Douluo Continent: The Underworld Emperor Halosa Lets Three Fly

Chapter 171 Everything is ready

Another year has passed.

The passage of time seems to have quietly smoothed out the once tense nerves of Shrek City.

Pavilion Master Yun Ming was almost completely immersed in raising Tang Wulin, and became increasingly lazy in handling the daily affairs of the Sea God Pavilion. He would often just listen to brief reports and rarely inquire about the details.

The laxity of those in power, like an invisible plague, naturally spreads downwards.

The saying "what the superiors do, the inferiors will follow" perfectly describes this situation.

The previously suffocating high-pressure city defense mode has gradually relaxed without anyone realizing it.

Although the soul-guided detectors and joint defense soul-guided device arrays, built at a cost of astronomical sums and spread throughout the city, still stand, flashing their lights, and remain activated, the focus of the monitoring personnel behind them...

The speed of emergency response and the efficiency of coordination between departments are not as good as before.

Routine patrols have become mere formalities, alarm response times have lengthened, and even occasional minor abnormal energy fluctuations have been subconsciously attributed to "equipment aging" or "normal fluctuations in Soul Master cultivation" and ignored by monitoring personnel.

It wasn't that they were utterly negligent in their duties, but rather that a deeper, pervasive collective mentality throughout Shrek City was at play—a near-blind confidence and pride rooted in its millennia-long glorious history.

"This is Shrek City! With the Sea God Pavilion here, and the Sky-Supporting Douluo and all the elders, which evil spirit would dare to come and die?"

"Exactly! The Cloud Nether Pavilion Master is invincible, the Tang Clan Master is unfathomable, and there are so many other powerful figures—who would be so foolish as to provoke them?"

"Relax, don't scare yourself, it's definitely a false alarm."

This mentality is not without reason. Almost all the known half-step gods in the world have some connection with Shrek Academy.

Absolute strength often leads to absolute arrogance and complacency.

They had long been accustomed to standing atop the continent, looking down upon all living beings, forgetting that venomous snakes often hide in the most inconspicuous bushes.

The powerful and arrogant Shrek naturally became the most glaring thorn in the side of many forces within the Federation and even the Holy Spirit Cult, who wanted to get rid of him as soon as possible.

As the saying goes, there's no such thing as a thousand days of thievery, but a thousand days of guarding against thieves. Once targeted by the most ruthless thief, even the strongest fortress will inevitably be breached one day.

As autumn turns to winter, on the shores of Poseidon Lake.

The weather has turned cold, and breath turns to frost. Children in ordinary families are already wrapped in thick cotton-padded coats, afraid of catching a cold.

However, on the shores of Poseidon Lake, which still exudes a warm and vibrant atmosphere, a little boy of about two years old, wearing only a small pair of waterproof underwear, splashed and played in the clear lake water like a joyful fish. His little face was rosy from the cold, but he was beaming with happiness, and his mouth was emitting clear, cheerful laughter.

Yunming stood by the lake, dressed in simple casual clothes, with a smile of immense satisfaction and love on his face, as Ziguang closely followed the energetic little figure in the water.

He was completely unaware that while he was enjoying this moment of family bliss, a huge, deadly net had quietly tightened over the entire Shrek City, and a storm was about to break!

Shrek City, near the inner city, a seemingly ordinary noble mansion.

The atmosphere here is completely out of step with the city's laid-back and bustling atmosphere.

Inside the mansion, all the curtains were drawn tightly, making the light dim.

Leng Yulai stood quietly in the center of the courtyard, dressed in a wide black robe. The uniform, which was supposed to conceal her figure, accentuated her stunning curves due to her overly voluptuous and alluring body. The wide sleeves and hem of the robe added to her mystery and seduction.

Around her, dozens of cultists, also dressed in black and exuding a sharp and sinister aura, were working silently and efficiently. They were carefully installing and embedding metal components engraved with complex and sinister patterns into trenches that had been dug in the courtyard, connecting them to form part of a vast and chilling soul-guiding array.

The entire mansion was shrouded in an extremely subtle spiritual barrier, which locked all energy fluctuations and sounds inside, making them completely imperceptible to the outside world.

