Chapter 194: Fate's hands plague the battlefield
On the main battlefield, the seas shook mightily as the four Nations continued their all-out war within their two alliances. Four additional Mortal Lords, one from each nation, had since appeared. Whether in the skies, on the sea's surface, along the edges of the main island, or further down beneath the waters, explosions and mighty attacks erupted nonstop, leaving bloody trails everywhere.
At some point, a large army of Aethalgard forces attempted an ambush, but things clearly didn't go as planned. More than half of what should have been their original force never arrived. Later, they would learn the three-faction battle involving Elton's group was the cause.
After fending off the Daemonorc armies earlier, the Umankans swiftly repelled the sneak attack by the Aethalgard forces. What's more, that detachment did not even have a Mortal Lord among their ranks, unlike the Umankans. One of the Umankan Mortal Lords had appeared, dealt a few devastating blows, and then withdrawn to guard the Umankan city while the Governor and the other Mortal Lord remained at the frontlines.
Soon after, another Aethalgard Mortal Lord arrived but refrained from taking much action, grim-faced as he tried to reorganize the remnants of his army. The absence of the 3rd Imperial Minister left him puzzled and unsettled.
From the way the war escalated so drastically, it seemed likely a temporary truce would follow unless one nation decided to throw everything away in order to inflict true damage on the others.
Back inside a giant, dirty makeshift mansion in the Daemonorc capital, corpses of guards and maidservants littered the halls. Portions of the building were destroyed, and in one large room, three unconscious women lay barely clothed on the floor—one Umankan, one Daemonorc, and one from a humanoid sea race.
On the bed sat the Daemonorc Mortal Lord who had suffered Elton's sword strike. Having vented his fear and frustration through intercourse with one of the Daemonorc women, his injuries only worsened through recklessness. Huffing and trembling, he spat blood as his mind once again replayed the memory of what had happened around noon.
"That woman… that goddess!! Ugh! I can't unsee it! To mount that goddess with the divine eyes of heaven—such a beautiful sight… Oh no, I'm getting turned on again—'COUGH! COUGH!' Damnit!!! The bastards that did this to me!! That large blue sword-wielding boy!! WHAT DID HE DO TO ME?! My cultivation is fading… UGH! I can't control myself because of that goddess! What should I do?!"
He staggered off the bed, pacing, coughing, and bleeding. His member was fully erect and filthy as his injuries tore open again under his excitement.
"Get up, you Orca-bitch! I need you again!" he snarled, dragging the Daemonorc woman back toward him.
But while he was mounting her, the Umankan woman on the floor quietly stirred. Her eyes were soulless, her expression hollow. Only she knew the torment she had endured since being reduced to nothing but a slave. Moving silently, she picked up a discarded Gold Star-ranked dagger and crept behind the Mortal Lord.
Perhaps it was his weakness from terrible injuries. Perhaps it was the sealed, dissipating cultivation. Perhaps it was his mind consumed by lust, imagining the goddess with divine eyes. Maybe all three—but he failed to notice the doom at his back.
With her full weight behind the strike, she drove the dagger clean through his neck. His body convulsed, his eyes wide with disbelief. Even with his still-powerful physique, he only managed to twist and backhand her away while clutching at his throat, blood spraying as his arteries collapsed. He dropped to his knees, choking in fury.
"Cough—damnit!!!" he rasped, kneeling in agony.
The Umankan woman laughed bitterly, her madness erupting. "Ha… haha… hahahahaha! Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would act on this burning vengeance! I accepted my death long ago, but well, well—how the mighty have fallen… HAHAHAHA!"
Snatching up a discarded Gold Star sword, she slashed and stabbed him again and again, relentless. And then—his seed, forcefully planted in her earlier, began to react within her body. It carried remnants of his lost cultivation, absorbed as a tonic. Her body glowed, power surging. Her crippled cultivation roared back—Silver tier 5, then breaking past Gold tier 1 in an instant.
