Chapter 128: War is coming
DING!
~----~
[You have leveled up to Level 44!]
...
[You have leveled up to Level 45!]
...
After 3 days of slaughter, Julian leveled up twice.
By now, the figures being displayed in his EXP counter were so much that he didn’t even bother to pay attention to them anymore.
To him, it didn’t matter how much the EXP counter grew, what mattered was that he was getting strong enough to keep on fighting Qi Beasts to gain even more EXP than the figures being displayed at the counter.
And just like expected, after leveling up to Level 45 finally, Julian took his final step as a C Rank Adept Mage as he unlocked his final 2 skills at this Rank.
...
[Congratulations! You have unlocked the two Level 45 Adept Mage Skills: Qi Missiles & Qi Explosion!]
>Qi Missiles: When activated, you can conjure 5 heat-seeking missiles or motion-sensor Qi missiles to deal dual physical and mental damage.
>Qi explosion: When activated and charged, you can conjure a powerful Qi explosion and blast.
~----~
Julian exhaled as sitting on top a rock with the Hell Piercer still in his grasp, he stared at the expanse of snow that was around him.
The expanse was littered with an ocean of blood and mutilated flesh.
This was the result of 3 days of slaughter.
’2 level ups...’ he thought.
Julian wondered how long it was going to take him to finally take the big step forward to become a B Rank Mage.
Compared to every other Awakened in the world, his growth speed since his awakening was broken, literally. Theodore’s growth speed was even more ridiculous, but unlike other Awakened, Julian simply didn’t have the luxury of taking it easy.
He was Level 45 already at record time, yet Julian felt like it was not fast enough.
This was simply because of the silent weight on his shoulders and the pressure that was always constantly pressing on him.
This was because of the caliber of enemies that he had.
’Necessity really births invention’. He thought.
Without his enemies silently putting pressure on him to get strong as fast as possible, Julian was sure that he would have never grown this fast.
Talking of fast growth, he inclined his head and finally looked at Theodore who was now roasting the meat of a massive Boar-type Qi Beast on top a fire that she started a while ago.
Just like him, she was absolutely tired after 3 days of non-stop slaughter in the 50th level of Dragon’s Tooth.
But compared to him, she grew even more.
3 days ago, Theodore was a Level 48 Witch but after the slaughter that pushed the both of them to their limit, she leveled up twice just like him and was now a Level 50 B Rank Witch.
Theodore became a Level 50 B Rank Awakened in less than 2 weeks!
Her growth speed was nothing short of terrifying.
Leveling up from Level 43 to Level 45 simply could not be compared to leveling up from Level 48 to Level 50, the difference in EXP requirements was like heaven and earth.
And yet, with her unique talent, Theodore managed to do it in just 3 days, becoming a B Rank Witch.
She did it mid-battle earlier this morning.
Julian quietly looked at her, quietly patting himself on the back for the abrupt decision he made to spare her life.
If he groomed her well, Theodore had the potential to become one of his most terrifying Lieutenants in his quest to survive the trials of this world.
’I wonder what it feels like to be a B Rank Awakened and choose a Class Specialization,’ he thought. ’Is it instinctual or you have conscious control over what Class Specialization you’ll choose?’
He couldn’t ask Theodore all of this though. Afterall, to her, he was Lord Zaratul who knew far more than her.
Asking something like that would damage his image in her eyes.
To him, Theodore was like a baby that he had to constantly pamper and thread carefully around to avoid her self-imploding.
It was not easy for him to build the current Theodore who was unafraid of failure and who was ready to suffer for power, and who looked up to him like a God. He didn’t want any catalyst that could break the current her.
In the end, he exhaled, then he finally broke the silence between them. "What Class Specialization did you choose?"
Theodore finally raised her head from the roasting meat and looked at Lord Zaratul with a look of pride on her face.
"I am now a Hex Witch".
...
That afternoon, while Julian and Theodore rested within the frozen expanse of the 50th realm of Dragon’s Tooth after 3 days of a grueling slaughter, the final preparations for war were finally made in Dreadmoor.
