The King's Astonishment

Kassand Kingdom was caught off guard by the Thrace army's concentrated artillery bombardment and suffered considerable losses.

After all, every mage is extremely precious, and spells cannot be squandered like cannonballs; they require communication with the Weave and the consumption of the mage's mental energy to cast.

"Boom!"

"Boom! Boom!"

The artillery fire continued to roar.

Gunsmoke filled the Thrace battlefield, bullet holes riddled the towering walls, and cannonballs rained down on the unsuspecting Kassand soldiers, turning them into mincemeat. Some Titan Divine Descendant were even seriously wounded as a result.

"Get out of the way! Get out of the way!"

"Spread out! Don't gather together!"

"How come there are so many of these iron balls?"

"Where did they get so many spellcasters?"

"No, that's not a spellcaster!"

Kassand's soldiers were filled with shock and anger, and were helpless against the attack coming from hundreds of meters away. Even the noble commanders were in a panic.

The Titan Divine Descendant wanted to use their tall, strong bodies to rush over and smash those things that were firing projectiles.

But the Angel Divine Descendant in the sky were not to be underestimated. They flapped their wings and launched bursts of explosive energy that landed on the path of the Titan Divine Descendant' charge, while cannonballs continued to fall from the sky.

This made it difficult for the Kassand Kingdom's Divine Descendant Legion to penetrate Thrace's territory even slightly, resulting in over a dozen casualties.

It is important to know that every descendant of the gods is a precious asset to the kingdom. These are powerful extraordinary beings who can only be born through the Sacrificial Ritual the Sun God, and they are also the backbone of the kingdom.

"Damn it."

"Whoosh—"

Ily slashed with his sword, cleaving dozens of shells in mid-air into fragments, but this caused even more flaming shrapnel to rain down, causing the soldiers around him to scream in agony.

"Ter! Make them stop!"

"It's your turn to make a move!"

Ily roared, the booming sound echoing across the battlefield and reaching the towering city walls a hundred meters high.

The towering towers on the white city walls are guarded by several soldiers.

A man dressed in a deep red robe was resting with his eyes closed. A finely carved adamantite staff floated in mid-air, slowly rotating and releasing bursts of light.

"So fast..."

"Is it time for me to take action...?"

Upon hearing this sound, the man slowly opened his eyes, revealing a pair of deep blue pupils with magic array patterns slowly rotating within them.

He is Stergen Megan. Although he looks only middle-aged, he is over seventy years old. He is a Grandmaster of the Kasander Arcane Legion and a powerful spellcaster who has long since reached the legendary level.

But at this moment, a hint of surprise appeared in Ter's eyes.

Because it's too fast.

It should be noted that during this protracted war, the Legendary Caster on both sides rarely appeared, but instead remained in their armies, waiting for the right moment to strike, as if it had been pre-arranged.

They only act at crucial moments in the battle, and can change the course of the battle in an instant.

As for why we didn't make the first move?

Spells need to be prepared.

As a high-level spellcaster, in large-scale battles, going second often has an advantage over going first—because you can achieve greater results at a lower cost depending on the opponent's spellcasting.

However, the battlefield situation can change rapidly. If you can seize the opportunity to inflict indelible losses on the enemy, taking the initiative may not be a bad choice.

A glint flashed in Ter's eyes.

As he moved, an invisible bird made of pure earth elements flapped its wings and soared into the sky.

Suddenly, the view of the battlefield from above appeared in his eyes, and the arcs of the shells made his pupils shrink.

"Spells?"

"No, it's more like a strange mechanical creation."

"But there's not much fluctuation in spellcasting; it relies purely on natural magical reactions? Interesting idea."

But when Ter looked further into the distance and saw the thousands of black cannons gleaming with metallic luster—he immediately frowned.

"How can there be so many?"

"This is definitely not something the Thrace Kingdom could produce in a short time. Could it be that they have found some Ancient Ruins?"

"Whoosh—"

A force field sphere rose rapidly from the Thrace Kingdom army's ranks, tearing apart the detecting bird.

This is not surprising.

The Thrace spellcaster has made his move.

Ter gripped the adamantine staff that was suspended in mid-air, his expression growing increasingly solemn.

"No wonder Ily was so anxious."

"However, they are delusional to think they can defeat Kassand with these inferior creations!"

A glint flashed in Ter's eyes.

With ripples in the space, he vanished from the tower in an instant and appeared out of thin air high above the city walls.

