“Wait until I can summon the Armor of Dawn, the power of the holy light would isolate everything, boosting the strength of protection by several times! The mere thought of it makes me feel invincible already!” Falcon thought to himself as he flicked the sticky stuff off his hand.
Patrol-clerics like them were akin to tanks in human shape. Average monsters were of no threat to them.
He seemed to have heard some rustling noise suddenly. “What the heck is it?” He looked to one side, and he was rooted to the spot.
Outside the holy city, in a piece of ruins covered in black mist, came a black stream with its tail stretching into infinity, rushing toward the defense zone.
Falcon could feel the earth shaking slightly under his feet as he scanned the area to his left and right. The black stream was everywhere.
“What the heck is that?”
In the black mist, the black stream seemed to devour every monster and physical things on its path as it came.
Falcon reached for his comm, trying to alert the others, but it was too late. The black water, which was still a distance away, had suddenly come and hit him all of a sudden. For a moment, all he saw was black. And then he started to lose his consciousness.
In that split second, he used what remains of his strength to press a panic alert button under his armor. Immediately, an ear-piercing siren rang through the air.
…
In the Sanctum.
Tenko Kasumi had cut short of her cultivation session. Sitting beside her was Margaret, Cainphas, the new chancellor of Baine University, Cavendian, the vice-chancellor, and Madillan. There were also a dozen Sanctum prefects. Everyone had a grave and nervous look on their face.
“What is the situation now?” Tenko Kasumi first asked.
“Not good. The defense zone was half gone in just ten minutes. 3,000 people are missing, probably drowning in the Blacktide water. We couldn’t find their bodies. If the Blacktide’s behavior is anything to go by, it won’t be long before we meet our comrades.”
Margaret was the head of Henricqal’s entire logistics division, just below Adolf, the chief of staff. She was over in charge of the medical division. So it was her job to report the casualty number.
“The black water, according to the sample analysis, has been confirmed to be the concentrated version of the back mist. We have found that it has a unique characteristic.” Said Cainphas, who was now responsible for the Ru0026D division of the Sanctum. “It would only corrode things with consciousness.”
“Only corrode things with consciousness?” Tenko Kasumi’s face turned graver.
“That’s right. We have conducted dozens of experiments, but we are still not sure whether it has only this one feature.” Cainphas continued. “Judging from the situation now, I suggest we could see the Blacktide as some natural disaster.”
“What you mean is, if we could use machines, autonomous robots, then we can prevent corrosion and reduce casualty, right?” Adolf asked.
“That’s the theory. We are doing the testing now.” Cainphas nodded.
“His Majesty Holy Emperor is in cultivation now. We need to work together to counter this disaster, guard the holy city, and protect our homes!” Tenko Kasumi said. She knew nothing about command. To her, all she had to do was to roll up her sleeves and fight.
“Let’s gather our men now. The frontline has done the test; we can use highly concentrated holy power to fight back the corrosion of the Blacktide water. All we need to do is reinforce the city wall to withstand impacts and then cover it with our concentrated holy power. We will be able to stop the attack,” Cainphas quickly explained.
“Everyone, split and do your job. Guard your areas!” Tenko Kasumi shouted. “Dismiss! And let’s do it!”
“Aye!” everyone echoed.
…
Meanwhile, the Sanctum HQ in Shermanton had also issued a similar order.
The endless black water had surrounded the entire holy cities, turning them into lonely islands on the black rough sea.
The ring of high walls could barely hold back the corrosion, keeping the holy cities from destruction. But the high wall could not hold back the monsters.
Different kinds of monsters started to lunge out from the tide. They climbed up the wall, starting to attack the defender-clerics. Clad in thick armor, the clerics fought furiously. They became a crushing force to the relatively weak monsters.
However, that was just the beginning. A second wave of monsters, bigger, faster with higher strength, arrived. Casualty increased.
Half-gorilla, half-spider monsters were waving their powerful long arms, smashing every cleric fighter that came near. Their silent killing behavior quickly caught the attention of the powerful beings among the clerics.
A long spear, charged with powerful holy power, was hurled from afar and pierced through the chest of one of these monsters. Before it could react, an explosion went off inside its body, blowing the three-meter-tall monster into hundreds of pieces.
Such a melee was everywhere.
The clerics were fearless. When one got severely wounded, beams of holy light would come down on him from behind, healing him in just a matter of a few breaths, and he was good to go again.
Each cleric was akin to a killing machine; they were impenetrable to the weaker monsters while dropping the stronger one with just a strike. The function of the prefects was to play the suppressive role.
Just when the defense zone outside the holy city was under siege, an ordinary-looking old man, with a staff in hand, entered the holy city undetected from the other side of the city. The even weirder thing was, he was walking in under the nose of the cleric soldiers, yet no one had noticed him.
“Fight! Kill! Stupid Sanctum! You are only draining your strength by fighting the Blacktide. All of you, who know nothing, will only die for nothing. I am the only person who can save the situation.”
The old man was the Sage King, who had been waiting for this moment for a long time. He had planned his moles inside and now was the time to activate them. That was why he came.
He slowly scaled the high wall, landed onto the street as silent and light as a feather, and looked at the people living safely inside the sound-insulation magic circle.
He planned to go to find the Holy Emperor in the little secret realm first. As soon as he killed the Holy Emperor, he would turn himself into him and take over everything.
“I have to say this: it is too naïve for an apex Palatinate to control everything.”
The Sage King slowly walked toward the Sanctum with a smile on his face. He had mastered the essence of the holy power. Combined with the power of the Destiny, he had surpassed the Palatinates, Magister, and every powerful being in history. He had achieved an indescribable, whole new realm of terror.
That was why he came, and everything here was going to change hands.