Leng Yulai's gaze was like the most precise scanner, calmly sweeping over every working node. Occasionally, she would issue commands in a cold, emotionless voice: "The energy conduit calibration deviation of the third node is 0.1 micrometers. Readjust."

"The auxiliary soul power sequence on the west side is three breaths slow in connecting; speed it up!"

Her voice was cold and clear, yet it carried an undeniable and absolute authority that made all the black-clad cultists who heard the command tremble and their movements become even faster and more precise.

Finally, she raised her wrist, glanced at the oddly shaped soul-guided timer on it, and announced in a commanding tone: "The remaining parts must be finalized within half an hour! Anyone who delays will have their soul annihilated!"

"Yes!" The crowd responded in unison, their voices low and filled with fear and fervor, their movements quickening even further.

And there are countless strongholds like Leng Yulai's in Shrek City that are secretly setting up blood sacrifice arrays!

Like malignant tumors parasitizing a giant, they spread silently, waiting for the final moment to strike.

Among them, two energy fluctuations were the most subtle and the most terrifying!

Deep inside a large warehouse of soul tools being sold at a low price in the eastern part of the city.

Saintess Ye Lan of the Holy Spirit Cult stood expressionless. Before her stood an enormous, mountain-like metal construct!

Its entire body is a dark black, as if it can absorb all light. Its surface is covered with countless complex soul guide inscriptions and energy conduits that are so complex that they make people dizzy. It faintly emits terrifying energy fluctuations that distort the surrounding space!

This is the god-slaying fixed-position soul-guided cannon shell—"God-Slaying Devourer of Heaven and Earth"!

Just standing near it, Ye Lan could feel her soul trembling slightly. The destructive energy emanating from it was enough to pose a fatal threat to a powerhouse of her level.

She recalled the slightly arrogant introduction given by the technicians at the Spirit Pagoda during the handover: This so-called Level 2 fixed-position soul-guided cannon shell is not a single shell in the traditional sense, but a soul-guided array explosive device that can be called an art piece, precisely composed of tens of thousands of high-level high-intensity soul-guided explosive arrays!

However, Ye Lan's delicate brows furrowed slightly. Relying on the senses of the undead creatures under her control, which possessed the combat power of a half-step god, she vaguely felt that even if the two god-killing cannonballs exploded at the same time—their core power might not be able to completely annihilate a half-step god in good condition.

Those who stand at the pinnacle of the continent possess a multitude of survival methods and an unparalleled tenacity, far exceeding the imagination of ordinary people.

Unless they are willing to bear all the energy.

"Hmph, all they do is make empty promises—" she muttered to herself, her voice carrying a faint hint of resentment that even she herself might not have noticed. "Decades have passed, and they still haven't shown up, and the promised rewards—we haven't even seen a shadow of them."

The complaint was so light that it quickly dissipated into the air, as if it were just a casual expression of dissatisfaction with someone's inefficiency.

With her talent, she would have no chance of reaching the level of a half-step god without guidance.

Soon, a black-robed cultist stepped forward, knelt on one knee, his voice trembling slightly with excitement and fear: "Holy Maiden! 'Devouring Heaven and Earth' is now fully tested and ready to be activated!"

Ye Lan snapped out of her thoughts and asked coldly, "What about the Demon Emperor?"

The believer immediately replied, "The 'destruction of heaven and earth' is also ready. Our side—is the last one to be completed." He subconsciously added the second half of the sentence.

Ye Lan glanced at him coldly, the invisible pressure causing the cultist to break out in a cold sweat instantly: "The second half of the sentence is superfluous."

She paused, then looked up at the cold ceiling of the warehouse, as if she could see through the layers of barriers and into that bustling and arrogant city.

Finally, she parted her red lips slightly and issued her final order: "Pass down the order. All strongholds, except for those with the strength of a Limit Douluo, shall immediately evacuate Shrek City through the pre-designated secret passage. In one incense stick's time—proceed according to plan."

"Yes!" The cultist's voice trembled even more violently, but it contained more of a frenzied excitement at the prospect of participating in a legend of destruction!

With this command given, invisible messages were rapidly transmitted through secret channels to every dark corner of the city.

It was as if an invisible hand had suddenly gripped Shrek City by the throat.

The bustling city seemed, at this moment, to be plunged into an eerie, storm-like stillness—

Dead silence.