Taking in Prisoners

After adjusting herself, Zijin finally saw the situation below clearly, and she was very satisfied.

"Those who convert, remove your armor, place your weapons at your feet, and accept your incorporation!"

This time, the execution was even faster.

One weapon after another was put down, the sounds of them hitting the bricks echoing everywhere, helmets, spears, swords and shields scattered on the ground.

The once neatly dressed team disintegrated into groups of unarmed individuals.

Su Ming finally let out a breath and raised his hand to signal the front-line troops to advance.

"Suppress the city walls first!"

The long-suppressed dragon landed almost immediately on the protruding platform outside the city wall, the wind generated by its wings flipping over many nearby soldiers.

Eight thousand elite Feather Race also flew up, quickly spreading out to take control of various sections of the city wall, arrow towers, and enemy towers.

Access channels and equipment platforms.

The defenders on the city walls lost their will to resist, and under the pressure of the dragons and the Feather Race army, the situation almost completely stabilized.

Occasionally, when people hesitated or wavered, the dragon would glance at them sideways, burp, and exhale a wisp of dragon breath carrying sparks into the night sky.

The men immediately pushed their weapons further away and crouched even lower than before.

"This city is quite magnificent," a giant dragon remarked, looking around.

The walls of the Holy City were taller than the dragon, and wide enough for the dragon to lie down and sleep.

Although the buildings within the city were inhabited by tiny people, many of them were taller than the dragon's lair. The exquisite, uniform, and aesthetically pleasing construction was also unmatched by the dragon's lair.

"Our Thousand Wings City should also be built in this direction in the future," another giant dragon said enviously.

****

The city walls were guarded by the Holy City's garrison and a large number of auxiliary personnel, totaling as many as 20,000.

The command center had already devised a detailed contingency plan, and all personnel had a clear objective.

Some of the Feather Race officers were taken in and imprisoned in the watchtowers and towers on the city walls. Others controlled the various nodes, dividing the enemy into smaller groups and severing their connections. Still others, skilled in Feather Race, quickly shut down the defensive nodes on the city walls and unlocked the war machines.

Once control of these machines is gained and directed at the Knights of the Crown, who are not yet fully under control below the city walls, the situation will be "physically" locked down.

As expected, upon seeing this scene, the officers of the Glorious Crown Knights Legion became anxious. Having been forced to surrender earlier due to the situation, many now realized that given their status and past actions, they had no chance of survival as the enemy was methodically suppressing them.

It is said that Bone King punishes even the most wicked necromancers without mercy.

But the surrounding skeletal and undead forces remained motionless, surrounded by a vast expanse of eerie blue soulfire, creating an ominous atmosphere.

Seeing the rapid progress on the city wall, the longer they waited, the slimmer their chance of escape became; death was like a shackle tightening around the necks of these officers.

They gritted their teeth and finally made the choice to rebel in their hearts.

These people exchanged glances, and then at some point, they all sprang into action, trying to create an opening before the situation became completely stagnant.

A dozen or so small groups rushed out of their positions one after another, causing brief chaos among some of the people in the surrounding area.

"Hurry! If we don't leave now, we'll miss our chance!"

These are man-eating demons; there's no way they'll survive if they stay here!

They shouted and clamored, trying to incite the soldiers to break out as well.

But most of the lower-ranking soldiers simply retreated instinctively and did not follow suit.

Zijin reacted, and cyan magical ripples quickly exploded in the crowd, immediately silencing the dozen or so sources of the outbursts, and silencing the organizing and inciting shouts.

Su Ming immediately ordered, "The city wall troops, do not move, continue to control the nodes. The Bone Machine Battalion, do not fire, resolve this cleanly and hygienically!"

If firearms were to open fire at this time, not only would it be easy to cause friendly fire, but the otherworldly soldiers have never experienced the spectacle of simultaneous gunfire. If this were to cause panic and panic, it would create chaos and cause serious problems.

The members of the Bone Machine Battalion understood, and with their control, the undead troops that were waiting suddenly started up, like a loosened tide, and rushed towards the dozen or so sources of chaos.

The powerful officers, relying on their equipment and personal strength, initially cut down many skeleton warriors, scattering bone fragments and armor shards everywhere on the ground. But such results quickly became meaningless.

More dead bodies filled the void.

After one of the officers swung his sword and smashed the skull in front of him, before he could turn around, a broad knight's greatsword swept across him, sending him flying and crashing heavily into the crowd.

The one who made the move was a Death Knight, and behind it, another group of Death Knights emerged.

When this level and scale of undead enters the battlefield, the situation is no longer a simple matter of rioting and suppression, but rather a deliberate cleanup.

