As cheers of victory echoed across the ruins, Irelia slowly descended from the tower. She looked at her comrades, who were cheering and jumping for joy, their faces streaked with tears. She knew that from this moment on, they would no longer be a group of "rats" who could only eke out a living in the shadows.
They possessed the resources to confront the empire head-on.
This victory, known as the "Battle of Ruins," has significance far beyond being a simple military victory.
Its news spread like wildfire across the entire New Chengtian Continent at a speed completely beyond the control of the imperial authorities.
In the underground mines of Rusty Town, when Bolin Stonehand heard from a newly arrived slave that "the girl wielding the golden holy sword had annihilated three Imperial centurions," his hand, which was swinging a pickaxe, suddenly froze in mid-air. For the first time, his cloudy eyes blazed with a light as intense as magma from the Earth's core.
In the "Gene Breeding Center," the elven women, who were treated as breeding machines, felt a ripple of "hope" for the first time in their long-numbed and empty eyes when they heard this rumor.
In the gladiatorial arena of the "City That Never Sleeps," and in the luxurious taverns, the female slaves, forced to sell their dignity and bodies, upon hearing this news, all stopped what they were doing, raised their heads, and looked towards the sky—a sky that belonged to the emperor and was forever beyond their reach.
More and more slaves, unable to endure the tyranny of the empire, began to try every means to escape from the mines and factories, to cross the wilderness, and to find the legendary team known as the "Light of Dawn".
In just a few months, Irelia's resistance army grew rapidly, like a snowball rolling downhill. From a few hundred to several thousand, even tens of thousands. Humans, elves, dwarves, orcs... almost every race enslaved by the empire gathered under her command.
The expansion of their ranks also brought new problems. They needed a stable base, sufficient food and weapons, and the establishment of their own order.
Irelia turned her gaze to a city called "Black Iron Fortress," located at the border of Resource Zone 7 and Resource Zone 6.
This city was originally a large military fortress built by the empire to suppress slave uprisings in two resource-rich areas. It boasts high walls, comprehensive fortifications, and stores vast quantities of weapons and supplies.
However, due to the prolonged peace, the garrison in the fortress had long become complacent. Most of the troops had been transferred to other star systems of the Empire. Now, only a small, understrength legion of a thousand men remained in the fortress.
Irelia knew that taking this fortress would be a crucial step for them to transform from "bandits" into a true "righteous army."
An unprecedented and arduous siege thus began.
The rebels had no heavy siege weapons. They could only rely on Patton and his dwarf engineers, who used captured materials to make makeshift catapults and explosive charges overnight.
Meanwhile, the imperial defenders, relying on their sturdy city walls and powerful energy cannons, launched a fierce counterattack.
The battle entered a fierce stage from the very beginning.
Countless resistance fighters were blasted to pieces by energy cannons on their way to victory. But those behind them continued, roaring as they charged forward, stepping over the corpses of their comrades. In their eyes, there was no fear, only a yearning for freedom and a deep-seated hatred for the invaders.
Eri...Lia, always at the forefront. Time and again, she charged to the front lines. The sword "Dawn" in her hand shone with an unprecedented brilliance. That light shielded her comrades from wave after wave of deadly artillery fire. Her sword light, like the scythe of death, reaped the lives of every Imperial soldier who dared to stand on the city walls.
This battle lasted for three days and three nights.
The entire Black Iron Fortress was stained red with blood.
By dusk on the third day, the rebels finally breached the fortress gates after suffering heavy casualties, with nearly half of their forces killed or wounded.
As Irelia, holding the dripping "Dawn," walked step by step to the highest point of the fortress, all the surviving rebel soldiers let out a deafening cheer.
The cheers carried the joy of victory, but also the sorrow of losing comrades.
They finally reclaimed a piece of land that truly belonged to them.
Irelia stood atop the city wall, gazing down at the faces below, flushed with emotion and streaked with tears. Slowly, she raised the sword "Dawn," its tip pointing straight to the heavens.