Ter raised the adamantite staff in his hand, and bursts of light shone through the hollowed-out patterns. Accompanied by the violent fluctuations of the Weave, a complex spell model gradually took shape in the high sky.

Finally, a barrier made of pure force appeared, almost covering most of the sky, blocking all cannonballs and flames.

Immediately afterwards, waves of energy distorted space, and the shells were controlled by some invisible force, deviating from their course and even reflecting back into the Thrace positions.

"Stop!"

"They're back!"

"Quickly, stop the bombardment! The enemy's spellcaster has made his move!"

An uproar erupted in the Thrace camp, and their offensive came to an abrupt halt, except for the Angel Divine Descendant who continued to pour out their power, attempting to shatter it from the outside.

This is the power of a legendary mage, capable of turning the tide of battle with a single move—it's a spell combining [Advanced Wall of Force] and [Force Field Deflection].

Although this is not Ninth Circle Spell, due to its combination of spells and its exaggerated scale, it consumes just as much mental energy as a ninth-ring spell.

It is impenetrable by any physical attack—even deadly artillery shells.

"Long live the Kassand Kingdom!"

"It's Lord Ter!"

"As expected of a Grandmaster of the Arcane Legion!"

Cheers erupted from the towering walls of Teotihuacan, the soldiers feeling safe and invigorated by the impregnable barrier.

But Ter, who was the center of attention, showed no joy. Instead, he gripped his staff tightly and looked extremely solemn.

"Jagos Hurst."

He slowly uttered the name.

That was Legendary Caster belonging to the Thrace Kingdom, and also his former classmate.

The two were once close friends and served the Holy Fadlan Empire together, but now, because they serve different masters, they can only meet on the bloody battlefield.

Ter knew that his old friend would definitely step in.

"Call--"

A piercing shriek rang out.

Brilliant green streaks of light fell from the horizon, hurtling towards the Wall of Force below.

"Meteor Burst?"

"No, that's Disintegrate Spell!"

Wall of Force can block most attacks and spell effects, and can even extend into the Ethereal Plane, but they can be destroyed by Disintegrate Spell.

This is a contest between mages.

Only by being familiar with the specifics of both one's own and the opponent's spells, and understanding the relationships of restraint between spells, can their maximum effect be achieved.

The "meteors" crashed into the barrier one after another.

The instant the two spells came into contact, the invisible Wall of Force was instantly disintegrated, creating gaps one after another, and eventually collapsed.

And right after that, streaks of fiery red meteors fell from the horizon—this was the real Meteor Burst!

At this point, Ter no longer had time to rebuild the defenses.

Using [Time Stop] is obviously not worthwhile. For him, Meteor Burst is not a fatal spell, and he has countless ways to dodge it.

But for those ordinary soldiers, this was a complete natural disaster.

"Boom!"

Each meteor exploded the moment it touched the ground and the city walls, creating a massive explosion, with raging flames engulfing everything around it.

The lives of thousands of Kassand mortal soldiers vanished in that incredibly dazzling moment, accompanied by explosions all around.

In this war, the lives of ordinary people are as worthless as grass.

"Fire! Flames are everywhere!"

"It hurts!"

"No, don't come any closer!"

"Help me! I'm on fire!"

Flames were everywhere on the city walls, and the Kassand soldiers, who had just been roused, were mercilessly burned by magic.

"Jagos, stop!"

"Stop fighting for rebels!"

Ter gritted his teeth and raised the adamantite staff high once more, creating a distorted space at its tip.

[Magic Absorption]

Instantly, the intense heat generated by the Meteor Burst surged from the surroundings, stored in the distorted space, and transformed into energy for Ter's next spell.

He stepped forward, unleashing his stored energy into a massive beam of light that shot towards the Thrace army in the distance.

[Sunburst]

"Boom!"

A charred mark suddenly appeared on the ground, and the pillar of fire engulfed countless mortals in an instant, turning them into ashes.

"Arcane Legion!"

"Support Lord Ter!"

Meanwhile, the Arcane Legion of both sides cast spells simultaneously, with blinding light, blazing flames, leaping arcs of electricity, and frigid hail colliding wildly on the battlefield.

"For the Thrace Kingdom!"

"For the Kassand Kingdom!"

"Kill the rebels, reclaim the Holy City, and restore the glory of Fadlan!"

"Defend the Holy City! Revitalize Fadlan!"

"We are the true heirs of Fadlan! Only His Majesty Otis can restore its former glory!"

"Praise be to the Sun God Amanata! Punishment the traitor Kassand!"

