Ch. 721Second Orc War (VII)

As the Orcs besieged Hot Spring Fortress, the Florian Empire awakened Divine Remains beneath the Imperial Capital while Grand Duke Russell and Anselmo confronted the Raven Monarch’s divine artifact. The Thornflower Knight Legion entered a divine kingdom to fight for Russell, leaving the Raven Monarch’s artifact at risk of being destroyed.

  • Volvo summoned Palacios to control the Divine Remains beneath the Imperial Capital, and Palacios accepted the task of wielding their power over life.
  • The Raven Monarch used its divine artifact and Shatterbone’s divine essence to curse Grand Duke Russell, whose condition was recorded by the artifact.
  • Anselmo opened a gemstone coffin containing the remaining divinity of a Great Being, causing its blood to clash with the Raven Monarch’s dead divine kingdom.
  • Grand Duke Russell summoned the Thornflower Knight Legion, which charged into the divine kingdom to accelerate the erosion of the Raven Monarch’s artifact.
  • The Raven Monarch demanded that Shatterbone guide it into the divine kingdom so the Orcs could join the battle before its artifact lost all its divinity.

Ch. 722Second Orc War (VIII)

Orc Emperor Shatterbone learned to wield the orcs’ divine authority and sent armies into the Divine Kingdom, where the Thornflower Knight Legion slaughtered the Rhino Orcs. The Great Being Funi then descended through Shatterbone’s body, and a true Divine Kingdom of storms began converging on the battlefield.

  • The Raven Monarch passed forbidden knowledge to Shatterbone, teaching him how to use the orcs’ divine authority.
  • Rhino Orcs charged into the Divine Kingdom, where the Thornflower Knights destroyed them and absorbed their vitality.
  • Behemoth Orcs and armies from the other Orc Royal Courts entered the Divine Kingdom as Shatterbone continued drawing warriors into the battle.
  • Grand Duke Russell expected the Thornflower Knight Legion to gain divinity from the clash of the dead gods’ Divine Essences, unaware that Funi was also on the battlefield.
  • Funi descended through Shatterbone, transforming the Orc Emperor and forcing every living creature to bow.
  • Funi’s storms swept across the land as Its true Divine Kingdom converged on the mirage above Hot Spring Fortress.

Ch. 723Second Orc War (9)

At Hot Spring Fortress, Storm Funi descended and threatened the defenders until Legendary Mage Lan sealed it with her Annihilation magic, dying after briefly confronting its power. Palacios and the Empire’s legions then attacked Funi and joined the battle, turning the Divine War into a contest over the Great Being’s essence and the Empire’s future.

  • Storm Funi descended at Hot Spring Fortress, driving the orcs into a frenzied assault and leaving Grand Duke Russell overwhelmed by its presence.
  • Lan summoned the Northlands’ power of Annihilation, froze Funi and many orcs, and trapped herself within her own magic.
  • Funi shattered Lan’s seal and attacked her, but Lan unleashed the final power of her Mage Tower before dying in a burst of ice.
  • Palacios arrived from the Imperial Capital with the Divine Remains’ rays and began tearing apart Funi’s Divine Essence.
  • The Solar Corona Legion and Thorn Blossom Legion joined the fight, while the Demon Armor Knights and Count Clayton’s Flamedragon Knights entered the Divine War Battlefield.
  • The Empire’s nobles joined the struggle for Funi’s essence, making the battle a contest that would shape the Empire’s political future.

Ch. 724Second Orc War (10)

Ryan prepared for a possible werewolf offensive as the Silvermoon leaders agreed to worship the Lord of the Moon and Udi ordered sacrifices to secure the deity’s favor. With Emperor Volvo granting Ryan wartime command over Winged Gorge, Ryan traveled there to assess the Wyvern Legion and its commander, Vandy Columbus.

  • Ryan learned that the Empire had sealed the Orcs’ Great Being and sent Extraordinary Legions across the Rainbow Bridge to fight in Hot Spring Province.
  • High Priest Udi persuaded the Silvermoon leaders to return to worshipping the Lord of the Moon, and they agreed to sacrifice werewolves ahead of the full moon.
  • Udi told the werewolf leaders that they would continue fighting humans for their new deity, then ordered every tribe to offer werewolf blood in sacrifice.
  • Scouts informed Viscount Landa that silver-furred werewolves were gathering near Fragrant Mountain Plains, and Ryan urged the fortress to keep investing in its defenses.
  • Emperor Volvo granted Ryan command over Winged Gorge for the duration of the Orc War, and Ryan set out to meet Vandy Columbus, the new Wyvern Legion commander.

