Chapter 594: Act 339 – Radiance III
Supported by the power of the Extreme Realm, a magnificent sword pierced the air, its flames resembling molten gold bringing the heated elemental world to the battlefield above; there were no more than ten individuals across the entire Cruz Empire and its allied nations under the Temple of Fire who reached the Extreme Realm, each of their experiences considered legendary by the average onlookers – much like the Earth Sword Saint Darus of yore, who would dare to confidently take his strike? I fear even today’s ‘Cross Hand’ Bud lacks this confidence.
Yet such a strike vanished into the sea of stone before Brendel. When countless golden lines of laws sliced through the rain and struck upon the appearing pure white light screens, the speed was too quick for the human eye to respond, prompting the spectators to see flames scattering like fireworks, resembling a giant golden daisy blooming amid torrential rain.
Then, the flames dissipated into nothingness.
The lines of law representing flame and sublimation were actually reversed, which, in the world of Vaunte, signified only one meaning. That was, the authority of the laws was too low-level, getting rejected by a priority that was too high, yet this was the law of the Extreme Realm, the highest level of fire elements.
Could it be the power of existence?
While everyone was stunned, only Brendel understood; it seemed that among all the rules he had encountered, the world of the Traveler Mage possessed the highest priority in the Vaunte world. The descriptions on the Destiny card depict effects preceding causes; no matter how bizarre, the Vaunte world would affirm it immediately.
The description on the Anrodus Holy Ring renders an attack ineffective, meaning that no matter how strong the next attack might be, even if it could destroy the world, as long as Brendel displayed this card, he could remain unscathed.
This was the strongest shield. And such a rule astonished even him, let alone others.
But Brendel did not stop. Seizing the moment when Williams was momentarily distracted, he took the opportunity to place four Nightmare Furnace Constructs onto the field. The constructs emerged from beneath the earth like shining metal beetles, roughly the size of a human head. When these creatures, which represented the upper echelon of silver (level 35, evolved from the Golden Glory Battle Flag), first appeared, they did not attract much attention; however, their anomaly allowed them to self-replicate by consuming light elements. White light orbs continuously flew from Brendel’s hand into the bodies of these ugly constructs, quickly increasing their numbers on the battlefield to thirty-two.
With his growing strength, Brendel’s elemental pool now had 78 slots for fire elements, 51 for wind elements, 55 for earth elements, 48 for water elements, 50 for light elements, and 60 for dark elements. The growth of fire element slots outpaced the rest since Erluin was also a descendant of the Flame King. In contrast, the dark element surged rapidly due to the influence of the Dark Dragon legacy, while the light element grew in tandem with Medisa’s blessing, making it only second to dark and fire elements; however, his natural element pool remained unopened. Throughout previous battles, he had carefully utilized the Traveler Mage’s abilities, summoning and maintaining the Holy Sword and the Wind Spider at the cost of over 40 slots of earth elements and 1 slot of wind element. Summoning the Life Codex had also been free since he had discarded the Ocean Wave Gem, which, along with the Eternal Sphere card, had always been on the field. This meant that his other elemental pools were still nearly full at that moment.
He placed down four Nightmare Furnace Constructs, using up 4 slots of dark elements. When these constructs multiplied to thirty-two, his light element pool status instantly changed to 0/50.
The next full multiplication required thirty-two points.
From four to eight, from eight to sixteen, and then doubling again, the activity around Brendel finally caught Williams’ attention. The peculiar group of metal beetles almost instantaneously grew larger. He had mistakenly assumed Brendel to be a summoner, thus feeling extraordinarily wary of all of Brendel’s summons. However, upon closer inspection, he realized the Nightmare Furnace Constructs were merely upper-tier silver beings, which eased his tension and redirected his focus back to the two massive Life Codexes before Brendel.
The two Life Codexes, radiating pure white light, hovered silently, seemingly having no effect initially. But the moment Brendel released the four Nightmare Furnace Constructs onto the field, the gigantic Life Codexes suddenly began to flip synchronously, turning four pages in unison. With each page turn, a wave of pure power emanated from the codex, radiating across the battlefield.
It was a gentle ripple of light, passing over all allies of Brendel, whose wounds instantly began to heal at a visible rate. When eight waves of light completely spread across the battlefield, even the soldiers who had lost limbs were regrowing their bodies, crawling back up from the ground.