Elena and Lilith already finalized the war plan while their Lord was gone.
The 8 Warlords of Dreadmoor were ready to go to war, but before they put it into motion, the 7 others all looked at Sir Alfred.
Standing at the balcony, the handsome middle-aged Demon with streaks of grey in his black hair looked into the horizon with a distant look on his face.
After a few seconds, he broke the silence. "Remember that our target is the Demoness Sect and the Demoness Sect only".
He looked at them. "We don’t want to antagonize Samson and the Druid Society".
They all nodded solemnly.
"Once we arrive there, remember to avoid attacking any Druids or villagers hunting in the forest. We also need to avoid dealing too much damage to the forest".
"The Druids have sworn to protect the Midnight Forest, and wantonly destroying it will only force us into a 2-pronged war with them".
"We have to avoid that".
He exhaled. "Once we get there, avoid Druids, avoid villagers, and avoid dealing damage to the forest. Understood?"
"Yes, Sir Alfred". The others responded.
Hearing that, the middle-aged Demon finally gave the order to go ahead as Elena instructed her Lieutenants to lead the army out.
Thud... thud... thud...
Hundreds of thousands of Demon foot soldiers began marching out of the depths of the Castle even as countless Harpies flew in the sky above the castle, and then the castle began humming with a low whine.
For the second time in years and since the events of Falaniondor, Dreadmoor prepared for another major teleportation.
The obsidian castle hummed as the energy from thousands of qi crystals were drained at once. Instantly, a shimmering gray qi barrier engulfed the castle, making it turn invisible as it entered its stealth state.
More energy from thousands of more qi crystals were drained as the castle levitated, floating into the sky, and then...
BZZZT!
The infamous obsidian castle disappeared.
...
Earlier in the day...
Midnight Forest- this was a forest that was so vast that entire kingdoms could vanish within it, its expanse was ancient and seemed endless.
From above, its canopies looked like an endless ocean of emerald, jade, and deep moss, shifting and rippling in the wind like living water.
Trees towered hundreds of feet into the sky, their trunks as wide as castles with roots coiling over the earth like petrified serpents. Some glowed faintly with bioluminescent veins even in the day, pulsing softly because even light struggled to reach the forest floor.
The sunbeams fell in fractured columns, illuminating drifting spores, golden insects, and the occasional flash of jewel-toned wings.
This was an ecosystem teeming with not thousands, not tens of thousands, not a hundred thousand, but millions of Qi Beasts!
The air was thick with humidity and fragrant with wildflowers.
Every surface of it teemed with life. Apart from the Qi Beasts, there were also Qi Creatures: vines that moved when unobserved, fungi that whispered when stepped upon, and flowers that bloom only in the presence of warm blood.
Creatures of every kind inhabited here, too numerous to count but the Druid Society who were the rulers here had a catalogue of every single one of them.
It was their secret arts that also tamed the forest enough to enable hunters from the surrounding villages and towns to hunt safely for food and sustenance.
It is not easy to tame a forest this big and this feral, but when you’re led by one of the strongest Awakened in the world, the only World Sovereign of the Druid Class in all of Gomorra, it no longer seemed inconceivable.
The Druid Society is entrenched at the very heart of the Midnight Forest.
Most of their settlements were built underground, but there were also surface settlements that were built along the trees, fusing and seamlessly merging into the forest and camouflaged by it.
That afternoon, Samson, the World Sovereign woke up from his years-long slumber.
Feeling his presence after so many years roused the Druid Society.
Samson didn’t just wake up though, he was forced to wake up from his slumber. He woke up with an annoyed sigh.
He exhaled, then he instructed his strongest subordinates. "Evacuate all hunters out of the forest, tell them to stay away from the forest indefinitely".
"Also instruct all our members to not loiter far from the settlements".
"Yes, Lord Samson". His subordinates bowed.
But one of them built up the courage to ask. "My Lord, if I may ask, why? What is going on?"
The mutated Fairy stood up and looked into the horizon with a subtle gleam in his emerald eyes.
Then he said. "War is coming".