Invasion of Kudel

Li Lin's sudden words caused everyone present to immediately stop what they were doing and look at the onlookers with curiosity and doubt.

"His Majesty?"

"Li Lin?"

"Owner?"

"What's going on, sir? If you're going to fight, why not fight to your heart's content...?"

"I told you, this was just a rehearsal."

Li Lin simply shrugged at the crowd's confusion and complaints, his expression nonchalant.

"Taking it too seriously can be bad for your health."

As he spoke, Li Lin raised his head and looked at Angela, who was folding her wings and falling downwards.

"Furthermore, regardless of the circumstances, you are my most important subordinates and weapons. I think you've all realized that once you get serious, the outcome will be unacceptable to me. After all, this is just a competition, not a life-or-death battle."

At this point, Li Lin's expression suddenly darkened.

"Don't think I don't know what you were doing just now, Kalin. Take your hands off the bowstring. I won't allow you to unleash Meteor Rainstorm. Anna, sheathe your weapon; your Sevenfold Phantom Shadow won't be enough to take down Angela. And Miu'erkasi, while sacrifice and dedication are the spirit of a knight, do you really intend to use the Glory of Judgment to attack my familiar? As for Nia... you're quick to give up, aren't you?"

"This is just a competition."

Before anyone knew it, Nia had put away her staff and was standing leisurely on the ground.

"I think everyone should remember that while trying to establish a hierarchy is a good thing, it's not the right thing to do right now. Miss Angela is Li Lin's familiar, and we are Li Lin's weapons. If either side is injured, it will ultimately require Li Lin's power to repair and heal. The worst outcome would be mutual destruction. At that point, what will we have left to help Li Lin regain his rule over the Magic Empire?"

"It's not that I don't understand what you're saying..."

Kalin glanced at Angela, who was standing on the ground smiling smugly, then looked at Li Lin, and finally released her fingers from the bowstring.

"I'm just a little annoyed. I finally found someone to fight with, but I can't even have a proper fight... Bullying humans is such a pointless job."

"Um..."

Anna nodded slightly in agreement with Kalin's statement, then she flipped her hands over and put the two daggers back into her cloak.

"That's it? That's great..."

Conversely, Yi Aier let out a long sigh of relief. As a purely ranged attacker, her greatest fear was being forced into close combat, something Angela clearly excelled at. In fact, Angela's sudden sneak attack had terrified Yi Aier. Although Beika had blocked the attack, and Yi Aier had countered in time, fear is fear, and it's something she couldn't shake off.

"It seems Miss Angela's power is no less than ours."

Suoxiate had somehow regained her signature business smile and turned to Beika, who stood silently to the side.

"So, Beika, do you have any further comments?"

"I admit that Miss Angela possesses power that we cannot defeat."

Beika adjusted her glasses and turned her head away.

"But we did not fail."

"Stubborn to the end."

Angela a cold snort, but a rather smug smile appeared on her face.

"Do you really think you can withstand my attack? Don't be mistaken, it's me who's in trouble. If I damage your weapon, I'll be the one who gets scolded and suffers the consequences."

"Snort!"

In response to Angela's smug provocation, Beika merely gave a cold snort.

"Alright, let's put aside this pointless talk of self-improvement. You'll have other opportunities in the future, when the Magic Empire once again reigns supreme over the continent. You'll have plenty of time to compete, and at that time, no matter how the battle ends, I will fully support you. Right now, I hope you can focus on the current war... Nia, how do you feel?"

"Yes..."

After hearing Li Lin's question, Nia put a finger to her chin, thought for a moment, and then answered.

"Compared to before, the formation seems a bit chaotic, and the timing isn't as precise. It's probably because we haven't practiced in a long time. Miu'erkasi is a little further away from us, and Beika's reaction is slower than before. Of course, considering Miss Angela's incredible speed, that's understandable. But... not having a well-organized formation is definitely not something I'm used to."

"..."

Hearing Nia's words, the other Ring Spirit Envoy' expressions became somewhat complicated. Although they hadn't trained for a thousand years, and given Angela's overwhelming strength, their previous slight lapse in concentration wasn't a major problem. However, the pride inherent in Weapon Spirit wouldn't allow them to admit defeat so easily. Nia, on the other hand, clearly didn't have such concerns. Like Li Lin, she was a pragmatist, and for Nia, practical utility was always more effective than saving face.

