Chapter 112: Meteor Clearing the Way, Demon-Breaking Army Vanguard

The explosion of the numerous reality anchors and the anomalies that preceded them lasted, in truth, for a fleeting moment.

Counting from the instant Zig transformed into a dragon and burst forth from the depths of the Abyss-Dweller’s lair, barely fifteen minutes had passed—everything had transpired with terrifying speed, and ended just as abruptly.

The detonation of the reality anchors had plowed through the entire lake district, scouring it from the sky.

Now, there was scarcely a single intact patch of ground left in the artificial lake area; everywhere lay charred, molten fragments—the debris scattered by the anchors' collapse.

In the water, a hand formed of smoke cradled Zig, who had fallen from the sky, dragging him toward the shore. Shael and Shuguin stood at the bank, watching as the smoke-demon pulled Zig, inch by inch, onto the land.

"How are you? Are you alright?" Shuguin stepped to the water's edge, questioning Zig as he struggled to sit up.

The giant smoky hand dissipated, retreating into Shuguin’s pipe. The smoke-demon offered no chatter; clearly, it had expended a vast amount of energy in this incident and lacked the spirit for banter.

"Not good. I truly nearly died. Fortunately, as long as a dragon’s body has a single breath left, it can slowly recover. At least my human form is still functional."

"Otherwise, what you’d see falling from the sky would be a corpse." Zig smiled, then coughed; it was evident that maintaining his human guise was a grueling effort.

"There is no help for it. Your uniqueness renders recovery spells and potions useless. To be alive is enough. But, what exactly was that thing?" Shuguin thumped Zig on the back with his fist, then gestured toward the sky with a solemn expression.

Throughout the incident, what troubled Shuguin most was the colossal draconic eye that had emerged from the clouds, forcing Zig to cast them aside and displaying a power of terrifying magnitude.

He knew of Zig’s second identity, yet he had no idea Zig was connected to such an entity. Zig had never spoken to his old teammate about this "curse" that belonged solely to him.

Zig looked at Shuguin, offering a helpless, bitter smile. He shook his head and placed a palm before his lips, making a "hush" gesture.

"Unspeakable?" Shuguin asked, his tone growing even graver.

"Yes." Zig confirmed Shuguin’s suspicion.

"Very well. It seems this is not a matter to be shared. I shall not pry further, but remember: whenever you need help, the Night’s Edge will always stand behind you."

Shuguin said no more. It was clear that this terrifying entity connected to Zig was akin to the "God’s Remains of the End"—an unspeakable thing. To describe or attempt to observe it directly was to risk forming a connection with it.

Generally speaking, to face such an entity meant either madness or death. As a member of the Night’s Edge who dealt with madness and danger, Shuguin understood the severity of the concept of the "unspeakable" better than most.

"Good. This time, I owe it all to you; otherwise, I could never have survived under His gaze." Zig wore his habitual, gentle smile.

"That firmament—it must have been created by Wang Yu and his companions. I seem to have underestimated Wang Yu’s standing in the heart of the goddess, the Lady of Night. That is a miracle worthy of being called divine magic."

"Though it is raw and the power within is sparse, the Lady of Night whom Wang Yu speaks of is certainly no minor deity—she may even be a god who has awakened after a long slumber. Yet, for Wang Yu, she has deigned to exert such power; Wang Yu can already be considered a chosen of the gods."

Zig removed his soaked clothes, set them aside, and sat upon the plowed riverbank, analyzing the Evernight Firmament that had suddenly appeared to shroud the entity’s gaze and save his life.

"Wang Yu’s contribution this time is immense. Furthermore, the Nightfall Church that Shael mentioned holds great potential. While giving Wang Yu his due reward, we should also invest in and observe the Nightfall Church." Shuguin voiced his opinion.

"Because I was away on a mission with you, Captain, my understanding of the Nightfall Church is limited. I didn’t expect the initial investment in Wang Yu to yield results, but it seems there have been some unexpected developments in the shadows of the Royal City."

Zig was somewhat surprised; Shuguin, who rarely concerned himself with anything beyond investigations and missions, was actually taking note of the Nightfall Church.

"Let Shael describe it to you; after all, he is the one who spent time there." Shuguin beckoned to Shael, who was standing nearby, watching them with eager eyes.

"Boss, Professor, can I get a raise?" Shael put on a pitiful face, humbly negotiating for better terms after the mission.

"Hahaha, very well. Your prophecy and that Tarot card that reversed reality and the void were of great merit. Fine, hurry up and tell us."

Shuguin couldn't help but laugh at this fellow, who was still trying to squeeze out a benefit even at a time like this.

"You got it! Right away. To be honest, Wang Yu’s Nightfall Church is really strange..." Shael’s mood brightened instantly, his humility vanished, and he excitedly recounted everything he had seen at the church.

…

"Is that so? That different races can coexist so harmoniously—it seems like a coincidence, yet only the unique environment of the Royal City’s shadows could foster such a church. In a sense, it is an inevitability. This Nightfall Church Wang Yu has created truly has something extraordinary about it."

Listening to Shael’s description, Zig fell into a deeper contemplation than Shuguin or Shael. The way the Nightfall Church was composed, without barriers or friction between races, was rare and deeply significant…

"Should I let her go there as well..." Zig pondered. Just then, a brilliant meteor rising from above the Stevenson School of Magic interrupted his thoughts. The decisive battle of the Imperial Guard against the Demon Gate had begun.

"What is that?" Shael looked at the brilliant meteor appearing in the sky, startled. Having endured too many shocks today, he was easily rattled by any change.

"The final assault is commencing. However, this no longer concerns us. We have resolved what we could." Zig sighed, watching the meteor streak across the sky.

