Mission Start

SSS-level monster [Queen of Insects].

He is the most brutal and cruel monster known. He is extremely aggressive towards humans and is also the most human-like monster.

Patriarch Ferdinand: "The Queen of Insects is the first SSS-level monster whose exact location we know. She built a city in the black mist imitating humans. But until now, no one has been able to go deep into it."

"All you have to do is enter the city and set up anchor points. We'll take care of the rest."

Patriarch Bletem continued, "Thanks to the latest teleportation technology developed by the Mechanical City, we have not been able to go deep into the Black Mist before. Once a high-level bloodline person approaches, it will cause alert. Now that the [Green Mist Tree] is dead, when the fighting breaks out on the western border, the [Queen of Insects] will definitely not miss this opportunity. By then, we will find a way to lure out the monsters inside, and you can take the opportunity to sneak in, and Rex will help you lead the way."

The head of the Shasha family looked around and said in a serious tone: "You must be careful."

After everyone left, only a few bloodline members were left in the room.

The Duke of Maidan changed his previous calm and encouraging expression, and his brows became tired and haggard.

He stared at the closed door and said bitterly, "Is it really worth it for us to do this? Those are not just cats and dogs, but hundreds of lives. Among them, only twenty groups have accurate addresses, and the rest are all sacrifices."

"As long as we can complete this mission, it will be worth it." Patriarch Ferdinand placed his hand on his shoulder, speaking in a serious tone. "This is a road full of blood and sacrifice. Everyone can die for this, including you and me."

Duke Maidan smiled bitterly: "I know, but I feel bad. I raised these children. Old brother, your favorite youngest son is also in this team. He is only fifteen years old, are you going to send him to death too?"

The hand on his shoulder tightened for a moment, and the other person's voice became hoarse.

"If I had another ten years, my son would be the best young bloodline in the West. But who made us not have ten years? He is my most gifted child. He is much younger than his elder brother in strength and is more suitable for this mission."

"Except for him, his brothers are assigned to Sevich's army this time. I just hope that the body of this brainworm bloodline has recovered and can lead them to victory."

"Sevitch performed very well when he came to the Dark Mist Border before, but unfortunately he had an accident during the Twelve Round Table Trial and only came here a few days ago. If he can display his original command ability, he will definitely be the rising star of this counterattack. You don't have to worry too much."

"Alas, at this point we can only hope so. I think all the forty teams have been checked out and there should be no problems."

"All have been checked. Those sent by the Mechanical City are all students from Heise, specializing in the field of teleportation arrays. Those sent by the Church are the best priests, who are good at purification and treatment and have battlefield experience. Those sent by the Association are all descendants of noble families and are extremely talented."

“I don’t know how many will come back this time.”

Duke Maidan couldn't help but smile bitterly: "After all, who among us is not an executioner?"

The people inside the door communicated with each other, and the five people who walked out of the house chatted as they walked, and exchanged information and names.

Aga introduced himself in a friendly manner and glanced at Oreius a few more times as if inadvertently.

"I am Aga, a student of Professor Hazel. I am proficient in teleportation. I hope you will give me your guidance."

Ricks was a little absent-minded: "I am Ricks, a member of the Black Mist Expedition Team. Thank you for your guidance."

Flynn followed closely behind: "I am Flynn, also a member of the Black Mist Squad, a Turtle Bloodline."

The priest said, "I am Malcom. I am good at healing, purification, and fighting. I should not be a burden to you."

Oreius introduced himself and then looked at Aga: "Have we met before?"

Aga explained: "This is the first time we meet. Your story has spread widely, and I have heard of your name for a long time."

Aurelius stared at him for a while, and accepted this explanation. Apart from this little episode, the atmosphere among the group was quite harmonious. After exchanging information and agreeing on a time to meet later, they all went their separate ways. Aurelius saw that something was wrong with Rex from the beginning, and took the initiative to chase him out.

When he found him, Ricks was sitting alone on the roof, looking into the distance, not knowing what he was thinking.

The red-haired young man climbed up to the roof and raised his eyebrows when he saw this: "Why do you like running to the roof too?"

"I didn't like it at first, but after coming here once, I found that the moon here is quite beautiful."