"You have plenty of time to train and practice now, but I still hope you can achieve this on the battlefield."

Li Lin clapped his hands, signaling the Seven Ring Spirit Envoys to refocus their attention.

"We are ready to attack. Our next objective has been set, so for this first battle, I hope you can fight brilliantly."

"Don't worry, Li Lin."

Nia took a half step forward and entered the center of the Seven Ring Spirit Envoys.

"This battle doesn't require Miss Angela's assistance, nor the Scourge Legion's strength. Let the seven of us handle it completely."

With a gentle smile, Nia's tone was full of firmness and trust.

"In this battle, Kudel will suffer a crushing defeat unlike anything they have ever faced before."

Spring has already permeated the entire land.

Under the misty drizzle, tender green shoots have sprouted on the earth, and the fresh air permeates the lungs, giving people a sense of comfort and tranquility.

However, even so, the soldiers patrolling the border remained vigilant. They kept their eyes wide open, gripped their weapons tightly, and watched their surroundings warily, ignoring the drizzle falling on their armor. Everything that had happened in Kudel territory had tightened the already somewhat relaxed defenses, and large numbers of troops were patrolling the Kudel border day and night—all because of the previous match.

It must be said that the sensation caused by Li Lin and Angela was enormous. News of the Arcane Mage's personal appearance in Kudel spread immediately afterward. Although the Temple had tried various methods, they couldn't silence the public. The Kudel royal family, upon learning this, was furious. They had never liked the Temple's activities in the first place, and their previous tacit approval was intended to unite the nation's patriotism and resistance. Now, it had backfired, becoming an act of inviting trouble. The Temple, naturally, also expressed strong dissatisfaction. After all, the Arcane Mage had appeared calmly in the Temple's trials, escaped unscathed, and even killed Temple paladin—a significant blow to the Temple's newly improving reputation. To atone for their actions, the Temple had gritted its teeth and made a series of decisions.

Walast was unsurprisingly expelled from the Temple, as he was the one who stopped the paladin's actions. While many thanked the old paladin for saving their lives, many more, who were indifferent, thought that sacrificing a small amount to kill the Arcane Mage was a worthwhile trade. Under the Temple's deliberate or unintentional influence, many began to denounce the old paladin as a cowardly coward, a lackey and accomplice of the Arcane Mage. This way, the Temple could at least shirk some responsibility and avoid being scorned.

After that, the Temple even dispatched all its paladins to monitor the border day and night with the border patrols to prevent the appearance of the undead army. They even withdrew all their Temple guards to serve as patrol teams. It is clear that the Temple had no good way to deal with this storm.

"This damn rain."

The guard shook his head, gazing into the distance. In the misty drizzle, nothing could be seen clearly; if an undead army were to invade at this time, it would be very difficult to detect.

I really don't know when it will stop.

"Come on. At least we'll be done patrolling soon."

The other guard clearly did not agree with his companion's complaints.

"You know, we're standing here now to protect our homes and people. That damned Arcane Mage actually managed to break through the blockade and enter the city. Those officials are lucky they didn't drag us unlucky bastards out and behead us as scapegoats. Fortunately, that despicable mage didn't do anything, otherwise, we'd probably have no choice but to commit suicide here to atone for our sins."

"Why..."

Sighing, he pulled his attention away from the conversation. The guard clearly didn't intend to say much more. Although many in Kudel's army harbored doubts and questions about whether they could truly defeat the Undead army and defend their homeland, the truth was that many were uncertain. In terms of strength, the Federation was a hundred times stronger than them, yet they still suffered a complete collapse and defeat before the Undead army. Although Dideyasi and Xialuo had delivered a perfect and brilliant ambush to the Undead army afterward, anyone with even a basic understanding of military affairs knew that, aside from the fact that the victory itself was a strategic maneuver, it was achieved through the combined efforts of both armies, further enhanced by the Saintess's personal intervention. Kudel's side, however, clearly didn't have such good fortune. Rumors of victory might have some effect on the common people, but appeasing these soldiers was much more difficult.

