Chapter 35: Summons
The city of Kede County was also a city capable of housing a population of several hundred thousand, covering a vast area. Due to the terrain, combined with the deliberate destruction by the Baruch Kingdom's forces, the Radiant Church could at most attack the south and east gates of Kede County City. The north gate was left wide open, with no need to worry about enemies attacking from that direction.
Just as dawn was breaking, many soldiers went to relieve the night watch. Normally, there would be fewer soldiers outside in the early morning, but this group of soldiers on relief was astonished to find... there were a lot of people outside, and the night watch soldiers seemed not at all tired, but rather extremely excited.
"Brother, time for relief. What are you all talking about?"
Many soldiers ran to their respective posts to take over.
"A dragon, a dragon! A dragon without wings, but it can fly—a Saint-level dragon... wow, it's huge, like a small mountain," the night watch soldier said excitedly.
"What dragon?" The soldier on relief was startled.
The night watch soldier eagerly explained, "Last night, under the clear moon and bright sky, that dragon just flew in... There were many soldiers waiting here to move supplies. Look, they're still moving them. That giant iron box was delivered by the dragon."
The soldier on relief looked into the distance.
Seeing the giant iron box, a full fifty meters long, he gasped. Could humans move such a massive iron box? Perhaps it really was delivered by a dragon.
A large number of soldiers were busy hauling bulging bags out of the iron box.
...
The news of the dragon spread quickly from these soldiers, which instead boosted the morale of the entire Kede County City army. With a dragon on their side, and a Saint-level flying dragon at that, they were sure to achieve final victory this time.
On the opposite side of Kede County City.
The Liuyan River was considered a fairly large river. Although it didn't rank among the top three rivers in the Chaos Territory, it was still fifty to sixty meters wide. This gave both the Radiant Church and the Dark Church a headache.
The massive bridge, built at enormous expense, had been destroyed by the Baruch Kingdom.
Building it was hard, but destroying it was easy.
The Radiant Church's Red Cardinal 'Gilmore' and the Dark Church's Black Robe Cardinal 'Weisport' stared at the vast Liuyan River, frowning. Building a pontoon bridge was easy. But when would an army of over a million get across?
Moreover, some siege equipment was extremely large—could it be transported over a pontoon bridge?
"Hurry up and build plenty of pontoon bridges to get the soldiers across," Gilmore urged with a frown.
"What about the large siege equipment?" a subordinate asked.
The siege equipment, like the giant 'Siege Cloud Towers,' was dozens of meters wide. With such a large volume and immense weight, how could it be moved across? Building a large bridge would require a very long time for the stone and mud to set.
There wasn't enough time.
"When the time comes, we'll just use magic to freeze the river," Gilmore said with a frown.
It was now the hottest time of the year, August or September, and this was a large river. To freeze the river enough to move the Siege Cloud Towers and other giant siege equipment across would require at least a ninth-level Archmage.
The Radiant Church and the Dark Church were on opposing sides.
As if competing, strong warriors carried trimmed giant wooden stakes. With a powerful leap from the riverbank, they hoisted the stakes dozens of meters into the air and then drove them heavily into the river.
"Boom!"
The thick, dozens-of-meters-long wooden stakes were driven straight into the riverbed. These warriors were elites, at least seventh-level warriors. Giant stakes were also driven into both banks, and pontoon bridges were quickly erected, tied to the stakes on the sides.
"Boom!" A terrifying boulder weighing hundreds of thousands of jin was lifted by a powerful warrior, who then hurled it with force.
There were three such powerful warriors, constantly moving these terrifying boulders.
After all, in such a river, ordinary boulders would be swept away by the current.
When this boulder crashed into the river, the entire Liuyan River surged and churned. The three powerful warriors threw dozens of such boulders in succession, then used their sword energy to cut the surfaces flat. Thus, three 'stone bridges' were formed.
However, jumping from one boulder to the next required a leap of three or four meters. For ordinary soldiers, a jump of three or four meters wasn't difficult.
******
Inside Kede County City, constant modifications were being made, and various weapons were being prepared. The Radiant Church and the Dark Church, on the other hand, were figuring out ways to get their million-strong army across the Liuyan River. War was about to erupt in the Chaos Territory.
However...
At the O'Brien Empire's Wushan Mountain.
"Whoosh!"
The War God 'O'Brien' suddenly appeared at the entrance of a cave. Standing there like a spear, his aura was sharp and fierce. His fiery red hair was loose, fluttering in the wind. A smile appeared on the War God's face.
It had been a long time since he had come out from underground.
Suddenly, a beam of light shot over—it was Faen.
"Teacher," Faen said respectfully, standing before the War God 'O'Brien.' As soon as the War God emerged from seclusion, he had sent a telepathic message to Faen.
The War God glanced at his disciple. "Faen, focus on your training for a while, and also make preparations..." The War God's voice was ethereal. Faen's eyes lit up as he looked at his teacher. "Teacher, do you mean...?"
"Yes, it should be starting again. Because the one from the Dark Forest has summoned me to his place," the War God 'O'Brien' said. This statement made Faen's heart tremble.
Faen knew that the divine-level expert of the Dark Forest usually didn't meddle in affairs. For him to summon the War God now probably meant... discussing the opening of the Necropolis of the Gods.
Then, the War God 'O'Brien' transformed into a fiery red streak of light, almost instantly tearing across the sky and disappearing into the eastern horizon. His speed was terrifying, far surpassing Linley and the others.
...
At the peak of a high mountain in the Magical Beast Mountain Range.
A seemingly enchanting young man in a dark gold robe stood atop the mountain peak, gazing eastward. A vertical scar-like mark was on his forehead. But those who knew him understood... this was not a scar, but the most fearsome weapon of this ruler of the Magical Beast Mountain Range.
