Douluo Continent: Tonight, a Fairy Tale Descends

She stood there quietly, watching Gu Yuena's back. Her gentle eyes held a complex emotion, but she didn't go up to disturb her. She just stood there quietly for a while, then turned and left.

In the months since Di Tian and Zi Ji left, the war on the mainland has taken a completely unexpected turn.

The initial offensive, which was launched simultaneously on three fronts, gradually lost its momentum under the counterattack of the Spirit Hall.

First, the main force of the Star Luo Empire on the southern front was forced to retreat dozens of miles under the combined suppression of the four Title Douluos of the Spirit Hall. Then, the Three Sects Alliance on the western front was embroiled in a protracted war of attrition.

The battle lines gradually slipped from the hands of the Anti-Spirit Alliance, and those areas that the Allied Forces had originally considered victories were lost one after another under the repeated attacks of the Spirit Hall.

The Star Luo Empire has lost large swathes of border land, and those towns that were once considered strategic buffer zones have now been raised under the banner of the Martial Soul Empire.

The three alliances were forced to withdraw from the captured strongholds and retreat back to their original defensive lines.

At this moment, the situation in the North presents a completely different picture.

In the initial period, the skies over the northern front were indeed as calm as the rumors suggested.

The two armies clashed occasionally, but on a small scale. Eva needed time to rest and for the newly surrendered troops to fully integrate into the Northern system.

She was willing to maintain this tacit standoff, and as long as the Spirit Hall did not launch a large-scale attack on the northern border, she would not rush to advance south.

But this calm did not last long.

About three months after the Allied forces launched their full-scale offensive, the Spirit Hall's troop movements underwent significant changes.

The elite troops originally stationed in the central region of the Spirit Empire began to move north. An expeditionary legion composed of tens of thousands of spirit masters marched north along the official road, heading straight for the northern border.

At the same time, at least three Title Douluo-level beings set off from Wuhun City, crossing the border at an extremely fast speed and heading towards the northern border.

This time, Bibi Dong did not hold back. The three Title Douluos she sent out were all powerful attackers known for their berserk attacks, and their martial souls were the Flaming Lion, the Thunder War Bear, and the Meteor Hammer, respectively.

When Eva received the intelligence from the frontline scouts at the Iron Gate command post, her expression remained unchanged.

She simply stood before the unfolded military map, her gaze fixed on the red arrows moving northward. After a moment of silence, she turned to the messenger and said, "Send Godot to see me."

When Ge Duo arrived, she was holding a bottle of freshly prepared medicine. The sleeves of her deep purple dress were rolled up above her forearms, revealing her pale and slender wrists.

After hearing Eva's plan, her emerald green eyes narrowed slightly, like a cat whose tail had been stepped on: "Finally here? I thought she was going to stay hidden forever."

Eva picked up the teacup on the table, took a sip, and said in a calm tone, "She won't leave the North unattended forever."

That night, the first fire was lit along the northern border.

At midnight, the Spirit Hall's expeditionary force crossed the dividing line that was tacitly considered a buffer zone by both sides and advanced towards the Iron Gate Pass.

The Fiery Lion Douluo charged at the forefront, his blazing flames turning the night sky dark red, leaving nothing but desolation in his wake.

But their progress did not last long.

Eva had already set up mirror magic circles at several key passes behind the border.

The moment the Spirit Hall's vanguard stepped into that area, dozens of enormous silver ancient mirrors emerged from the void, accurately reflecting the sea of ​​fire unleashed by the Flaming Lion Douluo.

The flames that would have been enough to burn an entire village to the ground were transformed into beams of light, precisely guided by the mirror, and blasted back into the Spirit Hall's own formation.

The Fiery Lion Douluo was enraged by the backlash of the flames he had released, but he was unable to break through the area sealed off by the mirror.

At the same time, Gedo's demonic vines silently emerged from the ground and spread out along the route of the Spirit Hall army.

Those seemingly inconspicuous dark green vines release paralyzing toxins the moment they come into contact with soldiers, rendering the entire vanguard incapable of fighting in a short period of time.

Thunder Bear Douluo attempted to break through the blockade with brute force, but for every mirror he shattered, three new mirrors would reappear from other angles. As the shattered fragments tumbled in the air, they would transform into sharp silver blades under Eva's control, shooting towards the Spirit Hall's formation from all directions.

