On the walls of the Chu capital, round after round of bloody battles turned the bluish-gray soil into dark red.
Xiang Yan looked at the attacking Qin army below in despair, sweat mixed with blood flowing down his face, blurring his vision.
Since he was implicated in the struggle between the nobles of the state and the King of Chu, Xiang Yan went to the battlefield again to be entrusted with a critical mission: to protect the state from falling.
But how many Zhuge Liangs in the world could pull off an Empty City Stratagem and turn the tide?
Is the State of Chu really doomed?
The adjutant beside him trembled, unable to utter a single word.
Just as the Qin army had scaled the city walls and begun to fight face-to-face, a faint buzzing sound rang out, growing louder and louder until it attracted everyone's attention.
In the distance, a pure white light slowly rose from the royal palace, clearly visible even under the blazing sun.
Wang Jian felt a sense of foreboding and subconsciously thought of the "Nüba" he had been wary of before the battle.
"Qin soldiers, heed my command! Do not look around! Attack!"
The veteran general made up his mind almost instantly: no matter what, as long as he captured the capital, the State of Chu would be doomed.
"Charge!"
The Qin soldiers, armed with various weapons, continued to fight under the leadership of their respective squad leaders—but alas, they couldn't cut down any of them.
A Qin soldier's sword had already slashed down, but it stopped abruptly in mid-air, and no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't bring it down for even a second.
Looking around the entire venue, almost everyone was like that.
This extraordinary performance astonished both the Qin and Chu people present; the Qin people were frightened, while the Chu people were overjoyed.
The Chu man, who had narrowly escaped being hacked to death, lay limp on the ground, crying and laughing at the same time, muttering that he had survived.
"It's Nüba! It must be Nüba who made the move!"
This thought simultaneously crossed the minds of both Wang Jian and Xiang Yan.
At this moment, the white light from the palace became increasingly conspicuous, and they could see clearly that it was the white light protecting the Chu people, as thin as gauze, like mist yet not mist.
The battlefield fell silent for a moment. The woman, dressed in green with red hair, stood beside a giant bronze cauldron, surrounded by wisps of thick mist.
Everyone's eyes widened, and all eyes fell on Nüba.
"Thank you, Great God, for saving us!" Xiang Yan reacted quickly, kneeling down and shouting despite the bloodstains.
The other Chu people also realized that only the goddess Nüba had the divine power to save them, so they all followed suit.
This put the Qin people in an awkward position. Wang Jian was filled with conflicting thoughts and looked at Nüba warily.
Is that bronze cauldron one of the legendary Nine Cauldrons?
Ling Xiao had no time to pay attention to the various reactions from different people, because the system was constantly nagging:
"Host, you need to hurry! This little piece of trash, the All-Star System, has never done big business before, it's about to freeze!"
The All-Star System provides a protective shield that costs 100 points and lasts for three minutes—protecting mission takers from being harmed by fanatical fans. Ling Xiao bought thousands of these shields in one go and equipped them all.
"Hold on tight. Once we're out of this world, I'll take you to complain to the Supreme God. Damn it, how dare they sell counterfeit and shoddy goods! I'm quitting!"
If it weren't for the system indicating that they had triggered a hidden mission with extremely high rewards when they set off:
"The Birth of a Superstar – Your performance is deeply imprinted in the hearts of a generation, becoming a mark of the era."
Otherwise, Ling Xiao wouldn't have put in so much effort.
After calming the system down, Ling Xiao, with his hand hidden in his sleeve, forcefully added dry ice into the bronze cauldron from his personal space.
Nuwa waved her hand, gesturing for Xiang Yan to rise, and said with a mocking expression:
"I have no idea if I can save you bunch of good-for-nothings."
The useless people all lowered their heads, not daring to speak out even if they were resentful. It was already beyond many people's expectations that Nüba could save them.
With a loud rumble, the bronze cauldron brushed against the corner of Xiang Yan's clothes and fell to the ground. Nüba stood against the wind, her enchanting laughter reaching everyone's ears.
"The Nine Cauldrons are treasures forged by Yu the Great to protect the human race. I activated the mark left by Yu the Great, which allowed me to bypass the restrictions imposed by my father, the Yellow Emperor, and thus interfere with the battlefield."
"So that's how it is," everyone suddenly realized, especially the people of Chu, who felt ashamed. Many of them were dissatisfied that Nüba had not taken action against the Qin army.
Now that he knows Nüba has been restricted, he understands in his heart that it's not that Nüba doesn't want to help, but that she is powerless to do so.
Ling Xiao's lips curled slightly as she sensed the various emotions in the air: gratitude, guilt, greed, and resentment.
"Nuba, even if you can use the Nine Cauldrons to stop us for a while, it can't last forever, so why bother?"
Wang Jian stepped forward, respectfully cupped his hands in greeting, and spoke with a sharp edge, as if wielding a sword.
The Chu people were terrified and looked at Nüba with pleading expressions. Before everyone's eyes, Nüba slowly combed her red hair with her fingers instead of a comb, and nodded gently.
"Indeed, the Nine Cauldrons are treasures of the human race, and I can only activate them temporarily; they certainly cannot hinder the Qin people in the long run."
Wang Jian was overjoyed, while Xiang Yan, on the other hand, was ashen-faced.
"But I only need it for a short time."
Nuba laughed loudly: "I am going to fight the Moon Goddess Changxi, and the stake is the survival of the Chu Kingdom."
What?! Wang Jian's heart pounded like a drum. He hurriedly wanted to shout, but when Nüba glanced at him with her cold eyes, he automatically shut his mouth.
Well, it's the gods fighting, why should we mortals get involved?
Chu Ren watched Nüba disappear with hope, his heart overflowing with an intense desire: Nüba must win—otherwise, I'll lose my life.
……………………
At this moment, Ling Xiao was on a difficult journey, as the landing point of his personal space could not be more than three thousand meters away from the previous point.
Thus, the seemingly carefree Nüba went in and out repeatedly on her journey.
After arriving outside Xianyang City, they stopped.
The selection process at the Music Palace.
Amidst the melodious sound of the piccolo, the moon goddess listened with admiration, and the children on stage played with even greater enthusiasm.
"Although it only produces the sound of a piccolo, its melody is remarkably melodious, refreshing, and full of charm."
Ying Zheng nodded, offered a few words of commentary, and then looked at the Moon Goddess.
“Indeed quite good…” The Moon Goddess, who had been smiling, suddenly seemed to sense something, her smile faded, and her eyes turned sharp.
Ying Zheng: "Moon Goddess, what happened?"
There was no answer to his question, because the one who had provoked the moon goddess's reaction—no, the goddess herself—had already appeared with overwhelming force.
High in the sky, Nüba, clad in ancient armor and wielding a long sword, walked step by step with an extremely powerful aura. Though she appeared to be alone, she carried the blood and gore of the battlefield.
At this moment, people from almost all over Qin had gathered in front of the Music Palace. They had never seen many miracles before and were terrified.
The locals in Xianyang are more composed; Xiang Liu's incident alone has increased their psychological resilience.
But the next second, they also cried out in fear.
Ying Zheng looked at "Nüba" in the sky and stood up abruptly. Behind Nüba, one after another, strong warrior phantoms appeared. They were barefoot, holding swords, axes, and spears, and their demeanor was fierce and imposing.
"Chang Xi, do you dare to fight me!" Nuba shouted, pointing her longsword forward.
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