In the air, Charles had just rescued Medisa from the attack of a Temple Knight’s subordinate using a magic shield. But Andrigraphis was struck in the lower abdomen by another female Temple Knight arriving soon after, nearly bisecting him. The Vampire Princess let out a soft grunt, immediately losing consciousness and falling from the air, but at this moment, a soft white halo passed over her body, her wound beginning to heal rapidly. After eight consecutive waves of light, this vampire princess surprisingly opened her eyes once again.
She halted mid-air, then stopped her descent.
More critically, her body, which had clearly been exhausted from continuous battles, felt revitalized as if she had rested fully for several hours.
A miracle!
At that moment, everyone harbored but one thought: in the view of even those noble private soldiers, it seemed there was a divine emissary of the God of Life fighting alongside them. One can imagine the morale boost for ordinary soldiers not worrying about being wounded or disabled on the battlefield – it was almost instantaneous, leading to an explosion of cheers akin to a tidal wave in the Princess’s army.
With the Princess’s side’s morale soaring, in contrast, the already low morale of the Northern Coalition plummeted further. If it weren’t for the monk soldiers from the Temple of Fire supporting them from the sky, it was likely that these noble armies would have immediately considered retreat.
Williams furrowed his brow, “Prevent that summoner! Don’t let him activate those two divine books!” He commanded his subordinates – it was a bit embarrassing to admit, but while he had benefited considerably from the sword strike he had dealt, he now felt somewhat drained. While he had no worries about self-protection, breaking through the Black Tower wizard’s defenses and launching an attack on Brendel felt a bit daunting.
He could only command the remaining eleven Temple Knights to engage Brendel.
Upon hearing this order, Charles, Medisa, Repal, and Andrigraphis immediately sensed danger. Eleven Knights from the Temple of Fire were indeed high-level beings of elemental awakening, and at this point, their defense appeared completely inadequate. If the enemy intended to bypass them and attack the Lord, they truly had no countermeasures.
“Brendel,” Charles warned while forming a slowed wall of time before him, informing Brendel.
“I understand,” Brendel replied.
He threw out another card, and a red light flashed in his hand as a flame erupted from the forest. “Infernal Giant!” Upon seeing the giant forming from the flames, Williams could not help but call out to Martha above. What Brendel summoned was indeed the Fire Giant, albeit upgraded to Infernal Giant under the enhancement of the Golden Glory Battle Flag; this creature appeared similar to the Fire Giant, just larger, and the golden flames swirling beneath it intertwined with black infernal fire, and most critically, it could self-destruct.
As high-ranking members of the Temple of Fire, the Temple Knights were naturally not unfamiliar with the fire elemental planes and understood the characteristics of some creatures living in that world. Therefore, the moment the massive fiery behemoth appeared in their sight, all their faces turned pale.
This was a terrorist at the Golden Pinnacle level.
Yet, retreating was clearly too late.
In fact, at that moment, everyone on the battlefield sensed the sky dimming slightly, but this was merely an optical illusion caused by pupils adjusting to the intense light. Suddenly, a brilliantly bright little sun rose slowly from the forest, making everything else appear dim in comparison.
Then, a searing shockwave swept across the earth, evaporating the rainwater in the sky in an instant.
The eleven Temple Knights closest to the impact were in severe pain. The two who took the brunt of the attack were badly injured, one having his chest and shoulder armor melted in the high heat, leaving him with burns on his face. The others had to retreat, causing the flimsy encirclement they had formed to collapse.
But what they fared even worse under was that as the Infernal Giant dissipated, two more white luminous circles emerged from the Life Codex, further healing the wounds of Charles, Medisa, Repal, and Andrigraphis.
How could they fight?
This time, Brendel summoned the Adversity Furnace. The Adversity Furnace of Echronia was the third card of the Adversity Paradise set, costing 30 of any element, and he designated 30 wind elements as a substitute for payment. Adding to the prior summon of the Fire Giant, Brendel’s status for fire and wind elements dropped to 63/78 and 20/51 respectively.
The Adversity Furnace requires attachment to volcanic land cards when entering play, and Brendel just so happened to have the Ashen Volcano card. Once he attached the card, a piece of industrial-style metal architecture instantly emerged on the Ashen Volcano in the world of the Traveler Mage.
