Chapter 957: The Spiritual Pollution of the Fallen Angels
Those mages from the Narcissus Principality had never anticipated that civilians would be turned into traps.
Even in the most brutal war they had ever experienced - the Rift War that led to the division of Hellasir, the Star Antimony people never used such "inhumane" fighting methods.
Because not long ago, civilians from all countries were all one family. Their culture, language, and lifestyle were basically the same, and there was no deep hatred at that time.
It was a "most meaningless war," the result of both sides' unwillingness to submit when Hercules's lineage died out. Under such circumstances, if anyone resorted to unscrupulous means to survive, it would only create trouble for their future rule. And after they became part of the Star Antimony, it became even more impossible to allow these noble mages to encounter the front lines.
They also lacked combat experience. When they saw civilians running toward them with fear on their faces, instead of vigilantly driving them away, they tried to inquire about their situation.
As a result, those civilians exploded one by one——
——Fortunately, those who landed first included the Sons of the Moon, and among them were two Blood Lords.
The Moon Children did not have the same kindness as the Tower Mages, but instead had the most malicious assumptions about everything around them. Therefore, when they saw these civilians suddenly approaching, they secretly raised their vigilance.
Because they did not see the emotion and excitement of being "saved" on the faces of these civilians, but instead saw "fear".
It was a fear that looked all too familiar to them.
So they all held the protective spell in their hands - and when the first explosion occurred, they immediately cast it out!
——Advanced protective barrier!
——Reject the iron wall!
Blood was drawn from their bodies and condensed into two hemispherical barriers, one white and one black.
Because this was not a "targeted protection," they were completely shattered by the continuous explosions the moment they appeared... but thanks to them blocking the way for a while, there was not much remaining explosive power when it penetrated the protective barrier.
Except for the three friendliest people who were seriously injured at the beginning, everyone else was only injured and was not in danger of life.
——And the three mages who had become a bloody mess and were on the verge of death, suddenly recovered their health under three golden lights that flashed one after another!
That was Aiwass's "Radiance" spell. As the Illuminator, his illumination spell no longer required continuous casting or close contact. He only needed to cast the simplest blessing spell on the three mages to obtain a corresponding free long-range "Radiance".
The mage's vitality is not that strong...it is equivalent to a short health bar.
Just one sip of milk can heal them instantly!
After realizing who had cast such a powerful healing spell, the mages, who had been bewildered by the attack, immediately calmed down.
"Are you okay?"
Aiwass came hurriedly, followed by Saint John.
Both of them were sent here by the Great Guardian's griffin.
"I'll do it."
Saint John has a serious expression and his hands are clasped together.
The golden halo condensed into three halos around her and spread out one after another.
——This is Zhu Tiansi’s magic, the healing ring!
A typical priest could only condense one ring through prayer, but a bishop could condense two rings. And Ruoan, without even saying a word, instantly condensed a triple halo.
The three auras spread out in succession, washing over everyone's body. When the first aura passed, most of the mages' injuries had already been healed. By the time the second aura swept through, everyone had recovered. The third aura, however, had no effect at all.
In the end, no one died - this made Aiwass feel relieved.
"I'll be by your side," Aiwass said seriously, "Protect yourselves! Don't approach any strangers, and use magic to isolate them outside the formation!
"—Keep the formation, we're heading to the Mage Tower at full speed!"
"Then I'll provide you with acceleration..."
Ruoan said, raising his hand and waving.
An hourglass symbol faintly appeared above her head, then turned upside down.
Everyone's movements suddenly doubled in speed - it wasn't that their speed became faster or their strength became stronger, but rather that the flow of time seemed to have sped up!
Aiwass recognized it... This should be the advanced divine art of the Sand Clock. The time authority, which originally required altars and rituals to obtain, was granted to everyone with a simple wave of Saint John's hand.
Then, a strong pulsating feeling of life came, and Aiwass felt as if he could sense the pulse of the earth - this was the gain that Aiwass was familiar with, a blessing that allowed people to not feel tired when traveling long distances or crossing complex terrain.
"Let's guard the port here for a while."
