Shadow of the Evil God

In front of the nest stood a series of immense, long horns. They pierced through the hazy drizzle and morning mist, piercing the bastions, lodging on platforms stained with rotting blood, and toppling the filthy city defense cannons below. This nest was like a ship on the road, intent on changing all the established rules of city defense through a continuous battle.

A horde of emaciated, shrunken hybrid beastmen burst out of the lair, stomping along its horns, howling as they rushed. Some appeared to be incompletely transformed, still bearing the physical features of humans. Then came the hordes of even taller hybrid beastmen. Their species, though chaotic and undefined, was still largely beasts. Some were as strong as bulls, capable of wielding tree trunks as weapons, while others had the physique of cats, running with remarkable agility.

If it weren't for the many shrunken appendages and howling faces on their bodies, like superfluous resentful spirits disturbing their mental thinking, perhaps they could also become a definable group of beastmen.

At the rear of the hybrids stood the vanguard of corpse-eaters, commanding their flesh puppets. Once the hybrids had reached the city walls, they grasped the iron spikes on their puppets' crowns and mounted the siege horns, like massive chariots. Large swarms of flesh puppets clung to the bastions. By this point, the city gates were practically useless. The good news was that many had fallen while breaking through the artillery fire, and then were crushed to pieces by the nests, thus reducing their numbers.

The first artillery fire hurled itself at the Great Nest, the heavy guns atop the inner city's towers. The scattering of shrapnel was widespread, sweeping over the walls with unstoppable force, sweeping through the horde of evil creatures and tearing them into bloody fragments that drifted in the morning mist. The horns blared again and again, urging the men to hold the line. The nest now stood at the edge of the city walls, casting a massive shadow over the city like a beast from a nightmare. A frantic howl echoed from the towering towers, crowding towards the fortress walls.

As the battlefront approached, the inner city's defense artillery gradually rose, blasting the massive towers that clustered within the lair. These structures, already teetering under the onslaught, collapsed and fell among the beasts. However, the beasts paid no heed. Diana knew this was not surprising. For the beastmen, death was not a matter of concern; even life itself was but a ritual offering to the gods.

Though daylight had arrived, the sky grew darker. A thick crimson mist enveloped the highest tower in the center of the lair and spread outward, clearly intent on disturbing the souls and minds of the people. By this time, the hybrid had rushed to the edge of the blood-stained wall, so close that a sharp claw could cut through the mud and plaster that solidified with the rotten blood and touch the arms and spears that clung to the wall, unconcerned with the rotten blood.

Diana heard the blast of musketry and saw spears thrust forward. Through her soul's eye, she also saw the Beastmen shamans unleash a wave of activity within the towers of their lair. The mages' confrontation would come sooner than expected. Fortunately, the school's wandering mages had already arrived at the fortress and had made extensive preparations for positional warfare.

The problem was that the fortress's lord had disappeared without a trace. She frowned, thinking that she had to go to the agreed location to check on him. Furthermore, she had to bring him back with the Faceless One.

If Cesar fails to reach the battlefield in time, even if they can win, his status and reputation will be greatly questioned.

......

Trisius reined in his horse at the top of the hill and gazed at the magnificent corpse-eater's lair in the distance. The roar of artillery fire continued, sounding from this spot like thunder from the depths of the earth, but the lair had already crashed into the fortress wall with unstoppable force, piercing the long sharp horns used for stringing.

He witnessed a subversive siege, and it must be said that the scene was quite intoxicating.

Chapter 319: Starlight

Trisius glanced at the magnificent elite army flanking him. He instinctively turned around, searching for Laelius. Sadly, Laelius wasn't there; he appeared to be meeting up with the scouts. Still, exchanging information with the scouts who had arrived earlier would help him better determine the timing of his move.

The importance of this matter is like drawing a bow and aiming it at a beast that is pouncing on you during hunting.

He removed his helmet and brushed his sweat-stained blond hair back, contemplating the opportune moment and the rapidly shifting landscape. This location, perched atop a hill, offered a gentle slope and smooth path below. The terrain should have been ideal for a cavalry charge, but the road leading to the fortress had been destroyed, surely by Artinia's orders. Fortunately, the massive hive of corpse-eaters had rolled over the damaged ground, filling many of the trenches with flesh puppets fallen in the artillery fire, making it possible to march.

Looking south from the intersection of the fortress and the lair, one could glimpse the outline of the mountainside. Between the two peaks lay a broad, flat road. A river, capable of carrying numerous cargo ships, cascaded down from the mountains, stretching as far as the eye could see. It was this river that supported the Gural Fortress's presence and the transport and flow of all materials—not just military supplies, but even commerce.

