Mu Hanyan knew he meant well. Seeing that the troops and civilians of Beiguan Town were handling the situation adeptly, she abandoned the idea of intervening and was about to lead her people back to the City Lord’s Mansion when suddenly, a thunderous beast roar came from a short distance away.

Several extraordinarily large Exotic Beasts roared wildly, charging towards the city gate. These beasts stood ten feet tall and stretched twenty feet long, their bodies covered in thick armor plates, revealing a faint red-gold hue in the dim light. Arrows infused with qi struck their bodies, causing sparks to fly but failing to inflict any harm. With their heavy steps, the ground resonated with a thunderous rumble as if the entire earth was trembling continuously.

"Red Cloud Gold Armored Elephants!" The City Lord looked at the rapidly approaching beasts, his face turning pale with fright.

Mu Hanyan was also slightly taken aback. Typically, Red Cloud Gold Armored Elephants weren’t considered ferocious Exotic Beasts, nor were they fearsome enough to make people panic at the mention of their name. However, that didn’t mean these beasts weren’t powerful; they lived deep within the Dragon Vein Mountain Range, rarely clashing with humans or other beasts.

In fact, with their uniquely large bodies and Innate Divine Strength, coupled with the golden heavy armor unexpected of elephant-type beasts, the Red Cloud Gold Armored Elephants were nearly equal in both defense and attack to beasts like the Fierce Stone Demons and Angry Dragon Beasts.

The heavy footsteps drew closer, and finally, Mu Hanyan and her group could clearly see the Red Cloud Gold Armored Elephants, their long trunks wrapped around rocks larger than a human, swinging them as they ran, directly targeting the city gate.

"Quick, hold the gate, hold the gate!" Amidst the horror, the City Lord did not panic but loudly commanded the soldiers behind him.

Very soon, nearly a hundred soldiers gathered toward the city gate, with many civilians joining them.

Mu Hanyan frowned. With Beiguan Town’s defenses, they could certainly withstand attacks from common Exotic Beasts, but there was no way they could hold off the charge of the Red Cloud Gold Armored Elephants.

"Young Master Mu, if the city falls later, don’t worry about us, just head straight to Lu’an City," the City Lord said to Mu Hanyan, clearly understanding the situation.

As soon as he finished speaking, there was a muffled boom, and the entire city wall shuddered violently.

"Ah." Blood splattered as several soldiers and civilians guarding the city screamed and fell from the wall, and a gap several feet wide appeared in the sturdy wall.

It turned out a Red Cloud Gold Armored Elephant had tossed a giant stone towards the gate but missed, hitting the wall instead.

Not only were the troops and civilians of Beiguan Town shocked, but even the noble family’s sons from the Capital were equally pale. Although they had slain numerous beasts along the way, encountering something as formidable as the Red Cloud Gold Armored Elephants was a first.

The force of that previous strike was comparable to that of a Ninth Rank Sword Master or even a Great Sword Master. If that giant stone accidentally landed on them... they couldn’t even fathom it.

"It’s over, it’s over, won’t we even make it to Lu’an City before losing our lives?" Unable to suppress his inner terror, Mu Chengqi, who had remained silent throughout, muttered to himself, his face ashen.

Everyone was still in the midst of their prior shock, ignoring him. Only Mu Renda glared at him, but even he did not reprimand him.

No one anticipated encountering such a powerful Exotic Beast in Beiguan Town. Previously, the town’s troops and civilians had maintained an advantage mainly due to the sturdy city defenses, but they were vastly outnumbered. Even with all the capable civilians, there were only about a thousand defenders, maybe two thousand with them included, while the beasts numbered in the thousands.

Once the Red Golden Armored Elephants breached the city, they’d be overwhelmed by the thousands of Exotic Beasts. Forget the civilians with inadequate cultivation; many among them wouldn’t survive either.

Mu Chengqi, with his Third Stage Sword Master skills, was outstanding compared to ordinary people and could be considered a master, but if surrounded by those bloodthirsty and fearless Exotic Beasts, even he would struggle to survive.

"I told you we shouldn’t have offended Dan Tai Xuan. With them, we’d have two thousand people, and we could at least put up some resistance. What do we do now? What do we do now?" Watching the Red Cloud Gold Armored Elephants ready to swing their trunks and hurl more stones at the city, Mu Chengqi was so terrified that his legs turned to jelly, nearly crying, completely disregarding Mu Chengxuan’s warning as he quivered and complained.

Fortunately, at that moment, Mu Hanxuan was also frowning, watching the Red Cloud Gold Armored Elephants below the city wall, not hearing a word he said, and even if he had, he wouldn’t have had time to care.

The other Branch Family Members were equally pale with fear, staying silent but agreeing somewhat with his words. Had Dan Tai Xuan and the others been there, they might have at least been able to fight against the Exotic Beasts for a while, but now, even if all five hundred of them rushed at once, they wouldn’t make much impact.

Stealing a glance at Mu Hanyan, some resentment flickered in their eyes.

Closer, ever closer, the thunderous sound of the Red Cloud Gold Armored Elephants stepping on the ground seemed to echo right in their ears. Besides that rumbling sound, the town was engulfed in deathly silence.

Everyone knew what awaited them when the gate was breached, and they also knew that against the strength of the Red Cloud Gold Armored Elephants, the gate wouldn’t hold for long.

"Young Master Mu, once the city falls, you must leave immediately and head for Lu’an City." The City Lord slowly raised his longsword, prepared to fight to the death against the Red Cloud Gold Armored Elephants once they breached the gate, to cover Mu Hanyan and the others’ retreat.

Defending a city is far easier than attacking it. The fortifications of Lu’an City are much stronger than those of Beiguan City. Although Mu Hanyan and her group are few in number, their strength in aiding the defense could easily pit them against numerous foes. Beiguan Town, with only a few hundred soldiers and civilians, held its ground until now, proving their endurance. Engaging directly with several times their number of Exotic Beasts would be seeking death and a waste of manpower.

Behind the city gate, the soldiers and civilians drew their longswords, nodding towards Mu Hanyan and the others. Having lived generations at the border, they understood the City Lord’s decision without any disagreement.

Mu Hanyan’s eyes became slightly moist. Though she barely knew these soldiers and civilians, seeing their gazes made her acutely aware of the immense hope they had placed in her.

Mu Hanyan’s gaze swept over Huayue and the others’ faces, then suddenly, she leaped from the city wall. Huayue and the others let out a clear cry, following her as they swiftly descended.

Five figures flashed across the city wall and vanished.

"What, they ran, they actually left us behind to run away!" Everyone froze, then heard Mu Chengqi’s frantic yell.

"Shut up!" The City Lord roared angrily.

Mu Chengqi jumped in fright, noticing for the first time that while he was ranting and raving, everyone on the wall was watching below with faces of shock.

Stretching his neck, he looked down, realizing how wrong he had been.