Binding Souls

"There being a hundred or so extra souls is normal, isn't it? Someone who had gained insight into your Rune must have died again!" Lei Mo said offhandedly.

"No, Master! These hundred or so souls are humans, and they don't have any Rune aura. Their numbers also match the people you killed!" Franklin explained.

"Then—what do you mean?" Lei Mo still hadn't quite understood.

"Just what you're thinking. The souls of the people killed by my main body have all been confined in the Soul Space!" Franklin said quietly.

"Then—why didn't we notice this before?" Lei Mo asked in puzzlement.

Back in the Seti Mountains, he had either used the original Totem Pillar or thrown stones for those few kills. He really had never killed anyone with Franklin.

"Are these forcibly confined souls the same as Rune Souls?" Lei Mo asked.

"They don't seem quite the same, but they can still be controlled. They'll be assimilated by the Soul Space before long. And the Tauren souls from before came in the same way." Franklin sounded certain.

"Then couldn't I just kill Marshal Mengba?" Lei Mo's imagination was running wild.

"No, no. That wouldn't be right. Mengba has always treated me with great respect!"

Marshal Monba Erich Keaton had no idea he'd just brushed past the gates of hell.

Composing himself, Lei Mo turned back to find the army. Only twenty-odd minutes had passed, most of them spent on the road.

He found the marshal's escort captain and asked, "Carl, how is Marshal Mengba? Is he safe?"

"The marshal is fine. He's already sent people to search for the Lombardy Mage Corps," Carl replied respectfully.

"Good! That's good!" Lei Mo found a makeshift tent, then sat cross-legged.

While Lei Mo strolled leisurely, inside the temporary marshal's tent, Marshal Monba Erich Keaton wore a grave expression. "Have you confirmed it? Were they really members of the Mage Corps?"

"Yes. One hundred and nineteen people, including one Level 9 Great Mage and eight Level Eight Mages. They were all well-known figures!"

"Marshal, it looks like they were struck by blunt weapons, and every one of them died in a single blow!"

A member of the team that had just returned, an expert at analyzing battle traces, reported to Marshal Mengba.

"To accomplish something like that, the attacker must be in the Saint Realm! But what was their purpose? If they're on our side, why didn't they show themselves?"

That was Marshal Mengba's greatest puzzle. Was the mysterious expert afraid that entering the battlefield would trigger a clash between Saint Realm experts?

For now, Marshal Mengba could only reach that conclusion.

Although the mysterious Saint Realm expert had helped their side, as commander-in-chief, he had to account for every uncertain factor to maintain a clear grasp of the course of the war.

It was something every military strategist had to consider!

No matter how troubled Marshal Mengba felt, Lei Mo simply kept cultivating in silence. His battle aura grew bit by bit. The progress was painfully slow, but it was still progress. And so he waited in the military tent for Marshal Mengba's marching orders.

Water Curtain Heaven had been cast at the central army's banner. The attack had clearly been meant to kill Marshal Mengba. The marshal and his escort had evaded it, but the tremendous volume of water from Water Curtain Heaven had still swept away thousands of soldiers.

There was no way they'd march again that night. Lei Mo released his Rune Soul and had Bill the Divine Wind Bear guard the entrance. Then he cultivated through the night.

In the morning, he got up and checked his progress. He was still a peak Level Eight warrior, with no improvement. But Lei Mo wasn't disappointed.

As he walked through the camp, he watched hundreds of thousands of soldiers break camp swiftly and efficiently.

They had made camp in haste after the attack yesterday, and now, after barely half a night, they were breaking camp again. Hundreds of thousands of soldiers moved without hurry or confusion, showing Marshal Mengba's talent for commanding his troops all the more clearly.

Lei Mo stared blankly at the central army's tent, still thinking about Marshal Mengba. If he couldn't kill him, he could at least get him to gain insight into a Rune. It'd be even better if he broke through to Level Nine.

He wasn't even seventy, and he was already this formidable. If he lived another four hundred years or so, what would he become? Lei Mo didn't dare imagine it. The more he thought about it, the more troubled he felt.

I should ask about Marshal Mengba's battle-aura attribute. At least then I'll have a target when I collect the Totem Pillars.

To get Marshal Monba Erich Keaton, Lei Mo was already thinking of going back to retrieve Franklin's detached pillar. He was simply too envious of Marshal Mengba's military talent!

"There are so many souls in Franklin's Soul Space. It needs a marshal! Right, that makes perfect sense!"

His mind raced, imagination running wild, but he still couldn't come up with anything.

They continued marching. Nobody asked about the Mage Corps, and Marshal Mengba said nothing. The army simply continued on toward the front lines.

It wasn't until noon on the third day that part of the main force arrived. After all, there were seven hundred thousand soldiers, and the marching column stretched a long way. The vanguard had already started making camp while the rear guard was still dozens of kilometers away!

Lei Mo rode the Divine Wind Bear, strolling along at ease!

Having a Space Ring sure was convenient. Lei Mo casually took out a wineskin and gulped down some "draft beer." "Hic—" It would've been even better chilled!

With Lei Mo on his back, Bill ambled into the camp reserved for the powerful. This world really was unfair!

After joining up with the garrison here, Marshal Mengba began taking command of the entire alliance. The army's numbers surpassed two million.

They were still outnumbered by the Lombardy Alliance's forces, but as the defending side, the Seti Alliance forces now had some advantages.

As soon as command had been transferred, Marshal Mengba issued a series of orders, and the entire camp sprang into action!

They weren't relying on fortress defenses because, although Brest was a military stronghold, the Keaton Kingdom had pushed the front line several hundred kilometers toward the Lombardy Alliance over the past few centuries.

In that case, it was easy to understand why the Lombardy Alliance had provoked a war. They wanted to reclaim their lost territory, after all!

But who could make sense of war? The thousands upon thousands of kilometers of border had long since become a tangled mess, with each side's territory interwoven with the other's!

Around Brest Fortress, the Keaton Kingdom had indeed occupied Lombardy Alliance territory. In other areas, the reverse might well be true!

The history of the two alliances was a history of war. Blood debts had piled up for ages, leaving no chance for peace!

The defensive system along this stretch of the front line was far from complete. There were some trenches and war castles, but they weren't fully connected. They had been under repair for years, only to be damaged by surprise attacks from time to time.

The Lombardy Alliance probably feared that, once the defenses were complete, Brest would become a rear area.

The entire valley would then belong to the Keaton Kingdom. As long as they held the entrance to the valley, the Lombardy Alliance would have to pay a far bloodier price to invade again.

So choosing this moment to start a war and completely destroy these defensive installations, ruining the Seti Alliance's plan to occupy the valley, was also a choice born of desperation for the Lombardy side.

After Marshal Mengba's reinforcements arrived, the Seti Alliance took the initiative and launched several attacks, routing the Lombardy Alliance's forces and destroying many of their strongholds.

Lei Mo never received orders to join an attack. In everyone's eyes, he was a Level Eight expert who'd gotten lucky and subdued a Divine Wind Bear that hadn't broken through yet. That was the story Lei Mo told, too. Keeping a low profile while growing stronger was the way to go.