Chapter 00035: High Walls and Deep Trenches
# High Walls and Deep Trenches
Chapter 35
Novel: After the Immortals Disappeared
Chapter 35: High Walls and Deep Trenches
"Did I say it was man-made?" Sun Fuping snorted.
"Seamless and sturdy, built during wartime, and able to withstand the trampling of thousands of soldiers and siege engines—only divine powers could achieve such a feat."
This bridge was formed by divine powers? Everyone looked down at the road beneath their feet, feeling a deep sense of awe.
"There are many earth-based divine techniques, and this might be a variation of the Mountain-Moving Art, executed by at least fifty mages working together," Sun Fuping said, kicking the bridge surface, which produced a metallic clang.
"Hmm, the cost must have been significant."
The quality was also excellent, as it had remained intact for over a century.
Situ Han whispered, "I thought divine powers were ineffective during wartime?"
Before anyone else could respond, He Lingchuan shushed him.
"Half-baked knowledge! Divine powers are only less effective against armies, but no one said they can't be used in war. What's wrong with paving roads or building bridges?"
He stroked his chin thoughtfully.
"So, the bridge in front of Panlong City's south gate must have been destroyed and rebuilt countless times, right? The reason this one still stands is probably because the allied forces achieved final victory?"
"Most likely," Sun Fuping agreed.
"Panlong City needs this bridge to connect with the south during peacetime, but when war comes, it's the first thing they destroy to block the enemy."
Nian Songyu kicked a watermelon-sized rock into the deep trench below.
It took a while before they heard the echoing sound of it hitting the bottom.
"It's deep. If we fell, we probably wouldn't survive," he said, peering over the edge.
"This must have been the moat. I can see traces of excavation at the bottom, so it must have been deepened."
Panlong City was already situated at a natural chasm, and they had further fortified the moat in front of the gate, making the water deeper and swifter.
This made it even harder for enemies to climb up to the Chipa Plateau.
At the very least, armies couldn't make it up.
For thirty-two years, Panlong City had put a lot of effort into its defenses.
A commotion broke out behind them.
Ever since they stepped onto the bridge, the possessed puppets had been struggling more violently, trying to run back and even biting people.
One guard's left hand was bleeding profusely.
The consequence of this was even harsher suppression.
In the end, they were practically carried across the bridge.
The group finally arrived at the main south gate of the ancient Panlong City.
To be honest, the outer walls of this legendary city weren't as grand as He Lingchuan had imagined.
They were only five zhang (about 15 meters) high, cylindrical in shape, and not particularly smooth.
The walls were patched with bricks of different colors, clearly having been repaired countless times.
The wasteland was too dry for moss to grow at the base of the walls, but like the bridge, the walls were covered in stains that even a century of wind and sand hadn't erased.
These were the marks of war.
The walls were dotted with small holes, slightly larger than a pomelo, too small for a person to crawl through.
He Lingchuan knew at a glance that there were hidden passages and chambers inside the walls for soldiers.
These holes allowed for ventilation, observation of the enemy, and the launching of arrows or spears to stab at climbing foes.
But these were standard features of any city wall.
Panlong City's outer walls were dull and unremarkable.
However, when they looked up, they saw the walls' more menacing side—
The battlements were studded with black wooden spikes of varying lengths, jagged and pointing in all directions.
Zeng Feixiong gasped, "Iron fir wood, crocodile-tooth spikes!"
He had been involved in the defense of Heishui City, a crucial border town that served as the vanguard of the Yuan Kingdom against the west.
Of course, its walls were equipped with numerous defensive structures.
However, the use of crocodile-tooth spikes on city gates had been abandoned for nearly a century.
This was the first time he had seen them.
Siege warfare often required scaling ladders to get ground troops onto the enemy's walls.
But with crocodile-tooth spikes in place, the ladders could only rest on the spikes, forcing soldiers to climb over them before they could jump onto the battlements.
Needless to say, these "crocodile teeth" were smooth and rounded, often greased before battle to make them slippery and impossible to stand on.
If that wasn't enough, the defenders would toss a few torches onto the spikes to roast the climbing soldiers.
The iron fir wood used to make the spikes was fire-resistant, but humans were not.
Describing these walls as "armed to the teeth" seemed entirely appropriate.
Situ Han was also wide-eyed, muttering, "So... so this is how it was!"
"Let's go in," Sun Fuping said, leading the group through the outer walls.
The outermost iron fir wood gates were half-open, with one gate lying on the ground, clearly having been roughly treated in the past.
The marks of blades, axes, and fire were still visible on the gates.
Even iron fir wood, harder than steel, was scarred and battered.
He Lingchuan felt he had already seen enough to be impressed.
But as they passed through the gates, he couldn't help but gasp in awe.
Behind the outer walls was a two-hundred-zhang (about 600 meters) open space, and then...
A second, even higher wall!
He Chunhua couldn't help but exclaim, "I've never seen such a high barbican before."
The second wall was five zhang taller than the outer wall! And it had all the same defensive structures as the first.
He Lingchuan even spotted a few catapults on the city gate.
Sun Fuping shook his head.
"Who said this was a barbican?"
As the group passed through the second gate and looked ahead, they were struck speechless.
They saw a third wall!
This wall was another five zhang taller than the second, reaching a height of fifteen zhang (about 45 meters)!
Three gates, three walls—Panlong City was truly armed to the teeth.
"This is the real barbican!" Situ Han gasped.
"The enemies who made it this far must have been furious."
After overcoming the natural chasm and breaking through two walls, the invaders would have thought they were about to feast on tender flesh, only to find another layer of thick scales beneath.
Facing yet another high wall after all that effort would have drained their morale.
No one would feel good about it.
He Lingchuan thought the people who built this city were quite ruthless.
However, he also noticed scorch marks near the air vents on the third wall, indicating that the allied forces had indeed reached this point during the war.
The brutality of that battle went without saying.
After passing through the third gate, the group finally entered Panlong City.
Before them was a massive square, or open ground, large enough to hold at least two thousand people.
With their group of two hundred standing there, the space still felt vast.
Turning around, they saw a huge relief sculpture of a serpent embedded in the inner wall.
The serpent resembled a snake or python, with detailed scales, but it had horns on its head and whiskers under its jaw, with bulging eyes and a protruding mouth.
He Lingchuan recognized it as the origin of the city's name: Panlong, or Coiled Dragon.
However, this wasn't a true dragon but a jiao, a type of water dragon.
Below the black jiao totem was a long stone altar for offerings.
The nearby offering towers and incense burners were nearly one zhang tall, very imposing, though of course, no incense burned there now.
At the far end of the square was a large pool, now completely dry.
After over a century, it was still intact, with only a few gaps.
Situ Han tapped the edge of the pool.
"What was this pool used for?"
Sun Fuping replied, "Ancient cities on the Panlong Wasteland had a tradition of drinking water and swearing oaths before going to war."
(End of Chapter)