The Ruler of the Magical Beast Mountain Range—Dilin!
"Hmph, that old fellow," Dilin muttered, looking east. He too had received the summons from the one in the Dark Forest. Although he disliked the one in the Dark Forest, the most comfortable existence on the Yulan continent was that old man!
"Swish."
Dilin's body flickered, and a dark golden light flashed on the eastern horizon before vanishing. His speed... seemed even more astonishing than the War God 'O'Brien's.
...
Above the clouds over the Yulan Empire's imperial capital.
Silver hair flowing, a mask emitting a green glow on his face, and wearing a moon-white robe, he seemed like an angel or spirit not of this world. Judging by his figure... he appeared rather slender, almost somewhat feminine.
The most senior divine-level expert among humans on the Yulan continent, the pillar of the Yulan Empire—the High Priest!
"It's starting?" The High Priest looked toward the northeast. The green-glowing mask made his expression unreadable. "I wonder how many will die this time." The High Priest sighed, and then the wind stirred around him.
When the wind stopped, the High Priest had vanished.
...
A refined entertainment venue in the Luoao Empire.
"Come on, give me a kiss." Still in his loose robe, with a lazy smile, Hissey was holding a beautiful woman, drinking and playing around. But just as he was having fun, his expression froze. "You go out first." Hissey waved his hand.
The woman looked puzzled.
"I said, get out." Hissey frowned. The faint aura he released made the woman's heart tremble, and she immediately obeyed and left.
Hissey frowned, muttering in frustration, "The Dark Forest... Milord, someone as great as you shouldn't bother with a nobody like me, right? I've only just stepped into the divine realm, and now I have to go with you."
Despite his frustration, Hissey didn't dare to resist.
Over five thousand years of life had given Hissey a very clear understanding of the background of the Yulan continent.
A black shadow flickered, and Hissey vanished as if teleporting. If Beibe or Wusennuo saw this, they would marvel—to perform the 'Shadow Transformation Technique' to this level was truly terrifying.
******
Above the Dark Forest, four divine-level experts flew side by side. There was the War God 'O'Brien,' with his explosive aura and resolute gaze; the serene and natural High Priest; the cold and enchanting 'Dilin'; and the lazy, grimacing Hissey, keeping his distance.
"Hissey, why the long face? You should be happy to have reached the divine realm," the High Priest's gentle voice rang out.
Hissey forced a smile. "Lady Catherine, I've only just stepped into the divine realm. When danger comes later, Lady Catherine, please lend a hand. Otherwise, if I lose my life, it'll be terrible."
"Lose your life?" The War God's clanging voice sounded, his gaze like lightning as he looked at Hissey. "You stepped into the divine realm, and your cultivation is focused on the path of stealth and escape within the Dark Laws, isn't it? Among us, your escape skills are probably the greatest."
Hissey could only force a dry laugh.
The ruler of the Magical Beast Mountain Range, 'Dilin,' remained silent as he flew.
"Dilin," the High Priest looked at him, his voice still warm and kind. "Congratulations on escaping from the Gebados Planar Prison. I must say, your luck is truly remarkable."
Dilin glanced at the High Priest. "Catherine, my luck can't compare to yours."
Just as they were talking—
"Alright, there will be plenty of time for idle chat later. Hurry up and come over." A hoarse, aged voice suddenly rang in the ears of the four divine-level experts. They immediately accelerated, turning into four streaks of light as they plunged into the depths of the Dark Forest.
...
Across the entire Yulan continent, the vast majority of Saint-level experts, such as Linley and Desri, had no idea that the five divine-level experts were gathering in the Dark Forest. Linley had already arrived at Kede County City; this battle was far too important.
But shortly after Linley arrived in Kede County City—
"Lord Linley." Barker suddenly ran over.
"What is it, Barker?" Linley smiled at Barker. Barker quickly said, "Linley, come with me and take a look. Someone just told me about something happening in the magic crystal mine. I went to check it out and discovered something shocking."
"Oh?" Linley was curious. "Let's go, take a look."
Linley immediately followed Barker, flying rapidly toward the magic crystal mine. One of the mine shafts had already been sealed off, with no one allowed to enter. When Barker and Linley arrived, the soldiers on guard immediately moved aside.
"It's in here," Barker said, leading Linley.
They followed the mine shaft into the dim underground. Torches were lit in the shaft. Barker explained, "Someone told me that when they dug from above to the core of the vein, they found magic crystals of terrifying quality. They surpassed what is traditionally called 'top-grade magic crystals,' but they were also terrifyingly hard. So I came."
Linley immediately extended his spiritual energy.
Linley suddenly noticed... the end of this mine shaft was exactly the core position of the entire oval-shaped vein. That is, the very center.
"You said the magic crystals are of terrifying quality?" Linley asked, puzzled.
"Yes, from what I can see, the quality of those magic crystals can compare to seventh-level magical beast cores. The innermost ones can even compare to eighth-level cores, and a very few can compare to ninth-level magical beast cores," Barker marveled.
Linley was shocked.
"Linley, do you know what the very core of this vein is?" Barker asked.
Linley shook his head. When he had extended his spiritual energy just now, he had only sensed dense magic crystals at the very center; he couldn't detect anything else.
"We're here." Barker pointed ahead.
Both sides of the mine shaft were lined with translucent magic crystals, containing terrifying amounts of energy. Any single piece held more energy than a seventh-level magical beast core. Linley looked ahead—at the spot Barker was pointing to. It was a door.
This door emitted a strange spiritual fluctuation.
Yet when Linley had scanned with his spiritual energy earlier, he hadn't detected this door at all.