The Titan Divine Descendant and Angel Divine Descendant each occupied the ground and the sky, shouting their own slogans as they fought endlessly in the wilderness.

The Thrace mortals continued to reload their ammunition and relentlessly bombard the towering white walls, reducing several towers to ruins—completely unconcerned that the walls also bore the Sun God Holy Emblem god.

The spellcasters and the Divine Descendant Legion unleashed their full firepower, tearing each other apart on this battlefield that had been baptized in countless bloodshed, where mortal lives were as worthless as grass.

This is the characteristic of the Fadlan Army system.

Because they rose to power through Divine Favor, the high-level and low-level forces of their army were extremely disconnected. Mortals were often reduced to mere expendable resources, and only the descendants of gods and spellcasters could determine the course of the war.

After the appearance of cannons in the Thrace Kingdom, the lives of soldiers in the Kassand Kingdom became even cheaper—these poor mortals not only had to dodge the bombardment of spells and the aftermath of battles Divine Descendant Legion, but also had to be wary of cannonballs falling from the sky.

For the two kingdoms at this time, it was common for a battle to result in tens of thousands, or even more than one hundred thousand, casualties. A battlefield with divine offspring, legendary mages, and cannons was a complete meat grinder.

The brutal battle lasted for two days and two nights.

The earth was riddled with holes, the walls of the Holy City were studded with cannonballs, the ground of the wasteland was shaved down several feet, and the flowing blood stained the soil red.

After paying a heavy price and leaving thousands of corpses in front of the city walls, the more powerful Kassand Kingdom finally managed to defend Teotihuacan, the "Sunlit City".

But there were no winners in this battle. Both Kassand and Thrace suffered tens of thousands of casualties, including dozens of noble divine beings on each side.

Teotihuacan Center.

Sunlit Imperial Palace.

Everywhere there are ruins, but you can still see the palace's former grandeur and extravagance from the reliefs and walls.

This place was once the residence of Aragon I, the "Sun Emperor." After several large-scale constructions, he built a magnificent palace complex here, which amazed and impressed even the creatures from the heavens.

But when the war spread to Teotihuacan, the palace changed hands several times and became the dilapidated place it is today.

However, Hadrian's Palace, the main Hadrian Palace Sunlit Imperial Palace, has once again become magnificent and resplendent after several renovations by the Kassand Kingdom, much like its former self.

Otis Aragon, the king of the Kassand Kingdom who claimed to be the rightful heir of the Fadlan, had long resided there.

Deep within the palace, on the enormous and exquisite golden throne, sat a man clad in magnificent heavy armor, holding a golden scepter.

He was exceptionally tall, nearly two meters even when seated on his throne. His face and physique were as perfect as a master sculpture, and his skin was like marble, without a single flaw.

Behind him were halos radiating the sunlight, and in his pupils were patterns of the sun, qualities bestowed by the Divine Blood flowing through the Supreme Heaven —this was Otis Aragon.

As the eldest son of Aragon I, he was over 110 years old and had received the blessings of the Sun God several times. Amanata endowed him with power comparable to that of the Supreme Heaven, and he was thus hailed as "the man closest to the Sun Emperor".

At this moment, Otis was sitting in the old emperor's former seat, holding the golden scepter that represented supreme power, listening to the reports from his subjects below the steps.

"."

"Your Majesty, that's how it is."

Ter extended his staff, and Magic Image appeared in the palace—hollow metal objects that could launch iron balls, and short sticks that could shoot projectiles.

"These blasphemous creations allow mortals to harm the noble offspring of the gods, causing us considerable trouble."

"As far as I know, there is no such legacy in the army of Holy Fadlan, so I suspect that they found these weapons in some Ancient Ruins."

"This"

At this moment, Navin Bessarius, who was standing on either side of the palace, suddenly cried out in surprise.

Otis turned his head away.

"Naven, what are your thoughts?"

Naven stepped out from the ranks of ministers and hurriedly bowed his head to report, "Your Majesty, I have seen something similar in the Embers of the Burned Empire! It seems to be one of their main military assets!"

Otis leaned forward slightly, his golden pupils narrowing, a barely perceptible hint of surprise flashing within them.

"You mean the Embers of the Burned Empire in the Anzeta Great Wasteland?"

"Yes, Your Majesty."

"Although there are subtle differences in appearance and structure, these Thrace weapons are clearly from the Embers of the Burned Empire."

Navin Bessarius answered with great certainty.