"What was that? An earthquake?"
"It does not feel like one. The vibrations are too small for an earthquake; it feels more like an explosion. Maybe one of the lords from the aristocratic clans is out catching people for sport again."
"That is possible."
Outside the North Gate of Bawang City, several city guards gathered together, looking north and discussing the tremors in the ground.
"Something is wrong! All units, on alert!"
The captain of the city guard, standing atop the gate tower, was the first to notice the anomaly thanks to his height advantage.
He shouted to warn the subordinates below, then immediately turned and entered the room on the gate tower. He drew the long blade from his waist and smashed a glass cover on the wall with the hilt.
He then used the back of his hand to press the button inside.
"Wooo~~~ Wooo~~~ Wooo~~~"
A loud alarm blared, echoing over the skies of Bawang City.
"What happened to the captain? Why did he sound the alarm?"
"I do not know. Maybe he had too much to drink again."
"Over there! Look at all those skulls!"
A guard pointed toward the north.
The others turned to look.
Azure skulls gradually emerged from the horizon.
Starting with just heads, then half-bodies, then their entire forms, the skeleton soldiers were fully revealed.
The guards below were stunned by the sight of the skeletons, frozen in place.
"Get back inside the city! Close the gates!"
The captain's furious voice rang out. The guards snapped out of it and scurried back into the city, turning the valves to shut the heavy gates.
If they were ordinary skeletons, these guards had seen plenty. In their daily lives, they often helped the clans commit atrocities and were no strangers to grim scenes.
However, these skeletons were each taller than trees. If one of them slapped down, they would likely be reduced to mincemeat instantly.
"I am the White Bone Arhat of the West. Today, I sense that the monks of the South Realm neither honor the Buddha nor respect kindness, defiling the reputation of our Buddhist faith. The aristocratic clans of the South Realm have persecuted our believers and severed our incense. Therefore, I have dispatched the Buddhist soldiers under my command to clean house, execute the clans, and serve as a warning to others!"
Chen Xu sat atop Invincible, positioned behind the skeleton army. He repeated this declaration, using his mental strength to broadcast it across the entirety of Bawang City, drowning out the alarm.
As his voice faded, the skeleton army launched their charge, raising their bone blades and rapidly closing in on the city walls.
"Everyone, man the turrets! Blast those skeletons to pieces! With these walls, they cannot get in!"
The city guard captain turned to instruct the guards who had just run up from below.
"Cap... Captain... Look... over there!"
The captain saw his subordinate's face fill with terror. The man pointed a trembling hand, unable to even speak clearly.
The captain turned his head and looked up, witnessing the most incredible sight of his life—and the last thing he would ever see.
It was a skeleton so massive that he could not even see its entire body from this close.
When the captain looked up, he saw Bone Guard One raising its massive shield high with its right hand, leaning back slightly.
In the next instant, the great shield slammed down. The sheer force instantly leveled the section of the wall where the city gate stood.
The violent shockwave from the impact surged into the city, sweeping through everything in its path. It knocked down a vast swathe of buildings, most of which were opulent temples, exposing the glittering golden Buddha statues within.
Bone Guard One lifted its shield and shook it in the air to clear the dust. The skeleton soldiers from behind immediately poured through the breach in the wall.
After watching from outside for a while, Chen Xu noted that the skeleton army had not encountered any troublesome enemies. Level 100 skeleton soldiers were a bit excessive for fighting these South Realm people.
The voodoo insects released by the class-users of those clans could not even get close. They were frozen into ice from a distance and fixed in place.
With a casual stomp from a skeleton soldier, they were reduced to a pile of mush.
Leaving a few ghosts behind to let Xuan Chu clean up the battlefield later, Chen Xu withdrew Bone Guard One, mounted Invincible, and rushed toward the next city.
Level 100 skeleton soldiers, further enhanced by Chen Xu's talent and the regional buffs of the Undead Kingdom, were no different from final bosses in a dungeon to these South Realm people.
And now, these bosses were appearing in swarms of tens of thousands. It was enough to suffocate the people of the South Realm.
Facing a powerful enemy, many might rely on courage to explode with extraordinary power and write a song of defiance.
Like the heroes who defeat the strong in novels, or the protagonists in anime who turn the tide at the brink of death.
Unfortunately, courage has its limits. When the gap in strength between two sides is too vast, courage is never born. Only despair remains as the final emotion.
At 11:00 AM, Bawang City fell.
At 12:00 PM, Taiwang City fell.
At 1:00 PM, Leinv City fell.
......
At 4:00 PM, Chawang City fell.
......
At 8:00 PM, Nanhai City at the southernmost tip of the South Realm fell.
With a leisurely pace and lightning speed, the major cities of the South Realm had been taken. All that remained were some small villages and the Voodoo Cult camps hidden deep within the mountain forests.
Chen Xu had already dispatched Bone Guard Two and the ghost units to clear out those remaining voodoo camps.
The reason he did not send the skeleton army was due to the forest environment. The scenery was quite beautiful; if he sent the skeleton soldiers there, they would inevitably have to cut through mountains and trees, destroying the natural landscape.
Chen Xu took out his smart terminal and called Xia Qiming directly. Xia Qiming had not yet replied to the message sent this morning.
Now that the entire South Realm had been taken down and the aristocratic clans were gone, order needed to be rebuilt. Chen Xu had enough self-awareness to know he was just someone with a cheat who was good at clearing dungeons.
If he were to manage cities or such a large region, the livability and loyalty ratings would likely drop to negative numbers in minutes.
"Hello? It is so late, what is it? Did you find something big in the South Realm and come to brag?"
The call connected. Xia Qiming had assumed Chen Xu was calling for reinforcements.
"Hehe, Teacher Xia, did you change classes to a Diviner? How did you know I was calling with good news?"
"Hmph. A mythic-tier can walk horizontally across Blue Star, let alone the South Realm. If it is not good news, are you calling me for help?"
"Hahaha. Teacher Xia, you saw the message I sent this morning, right?"
"I did. I discussed it with the other Archons. They feel the factions in the South Realm are complex. The aristocratic clans have ruled for years, and the Buddhist and voodoo traditions have long histories. Managing it would be too exhausting and not very cost-effective."
Xia Qiming paused before continuing, "However, some agreed with taking it over. After all, territory represents population and dungeons. It represents the future."
"Oh, well, it is not complex anymore. Why not have the Archons send people to take over?"
"Not complex? What do you mean?"
"The South Realm no longer has aristocratic clans or Buddhist sects. There is only a bit of voodoo left, but that will be gone soon too."
"Wait... you actually flattened them!?"
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