Those who had initially tried to escape in the chaos immediately changed their attitude.

"Wait, I surrender!"

I'm not running anymore.

They dispelled the Silence on them, but their first words were pleas for mercy.

No one paid any attention to this last-minute change of heart.

Moments later, these officers were hacked to death by a flurry of blades. New White Bone rose from their corpses, swaying as they joined the ranks of the dead.

Those who witnessed this scene turned pale.

One of the knight commanders was still putting up a last-ditch effort. He was exceptionally skilled, and as he wielded his lance, his entire body was covered in a bright glow, and he shattered several death knights in succession.

But that doesn't change anything.

More and more undead continued to approach, gradually surrounding and killing him.

The knight was filled with sorrow. If he could take a few more enemies down with him, he wouldn't mind fighting to the death. But what he was destroying now were just consumables that could be replenished at any time.

A bitter despair welled up in his eyes. He dropped his lance, stood rooted to the spot, and resignedly closed his eyes.

As the last small wave was extinguished, Su Ming stood atop the highest point of the city wall, coldly surveying his surroundings.

"Anyone else who wants to try? Step forward now!" he shouted sternly.

The magic carried his voice far and wide on the night wind.

No one answered.

Everyone fell silent, too afraid to make the slightest move.

****

The situation stabilized again, and Su Ming pressed the call button on his headset, "Ainuobia, advance the propaganda troops."

"Received," came the quick reply from the other end of the communication line.

The Feather Race troops, who had been waiting in advance, split into hundreds of surrender acceptance teams and entered the various organized surrender groups to begin explaining the Final Bone Mad Machines's prisoner policy point by point:

Those who wish to stay can accept reorganization;

Those who do not wish to stay may leave after surrendering all their combat equipment and belongings, and receive a certain amount of travel expenses.

Given that it was late at night and a downpour was imminent, all prisoners were first guided to a designated containment area, with further selection to be made the following day.

Things are finally on track, proceeding step by step according to the established procedures.

Before long, the first batch of disarmed surrendered soldiers had formed a long line and marched toward the reception area marked out on one side of their own position.

After such a long period of planning, layer-by-layer deployment, repeated weakening of the enemy's ideological defenses, and overwhelming display of military power, the moment of harvest has finally arrived! Su Ming thought to himself with emotion.

The engine was pulled into the field, the power lines were laid out, and the lights and temporary lighting on the city walls gradually increased, giving the entire area a strange sense of order in the night.

Su Ming turned and looked into the city, where unease still lingered: some people continued to flee, some prayed in place, and many more simply stood in the streets and alleys, waiting blankly for what would happen next.

As the remaining areas of the city walls are gradually brought under control, the escape routes available to stronger individuals are rapidly shrinking.

"Yuya, how are things on your end?" Su Ming switched to another contact.

In the center of the city, Yuya's reconnaissance team was moving swiftly.

"The entrance to the underground Magic Power center hasn't been found yet; three more areas need to be investigated," she reported to her supervisor.

"Angel's Protection" only malfunctioned due to overload, and was not truly and completely destroyed. Yuya's team's mission is to find the Magic Power center and completely control the entire Radiant Holy City's defense system.

Normally, there should be an entrance under the Saint Lan Cathedral, but Su Ming destroyed it in order to break the enemy's command chain.

"Intensify the search," Su Ming said. "We're also cutting off the outer defenses from the city walls."

"Clear."

Zijin came to Su Ming's side, and together they looked into the city. Jielusi and Ruixiuli followed closely behind.

Most areas were now darker than before, with only the towering statues still emitting a faint light. The common people had completely given up on any plans to cause trouble; many gathered near the statues, kneeling and praying, trying to dispel their anxiety during the wait and prepare for the coming changes.

Su Ming turned his head and glanced at Zijin, "How are you?"

"I'm alright." Zijin pressed one hand to her chest and gently shook her head. "I told you, I'm not that fragile."

The visually stunning performance that unfolded above the Holy City, though not particularly powerful, had a wide range and consumed a considerable amount of energy.

Zijin has not yet recovered from the injury she sustained the day before.

"You'll just stubbornly stick to it."

Looking at her slightly pale face, Su Ming reached out and brushed away the stray hairs that had been blown across her forehead by the wind.

Seeing that everything was back on track, Yise finished arranging his work and came to find Su Ming, only to witness this scene.

Her steps faltered noticeably, as she forced herself to suppress her emotions. When she approached again, the girl's tone was normal. "President, shouldn't we deal with the Pope who escaped?"

"Being watched."

Su Ming opened his tablet, and under the drone's view, nearly a thousand high-ranking members of the temple formed a sizable escape team, quickly evacuating with the help of various flying beasts, most of which were griffins.

