"Miss Xiaoyu, I've been dying to try this! I'll pick [Celestial Beasts] for my starting deck! Like the Shopkeeper!" Mingzhu practically leaped forward with his enthusiasm over the Celestial Duel. Liying handed him the [Celestial Duel Gear] and slapped it on his wrist without delay.
Liu Xiaoyu grinned at that before she mischievously declared, "Okay dear customer, do you think you can replicate what my shameless Boss did? This is also an opportunity for me to redeem my Celestial Idols' loss."
She then exaggeratedly posed like someone with an 8th-grader syndrome, hyping out the crowd.
Mingzhu, who watched his two seniors lose against Xiaoyu, became more excited, copying what she was doing.
With that, the [Celestial Duel System] whirled again, activating for the third time, drawing everyone's attention.
At the northwestern region of the Southern Wu Kingdom, there was a small city known as Faguang which thrived quietly within the serene expanse of the Jade Hollow Plains.
Unlike the bustling metropolises of Fanling City or the sect-dominated territories like those of the Azure Gale, Luminous Hollow was a modest settlement. Its people were a mix of mortal farmers, minor cultivators, and wandering merchants.
The city was encircled by gentle hills draped in jade-green grasses. Its central feature, a crystalline spring said to be blessed by an ancient spirit, gave it an air of understated mysticism.
For generations, its residents had lived simply, their lives revolving around the harvest of their crops, occasional trade caravans and tourists from different parts of the kingdom.
However, on this particular day, that simplicity shattered the moment a towering structure suddenly appeared, standing tall, casting huge shadows over their small city.
Xie Qianmeng, a young herbalist and a 5th level Spirit Gathering Stage cultivator, stood at the edge of her family's herb garden, her hands still dusted with soil from tending to a variant of spirit ginseng.
She had been humming a tune passed down from her grandmother when the ground trembled beneath her feet.
A low, resonant hum filled the air, and she looked up just in time to see the dark spire erupt from the plains less than a mile from the city's outskirts. It rose impossibly fast, its obsidian surface glinting like a blade under the midday sun, piercing the sky and casting an unnatural shadow over the fields.
"What in the name of the Jade Spirit…?" She muttered in shock as she dropped her basket of herbs.
She looked up and her hair on her body stood up on end, making her spiritual perception tingle with unease. She could tell. She was looking at something beyond her comprehension and had no idea how to interpret it.
Suddenly, she heard shouts around her as the small city stirred into chaos. Farmers abandoned their plows, merchants ran out of their stalls, and the few cultivators of Faguang, mostly rogue practitioners, or disciples of local sects paused their meditation or training and rushed to the city walls to gawk at the towering structure.
Qianmeng grabbed her worn satchel, stuffed with healing salves, pills and worn-out talisman she'd bartered months ago from a passing caravan and sprinted toward the central square.
By the time she arrived, a crowd had gathered around Elder Tang, the city's unofficial lord, a cultivator at the peak of Foundation Establishment.
His weathered face was grim as his clasped hands behind his back trembled ever so slightly.
Beside him stood a handful of nervous guards as they looked up at the towering structure and the creatures emerging from it.
"Elder Tang!" Qianmeng called, pushing through the crowd. "What's happening? Is that thing a ruin?"
Elder Tang turned to her and then to the rest of the citizens waiting for his answer, his expression unreadable.
"We don't know yet. It appeared without warning. We seemed to be the closest to it. Get ready to evacuate the mortals. Those creatures may come for us." He pointed toward the sky, where dark shapes flitted against the clouds.
Even with his spiritual perception as a peak Foundation Establishment Stage cultivator, he couldn't gauge the strength of those creatures.
Some of the guards immediately dispersed to start evacuating the mortals, elderly, and children. A bigger city lay in the south, where they could seek asylum. They had most likely also noticed the sudden appearance of the tower.
