I Just Wanted To Live but I Somehow Became Better Than the Protagonist

“Is the information reliable?” The seven major demon cities and several noble families received intel from an insider and were somewhat incredulous.

The city lord and deputy city lord actually chose to leave—was this to preserve their own futures while abandoning Shilin City?

“Jin Honglian and Kuang Polou have been missing for two days, and no one in the city knows their whereabouts. Just as news broke that Dan Yu had broken through to the fourth level of the Demon Emperor, maintaining public morale, it’s likely to be true.”

“Clearly, they know that we will attack the city no matter what, so abandoning their vehicles to protect their leaders is quite clever.”

Indeed, whether Jin Honglian and Kuang Polou stay in the city or not, the united forces will launch an assault. Their departure now only slightly reduces the difficulty of the siege.

“What if they hide with the passage tokens?”

The whole situation began in the Demon Forest’s secret realm. Originally, the half-saint human race from the Kunlun realm did not attack Shilin City, which left them psychologically unbalanced. To make matters worse, they even obtained two passage tokens in succession. It may not matter in the short term, but in a few years, the North Cold Continent will undergo a transformation. With Shilin City standing alone at the top, no one wants that scenario to unfold.

“The secret realm can only be entered once. They have no roots left; what use are the tokens now? Once the city gates are breached, we can eliminate those with strong resistance, making an example of them. The remaining residents should be left untouched, to threaten them into handing over the tokens.”

“That makes sense. As long as there’s hope, they won’t hesitate. But we also need to set a timeline; if they manage to cultivate successfully, it could be troublesome when they come back for revenge.”

“Simple. Kill a batch of residents each year; I don’t believe they won’t show up. Jin Honglian has no family, but Kuang Polou does. He won’t ignore his kin.”

“So when do we start the siege? My army is itching to go after being starved for so long.” The Niu Shou demon clan was eager to try.

“Soon. I’ll have the undercover agents mix into the city’s protective formation. As long as the arrangements are made properly, the city’s defenses can be breached within a day.”

“Then let’s start mobilizing the troops and surround Shilin City.”

A group of powerful demon clans sat together, laughing and chatting, confident about this operation, as if they could foresee the future of Shilin City.

————

“Lord Danba! The front line reports that various affiliated troops have appeared around Shilin City. They can no longer hold back.” In the audience hall of the lord’s mansion, the high-ranking officials of Shilin City were already in disarray. Although they had long been aware of the external intentions, when the enemy finally took action, the fear and pressure they felt were incomparable to what they had experienced before.

On the high platform of the audience hall, there were three obsidian chairs symbolizing status: the lord and two deputy lords. Danba sat in the position of one of the deputy lords on the side, while the middle and the other side felt quite empty. The city’s backbone was left with only her; if it weren’t for the news of Danba’s breakthrough in realm, the panic among those high-ranking officials below would have likely increased significantly.

“Quiet down.” Danba tapped her cane on the ground, and the officials quickly fell silent, waiting for her to speak.

“If anyone has thoughts, feel free to express them now.” Danba’s gaze swept over the high-ranking officials.

One of the demon lords responsible for the city’s security said, “I think we should immediately close the city gates. We cannot allow residents to leave any longer. Some ill-intentioned rogues might take this opportunity to loot the surrounding shops and then escape with their spoils. If one demon succeeds, many will follow, leading to serious consequences. Closing the gates can reduce such occurrences.”

A general echoed, “Right now, the outside is even more chaotic than inside the city. If we encounter hostile forces, the civilians might even be captured and interrogated about our military strongholds. Ordinary citizens can be disregarded, but if someone with insider information reveals anything, it would be extremely detrimental to us.”

“I cannot agree. You can trap the demons, but you cannot trap their hearts. If we confine those who wish to escape within the city, they might be incited by undercover agents from outside, leading to riots. At that point, we would face troubles both inside and out, which is truly a poor strategy. If anyone wants to leave, let them do so quickly.”

“Lord Danba, I believe we should negotiate with the forces outside. After all, we have never tried to negotiate with them; how do we know this matter cannot be resolved through dialogue?”

“Resolve it through dialogue? With so many forces involved, can this matter truly be resolved? Can you satisfy the demands of all these factions? They are worried about Shilin City growing stronger, which is why they are committing such unjust acts to strangle us in the cradle. This matter is fundamentally impossible to resolve through dialogue.”

The arguments continued below.

“Enough.” Danba tapped her cane on the ground again. “Now that the army is surrounding us, it won’t be easy for the residents to escape. Close the city gates, summon all frontline soldiers back into the city, and activate the city’s protective formation, dividing Shilin City into three circles: outer, middle, and inner. Protect the ordinary residents in the inner circle, with soldiers guarding the outer circle, while we remain in the middle circle.”

“Lord Danba, are we really going to fight?”

“Is there no other choice?”

No demon dared to propose surrender; after all, at this critical moment, anyone who did could be suspected of being a traitor, and would face punishment for disturbing the morale of the troops. Anyone with a bit of sense wouldn’t do such a thing.

“Execute the orders. Anyone who abandons their post will be killed on the spot.” After Dan Yu spoke, the higher-ups dispersed. Regardless of their plans, they could only proceed this way for now.

Soon, the grand hall was left with only Dan Yu. She stood up with her cane, looking somewhat like an old woman on the verge of death. However, the murky eyes that should belong to such an old crone now revealed a glimmer of clarity: “If it weren’t for Lord Ye Yong’s assistance, whether Hong Lian and the others stayed or not, we wouldn’t be able to escape this calamity. But now… ha, if you want to take a piece of meat from the lion, you must be prepared for the lion’s counterattack, ready to have your neck bitten off.”

————

“It’s over, it’s over! The Seven Great Demon Cities and the Ten Great Families are actually going to unite to attack our Lion Forest City.”

“The Demon Forest Secret Realm is both an opportunity and a crisis. Who exactly offered the tokens? One was already bad enough, but now there are two. Isn’t this just sabotaging us!”

“The city gates have been closed, and the army is besieging us. Now, even if we want to escape, it’s too late.”

“I heard that City Lord Jin and Deputy City Lord Kuang left long ago. Are we going to be abandoned with only Deputy City Lord Dan left?”

Most of the residents still in Lion Forest City chose to stay because it was their home, but some were delayed by other matters and couldn’t escape in time.

Regardless of the type of resident, with the impending war, they could not remain calm.

“The general has issued an order! All ordinary citizens must gather at the city lord’s mansion immediately, and no one is allowed to linger! Those who disobey will be treated as traitors!” Before long, soldiers began to drive the people away from the city’s outskirts.

The crime of treason is to be dealt with on the spot; no one dares to joke with their own life. They quickly packed their belongings and rushed towards the city center.

“Is this the eve of war?” On the top floor of the Red Reversal Horse Tavern, Lin Junran stood on the balcony, looking down at the bustling crowd of demons below.

He was not the least bit flustered. Firstly, their group bore the insignia of esteemed guests from the lord’s manor, indicating they were allies of the lord; the soldiers within the city had no authority to drive them away. As long as they did not trespass into military zones, it mattered little what they did. If the external forces attacked, those high-ranking demon emperors would not act recklessly; the protection provided by Lin Feng and the others, who were at the Void Realm, would be more than sufficient.

This neutral position not only did not frighten Lin Junran, but instead gave him a sense of detached satisfaction.