Chapter 25: Departure (End of Volume 7)
At the border of the Hertz Kingdom, over eight hundred thousand troops had gathered. On a vast, desolate expanse of land, the military camps stretched like mountain ranges, endless to the eye, arranged in orderly rows and columns.
In front of the camps lay an empty, uninhabited zone.
"Hey, Uncle Rand, if the magical beast army attacks, can we hold them off?" whispered a young man of about sixteen or seventeen, clad in armor.
Beside him, a burly man with a thick beard pulled a small flask from his bosom, took a light sip, and laughed heartily. "Don't worry. This time, not only have the elite forces of the Hertz Kingdom come, but the Radiant Church has also sent the Sacred Knight Order, along with many great mages... You can rest easy. The spells of the great mages are very powerful."
"Yeah." The young man was on the battlefield for the first time, and hearing the veteran's words, he felt a bit more at ease.
But the burly man sighed inwardly, for he had truly witnessed the ferocity of magical beasts. When tens of thousands of them charged, human resistance was just a matter of filling the gaps with lives.
"Roar!"
Suddenly, a low sound came from a place far, far away.
"Uncle Rand, I think I heard something?" the young man said nervously.
"It's nothing." Rand replied carelessly, but then he too widened his eyes and looked southward. At the edge of the vast, desolate land, tiny specks suddenly appeared, densely packed.
"Magical beasts. A horde of magical beasts!"
A shrill cry rang out from another part of the camp, and instantly the entire camp sprang into action. From the highest-ranking officers to the lowest soldiers, everyone went on alert.
In truth, these eight hundred thousand troops were always ready for battle.
"So many!" Many human soldiers gasped at the sight of the distant beasts. In the distance, rows of bloodthirsty Iron-Horned Bulls, their muscles bulging, charged rapidly toward the humans.
There were over ten thousand Iron-Horned Bulls.
"Boom, boom, boom!" The Iron-Horned Bulls thundered forward, shaking the entire earth. Each bull's eyes were bloodshot, and flames burst from their bodies. At a glance, it looked like a sea of fire.
The earth trembled; the sea of fire was boundless.
"Swish! Swish! Swish!"
Suddenly, countless javelins of emerald green, almost transparent, appeared in the sky. A rain of javelins shot toward the herd of Iron-Horned Bulls.
"It's the great mages!" Many human soldiers rejoiced in their hearts.
"Thud!" Each javelin carried astonishing power. As a branch of water magic, ice magic was most effective against fire-type magical beasts.
Javelins of ice either pierced the ground or stabbed into the bodies of the Iron-Horned Bulls. "Thud!" Some ice javelins directly penetrated the bulls' internal organs. The bulls roared, ran a few steps, and then crashed to the ground.
One by one, the Iron-Horned Bulls fell, but the vast majority kept charging. Even minor injuries only made them more frenzied.
Blood instantly stained the earth red.
"Ooo—" The Iron-Horned Bulls bellowed wildly.
"Archers, ready—loose!" the officers shouted loudly.
Instantly, countless arrows arced into the sky, then descended in a dense, sky-filling rain.
Sharp arrows fell from high above, striking the Iron-Horned Bulls. But the bulls' bulging, knotted muscles easily deflected the arrows.
The tactics used against human armies were useless against the Iron-Horned Bulls.
"Heavy spearmen, form ranks!"
A group of burly warriors in thick, heavy armor stepped forward, each wielding a steel longspear. They arranged themselves in formation and stood still, awaiting the Iron-Horned Bulls' assault.
"Roar!" The Iron-Horned Bulls charged with red eyes.
Countless steel longspears met them. The bulls lowered their heads, bellowing as they surged forward like a bursting dam, slamming violently into the spears.
"Thud!" The Iron-Horned Bulls were impaled by the steel spears.
To serve as a heavy spearman required at least a Level 3 warrior. With each warrior supporting the others in a staggered formation, they pooled their strength.
The first wave of Iron-Horned Bulls failed to break through the defensive line, but those behind still charged desperately.
The battle between the magical beast army and the human army was brutal. The beast army brought not only Iron-Horned Bulls but also packs of Wind Wolves, the even more terrifying elite Fire Lion clan, as well as Earth Dragons and Swift Raptors...
But the human army was no weaker. Beyond the various standard troop types, powerful mages had yet to truly act. The Radiant Church had dispatched Level 7, Level 8, and even several Level 9 mages, along with an elite Sacred Knight Order... After three days of fierce fighting, the human army was ultimately forced to retreat. In just three days, over three hundred thousand humans had died, and the number of wounded was staggering. The magical beast army also suffered significant losses.
Yet both the magical beast army and the human army tacitly refrained from using Saint-level powerhouses. The Saint-level experts watched from afar but did not intervene.
Hertz City fell into chaos.
After the battle at the border, the human army retreated a hundred miles in one go. They were now very close to Hertz City, and many of its residents began deciding to flee north again.
In Hertz City, at the quiet mansion where Linley lived.
"Yale, we're leaving soon. Hurry, don't waste time," Monroe Dawson scolded. "I estimate the human army won't hold out for many more days. The war will reach Hertz City."
Yale nodded. "I know, Father."
"But Third Bro, he..." Yale was still worried about Linley. Beside him, Reynolds and George were also anxious.
Monroe Dawson frowned. "Fine, go persuade him again. No matter what, we must set out tonight." With that, he turned and left.