The Adversity Furnace could be considered the engine of the Adversity Paradise deck; its function was to sacrifice cards from the Echronia series to obtain a specific resource for this deck – energy.
However, at the moment, Brendel didn’t have any Echronian soldiers in hand, needing more time. He once again returned to the real world and tossed out his penultimate card.
By this time, the situation on the battlefield had escalated to a fever pitch, with the valley almost entirely occupied by the Northern Coalition and the monks of the Temple of Fire. Lantonrand’s troops were merely holding a corner of the battlefield, while the Naga, officer cadets from the Royal Knight Academy, and the White Lion Guards fought side by side to hold back the opposing forces at their main stronghold.
The situation appeared precarious, yet the powerful force of the Life Codex still managed to provide some support. Young Aike, filled with thoughts of chivalry, finally understood how Brendel intended to assist him.
He could not help but call out in excitement, “Knight! I didn’t expect you to be such a formidable summoner!” Clearly, this fellow had also mistaken him.
But Brendel promptly led him further astray.
The penultimate card he threw out was the Doom Guard card from the pitch-black Adversity, the fifth card of Adversity Paradise, costing fifteen dark elements. The hallmark of this card is that there is no quantity limit on the field; each Doom Guard card places ten black (relic) creatures named Doom Guards onto the field, and for each corpse on the battlefield, another black (relic) creature named Doom Guard is added.
Brendel had long privately validated that if this card could exert its greatest effect anywhere, it was certainly on the battlefield. And now, it was time to maximize its impact.
Brendel paid fifteen dark elements, causing his dark element pool to drop to 41/60. Yet in that moment, the battlefield witnessed the most spectacular scene since the war began.
At that moment in Mal Heights, there were thousands of corpses littering the battlefield. They saw many black arms breaking through the slippery mud and grass with a loud crash as the Doom Guards emerged onto the field.
“Ah!”
“Mama…”
“Madara…?”
Whether soldiers of the Northern Coalition or those on the Princess’s side, they all screamed in shock. Some of them had even participated in the first Black Rose War and were well aware of Madara’s ruthless combat style; having dead comrades appearing before them, picking up blades and swinging them in their direction was the stuff of nightmares.
But was it not established that both countries had signed a peace treaty? Why did these terrifying beings return?
Only the next moment did they realize that those were not their former enemies. These newly emerged warriors, covered in tattoos, armor on their lower halves, dual-wielding swords, surged forth upon breaking free from the ground, directly attacking the Northern Coalition.
Allies? Princess Grifian could not help but stare blankly for a moment, and then she realized something, her silver eyes widening as she looked at Brendel, “M-Mister Brendel, these… they are…?”
“You… you are a necromancer?”
Brendel chuckled ruefully. He had kept this card until the end precisely for this reason; its summoning effect was too reminiscent of a necromancer.
He shook his head, “Princess, have you ever seen a living necromancer?”
Unexpectedly, this statement seemed to cause Princess Grifian to think of something inappropriate, and her face turned red as she instinctively touched her lips – it was common knowledge that the undead lacked body heat. “I’m sorry; I overthought it,” the princess responded softly.
Brendel promptly rolled his eyes.
However, it seemed the undead indeed had a bad reputation in the realm of mortals; he should avoid using this card as much as possible in the future. To prevent misunderstandings, he explained, “Actually, it’s their doing.”
“Their?”
Princess Grifian and Earl Ouding noticed the shiny metal beetles surrounding Brendel – they of course didn’t know those creatures were called Furnace Insects. These creatures had never appeared in Vaunte’s history, and even Brendel, who was well-versed in magical beings, had not recognized them at first, let alone these two locals.
“Yes,” Brendel casually responded, “These are called Undead Beetles; while they are constructed beings, they can cast simple necromancy spells. They were invented by an exceptionally talented rune master.”
Seeing those terrifying Nightmare Constructs, Princess Grifian and Earl Ouding noted their ugly design indeed aligned with a necromantic aesthetic, hence they both nodded in agreement.
After all, people tend to believe what aligns better with their existing knowledge.
“Brendel… you sure can lie,” only Otales couldn’t help but sigh, thinking to herself. Then, with a hint of suspicion, she asked, “Have you ever lied to me about anything?”
