Like all adept clans, the Crimson Clan’s rewards for participating in planar wars and adept wars was the most bountiful. They easily awarded three to four thousand points.
It also caused an unstoppable wave of requests for war within the Crimson Clan.
Greem, Mary, Alice, and few of the core adepts gathered together to have a discussion. They quickly came up with a feasible combat operation.
The various forces of the World of Adepts were intertwined in sophisticated relationships. Attempts to initiate a war here would very likely lead to the escalation of a conflict that could not be halted. Meanwhile, the Goblin Plane was entirely at peace; there was no need to stir any trouble there. As such, after some selection, the most suitable place for war had to be Lance.
After a few decades of expansion and development, the Crimson Clan had established themselves firmly in Lance. As long as multiple Fourth Grade dragons didn’t show up in the worst-case scenario, the Capital of Eternity was an indestructible steel fortress that could fend off the invasion of any number of dragons.
Over the past few decades, the Crimson Clan had remained subtle and low-profile in their excavation of Lance’s resources. That was to avoid backlash from the dragon lords. Even when they hunted dragons, they did it as secretly as possible, very rarely conducting an open invasion into their lands.
This time, Greem intended to go for a big one. He set his sights on the closest Fourth Grade dragon lord to the Capital of Eternity– Amethyst Dragon Toril.
The lair of this Fourth Grade amethyst dragon lay within Crystal Valley, twenty-three thousand kilometers northwest of the Capital. The forces that Greem organized would have to pass through multiple dragon territories to arrive there. There were a total of twenty-three First Grade dragons, seven Second Grade dragons, and two Third Grade dragons.
It was truly a difficult journey, laced with danger at every turn.
However, the Crimson Clan would have to pay the price if they wished to remove those annoying Fourth Grade dragons that clung onto the plane like stubborn nails.
The Crimson Clan might not have dared to provoke these Fourth Grade dragons ten years ago. However, with the introduction of the Fourth Grade metal golem dragon into the ranks of the Crimson Clan, they were confident. The dragon was also now outfitted with many magic energy cannons, and its ability was at the level of an average Fourth Grade creature.
That was the main reason why Greem dared to challenge a Fourth Grade dragon!
Greem also intended to take this opportunity to comb through the core fighting force of the clan to select individuals with potential for further grooming.
The announcement of this Lance expedition immediately drove the Crimson adepts to sign up eagerly. Those who were troubled by their lack of contribution points hastily hurried to the Capital of Eternity to join the expedition. All of their past fears of planar wars were swept away.
For a moment, nearly sixty percent of all elite Crimson adepts had gathered in the Capital of Eternity, making the scale of this expedition larger and larger by the day!
Year 32,889 of the Era of Adepts. The eleventh day of the sixth month of the year.
Seventeen days after the war order was issued, the expedition army at the Capital of Eternity finally set off.
The giant metal gates on the west side of the Capital slowly moved apart with grinding metallic sounds and clanking chains, revealing a massive, towering giant made entirely out of metal.
It appeared to be a fifteen-meter-tall, thirty-meter-long giant metal dragon.
It had two pairs of thick and firm metal legs beneath it, and its giant metal head gleamed with the cold blue light of magical metal under the sun. It dragged a ten-meter-long tail of steel behind it, filled with spikes and nails as if it was a morningstar.
When a steel dragon like this stepped forward and rumbled onward, the entire earth seemed to tremble slightly. The four metal legs left giant craters three meters in diameter and one meter deep whenever they landed.
Naturally, the massive expedition army would not just consist of such a steel dragon. Over a hundred goblin chariots followed around the dragon, like soldiers surrounding their general, charging into the distance in perfect formation.
Meanwhile, a silver Mothership silently hovered above the clouds and the army, surrounded by three to four dozen smaller, more agile goblin ships. Even further away from the Mothership, over a hundred eyeball combat machines wove about, diving into the bushes, the forest, and the swamps as scouts.
Every time they discovered a danger zone, they summoned a goblin ship and purged the area with goblin rockets and a barrage of energy beams.
It didn’t matter what had initially hidden there. Whatever it was, it would be riddled with holes and be of no threat to the army.
It was this three-dimensional scouting force that brought about disaster for the native creatures and lookouts in the path of the expedition army. They lost their insignificant little lives before they could understand what had happened.
Of course, with how large of a scale the army was, the more powerful native creatures fled at the very sight of them, as long as they weren’t complete idiots.
Greem and the other adepts resided in the Mothership above and could see the countless beasts and magical creatures emerge from their lairs in a panic. The creatures gathered into a massive swarm and fled toward the distant horizon.
The golem dragon was the slowest creature of the entire expedition, but even it moved at a decent fifty kilometers an hour. The vanguard chariots would always stop after pulling ahead to wait for the big guy behind.
Meanwhile, Greem and the higher-ups remained in the Mothership, making their own preparations as the party slowly advanced.
For this expedition, the Crimson Clan had mobilized one Fourth Grade magical machine golem dragon, one hundred and two goblin chariots, one Mothership, forty-five goblin flying ships, and one thousand one hundred and seventy magical machines. Those were only the combat machines. The Crimson Clan had also mobilized all of their combat personnel.
