Chapter 998 - 139: Advancing Triumphantly, Rout of the Enemy Forces (Part 3)
"Blazing Sun Knights! Charge with me!" Although Hilude’s Divine General form showed signs of fading due to the fierce battle tactics, her golden longsword, the [Beast Slayer], remained dazzlingly luminous. She relinquished her Divine General state, yet her heroic demeanor was undiminished, mounted a griffin, leading the charge like a golden arrow, spearheading the ready-leaning Hesse Guard Knights, directly soaring through the breach in the wide-open gates! A golden torrent instantly surged into Rapids Castle!
Oerstein’s fighting spirit remained undiminished as well. He swung his enormous warhammer, smashing into the crumbling walls, creating an even larger opening. The knights of Hesse Territory raised their battle banners high, marching in through the breach, unstoppable as a torrent.
A few of the most fanatical priests of Manan attempted the final sacrificial rite within the Divine Hall, resisting to the very end in their madness. But their chants were interrupted by the roaring intrusion of the Sun Goddess Knights. Oerstein’s warhammer, charged with wrathful fury against all desecration, savagely struck the altar’s core! Deep Sea runes shattered, the twisted leeches disintegrated into dust under the combined assault of the Holy Light and the physical impact of the warhammer. The old priest presiding over the ritual was torn apart by the flying debris and energy backlash.
The only disappointment was that the knights did not find any trace of Baron Grant, the Lord of Blue Mirror Territory. He didn’t choose a futile death when the gates fell but led a handful of knights still capable of fighting and thinking to retreat early through a secret waterway in the castle, preserving the last hope for Blue Mirror Territory.
Their Manan knights held a huge advantage between the river and waterway, vanishing into the depths without a trace. In the intervals when the Water Repelling Pearls couldn’t be used, the Sun Goddess Knights truly struggled to track them.
However, this issue was of lesser concern, as the main forces of Blue Mirror Territory were in Rapids Castle. When Hesse’s Divine General led troops into this place, Baron Grant single-handedly abandoned the army, and his main forces would ultimately become prisoners of the Hesse Territory. This victory for Su Li was comparable to the triumph at the Battle of Guandu, capturing over eighty thousand enemy troops. As for Baron Grant, who abandoned the army, he was merely surviving pitifully in his hideout, and Su Li could capture him sooner or later.
As the sun shone brightly, casting golden light over the bloody battlefield and the ruins of Rapids Castle, the battle was essentially over.
The Vermilion Banner of Hesse Territory replaced the tattered Sea Beast Banner atop the main tower of Rapids Castle, fluttering briskly in the morning breeze!
The soldiers, exhausted yet exhilarated, cleared the battlefield, extinguishing residual fires, and secured prisoners. Griffin and Flying Horse Knights circled and kept vigil over the castle. Dwarves began inventorying the spoils, especially those precious collections of the Manan Church, not wholly destroyed.
Su Li rode Aeliria, slowly descending onto the square before the main fortress of Rapids Castle. This place once gathered the Manan Son’s reserve forces, now littered with the bomb craters, collapsed buildings, and yet uncleared corpses and debris. Hilude, Oerstein, Demster, Dietrich, the four Divine Chosen Knights, along with Dorglin and others, gathered around. They bore the scars of battle, yet their spirits were high and vigorous. Just having won a critical decisive battle, the mighty army stood poised to sweep across Blue Mirror Territory; they were in their proud, domineering, and jubilant moment!
Su Li’s gaze swept across the battered but still standing castle, across the rushing Brionne River below, over the huge desolate relics being slowly washed away by the current, ultimately settling on the billowing Hesse Territory flag.
"Rapids Castle belongs to Hesse Territory now." His voice was calm yet carried a presence that stirred everyone, for it proclaimed the final outcome of this brutal campaign, also indicated that Hesse’s dominion in the Border Prince’s Territory had made a crucial, unshakable advance. After the bloody dawn, the Fiery Sun of Hesse rose prominently!
It was the moment everyone eagerly anticipated before the war began! For conquering Rapids Castle, defeating Blue Mirror Territory meant Hesse’s strength doubtlessly reached baron-level.
Even though everyone already acknowledged this internally.
But never underestimate the impact a war can have! Only war and victory can profoundly, indelibly directly change everyone’s perception, engrave strength and influence into everyone’s mind!
Just like before the 6:0, those with deep understanding knew Dongda’s capabilities were cliff-leap ahead. The radar’s performance was crushingly superior, the fighter jet’s capabilities far exceeded other countries. It was undoubtedly the strongest air supremacy fighter of the generation.
But regardless of how much instruction and explanation was given, presenting data a thousand times, ten thousand times, it was challenging to change the deeply entrenched impressions of those stubborn critics. They simply believed it was less capable, and others were stronger, even if data clearly showed Dongda’s superiority, with radar materials a generation ahead, radar components vastly outperforming others.
However, after the 6:0 triumph at Tianya, the tremendous shock and impact of victory instantly overturned everyone’s impression. A stride pushed human societal perceptions forward by a significant segment, surpassing reality by over ten years than before.
On Earth, even with rapid information exchange among humans, societal recognition and educational theory are still several years behind reality.
Much more so within this ignorant and dark Empire!
Even if Su Li already possessed baron-level capabilities, in reality, many people still viewed him as merely a Pioneer Lord. This applies not only to Baron Grant but to many knight clans and major landowners within Hesse.