Black Tide

Biodata

Feature	Information
Name	Black Tide (黑潮)
Type	Neutral Character (AI)
Species/Race	Dark Energy ecological disaster; mass Dark Creature phenomenon
Affiliation	Varies; some Black Tides are directed by Abyssal forces, including Ant Guards and Luo Chiyou 156 158
Status	Recurring
First Appearance	Chapter 13

Power Progression

Stage / Realm / Level	Chapter	Notes
C-Rank	59–66	A C-Rank Black Tide attacked Longwind Fortress. It fielded C-Rank Anomaly Calamities, including the Mimic Anomaly Calamity and Nest-Nursing Jellyfish, but was defeated through layered Spirit Plant defenses, Rune Arrays, and Lincon's intervention 61 66.
Near B-Rank	158–166	An Ant Guard-led tide approached Longwind Fortress with numerous C+-Rank Weird and Anomaly Calamities. Its danger level was described as extremely close to B-Rank 158 166.
C+-Rank	174–175	A Black Tide attacked Black Iron City during the Ash Snow Lull Period, when such an event was considered unprecedented. It contained Walking Corpses, Anomaly Calamities, Weird Calamities, an Ant Guard, and Luo Chiyou 174 175.
B-Rank	195–201	The Territory War Black Tide was reinforced by creatures from the Abyss Rift and reached true B-Rank danger. Longwind Fortress stopped it beneath the outer-city walls after defeating the Abyssal Ant Queen's consciousness and the Ant Guard 195 197 201.

Nature

The Black Tide is not simply a horde of Dark Creatures. It is a large-scale Dark Energy disaster that corrupts life, matter, and light while converging on places where humans gather. Its behavior is likened to defensive code intended to erase concentrated human life and order 61.

As it advances, Dark Energy rots trees into ash, turns soil into black sludge, and rapidly corrodes stone. Its black fog obscures distance and suppresses ordinary light, making the approaching force difficult to observe or judge accurately 61.

Appearance

A Black Tide manifests as vast, viscous darkness and black fog spreading across the landscape.

• The air becomes foul and murky before its arrival 59.
• Its darkness conceals light and depth, impairing perception even for Lincon's mental projection 61.
• Dense Dark Energy can coalesce into immense forms, including an abyssal demon-like mass that projects whispers and hallucinations into a besieged fortress 62.
• Its vanguard may include Walking Corpses, Dark Insects, Abominations, Weird Calamities, and Anomaly Calamities of varying ranks 156 160.

Abilities & Traits

Dark-Energy Corrosion

The Black Tide's defining danger is its saturation of the environment with corrosive Dark Energy.

• Corrodes living organisms, soil, stone, and defensive structures 61.
• Suppresses purification-based light domains, including Longwind Fortress's Faint Light Domain 62.
• Can extinguish or weaken defensive fire barriers through black mist and the presence of powerful creatures 161.
• Its concentrated whispers can induce madness and hallucinations among defenders 62.

Collective Assault

Dark Creatures within a Black Tide abandon their ordinary territorial instincts and move as a coordinated force against human settlements 61.

• Large numbers of weak creatures overwhelm defenses through attrition and fearlessness rather than individual strength 187 197.
• High-rank Weird and Anomaly Calamities exploit breaches created by the main horde, often bypassing front-line defenses to attack vital positions 198.
• When directed by an Ant Guard or other Abyssal controller, the Tide can pursue strategic targets, split into separate attacking forces, and maintain organized pressure across a region 156.
• The destruction of the Abyssal Ant Queen's consciousness and Ant Guard caused the remaining B-Rank Tide to lose direction, allowing Longwind Fortress to reverse the battle 201.

Adaptive Dark Creatures

Individual creatures within the Tide can possess abilities that make conventional defenses ineffective.

• The C-Rank Mimic Anomaly Calamity consumed Reed Assassin needles, copied their biological traits, and reproduced their golden-spike attack 62.
• The Nest-Nursing Jellyfish could endure and consume sunlight, threatening Spirit Plants that relied on Purifying Fire 63.
• C-Rank Weird Calamities infiltrated Spirit Plant formations during the Territory War and rapidly drained plant life 198.

