The Ashes Sovereign

Chapter 11

Days of non‑stop battle wore on.

Neither side could achieve a decisive victory. The sect army could not break through Azure Ruin’s defences. The valley defenders could not drive the huge host completely away. It became a grinding war of attrition.

More of the fragment‑bearers suffered mental fatigue. Some could no longer fight. They withdrew to the inner valley, shaken by the old sovereign’s intruding thoughts. The number of people who could wield shared mist‑power shrank. This made the domain shield weaker in places.

The council elders saw their chance. They concentrated the fire of all suppression relics onto one single section of the outer barrier. If they could punch one large hole through the shield, masses of soldiers could pour inside.

Pale draining light focused on one stretch of rampart. The silver‑grey mist covering that wall dimmed. Cracks spread across the stone.

Lin Yue rushed to that threatened position. He called upon the remaining healthy fragment‑bearers. They poured all their remaining strength into reinforcing that failing point. The barrier held, yet the cost was high. Several warriors collapsed, overwhelmed by the ghost‑echoes.

The valley’s situation turned precarious. They had survived many attacks, yet their most powerful weapon was eating away at their own people.

That night, while both sides rested briefly, Lin Yue, Lira and the remaining leaders held an urgent midnight council.

They could not keep enduring endless waves. If this dragged on, either the enemy would break in, or the old sovereign’s spirit would consume all their power‑bearers from within. They needed a bold, risky counter‑plan. Not simply to keep defending, but to strike at the heart of the sect army’s advantage: the suppression relics.

If those artefacts could be destroyed, the main weapon of the invasion would vanish.