"Indeed. And there is Wang Yu. He should have been here; why didn't he rendezvous with us? Let’s go find them. The magical and void disturbances were too great for communicators to function; only the giant arrays on the floating islands can pierce the interference to reach us." Shuguin didn't dwell on it.

…

"Officer, inside the city..."

"That is not your concern! Do your duty." The adjutant cut off the soldier who had tried to ask about the upheaval in the city.

Their task was simple: do what must be done, deal with the Hell Gate, and leave the rest for later. Failing to do their duty would only make matters worse.

"Prepare to move out!" The Knight Commander’s voice rang out across the entire Imperial Guard.

"Yes!" With a unified and powerful response, every soldier abandoned their current enemies and rapidly assembled into formation around the commander.

Around them lay a multitude of corpses—ogres, winged demons, butchers, beholders, and even their own fallen comrades. Blood of strange hues stained the earth, and scattered limbs made the area look chaotic and grotesque.

Yet, facing this bloody and cruel scene, the Imperial Guard showed no shift in morale or emotion, executing their commander's orders with steadfast order.

"All troops, form up!" The Knight Commander’s roar came again, this time bolstered by battle aura, making the sound even more resonant and vast.

"Yes!" The response was equally bolstered by battle aura. All the knights in the ranks shouted in unison, and simultaneously, through a technique practiced countless times, their battle auras began to radiate outward.

These were not the physical manifestations of Great Knights, but rather auras that linked with those of their counterparts in the pre-arranged formation. As the auras connected, with the Commander’s manifested aura as the core at the front, the presence of every soldier in the formation became one.

These linked auras unified the entire formation, turning the group of soldiers into a single, complete entity.

"Mages, Haste and Shield. Priests, Holy Wall and Purify." The adjutant’s orders followed immediately.

The Imperial Guard consisted of more than just knights; there were mages and priests. They did not shout their responses, but swiftly completed their assigned tasks.

A gentle breeze swirled around the soldiers, granting them swiftness and agility. Invisible barriers rose—not wrapping around each individual, but surrounding the formation as a whole.

A golden wall radiating holy light rose at the very front of the column, acting as the spearhead for the charge, while falling particles of white light cleansed the soldiers of the fatigue and minor wounds sustained from fighting the demons, bringing them to their peak state.

"Charge!" The final command was given. Every soldier spurred their mount, launching a charge toward the location of the Hell Gate.

Following the Imperial Guard, and moving even faster, was the brilliant meteor launched from above the Stevenson School of Magic. It was the Caelunor Meteor, prepared to pave the way for the Guard, having undergone a long charge, its power exceeding that of a Mana Comet.

It was a higher-tier version of the Mana Comet. If the Mana Comet was a deluge of tens of thousands of zero-circle arcane missiles, the Caelunor Meteor was a deluge of tens of thousands of first-circle spells. From zero to one—this was a qualitative change.

The brilliant meteor flew in perfect alignment with the Imperial Guard’s charge. The glowing star ahead served as a guide, and in truth, it was carving a path for them.

During those fifteen minutes of waiting, a multitude of high-tier demons and a vast horde of low-tier demons had been summoned by the Demon Gate.

Dense swarms of winged demons and beholders filled the air, while on the ground, thick clusters of ogres and rampaging butchers blocked the path of the Imperial Guard.

The Caelunor Meteor was released to annihilate these obstacles. It reached its zenith at that moment.

Then, after a blinding flash, just like the Mana Comet, it split into a hundred, then a thousand, then ten thousand—countless brilliant, crystal-like shards rained down from the sky.

Using sheer numbers to blanket everything ahead—that was the purpose of the Caelunor Meteor: to destroy every enemy daring to stand in its path with falling stars.

The brilliant, crystal-like matter was actually a spell one tier higher than the arcane missile: the Explosive Gravel.

Though only slightly higher in rank than the arcane missile, it was a dozen runes more complex. Its individual power was not much greater, but it possessed a critical property: explosion.

The countless shards of explosive gravel rained down in sequence, and upon impact, their internal unstable mana circuits collapsed, triggering a chain reaction of explosions.

Because they were so densely packed, the explosions influenced and reinforced one another, blanketing everything in their path.

From the point where the first shard landed, a dense, frenzied chain of explosions tore a path toward the Hell Gate—the very direction the Imperial Guard was advancing.

Earth was thrown into the sky; demons in the air and on the ground were swept away by the indiscriminate blasts.

Just as the power of arcane missiles grew exponentially with sufficient numbers, these densely packed, mutually reinforcing shards of explosive gravel saw their power soar.

Beholders and winged demons—creatures not known for their durability—were reduced to ash in the explosions in a heartbeat.

The Ushi-oni, whose only impenetrable feature was its head, could not withstand such omnidirectional devastation; its torso fractured, scattering into a spray of gore.

Only the Butchers, those thick-skinned high-ranking demons, could barely endure a bombardment that remained, at its essence, a manifestation of low-level sorcery.

Though not a single patch of their hide remained whole, and their rugged flesh was ravaged by the relentless detonations, shards of horn and muscle flew everywhere, only to be reduced to ash by the subsequent blasts.

When the smoke cleared, only the mangled, blood-drenched Butchers remained, howling as they stood upon the path, yet they were met by the Imperial Guard surging forth from the shroud of dust!

With the holy barriers cast by the priests serving as the razor-sharp vanguard and the knight commander acting as the conduit, their linked battle-auras funneled the strength of all into this singular core; the mages’ haste spells accelerated the entire host, while protective shields insulated the ranks from the external chaos of fire and soot—the Imperial Guard moved as one body, a true testament to the martial arts of an extraordinary army.

The anti-magic vanguard, fueled by an unstoppable, tempestuous momentum, ground every last Butcher demon in its path into nothingness.