464. The Offensive Begins

The troubling news was both expected and yet beyond the realm of casual chat: Chi Fire had launched another assault, and this time with fierce momentum, determined to break through the defenses.

"Ye Feng, we've got serious trouble. I just scanned the attacking army—Chi Fire has mobilized their entire force. Almost all the elders are here. We're doomed this time!" Bad Bad’s voice suddenly rang out.

"What's the situation?" Ye Feng asked as he stepped outside.

"The army is already at the border. I don't know what they're waiting for; it's been so long and they still haven't attacked," Bad Bad continued.

"The spaceship is fine, right?" Ye Feng inquired.

"Absolutely no problem," Bad Bad assured him.

"Then tell Amy and the others to start boarding the spaceship. I'll do my best to buy some time."

After ten years of peaceful life, the Chinese people were about to flee once again. Fortunately, everyone was mentally prepared from the last ordeal, so when Amy, as the cavern lady, told everyone to board the spaceship, there was no objection.

People began orderly boarding the spaceship. Due to the urgency, they carried few belongings, rushing in anxiously.

At that moment, Ye Feng arrived at the frontline with Long Xiaotian and his wife. Watching the Chi Dragons swirling through the air, the scene felt like a sci-fi movie.

Angus was absent from the frontline this time, unwilling to appear before Ye Feng without increasing his power first.

Chi Yan was furious at the frontline. He desperately wanted to charge into the Chinese formation to vent his rage, but the elders supporting him would never allow him to die in vain—after all, facing them were two adult Celestial Dragons and the unfathomable Ye Feng.

Ye Feng stayed within his own formation, puzzled by the Chi Dragons circling above for so long without attacking. It was truly odd.

"What are they doing?" Ye Feng asked Long Xiaotian.

"I'm not sure either. The leader is Chi Yan. He's always at odds with Chi Fire, trying to seize his leadership. There's no way he'd come here to fight for him," Long Xiaotian said, equally puzzled.

"Look at Chi Yan's expression—he seems very angry. It looks like he's reluctant to lead the attack," Ye Feng observed.

"Yes, something must have happened recently. As far as I know, Chi Yan is also an elder and a very powerful one at that. By strength, he'd definitely rank in the top three, not much weaker than me. Chi Fire's power wouldn't normally compel him to act like this unless..." Long Xiaotian hesitated.

"Unless what?" Ye Feng prompted, thinking he was deliberately withholding information.

"The Chi Dragon clan has never allowed power to be seized by force; anyone who tries would be stripped of all titles. For Chi Yan to be this angry and lead the charge, he probably rebelled and failed," Long Xiaotian surmised correctly.

"Let's hope so. From what I see, he's very displeased—maybe he's the key to our escape," Ye Feng said.

"Bad Bad, how’s everything on the spaceship? How long will boarding take?" Ye Feng asked.

"Everything's fine with the spaceship. I set the launch point at the old cave entrance. It's lightly guarded now, and the slant of the opening is perfect for launch. But boarding is tricky—it'll take about six hours to get everyone on board. There are just too many people," Bad Bad said, frustrated.

"Try to speed it up. I don't know when the attack will start—we can't hold out forever," Ye Feng sighed.

"Maybe you should bring over the Ocean Fortress to block the cave entrance. That would buy more time," Bad Bad suggested.

"But there’s no seawater here. How can we bring the Ocean Fortress?" Ye Feng was puzzled.

"Are you a blockhead? Do you really think such advanced tech only works in the ocean? It can fly short distances. Size-wise, it fits perfectly to block the cave," Bad Bad scorned.

"Why didn't you say so sooner? Hurry and get it to fly over," Ye Feng said, speechless.

"I just remembered," Bad Bad mumbled.

To everyone’s surprise, the Ocean Fortress slowly rose from the water and swiftly flew toward the cave where Ye Feng was.

Of course, Ye Feng didn’t let the Ocean Fortress block the cave immediately; that would alert the Chi Dragons, accelerating their attack instead of delaying it.

Compared to the tense atmosphere among the Chinese, the Chi Dragon camp was also fraught with discord.

"Why haven’t they attacked yet?" Chi Fire shouted at the messenger.

"Elder Yan is..." The messenger hesitated.

"What elder! He’s just a pawn now!" Chi Fire snapped coldly.

"Yes, leader. Chi Yan said he wants to study the enemy formation before attacking—to avoid further elder casualties," the messenger quickly corrected himself.

"Tell him this: if he doesn’t attack within an hour, I won’t hesitate to punish him under military law!" Chi Fire bellowed, making sure everyone present heard the warning.

"Yes." The messenger hurried away.

Chi Fire dared not press too hard, fearing Chi Yan might act desperately and rebel with half the elders—then the situation would be dire.

After receiving Chi Fire’s order, Chi Yan cursed loudly but dared not delay too long. Nearing the deadline, he led the army in a charge.

By then, only ten percent of the cavern’s population had transferred to the spaceship. The initial transfer was chaotic and slow.

Ye Feng didn’t move the Ocean Fortress to the cave entrance immediately. Instead, he relied on the defense system and ranged attacks to hold back the Chi Dragons. Meanwhile, he stealthily infiltrated their formation to slay some ordinary Chi Dragons—a task easy for him now.

The battle lasted three hours. After secretly killing twenty Chi Dragons, Ye Feng was discovered and had to retreat swiftly to his formation. He then joined Long Xiaotian and Long Yunfeng to repel Chi Yan’s assault.

Seventy percent of the cavern’s population had boarded the spaceship by then. Only fifteen percent of the civilians remained outside, alongside another fifteen percent of the guards.

Chi Fire was deeply dissatisfied with Chi Yan’s offensive. Three hours had passed, and besides losing over thirty Chi Dragons (Long Xiaotian and Long Yunfeng had also slain a dozen), there was no gain. He issued a death order through the messenger: break through the Chinese defense at all costs. This enraged Chi Yan, but he still intensified the attack as commanded.

[End of chapter]