Third Grade: Greem, Mary, Thunder Dragon Arms, and Emerald Dragon Iritina.
Second Grade: Alice, Gru, Billis, Zacha, Tigule, Oliven, two blood knights, three blood elves, and seven green dragons.
The rest were sixty-seven First Grade adepts and three hundred and twenty-six apprentices.
Apart from these fighters, there were also two hundred and fifty-seven goblin pilots and technicians.
Naturally, the procession of such a vast army raised a commotion wherever they went, sending all manners of creatures fleeing in panic. Somehow, a small stampede had formed in front of the procession!
Adepts interested in the magical creatures and the natural environment boarded the goblin ships and spread out in dozens of kilometers of the army to search for samples and increase their collection. It was unavoidable that conflicts between native beings and magical creatures occurred during this process.
Every ship was accompanied by five to ten magical machines and equipped with three magic energy cannons. It was more than enough firepower to raze an ordinary enemy. If they ran into powerful magical creatures, the adepts would quickly send out magical messages to the army behind them.
Thus, even more adepts and goblin ships gathered to drown the enemy with ferocious firepower.
Most of the native magical creatures might have tremendous power, but they lacked the ability to fly.
They were no more than moving targets in front of the goblin ships, unable to escape the pursuit of the adepts even if they ran until they frothed at the mouth.
One magical creature after another that had been beaten within an inch of their lives were transported back to the Mothership. All sorts of magical plants with special traits were also collected and pocketed by the adepts.
Adepts who excelled at brewing potions or creating voodoo beasts also became extremely busy with work in the cabins of the Mothership. Though the army already had a large number of magical
machines as cannon fodder, a few more voodoo beasts would also be a cheap means of reinforcement.
After such a brazen march and raid of the lands, the expedition party finally arrived in the territory of their first target after two days.
It was the province of a small First Grade dragon. It stretched for approximately a hundred kilometers and had two small cities and a dozen native villages within its area.
Sadly, the eyeball machines sent to the Steelback Mountain where the First Grade dragon lived revealed that the dragon had already fled. Even its crude lair had been emptied thoroughly. Not even a single gold coin could be found.
This situation undoubtedly left Gru, who had planned their marching route, in an awkward position. He could only curse and swear at the spinelessness of these dragons.
In truth, they couldn’t exactly fault this small dragon.
The adepts’ expedition army was so large and yet so audacious. The dragon lords would have heard news of their arrival even if they had practically no means of information and were the biggest sloths in the world. The dragon lords typically had many other flying scouts as subordinates apart from the dragonborn.
These scouts would be able to figure out the might of this massive army if they probed about a little.
Would a mere First Grade dragon lord dare to fight against a powerful adept army that had emerged from the Capital of Eternity? Dragons were not stupid. Of course, they would flee as quickly as they could.
Chapter 920 - Valley Ambush
The dragon lords had all fled.
However, there were still many scouts and spies left behind in their territories. These forces would often launch ambushes at the adept army as they passed by.
They were either packs of dragonborn warriors or fearless native tribes. Regardless, no force could move that giant metal army that stretched on like a snake.
They came, they attacked, and they were forever left in the ground.
How could they possibly know that their well-hidden ambushes were so crude and inferior in the eyes of the adepts? Hundreds of eyeball machines hovering hundreds of meters in the air released scan waves of various colors through a small egg-sized hole underneath their structures.
It didn’t matter if the dragonborn and natives were hiding in the swamp, ditches, or the bushes; their massive life forces would not escape the detection and scans of the machines. The ambushes they thought to be perfect had all been discovered by the eyeball machines, and the information was relayed to the adepts in the army.
Thus, several goblin chariots would suddenly diverge from the wildly advancing army and charge at these ‘traps.’
Before they even got close to the traps, the goblin chariots would fire their magic energy cannons consecutively and blow the surroundings of the pitfalls to pieces. The dragonborn and natives that were forced out of their traps were shredded to pieces of flesh and blood by a barrage of energy beams and cannon shots before they could approach the chariot.
If there were a Second Grade creature amongst the hidden enemies, the goblin chariots weren’t able to deal with them in a frontal confrontation. They instead turned about and engage in guerilla warfare. How many magic energy cannon shots could the most powerful Second Grade dragonborn possibly endure? If the enemy remained standing, there were still adepts within the chariots. Powerful spells with strange effects would descend in a downpour. Even the most powerful of enemies would collapse in grief and resentment.
From the very start to the end, none of these dragonborn or native tribes had any chance of catching up with the goblin chariots. Moreover, the long-ranged abilities they possessed were either heavy throwing spears or semi-mid-ranged metal darts. They were utterly ineffective apart from adding a few dents into the metal shells of the chariots.
One the one side, you had fully-equipped murder machines from a higher plane. On the other, you had isolated and primitive natives. Even though the individual power of the dragonborn was more than sufficient to crush the goblin pilots and adepts within the chariots, it was an utterly one-sided slaughter against their favor.
