A different world game? A different world game!

Above Fortress Anvil-7, a flurry of purplish-black fragments, like a bizarre rain of flesh and blood, were falling from a height of 100 meters.

The shadows converged again, outlining Annabelle's slender yet slightly weary figure.

She hovered in mid-air, her dark purple eyes calmly scanning the area below.

Just as she expected, each piece of these remains, originating from the legendary level thirteen void behemoth "City Eater," was imbued with a rich, corrosive void energy.

Once it lands, it will be like a boulder thrown into a still lake, instantly creating a pollution storm on the material level and stimulating all the surrounding low-level void creatures to go berserk.

If these hundreds of tons of debris were evenly scattered within a kilometer of the fortress, the damage would be no different from having an entire corpse smashed against the city wall.

The order barrier on the outer wall of the fortress had been damaged in the previous attack, and the purification array under the foundation could not possibly handle such a high concentration and large area of ​​pollution in a short time.

"Right now."

The fortress commander's voice was clearly transmitted through the data communication network to the newly vacated third mage tower.

At the top of the tower, five high-ranking mages dressed in dark blue robes and with synergy spellcasting crystals embedded in their foreheads were already in place.

They simultaneously raised their staffs, the tips pointing towards the rain of falling corpses in the sky, their chanting in unison, carrying a certain ancient and magnificent rhythm.

"Whoosh—Boom!!"

It was not offensive magic, but rather a directional super airflow created by using pure magical power to manipulate the rules of the atmosphere.

A brilliant bluish-white light burst forth from the top of the mage tower, and a translucent air wall, visible to the naked eye and wider than the front of the fortress, suddenly formed, pushing forward with overwhelming force!

The wind howled fiercely in an instant, its power so great that it temporarily drowned out the sounds of fighting from other directions on the battlefield.

While the gale itself lacked direct lethality and could not tear apart the shells of void creatures, its coverage and propulsive force reached a strategic level.

The fragments of the colossal beast, which had not yet landed, were swept up and accelerated by the overwhelming gale, like withered leaves in autumn winds, and flew rapidly towards the northeast, far from the fortress—towards the depths of the "Black Swamp Zone," which had long been completely eroded by the void and devoid of any life.

In just a few breaths, the sky cleared up.

The pollution source, which was originally a threat that was very close at hand, was forcibly moved more than ten kilometers away.

At this distance, the localized pollution caused by the debris landing is no longer a substantial threat to the node fortresses that possess order barriers and purification systems.

At most, it will only make the environment for subsequent reconnaissance missions more challenging.

A precise and efficient handling of the aftermath was thus completed.

Annabelle transformed into a faint shadow, instantly sweeping across the city wall and solidifying again on the observation platform outside the command tower.

She reached out and touched the runic railing beside her, her fingertips turning slightly white, her already pale face appearing even paler now.

Although the entire assassination process was seamless, from leaping through the shadows and exploiting weaknesses to the final dismemberment, the massive city-devourer seemed powerless before her, like a beast waiting to be slaughtered. But this was ultimately just an appearance.

In order to achieve "instant kill" in a very short time and prevent the behemoth from entering the kilometer range that poses the greatest threat to the fortress, she maintained "absolute penetration" and "shadow assimilation" at the rule level almost the entire time, which consumed an astonishing amount of spiritual power and mental energy.

The original design intent of the node fortress was to use its interconnectivity to divide, delay, and consume swarms of ordinary void creatures, rather than to confront this legendary behemoth whose individual destructive power is comparable to a mobile catastrophe head-on.

Once it gets close, the fortress's shields and walls are indeed at risk of being breached in a single blow in the face of that level of attack.

“Lady Annabelle,” the commander stepped forward quickly, his face filled with respect and concern, “your energy expenditure…do you need to use Soul Crystals to recover immediately?”
"In addition, the city devourers are still advancing from the other five directions. Do you have the capacity to provide support?"

Annabelle shook her head slightly, her voice carrying a shadowy, ethereal quality, yet exceptionally clear: "No need. Other 'Soul Keepers' squads are handling the other areas. Trust the command's plans."

She paused, her gaze seemingly passing through the city walls to the distant, data-driven battlefield in the void.