Ch. 725The Second Orc War (Part Eleven)

Ryan waited at Winged Gorge as Emperor Volvo stripped Vandy Columbus of his command, then the Werewolves launched their attack on Fragrant Mountain Plains Fortress after a moonlit ritual transformed them into frenzied beasts. The fortress faced a charge by hundreds of thousands of empowered Werewolves, while Werewolf Monarch Aton watched in horror.

  • Ryan confronted Vandy Columbus over keeping the Wyvern Legion at Winged Gorge and pointed out that the order came from the late Columbus III.
  • Emperor Volvo ordered Vandy to return to the Imperial Capital and stripped him of command after reading Ryan's urgent letter.
  • Scouts reported that at least three hundred thousand Werewolves were approaching Fragrant Mountain Plains Fortress without other Orc clans.
  • Werewolf Monarch Aton asked High Priest Udi about the ritual, while Legendary Draco worried it might alter Werewolf bloodlines.
  • As the full moon rose, Udi's ritual transformed the Werewolves, who lost their reason and charged the fortress.
  • Aton watched his transformed people in horror as ancient memories stirred in his blood.

Ch. 726Second Orc War (12)

Lady Moon’s power drove the werewolves into a frenzy and turned the siege of Fragrant Mountain Plains Fortress into a sacrifice of human and werewolf souls. As the fortress fell, Ryan sensed a Great Being and realized his Spirituality Panel was urging him toward godslaying.

  • Lady Moon’s curse awakened in the werewolf bloodlines, and Udi compelled the frenzied werewolves to attack the humans while preparing a ritual for his Great Being.
  • Viscount Landa’s forces used magic, crossbows, and elite troops to defend Fragrant Mountain Plains Fortress, but the Werewolf Army overwhelmed the walls and breached the gates.
  • Earl Clan werewolves infiltrated through shadows, while Draco Clan werewolves battered down the fortress gates at the cost of thousands of lives.
  • Udi gathered the souls of the dead as offerings, and the blood-red moon drove even the Werewolf Monarch and noble werewolves into savagery.
  • The werewolves broke through the fortress defenses and charged into its streets despite the flames, while Ryan sensed a Great Being and embraced his desire to godslay.

Ch. 727Second Orc War (13)

Ryan fought to hold Fragrant Mountain Plains Fortress as the blood moon drove the Werewolves into a mindless frenzy, and the battle left him wary of the god influencing them. At dawn, the Werewolves weakened and regained their reason, while their leaders turned on High Priest Udi.

  • Ryan ordered Ailer and the Dragon Rider Cavalry to attack the Wolf Riders, but Draco's legendary roar grounded the wyverns and left them vulnerable to the Werewolves.
  • Ryan formed the battlefield's flames into a dragon and struck Draco with a blazing greatsword, badly burning him and stopping his advance.
  • Ryan reached Fragrant Mountain Plains Fortress and told Viscount Landa's soldiers to hold out until dawn, as the human army fought through the night and mages repeatedly used their spells and scrolls.
  • Sunlight dispersed the blood-red haze and weakened the Werewolves, allowing human soldiers to counterattack as the Orcs regained their reason.
  • The panicked Werewolf leaders surrounded High Priest Udi, furious over the loss of their control.

Ch. 728Second Orc War (14)

After the battle at the Fragrant Mountain Plains, High Priest Udi tried to command the Werewolves to continue the war, but the clans rejected him and retreated to restore their strength. Ryan learned that the threat had passed and wrote to Count William, who considered Ryan’s request for the Werewolves’ secrets and an alliance.

  • Ryan ordered the Fragrant Mountain Plains Fortress rebuilt while he considered the Werewolves’ strange change in behavior.
  • Draco and other Werewolf leaders attacked Udi after he awakened the wildness in their blood, but the Great Being’s power suppressed them.
  • Werewolf Monarch Aton and the clan leaders refused Udi’s command to continue the war, and the Werewolves retreated across the Snow Plains.
  • Ryan learned the Werewolves had withdrawn and waited as repairs neared completion, while Viscount Landa worried over the battlefield’s enormous death toll.
  • Count William read Ryan’s letter requesting Werewolf secrets and proposing an alliance, then warned his son not to question his decision.

