NOVPUBCerryti Empire, central district of Capital Bulida.
A super-ancient Underground City-State lay hidden deep beneath the earth, connected only by a few spatial nodes to its secretive openings.
On an autumn night, a blood-red Blood Moon hung high above the pitch-black dome. Magic Devices simulated the scene of the bright moonlight scattering down, casting layers of hazy red gauze over the city built from dark stones.
On the desolate streets, the silhouettes of the tall and massive buildings traced the shadowy art of the super-ancient Blood Moon, as if the dust of eons had solidified, and the occasional breeze blew through the silent alleyways.
"The color of the Blood Moon is truly breathtaking."
A man’s figure passed by, the buttons on his iron-gray uniform gleaming, reflecting the blood-red sky.
When he walked on the ground above, he would always stride with his head held high, his gaze arrogantly sweeping his surroundings, but upon arriving here, he couldn’t help but lower his stance.
As the captain of the Empire’s Special Operations Department’s action team, no one would easily follow him, or rather, an Underground City connected only by spatial nodes, entering or leaving without anyone noticing.
Colonel Maquiel gradually approached the end of the Underground City—a towering castle built of natural obsidian stood quietly in the night.
The outer walls of the castle were inlaid with cold, hard silver edges, decorated with red crystal carvings.
Maquiel’s figure slowly entered the castle, passing through several corridors, and pushed open a gigantic door carved with Curse Marks.
The view before him suddenly opened up, and a majestic hall-like palace unfolded before his eyes.
"My lord, I have arrived."
Maquiel bowed deferentially as though facing the Emperor, his robust body, casting a shadow that seemed to shrink away.
His voice was deep, unable to conceal the worry in his words.
...
For a long time, there was no response in the hall, and he did not dare to stand up.
Even though he was the only Seventh Rank Fighter in the Empire’s Special Operations Department, before the Blood Clan, he felt as tiny as an insect.
Above the towering dome, the Rose Window, filled with Immortal Crystals, refracted a kaleidoscopic and mesmerizing halo; the black iron chandeliers hung from cold iron chains cast luxurious colors, and the dark red carpet flowed down like a river of blood, stretching to the end of his line of sight—
In the center of the council hall, there were thirteen high-backed chairs that resembled thrones on both sides of the long table forged from dark fine iron.
Yet at this moment, the vast council hall was empty except for a lone figure sitting forlornly in the seventh high-backed chair.
The distant figure on the high-backed chair faintly lifted his head, eyes always tightly closed, as if piercing through the layers of the dome and perceiving the shapes woven by the dazzling stars in the night sky.
"Maquiel, I apologize for calling you over at this time."
She murmured to herself, her tone calm and ethereal, as though both lamenting and self-pitying.
"Serving the Blood Clan is the honor of my life."
The man did not dare to accept her words, fully aware that the Marquis was merely being courteous and that he must obey any order from the Blood Clan,
"Violet has been lured away, and Hesintos will not leave the headquarters. As long as no Eighth-tier fights break out in the Capital, nothing will provoke a reaction from Hesintos."
He then reported.
His last instruction was to ensure that Violet, the Sixth Army God of Aqua Jade Throne, stayed away from Capital Bulida as long as possible.
Thus, under the surreptitious manipulation of the Blood Clan, relics likely from the super-ancient Divine Beast, the king of skeletons, arose in the territories of the Empire. The discovered site was extremely dangerous, requiring someone of immense strength to protect the Empire’s exploration team and the archaeology professors from the Saint Kray Temple. Ultimately, Headmaster Violet decided to personally visit the area near Lake Stabergen in Botswana Province.
She would temporarily encase the entire lake near the explored caves in ice, and if the battle were to occur under the water or on its surface, Violet would hold an absolute advantage.
The best candidate was Violet, or to say, apart from her, only the First Army God Hesintos could ensure that this task was foolproof. However, as the General, Hesintos could not move; therefore, only Violet, the Sixth Army God of Aqua Jade, was dispatched.
During this time, Violet would not return to Saint Kray Temple.
"Very well, let the Empire and Allied Forces wear each other down for now. This time, they won’t have the help of the Demon Race."
Although the Blood Clan Marchioness’s voice was soft, it was as piercing as the autumn night’s frost, and seemed to harbor millenniums-old regrets that could never be assuaged.
Whether it was the Cret Empire’s Eighth-tier Heroic Units or the Allied Forces’ Eighth-tier Heroic Units, as the war continued, their numbers would dwindle.
Military units and city defense systems, equally difficult to recover from attrition.
"How is the front line? Will other Army Gods return?"
Marquis Heratier casually turned his cheek and asked.
The Blood Clan possessed top-tier heroic units but lacked military units; they could only utilize humans or convert from their ranks.
In a sense, troops were like minion waves; without minion waves to withstand the enemy’s city defenses and Magic Barriers, heroic units would not be able to break through alone and might even face defeat due to taking on too much damage from the turrets.
Now, with the initial ferocity of the war gradually subsiding and the Allied Forces strategically withdrawing from the southern periphery, abandoning some territories, resources, and vision, and consolidating to the north, it was not so easy for the Cret Empire to capture single Allied Forces’ heroic units outside of city defenses.
Next, it would mainly be about each side’s operation, the outcome of large-scale battles, and the contention for neutral resources.
However, once the conflict escalated intensely and the Empire began to be distracted by external pressures, it would be the optimal moment for the Blood Clan to seize control of the core of the Cerryti Empire.