The command center has 73 full-time tactical simulation engineers, more than 400 real-time data sensing nodes, and macroscopic scanning of the 'all-domain eye'.

In addition, there are fully real-time maps.

All information can be accurately gathered and sent.

Their information exchange is instantaneous, and their deductions are based on all currently known variables.

And it can react instantly.

Therefore, the instructions issued by the command center are, in most cases, a set of the 'optimal solutions' for dealing with the current situation.

Those who receive the mission should only execute it and, within their authority, fine-tune tactical details based on the situation on the ground.

Never question the overall plan or take it upon yourself to fill what you 'believe' are loopholes.

Even those currently handling tasks are providing real-time information to the command center.

The intelligence gathered on-site had already been transmitted back to the command center.

Therefore, the command center has also discovered the problem.

If you can't get it resolved, then don't try to resolve it.

This is the ironclad rule among the Night's Watch, an absolute principle of trust built up through countless battles and missions.

The war over the past few months has repeatedly proven this.

Any action that deviates from the system and acts arbitrarily—even if well-intentioned—often creates blind spots in the data chain, disrupts the overall rhythm, and ultimately requires more resources to rectify.

And those who most need to have this point repeatedly emphasized are precisely those legendary powerhouses who are not from the Night's Watch system, but rather "outsiders".

Legends cultivated by the Night's Watch themselves, such as Calvin, Annabelle, and even the commanders of various fortresses, have relatively short promotion times, and their power stems from data-driven rules and the allocation of collective resources.

They have long since deeply understood and integrated into this highly coordinated war machine.

They are powerful, but they do not have the "high and mighty" attitude of traditional legendary strongmen who regard ordinary people as ants and are accustomed to acting according to their own will.

In contrast, some legends come from other continents, ancient ethnic groups, or have independent lineages.

They possess long lifespans and an inherent understanding of power, often placing more trust in personal experience and authority, and harboring resistance or disdain for "obeying the commands of mortal commanders."

Their strength may be considerable, but in Aegira's current defense system, which relies heavily on overall coordination, this mentality could become a more dangerous hidden danger than a lack of strength.

Therefore, "obeying orders and trusting the system" became a principle that had to be emphasized before every battle for all legendary warriors who were not direct descendants of the Night's Watch, and even required mandatory contractual constraints.

With such efficient execution and absolute coordination, on the first day the Second Void Gate opened, the seven legendary Void Beasts, the "City Eaters," which had been aggressively attacking the six major node fortresses, were all defeated or killed before sunset that day.

This was undoubtedly a major victory that boosted morale.

The Night's Watch command's logic has always been clear: the most troublesome threats, those with the greatest potential for immediate disruption, must be eliminated with the highest priority and the fastest speed. However, the joy of victory did not last long.

The City Devourers were merely the first "spearhead" to emerge after the gate opened. Following closely behind was an endless army of new void creatures, seemingly pouring out from the massive, inverted mountain-like gate.

They come in a wide variety of types, working in synergy, combining aerial units with ground behemoths, and also include a large number of specialized units capable of disrupting energy flow and releasing area-of-effect mental shocks.

The intensity, density, and tactical nature of their offensive far surpassed the scattered monster hordes that had previously infiltrated through the rifts.

Faced with this suddenly escalating torrent, the northern defense line of the Bestar continent is under unprecedented pressure.

Based on the contingency plan and real-time battle damage assessment, the Supreme Command decisively issued an order.

The first phase of strategic contraction was implemented three days ahead of schedule.

After inflicting some casualties on the pursuing enemy, the defending troops in several forward areas retreated in an orderly manner to the second reserve line of defense, relying on pre-set traps and obstructive fortifications.

This order was tactically wise, but it also compressed the defensive depth of the Bestar continent, suddenly increasing the pressure on the entire continent's defenses.

The purple edge of the occupied zone is advancing at a significantly faster pace.

……

A week later.

Located in the north-central part of the Bestar continent, the "Cliff-6" fortress.

This area has now become part of the new frontline zone.

Outside the city walls, the once undulating hilly area is now shrouded in a faint, ominous purple halo, a sign of the slow infiltration and erosion of void energy.

The battle has not yet broken out on a large scale, but sporadic Void creatures that have slipped through the front lines have begun to appear.