Yale, Reynolds, and George exchanged glances.
Finally, the three of them walked toward Linley's quarters. When they reached the back courtyard gate, they saw Linley sitting on a chair by the stone table, quietly staring at the carving knife in his hand.
Seeing this, Yale, Reynolds, and George felt no joy.
To help Linley awaken, they had placed the carving knife and sculptures here before. But Linley had shown no desire to carve. He was recalling the scenes of Grandpa Doehring teaching him to carve.
He remembered the high spirits when Grandpa Doehring first taught him the Flat Blade style. Back then, Grandpa Doehring had the bearing of a grandmaster.
"Third Bro." Yale walked straight over.
Linley looked up, forced a faint smile, but said nothing.
"Third Bro, the magical beast army has broken through the border. The human army has retreated a hundred miles. It's only a matter of time before Hertz City falls. We have to go," Yale said seriously.
"Go?" Linley paused. "Oh, I see."
Seeing Linley like this, the hot-tempered Reynolds grabbed Linley by the collar, stared into his eyes, and roared, "Third Bro, what's wrong with you? Tell me! How did you become like this? I, Reynolds, used to admire you the most. I'd brag about you to everyone. But now, look at you! What have you become?"
"Admire me?" Linley said mockingly. "Admire what?"
"I heard from Yale, the big bro. You had a grudge against that Clayde, and you dared to go kill him without a second thought. You took responsibility for your actions. As your brother, I admired you for that. But now? You killed Clayde and his men, and you killed the Radiant Church's special executors. Isn't that something to be proud of? How did you become like this?" Reynolds fumed.
Beside him, George suddenly frowned.
"Third Bro." George suddenly shouted at Linley.
Reynolds and Yale looked at George in confusion, and Linley also turned to him.
"Third Bro, why did you kill those six special executors?" George demanded. He suddenly realized... even if Linley had killed Clayde, the Church's special executors wouldn't have needed to kill Linley for that. After all, Clayde was no longer king.
"They wanted to kill me," Linley said darkly.
"Why did they want to kill you?" George felt he was touching on the reason for Linley's despair.
"Because the one who caused my mother's death was the Radiant Church," Linley said flatly.
Yale and Reynolds were startled, but a flash of insight struck George, and he roared, "The Radiant Church caused your mother's death, but Third Bro, why don't you take revenge? Are you afraid?"
"Take revenge?"
Those three words struck Linley like lightning.
"Yes, it's the Radiant Church." Linley's previously dull eyes began to brighten.
"If the Radiant Church hadn't always sought pure souls to offer to the Radiant Lord, Clayde wouldn't have sent my mother to the Church, leading to her death."
"If my mother hadn't died, my father wouldn't have died either."
"If my parents were still alive, how could I have gone for revenge? And how would Grandpa Doehring have died? He died helping me deal with those six special executors."
Hatred surged in Linley's heart.
"It's all the Radiant Church's fault! Radiant, radiant, haha! The Radiant Church calls itself radiant? If it were radiant, why would it kill people with pure souls and sacrifice them to the Radiant Lord?" Linley's heart burned with resentment.
The Radiant Church's methods were too vile.
This vile practice had set off a chain of tragedies, and he was one of the victims.
"Boss." Bebe, seeing Linley's expression turn fierce, worried he might act rashly and sent a mental message, "Boss, Grandpa Doehring told you before he left to live well."
Linley's heart trembled. He could never forget Grandpa Doehring's final words as his soul scattered.
"Bebe, don't worry. I won't be reckless again. I'll endure... My enemy is the Radiant Church, not any single person. I know my limits." Linley's gaze grew resolute once more.
Seeing the change in Linley's expression and eyes, Yale, Reynolds, and George were overjoyed.
In recent days, Linley had always looked lost and dejected, never with such a firm, determined gaze.
"Yale, Second Bro, Fourth Bro, I've decided to leave first," Linley said, making a quick decision.
"Third Bro, you..." The three were shocked.
"Don't worry, I'm fine." Linley smiled and gave each of his brothers a punch on the chest. Yale and the others laughed, relieved to see him like this.
Dressed in warrior gear, carrying the Black Heavy Sword on his back, with Bebe perched on his shoulder, Linley set off alone.
Leaving the chaotic Hertz City, Linley headed east. Half a day later, he reached the edge of the Magical Beast Mountain Range. Gazing at the boundless expanse of mountains, a smile spread across his face.
"Radiant Church, just wait. One day, I'll tear you out, roots and all." Linley's eyes were unwavering.
Having lost his father, his mother, and Grandpa Doehring, Linley now had to rely only on himself.
"Boss, are we crossing the Magical Beast Mountain Range?" Bebe asked curiously.
Linley shook his head with a smile. "No. First, we'll go to the core of the mountain range, then head north along the interior until we reach the end."
"That's over ten thousand miles!" Bebe was shocked. "And the core area is full of powerful magical beasts." He was stunned that Linley intended to travel over ten thousand miles through the mountain range.
"If not like this, how can I train? I haven't even grasped the true method of using the heavy sword. Without mastering the heavy sword, how can I face the Radiant Church?"
Linley took a step forward and entered the Magical Beast Mountain Range, beginning the longest and most arduous training journey of his life...
(Two chapters for today. Starting tomorrow, Volume 8 will begin. From Volume 8 onward, Linley's strength and influence will truly grow...)