Caw! Caw! Caw!!
As the seven-colored rainbow light faded, the sharp cries of crows rang out endlessly. A force of one hundred thousand Divine Raven troops appeared in the void. Each of these Fire Ravens was enormous, with wingspans reaching seven to eight meters. Their entire bodies radiated a crimson flame-like glow. On the backs of these Fire Ravens sat warriors clad in red battle armor, each wielding a white bone warbow, with bundles of war arrows at their sides.
They also carried short throwing spears—versatile weapons effective for both melee and ranged combat. Whether it be close quarters or distance fighting, the Divine Raven soldiers were fully prepared.
Standing atop one of the Fire Ravens was Mu Guiying, who stared at the distant army of Winged Men. Their numbers were not few—at least two to three hundred thousand elite troops. The Winged Men had clearly come prepared, but they were still taken aback by the blazing speed of the Divine Raven Army's arrival.
With the Rainbow Bridge at their command, the Great Yi Dynasty reigned supreme in terms of mobility in warfare.
"Kill!!"
Mu Guiying gave the command without hesitation.
"Kill! Kill! Kill!!"
Each Divine Raven soldier drew the spears from their backs, gripping them tightly, the spearheads pointed at the Winged Men. Their bodies leaned back like drawn bows, brimming with power. True essence and magic power flowed naturally into the spears.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!!
At the peak of their power, the spears exploded from their hands like thunderbolts. Their throwing technique was perfect, flawless—each spear was a fusion of full-body strength and infused true essence.
Moreover, they borrowed the strength of the Fire Ravens beneath them.
Each thrown spear was wrapped in crimson flames.
In an instant, these flame-enshrouded spears appeared before the Winged Men army.
The Winged Men did not panic. They raised their bows and released war arrows that seemed to tear through the void—fast, ruthless, and accurate. Their archery was superb, approaching the divine. Some sharpshooters even attempted to intercept the spears mid-air. However, the spears contained immense power. Even when hit, they would shatter arrows into pieces.
A volley of arrows surged toward the Divine Raven Army.
Caw! Caw! Caw!!
With piercing cries, the Fire Ravens flared up. Intense flames erupted from their bodies. As the arrows neared, the powerful flames melted them into molten metal. These flames were so fierce that even the elite war arrows were reduced to slag.
The Fire Ravens were close kin to the Three-Legged Golden Crows, and their flames carried traces of Solar Truefire. Though not the real Solar Truefire, they possessed part of its terrifying might.
Ordinary arrows could not withstand these flames, making the Fire Ravens' fire a formidable defense.
"Ordinary arrows can't penetrate the flames. Use the Feather Transformation Arrows! Turn the arrows into divine light! No matter how fierce the flames, they can't destroy the Feather Transformation Arrows!"
A commanding voice rang out from the Winged Men army. It came from a middle-aged man with a fierce and overwhelming presence. The Feather Transformation Arrows were crafted from the Winged Men's own fallen feathers, refined through secret arts known only to their race. These arrows were precious trump cards, difficult to make and evolving with their user's cultivation.
At critical moments, these arrows could turn the tide of battle.
As the order was given, the soldiers switched their arrows to pristine white feathered shafts.
Draw and loose!
The Feather Transformation Arrows began to glow with divine light.
"Divine Ravens Burn the Heavens Battle Formation!!"
Mu Guiying, unflinching, issued the next command.
At her words, a crimson formation diagram rose into the sky above the Divine Raven Army. Within the formation was a massive, blazing red tree—the Heavenly Fire Tree. It appeared faint and illusory, as though on the verge of collapse.
But when the Fire Ravens saw the formation, they cried out excitedly and dove into it one after another.
As more and more Fire Ravens merged with the formation, the illusory formation began to solidify. The Heavenly Fire Tree grew more vivid and intense.
The flames it emitted grew fiercer by the second. Fire Ravens roosted on its branches, and sunlight poured in from the heavens, absorbed by the tree and fueling its power.
The Heavenly Fire Tree, the origin of the Fire Ravens, was being reinvigorated. The ravens, born from its flames, returned home with joy.
Ravens danced amid the inferno, absorbing solar essence and growing stronger. The flames climbed higher and higher.
In just a few breaths, the entire battlefield was overshadowed by a world-shrouding tree of fire.
"Burn the heavens!!"
Mu Guiying's voice echoed from within the Heavenly Fire Tree.
Suddenly, columns of fire soared into the sky. Piercing cries rang out, and the temperature in the area skyrocketed.
At that moment, Divine Raven soldiers drew their bows and loosed volleys of arrows.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!!
As soon as the arrows left the Heavenly Fire Tree, they transformed into massive Fire Ravens, made entirely of Heavenly Fire. Screeching loudly, they tore through the sky. The air itself seemed ready to combust. Flames ignited the earth wherever they flew.
Moisture evaporated instantly.
Even trees dried up and burst into flames.
The temperature reached horrifying extremes.
"Loose!!"
From the Winged Men ranks, another command was given. Countless Feather Transformation Arrows shot forth, swift as lightning, glowing brilliantly. Some arrows even manifested visions of angels dancing mid-flight—beautiful, hypnotic, deadly.
Those who gazed too long fell under their spell and were pierced through without resistance.
These arrows were both beautiful and merciless.
The clash between the Feather Transformation Arrows and the flaming Fire Ravens was devastating. Some Fire Ravens caught the arrows mid-air and tried to incinerate them, but the Feather Arrows were too fast and sharp, piercing through the ravens.
Upon being pierced, the Fire Ravens exploded, unleashing annihilating Heavenly Fire.
The battlefield was engulfed in burning blossoms.
Wherever the fire fell, the earth cracked.
Wolf-riders were set ablaze and reduced to ashes in seconds.
The fire burned everything in its path, engulfing all. The sky itself seemed to rain fire.
In a blink, countless Winged Men perished in the inferno, burned to cinders.
"What terrifying power! The Divine Ravens Burn the Heavens Formation is incredible. That fire is insane! The Divine Raven Army truly lives up to its reputation—one of the only two air cavalry units in Great Yi!"
"That fire contains traces of Solar Truefire Laws! The Winged Men aren't weak, but they're getting burned alive! The Divine Raven Army's destructive power is unmatched!"
Even in the palace hall, Jia Xu and Yang Ye were visibly shocked, eyes wide in awe. The terrifying might of the Divine Raven Army was undeniable. Wherever they appeared, the land would be scorched—a strategic superweapon.
"With the Fire Ravens and the Divine Ravens Burn the Heavens formation diagram, this power is to be expected. In fact, taken to the extreme, it could evolve into a Golden Crow, the celestial sunbird—the Sun Circles the Heavens, annihilating all."
Yi Tianxing smiled calmly, inwardly pleased with Mu Guiying's dazzling command performance. This would greatly increase the court's acceptance of a woman leading troops. It also affirmed that forming the Divine Raven Army had been the correct choice.
Separating the Golden Scale Army from the Divine Raven Army had been wise.
Fire Ravens and Golden Scale Birds couldn't mix—doing so would disrupt the formation's full potential.
"I wonder what the Beast King Court's coalition will do next. The Winged Men have lost more than half their forces, and the Wolf Riders too. That's a serious blow—could they really keep pouring in troops?"
Huang Chengyan spoke thoughtfully.
While the Wolf Riders and Winged Men pushed the battle into high gear, in truth, this was just the initial probing between the Beast King Court coalition and Great Yi. The true war had yet to reach its peak.
"They may not send more troops. I suspect they have other plans, strategies they believe can counter Great Yi. We'll know soon enough."
Zhuge Liang's eyes gleamed with intelligence.