“They can use curses. That alone places them among demons—but they’re fallen members of the Leopard Demon clan. They consort with mountain leopard demon beasts. No wonder they were able to gathered so many. And there are three Leopard Shamans at the Holy-Demon Level*.”
Jin Yang’s expression darkened further.
(T/N: Holy-Demon Level — Advanced Stage Cultivation between 7-9th Rank.)
A mountain leopard clan with shamans and one without them were fundamentally different forces.
At that moment, the mountain leopards had entered a bloodthirsty state. They were no longer merely ferocious—they were fearless of death. Their strength and speed surged together. Even Fa Hua’s Wisdom Shield could no longer fully block a single strike. The Capricorn clan’s casualties began to rise sharply, while the mountain leopards’ offensive only grew more frenzied.
Jin Yang drew a deep breath and turned to Fa Hua. “Please go all out. If we fall here, you won’t survive either. This is a conspiracy aimed at my clan. If you can help us get through this, you will be allies of the Capricorn clan.”
“Understood,” Fa Hua replied, concise and resolute.
Lan Ge, however, was dissatisfied. “Why did you only say that to him and not to me?”
Jin Yang’s answer made his blood boil. “Because he’s more useful than you.”
It felt as if a heavy hammer slammed into Lan Ge’s chest. Being shut down by Fa Hua was one thing, but how had this woman—someone he had just met—managed to pile on as well?
How is he more useful than me?
Anger surged. His eyes began to change.
The clarity in his gaze dulled, turning murky. Deep within his pupils, strange light flickered. Blue, red, and violet hues rotated like a vortex.
“Give me command authority. Will you accept that?” Fa Hua asked suddenly, his tone grave.
Great Jin Yang froze. “You can take command? Are you certain you’re capable?”
Fa Hua raised the Divine Codex in his hand, turning it so she could clearly see the word Judge on its cover. Since she could tell he came from the Law Domain, she would naturally understand what a Judge of the Law Domain meant on a battlefield.
“All right.” She made her decision without hesitation. “Everyone, follow his command. From this moment on, his orders are my orders.”
In truth, she no longer had the luxury of doubt. In only a short span of time, the once-stable circular formation had begun to crack. More than twenty Capricorn warriors were already dead, many more wounded. Even the silver-horned warriors were taking losses.
And the silver-horned warriors could not be replaced.
They could not retreat. If they did, the formation itself would collapse.
Facing three Leopard Shamans—each at least Eighth-Rank—was far beyond what she alone could withstand. Their threat to the entire army was overwhelming.
So she chose trust.
At the very least, she was certain of one thing: the mountain leopard clan would never spare the two humans. For their own survival, those two would be forced to fight with everything they had.
What truly tipped the scales was the word Judge shining on the Divine Codex. That symbolized Eighth-Rank.
Eighth-Rank was worth trusting.
“You will also follow my command,” Fa Hua said.
His voice echoed directly within Lan Ge’s mind.
Lan Ge paused—but he did not allow his resentment to cloud his judgment. He stepped behind Fa Hua at once, placed both hands on his shoulders, and completed the link between their powers.
Fa Hua narrowed his eyes. The Divine Codex flipped open in reverse, turning directly to its third page.
A pillar of golden light surged upward. Though the page belonged to the Wisdom Sword, the golden radiance instead descended onto Fa Hua’s forehead.
In the next instant, a golden vertical eye opened there.
The moment it appeared, countless threads of golden light burst outward. Jin Yang and every Capricorn warrior felt their spirits lift, as if something had been added to their minds.
Then, within their consciousness, they heard Fa Hua’s voice.
“Everyone—follow my commands.”
Fa Hua closed his eyes. A faint golden halo enveloped his entire body.
Lan Ge, linked directly to him, felt the change more clearly than anyone. What shocked him was not the power, but the scope.
He knew exactly what Fa Hua had done in that instant.
The reversed third page of the Divine Codex was not the Wisdom Sword.
It was the Eye of Wisdom.
The Eye of Wisdom burned bright, linking all things.
