand banquet today?”
The True Demon Empire’s number one general, Sha Tongtian, looked displeased. He had been enjoying himself when this fellow burst in and ruined the mood.
“No matter. Tell us what has happened.”
“Jiao Batian” asked.
“Your Majesty, a large army has appeared outside the city, flying the banner of the Heavenly Dragon Continent’s Chosen of Heaven. They are approaching aggressively.”
The eunuch wiped the cold sweat from his brow and spoke tremblingly.
At these words, many faces in the hall changed colour.
Sha Tongtian shot to his feet, ready to go investigate.
“General Sha, they’re just a few petty thieves. Is it worth you personally intervening? With His Majesty here today, and you, and me, Kong He, could a handful of thieves really turn the heavens upside down?”
It is worth noting that Kong He, one of the Divine Phoenix Empire’s ten great Phoenixes, had been honoured with an invitation to this banquet.
Hong Li and Bai Qianjiao were also present.
These two were, after all, the pride of the True Demon Empire and role models for the younger generation.
“Are you saying, Peacock Phoenix, that we should simply ignore this?”
Sha Tongtian asked.
“Send your subordinates to take a look. Have them bring back the heads of those insects and turn them into drinking snacks. Wouldn’t that be better?”
Kong He said with a smile.
He truly did not believe anyone would dare attack the Demon Capital.
