C9 The Son of the King of Dawnward

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The bell of the Divine Tower tolled, signaling the imminent arrival of the devil tide. At best, they had seven days; at worst, only three.

Upon hearing the bell, the citizens of Redrock were seized by terror and confusion, thrown into utter chaos.

"The devil tide is coming!"

"How can this be? Wasn't the devil tide supposed to come in three months?"

"We're doomed, we're all going to die!"

Despair was etched into the faces of all the townspeople.

Redrock Town lacked a defensive stronghold and the protection of cultivators.

Each year, as the devil tide approached, they were forced to pay a hefty sum and flee to Fengdu City for sanctuary.

The devil tide was scheduled to arrive in three months, and the Ye Hunxin needed two more months to mature.

With the devil tide's premature arrival, they were out of money, and Fengdu would not open its gates to them.

Even if they fled to Fengdu City now, seven days would not suffice!

"It's that woman! It's her fault!"

"She's the witch; she's the one who brought the devil tide upon us!"

"If we're going to die, let's take her down with us! Kill her!"

The recently quelled rage of the citizens flared anew in an instant.

In the grip of extreme panic, all rational thought abandoned them, and they desperately sought a scapegoat for their fears.

"Hey! What are you doing?! Don't lay a finger on her! She's not a witch; she's a person!" Shen Wuyou yelled.

But his voice was lost in the cacophony of the townspeople's furious shouts.

"Kill her!"

"Stone her!"

A townsman grabbed a red stone from the ground and hurled it at the black-haired woman.

Then came another, and another.

Stones flew from every direction, indifferent to whether they struck Shen Wuyou or not. With death looming, who cared about the Overlord?

The guards by Shen Wuyou's side swiftly deflected the stones with their swords, forming a protective ring around him.

"Back off, all of you, back off!!!"

From within the crowd, a man suddenly threw a ceramic jar at the black-haired woman.

A guard sliced the jar in mid-air, and a clear liquid spilled out, cascading down from the shattered pottery.

The guard was taken by surprise when his arm was drenched in a transparent liquid. He cried out in agony as a foul, burnt odor filled the air. His skin appeared charred, and even his armor was corroded.

"Skybane Venom!"

"Be careful, it's Skybane Venom!" The guard, gritting his teeth against the pain, loudly warned his comrades.

Shen Wuyou was well aware that this so-called Skybane Venom was, in fact, a naturally formed concentration of sulfuric and nitric acid, which could be found in a cave on the western side of Redrock.

"You've chosen an excellent location!" Chiying said, her expression icy as she glanced at Shen Wuyou before quickly approaching the injured guard. She produced a pill and instructed him to fall back.

"Anyone who dares come closer will be shown no mercy!" Chiying declared, sword at the ready.

The King of Dawnward had charged her with Shen Wuyou's protection, and despite her disdain for him, Chiying was prepared to protect him at all costs.

However, the townspeople had already lost their minds.

"We'll all die together!"

"Die with us, you cursed witch!"

More than just stones, Skybane Venom, flaming torches, and iron weapons were now being hurled their way.

If this persisted, Chiying knew she would have to resort to a bloodbath to quell the crowd.

Shen Wuyou, unwilling to see potential labor lost, surveyed his surroundings before his gaze settled on the Divine Bell behind him.

Without hesitation, he strode toward the Divine Tower. Climbing it, Shen Wuyou pulled a dagger from his pocket and cut the rope suspending the Divine Bell.

As the rope snapped, the ancient bronze bell crashed to the ground with a resounding boom, shaking the earth beneath it.

In the wake of the massive vibration, the raucous crowd fell silent.

Stunned, they stared at Shen Wuyou, who stood atop the Divine Tower.

The Divine Bell was sacred... How could this man dare to desecrate it?

"I'll say it again! She is not a demon! If she were, would she tolerate your insults? Are you brainless or just plain foolish?" Shen Wuyou's gaze swept over the crowd before he let out a cold laugh and bellowed, "You have the energy to attack a defenseless woman, claiming you'll die together, yet you lack the courage to confront the devil tide and battle the true demons? Do you even have the spine?"

Among the townsfolk, a young man with bloodshot eyes shouted furiously:

"How could someone like you, born into nobility, possibly understand the horror of the devil tide? You're protected by a cultivator, but we're not! When the devil tide comes, we're as good as dead!"

"Do you think we don't want to protect our homes? We're powerless against it! The demons within the devil tide are all monsters that devour people on sight, and even in death, we'd become their food!"

"Only cultivators can face the devil tide. They possess the strength to cleave mountains and shatter stones. Us ordinary folk, without the knowledge of immortal force, stand no chance against the devil tide!"

"Who says that only cultivators possess the might to split mountains and rocks! Who says that only cultivators can face the devil tide!" Shen Wuyou declared, locking eyes with the young man.

Before the crowd could grasp the significance of his words, Shen Wuyou pointed skyward and proclaimed, "I am Shen Wuyou, son of the King of Dawnward from the Auslathen Dynasty. By the blood of the Divine Dynasty, I swear! I will lead you to repel the devil tide!"

"The King of Dawnward... Yes, the very one who defends our eastern borders!"

"The Overlord is the King of Dawnward's son?"

"If the Featherguard of the King of Dawnward were to come here, driving back the devil tide would surely be effortless!"

Merely at the mention of the King of Dawnward, a glimmer of hope sparked anew in the eyes of the people.

"Long live the King of Dawnward, long live the Overlord!"

The crowd erupted into cheers.

Shen Wuyou inwardly marveled at how deeply his father's reputation for slaying demons resonated with the people.

"My Lord Overlord! How soon can we expect the Featherguard to arrive?" asked a townsman with a hint of insight, once the cheering subsided.

"The Featherguard? I never said they would be coming," Shen Wuyou replied.

"If not the Featherguard, then... could it be the Sun Knights?"

"No more questions are necessary. Just follow my lead!" Shen Wuyou leapt from the Divine Tower, nearly twisting his ankle upon landing.

He approached the man who had earlier been doused with Skybane Venom and directed him, "Gather a few people and collect as much of the yellow stones and white crystal powder from the Skybane Venom site as you can. The more, the better."

The man's face registered confusion, but the significance of the title "son of the King of Dawnward" compelled him to gather a few people and quickly vacate the area.

Shen Wuyou then turned to the young man who had earlier challenged him, instructing, "You, go and make charcoal! Crush it until it's finely powdered, with not a speck of impurity."

The young man nodded, rounded up a few others, and swiftly departed.

"To the rest of you, find a spot, sit down, and wait!"

Having issued his commands, Shen Wuyou dusted off his hands and settled down in a spot to gaze out at the northern sea, his mind racing with thoughts about the devil tide that emerged from its depths. What could possibly be the underlying mechanism of this phenomenon?