Trisius nodded slightly. Undoubtedly, what Olidan hadn't yet done was precisely what he was waiting for once he took control of the fortress. If the military threat weren't a consideration, this place was a perfect commercial route, connecting his empire to the Southern Kingdom.

Whatever Fortress Neuen could accomplish, they could certainly do too. The trade route from Auridan to the Kasar Empire would begin here, surpassing not only the trade routes of the steppe barbarians in importance but also gradually eclipsing the trade routes between the Kingdom of Dominion and the Chancellor. All of this presupposed his possession of this land.

For many years, Gural Fortress had served as a vital military stronghold defending the borders of Uridan. However, if he were to seize the fortress and forge an alliance with the nobles of Uridan, it would become a trading hub between north and south. Trisius would naturally desire to become its rightful lord. More importantly, they would need the city in their future conquests of the Heanrian territories, ensuring the safety of their army as it marched eastward.

As a necessary place to pass through, there is no better target for conquest. The empire's territory is too vast, and the distance from west to east is not something that can be reached by a cavalry charge.

"You need to assign some of our soldiers to the shamans who will defend against the corpse eaters, as well as the mages of the Yesterlen School." The old mage of the Xisai School suddenly came to Trisius's side. Although the prince maintained a calm demeanor, he clenched his secret stone ornament in his hand.

"Are you going to fight alone?" Trisius asked.

"No, it's just that your soldiers won't come to our defense, that's all. If they deploy measures against the mages, and we're left unprotected, you won't see the ghoul nests succumb to molten flames, or the fortress walls crumble and sag, leaving gaps for cavalry charges. If we get close enough to gain a foothold, those bastions will be nothing but fragile, tedious manifestations of your mundane warfare."

"You always speak so exaggeratedly? I know you're using rhetoric, old man. Don't think I don't understand your war magic."

"Did they tell you that the temple allowed us to use magic freely? At least in this war involving beastmen?"

"I doubt anyone knows," Trisius said, "but I know the cost of those spells is extraordinary, untold even in the history books. Do you think it's worth it?"

“Nothing is worthwhile until we achieve our ultimate goal.”

"An ancient hatred?"

The old wizard nodded in agreement. "This also has something to do with your Grand Master," he added.

"I don't mind discussing this." Trisius smiled at the old man in the red robe. "You should know that not every sect in the Holy Temple is loyal to Grand Master Ferriers."

He ordered his officers to dispatch a group of men to protect the Hisai School, then gazed southward toward the valley. It was a passageway from ancient times, with perfect terrain and reliable waterways. Both north and south lay vast forests and mines. It was a pity that it had never been fully utilized. In his view, it should have been the cornerstone of a unified empire.

......

Cesar struggled to describe what he saw. Perhaps he should have called it a person, perhaps even the only one he had seen in the city. However, it wasn't entirely human, and he couldn't even pinpoint its gender. He guessed it was cursed, looking like two people cut apart and glued together into one body.

As time went by, its head had split in half like a Venus flytrap. On the left side of its neck was half a majestic male head, and on the right was half a pale, skinny female head, with many bloody threads of flesh sticking to each other, like cheese that was still pulling apart after being torn apart.

Although the city itself showed no signs of the passage of time, Cesar saw the passage of time clearly within it. It must have sat there for a long time, its skin wrinkled and dry due to the thin air, and its cohesive body was also pulling apart. Perhaps in many years, it would completely split in two.

The male on the left is muscular, even

He was only slightly taller than Cesar now, perhaps a noble with Kuna blood. The woman on the right was also tall, slender compared to the burly man to her side, and one could see the traces of her icy, delicate flesh before her body dried. If it were Cesar just waking from the altar, she would surely have held him in her arms like a child.

The two men looked quite strange, not even wearing any clothes, only draped in an old, woven blanket. However, Cesar didn't bother to remove the blanket, much less to see how wrinkled it was. The left half of the man's head still had some remnants of black hair, making him look very French, while the right half had a lighter green. To be honest, Cesar had only seen this hair color on Diana, and it wasn't inherited from human blood, but from the fey blood she had acquired through her school.

Although he didn't want to remove the tapestry, Cesar saw marks on its wrists, as if a buckle had been binding it there, now broken. There was also a strap around its neck that held the two halves of its head together, barely keeping them attached instead of tearing to the left and right and falling to the ground under the bench.

Soin had seen life and death before, yet this scene still terrified him. Cesar, however, was more concerned with its connection to Diana's ancestors. Although the Yesterlen School had been forced to flee, unable to remain in Itris and facing the war between schools initiated by the Xisai School, they once seemed to have held a high status, having produced a Grand Master of Ferriers and possessing close ties to the former Frank Empire.