The ones that were felled were the stronger, yet more primitive and unskilled, dragonborn. Meanwhile, the victors were the sly goblins who were individually weak but had armed themselves to the teeth with magic and machines.
It wasn’t an exception that only happened in skirmishes. It was the forceful domination of an otherworldly civilization against a primitive one!
The difference between the two civilizations was immediately evident from the clash between the two forces. It was not something that could be compensated for by personal courage and passion. At the very least, these lone soldiers were not powerful enough to ignore the difference in skill and equipment!
The army went straight through the First Grade dragon’s territory like a spear. The army did not need to stop for rest or reorganization. It simply and forcefully rolled through the disorganized ‘attacks’ in the area and marched forward according to the planned route.
Some ignorant local natives and magical creatures had initially been dissatisfied with the army marching through their lands and had prepared to pursue and attack the rear. However, that small bit of ferocity and pride in their hearts vanished in an instant when they saw the hill-like metal dragon marching at the very front.
The foreign adepts had built a terrifying metal dragon and were bringing it everywhere to challenge the dragon lords. Such news spread out in every direction like a plague, causing every being that heard it to be somewhat eager for what was to come.
In all honesty, all the intelligent native tribes in Lance apart from the dragonborn and the Dragon Cultists held deep-seated anger and hatred for the dragon lords.
When the dragon lords were the ultimate force within the plane, they had no choice but to endure and submit. However, if the dragon lords were pinned into the swamp by another powerful enemy, the hatred that had been brewing for the past few thousand years of enslavement would rapidly erupt!
They had no idea if the adepts were holy beings sent to deliver them unto salvation. However, when the authority that the dragon lords previously maintained with immense martial force collapsed overnight, the tides of rebellion that erupted all over the place quickly devoured the disorganized dragonborn and Dragon Cultists.
In just three days, the metal parade had crossed the dragon’s territory and entered the land of another Second Grade dragon.
The Second Grade dragon was not much better than the First Grade dragon. The border guards it had amassed instantly fell to the ferocious cannon fire of the metal tanks. Thus, the Second Grade dragon also hastily packed his things and fled with all the wealth he had obtained.
…………
This place was a narrow valley between two towering mountains.
The Dragon Cultists that had come from all over Hardwell were busy at work, building a sturdy stone fortress and wooden platforms in the southern entrance of the valley.
Several dragonborn warriors with muscular physiques were spread out throughout the valley, leaning against the walls and resting as they gritted their teeth and sharpened their weapons. Meanwhile, the short ratmen and lizardmen around them bent down and delivered baskets of food.
Dragonborn Warrior Hanna casually picked up a black piece of cheese from the vine-woven basket and threw it into his mouth. He only took a single bite before spitting out everything in a violent coughing fit.
“Dammit! Bastard, this…what is this?” Hanna roared furiously after digging out a piece of cheese from his throat, still laced with traces of blood.
In his anger, Hanna crushed the ratman servant in front of him into a pulp with a single fist.
“Stop being picky! Eat all of the food!” A dragonborn leader patrolling within the valley shouted with an even louder voice, “Do you think this is still our dragonborn camp? You think there are still sweet and tasty Salo ribs waiting for you? Stop dreaming. Eat all of the food now. We still have to fight with those otherworldly
invaders in a bit.”
The dragonborn warriors all over the valley lifted the black pieces of jerky in their hands. They could not distinguish what part of meat or what creature it came from, no matter how they tried. They could only close their eyes and swallow it all.
The pungent and bitter taste lingered in their mouths and their noses, causing every dragonborn to frown and curse without end.
Just eating this unknown jerky that was no better than tree bark was too difficult. A dragonborn warrior suddenly had an inspiration. He grabbed a ratman servant beside him, twisted its head off, and let the blood drizzle into his mouth.
Indeed, the jerky and the cheese were no longer as unbearable as before with the addition of the fresh blood.
The other dragonborn warriors followed his example, picking up the servants following them, twisting off their heads, and drinking all their blood.
For a moment, the entire valley was filled with the rough shouts of the dragonborn, mixed with the soft and sharp death throes of the ratmen and lizardmen.
Several native workers that had been caught from nearby villages were working hard at the entrance of the valley, trying their best to fortify the defenses made of stone. Thick, sharpened wooden stakes were hammered into the earth, the points painted with terrifying poison with extreme lethality.
Trolls, ogres, pigmen, bearmen; all sorts of muscular native slaves were hard at work. Meanwhile, the Dragon Cultists in black robes waved their whips, yelling and hollering for the slaves to work harder.
Looking from the entrance of the valley, a pillar of dust rose from beyond the horizon, as if a massive creature was rapidly approaching.
Mos tipped the hood on his head slightly with his whip, raising his head to assess the sky.
Many black dots the size of seeds were dancing in the dark sky above him. Judging from the height and path of their flight, they could not be mountain eagles. That was because the things were circling far too quickly. Mos had never seen flying creatures with such unpredictable flight paths in his life.
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