The battle lasted all night.

As dawn broke, all three Title Douluos of the Spirit Hall had been forced back to their initial starting positions.

The Northern Alliance suffered thousands of casualties, while the Spirit Hall Expeditionary Force lost more than ten thousand.

On the plain outside the Iron Gate Pass city wall, the banners of the Spirit Hall were scattered on the scorched earth, fluttering in the morning wind like faded fallen leaves.

This is just the beginning.

In the following month, the Spirit Hall launched two more large-scale attacks, each of which was thwarted by Eva and Godot in different ways.

In the first attack, the Spirit Hall attempted to bypass the Iron Gate Pass by flanking it, but the mirror maze that Eva had set up on the flanks in advance kept the entire flanking force spinning around all night. By the time they finally found the exit, they had already been surrounded by the Northern Allied Forces from the rear.

During the second attack, the Spirit Hall deployed even more troops, attempting to forcefully break through the frontal defenses with their numerical advantage.

However, Godo had planted a large number of catalyzed poison ivy seeds in the frozen soil outside the city beforehand. When the Spirit Hall army stepped into that area, the vines burst forth at the same time, turning the entire battlefield into a dark green thorn jungle, cutting the Spirit Hall army into dozens of isolated islands, which were then devoured one by one by the Northern Allied Forces.

After three battles, the Spirit Hall suffered a total loss of tens of thousands of troops in the northern region, and all three Title Douluos were wounded and forced to retreat.

Meanwhile, the Northern Territory's sphere of influence expanded by nearly three hundred miles in that month, with border towns that were originally occupied by the Spirit Hall falling under Eva's rule one after another.

Eva's reputation has broken a new record once again without her even paying attention to it.

The morale of the Northern Allied Forces reached an unprecedented peak, and those who had once harbored doubts about Eva now looked at her with eyes filled with almost fanatical loyalty.

Chapter 564 Ning Rongrong's Change

Meanwhile, in Wuhun City, Bibi Dong's condition is changing in an extremely subtle way.

Her progress in the divine examination accelerated significantly after news of the Dragon God's return reached the divine realm.

Those barriers that originally required repeated attempts to overcome are now becoming increasingly less noticeable in her perception, as if a force from the divine position itself is pushing her forward from within.

However, the position of the Rakshasa God is different from other divine positions. The power it contains is dark, corrupt, resentful, and insane, and is the condensation of all negative emotions in the world.

As the inheritor wields this power, their mind is constantly eroded and distorted, like a knife being repeatedly tempered, the blade becoming sharper and sharper, while the body becomes increasingly brittle with each tempering.

Only those with firm minds and a heart turned towards the light will not be changed by the power of the Rakshasa God, but Bibi Dong is clearly not one of them.

She was originally a being filled with hatred and obsession. Her desire to control the Spirit Hall, her hatred for the traitors, and her obsession with that past that could never be healed were highly compatible with the power attributes of the Rakshasa God.

Now that the divine examination has suddenly accelerated, the divine power that was once suppressed has surged into her senses like a flood breaking through a dam, and has begun to erode her mind in a way that she cannot fully control.

Bibi Dong was unaware that her emotions were becoming more extreme than before. Her anger, hatred, and paranoia were being amplified by the power of the Rakshasa God, as if someone had lit a flame in the deepest part of her heart and kept adding fuel to it.

When handling state affairs in the Papal Palace, her tone was also colder and more stern than before.

Any information in the battle reports that displeased her would draw her merciless rebuke.

Those generals who once trembled before her now even breathe cautiously.

Sendou Ryu was not entirely unaware of Bibi Dong's current situation.

As the high priest of the angel god, he was highly sensitive to the effects of divine power corruption, but he clearly did not have the energy to pay attention to Bibi Dong's situation at the moment. All his attention was now focused on the figure deep in the temple that was being enveloped in golden light.

A considerable amount of time has passed since Qian Renxue entered the depths of the Offering Hall to undergo divine testing.

He could sense that the aura belonging to the angel god, which was flowing deep within the temple, was becoming increasingly solid.

He could feel that power steadily merging into Qian Renxue's martial soul, gradually changing her life level.

Qian Daoliu dared not be distracted in the slightest.

Bibi Dong's mental state, without any restraint, is rapidly deteriorating towards paranoia.