Was the man on the left the emperor of the Franks back then? Cesar didn't dare to make a hasty judgment. If so, then the person who had bonded them together was worth studying.

He observed the table and chairs for a while and actually found traces of a meal in front of it.

"It..." Soyin pointed at the glued-together people, "It seems to have lived for a while. It lived for a while just like it is now. Do you think they could have..."

Cesar stared at its wrinkled cheeks and wondered if it was really done by the two of them, could it be considered a manifestation of some extreme love?

"People are different," he said, shaking his head. "It's absurd that such a glued-together evil could survive through magic. If the magic that created it is passed down, then each of us may face similar horrors."

"Do you think people trapped it here, or did it trap itself here?"

"If it's the former, it means it's gone mad. The man on the left should have been a noble, and the woman on the right doesn't look ordinary. Yet, the union of two intelligent beings could only create such a twisted monster. As for the latter, I can only say it must have realized it was no longer suitable for this world. In its final years, it trapped itself in this deserted city, awaiting death. This place is the grave it prepared for itself."

"Grave..." she muttered.

"A grave actually has many meanings, one of which is dying in the place you most desired in life. But we don't know who it belongs to, or what happened there. Regardless, it's just a shrunken corpse."

Cesar looked around the house they were in, then peered out the window. Through the swirling clouds high above, he saw the massive statues in the city's mid-levels transformed—not just the illusions he'd seen in his trance, but they had truly changed. The armored knight, towering like a tower, twisted his helmet halfway around, facing the path they were passing. And then, Thorin saw it too.

"There's someone on the road!" she whispered in his ear.

Cesar picked up his binoculars and spotted the ants snaking along the winding road. They had to be monks from Sagaros or the Templar. One of them practically leaped over the building's outer wall, reminding him of the invisible assassin he'd warned him about at the edge of the battlefield. Cesar blinked, and the man had already crossed the distance he'd covered an hour ago, standing on the sword-gripping fingers of a statue.

The next moment, he saw a flash of strong light like a falling star, falling with a dazzling blue glow, piercing the man almost from head to toe.

The starlight instantly caused the monk to glow from within, shattering like broken pottery and scattering in all directions. He saw that each fragment was eerily alive. On one shimmering cheek, eyes blinked, while on another, a mouth slowly opened and closed. Cesar remembered that he had originally wanted to touch the statue, and a wave of doubt seized him.

He now understood why this silent city was spotless and uninvaded. But the question was what should he do now?

Chapter 320 War Spells

......

"I don't care what your sweetheart does, Diana."

Just as Diana had expected, Bernadette remained unmoved. Her mother extended her frost-covered arms, brushing against the blood-stained window. The tainted blood there quickly froze before their eyes, transforming into rosy ice crystals that blocked the window's cracks. She had been immersed in the potion's influence for too long and too deeply. Over time, minor, alien blood had surfaced within her, obscuring not only her true appearance but also, to a significant degree, her soul, her thoughts, and the very fabric of her magic.

Things are really crazy.

"In any case, I hope you can take over the magical confrontation on my behalf, mother," Diana said. "Before that, I need to find Cesar's whereabouts. You also saw the giant tower on the corpse-eater's lair, right?"

Diana pointed toward the city wall. Their gaze followed the window, past the inner city, past the buildings splattered with blood and remains, past the chaotic battles on the outer walls and the massive horns, all the way to the corpse-eaters' lair. From the massive tower at the center of the lair, a swirling red mist emanated, spreading outward, gradually obscuring the sky and making everything appear dark and terrifying. If she was right, when this mist descended, it would profoundly disrupt people's thoughts and emotions.

Even into madness.

From where they looked, the fighting remained stalemated. The bastions had, to a certain extent, prevented the nest from completely crashing into the city walls. Otherwise, those massive horns would have extended further, passing through the city walls and directly onto the outer city buildings. Currently, the nest's horns were only on the edge of the wall, allowing soldiers to stand on the wall to hold off the enemy, rather than engaging in chaotic street fighting in the crowded streets and houses.

But before the beastman shaman could act, the tower at the center of the hive began to burn like a chimney, spewing out increasingly dense red mist. A vast vortex in the sky shone with an evil light, its nature almost self-evident. The city gates were meaningless, for this was essentially a battle of land and boats, with flesh golems clinging to the outer walls like they were emerging from the sea.

Those horns abutting the tops of the city walls were the wooden bridges between the warships. A dark mass of beastmen gathered in their nests, rushing towards the soldiers' raised spears. Wave after wave of blood.

