Chapter 200: The Heavenly Ladder

Chapter 200: The Heavenly Ladder

The Little Wizards were a little sad about Bran’s departure. But soon, they were drawn in by everything in Twinwing City and forgot about it.

According to Lily, all of this was built by Bran for them. At the central square of the city now, everyone gathered around a huge disc. At the center of the disc stood a statue of the sister and brother.

Lily’s statue faced the direction of the rising sun, while Bran stood with his back to hers. Unlike her, who stood tall with her chest out and had clear features, Bran hid his face under his hood, with his head slightly bowed. If one looked closely, they would find his face under the hood was blurry, with a Mist that gathered and scattered there.

This made her quite unhappy. This city was built by the two of them together, so it must have clear images of both. But her younger brother was very happy. He said—this was the truest form of the Soul. Since that was the case, she stopped insisting.

She raised a question: why did they stand back to back? He said, because we give our backs to each other. This answer pleased her greatly; it was rare for her brother to be so thoughtful. So she named the city Twinwing, representing herself and her brother. As long as this city stood, her brother’s name would live on with it.

But she still felt a slight unhappiness, because in the statue, Huahua was curled up in his arms, its wicked head resting on her brother’s shoulder…

With the arrival of the Little Wizards, laughter and joy began to fill the city. But the few Little Wizards only made the city seem even more vast and desolate.

Only then did Lily understand why Bran always lamented—there were too few Northlanders!

Although the number was far too small, the tasks that needed to be done could not be omitted. Duties like patrols, lookout, and guard duty were assigned one by one. The training of Northlanders always started from the bits and pieces of daily life.

Watching the Little Wizards laughing and playing while holding cats and leading bears gave Lily a headache. A group of White Wolves and Snow Falcons, the companions of the Northlanders, also needed to be brought over. Otherwise, expecting these few people to patrol and guard the city was impossible. She hoped some adult Ancient Trees would be willing to move here, giving her time to cultivate a batch of seedlings.

Lily knocked on her head. Her people needed to be organized, and the slaves needed to be dealt with too. Now she felt a bit thankful; at least there weren’t many people, so she could adapt step by step.

Although her brother didn’t explain, she knew everything was arranged. Those slaves, under the direction of Kehan and his daughter Nicole, were very orderly. She only needed to observe, learn, and imitate in secret.

…

Rio now had a force of about a thousand men. He could have gathered more surrendered soldiers, but he always followed his mistress’s strategy—survival of the fittest!

Pursuing and killing, he completed his mission through constant battles and headed towards Twinwing City. His old ambition began to stir again—to become a general and have his own army.

A tower tip appeared on the horizon. He rubbed his eyes. What was that? He had been to Sitong Town more than once. Though he still wasn’t familiar with the place, he was sure there was no such tall spire in Sitong Town.

As they moved forward, city walls and buildings gradually came into view. It was an unfamiliar city. He even wondered if he had taken the wrong road, but looking at the reactions of those beside him, that doubt faded away.

Hesitantly, they gradually approached the place. Outside the city, a large group of the Demon Clan were kneeling and praying, ignoring their arrival completely. Rio saw no signs of force among the kneeling crowd; only piety showed on their faces.

This wasn’t right! What was happening?

Though filled with questions, he dared not make any extreme moves. Because, on the city wall stood a familiar large banner. He stopped his army at a distance and walked towards the city gate alone.

Rio knew he did not have the right to request an audience with his master on his own, but he wanted to try. In the struggle for survival, he had learned to test and seek opportunities.

Arriving outside the city gate, he knelt on the roadside. Though still humble, he no longer cowered.

High up on the High Tower, a golden-bodied Insect King crouched beside Lily. It brought the last planned swarm and joined the later mop-up. With its departure, the Insect Swarm in Flying Catkin Swamp would return to its primitive state.

The efficiency of the Insect Swarm was much higher than Rio’s. The spread-out net thoroughly cleaned up the rear and arrived at Twinwing City first. The Insect Swarm continued to advance, but this special golden Insect King was kept by Lily’s side, along with dozens of battle-hardened insects that survived.

The Insect Swarm passing beyond Twinwing City would continue to pressure and compress the Demon Clan, pushing them into the last stronghold on the Bloody Plains—Yong’an City. The Insect Swarm only needed to harass and clean up the periphery, keeping pressure on the Demon Clan. Lily was in no hurry to attack; she had to give the Demon Clan time to regroup their personnel and supplies.

Lily looked towards the city gate and then signaled the Insect King beside her. “Take him to the Statue.”

Receiving the order, the Insect King leapt from the window, spreading its now-degenerated wings on its back and gliding down towards the city gate.

…

As time passed, Rio began to feel anxious, but he dared not stand up. From the moment he knelt by the gate, there was no turning back.

A sound of insect chirping made Rio lift his head. His gaze followed the golden insect leg upward, and a golden, shining insect filled his entire vision.

With joy, Rio followed it through the deep, dark gate tunnel, walking along the straight and broad road towards the Statue. It was like a pilgrimage, filled with unease yet full of anticipation.

Only when the Insect King in front stopped did he suddenly realize they had arrived. He instinctively looked up, and two familiar silhouettes instantly filled him with fear. He knelt down again instinctively, not daring to look up.

He was here! They were both here!

Rio feared his mistress, but he feared this young man even more.

It was this young man who saved him from despair, yet also brought deeper despair. His attitude was casual, calm, and he joked lightly, “Can you understand me?”

Then the young man led them, unhurried, to one side. Rio even thought the young man had taken the wrong path, because an army was blocking the way there. But thinking of his mistress, he let it go.

They surged towards that army like a disorderly flock of sheep. Without any defense, without any orders, they seemed ready to lead them to a glorious death. As they got closer, even the usually fearless Insect Swarm began to hesitate and stir.

A flaming arrow landed ahead, and the Demon Clan archers had already aimed their arrows at the sky. But he remained unmoved, walking slowly, stepping out of the gradually halting group, crossing over that flickering flaming arrow.

Then a terrifying scene happened. Everything began to twist and deform—weapons, armor, and the people wrapped inside the armor. What Rio could not bear the most were the twisted, deformed screams of those on the brink of death. With a silent shockwave, everything turned to dust. A gust of air rushed over, carrying a deep smell of blood, making the flock of sheep exceptionally quiet and tame.

When the Insect Swarm and he started their mission again, everything became a little different. They became more desperate, and also more obedient.