I raised stunning young ladies, but they all wanted to possess me.

The skeletal knights' warhorses reined in their horses in unison, the crimson flames in their eye sockets went out, and when they lit up again, they had turned into seven colors.

The steel colossus froze in place, the gears in its joints stopped turning, and the power core in its chest cavity was pierced by a rainbow of light.

"Now."

Gu Yan's voice rang out on the communication channel, not loud, but everyone heard it.

"Counterattack."

The soldiers on the beach witnessed the most incredible scene of their lives.

Those calamities that were just charging forward now turned around in unison and launched an attack on their own kind.

The skeletal knight's spear pierced the body of the bone-eating worm, the steel colossus's beam swept across the skeletal dragon, and worm-like calamities emerged from the sand, entangled the landing Titan-class.

The Black Tide's attack formation was torn to shreds by their own side.

"Fire! Fire! Shoot!"

Wei Changfeng's voice boomed loudly over the communication channel.

Tanks, rocket launchers, missiles, helicopters—all firepower was unleashed once again.

This time, the Kuroshio could no longer advance by stepping on the corpses of their companions as before, because their companions were now attacking them in return.

The beach was littered with the remains of the disaster, black blood mixed with seawater, turning the entire beach a dark purple.

Gu Yan stood beside the command bunker, surrounded by a rainbow of light.

He continued to exert his mental energy, his face growing paler and paler, but he did not stop.

There was only one thought in his mind.

We cannot retreat, we cannot retreat.

Behind them lay Shanglu, millions of civilians who had not yet been evacuated, and Yusheng, Jinyu, and Yuran lying in hospital beds.

If he quits, they're finished.

A Titan-class Calamity broke through the Iron Colossus's blockade and charged toward the first line of defense.

Gu Yan suddenly raised her hand, and the seven-colored light condensed into an extremely thin and bright beam in her palm, which accurately shot into the beating heart in the chest cavity of the Titan-class.

The Titan-class roared deafeningly, then came to a halt.

It turned around and smashed a whole row of bone-eating worms charging behind it with its hand, which was bigger than a tank.

The second head, the third head.

Every S-class calamity that rushed onto the mudflats turned against them under the penetration of the seven-colored light.

The battle raged from dawn till dusk.

The Kuroshio's offensive was forcefully halted on the beachhead, and the remaining calamities began to retreat under the combined attack of their defecting allies and artillery fire.

As the last black tide receded below the horizon, deafening cheers erupted across the entire beachhead.

That wasn't a cheer of victory, but the cries of those who survived, the roars of those who had survived a catastrophe.

Gu Yan knelt on one knee on the battlefield.

His vision was spinning, and all he could hear was a buzzing sound in his ears.

But he held on and didn't collapse.

He stood up, turned around, and looked at the mudflats behind him, which were dyed golden red by the setting sun.

The defensive line was littered with burning debris and shell craters, but the line still stood.

Shanglu is still there.

"Deputy Commander Gu!"

A communications soldier stumbled over, his face covered in dust and his lips trembling.

"Urgent battle report! Urgent battle report!"

Gu Yan took the battle report.

It was an encrypted telegram from the highest command. The words on it were simple, but each word was like a knife.

"Outside the central core fortress, Xuanyuan Cheng repelled the enemy's main force."

"The southern section of the defense line has fallen."

"Ao Lie has been killed in action."

"Zhuge Mingyuan has been killed in action."

"All members of the reclusive families with S-rank or higher combat power have been killed in battle."

"The northern defense line has fallen."

"Currently, only two defensive strongpoints remain in the sixth line of defense."

"The central key fortress and the Shanglu beachhead."

"The two fulcrums are hundreds of kilometers apart, forming a protrusion."

"The enemy has circled around from the north and south flanks and is now encircling the two strongholds from the flanks and rear."

Gu Yan slowly folded the telegram and stuffed it into her military uniform pocket.

The sea breeze carried the smells of gunpowder and blood.

He raised his head and looked in the direction of the central core fortress.

Xuanyuan Cheng is guarding that place.

And here, he is guarding.

The two points of support, like two isolated islands, float on a piece of land that is being submerged by black seawater.

"Pass down the order."

His voice was calm.

"The entire army should consolidate its defenses."

"By tonight, I want to see all the wounded treated and all the firing positions replenished with ammunition."

"Also, send someone to the rear to move the two young ladies to a safer location."

"Hurry up."

The communications soldier saluted, turned, and ran away.

Gu Yan stood on the beach, looking at the dark red sky in the distance.

The Kuroshio Current has not receded.

It's just a temporary ebb tide.

The next wave will be even more intense than this one.

This time, he doesn't have many capable fighters left around him.

He was gazing at the sea in a daze when he heard familiar footsteps behind him.

It is Pei Youyi.

She was dressed in a dark, practical outfit, her hair was tied up high with a jade hairpin, and her face showed signs of fatigue from her journey, but her gentle eyes remained calm and serene.

She walked over to him and handed him a bottle of water.

"I just went to the rear to see Yu Ran and Jin Yu."

"They have been moved to an underground bunker, and the medical officer says their condition is stable."

"I've also had someone keep watch over Ms. Yuzuru's side."

She looked at Gu Yan's face, blackened by gunpowder smoke, and sighed softly.

"You've been working all day, have some water first."

Gu Yan took the water bottle and tilted her head back to drink a few mouthfuls.

The sea breeze stretched the two people's shadows long, falling on the scarred mudflats.

He remained silent for a moment before handing her the telegram.

Pei Youyi took it and glanced at it, her fingers tightening slightly as she held the telegram.

She looked up at the two lonely support points in the distance.

"Next, they will come around from the north and south flanks."

"Our place will become an isolated city."

Her voice was very soft, as if she were talking to herself, or as if she were confirming something with Gu Yan.

"Xuanyuan Cheng's side won't be able to hold out for much longer either."

"Ao Lie and Zhuge Mingyuan are both gone."

"The reclusive family was wiped out overnight."

Gu Yan did not answer.

He crouched down, picked up a spent cartridge that had been washed ashore by the sea, and slowly twirled it in his hand.

As the sun set, the last ray of light on the horizon was swallowed by the sea fog.

One searchlight after another lit up on the beach, their pale beams sweeping across the night.

"Let them come."

He stood up and threw the spent cartridge back onto the beach.

"Shanglu is the first city I returned to."

"As long as I'm still standing, the Kuroshio won't be able to get past here."

Pei Youyi looked at him.

His profile was sharply defined by the white light of the searchlight, and the corners of his mouth were pursed into a line, making him look completely different from the young boy who used to chase after her for tea in the backyard of the Pei family.

She suddenly remembered that the little boy had grown up.

He died once, and after coming back to life, he became even heavier, like a piece of iron that had been repeatedly forged.

Standing beside him, watching him carry all the weight on his shoulders, she felt both pain and pride.

"You guard the front."

"I'll guard the rear."

Pei Youyi said.

Her voice was steady, as if she were talking about something very ordinary.