High Martial: I Grind Professions

The grating sound of scraping scales swelled into a jarring, metallic ocean of noise.

Heavy footsteps rolled like muffled thunder, shaking the already gloomy skies of the Demon Realm and making them even more ominous.

A potent demonic aura surged into the sky, forming black clouds that blotted out the heavens before countless Stargates. They roiled and churned, emanating a suffocating aura of destruction.

The scale of each assembly point far surpassed that of the "Year's End" night five years ago. This was the final mobilization of the entire Demon Realm for an ultimate invasion, one meant to completely bury the Human Race's civilization.

An endless ocean of demon soldiers stretched to the horizon, the auras of their generals scattered throughout like stars. Behind each Stargate, at the very core of the formation…

…a terrifying pressure faintly emanated, indicating that the commanders of these great armies were terrifying beings who had reached at least the level of Great Demon King.

They stood in silence, their cold gazes piercing the barriers of space toward Blue Star. They awaited the final command, awaited the opening of the floodgates to unleash a torrent of destruction.

...

Galaxy Calendar, Year 242, June 10.

The past nine days had seen a mass migration on an unprecedented scale in human history.

Under the unified command of the Fire Hall, and with countless aircraft shuttling day and night, the vast majority of the population had been relocated from scattered cities to designated core fortress cities and provincial capitals.

On the vast Blue Star, only a few scattered cities remained.

Some residents, unable to part with their homeland or having a different interpretation of the future plans, chose to stay behind—perhaps hoping for a lucky break and believing that remote places would be safer, or perhaps concerned about the resource strain on the fortress cities.

The Fire Hall respected their choice but also made them fully aware of the risks.

Changning City, one of the most important fortress cities in Jiangnan Province, had expanded exponentially in size.

Its former borders had been pushed far out, and towering alloy walls now stretched for over a hundred kilometers on all four sides.

Even a Marquis-level Godfiend flying at full speed would need several minutes to cross the city.

From the platform of a towering building in the city center, the view was incredibly vast.

Li Wen stood leaning against the railing, looking down below.

The city below was still bustling. Newly arrived residents were being settled in, engineering corps reinforced defensive nodes, and transport vehicles shuttled back and forth ceaselessly, laying an ever-stronger foundation for the massive fortress.

However, Li Wen's brow furrowed slightly.

"It's been nine days… The Demon Race actually didn't launch a large-scale raid during the migration. That's a bit strange," he muttered to himself, his voice tinged with a persistent doubt.

This doubt was not his alone.

The Godfiends guarding the major fortress cities had also mentioned it frequently on their communication channels.

The migration was the moment when humanity's defensive lines were at their most vulnerable and dispersed.

If the Demon Race had struck with all their might, even if they couldn't have stopped the migration completely, they would have undoubtedly caused immense chaos and casualties, dealing a heavy blow to morale.

Yet the enemy held their forces back, allowing humanity to complete this crucial strategic withdrawal.

This unusual tranquility, instead, felt like a great stone weighing on their hearts, heralding the suffocating pressure that precedes a storm.

Although he was puzzled, Li Wen knew that this had at least bought humanity precious time to catch its breath and prepare its defenses.

He withdrew his gaze from the city and cast it toward the distant skyline, in the direction of the Stargate fortress.

...

At that same moment, at Fire Hall University, on the rear mountain of Enlightenment Peak.

Inside a quaint pavilion, the white-haired headmaster sat across from a woman.

The woman wore a silver robe that seemed to flow like clouds. Her hair was tied in a simple bun, secured by a single Starlight Stone Hairpin.

Her face was as calm as still water, showing no trace of age. Only her deep eyes, which seemed to hold a flowing Star River within them, carried a tranquility that saw through all things.

She was none other than another of humanity's pillar Venerables—Xingxuan Venerable.

"I just received an urgent message from Jiang Hong," the headmaster said, lifting his teacup and gently setting it back down with a soft click against the stone table.

"Wujing Demon Saint has successfully refined that item. The situation has changed. I'm afraid they won't stick to the schedule and wait for tomorrow. It's highly likely they'll make their move tonight."

Xingxuan Venerable unconsciously traced the patterns on the stone table with her fingertips, letting out a nearly inaudible sigh.

"In the end, we're still too short on time. Phase Two of the Return to Ruins Plan was just completed, and many of our defenses have yet to reach their optimal state."

"Given the circumstances, what we've achieved is already remarkable," the headmaster said in a steady voice.

"At least we've completed the most critical population transfer. Now, we'll just have to deal with whatever comes our way. Only by concentrating our forces and holding the fortresses can we create an opportunity to counterattack."

Changing the subject, he asked, "By the way, have the reinforcements from Red Flame Star, Ice Soul Star, and Cangwu Star arrived?"

"According to the latest intel, they should be arriving soon," Xingxuan Venerable replied with a slight nod.

"However, their home worlds are also under great pressure from the Demon Race, so they have limited forces to spare. The Mercenary Alliance, led by the King of the Nine Netherworld, brings four Kings and twenty Marquises; the Galaxy Bank, led by Yan Dan King, also four Kings and twenty Marquises; and the Virtual Cosmos company has sent Myriad Phenomena King with three other Kings, along with eighteen Marquises."

Hearing this, a hint of relief appeared in the headmaster's eyes:

"Although the Four Emperors of the Demon Race fight amongst themselves, they are united in containing the expansion of the Human Race's power.

They will certainly move to tie down the other three star systems, so securing the support of twelve Kings and fifty-eight Marquises—especially with top-tier Kings like the King of the Nine Netherworld, Yan Dan King, and Myriad Phenomena King coming in person—is a true godsend.

It's also because those Four Emperors are wary of each other and can't truly join forces. Otherwise, our situation would be at least ten times more difficult than it is now."