Chen Fan glanced at him, "Go and take care of it. If there’s anything, give me a call."
"Yes, yes."
Hua Jun nodded repeatedly.
At this moment, the people inside the city also noticed the change in situation.
The deafening sound of firearms had stopped unknowingly, even the gunfire had ceased.
The ground’s shaking also stopped, and everything returned to its previous state.
Hiding in underground garages and bomb shelters, the people were filled with uncertainty.
Why had everything suddenly gone quiet?
Was the defense successful?
Or was it not?
"Thump thump thump."
A series of hurried footsteps sounded, accompanied by shouts of ’We held the line! We held the line!’, as a guard ran over excitedly, waving his arms, "Good news! Good news! Anshan City held the line! The Beast Tide has been completely defeated!"
The atmosphere instantly fell silent, and those present could hardly believe their ears.
Had they really held the line?
"You didn’t hear wrong!"
The guard emphasized, "This wave of the Beast Tide had over 200,000 Fierce Beasts. All of them are dead! Not a single one survived, including the three Commander-level Fierce Beasts leading them. Everyone is safe now, you can all come out."
Only then did the crowd fully believe his words.
Many slumped to the ground, feeling as if all strength had been drained from them, experiencing the relief of surviving a catastrophe.
Some women even cried tears of joy.
While hiding here, every minute and second was torment, fearing the Beast Tide would break through, and countless Fierce Beasts would storm in and tear them apart.
Fortunately, it was just a false alarm, and their worst fears did not come true.
"Brother, how did we manage to hold the line?" someone asked curiously.
"Yeah, you said there were over 200,000 Fierce Beasts this time. How did we manage that? They must’ve covered the mountains and plains."
"Exactly, exactly,"
many people chimed in.
More than twenty thousand Fierce Beasts weren’t just twenty thousand pigs. Even with that many pigs, it wouldn’t be slaughtered so quickly, right?
"Well, that’s a long story," the guard sighed deeply, his eyes showing a hint of reverence, "We were about to lose the defense. The Beast Tide had already reached the base of the walls, just one step away. At this critical moment, Chairman Li stepped in."
"Chairman Li!"
"Is that the same Chairman Li who let us in?"
Upon hearing these three words, a wave of fondness welled up in the hearts of many present.
"Who else? Do we have a second Chairman Li in Anshan City?" The guard gave the questioner a look.
"And then? What happened next?"
"Yes, could Chairman Li alone defeat tens of thousands of Fierce Beasts?"
"Is that true? If so, it’s too impressive."
"Of course, it’s true. I was there, clearly witnessing everything,"
The guard puffed his chest out, vividly describing the scene at the time.
Meanwhile, a large number of young men were being organized to head outside the city.
Even before exiting the city, they could already smell the thick stench of blood.
When they stepped outside and took in the scene, they were almost paralyzed with fear.
The ground was covered with mountains of corpses and rivers of blood, resembling a scene from doomsday.
The two camps that were previously there had disappeared without a trace.
"It’s terrifying..." someone murmured.
The sight of so many beast corpses showed how urgent and dangerous the situation had been.
If they hadn’t moved into Anshan City, staying at their original location, their fate would be beyond imagination.
"Alright, stop gawking, follow me,"
The leading guard turned around and said, "When we reach the destination, not only can you look, but you can also touch."
The crowd snapped back to reality.
Yes, they weren’t here to sightsee.
They were here to handle these "spoils," cutting up the Fierce Beasts and transporting them into the city as provisions.
"Hey brother," someone mustered the courage to ask, "Will we really get some beast meat in the end?"
Hearing this, the surrounding people all showed nervous expressions.
Indeed, they were told they wouldn’t be working for free and would get some beast meat as compensation.
"Do you think it’s a joke?"
The guard wanted to laugh, pointing ahead, "There are so many Fierce Beasts, even if each one has only a hundred pounds of meat, it’s enough for everyone in the city to get dozens of pounds. And they have a lot more meat on them. Work hard and don’t slack off, everyone can carry hundreds of pounds of meat back."
Upon hearing this, many people’s mouths started to water.
Hundreds of pounds per person?
Were they dreaming?
For many, coming from small villages and often struggling to make ends meet, even ten pounds would be a dream come true.
Seeing their reactions, the guard chuckled to himself.
Hundreds of pounds of mid to low-level Fierce Beast meat were nothing special.
Those who fought on the city walls got hundreds of pounds of High-Level Fierce Beast meat. Besides that, each person also got dozens of pounds of Elite-level Fierce Beast meat.
In terms of value, it’s dozens to hundreds of times higher than mid to low-level beast meat.
"Alright, you all better be assured and work hard. The City Lord’s Mansion won’t mistreat anyone."
"Yes, yes, yes."
The crowd instantly responded energetically, ignoring the muddy ground, and with tools in hand, they followed the guard.
Indeed, Chairman Li had let them stay for free, and didn’t force them into combat, just cleaning up the battlefield while getting beast meat as a reward. Could they get such a good deal anywhere else?
The only worry was that in a few hours, night would fall.
This intense stench of blood would surely attract more Fierce Beasts, and then the remaining corpses could end up as food for those creatures.
Not long after, the area in front of Anshan City was bustling with activity.
Some people were cutting up Fierce Beasts, some transporting chunks of meat, others moving supplies back and forth, everyone was busy.
But all faces were filled with smiles.
The Beast Tide was indeed terrifying.
But after the Tide recedes, the field of corpses is a treasure trove.
...
When Chen Fan returned to the Martial Arts Association, a figure was already waiting in the hall. Seeing him arrive, the figure smiled.
"Elder Wang."
Chen Fan, not surprised, showed a helpless smile.
Although Disguise and Bone Shrinking Skill could completely change one’s appearance and voice, it couldn’t alter one’s aura.
Normally, a person’s perception of aura was mediocre, but for someone like Elder Wang, a Celestial Realm Martial Artist, it was much easier.
"Shall we talk?"
Elder Wang asked with a smile.
"Alright."
Chen Fan nodded.
He had an idea of why the other party had come looking for him.
In the same office as before, the two sat facing each other.
Chen Fan poured a cup of tea and placed it in front of Elder Wang.
Elder Wang waved his hand, indicating there was no need for such formality. He moved his lips and finally spoke, "Chen Fan, when did you break through to the Celestial Human Realm?"
"Celestial Human Realm..."
Chen Fan was momentarily stunned and then laughed, "Elder Wang thinks I’m a Celestial Realm Martial Artist?"
"You’re not?"
Elder Wang’s pupils widened.
"No, impossible,"
He shook his head, "If you’re not a Celestial Realm Martial Artist, how could you have so much True Essence? How could you gather nearly 4,000 strands of Sword Qi?"
Evidently, he had included Chen Fan’s last two Sword Qi gatherings in that count.
After all, with Chen Fan not meditating or regulating his breath, to him, it seemed natural that he had some True Qi reserves, reinvigorating his Sword Qi in battle.
"Elder Wang, I’m really not a Celestial Realm Martial Artist,"
Chen Fan shook his head repeatedly, "I’m still a True Essence Realm Martial Artist, just at the Fourth Realm of True Essence, with more True Qi than others of the same realm."
"True... Fourth Realm of True Essence?"