Chapter 792: Split
The military base constructed beneath Dragon Spine roared to life as the soldiers of the Xaos Kingdom began fulfilling their duties with methodical precision. Every corridor echoed with purposeful footsteps, every chamber buzzed with orders transmitted through A.I.-linked comm systems.
A ten-thousand-strong strike force may have sounded impressive, and in many ways it was. But on a world as vast, hostile, and deeply entrenched as Exilon, it was little more than a speck of dust. That meant one thing, everybody had to do their part.
Every single man and woman in the Xaos army had a vital task. If even one faltered, the entire plan could crumble before it began.
In the command center at the heart of the Xaos Tower, the leaders of the invasion had gathered. Vlad, the True Depravita of Wrath, stood at the center of the strategy chamber, flanked by Jormungandr, Freya, Ouroboros, Fafnir, Overlord, and Grand Marshal Anglius.
Projected above the command table floated a shimmering holographic map of Exilon. Pulsing ley lines and energy nodes crisscrossed the continent, marking the world’s arcane arteries. Their mission was displayed in harsh, glowing red: three specific locations where Silence Towers would need to be constructed.
These towers, once activated, would generate a powerful anti-communication field, one capable of severing Exilon’s connection with the outside universe. Magic arrays, interstellar signals, spiritual transmissions—none of it would function within the towers’ radius. That would make the world blind and mute, cutting it off from the larger network of Zanis-controlled systems.
However, deploying such powerful devices came at a cost.
They consumed massive amounts of energy—far more than traditional arcane structures. For that reason, the towers could only be built atop powerful leyline intersections. The complication? Most of those intersections were already occupied by the Zanis military. Heavily fortified strongholds were erected atop them, making direct assault impossible without alerting the entire planetary defense grid.
Fortunately, imperial intelligence had identified three leyline nodes not currently under military control. Unfortunately, they came with their own deadly obstacles.
Each of the three sites was home to monstrous hordes—dense clusters of magical beasts, including Legendary-class entities. These creatures had claimed the regions as their territory, creating massive hunting grounds saturated with blood, predation, and primal energy. Wiping them out would be necessary to secure the sites, but it had to be done quietly.