Chapter 350: Heavy Losses
Seeing the formidable Poisonous Bees released by Wang Hong and the reinforcement of the Flying Boat, the various cultivators who had been feeling somewhat desperate were instantly invigorated.
As the Flying Boat approached, it informed everyone that Wen Lan had gathered several thousand fleeing cultivators who were still on their way here.
These more than ten thousand Poisonous Bees were like having several thousand extra allies out of nowhere. With the assistance of the caravan, their situation finally began to ease.
All of them were Foundation Building cultivators, but their numbers were still too few. They were in chaos when facing the siege of tens of thousands of Demonic Beasts.
Moreover, among these tens of thousands of Demonic Beasts, there were a significant number of second-tier Demonic Beasts, making the situation even more difficult.
At this moment, Feng Chang was surrounded by three second-tier Demonic Beasts, with two bodies lying beside him.
They were the elderly people who had been following him for years, surviving all those decades, but unexpectedly met their end here today.
His gaze wandered as he dealt with the three Demonic Beasts attacking him, his mind drifting.
The Treasure Hunters around him were also struggling. The number of Demonic Beasts was simply too overwhelming.
Although Wang Hong's Poisonous Bees managed to restrain some first-tier Demonic Beasts, there were still numerous second-tier Demonic Beasts that they couldn't deal with.Just a moment ago, he had seen Yuan Jin being caught by several Demonic Beasts and torn into five pieces alive.
He felt that if this continued, he might also die in battle. In just a short while, more than ten Treasure Hunters had already died.
He didn't want to die here. He was searching for an opportunity to escape.
His gaze turned to the fifty Foundation Building cultivators led by Wang Hong and Luo Zhongjie, filled with envy and fear.
These fifty individuals worked together seamlessly.
Among them, ten formed a joint spiritual shield for defense, creating an impenetrable barrier above the fifty of them, like a turtle shell.
Another ten wielded long ropes as Spiritual Weapons, which were very effective in restraining Demonic Beasts or binding them.
The remaining thirty each had a Flying Sword, all unleashed simultaneously, cutting down any Demonic Beasts in their path into pieces that couldn't resist.
The existence of Luo Zhongjie's fifty people was the reason why Feng Chang hadn't fled yet.
He feared that the moment he tried to escape, he would be dismembered by thirty Flying Swords.
At the same time, these fifty people also gave him hope of defeating the Demonic Beasts and achieving victory.
Feng Chang was still in a dilemma, torn between whether to escape or not.
A massive black shadow flew past him, creating a strong gust of wind that rustled his robe.
After the black shadow passed, two of the three Demonic Beasts that had been attacking him were missing. They were now struggling in the clutches of the shadow, nearing their death throes.
Feng Chang regained his composure and decided not to run. He knew he couldn't escape faster than that giant bird, and he might end up in its clutches.
Just then, a group of cultivators arrived rapidly from a distance. They were the Qi Cultivation cultivators who had fallen behind but had finally reached the battlefield.
With the addition of these thousands of people, the situation finally improved slightly, and they could barely hold their ground against the Demonic Beasts.
While Wen Lan was pursuing Bai Yikui, he had also found many scattered cultivators who hadn't managed to get far. It was quite challenging to locate Bai Yikui among these cultivators. Thankfully, he received guidance from a Foundation Building female cultivator and found Bai Yikui in a secluded mountain cave.
After killing Bai Yikui, Wen Lan arranged for the Flying Boat to return early to assist in the battle. He then led twenty Foundation Building cultivators, carrying Bai Yikui's head, and roamed around, rallying the scattered cultivators to join the battle.
He carried Bai Yikui's head with him wherever he went, using both persuasion and reasoning to convince most of the cultivators to return to the battle.
Only a very small number of stubborn individuals refused to cooperate, and in desperation, Wen Lan had no choice but to execute them.
As a result, the twenty people with him had more and more heads in their hands.
Fortunately, most of the cultivators they encountered on their way were reasonable. Sometimes, before they could even speak, the other party voluntarily expressed their willingness to return to the battle.
This made Wen Lan feel that most of the cultivators in the Cultivation World were still good-hearted and dedicated to the cause.
When Wen Lan led around four to five thousand people to the battlefield, it was already a scene of carnage, with both human and cultivator corpses littering the ground.
Humans and Demonic Beasts continued to fight on amidst the corpses.
"Everyone, join the battle immediately. Anyone who shows cowardice or attempts to flee during the battle will be mercilessly killed!" Wen Lan's voice echoed as he ascended into the air, stringing the previously severed heads together and hanging them on a large tree.
With Wen Lan's loud command, the four to five thousand people he had brought with him all rushed into the battlefield.
Some of the cultivators who had harbored ill intentions or thoughts of escape immediately changed their minds upon seeing the long row of severed heads, realizing they had no choice but to fight for their lives on the battlefield.
Combined with the twenty people Wen Lan had brought, Human Clan cultivators finally began to gain the upper hand.
The battle raged on for an entire day. Out of the fifty thousand Demonic Beasts, thirty to forty thousand were slain, and the remaining Demonic Beasts, seeing their defeat, scattered and fled.
After the great battle, Wang Hong gazed at the countless corpses strewn across the ground, feeling a mix of emotions.
In this battle, there were around ten thousand participating Human Clan cultivators, including nearly two hundred Foundation Building cultivators. After the fierce fighting, nearly eight thousand Qi Cultivation cultivators had died in battle, along with over fifty Foundation Building cultivators.
Wang Hong's Foundation Building cultivators, thanks to their coordinated teamwork and decent Body Refining Cultivation levels, had stronger life forces. Only two of them were severely injured, nearly dying on the spot but managing to survive thanks to timely consumption of Jade Marrow Pills.
Unfortunately, the eighty Qi Cultivation cultivators under his command did not fare as well.
During the battle, the defensive barrier on the Flying Boat had been breached by Demonic Beasts, allowing thirty people to die on the spot, with fifteen others sustaining serious injuries but ultimately being saved.
This was still because of their well-trained and well-equipped status.
As for the leaders stationed at various points of defense, except for one who didn't participate in the battle, Wang Hong now only had Fu Li and Feng Chang left.
The losses in the four defense points that participated in the battle were substantial, and their future defenses were now in question. With more than ten days left until the one-month deadline, they wouldn't be able to withstand another Beast Tide of this magnitude.
From the current situation, it was almost certain that there would be more Beast Tides, and perhaps even larger ones. Thinking about it, Wang Hong couldn't help but wish he could capture Bai Yikui and execute him a few more times.
In the previous battle against a Demonic Beast horde of similar size, they had faced difficulties but had made it through due to their early preparations and the utilization of city walls for defense. In that battle, they had only lost a little over two thousand Qi Cultivation cultivators and three Foundation Building cultivators.
In this defense point with nearly ten thousand people and over a hundred Foundation Building cultivators, they should have had an easier time, but instead, they had lost more than half of their manpower.
"East Master, we've already gathered all the spoils of war. What should we do next?" Luo Zhongjie approached Wang Hong, asking for guidance as he pondered the situation.
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