Ch. 729Second Orc War (15)

Ryan learned from Count William that Werewolf savagery was a divine bloodline curse, then sent Ulf to investigate the Werewolves’ loss of control and exploit divisions among them. Ulf befriended the Monka Clan and discovered their savagery had been triggered by The Moon, not the Silvermoon monarch.

  • Count William explained to Ryan that Werewolves’ blood both strengthened them and suppressed a divine curse that could drive them into mindless savagery.
  • Ryan asked Ulf to investigate the Werewolves’ sudden frenzy, suspecting it was connected to the full moon and hoping to use their internal conflict against them.
  • Ulf led his followers to the Monka Clan’s hunting grounds and offered them a Great Horned Deer, earning the trust of Lei and the other Werewolves.
  • Ulf accused the Werewolves of forgetting the danger of savagery and asked whether their monarch had committed another blasphemous act.
  • Lei said the call had come from The Moon and insisted that Silver Moon was not responsible.

Ch. 730Second Orc War (16)

Ray and Ulf’s argument over High Priest Udi’s betrayal helped ignite unrest among the Werewolves, while Ryan tested whether Wolf Spirit’s Blessing could affect them. As the next full moon approached, condemnation of Udi spread into clan conflicts that Aton and the leaders could no longer contain.

  • Ulf condemned the southern Werewolves for allowing Udi to remain High Priest, then took the Great Horned Deer and left with his pack after Ray challenged him.
  • Ray and other Werewolves rallied against Udi, forcing Silver-Moon Monarch Aton to quell the disorder without resolving their anger.
  • Ryan questioned captured Werewolves about the full moon and their transformation, then successfully used Wolf Spirit’s Blessing on one of them and ordered the captives separated for testing.
  • Viscount Landa patrolled the Fragrant Mountain Plains Fortress and urged the Knights to finish its defenses before the next full moon.
  • Werewolf clans used opposition to Udi to exclude rivals and claim hunting grounds, escalating disputes into group battles.
  • Udi, Aton, and the Werewolf leaders realized they could not suppress the growing revolt without killing clansmen or turning against their own followers.

Ch. 731Second Orc War (17)

Ryan tested whether Spirituality Blessing could restrain werewolves’ Wild Berserk Form and discovered that it let Ai control the wild power while preserving reason. He then calmed the berserk werewolves and wondered whether the blessing could restore other divine dependents.

  • Werewolf clans descended into suspicion and infighting while High Priest Udi worried that their civil war would prevent the next attack on the human fortress.
  • At Rhino Horn Mountain, Ryan watched one group of werewolves succumb to Wild Berserk Form and slaughter one another while another group retained its reason.
  • Ai resisted a full transformation and, after howling at the moon, said it could control the power of the wild.
  • Ryan considered whether Spirituality suppressed divinity and linked the effect to his earlier ability to help members of the Andara Royal Family overcome their bloodline curse.
  • Ryan suppressed the berserk werewolves with flames and gave one a Spirituality Blessing, restoring its awareness and prompting the others to calm down.
  • Ryan wondered whether Spirituality Blessing could restore the clarity of gods’ dependents and concluded he would need to investigate further.

Ch. 732Second Orc War (18)

Ryan revealed that werewolves could control the Call of the Wild and urged them to serve the Great Being behind him. After High Priest Udi’s death ended the werewolves’ internal slaughter, Werewolf Monarch Aton faced the question of how to respond to humans’ power over their bloodline curse.

  • Ryan explained that the werewolves could wield their savagery without losing their reasoning and offered them an alternative to serving The Moon.
  • After a night of berserk violence killed tens of thousands, High Priest Udi used divine power to provoke the curse and demand the werewolves submit to his lord.
  • Ai and other werewolves controlled their transformations, charged High Priest Udi, and devoured him despite his divine power.
  • Ai told Werewolf Monarch Aton and the clan leaders that a human noble had taught them to master the Call of the Wild and had sent them back to kill the traitor.
  • Aton recognized that Udi’s death had ended the internal conflict, then called on the werewolves to consider following their ancestors’ example.