Drunk on new strength, she seized his wounded member and castrated him. His face went pale as his very essence collapsed. Like a savage beast, she roasted the flesh with magic before devouring it. Power flooded her veins, her body shifting into a larger Umankan form with faint Daemonorc traits. Her cultivation skyrocketed to Gold tier 3, then Gold tier 4 until she stood at its peak with undigested energy still swirling.
She slaughtered the two Daemonorc women without hesitation, sparing only the half-conscious Sea-race woman. Then, on the brink of breaking into Golden Lord, she felt a faint connection—a distant image of a man with a great blue sword flashed in her mind.
"Thank you, sir, for giving me the chance to exact vengeance before seeking death…" she whispered, bowing before leaving the mansion with killing intent burning.
"Hoooh… how interesting! Fate truly weaves strange threads. Oh little Umankan woman with the aura of death—why stop at vengeance and death? Shouldn't you also repay this debt? You see, this boy has enemies that need… taking care of."
The arrogant voice resounded—Elton's inner voice, dripping with superiority.
The woman paused, then gave a fierce smile. "I'm all ears. But in my current state, do you really expect me to do much for an outsider?"
"Why, of course! This almighty self can see it through! My time is short, but let me impart to you some methods… Hahahaha!"
And just like that, the seed of another servant was sown. Later, news spread of massacres and a rebellion erupting from Daemonorc territory.
The 3rd Imperial Minister stood within the waters, his expression grim. His body carried several wounds—not enough to slow him, but proof of the battle's ferocity. He had expected trouble, but these people constantly surpassed his expectations, driving him to the brink of wishing to flee. Yet he knew he couldn't.
Thirty feet across stood the leader of the 3rd faction and his deputy, both Golden Lords, the leader half a step into Mortal Shedding. A troublesome duo, but under normal circumstances he could have worn them down.
Instead, his eyes kept straying to the young man hovering atop the massive Blue Starry Sword, surrounded by eight summoned branches. Daoist Blue Heavens Sword…
This boy was terrifying. His ki and magic hadn't reached Mortal Shedding quality, yet his strength felt nearly equal to an actual Mortal Lord. One mistake, and the Minister's instincts screamed of devastating consequences.
What disturbed him further—the two factions opposing Shayleaf's forces were still at stalemate despite joining hands.
"What's this? You falter! Aren't you a Mortal Lord? Why aren't you going all out?!" Elton roared, amplifying his Celestial sense with lightning energy so his voice boomed across the sea. The sound crashed into minds and hearts alike, planting doubt in the Minister's own troops.
The Minister ground his teeth, suppressing fury. These three—himself against Elton and the two Golden Lords—were still injured, still struggling. He would endure, keep pressing.
"Shut your mouth and accept death!" he bellowed, and the clash resumed.
On the Tree Island, Christy watched with sharp eyes while Tongsheng drew back her bow, compressing deadly magic into a single arrow. Its aura grew heavier by the moment.
"That Mortal Lord Fishman is cautious…" Shayleaf pouted.
"It won't matter. He's within our range again—and closer. We finish this now. Ah… but reinforcements are coming." Christy's eyes narrowed, grim. "We have to act immediately."
"Understood, Mistress Christy." Tongsheng steadied her aim, suppressing her killing intent to avoid detection.
"Shayleaf, have them pull back and defend. Once Gege is secured, we retreat."
As another furious clash erupted, the Minister's vortex of water smashed Elton and the 3rd faction leader backward. The Minister lunged, hand glowing with Mortal Lord power, aiming to crush the deputy.
But then—
A suffocating aura arrow ripped into reality from the void, Christy's Kokon Tengan guiding it straight to his heart. His barrier barely flared before the arrow shattered it and tore into his chest, blasting him back with a thunderous boom.
Coughing blood, his vision warped—an illusion seized his mind. A golden-haired, caramel-skinned woman with divine eyes stared into his soul. Dread consumed him. He shattered the vision with all his might—only to be struck by a devastating sword slash.
—Eternal Dawn Sealing Strike—