Passing behind the nest, she sensed something else in the distance.

Diana considered it for a moment, then activated the revelation spell she had cast many days earlier. Soon, she gained a bird's-eye view from a mountaintop far removed from the battlefield. Although she had set the revelation spell at a considerable distance, resulting in a surprisingly small scale given the spell's concealment, she still spotted the organizing army and the red-robed figure.

"The Hisai School has arrived with Clefas' army." Bernadette tilted her head. "Considering that the Corpse Eaters are closer to them, they're the obstacle we need to break through first. We have to use spells unrelated to the school first. That way, we won't be discovered. Just pretend you're a wandering wizard. Coincidentally, the fortress is full of people who travel all year round."

Mother was right. As long as the identity of the Yestren School was not exposed, the Xisai School would deal with the corpse eaters and their shamans first.

"I will give you all the techniques I've prepared recently," Diana said to her. "Also, if you can see that person in my testing ground... well, did you see him?"

"I saw it," Bernadette replied. "After all, she is my ancestor, as recorded in the school. I naturally know how to get along with her."

"I hope so." Diana sighed. "There are some things I can't explain for the time being. You can ask her."

Actually, it was a good thing. Recently, apart from her and Cesar, no one else could contact Firth, not even Brother Mira. Even Bernadette now was still a face that could talk to Firth.

Unfortunately, the conversation between her and her daughter remained the same, emotionless and uneventful, like a meeting between two strangers. Even when their eyes met, hers was blank, empty.

......

Altinia wandered beneath the dim, blood-red sky, pondering the shifting battlefield situation and observing the symbols lingering across it. Soon, she discovered another sign that could shake up the situation: an army suddenly appeared behind the lair. Everything was already dark and eerie, and their presence was even harder to see beneath the blood-red fog. From where she stood, she could barely make out a small, mottled stain, creeping along the rolling hills.

If they were Old Cleface's army, their numbers were actually small, but if they were support forces from the Grand Temple, considering the overall quality and current size of the Temple Knights, they were far too numerous. She saw this army split into several groups, initially attempting to approach the fortress via the mountain roads. However, upon witnessing the horrific landslides caused by bombardment and heavy rain, they abandoned the mountain roads and advanced along the main road that ran past the Ghoul's lair.

Later, not only she, but also the lookouts and officers on the towers saw them. The first group was the imperial cavalry guarding the border. They wore silver armor with gray robes, and their features were not very obvious, in order to reflect the simple attitude of old Clifas. When they reached the edge of the artillery bombardment, their soldiers began to deploy

Positions were taken, fortifications were built, and protective trenches and earthen slopes were quickly piled up.

At the same time, some people wearing unusually bright and eye-catching clothing walked out from behind the hills, walking into the military position with blood-red hair. From their sudden appearance to their complete obscurity by the fortifications, only a few minutes had passed.

Except for the soldiers on the city wall who were still fighting with the beastmen, all the soldiers who witnessed this scene began to talk, and a series of rumors quickly spread until everyone began to speculate about the purpose of the imperial army.

Some said they came to aid the fortress against the beastmen. Altinia noticed that many of these people were related to Brother Keith, representing a group inclined to serve the Empire and even to kneel before Clefas. Others said they were taking advantage of the situation and had ill intentions. Altinia also noticed that these people were not only Frank peasants, but also refugees who had previously joined her brother.

As if responding to the soldiers' arguments, a long line of molten fire suddenly extended from the Imperial position, slowly passing through the bottom of the corpse-eaters' lair and reaching the outer wall of the fortress. It was almost as wide as a river. Even at this distance, the roar of the earth tearing apart was still so clear that even the towers within the city trembled slightly.

It was a war spell—the mages of the Hisai school wanted to use the defeat of the beastmen as an excuse to destroy the defenders in the city and the outer walls of the fortress.

Chapter 321 Chasing the Stars

The defenders who witnessed this scene initially cheered, then quickly turned to horror. The tearing of the earth began at the farthest end of the molten line. Glittering lava erupted in the distance, shooting up into the sky like a fountain, then shattered and disintegrated in the blazing liquid fire, transforming into a burning crimson dust cloud. The horrific molten eruption continued along the long line, passing the corpse-eater's nest in a single breath and reaching the outer wall of the fortress, washing over the people and beasts on the top of the wall.

The soldiers immediately fell into panic. Was it an accident? Or was it intentional?