Ch. 733Second Orc War (19)

Ryan met the Werewolf Monarch Aton and the clan chiefs to discuss controlling the Call of the Wild, revealing that he could make the Werewolves stronger without letting them lose their reason. He rejected their offers to end the war and trade wealth, then prepared to propose his own terms.

  • Viscount Landa learned that Werewolves had brought Lord Rick’s former slaves to the fortress with a message asking to negotiate with Ryan.
  • Ryan arrived at Fragrant Mountain Plains Fortress and told Viscount Landa that he had made a deal with the Werewolves before riding out to meet them.
  • Ryan confronted Aton and the clan chiefs, explaining that he had helped the Werewolves control the Call of the Wild rather than escape it.
  • Ryan used his Legendary power to intimidate the Werewolves when their chiefs grew angry at his mockery.
  • Aton offered to end the war and trade gold and Magic Crystal Mines, but Ryan rejected the offers and said the Werewolves should hear his terms.

Ch. 734Second Orc War (20)

Ryan negotiated an alliance with the Werewolves, promising to help them control Call of the Wild in exchange for their support in luring the Orc deity to him so he could attempt to slay it. He returned to Frozen Earth Territory after claiming credit for easing the war at Fragrant Mountain Plains Fortress, while Aton and the other Werewolf leaders prepared to receive his blessings.

  • Ryan offered the Werewolves a long-term alliance and demanded that they fight for the Great Being behind him in exchange for help controlling Call of the Wild.
  • Ryan asked Aton and the Werewolves to lure the Orc deity hiding within the Orc Emperor to him, and promised to grant control of Call of the Wild to Aton, the Legendary Werewolves, and up to three thousand Werewolves on the next full moon.
  • Ryan returned to Fragrant Mountain Plains Fortress and told Viscount Landa that the Werewolves would likely stop launching legion-scale assaults, then claimed credit for preventing the war from escalating before the nobles.
  • Ryan left the fortress for Frozen Earth Territory, where he appointed Ulf as an envoy to the Silvermoon Royal Court and planned to receive the Werewolves near Northern Great Wall Fortress.
  • Aton gained control of Call of the Wild without losing his reason, and the Werewolf leaders looked forward to receiving Ryan's blessings a month later.
  • The Divine Kingdom war neared its end as the Empire's Extraordinary Legions secured the advantage, with Grand Duke Russell recognized for his role at Hot Spring Fortress.

Ch. 735Second Orc War (21)

Palacios shattered the Orcs’ Divine War Battlefield and appeared to slay Orc Emperor Shatterbone, but the god escaped in the form of a red fox-man. The battlefield ended with the Orcs’ defeat, while nobles gathered at Hot Spring Fortress to contest wartime authority and influence.

  • Human cavalry used the boiling hot springs of Hot Spring Province to kill pursuing Orcs, while nobles blamed Hildegard Enrique for the province’s destruction.
  • Grand Duke Russell called for military colonies at the Empire’s border passes and greater authority over wartime resources, while Brutus Rodriguez advocated increasing the Empire’s reliance on magic.
  • The Raven Monarch swallowed its clan’s divine artifact, causing the Divine War Battlefield at the heavens’ peak to collapse and leaving Palacios exposed to the god’s power.
  • Palacios used Forbidden Magic to suppress his transformation and prepared to claim the god’s authority as a Demigod.
  • As the battlefield shattered into falling meteors, Shatterbone’s elephant-man form dissolved and revealed the red fox-man hidden inside it.
  • The red fox-man released its soul and escaped past Palacios and the other Legendaries, while the Orcs and extraordinary soldiers fell from the shattered battlefield.

Ch. 736Second Orc War (22)

After the Orcs’ catastrophic defeat, Shatterbone lost the Orc Emperor’s support and was abandoned by the surviving tribes, but Werewolves recruited him to lead a new war against humans. In Frozen Earth Territory, Ryan and Count Pascal discussed the victory and the Empire’s political maneuvering, while Ryan warned that the war was not over.

  • The Orc Monarchs declared the invasion over, and the Behemoth Monarch renounced Shatterbone as Orc Emperor before leading his people away.
  • Shatterbone received a delayed message that his god had lost nearly all His power and needed faith, but the departing Orc tribes and Savi rejected his calls to continue fighting.
  • Werewolves found Shatterbone and invited him east to attack human lands, offering blood and souls for a sacrifice to the great existence.
  • Ryan welcomed Count Pascal to Frozen Earth Territory, where they discussed the Orc defeat, the battlefield cleanup assigned to Grand Duke Russell, and possible political conflict in the Imperial Capital.
  • Ryan told Count Pascal that the war had not ended.