“Absolutely not!” Brendel quickly shook his head, “You saw it, Lady Otales, it was out of necessity.”
The Wind Fairy sister nodded, accepting that explanation reluctantly.
While Brendel was explaining, the Northern Coalition had run into a considerable predicament. The Doom Guards Brendel summoned were different – the level of each Doom Guard correlates only with the number of black land cards the Traveler has (X5). He possessed the Marsh of Roots, the Abyssal Waters, and the Death Forest, meaning that the Doom Guards he summoned had a base level of 15, roughly equivalent to a Black Iron upper-tier level, which, under the enhancement of the Golden Glory Battle Flag, escalated to the level of 25 Black Iron Pinnacle Doom Knights.
Each Doom Guard card covers an area of several thousand feet, capable of summoning around one thousand five hundred black derivative beings, which meant Brendel instantly had an army of one thousand five hundred Black Iron Pinnacle soldiers at his disposal.
Moreover, coupled with the “Madara Undead” term’s positive effect, the situation on the battlefield transformed immediately. The Northern Coalition could not make any advances.
However, what surprised Brendel the most was the concern he initially had – that human soldiers fighting alongside the undead would see a decrease in combat effectiveness – didn’t occur. Even the noble private soldiers accepted their “new comrades” exceptionally well. While it seemed almost unreal, he realized that with the trait he acquired from the Loop of Trade Winds, he could ensure morale would not drop when soldiers of different races fought together; since it had had no practical effects until now, he had almost forgotten about it.
But he didn’t expect it to manifest in such a way.
From there, things became simpler.
The Doom Guards were being sequentially sacrificed to the Adversity Furnace, quickly filling Brendel’s energy reserves with double digits of energy. Meanwhile, in the air, the eleven Temple Knights had reconstituted their encirclement in preparation to strike at Medisa, but at that moment, Brendel raised his head and lifted his sword.
The Earth Sword pointed towards one of the Temple Knights in the air, a circle of black halos gathering on the Earth Sword, and the penultimate card revealed itself: Lightning Storm.
Lightning Storm (Adversity Paradise VI), 4 energy; Spell – Real-time; Effect: Tap all Nightmare Constructs on the field, deal 5 points of real damage to designated targets for each Nightmare Construct. Resolution sends the card to the graveyard. “Fire! – Echronia Legion Commander, Teylin”
Everyone heard a crackle as all thirty-two Nightmare Constructs released bolts of black lightning toward the Temple Knight above. The black lightning converged in the air, forming a massive, sharp claw. That Temple Knight reacted quickly, instinctively creating a golden barrier with the lines of law in front of him.
But regrettably, as “Lightning Storm deals 5 points of real damage to designated targets for each Nightmare Construct” stated, it promptly took priority, drawing everyone’s gaze as the bolts of black lightning passed through the golden line without entanglement, striking directly against his chest.
As if he had no defense whatsoever.
“This is impossible!”
Only that thought lingered in the Temple Knight’s mind, yet simultaneously, excruciating pain tore through his body. He was already seriously injured from the prior explosion of the Infernal Giant; this 160 points of damage acted as the final straw that broke the camel’s back, knocking him down from the air.
“Raphael!” the female Temple Knight cried out, likely never having imagined that a prestigious Temple Knight would fall in such a battle.
“Be careful,” Williams, who had recently edged into the Extreme Realm, showed keenness in his perception of law. He immediately deduced the hidden complexities in Brendel’s lightning and warned his subordinates, “Don’t try to absorb that lightning; avoid it!”
However, the deputy commander of the Temple Knights finally felt the danger; he had witnessed the Nightmare Constructs multiplying firsthand and initially thought they were merely minor silver beings, only to discover they held such terrifying offensive capabilities.
Ignoring the laws.
Williams didn’t know why Brendel had so many peculiar attack methods, but he no longer wanted to witness another.
“White Wing Knights!” He gritted his teeth and shouted loudly, “Prepare to assemble!”
The White Wing Knights – the fifth-tier organization of the Cruz, the Silver Wing Cavalry of the Erluin White-Maned Legion were modeled after these Cruz knights. However, unlike their Cruz counterparts, the White Wing Knights were true Pegasus Knights, and each knight possessed at least golden-tier combat strength.