Countermeasures

• Purifying Fire — Burns Dark Energy, dispels hallucinations, and destroys many Dark Creatures within its range 62.
• Rule Edict — Within Longwind Fortress, Lincon's edict reduced all Dark Creature abilities by 20% 63.
• Layered defenses — Hunting Pea Pods, Reed Assassins, explosive plants, treants, Rune Arrays, and fortified defensive lines reduced a Tide before it reached the fortress 61 63.
• Spirit Plant armies — Large-scale plant forces can meet the Tide directly, though they suffer heavy attrition against prolonged assaults and high-rank enemies 197 198.
• Eliminating command entities — Killing or severing the connection to an Ant Guard or Abyssal controller can collapse the Tide's coordination 164 201.

Story Role / Major Arcs

C-Rank Assault on Longwind Fortress

The first major Black Tide faced by Longwind Fortress gathered while only about three hundred residents remained in the settlement. Lincon prepared a defensive Rune Array integrated with his Spirit Plants, intending to weaken the Tide through successive lines before it reached the fortress 59 61.

The Tide breached the fortress's outer light and deployed powerful Anomaly Calamities, including the Mimic Anomaly Calamity and Nest-Nursing Jellyfish. The Solar Sunflower's Life Resonance established a purifying domain, while the Ancient Maple Guardian evolved into the Twisted Treant to kill the Jellyfish 62 64.

Longwind Fortress ultimately won after Lincon entered the battlefield to eliminate the final threats. The victory completed his Resist the Black Tide mission and advanced him toward the hidden Ecological Architect class 66.

Abyssal Regional Offensive

Later Black Tides differed from earlier, seemingly instinct-driven assaults. Abyssal forces split a massive force in two: Luo Chiyou led one toward New River City, while an Ant Guard led another against human factions near the Abyss Rift 156.

New River City was overwhelmed and destroyed despite City Lord Zou Feng's resistance. Luo Chiyou's black vortex annihilated much of the city, leaving survivors and refugees scattered across Jiangzhou 168 172.

A separate C+-Rank Tide then attacked Black Iron City amid its civil war. Chen Siwei held the enemy back long enough to enable an evacuation, but the city was overrun before Lincon arrived as reinforcement 174 175.

Territory War

The B-Rank Black Tide that reached Longwind Fortress included tens of thousands of Walking Corpses, swarms of Sky Ants, Abyssal creatures, and numerous C-Rank or stronger calamities 195 197.

Longwind Fortress answered with artillery, Rune weapons, Purifying Fire, the Fire God Tree, and a vast “Spirit Sea” of cultivated plants. The battle became a costly war of attrition as the Black Tide's “Black Mountain” wore down the plant formations 197 198.

The decisive confrontation came when Lincon defeated the Abyssal Ant Queen's consciousness within Luo Chiyou, while Chen Siwei defeated the Ant Guard with Lincon's assistance. Without its commanders, the remaining Black Tide failed to breach the outer city and was exterminated beneath the walls 201.

Relationships

• Lincon — Principal opposing force; he has repeatedly organized Longwind Fortress's defenses, gained Sunlight from Black Tide casualties, and personally eliminated its strongest command entities 61 160 201.
• Longwind Fortress — A recurring target due to its concentrated human population and abundant life energy; it survived both a C-Rank assault and a B-Rank Territory War 61 66 201.
• Ant Guards — Abyssal commanders capable of directing and strengthening Black Tide assaults; their deaths can trigger disarray or madness among surrounding Dark Creatures 156 164 201.
• Luo Chiyou — An Abyss-corrupted controller who led Black Tides against New River City and Black Iron City before the Abyssal Ant Queen's consciousness within her was erased 158 175 201.
• Abyss Rift — A major source of Dark Creatures and Black Tides in the Jiangbei region; later assaults were reinforced by creatures emerging from its direction 155 195.