Aurelius glanced up at the sky secretly. His eyes, suspended in the sky, looked down at the earth, emitting a strange and cold light. He was disrespectful to the compliments of his beauty and asked, "You were not in a good mood just now. What happened?"

"......"

At this point, Rex was silent for a while, with a wry smile on his face.

"The Duke is lying. He deceived us. No one knows that city better than me. The guards of the Queen of Insects are stationed in the city, which is far away from the border of the black fog and cannot be attracted by the battle. Some of the manpower gathered in the square must be bait, no, most of them are bait."

"This kind of thing cannot be told directly to the person concerned, otherwise it is easy to cause problems due to the human desire to survive and disrupt the entire plan. Therefore, the best way is to give false intelligence and feed these people into the monster's mouth, and they will not even know that they have given up from the beginning."

"Everything they did, all those sacrifices were to pave the way for us. Among those people are my familiar friends and even teammates. Each of them is an excellent bloodline, willing to contribute their lives to mankind. I know they are destined to die in the black fog, but I can't save them. I have to climb up on their corpses until I complete my mission."

Rex took a deep breath, and it felt like a stone was blocking his throat, and it fell heavily into his stomach. The Black Mist Exploration Team was very familiar with each other, and the Duke's men met each other often. He blinked hard, and his vision was a little blurry.

"Among those people, there are seniors who taught me fighting skills, there is a big brother who brings me snacks made by his wife every time he comes back from vacation, there are people who give me winter clothes, there are companions who eat, sleep, live and live with me. In the dark fog, we crawled and fought together, and in the territory, we are relatives and friends. I will send them to death with my own hands. Do you know? I will send them to death with my own hands!"

At the end, Ricks' voice suddenly rose. He took a breath, bit his lips tightly, and swallowed back the overly sharp shout.

His voice was choked with sobs, and he shouted at the top of his lungs: "Those people will die. The people who took care of me will die, the friends who trained with me will die, and even my team members will die. I don't want to see sacrifices, I don't want to see death."

"Tell me, Oleus, what is the meaning of this fucked-up world? Why do we have to fight so hard to survive? Can we really win? Is all this sacrifice really worth it?"

"I've already been a deserter once. Do I have to watch my companions die this time? Can I fulfill their wishes? Why should I stay and not them?!"

The man closed his eyes and his voice was horribly hoarse. The red-haired young man was silent for a while and placed his palm on his head. The voice came from above Rex's head, carrying the coolness of the quiet night.

"...I know how you feel. I have a secret."

That was a secret that no one knew, and it only existed in his heart. Once it was spoken out, it would break the balance that had been maintained. The profiteer knew it, but he only laughed secretly, sympathizing with his wishful thinking.

The red-haired young man said, "I have someone I regard as a brother."

"He was an everlasting beacon to me. I vowed to follow him throughout my life and become a knight who illuminates the way like him. Until he died twice in front of me."

"The first time, he died in front of the city wall of his hometown. He gave everything for justice and faith, but no one came to help him."

The gods warned him that if he left here, he would lose the possibility of becoming a god; fate told him that as long as he closed his eyes, the future would be bright. But he rode on the Pegasus without hesitation and rushed to his hometown. When the young man closed his eyes, he could see the figure on the other horse again.

"When I found him, he was standing alone in front of the closed city gate. His body was covered with wounds and his blood had stained the ground red, but he was still standing."

"His front was covered in wounds, but his back was intact. I knelt before him and vowed that I would never be so helpless again."

"I was responsible for his second death. When the World Tree was invaded, he was the first soul to be tainted. At that time, the noble knight was about to fall into a monster. He held my hand and asked me to kill him."

So from that moment on, [Aureus] committed a sin.

He grasped the sword and killed his beloved brother with his own hands, giving him a second death. In order to protect the dignity and reputation of a knight. From then on, the desire to kill became the red-haired young man's curse, taking root in his soul.

"I killed him before he completely mutated. But the pollution of the World Tree could not be stopped. Perhaps it was because of the price I paid for killing my brother, I became the second polluted soul. Then it spread uncontrollably to all souls. Finally, the World Tree mutated, and the Land of Stars was shattered."

