Chapter 324: Shaman

At Wu Qingsong’s urging, the airship rapidly descended. However, before it reached a safe distance, he hastily awakened Nina’s ability, then grabbed a rope and jumped straight down.

Amidst the startled cries of the beastmen, his body swayed in midair. He lost his grip on the rope, and crashed heavily onto a bearman, knocking him unconscious. Several beastmen roared and charged at Wu Qingsong, but they quickly dropped their weapons, writhing in agony.

The sight sent fear rippling through the surrounding beastmen. Those further away, who hadn’t witnessed the scene, continued shouting as they rushed toward them.

Wu Qingsong regretted his recklessness. In such chaos, he couldn’t spot Xeila at all. Fortunately, at that moment, Nina also grabbed a cable and leaped down from the airship.

“Over there!” she shouted.

Silvery moonlight illuminated the darkness like an oil lamp, drawing countless warriors toward them. Nina swung her greatsword with all her might, cutting down the beastmen blocking their path one by one. However, in the midst of an army of twenty thousand, carving a path through sheer force alone was no easy task.

Just as she was about to unleash a sword aura to clear the way, Liuli’s cry suddenly echoed from above. 

“Wu! Nina! Watch out!”

The airship roared past at incredible speed, nearly grazing the ground. Ling had reduced the airbag to its minimum, revealing two massive, razor-sharp wings on either side of the hull. Like a pair of guillotine blades, they carved a bloody path through the crowd. At the ship’s front, a massive spiral drill spun at high speed, shredding everything in its path.

The sheer devastation made Nina freeze for a moment. Wu Qingsong grabbed her hand and pulled her forward, following closely behind the airship.

The sheer size and overwhelming power of the airship sent the beastmen into a panic, scattering to either side. Using the momentum from its descent, the airship surged forward for over thirty meters before lifting off again.

The beastmen standing in the defensive spear formation stared in shock as the colossal vessel soared overhead. In the next instant, a towering wolfwoman appeared before them, her sword gleaming with silver light. A single swing of her blade sent countless fragmented bodies flying, cutting a path straight through their formation, leaving the beastmen frozen in place.

“There are only a few of them!” a boarman leader bellowed. “Kill them, and we can reclaim our ancestors’ homela— AHHHH!!!”

His words were abruptly cut off, replaced by a wretched scream. 

The beastmen watched in horror as he clutched his head and collapsed to the ground, writhing like a fish on a hot pan. Their courage instantly vanished.

“Fire the arrows!” another leader shouted from a distance.

Nina swung her greatsword in a wide arc, deflecting all the arrows launched at them. At that moment, the airship once again swept past them, carving a path of blood and carnage before them.

“There!” Wu Qingsong finally spotted Xeila. 

A frail-looking badgerfolk elder stood before her, holding a wooden staff forward. From the tip of the staff, countless arcs of lightning surged out, forming a spindle-shaped cage that entrapped Xeila. Electric currents continuously coursed over her body, causing her to tremble violently. She was clearly enduring immense pain.

A shaman!

Once, they were a formidable force that could rival elven mages. But as the beastmen declined, true shamans had become exceedingly rare. Most who claimed the title in modern tribes were mere charlatans. In their previous battles, they had slain dozens of such frauds. But Wu Qingsong had never expected to encounter a real shaman here!

Wu Qingsong rushed toward Xeila, unleashing a torrent of soul fragments at the surrounding beastmen. 

However, the elderly badger-man extended his left hand, summoning several miniature whirlwinds that shot straight at him. Wu Qingsong raised his arms to shield himself, his clothes instantly torn to shreds. The soul fragments he had released vanished without effect, swept away by the winds.

“Hold on!” he shouted to Xeila. 

But before he could advance further, three beastmen warriors blocked his way, raising stone axes and striking him hard, sending him flying backward.

Nina caught him midair, slicing through nearby beastmen with one hand, then swung him forcefully toward Xeila.

Wu Qingsong crashed into the lightning cage, convulsing violently as electricity coursed through him. But his interference significantly reduced Xeila’s burden, diverting most of the electrical current away from her.

The lightning cage flickered and dimmed. With a furious roar, Xeila suddenly vanished. In the next instant, she reappeared behind the old badgerfolk, her dagger gleaming with sword aura as she slashed downward.

“Die!”

A violent gust of wind erupted, sending nearby beastmen flying. 

The lightning vanished instantly, and Wu Qingsong collapsed to the ground. Before he could comprehend what had happened, Nina had already leaped over him, her greatsword swinging down at the small figure enveloped in a translucent air shield.

A deafening explosion accompanied by a fierce wind blast pushed Wu Qingsong back several steps. As the dust settled, he saw Xeila once again trapped in a lightning cage. Meanwhile, Nina was locked in battle with a blood-red glowing tigerfolk, forced to retreat two steps away from the old badgerfolk.

What was going on?

Wu Qingsong’s eyes widened in shock as he saw the badgerfolk stretch out his left hand toward a nearby boarman. Instantly, the boarman’s body swelled, glowing with an earthen yellow hue, his eyes turning white. He picked up a fallen wooden beam and charged madly at Nina.

‘This is…’

Another boarman completed his transformation and lunged straight at Wu Qingsong. He barely dodged to the side, but the impact sent him flying like a kite.

‘Charge! All of you!’

Mid-air, Wu Qingsong issued a command to the undead creatures stationed outside the camp before crashing heavily into the ground.

The earth trembled. The sound of snapping spears and beastfolk screams echoed from the perimeter of the camp. Dozens of undead creatures fell before the spear formation, but not before taking down over a hundred beastmen spearmen. A breach finally appeared in their formation, and the undead surged through, silent yet relentless, trampling everything in their path as they charged toward Wu Qingsong.

The boarman grabbed Wu Qingsong, tightening his grip around his throat. His massive tusks jabbed wildly at Wu Qingsong’s face, yet they failed to pierce his skin.

In mere seconds, the undead herd was upon them. With a roar, the boarman hurled Wu Qingsong straight into the charging beasts. He watched as Wu Qingsong was swallowed by the black tide—only to be gored by a nearby bison. Its iron-tipped horn pierced straight through his chest, sending both him and the staggering undead bison crashing to the ground, where they were trampled to dust by the relentless herd.