Mo Fan was stunned.
He had heard many tales about the Black Totem Snake from Tangyue. The Black Totem Snake was indeed looking after her, just like her senior.
However, Mo Fan was shocked that the Black Totem Snake would care about Tangyue so much. Most demon beasts would have already lost the ability to think rationally after suffering from the bruises and wounds, and would go berserk.
However, the Black Totem Snake did not lose control of himself. In fact, he seemed rather lost when he saw Tangyue bursting into tears.
This was Mo Fan's first time sensing such emotion from the utterly terrifying gigantic snake. He was treating Tangyue like his own kid, not allowing her to suffer at all. He was scared to hear her crying, even though he was still enduring the pain from the Super Magic Formation!
"Do you believe it? Do you believe a totem beast like that is the source of the plague and the disaster?" said Mo Fan to Eldest Senior Sister Leng Qing beside him.
"Does me believing make any difference?" Leng Qing's voice was filled with a hint of unwillingness.
As a matter of fact, she was more inclined toward the Totem Guardians side. Unfortunately, the terrified people of the city wanted the Black Totem Snake dead as soon as possible. The Su Causeway was crowded with Advanced Magicians. They were waiting for the Black Totem Snake to become weaker, so they could flank him from all directions and eliminate the Ruler-level demon beast.
——–
On the causeway, Councilman Zhu Meng and Councilman Luo Mian totally ignored the Black Totem Snake's gentle behavior. They were waiting for the Black Totem Snake to weaken.
"Shall we attack now?" asked Councilman Zhu Meng impatiently.
The West Fortress was under attacked by a pack of White Magic Falcons, a grave threat to the city. Zhu Meng had no time to waste any further. He had to eliminate the Black Totem Snake to get rid of the plague, then hold back the White Magic Falcons.
"Don't, we can't afford to underestimate the Black Totem Snake. If you withdraw the Lightning Punishment Formation, more than half of your men would die in order to kill him. His power is still too much for us to handle even though he is currently going through ecdysis!" Councilman Luo Mian was more familiar with the Black Totem Snake than the others.
Councilman Zhu Meng hesitated. He glanced at the Head of the Royal Guards, Wu Pingjing beside him.
Wu Pingjing said with a nod, "Councilman, we can't rush it. Let's strike after the Lightning Punishment Formation has tortured him a while longer."
Councilman Zhu Meng lowered his hand and decided to wait it out.
However, a brief moment later, the Royal Guard Li Jin hurriedly came up to Zhu Meng and blurted out without saluting, "Councilman, West Fortress is requesting backup!"
Councilman Zhu Meng frowned. He glanced at the Black Totem Snake which was still trapped within the nine lightning halberds and said, "Give us some time, we need to kill the snake first."
"It's an emergency. A Ruler-level demon beast had appeared among the White Magic Falcons. Our line of defense had crumbled due to the betrayal of the Heavenly Eagles. We totally lost our air power. Only Advanced Magicians are able to stop the army of White Magic Falcons. The fortress has summoned every Advanced Magician nearby, but it's still not enough to hold off the invasion of the White Magic Falcons. Without support, the demon beasts would soon appear in the sky above the city. When that happens..." said Li Jin.
"Is it really that serious?" Councilman Zhu Meng was stunned.
"Without the Heavenly Eagles, the soldiers guarding the fortress are totally useless!" said Li Jin.
The Elder of the Magic Court Li Tian glanced at Councilman Zhu Meng, who was hesitant after hearing the shocking news, "We can't afford to lose any time. Councilmen, please bring the Judges of the Magic Court and the Royal Guards to the frontline at West Fortress at once!"
"No, we have to kill the beast first!" stated Councilman Luo Mian with a loud tone all of a sudden.
Zhu Meng was puzzled.
"The Black Totem Snake's endurance is shocking. We might have to wait until late at night before his stamina is depleted. It's better to attack him by then. If we attack him now, it will result in a great number of casualties. Without enough Advanced Magicians, we won't be able to provide enough support to the front line. Hangzhou will truly suffer a terrible disaster.
"The Lightning Punishment Formation has the beast trapped. It will not be able to break free from the strongest entrapment Spell among all Super Spells in just one or two days. We should focus on the invasion now, then kill the beast once the city is safe!" said Elder Li Tian.
Councilman Luo Mian pulled a long face. He glanced at the severely injured Black Totem Snake, and took another glance at Councilman Zhu Meng.
Councilman Zhu Meng was the one who had authority over the Magicians. The strength of his Royal Guards was astounding. Therefore, he was the person making the final decision...