In a single moment, Fa Hua had established communication with five hundred Capricorn warriors. After that, Lan Ge could no longer track Fa Hua’s thoughts—not because they were absent, but because they were too numerous, too complex.
Fa Hua was issuing commands to five hundred warriors simultaneously.
The mental processing required was staggering.
Jin Yang, standing beside him, felt her eyes blaze with light. There was a new intensity in the way she looked at Fa Hua. She knew she had chosen correctly. This decision might well be the key to surviving the day.
The first to move was Lan Ge.
The tri-colored shimmer in his eyes receded. His body turned a translucent, fiery red. One hand remained on Fa Hua’s shoulder. With the other, he raised his arm and pointed skyward.
Red light rippled outward from his fingertip, expanding into a blazing ring.
With their cultivation linked, the power Fa Hua and Lan Ge could wield approached Ninth-Rank.
Ninth-Rank fire.
The red ring expanded rapidly—its diameter growing, its edges thickening.
Boom.
When it reached the outer perimeter, explosive flames hurled countless mountain leopards into the air. The range was simply too wide, and the beasts were already in a bloodthirsty frenzy. The damage was not lethal.
But it was enough.
The Repulsion Fire Ring cleared space. Capricorn warriors finally gained a moment to breathe.
Warriors from the rear surged forward, replacing the wounded at the front. The outer ring’s combat strength stabilized.
The mountain leopards were driven back—only for more to surge forward immediately after.
At that moment, the formation moved.
The circular formation, previously rotating in place, began to advance. As it turned, violet lightning flickered across its surface. Thunder fell from the sky, blanketing the area around the formation.
Mountain leopards struck by the lightning spasmed and collapsed, their bodies locked in paralysis.
Capricorn spears thrust forward in unison.
At the same time, the silver horns of every silver-horned warrior flared with radiant light. The gathered silver brilliance blasted forward—straight toward the position of the three Leopard Shamans.
The attacks could not reach the shamans themselves, but the density of mountain leopards in that direction was the greatest.
The Leopard Shamans responded.
The one in the center raised his wooden staff. A surge of brilliant light erupted, blasting forward like a raging current. Wherever it passed, mountain leopards were flung violently aside. It avoided the silver light entirely while minimizing casualties among the leopard forces.
The other two shamans raised their staffs as well. Above them, dark green clouds began to form.
With the front lines forced apart, the pressure ahead dropped sharply. Under the effects of lightning, Capricorn spears claimed dozens more lives.
At that instant, the golden eye on Fa Hua’s forehead flashed.
The Capricorn formation transformed.
Jin Yang let out a piercing roar and surged to the very front, becoming the spearhead of the entire army. The circular formation collapsed inward, reshaping itself into a triangle.
Spear in hand, she charged forward without hesitation, driving straight into the mountain leopards ahead. The earlier retreat had bought them just enough time to build momentum.
Their objective was clear.
The three Leopard Shamans.
The lead shaman’s gaze shifted beneath his hood. His intelligence rivaled that of any demon. He understood immediately.
A decapitation strike.
Without their command, the mountain leopards would become scattered and disorganized—no longer a true threat.
But the enemy had underestimated them.
With such an overwhelming advantage, how could they possibly allow this?
What was the most terrifying aspect of the Leopard Clan?
Speed.
Shrill howls rang out. Mountain leopards on both flanks broke away, circling at full speed toward the rear. Their start had been slower—but once they accelerated, they were far faster than the Capricorn warriors.
They would intercept before the Capricorn force reached the slope.
Two masses of dark green clouds finished forming and drifted forward. Corrosive rain poured down in sheets. Wherever the droplets struck the ground, they hissed violently, green smoke billowing upward.
“Are you serious?” Lan Ge muttered, his mouth twitching.
He swept his right hand forward. A gale roared ahead.
But the lead Leopard Shaman pointed his staff through the air. An invisible barrier rose, stopping the wind cold.
The two sides clashed at range, each countering the other.
Lan Ge tried to disperse the poisonous rain. The shamans focused on restraining him.
Meanwhile, Jin Yang and the Capricorn warriors had already smashed through the mountain leopards ahead.
They were about to enter the deadly rain.