His mistake was not killing his brother, but taking on the sin of being the source of pollution for him. He became the first person to be polluted in the eyes of the souls.

"I hid my brother's affairs from me. My former best friend left me. I knew he loved my brother as much as I did. The remaining souls regarded me as an enemy. All souls fell into a deep sleep until I woke up again. Souls from the Land of Stars came one after another. Sometimes I wondered, why me?"

The red-haired young man spoke softly, his voice neither fast nor slow, as calmly as if he was telling someone else's story.

"There are so many people who are better than me, and so many people who are more determined than me. I am just an ordinary person. The only difference is that I was walking among the mediocre people, and one day I suddenly looked up and saw the light of the sky. People around me warned me to stop there, but I always wanted to go to where the light is and become the light itself. Maybe I have been forcing myself since then."

"It's not your fault!"

Ricks suddenly became excited and loudly retorted: "You have tried very hard. You have fulfilled that person's last wish and tried your best to fight pollution. You did not give up even though you were cursed, broke up with your best friends, and bore a bad reputation. You are already amazing!"

"It's just fate. As an ordinary person, how can you go against the tide of fate?"

At the end, Rex almost shouted, as if he was speaking to Aurelius, but also to himself.

"How can a drop of water resist the ocean? When fate forces you to go in a certain direction, how can you escape from it? It's not your fault, you have tried your best."

"Yes, I have said this to myself countless times. I want a happy story, but I am always late. It was like this with my brother and Amira. Destiny is like a torrent, and each of us is a fish swimming against the current. We think we have broken free from the shackles, but in fact we just jumped into an even more turbulent dark river. But even so, Rex, I still want to try."

The red-haired young man withdrew his hand, and Rex turned his head to look at him, bumping into a pair of calm eyes. The dark golden pupils were clear and reflected in the moonlight, as if burning with a cluster of bright fire.

He said: "I am willing to be knocked down again and again, thousands of times, countless times, and then stand up again, becoming a living tombstone for the dead, lingering on, exhausting my life, just for a happy ending."

"That's why I'm here again. I made an agreement with Canaan that this is the last try. If I go crazy, he will kill me with his own hands. So this time, even if it means going against the current and turning the tide, I must create a different ending."

Rex's eyes suddenly became warm. Oleus looked at him, and he looked at Oleus. The man opened his mouth, but couldn't say a word.

He knew what the other party meant by saying these words. But could he really do it? Aurelius was so powerful that he could always create miracles.

But Rex was just an ordinary person. He had heard many people laugh at him, saying that his blood was garbage. If the Duke had not saved him from fainting in the black mist, he would have become a pile of bones buried in the black mist. Even the name Rex was given by the Duke.

The Duke said, "Rikers, you will be invincible."

So he became the sword in the Duke's hand. He tried his best but could only crawl and roll in the dark fog to search for intelligence. He could only watch his companions die. He could not save anyone except himself.

Maybe the Duke gave him the wrong name, and Rex was not invincible after all. The red-haired young man looked at him, and at this moment, Rex's heart was like the fire in the other's eyes ignited.

Aurelius said: "Nothing is impossible. If fate knocks you down once, stand up a second time. If it knocks you down ten thousand times, stand up ten thousand and one times."

Ricks twitched his lips and said, "What if he was killed instead of knocked down?"

The red-haired young man shrugged: "It's nothing more than death."

Ricks couldn't help laughing. "You're really strange. I've never seen anyone who doesn't care about life and death like you do. That's a cool way to say it. It's a nice thing to say."

He stood up and looked back into the distance. The west was bathed in the night, the silver-veiled moonlight was hazy, intertwined with the black fog and difficult to see clearly. The dim veil slid down the back of the building, and a few faint firelights were visible in the distance.

He raised his hand and pointed to Oleus: "That's the commercial area. You can find everything you want to buy there, but it's definitely more expensive than other places. There's a breakfast stand at the end of the street, and it's especially delicious. I bought arrows there a few years ago and was cheated out of 5 rubles. The next day I went to hunt down that profiteer."