Qianmeng's eyes followed Elder Tang's gesture, squinting against the glare of the sun as she tried to make out the winged forms circling the tower. They moved with an eerie grace, their silhouettes shifting as though they weren't entirely solid. A chill ran down her spine, her modest cultivation base buzzing with a primal warning she couldn't ignore.
"Evacuate?" She echoed in disbelief. "Elder, this is our home! If those things come for us, shouldn't we fight? The spring, the fields—everything we've built is here!"
Elder Tang's gaze softened at her bravery but his tone remained firm. "Qianmeng, courage is admirable but recklessness is not. We're not a sect with arrays or a city with grand formations. Luminous Hollow has survived by keeping its head low, not by challenging the unknown. Until we understand what that tower is, we protect our people first."
She clenched her fists, the dirt under her nails from what she was previously doing digging into her palms.
She wanted to argue, to insist that they could hold their ground but the sight of panicked families gathering their belongings and the faint cries of children silenced her protests. He looked for her family and they too were filled with concern in their eyes.
Elder Tang was right. Faguang wasn't equipped for a siege. Their strongest cultivators like Elder Tang himself, were barely enough to fend off the occasional demonic beast or bandit raid. This tower, though… it radiated a pressure that made her knees weak even from this distance.
"I understand," she relented, slinging her satchel over her shoulder before turning to her parents. "I'll help with the evacuation. But I'm not running south with them. Father, I'm also a cultivator now. I can… fight to defend our city."
"Qianmeng, you're our pride, but you're only at the 5th level of Spirit Gathering. That is no beast you can scare off with a talisman or a salve. Listen to Elder Tang. Come with us to Mingliang City. We'll figure this out together."" Her father said as he jerked his head towards the creatures flying out of the tower. He's also a cultivator, but his talent was so poor that Qianmeng already surpassed him.
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Her mother also stepped forward, her gentle eyes glistening with unshed tears. "Your father's right, little sprout. You've got a good heart, but this isn't your burden alone. Let the sects and the kingdom handle it. They'll come soon enough. Azure Gale, White Ember, or even those from Verdant Sky Pavilion. They've got the strength we don't."
Qianmeng shook her head, her jaw tightening with resolve. "If everyone runs, who'll protect what's left? The spring's spirit saved Grandfather's life when he was poisoned. These fields fed us through the drought. I can't just abandon them. I'll stay with Elder Tang and the others who can fight. At least until help arrives."
Before her parents could protest further, a sharp cry pierced the air. A merchant near the edge of the square pointing frantically at the sky. "They're coming closer!"
The crowd's murmurs turned to gasps as the winged shapes descended, their forms growing clearer. They weren't birds or demonic beasts Qianmeng recognized from her herbalist studies.
Their bodies shimmered like liquid shadow, wings jagged and gave the feeling of roughness. And they had glowing red eyes that burned through the haze. Each one was the size of a horse and their screeches sent a ripple of dread through the gathered townsfolk.
Elder Tang barked orders, his voice cutting through the panic. "Guards, to the walls! Qianmeng, if you're staying, get ready! Everyone else, with me."
Her parents hesitated, but Qianmeng gave them a firm nod. "Go. I'll be fine. I promise." Her voice wavered only slightly, betraying the fear she buried beneath her determination.
Soon, Elder Tang flew out with the two Foundation Establishment Stage sect masters located in their city. They pulled their weapons, talismans or prepared a spell to cast, their spiritual energy billowing around them.
From a distance, Yu Qingyan furrowed her brows as she observed the small city of Faguang mobilizing.
From her vantage point atop a low hill, half a mile from the tower, she could see the faint glimmers of spiritual energy flaring as cultivators took to the sky.
The Verdant Sky Pavilion caravan had settled into a defensive perimeter, their talismans and weapons at the ready, but her attention was now split between the tower's ominous presence and the desperate struggle unfolding nearby.
"Elder Yu, the locals are engaging," Little Spring said, her voice clearly filled with concern at what was happening. Her eyes were tracking the shadowy creatures descending toward Faguang. "Should we assist them? They don't look equipped for those creatures."