Ch. 737Second Orc War (23)

Ryan recruited Count Pascal to help kill the weakened orc god, and Pascal agreed to use his divine-artifact castle. As the next full moon approached, Shatterbone led Werewolf cavalry against the Northern Great Wall Fortress, where Ryan and his allies awaited them.

  • Ryan told Count Pascal that the orc god had been brought north and invited him to help slay it, promising to handle the consequences.
  • Count Pascal weighed the risks and benefits, then agreed to join Ryan and revealed that Pascal Count Castle could unleash seven god-level attacks.
  • Ryan and Count Pascal planned to strike on the next full moon, while Shatterbone prepared an assault on the Northern Great Wall Fortress.
  • The Werewolf leaders scattered most of their tribes to limit the damage of their approaching frenzy, leaving Werewolf cavalry and expendable fighters on the Snow Plains.
  • Shatterbone blessed the Werewolf cavalry and ordered them to attack the fortress under the full moon.
  • Ryan stood atop the Great Wall beside Count Pascal, King Sela, and King MacReynolds as a legendary Werewolf stood at his side.

Ch. 738Second Orc War (24)

Ryan and his allies used the staged battle to draw out and kill Shatterbone, forcing the weakened Storm Funi to reveal himself. Ryan’s Spirituality Panel consumed the god, and his Legendary Boon finally appeared.

  • Draco led the werewolves into a frenzy, while Ryan and the Stag Attendants charged from the fortress under King MacReynolds’s wind magic.
  • Draco and Ulf approached Shatterbone, and Ulf wounded him with Gram Sword before Higni fatally struck the foxman.
  • Shatterbone called for his god, prompting Count Pascal to unleash Divine Essence and destroy Shatterbone and expose Storm Funi.
  • Count Pascal’s third strike shattered Storm Funi, and Ryan’s Spirituality Panel absorbed the god as the Dragon Spirit cowered nearby.
  • The Spirituality Panel calmed, and Ryan’s Legendary Boon appeared.

Ch. 739Legendary Boon: Taisu and the Spirituality Domain

Ryan became a Legend and awakened the Spirituality Domain, whose first and only rule was Taisu, the Divine Essence of Great Beings. After the godslaying, he considered how his domain could help his followers advance, while the surviving leaders divided their attention between the transformed land and the war that remained unfinished.

  • Ryan entered the Spirituality Domain, understood that it contained Taisu, and realized spirituality could absorb the power that had sustained the gods.
  • Ryan returned to reality and confirmed that less than a minute had passed; he declared that he would leave the divine spoils to Count Pascal and the others.
  • Ryan recognized that his Legendary power and Spirituality Domain could help his followers advance and might one day extend into reality.
  • Ryan saw the Spirituality Panel had gained the Storm Feather blessing, while the Hero-level followers sensed their shackles loosening.
  • King MacReynolds said he wanted Fairies born from the land changed by the god's death, and Count Pascal also requested them.
  • Ryan said the surviving leaders could divide the Fairies but warned that the war was not over, prompting them to look at the Legendary Werewolf Monarch.

Ch. 740War Ends in Politics

Ryan insisted that the war against the Orcs continue while he negotiated with Aton and urged him to coordinate their campaigns. After Emperor Florian ordered supplies sent north in response to Ryan’s report, Ryan considered how much would actually reach Northwind Province.

  • Ryan told Aton that the war could end only when he said so, offering blessings in exchange for the Werewolves’ cooperation and calling for coordinated plans.
  • The battle at Northern Great Wall Fortress ended at dawn, and Ryan sent Emperor Florian a report praising the Emperor while stressing the Northlands’ need for protection.
  • Emperor Florian ordered stored war supplies and potions sent to Northwind Province, prompting nobles to reconsider their relationship with Ryan.
  • Lennon told Baron Hatton that he and Ryan’s forces had slain a god and showed him Divine Essence that could strengthen the Hatton family’s bloodline.
  • Ryan received Emperor Volvo Columbus’s reply and questioned how much of the promised supplies would survive the competing claims of nobles and commanders.
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