"Have you seen the place with the most lights? That's the residential area. In the West, everyone is a soldier, even the little kids who haven't grown all their hair yet can do a few tricks. Alas, in this damn place, even children can't live in peace. The wind in autumn and winter is like poison, and it's deadly hot in summer. What kind of idiot would stay in the West and not go out to live a good life?"

As Rex spoke, his voice gradually became lower. He gazed at the familiar city with a look of nostalgia. Oreius did not disturb him, but patted his shoulder.

"Do you want some privacy?"

Ricks grinned. "That would be great."

The red-haired young man waved his hand elegantly, turned around and jumped off the roof. He landed on the ground in two or three steps. He walked towards the door and suddenly heard someone humming a song behind him.

That song had sung in the taverns of Partington and in the great room of the Rowe family. It had taken wings and flown westward, into the ears of every man.

"Oh if they send me to war I want to be a cavalryman, oh I want to ride a horse like my ancestors did."

"When the trumpets sound and the cannons boom, give me a good horse."

"She's my best girl, and we'll go off at dawn to faraway places."

"Oh I know I'm not a good infantryman. I always fall behind on the march."

"I'm dizzy from being on a boat, and the salt water makes my mouth dry. But if you agree to let me ride a horse, that's my strong suit."

"Oh, Your Majesty, wait for me to return triumphantly from the wilderness wearing the laurel wreath."

"If you hear the clatter of hooves, hey that's me and my best girl!"

The song was cheerful, but in this situation it seemed lonely and desolate. The red-haired young man turned off the path. He paused at the intersection and glanced at the big tree unhappily.

"Don't hide it, do you think no one can see it?"

After a while, several figures came out from behind the trees. Flynn took the lead and smiled awkwardly: "Good evening, Lord Orelius, what a coincidence that we meet here."

Oleus was too lazy to expose his lie, so he glanced around and saw that all four members of the original Black Mist Team were there. He knew it well: "Are you here to look for Rex?"

The Blood Vein Healer curled his lips and said, "That guy still wants to hide it from us. We can tell what kind of shit he's going to fart, but he's still pretending to be fine. He really thinks he can hide it from anyone."

Flynn coughed repeatedly and gave him a crazy look. The Blood Vein Doctor curled his lips: "Do you have a cramp in your eye?"

The scout from the same team awkwardly tried to smooth things over: "The master is still here, watch your words, watch your words."

"Is he really not here when you were training or something? Now you should be careful with your words. It's not the time to point at the loser and call him dad during training."

The honest and silent gunman looked up and down but not at the other side, fearing to be dragged into the war. The red-haired young man raised his hands in surrender: "Ricks is on the roof sighing about life, if you want to find him, go quickly."

"Thank you."

The Bloodline Healer nodded at him, and then strode into the yard. The red-haired young man suddenly stopped them and said, "I know you are in other teams this time. If you don't want to go, I can go find Duke Myrdan. He will definitely give me this honor."

The Blood Vein Doctor was stunned for a moment, glanced at him sideways for a moment, then turned around and asked, "Do you want it?"

The gunman shook his head, and the scout laughed dryly: "Big sister, you know me well. I will definitely live and die with you."

The Bloodline Healer said "Oh", then turned to Oreius and said, "They don't need it, so don't bother."

The red-haired young man hesitated: "Do you want to think about it again? This time..."

"I know what you mean." The Blood Healer interrupted him and answered calmly. "But it doesn't matter who goes, sir. This is unfair to others. Why should we live and they have to die?"

Oreius was silent. The other party waved his hand and said casually: "If you really care, please pick up the body when you see us on the way back."

"...good."

The bloodline healer smiled and led the group inside in a hurry. Oreius stood there and watched them walk into the yard until he could no longer see anyone. He raised his head and took a deep breath.

It's a fucked up world.

What they have to do next is to carve out a bloody path with human lives.

The red-haired young man calmed down and his consciousness returned to the darkness. At the end of the overlapping sounds of water, he walked into the circular building.

In just one winter, the World Tree grew taller, its branches and leaves covering the yard like an umbrella, and finally took on a majestic appearance.

There is still one-fifth of the energy accumulated in the leaf veins. It seems that it will take some time to evolve and cannot be completed before the mission begins.

He stretched out his hand and touched the tree, feeling a vague sense of mystery.

