Chapter 546: Entering the Port

The administrative hall of Bolt Town.

Though night had fallen, it was illuminated as bright as day under the radiance of magical lamps.

The Shadow Lord, Salonas, bore a striking resemblance to Mephisto, though a closer look revealed a posture more slender and gaunt, particularly those ten skeletal fingers that resembled the brittle twigs of an old tree.

At this moment, he was listening to his servants report on the day's sacrifices, a low, sinister cackle continuously issuing from his throat.

"With twenty thousand fresh lives from Bolt Town as offerings, the heart of Lord Nightmare shall beat with even greater vigor!"

He raised his hand, and two streams of void energy descended out of thin air, "My connection with the Demon Lord shall become tighter still!"

Bolt Town was a grand settlement, boasting a population of over three hundred thousand.

In this massive campaign, the Alliance of Mankind had lost a sage and several legends yet still failed to protect this place, leaving a vast multitude of citizens to fall into the hands of the Shadow Lord.

Salonas had sacrificed two hundred thousand of them, leaving the remaining women and a portion of the robust men as breeding stock, permitted to become new nourishment.

Suddenly, the light within the hall dimmed for a fleeting moment, and a tall silhouette materialized upon the sofa opposite Salonas.

"Oh?"

He suffered a brief moment of astonishment: "What brings you here, Phoenix?"

Clad in crimson armor, exuding an aura that seemed simultaneously freezing and scalding, Phoenix spoke in a chilling voice: "The Demon Lord has contacted us; that sage from the Star Continent has already crossed the Sea of Storms."

The Sea of Storms was formed from the power of the Nightmare, serving in some sense as a tentacle of the Nightmare King; as Ronin and his companions traversed it, they were naturally perceived.

"So soon?"

Salonas’s dry voice carried a hint of surprise, after which he closed his eyes, his spiritual power surging toward the sea like a rising tide.

After a long silence, he opened his eyes, "They must have used some method to shield my perception; I failed to locate their position."

"I have not discovered them either."

Phoenix warned: "I came to remind you to watch out lest this group heads straight for your Soul Anchoring Bay. Though the Demon Lord did not specify their exact numbers and strength, they are likely considerable. You have deployed most of your elites here; beware of losing your own nest."

"Jiejiejie~" Salonas burst into laughter.

Phoenix let out a cold snort, "I despise that sound, stow it away!"

"Heh!"

Salonas curled his lips, filled with disdain: "A single sage expects to conquer Soul Anchoring Bay? Phoenix, you underestimate me far too much!"

"Though Georgia is merely at the half-step sage realm, she is entirely capable of activating the three grand formations of Soul Anchoring Bay. Relying on the Guardian Array, the Soul Shock Array, and the Strangling Array, never mind the enemy having only one sage, even if two or three arrive, they cannot hope to conquer Soul Anchoring Bay in a short time!"

Salonas spoke with supreme confidence: "Even if the situation turns unfavorable, I can swiftly rush back from this side."

Though Phoenix wore an expression of deep contempt upon his face, he knew in his heart that the other's claims were not exaggerated.

Flame Wing, Thranduil, and Mephisto had informed them of the situation over there the moment they arrived at the Star Continent.

Though that continent, stripped of its elemental power, was now gradually recovering, not many powerful experts had been born during these years.

In the final war, before Phoenix’s clone manifested, the Star Continent did not possess even a single sage.

Now, a mere dozen or so years had passed; how many sages could the Star Continent possibly produce?

As for those individuals like Ryan in the City of Dawn, if they dared to leave rashly, they would simply go destroy the City of Dawn, destroying each other's bases at worst.

Soul Anchoring Bay could afford to lose, but the City of Dawn could not.

This was the very reason why, for so many years, though the two sides were as incompatible as fire and water, they dared not act rashly.

Through comprehensive analysis, Soul Anchoring Bay should be impregnable.

"That sage could indeed fly directly to the City of Dawn, but the numerous vessels accompanying him can only sail upstream along the Great Taimuria River."

Speaking to this point, the corners of Phoenix’s mouth curved slightly, revealing an insidious smile.

"Now that we control the estuary, if they plunge blindly inside without a clue, we shall grant them total annihilation!"

Their capture of Bolt and Carthage Towns to control the estuary was precisely to achieve this objective.

Of course, they also leaned toward the possibility that Ronin had already established contact with the City of Dawn.

Yet that mattered little.

"If the City of Dawn intensifies its counterattacks over these two days, it is likely in coordination with their reinforcements."

Phoenix said: "I came to inform you in hopes that you will not hold back when the time comes, dealing with those fellows from the City of Dawn with all your might; leave the reinforcements from the Star Continent to me."

Salonas toyed with his slender fingers, smiling as he said: "What, do you wish to personally avenge the destruction of your clone?"

"Humph, a mere petty sage dares to boast before me, the Flame Demon King; I shall make him realize my true power!"

The words were still echoing within the hall, but Phoenix’s figure had already vanished.

The place he oversaw was Carthage Town, facing Bolt Town across the river.

...

On the morning three days later, Ronin’s fleet appeared on the sea thirty miles away from Soul Anchoring Bay, the harbor of Soul Anchoring Bay already within their sight.

Though they could see the opponent, the people of Soul Anchoring Bay could not discover their fleet unless someone of Mage Master rank or above deliberately observed them.

For Ronin had commanded Irene to use Light-Bending Reflection magic to conceal the fleet.

Even if a sage investigated through spiritual power, they would be isolated by Elrond’s spiritual barrier, unable to detect any anomaly.

"Your Majesty, when do we attack?" Rhaegar inquired, pressing his hand against the greatsword at his waist.

While contacting Ryan to have him launch the counterattack, Ronin said: "Have everyone prepare, be ready for battle at any moment."

Concurrently, a powerful force composed of Ryan, the leader of the City of Dawn, along with three sages and multiple legends, arrived outside Bolt Town.

They gathered in groups of threes and fives, forming their respective squads, ready to launch an assault on the enemies of Soul Anchoring Bay from various angles the moment Ryan gave the command.

"Jiejiejie, to think that you would personally lead the vanguard this time, Ryan the coward, who gave you such courage?"

Salonas’s figure appeared outside Bolt Town, a vast horde of servants following closely behind him.

"Let me guess, is it because your ally is about to reach the estuary? Heh, care to guess if he is a match for Phoenix?"

Ryan let out a nonchalant laugh, excellent, the enemy assumed Ronin would first enter the Tainaria River, completely unaware that Ronin was heading straight for their home nest.

"Before making me guess, you had better consider whether you can withstand my assault!"

Ryan wasted no words, raising a single hand, the power of heaven and earth instantly mobilized, a colossal pressure tearing through the void and surging toward Salonas.

Faced with such a vast, boundless pressure, any ordinary person would have been frightened to the point of bleeding from their seven orifices and dying on the spot.

Yet Salonas still responded with that bizarre laughter, three dark summoning arrays manifesting around his body, and as the brilliance erupted, three giant skeletal horrors of sage rank appeared.

Two of them roared as they resisted Ryan’s assault, while the remaining one charged straight for Ryan.

The battle erupted instantly, a multitude of knights and mages beginning to assist, the collision between the two sides for a moment resembling the simultaneous bombardment of artillery shells in modern warfare, causing heaven and earth to tremble.

"Elrond, Irene, dispel the magic. All ships, enter the harbor at maximum speed!"

Ronin drew the Flowing Flame Sword, crying out in a loud voice: "This is the first battle of our Starry Expeditionary Force, we must display our style, unleash our spirit, and not disappoint our allies!"