Just then, the guard suddenly saw several figures slowly walking towards him through the misty drizzle.

"Um?"

Upon seeing this, the guard felt a sudden chill run down his spine. He knew that the other side was Federation territory; there couldn't possibly be any living people there! In other words...

Then, the guard felt a chill on his neck, as if a spring breeze mixed with drizzle had blown across it, and then he saw the heavy earth crashing towards him.

"Ah... you finished too fast."

Reaching the guard's head, Kalin lifted her cloak, gazing helplessly at the petite girl who had completed her task and stood silently before her. At her feet, all thirteen guards lay dead, their causes of death identical, without any difference. The thirteen guards lay on the ground in an eerie yet orderly fashion, their heads falling to the ground in the same direction and at the same distance, the distance between them almost precise to the millimeter.

"If we take them all out, how do we lure the army out?"

Yi Aier, hiding behind, voiced her complaints and questions with dissatisfaction.

"This also shows that Anna is very motivated. After all, Your Excellency and the little one are watching from behind. If we don't let that brat see the performance of the Seven Ring Spirit Envoys, we'll be looked down upon. As for these guards... it doesn't matter who calls them, right?"

With that, Kalin bent down, took the horn from a corpse, and began to blow it.

The dull blast of the horn carried far and wide, and soon after, the muffled thud of horses' hooves rose up like a raging flood.

Five thousand well-trained knights and warriors appeared with lightning speed, gripping their weapons and spreading out in a tense but orderly line. However, instead of the undead army they had imagined, they saw only seven petite figures standing before them. Although these seven slender figures were hardly intimidating compared to an army of five thousand, for some reason, they evoked an indescribable sense of absurdity and unease in the crowd.

How many?

While enduring the hostile and confused gazes of the soldiers, Kalin casually asked while twirling the horn in her hand.

"Less than ten thousand."

Suoxiate answered her question calmly, seemingly unaware of how the Infinite Corridor had calculated that number.

"At most five thousand."

As a knight, Miu'erkasi had considerable experience in observing enemy formations and arrangements.

"Three thousand infantry, two thousand cavalry."

So little?

Yi Aier frowned. To be honest, this number wasn't enough for her to blast them all to pieces with one shot.

"Is this going to be another warm-up match?"

Beika's expression remained unchanged, but her voice had dropped to eight decibels below zero.

However, the people on the other side had no such thoughts. They saw the thirteen soldiers who had been sent out on patrol, and they also saw these seven figures. Clearly, the newcomers were up to no good.

Who are you people? Why did you trespass on our borders and kill our soldiers?!

The lead knight raised his lance and roared, while the others were already prepared for battle.

Faced with this situation, Kalin took a few steps back, while Miu'erkasi stood tall and walked to the front of the seven, pulled off her cloak, and then slowly drew the longsword from her waist.

"We are the Seven Ring Spirit Envoys, subordinate to the Arcane Mage Magic Empire, here on His Majesty's orders to reclaim our territory!"

A sudden burst of silver flames engulfed the girl's entire body, and at the same time, the knight opposite her swung his lance downwards.

"Release the arrows!!"

More densely packed than a drizzle, arrows rained down from behind, engulfing the Seven Ring Spirit Envoys. Faced with this terrifying rain of arrows, Nia merely raised her staff slightly before slamming it into the ground.

Not a single arrow hit its target.

Just as Nia's staff struck the ground, a transparent protective shield appeared around the seven Ringwraiths. The arrows aimed at them automatically shifted their positions upon encountering the shield, deviating from their original targets and embedding themselves in the ground around them. With wave after wave of fire, the ground around the Seven Ring Spirit Envoys was filled with arrows, but around them, there was no trace of a single arrow.

"Waaaaah... waaaah... waaaah..."

The rhythmic horn blared once more, and this time, the knights finally spurred their horses and charged toward the girls before them.

While using two thousand cavalry to deal with seven girls might seem like overkill, they acted without hesitation, because they were facing no ordinary girls, but a terrifying enemy of the Magic Empire!