A corner of the lair that had crashed into the city wall was engulfed in a cloud of burning dust. Not only did the beastmen cough and fall, screaming and rolling on the ground with their fur all over their bodies, but many soldiers were also unable to dodge. The soldiers on the side were burned, and the ones at the front had already turned into charred flesh and hissing bones.

Altinya discovered that more molten lines were extending from the Empire's fortified army formations, passing through the bottom of the corpse-eaters' nests and climbing up the city walls, like marks of death.

Not only was the ground shaking under the molten fire, but the tower atop the lair also emitted a violent roar. While the corpse-eater shamans were still preparing their spells, the Xisai School had already brought their violent intentions to destroy everything. Unlike the corpse-eaters, they didn't even need to leave behind flesh and bones as supplies for their puppets—all the aftermath could be left to Clefas.

Altinia realized that these Origin Society mages didn't care about anything, and didn't want to consider anything. She had to gather a force to attack the mages' army.

The leader who allowed the Xisai School to act must be crazy.

.......

"It's been a long time since that dream was forced to end." A deep voice came from the distance, causing a rumbling echo. "Do you remember my invitation, Cesar? You can reforge your soul and body in the furnace - I don't mind what you were in the past."

As he spoke, a cold, heavy rain began to fall outside, hissing as it hit the blazing shell of something before evaporating into mist. Cesar reached out and grasped the hilt of his sword, leading Soin back toward where she was going. It wasn't far away, just a corridor away.

"So what's bothering you?" Cesar said, trying to calm himself. "Someone told me that in the temple, even for someone like you, entering someone's dreams comes at a price, and reaching reality is unimaginably high. I didn't realize I was so important."

"You have wisdom, Cesar. You need not be so servile to me. You and I both know the reasons for this."

Cesar led Soin to push the door open a little, then stepped back into the corridor, his steps light. "If you were to tell me I have a bright future worthy of your actions, I would be honored, Your Excellency."

"I saw you expressing your love for that petite phantom in my dream. You always seem to fall in love with phantoms and things that shouldn't exist in this world," the man said. "Look at how filthy you are now, Cesar. You're like a slave, sacrificing your life and soul for some phantom."

He stepped back. "I must tell you, Your Excellency, this is my personal virtue. My personal virtue has nothing to do with other people's opinions. For example, I'm very good at fulfilling other people's unfulfilled wishes, and I do it just because I want to, without asking for anything. For someone in deep distress, this is truly commendable, don't you think? Moreover, if I want to do something, I will do it to the end, because the person in deep distress and I are no longer strangers who have just met."

"These things make you weak," the man said with regret. "If you accept the test of the furnace, they will become the slag and settle out of you."

"And then you become those ridiculous Holmunks? Those little puppets wandering around with chaotic desires and broken emotions? Have you ever thought that they were originally part of your soul? Isn't the pathetic and pitiful look of those Holmunks what you see when you look in the mirror?"

"How interesting! I've heard you're good at discussing philosophy and scriptures. After we're done with this, you and I can discuss philosophy in the Crucible until the end of time."

"It's just a part of my life. I have no intention of making it my whole life."

"Then hand over that little thing on your shoulder, Cesar. I'm not here for you."

"She's mine," Cesar said, still retreating. "I picked her up from the edge of the abyss and adopted her. Now I'm her adoptive father. Why are you taking her away from me?"

"If she is yours," the man said, "why were you not born when she was no longer alive?"

"The passage of time can be entangled in a circle, and the order of cause and effect can be reversed. Nothing must conform to common sense."

"All of this is just your conjecture, Cesar—you didn't witness time forming a loop with your own eyes. Even if someone did, you only happened to pass by and notice it, then reach out and grab it. This isn't your destiny. Why do you think you understand everything just by seeing a little bit of it? Do you think you're saving people? Do you think your salvation won't lead to a greater disaster?"

"

Am I not here to save her soul? Am I also to save everything I can see and everything I cannot see?"

Cesar heard the heavy sound of the wind, and the man seemed to be slowly emerging - perhaps he had not yet fully arrived at reality?

The man's voice seemed to grow closer. He was approaching, but slowly. The city was holding him back. "You've abandoned real beings to offer a phantom salvation, Cesar. Your ideas are as irrational as those of the mad beastmen," he said.

"My actions do not require rational judgment." Cesar said in a deep voice.

"Rational judgment is our mission, Cesar, just as superstition is your essence. Wearing a mask of skepticism cannot conceal the absurdity of your actions. I think that even if the White Nightmare wears a pitiful mask, it can make you risk your life for it, am I right?"

There must be something at the end of the corridor that can change the status quo.

"Is the whole world just a series of events that follow a rational path? Hasn't it occurred to you that there's some other meaning to it?"