"From this day forward, this place will no longer be called 'Black Iron Fortress'!" Her voice echoed throughout every corner of the city. "This will be the starting point for our resistance against tyranny and the rebuilding of our home! This will be the final resting place for all souls yearning for freedom! Its name is—City of Dawn!"
"City of Dawn!"
"City of Dawn!"
The roars of tens of thousands of people merged into a torrent that seemed poised to overturn the sky.
In the following months, Dawn City became the most eye-catching place on the entire planet. Countless slaves poured in from all directions. The city's size expanded rapidly.
Using the Imperial equipment captured from the fortress, the rebels established their own production lines. They repaired weapons, cultivated fields, and built a new society—simple yet full of life and vitality.
Here, there is no racial discrimination, no slavery. Humans, elves, dwarves, and orcs have all become equal citizens. They share only one identity—free people.
Finally, after everything was on track, Irelia made a decision that shocked the world.
She is about to declare war on the entire world.
Using the Empire's hyperspace communication equipment found in the fortress, Irelia transmitted her image to public screens in every city under Imperial control.
At that moment, whether they were imperial citizens enjoying a luxurious life in the capital of Chengtian, or slaves being cruelly exploited in every corner, they all saw the figure of the girl holding the golden holy sword.
"All the people who live on this land!"
“I am Irelia, leader of the Dawn of Light.”
Five years ago, a tyrant who called himself "God" tore apart our homeland and enslaved our people with lies and violence. He built a so-called "great empire" on piles of bones.
"He told us that weakness is the original sin. Obedience is the only way out."
"But today, I stand here to tell you—no!"
"We are born free! Our dignity must not be trampled upon! Our home must not be invaded!"
"From this day forward, we formally declare war on the Holy Star Empire!"
"We will fight to the very end! Until we pull that false god down from his throne! Until the light of freedom shines once more upon this land of suffering!"
"All you who refuse to be slaves, take up your weapons! Join us! For ourselves, for our children and grandchildren, reclaim what is rightfully ours!"
"Our name is—the Revival Alliance!"
This impassioned declaration of war was like a powerful nuclear bomb, triggering an unprecedented earthquake across the entire planet.
Countless slaves rose up in rebellion on the spot. The entire planet was engulfed in flames of war.
...
Throne of the Heavens.
Inside the palace, there remained an eternal, deathly silence.
Lin Feng sat upright on that cold throne. Before him floated a massive energy-based light screen. On the screen, Irelia's declaration of war was playing.
An elderly man dressed in the robes of the Empire's highest regent was kneeling below, his body trembling violently with fear.
"Your Majesty... It is my dereliction of duty... I never expected that a small band of rebels could cause such a great upheaval... I deserve to die!"
Lin Feng remained silent.
He simply watched quietly as the girl in the light screen, her eyes burning like stars, shone brightly.
He saw it in her hand, the longsword radiating a faint holy power.
He sensed that power, which shared the same origin as the "brave warrior" from five years ago, yet was fundamentally different.
The power of that "hero," Leo, is "protection," is "the favor of the world's will," is a power that is high above and belongs to "heroes."
But this girl's power was even purer, and also more troublesome.
That was... "resistance." It was the most primal, unyielding cry squeezed from the depths of every enslaved, desperate soul on this land.
This force may still be very weak.
But it possesses the true spark that can ignite a prairie fire.
The consul, seeing His Majesty the Emperor, remained silent for a long time, his heart filled with extreme fear.
"Your Majesty...please give the order...I am willing to personally lead the Empire's most elite 'Divine Soldiers' legion...to completely erase that so-called 'City of Dawn' from the planet within three days!"
However, Lin Feng slowly shook his head.
He smiled.
It was a smile that the governor had never seen before.
No, not that kind of cold, emotionless curve that looks down on all living beings.
Rather, it was a kind of... sinister grin, tinged with a hint of playfulness and cruelty, as if it were the look of a child who had grown tired of all games, suddenly finding a novel toy that could pique his interest.
"A new hero?"
His voice echoed softly in the empty, deathly silent palace.
"interesting."
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