Chapter 1468: Island Protection Grand Array (Part One)
After learning about the situation on Half-Moon Island from their trusted subordinates, along with precise information on their casualties, the two Demon Saints were both shocked and furious.
Their shock stemmed from the fact that they had never imagined such a massive number of humans would arrive on Half-Moon Island, completely unnoticed, and seemingly intent on settling there. This was beyond audacious. What was more crucial was that Half-Moon Island had, over the past six months or so, consecutively repelled multiple attacks from sea demons, each assault stronger than the last.
To be precise, Half-Moon Island hadn't merely repelled several sea demon attacks; it had systematically annihilated the attacking sea demons on multiple occasions, and Half-Moon Island hadn't even used its full strength. When the sea demons attacked Half-Moon Island, the island had only deployed a fraction of its forces.
What was even more infuriating was that when large numbers of sea demons assaulted Half-Moon Island, the farmers on the island were still tilling their fields, completely unconcerned by the attacks. Such conduct was nothing short of blatant humiliation, and this was what truly shocked the two Demon Saints, for it clearly indicated that Half-Moon Island's strength was far from simple.
Their fury arose because the sea demons' repeated attacks on Half-Moon Island had caused considerable casualties among the two Demon Saints' subordinates, including a significant number of powerful individuals. This indeed represented a substantial loss for both Demon Saints.
The losses were secondary; the crucial point was that their subordinates had attacked Half-Moon Island multiple times without managing to conquer it. Instead, each time they went, they lost more than half their forces, with only a very few lucky ones escaping with their lives. Such a deplorable record, once it spread throughout the heart of the Eastern Sunrise Ocean, would inevitably cause them to lose Face entirely and become the laughingstock of the other Demon Saints. How could they not be enraged by this?
For the sake of Face, and for profit, the two Demon Saints gathered together. These two Demon Saints had always been at odds, secretly setting traps for each other on numerous occasions, and engaging in direct conflict more than once or twice. Yet this time, because they shared a common enemy, they surprisingly cast aside their past animosities and united, resolving to jointly annihilate Half-Moon Island.
The reason for their alliance was that the two Demon Saints had discovered through their investigations that Half-Moon Island's strength was only stronger, not weaker, than what they had initially understood. Coupled with their subordinates' repeated failed attempts to organize attacks on Half-Moon Island, they felt that if this attempt also failed, they would have no Face left to continue residing in the Eastern Sunrise Ocean.
This decision utterly shocked the subordinates of the two Demon Saints, for in their view, there was absolutely no need for it. While they conceded that Half-Moon Island was indeed powerful, no matter how strong it was, it shouldn't require both Demon Saints to personally intervene and deploy all their forces. They felt this was making a mountain out of a molehill.
The sea demons who held such thoughts had no idea how much the two Demon Saints valued their Face. During their seclusion, their subordinates had already lost all their Face. If they didn't reclaim it after emerging, how could they continue to operate in the Eastern Sunrise Ocean? The best way to regain their Face was to annihilate Half-Moon Island, and to do so in the shortest possible time, demonstrating their overwhelming strength. The faster Half-Moon Island was destroyed, the better, for only then could they salvage as much of their lost Face as possible.
Thus, the scene unfolded: the two Demon Saints leading a multitude of sea demons to besiege Half-Moon Island. When Yang Haoran returned to Half-Moon Island, the great battle had only just begun. The moment the two sides clashed, the two Demon Saints were utterly dumbfounded.
In the eyes of the two Demon Saints, with them personally leading this operation, even if they couldn't cripple Half-Moon Island in a single exchange, they were certainly guaranteed to hold an absolute advantage. However, the reality was precisely the opposite. As soon as their forces collided, their side not only failed to gain the slightest upper hand, but the two Demon Saints themselves were each entangled by two experts from Half-Moon Island.
The two Demon Saints had initially thought these two individuals from Half-Moon Island were merely throwing their lives away, but they never expected them to genuinely hold them back. Especially one of the Demon Hunters, whose Star Spirit Power held a powerful suppressive effect over Demon Power, coupled with the Demon Hunter's inherent strength, resulted in that particular Demon Saint not only failing to gain the upper hand but being thoroughly suppressed.