"Since we're running out of time, we should take the risk to kill the beast at once. With the Royal Guards here, he won't be able to resist much longer," said Councilman Luo Mian.
"Wait!" Councilman Zhu Meng raised his hand.
"Zhu Meng, we have to kill him now to prevent any changes to the plan," said Luo Mian.
"To the front line at once!" ordered Zhu Meng sternly.
"This..." Luo Mian reacted strangely.
"Head of the Royal Guards Wu Pingjing, listen up! Bring the Royal Guards to the front line of West Fortress at once! If I see a single White Magic Falcon trespassing into the safe zone, I'll hold you responsible!" declared Councilman Zhu Meng firmly.
"Affirmative!"
Wu Pingjing leapt into the air and flew into the sky above the causeway as three pairs of wings appeared on his back. Each wing was ample and long, fully extended. Each beat produced a gentle flow, pushing Wu Pingjing into the sky...
"Six wings... This Head of the Royal Guards' strength is a bit too terrifying!" Mo Fan stared after Wu Pingjing who was disappearing into the sky.
Following Wu Pingjing's summon, the Royal Guards immediately rose into the sky after him!
The causeway had lots of powerful Magicians on station. They either cast a Wind Element Advanced Spell to summon Wind Wings on their backs, took out their Wing Equipment and adeptly flew into the sky, or Summoned their flying mounts to soar into the sky...
The Royal Guards who were holding their positions on the causeway moments ago had all flown into the distance. They quickly flew west, with Wu Pingjing leading in front. The sight was rather spectacular, making those who had yet to possess any flying ability quite jealous!
Speaking of which, how powerful exactly was the Black Totem Snake that was being trapped within the Lightning Punishment Formation...
The causeway was crowded with many experts, and the Black Totem Snake was already weakened due to the ecdysis and the Lightning Punishment Formation. However, the two Councilmen still assumed it was a great risk to kill it now?
Either way, the Black Totem Snake's life was spared for now!
Mo Fan was about to walk over to Tangyue when he saw Leng Qing glaring at Councilman Luo Mian, as if she were trying to peek into the cunning old man's mind.
"Big sis, what's wrong?" asked Mo Fan.
"I have a feeling that this entire incident isn't as simple as it looks," said Leng Qing grimly.
Invasion and defense are two different things. "Don't think about it. The Black Totem Snake must have been framed. It's not its first shedding period. If the shedding period truly infected the populace, how could Hangzhou still have so many people?" Mo Fan lifted Teacher Tang Yue's chin, making her look at him as he spoke.
He wasn't just comforting her aimlessly; this was a fact.
To put it bluntly, this disaster was caused by an ambitious scoundrel for his own selfish desires.
All Mo Fan could do was find a way to prevent the tragedy from escalating.
This world is truly something. Despite being surrounded by demons and living in the cracks, internal strife is endless.
Both Li Tian and Leng Qing were leaning towards the side of the Totem Guardians. They had already asked Mr. Lu who was leading the medical team. He mentioned that even though the blood of the Black Totem Snake was able to resist the virus, it was not enough to cure it. It implied that the Black Totem Snake was not the true cause of the plague.
Besides, White Town was severely impacted when the outbreak took place, but the Black Totem Snake was staying at West Lake before. If he were the cause of the plague, the most serious outbreak would have happened to the people close to the lake instead.
"If someone were purposely hiding the truth, or preventing people from finding the true cause, the government's efforts would have been in vain. I've already asked Lingling to go to White Town. You will regroup with her there. Remember, we don't have much time. Once the White Magic Falcons are driven back, Zhu Meng would surely come and kill the Black Totem Snake straight away. There's nothing we could do once the beast is dead, and it would be even harder to discover the truth," said Leng Qing sternly.
Mo Fan went and grabbed the wheeping Tangyue
he looked at Teacher Tang Yue and said, "When we were in the town before, I observed the condition of the infected people. It's somewhat similar to the symptoms I encountered before. I think the Black Totem Snake was indeed framed. I'm going to gather some of the herbs that cured me back then. After you return, have Leng Qing contact Lingling. Ask her to help investigate; with her intelligence, she might be able to find the mastermind."
"What herbs are you talking about?" Teacher Tang Yue asked.
"I don't know the name, but I recognize them," Mo Fan said casually.
It wasn't that he didn't want to tell Teacher Tang Yue; Mo Fan himself knew very well that without the White Demon Eagle being dispatched, it would be almost impossible to safely gather the Eagle Red Grass. Even if enough army and enforement Mages were sent, it would result in heavy losses. After all, the White Demon Eagle is a Winged Demon, and most of the country's high-altitude combat power for defense are Eagle Mages.