The over one hundred golden-tier heavy cavalry appearing on the battlefield today were precisely these.
As if responding to the Grand Commander’s orders, countless silver wings glistened within the rain. The proud Cruz cavalry gathered to assemble. The Cruz knights screeched on the battlefield, with the higher-tier Pegasus Knights swiftly breaking away from the herd. These heavily armored cavalry began to dive downwards towards Brendel’s location to execute an assault.
They crashed through the defensive line formed by archer arrows, scattering those shafts all over the place. While the Cruz Empire possessed countless powerful beings, it was indeed the frontline armies like them that truly shone in large-scale warfare – and today, only a handful of the four major empires in Vaunte had such elite forces.
The White Wing Knights were fortunate enough to have their names among the strongest legions.
The foremost knight had already raised his long spear. The armor on his steed shimmered as spells like “Wings of Wind” took effect, their disciplined formation ensured they formed an almost perfectly straight silver line speeding towards Brendel.
Yet Brendel seemed not even to glance at them.
The White Wing Knights could not help but feel slighted; had he truly been stunned by fear? But how could a summoner with the ability to wield summoned artifacts be cowed so easily?
A bright red ponytail suddenly flashed into view within their line of sight, explaining everything that followed, alongside a red-haired girl engulfed in golden flames. Xi leapt into action, charging at the advancing knights empty-handed, as if a beast poised for aggression.
The speed was too fast.
The leading White Wing Knight could barely register the pale fingers forming into fists before his vision blurred.
Then, with a bang, he was sent flying from his horse like a cannonball. Xi, spinning mid-air, stomped down viciously on the back of his mount, driving it down into the forest below. Using the force, she leaped up again to face another knight.
The unfortunate fellow, having just seen his comrade fall, apparently mistook the charge for a mighty dragon and, terrified, attempted to dodge. Yet Xi’s figure appeared before him in two overlapping images; in the next instant, her cold grip had seized his throat.
“How could a Golden Pinnacle be so fast…”
He gazed in fright at Xi’s eyes resembling a golden whirlpool, his last thought. Xi gripped him as if he were a chick, tossing him into the air. He collided with the third knight, and both man and steed plummeted into the valley below like a comet.
After taking down three White Wing Knights in quick succession, Xi landed back on the ground. She looked up; over a hundred White Wing Knights appeared petrified, scattering chaotically in the air, while the red-haired girl flashed a small smile, revealing her sharp teeth.
On her limbs and exposed thighs outside her armor, the scale-like patterns subtly shimmered.
These were descendants of dragons—
Shadows flickered in Williams’ heart.
Meanwhile, by casting ‘Lightning Storm’, Brendel regained the opportunity to draw three cards from his deck.
Accelerating Thought, costing 22 light or dark. Any player casting a spell can draw three cards from the top of their deck. Until Accelerating Thought takes effect next, any player with more than eight cards in hand shuffles them back into their deck.
This was the ability of the eighth card of Adversity Paradise. Brendel had been preparing for this arcana all along, and it was precisely the true reason he had asked the Princess to wait a moment earlier.
Then he reached down, drawing from the top of his deck.
Despair Wooden Horse, Ascension, Blade of White Sun.
A slight smile appeared on Brendel’s face; he hadn’t expected that the power of counterattack would return to him so quickly.
From adversity to paradise, yet just one line separates the two.
(PS: A 7000-word large chapter! How about that? Also, please remember to vote for me with monthly tickets!
By the way, I recommend a good book. Please help me save it and vote red; it’s not from Qidian. You can search Baidu for “Red North: Golden Throne.” Please! (I won’t admit this is the author’s book, rolling on the ground…)
The struggles of the Empire do not only stem from today’s decline but also come from its former glory.
Yet one day, the Emperor’s will resonates within billions of worlds.
Calling forth a return from the darkness, not merely for redemption but also in response to a divine oracle—
“The two-headed eagle shall once again spread its wings, and the golden throne shall be forged by iron and blood. The ultimate majesty shall rest upon a mundane name, its enemies shall tremble, and its legend—etched upon the epics of conquerors.”
I secretly wrote the introduction…)(To Be Continued. If you like this work, feel free to place your recommendations or monthly votes on Qidian (qidian.com). Your support is my greatest motivation.)