Behind the crenellations of the city wall, an orc captain with soft brown rabbit ears had just used a heavy flail to smash a purplish-black void creature, resembling an enlarged centipede, down from the wall as it attempted to climb it.

He took a breath and leaned against the cold brick wall to rest for a while.

The current attack frequency is still within the range that the defending forces can easily handle.

But there was no sign of relief on his furry face, and his usually alert rabbit ears drooped listlessly behind his head, making him look worried.

"Captain, what's wrong? You were pretty efficient just now."

A younger member of the cat-human team came over and handed over half a pot of water.

The rabbit-man captain took the water bottle, but didn't drink. He just sighed and looked towards the northern horizon, which seemed to be forever shrouded in a light purple mist.

"Based on the information provided by the Night Watch, our 'Cliff' sequence of fortresses should have at least a ten-day buffer period before we begin engaging the enemy."

"now what?"

He pointed to the scattered purplish-black figures outside the city, "See? The pressure has already been transmitted. It's all because of that damned 'door,' which happens to be located to our north."

The cat-man team members followed his gaze and fell silent.

This is an obvious fact that cannot be refuted.

"Damn it, what bad luck," the rabbit captain couldn't help but mutter under his breath, his rabbit ears twitching slightly with his emotions.

"Why is the second door located in Bestar of all places?"
"In terms of strength, the continent of Tate has the Elf race in charge. They were once the overlords, with unfathomable strength. I heard that the number of legendary powerhouses accounts for 30% of the World Alliance!"
"If you're going to tackle something, shouldn't you start with the toughest challenges? Why are you coming after us first?"

His voice was filled with incomprehension and a sense of resentment that his homeland would soon suffer even more.

He simply wanted to vent his frustrations.

The cat-man team members next to him also sighed, and the atmosphere became somewhat somber.

For these warriors who originated from the continent of Bestar, joining the World Alliance was to defend their homeland, and naturally they hoped that their continent could hold out for as long as possible.

The opening of the void gate here signifies that the countdown to the fall of their homeland has been accelerated considerably.

This has nothing to do with right or wrong; it's just the simplest and most genuine emotion.

Not far away, a squad of Night's Watch soldiers who were repairing the crossbows on the wall heard the conversation.

The leader was a human sergeant. He paused slightly, exchanged a glance with his comrade, and finally sighed almost inaudibly before continuing his work.

They understand this feeling.

The Night's Watch rose from Leviathan, and its members come from various races and continents. Their primary goal is to maintain the overall survival of the world of Aegir, and their vision is global.

And this state of affairs has persisted for a long time among the races within the Night's Watch.

But the World Alliance consists mostly of warriors like these rabbit-men and cat-men soldiers, who come from specific kingdoms, tribes, or continents, and fight to protect their specific homelands.

Such concerns, comparisons, and even minor complaints based on geographical location are perfectly normal human emotions when facing the pressure of the survival of one's homeland, and no one can stand on moral high ground to criticize anything.

"Cheer up, everyone! What kind of look is this, hanging your heads like that!"

A loud voice broke the brief silence.

The fortress commander—a dwarf with an anvil and mountain emblem branded on his shoulder armor—strode up the city wall.

He looked around, his gaze lingering for a moment on the faces of the local soldiers, his expression stern yet warm.

"We just received a report from 'Deep Rock Eye'!"

The dwarf commander raised his voice to make sure every soldier on every section of the wall could hear him.

"A large number of void creature clusters have completed their integration in the frontal area. It is expected that the main force will reach our 'cliff' defense line as early as half a day, or at the latest by dawn tomorrow!"
"Now is not the time to figure out where the door is, it is the time to grip your weapons tightly! Check your equipment, reinforce the fortifications, and the mage corps, begin enchanting your arrows!"

"For Bestar, and for the homeland behind you, give it your all!"

His roar, like a war drum, dispelled some of the confusion and low spirits.

The soldiers straightened their backs as if by reflex, and the rabbit-man captain shook his head, perked up his droopy ears, regained the sharpness of a warrior in his eyes, and gripped the flail handle tightly.

On the city walls, the brief silence was replaced by a more tense and focused pre-battle atmosphere.

In the distance, the purple hues of the North seemed to have deepened even further. (End of Chapter)