The Sky Army the Temple of Light, which the Pansy faced in the morning, numbered only a thousand griffins. Such an important combat resource, controlled by powerful private individuals, was comparable to that of a regular army.

"They paused briefly in the city, seemingly during some internal strife, before continuing their escape," Su Ming told Yise.

Yise glanced at the location on the screen. "They're moving so fast, they're already quite far."

Su Ming originally intended to lure the enemy into a more suitable open field for an attack. However, the current fleeing group clearly exceeded his initial estimates in both numbers and speed.

"It's definitely time to pursue her," he said.

However, the situation within the city is not yet fully stable, and the forces that can be immediately mobilized are limited. In addition, Augustus himself still poses a considerable threat, making a clean and swift pursuit not an easy task.

Zijin clearly saw what Su Ming was worried about and spoke up from the side, "Don't overestimate Augustus. His domain is related to heavy constructs. After leaving the Holy City, his combat power will decrease significantly, so he's not a cause for concern."

On the Meiladas Tidal Flats, Zijin said that if Augustus came, she could keep him there. So that's why. Su Ming understood.

"The device control is somewhat similar to Beianqi's," he said.

"They're similar in classification," Zijin said, "Except the temple calls this ability 'The Arbiter'."

With that in mind, things become much simpler.

Su Ming quickly identified the pursuers: the three dragon elders, Can Xin, Hongyao, Lan Lin, along with Ruixiuli, Jielusi, and Yise.

"The pursuit is your responsibility."

"Will we get a late-night snack when we get back?" Hongyao asked, his mind preoccupied with Su Ming's promise of an all-meat meal for tonight.

"If everything goes smoothly," Su Ming replied.

The three giant dragons immediately raised their heads and let out a joyful roar.

The dragons on the city wall responded in kind, creating a lively scene and working even harder. Those few stubborn individuals who tried to "die rather than submit" were reduced to ashes by the dragons' breath.

"Launching the attack is no problem," Ruixiuli said hesitantly, "but on your side—"

"He won't die before I do," Zijin said calmly.

Without further delay, the three turned and leaped onto the dragon's back. The three dragon elders soared into the air and chased after the direction in which the high-ranking members of the Divine Covenant Faction had fled.

****

Within the containment area, the work has entered the actual takeover phase.

A generator was also set up here, and rows of lights were very bright, so that the surrendered soldiers could not hide their every move.

The refuge area consisted of simple shacks for the guards to rest in during their rotations, with bundles of timber and tarpaulins piled on the ground. It was clear that the surrendered soldiers were to build their own living quarters.

"Hurry up and finish! The heavy rain will last at most another hour!" Ainuobia urged, holding a megaphone.

Having been so busy, she felt a sense of unreality. Reflecting on the months of preparation and the non-stop scheduling work today, she found it hard to say whether she had ever truly been "nervous."

In Ainuobia's memory, everything was simply a list of tasks laid out in a neat row.

Transporting, advancing, deploying—the tasks were exhausting. When the long checklist process finally came to an end, had they truly won the war?

Ainuobia handed the megaphone to a nearby staff member and walked over to the generator to take a short break. Looking up, she saw Gospel fiddling with the equipment.

"Hey, Grandpa Gospel, what are you doing here?" she asked, quite surprised.

Instead of answering, Gospel continued fiddling with the machine.

Instead, a member of the Final Bone Mad Machines next to him laughed and explained, "I'm the truck driver, returning to the Pansy to load cargo. While I was in the restroom, Gospel Grandpa climbed onto my truck, stepped on the gas, and sped away."

"God says, 'You should go on a road trip!'" The Gospel statement is solemn.

"And then?" Ainuobia suddenly became interested. "Don't the people at the dispatch center care?"

"It's none of their business." The driver sighed. "Why did the Gospel have to choose me? The ship I'm on, the Pansy, is carrying bone dragons."

"Bone Dragon—you mean the Scholar Bay Owl?"

"Yes!" the driver replied, "And then Gospel old man began to sing merrily in the driver's seat, with the chairman and the Scholar Bay Owl's hands on his shoulders."

Ainuobia immediately clutched her stomach and burst into laughter, "Amazing! You stole it so accurately!"

"God says, 'This is embezzlement, not theft,'" the Gospel argued.

"And then?" Ainuobia asked, wiping away tears of laughter.

"And then," the driver said helplessly, "He was brought here and ordered by the Bay Owl to guard the generator. I was also punished for negligence and have to stay up all night to watch over the equipment."

Ainuobia jumped up and patted each of them on the shoulder.

"Great job, keep it up, you two!"

Twelve-finger reincarnation