However, this was not the most critical blow for the two Demon Saints. The most fatal aspect was that shortly after the battle began, Half-Moon Island immediately received support from a large number of powerful experts. These experts were either Ghost Path practitioners or members of the Demon Cult, each employing more ruthless and cruel methods than the last. Their initial fierce momentum quickly vanished, and they were routed, utterly defeated!
The two Demon Saints had originally believed that by personally leading their entire force, they could easily conquer Half-Moon Island. Yet, they were mercilessly slapped by reality, leaving them both furious and aggrieved!
The ones holding back the two Demon Saints were Ye Zhiqiu and Bai Xue. Half-Moon Island was besieged by a large number of sea demons, and Bai Xue, who was temporarily in charge of Half-Moon Island's security, learned of the situation earlier than anyone else. However, she didn't frantically contact Yang Haoran. Instead, she promptly informed Old Master Wu and arranged for the Flock of Demons Society to engage the enemy.
Upon receiving the news, Old Master Wu immediately contacted Yang Haoran's other trusted subordinates and instructed them to prepare for battle. Therefore, when the two Demon Saints led a large force of sea demons to besiege Half-Moon Island, Half-Moon Island was already well-prepared. Since Half-Moon Island's strength was already formidable, coupled with their early preparation, they not only avoided losses but seized the initiative from the very beginning.
In this battle, not only did Bai Xue feel there was no need to contact Yang Haoran, but even the usually steady Old Master Wu likewise felt it unnecessary to disturb Yang Haoran. In Old Master Wu's opinion, although the sea demon side had brought two Demon Saints, Half-Moon Island was not without experts capable of dealing with them.
Furthermore, while the two Demon Saints had indeed brought an astonishing number of sea demons, Half-Moon Island's combat personnel were equally numerous, and their experts were by no means few. Thus, even Old Master Wu felt there was no need to alarm Yang Haoran about this matter; they simply needed to win this great battle, and then they could report the detailed situation to Yang Haoran afterwards.
Over the past six months or so, Half-Moon Island had been subjected to multiple attacks from sea demons, a situation to which Old Master Wu and the others had grown accustomed. No one considered it a significant event. If there was any difference to this particular assault, it was simply that the number of attacking sea demons was vast and their strength formidable, far exceeding the sum of all previous attacks, yet it still fell within Half-Moon Island's manageable capacity.
Seeing many sea demons flee in disarray, the faces of the two Demon Saints turned extremely grim. Conversely, the smile on Yang Haoran's face grew even wider.
At the same time, four massive pillars of light suddenly shot up from the four directions of Half-Moon Island, piercing through the clouds and soaring into the sky. Each of these four light pillars had a diameter of several hundred meters. From high in the sky, while these four light pillars could be seen clearly, they didn't appear enormous. Only when one was near a light pillar could its true grandeur be felt!
Using the four light pillars as a medium, a gigantic formation quickly coalesced above Half-Moon Island. This formation, like an inverted pot lid, covered Half-Moon Island from above. Subsequently, a light barrier covered in countless tiny runes enveloped the entire Half-Moon Island.
The light barrier was faintly transparent. If not for the dense, minuscule runes, it would have been difficult to notice that the entire Half-Moon Island was encompassed within a massive light barrier, or rather, within a gigantic formation.
The sea demons who were attempting to secretly escape Half-Moon Island were blocked by the suddenly appearing light barrier. Their expressions all changed drastically. Just as they were about to successfully flee Half-Moon Island and save their lives, a rune-covered light barrier suddenly blocked their path, trapping them on Half-Moon Island. For them, this was clearly an attempt to cut off their retreat and deny them any chance of survival. The panic in their hearts was imaginable.
Panicked as they were, their actions were anything but slow. In this situation, they couldn't afford to hide anymore. They all unleashed their strongest attacks against the rune-covered light barrier before them. Salvation was right in front of their eyes, and they naturally didn't want to miss it. However, to their despair, their attacks failed to budge the rune-covered light barrier in the slightest.
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