C9 The Second Awakening!(1)

The inner ring highway acted like a firewall in a forest blaze, successfully keeping a horde of mutated beasts at bay outside the Main City Region.

Ruins and broken walls lay scattered everywhere, along with the skeletal remains of mutated beasts and humans. Countless craters left by firearms marked the terrain.

Hsu Yuvran and Dongfang Bai had charged fearlessly into an endless sea of mutated beasts.

One of them wielded a large bronze shield, expertly employing various shield techniques to forge a path ahead.

The other unleashed invisible explosions with mere hand waves, tearing apart any mutated beast that ventured too close.

Both moved swiftly, decimating the outer ring of mutated beasts as if they were paper.

Their goal was clear: to scale the city wall before the overwhelming swarm of mutated beasts engulfed them.

At that time, Platoon Leader Liang, stationed on that section of the city wall, received a rapid report from the observation post below about the duo's daring assault.

Picking up his binoculars, Liang couldn't help but silently praise the courageous young man and woman he saw charging into the sea of beasts.

'What brave young souls,' he thought.

His second-in-command, Vice-Platoon Leader Li, asked, "Liang, what's our move? Should we dispatch a helicopter to back them up?"

Liang hesitated, furrowing his brow. "Is it worth deploying a helicopter just to rescue two people?"

Li shared his conflict, acutely aware of their dwindling resources while they remained under siege.

Every day, a massive amount of weapons, ammunition, and supplies were consumed to barely hold on.

In stark contrast, the mutated beasts seemed to multiply and grow stronger by the day.

Their increasing adaptation to the virus only made them more formidable adversaries.

The situation worsened daily. Without the assistance of awakened cultivators in defense, the city would have fallen to the relentless onslaught of mutated beasts long ago.

Both leaders on the city wall were caught in a moral and practical dilemma: they wanted to help but questioned whether the resource cost was justifiable.

In that brief moment, Hsu Yuvran and Dongfang Bai had already advanced several hundred meters. More mutated beasts, already patrolling the outskirts, were fast zeroing in on them.

From rats and field mice to wild cats, dogs, house pigs, oxen, sparrows, pigeons, and hawks—a myriad of mutated creatures converged on the two from all directions.

The small creatures darted incredibly fast while their larger counterparts packed a devastating punch. Mutated Beasts filled the sky and earth, a horde of deadly nightmares.

Hsu Yuvran's shield was massive, quickly knocking away swarms of Mutated Beasts with a single swing.

Beasts flung aside by the shield often suffered severe injuries, becoming a quick meal for their ravenous comrades.

Dongfang Bai deftly employed Air Grenades to disperse the crowd. Following up with punches and kicks, she cleared out any beast that dared to get close.

Dongfang Bai's palm sword was a force to be reckoned with. It could deliver fatal blows to smaller creatures, although it only heavily injured the larger ones.

With a swift wave, Hsu Yuvran unleashed a bronze spike, delivering a fatal blow to a Mutated Beast.

Blood and gore filled the air. Bathed in the carnage, the pair was an unstoppable force.

Soldiers and officers on the city walls, along with a few Awakening Cultivators, cheered in awe of the duo's prowess.

Although they had coordinated countless times before, they had never faced a surge of Mutated Beasts so overwhelming, so ocean-like.

This battle was a crucible of life and death for both. Focused and resolute, they unleashed a level of combat strength they had never reached, charging headlong into the fray.

Unaware of the world's current state, their experiences over the past year signaled that things were grim, likely for humanity.

Before them lay a wall, a beacon of hope and a line of defense against the mutated horrors. Beyond that was an army tasked with safeguarding lives.

This wall was their lifeline, and they had no choice but to break through.

Unbeknownst to them, the protective wall teetered on the brink of collapse, facing imminent shortages of food and ammunition.

In recent days, the depletion of resources has escalated due to rescue missions.

It was uncertain whether more resources would be expended to save this courageous young pair.

Hsu Yuvran was lost in the slaughter, no longer keeping track of the number of beasts he had slain.

His body was a map of wounds, torn and shredded by the ferocious claws and teeth of the beasts.

Dongfang Bai, although battered, mainly remained unscathed. Her skin had been strengthened by Hsu Yuvran's shielding, rendering the beasts' attacks primarily ineffective.

Yet the beasts were more than fangs and claws; their limbs also served as battering rams, adding another layer of threat to the battle.

A mutated bull, twice its original size, charged with the force of a small armored vehicle, crashing into Hsu Yuvran's shield.

With a resounding crack, the shield shattered. Hsu Yuvran was sent flying at an angle, barely missing Dongfang Bai as the mad bull continued its charge.

Though Dongfang Bai escaped a direct hit, the sheer force of the bull's charge left her injured.

Coughing up blood, she sprinted, catching up with Hsu Yuvran, who was still airborne.

While holding onto Hsu Yuvran and spitting out more blood, she used the momentum to propel them an additional ten meters forward.

Seizing the opportunity, Hsu Yuvran waved his left hand, conjuring another massive shield to block an incoming eagle claw aimed at Dongfang Bai.

They were still at least a kilometer away from the city walls. A kilometer filled with a multitude of mutated beasts. It was a kilometer that meant life or death.

A glance back revealed an endless sea of mutated creatures, cutting off any chance of retreat. They were trapped at the heart of this beastly ocean.

Behind the second shield were two young men drenched in blood. Their mental and physical energies were dwindling, putting them in an increasingly dire situation.

On the city wall, onlookers wiped sweat from their palms. Everyone could see that the young duo's situation was critical, yet they were powerless to intervene.

At that moment, a group of Awakening Cultivators on the wall had located Platoon Leader Liang.

A tall, handsome man shouted at Liang, "That's my Dongfang Bai from the Dongfang family. Why aren't you rescuing her?"

Exasperated, Liang retorted, "How could I? We're out of options and out of fuel. You want helicopters?"

A stocky, middle-aged man said, "They're Awakening Cultivators with combat skills that could be invaluable to us. We should try to save them."

Vice-Platoon Leader Li sighed, "We'd love to, but we're out of fuel. What if we find more survivors later?"

A slightly plump young girl challenged them, "So you're saving fuel for ordinary people instead of Awakening Cultivators?"

Growing increasingly impatient, Liang shot back, "Are ordinary people's lives worthless? Are only Awakening Cultivators deserving of life?"

The tall man, identified as Dongfang, yelled, "We risk our lives helping you defend this place, and this is how you repay us? Fine, I'll go rescue her myself!"

He turned and was about to leap off the city wall. The other Awakening Cultivators around him seethed with anger.

As Awakening Cultivators, they believed that their lives were inherently more valuable than those of ordinary people and deserved saving.

Frustrated and angry, everyone followed the young man named Dongfang as they charged into the horde of beasts gathering below the city wall.

These awakened warriors held their ground here for days, gaining invaluable experience battling the mutated creatures.

Employing a myriad of awakened abilities, they managed to carve out a path through the sea of beasts instantly.

Armed with shimmering crystal spears, impenetrable earthen shields, cascading fireballs, piercing tree branches, and invisible air grenades that detonated all around, they unleashed a dazzling array of skills, laying waste to the mutated beasts.

Some particularly formidable beasts had already taken notice of the warriors and quickly led a swarm of creatures, whose skin seemed to flow with a bronze luminescence, to surround them.

Even though the warriors continued their fierce charge, their pace began to slow.