The night sky above the Lantern Sector looked as though it were bleeding. Fiery red and sickly green light from the exploding lantern oil facility billowed high into the sky, driving back the thick storm clouds and casting a flickering glow across the muddy pools below.The tremors from the explosion had not yet fully subsided. The air still vibrated with residual force. But amid the swirling dust, an incredibly deep and deafening roar tore through the silence of the night.HRAAAAAAAAARRRGGGHHHH!The sound was nothing like a human or an ordinary zombie.Its frequency was ancient, savage, and filled with such overwhelming dominance that it seemed capable of paralyzing reason itself.Wu Chen, who had only just dragged himself out of the muddy lake, froze where he stood. His dragon cane slipped from his hand. His left hand clutched his chest, which was covered by mutated leather armor. His heart pounded wildly, sending sharp waves of pain through him as the remnants of the Primordial Ser

The blood-red dawn illuminated the endless sea of death stretching across Lantern Sector. Beneath the shadow of the Inner City's colossal steel Southern Gate, thousands of regular Tingzhao soldiers stood shoulder to shoulder in a tight phalanx formation. Together, they formed a massive wall of interlocking steel shields, with thousands of long spears jutting outward like a deadly forest of thorns.Atop an emergency command tower assembled from wooden beams and stone in the center of the formation, General Han Rui stood rigidly in his black armor, already soaked with dew and blood. His sharp eyes caught sight of the ragged troops emerging from the drainage trench on the left flank.The general gave Wu Chen a stiff nod. A silent acknowledgment of their tactical alliance.“We take the left flank!” Wu Chen roared, driving his wooden cane into the mud. “That area has the thinnest defenses! If the left flank breaks, Han Rui's shield formation will be rolled up from the side!”“Understood, B