Faced with the charging knights, Nia, Beika, Yi Aier, and Suoxiate chose to retreat, while Miu'erkasi, Anna, and Kalin chose to step forward and take the lead.

Then, something astonishing happened.

The silver flames enveloping Miu'erkasi's entire body seemed to come alive as they rapidly gathered on her longsword. Then, Miu'erkasi gripped the sword with both hands, its long blade trailing on the ground, and swung it forcefully towards the charging army of knights.

With this fierce swing, silver flames immediately rose up like waves, surging forward. Under the barrier of these silver flames, the knights had no time to dodge. They could only grit their teeth and try to break through the strange waves of fire to continue their advance towards the enemy. However, they soon realized that their choice was completely wrong.

The silver flames devoured their armor, horses, and even their flesh in an instant. After being covered by this terrible silver fire, the knights had completely vanished without a trace, not even a bone or a fragment remained. This was the most powerful force of Holy Wrath, the Fire of Judgment, a flame that burns everything and can destroy all things.

The knights who faced Anna also met a tragic end.

The cold, icy light formed countless crisscrossing lines, slicing the knight and his horse to pieces. The girl's petite body merged with the dagger in her hand at a speed invisible to the naked eye, forming a deadly defensive line. Every knight who advanced was completely shredded before they even realized it, leaving only limbs scattered on the ground like broken puzzle pieces. Before the Gloomy Curse dagger, the knight's sturdy defense was utterly futile. The sharp and terrifying glint of God of Death precisely sliced through the joints, cutting off the most vulnerable and vulnerable parts of the human body, and displaying the presence of God of Death to everyone with absolute killing intent.

Compared to Anna and Miu'erkasi, Kalin was much gentler. Arrows shot with pinpoint accuracy into the knights' only vulnerable spot—their eyes—but none were aimed at the horses beneath them. These horses, as if sensing something amiss when facing the elves, automatically changed direction, and soon left the dead knights behind, disappearing into the depths of the plains.

The two-thousand-strong knightly force collapsed completely within minutes, leaving no survivors, and this was only the beginning.

After the knights charged, the infantry following behind quickened their pace. Even though the knights in front had been routed, the infantry behind did not panic. They shouted and raised their longswords, slashing at their target in unison. After all, there were only seven of them; as long as they slashed hard, they would surely succeed!

"Ignorant, foolish."

Responding to the soldiers' actions, Beika snorted coldly, then stretched out her hands, clenched them tightly, and then abruptly separated them.

With this action, all the soldiers' downward-slashing weapons were deflected, and several polygonal shields hovered in front of them. Unlike the magical protection cast by Nia, the Shield of Guardianship used her true ability. As the Shield of Guardianship of the Ringwraith City, no form of attack could succeed against Beika.

That's all.

With Beika's protection, Nia raised her staff. As she chanted incantations, dim yellow halos rippled outwards from her feet, and magical power quietly rose. The soldiers felt an immense pressure, as if a thousand pounds were falling from the sky, forcibly suppressing their movements. Their armor suddenly felt as heavy as a mountain, making it impossible for them to move even half a step.

When they looked up in surprise, confusion, and despair, all they saw was a flash of light in the sky.

Clear, yet terrifying.

Then, the terrifying energy transformed into a massive cannonball, blasting towards the ground.

After the thunderous roar and the dazzling flashes of light, brighter than the sun, disappeared, the land before them had long since turned into a dark, terrifying, bottomless cave.

"So weak."

Yi Aier had landed back on the ground, curled her lip, clearly not caring about an enemy of this level.

Why didn't they call for reinforcements?

Gazing at the bottomless cave before her, Kalin stretched and casually asked a question.

They didn't come to destroy us.

Miu'erkasi sheathed her longsword, her expression grave and serious.

"They're just here to stop us and make sure the city is prepared for defense."

"So, the real battle is yet to come?"

"The Five-Nation Alliance... they will all die..."

Staring at her blood-soaked dagger, Anna coughed and said softly.

"Well then, everyone, let's move on."

Nia lowered her staff, a smile on her face.

"Let the invaders of the Five-Nation Alliance know the power and terror of the Seven Ring Spirit Envoys. Let them repent for what they have done. Let them understand that nothing can stop our advance."

"For our great empire!"