Aiwass turned around and whispered to the Great Guardian, "With the Son of the Moon here...if we're attacked up ahead, they can hold out for a long time. With Philip's speed, we'll be there in an instant."
"OK."
The Great Guardian said solemnly, "I will be on standby at all times."
But at this moment.
A human look of confusion appeared on Philip's bird-like face.
"What's the problem?"
Aiwass keenly caught this hint of confusion and immediately asked, "Mr. Philip, if you have any ideas, just tell me directly."
Those demons didn't act like the demon army he remembered. They seemed to have a leader... In this situation, Aiwass believed that any opinions were valuable for reference.
"…No, it's nothing. It's nothing serious."
Philip's middle-aged man spoke in a calm voice: "I just have some doubts...
"—Why don't we come from Iris? When we attacked the Star Antimony Capital, didn't we build a temporary fortress on the border between Iris and Star Antimony?
"It only takes about two days to get to the Ziggurat from there, so we should be able to make it in time. Or we could send the Black Phase over first and have it drive the Ziggurat to our side... I mean, is that even possible?"
As the favorite of the Crown Lord, the Griffin has a much greater reverence for the Pillar God than ordinary creatures.
The pure-blooded griffin obviously did not dare to disobey the son of the candle master, so he was quite cautious when giving his opinions.
But when Aiwas heard this, he was slightly stunned.
He originally wanted to say that if that happened, they wouldn't be able to control the Ziggurat immediately - but Philip's next thought of "letting the Black Phase drive the Ziggurat over" immediately blocked his idea.
Aiwass felt his brain confused for a moment, and he had a hint of doubt.
...Yeah, why didn’t I think of that?
In other words, why did I want to attack by sea in the first place?
Aiwass thought carefully for a long time before he found an answer that surprised him a little.
...because that's how it was in the original plot.
The reinforcements that were originally brought in from the Theocracy by Queen Isabel of Flowers were the ones that fought against the demon army of the Fallen Angels.
Although there were coalition forces at that time, they were basically composed of Xing Antimony's own soldiers - because Xing Antimony had not yet split up. The Narcissus and Black Hawk soldiers who joined in now were originally the previous Xing Antimony Army.
Those Star Army soldiers were originally on Star, and were gradually incorporated into the Church Army!
The first landing force was only the Paladin Legion that landed under the cover of the "Cruel Preacher", which originally had only one ship!
Because the Theocracy disliked interfering with other nations, and their initial force consisted of less than two thousand men, their decision to rush over by sea was perfectly reasonable—supplies for these two thousand men could be carried by ship.
At that time in the main storyline, the resistance encountered by the Allied Forces after landing mainly came from Count Leipzig who defected to the Fallen Angels.
At that time, Leipzig was known as the "City of Blood Feast," and the Count of Leipzig was known as the "Lord of the Blood Feast." Up to this point, they had encountered few demons, the only resistance coming from fallen transcendents corrupted by Leipzig's money.
After defeating the "Blood Feast Master," the next main dungeon is the Ziggurat—not the "Thousand-Year Vengeance Ziggurat," but the "Sealed Library Necromancer Academy." The boss there is a young male necromancer with two chubby, stitched corpses. Because there's no mechanic, Aiwass has even forgotten his name.
After defeating the Spirit Tower, the player gradually advances into the territory, encountering the "Four Heavenly Kings" sent by the Fallen Angels—four human-turned-Higher Demons. In the original story, it was only at this point that the player gradually learned about the "Tail Ring Ritual."
Naturally, in the original worldline, Avalon would never have helped Xingtan. By then, Avalon had become a puppet state of Xingtan. Not only had it fallen into a state of warlordism, but it also harbored a strong hatred for Xingtan.
By then, the Griffin Legion had been completely wiped out... and because of this, the Demon Legion always controlled air supremacy. The coalition forces had no air force, and their only effective mobility came from the mass teleportation of the Mage Tower.
But now it's different.
The Griffin Legions, under the command of Aiwass, have bombed the Star Antimony Capital once!
In order to facilitate their advance, their military camp was established on the border of Iris - in other words, this was originally a base that could be used!