The world before my eyes was divided into countless lines, and the place where the World Tree stood turned into a torrent of colors. These lines intertwined with each other, forming a perfect and orderly shape.

Countless tributaries converge into a magnificent ocean, from which all things originate and end. Among them, four tributaries are more prominent than the others.

The shadow of the new town can be vaguely seen in the tributary that symbolizes Mason's essence. A small tree stands in the center of the square. The whole town is perfectly integrated with the plants, and people live and work in peace and prosperity.

The tributary symbolizing Oreius exudes the auras of the [Mother of Ten Thousand Stones] and the [Green Mist Tree]. These two auras neutralize the scarlet color of the tributary itself, forming a delicate balance.

The tributary symbolizing Canaan is currently the longest, and contains not only the auras of the [Mother of Ten Thousand Stones] and the [Green Mist Tree], but also the power of the righteous gods. These auras are kneaded together like plasticine, and are absorbed by the gray-white color of the tributary itself.

The tributary, which symbolizes profiteers, is golden red. It intersperses countless fine branches and inserts into the bottom of other tributaries, growing vigorously like a shadow, exuding a presence that cannot be ignored.

These tributaries correspond to what has been done and are densely inserted into the entire waterfall, like a movement of fate.

The viewer withdrew his hand, and the scene before his eyes disappeared immediately. He took one last look at the World Tree, and his figure disappeared on the spot.

......

The first step of the Black Mist counterattack plan was simple. Forty teams rushed into the Black Mist before the battle began and hid by various means.

Different directions, different paths, but only one goal: to reach the team's target location, which will be installed and positioned by the mechanical city personnel. Partington's teleportation array will receive its signal, anchor the location after calculation, and then teleport.

The journey to the target location is bound to be full of dangers, and once successfully activated, the return is even more likely to be life or death. It can be said that not many people in these teams can actually return.

Oleus saw many familiar faces among these people, including the black cat bloodline of the Hart family and Dan. The latter smiled brightly when he saw him, and looked like he was going out to have fun instead of going to die.

Oreius was very worried and communicated with Duke Meldan in advance. Duke Meldan was surprised but nodded in approval of his idea.

On the day of departure, forty teams gathered in the square and whispered to each other.

"Why are we gathering here? Aren't we going to set off?"

"Maybe it's for the sake of concealment. Then he can go out alone to avoid being seen."

"I see. But this place is too far from the city gate. We also need to go around through the nail town, which will take some time."

Oreius's consciousness moved. An illusory black door opened in the air. He cut open his palm and pressed it on the door, and a bright red pattern spread out with it as the center. It was like a flower of death blooming in the abyss, revealing a beauty that captivated the soul.

The portal was overjoyed to see Oreius after such a long time, and began to sing non-stop.

"The portal is a pleasure to serve you! My dear Lord Orelius, we haven't seen each other for so long that I thought you had forgotten me. Recently, there are always those nasty guys trying to find out where I am, which makes me miss the life with you even more. No one can replace me, I am your most——"

Hearing it speak, the bloodline members immediately exploded and reached for their weapons subconsciously.

The only ones who can speak are out-of-control pollutants, and if you see them, you must control or eliminate them immediately!

Duke Maidan coughed softly and ordered sternly, "Okay, be quiet."

Under the pressure from Duke Myrdan, the Bloodline finally calmed down. They looked at the portal with suspicion. The latter had long been accustomed to such sights and could not help but snort softly.

"Foolish human, if Lord Orelius hadn't asked me to come and help, you would never have used me in your lifetime."

"This is the [Portal]. It can transport people to any place they have been to. Next, I will have it transport everyone to the border of the black fog to avoid the monsters outside. The rest depends on you."

As he explained, the portal finally anchored itself. It landed on its own, and the dark mist stretched out, waiting for the guest to enter.

Team after team walked into the portal in an orderly manner. Soon, the square became empty. Oleus's team was the best one. He nodded to Duke Meldan and walked into the portal first.

Duke Meldan looked at them, and paused for a moment on Ricks: "Have a safe journey."

Ricks, who was walking at the end, turned around and smiled at him. He waved vigorously, said nothing, and strode into the portal.