……

Inside the temporary council chamber of the Three Alliances, candlelight flickered gently in the night breeze, casting shimmering light on the faces seated on either side of the long table.

Ning Fengzhi sat to one side of the main seat, his moon-white robe gleaming warmly in the candlelight.

On the table in front of him were several newly delivered battle reports, the edges of which he had repeatedly pinched to create fine creases.

His gaze lingered on the battle reports for a long time, but he neither picked them up nor spoke.

Yu Yuanzhen sat opposite him, his rugged face revealing little expression, but his sharp, hawk-like eyes held a restlessness that had been repeatedly suppressed but could never be completely calmed down.

His voice was deep and resonant as he spoke: "The southern front has retreated to the third line of defense."

One of the three generals sitting at the other end of the long table whispered, "The Star Luo Empire's messenger arrived again yesterday, this time bringing a letter written in Dai Tianfeng's own handwriting."

Ning Fengzhi tapped his finger lightly on the table: "What did the letter say?"

He said that if the western front could no longer provide effective containment, the southern defenses could collapse completely within two months.

A moment of silence fell over the council chamber. Someone whispered, "What about the North?"

Ning Fengzhi picked up his teacup and took a slow, deliberate sip.

The tea in the cup had gone cold and had a slightly bitter taste, but he didn't put the cup down, as if he needed this action to buy himself a few moments to think.

"The situation in the North is quite different from ours here." He put down his teacup, his voice still steady, but his pace was slower than usual.

"On Lady Eva's side, in the past month, she has repelled three large-scale attacks by the Spirit Hall, and each time it was a direct defeat, not just a repulsion."

He paused, then added, "The losses aren't too great, but they're not small either. Some of her troops have already been depleted, and she only has three Title Douluos available: Eva herself, Ge Duo, and Dugu Bo. That's far fewer in number than ours."

Yu Yuanzhen frowned slightly: "Since she was able to repel the Spirit Hall's attack, it means she still has spare strength. Why not let her send troops from the northern border to contain the Spirit Hall's main force from the flank?"

Ning Fengzhi shook his head: "Things aren't that simple. The Northern Territory is located in a remote area. Even if she sends troops, they would have to pass through the area controlled by the Spirit Hall to reach the southern or western battlefields."

That area was open and lacked any natural barriers. If the Spirit Hall discovered their movements, the entire army would be trapped halfway, unable to advance or retreat.

He continued, "Moreover, based on what I know of her, she's not someone who'll be led by the whims of allies. She has her own rhythm and calculations. She's been operating in the North for so long; she won't easily disrupt her plans just to relieve some of the pressure on us."

Yu Yuanzhen remained silent for a moment, his rugged face revealing little expression, but his fingers on the table tightened slightly. "So, according to you, we can't borrow any power from the Northern Border?"

“We can’t borrow it in the short term,” Ning Fengzhi said. “Unless the Spirit Hall takes the initiative to deploy more troops in the northern border, forcing her to react in advance. But given the current situation, the Spirit Hall obviously won’t do that.”

Yu Yuanzhen didn't ask any further questions. He picked up the cup of tea in front of him, which had long since gone cold, and took a big gulp, as if using the bitterness to suppress the words he hadn't finished saying.

Ning Fengzhi did not continue the topic. He lowered his head again, his gaze falling on the vermilion line on the map that represented the southern front. The situation on the southern front was visibly deteriorating, with letters of appeal for help from the Star Luo Empire arriving one after another, each one more urgent than the last.

He paused for a moment, then spoke in his usual steady voice: "Reply to the Star Luo Empire, tell them that the western front will try to launch a diversionary offensive in the southern direction. It won't be large-scale, but it will at least draw some of the Spirit Hall's attention. As for the northern border..."

He paused for a moment, then said, "They made the contact themselves."

Ning Fengzhi spoke those words in a very calm tone, as if stating an insignificant fact.

But the moment his gaze left the map, everyone present felt a subtle pause, as if a taut thread had suddenly loosened.

The generals exchanged glances, but no one spoke.

They all knew about the North's independence and that Eva was never the type to be led around by the Alliance's requests.

Since Ning Fengzhi said "they should make the contact themselves," then this matter can only end here.

The meeting lasted for about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, discussing some details of logistical arrangements and the transfer of the wounded.

After the last item on the agenda was settled, everyone got up and dispersed.

Ning Fengzhi was the last to leave the council hall.