Moreover, the number of their coalition forces is large enough, which means that if the war is delayed, the transportation of logistical supplies will also encounter resistance.
"...Damn it, how could I have made such a big mistake!"
Aiwass reacted with a start and was immediately horrified.
——Isn’t that right?
He suddenly turned around and looked at the Great Guardian.
The Great Guardian is the one who set up the fortress. Others may not know or forget, but he himself cannot forget!
Then why did the Great Guardian say nothing when he sought advice?
"I don't think it's a big problem."
The Great Guardian's expression was quite relaxed.
He had just killed more than one succubus with his own hands, which made him extremely excited - the shame of the past was still engraved in his heart, and he had an almost hatred-like hostility towards succubus.
His face was full of smiles, and his eyes were faintly red: "Anyway, isn't the result good?
"—Although some ships sank, aside from the Moon Children, the others who fell into the water could still be rescued. The number of soldiers killed by direct lightning strikes was not large, certainly far less than the casualties caused by a slow land advance. As for those Moon Children..."
The Great Guardian sneered at this point and did not continue.
"I think that's fine."
Saint John's tone was full of motherhood, soothing Aiwass's emotions as if he were taking care of a child: "After all, that Miss Night Demon can take care of everyone, right?"
At this moment, Night Demon had been assigned to the rear by Aiwass. She completely expanded her territory, disregarding the possibility of being discovered by the Fallen Angels. Within the dark red clouds, she was like a demon.
She set the target of the curse to "all demons in the area" and cast the "mental retardation curse" on all demons, including herself!
This was the curse Aiwass had used on Sherlock once, to cool his overheated, unstoppable brain.
The curse cast by the sixth-level Night Demon is enough to make the cursed person's brain temporarily retarded!
Under this level of interference, it was almost impossible for the demons to launch an attack immediately after being teleported. During this period of delay, they would be torn apart and pierced by the cruel rain of blood because of the curse they had borne!
If the cursed were to bathe in that bloody rain, it would feel like being pierced by countless steel needles. Perhaps only demons like Berserkers, Labyrinth Fiends, and Blade Fiends could withstand the damage. For fragile demons like Winter Demons, Succubi, and Incubi, a mere moment of distraction could slay them.
——And for those who are not cursed, this blood rain is nothing more than sticky and smelly rain.
The situation has actually stabilized at the moment, so it seems that it is indeed just a matter of details.
The number of soldiers killed in the demon attack was unexpectedly small, and in the eyes of the Great Guardian this could even be considered a great victory!
But Aiwass felt an increasingly strong sense of unease.
The inexplicable fear gradually calmed him down - what he cared about now was not even the casualties or the marching route, but "why he arranged it so smoothly."
And until now, no one has reminded Aiwass.
The only one who realized that something was wrong was the griffin in the Great Guardian's house!
Is a griffin smarter than everyone else?
…Are people too afraid of the Pope? Are they afraid to voice their opinions?
I'm afraid that's not the case - he has a good relationship with the Great Guardian and respects this elder very much.
The Great Guardian had no reason to be afraid of him. And the Griffin should be the one afraid of him.
...And, according to Aiwass's impression of the Grand Guardian, the Grand Guardian is a silent, gentle and fair person.
George's attitude towards war is one of disgust but acceptance. He would never be as excited as he is now, and he would never say something like "the casualties are not that great anyway."
Even though he hated the Son of the Moon—after all, the one who manipulated him to attack Isabel was both a succubus and a Son of the Moon...
But Aiwass felt that he would not do something like deliberately harming his allies.
…It was as if the hatred in his heart had become fresh and magnified countless times.
The former Pope St. John is even more impossible - this mother-like person should have loved every life.
Now he has become a complete supporter of Aiwass, not denying any of his suggestions, and even trying to excuse Aiwass who obviously had problems.
But they had only met a few times!
Aiwass suddenly realized that it might not just be him—even the former Pope's mental state had problems!
...Also, why is it that the griffin is fine?
"Could it be because..."
Aiwass murmured softly.
...Because the Griffin is a "winged being"?
The first chapter is 4,000 words long, and there is a second chapter to go!
(End of this chapter)
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