In the Chaos Region, within the territory under the Church of Light, an endless army marched along a government road without any sign of its end in sight. Officers riding magic beasts or fine horses rode along the flanks of the long column, shouting orders.
"Move faster!" Wielding their whips, the officers wore grim expressions.
Forced march!
They all remembered the orders: they had to reach the Sheli County border as quickly as possible. The Sheli County border was one of the boundary regions between the Baruch Kingdom and the territory under the Church of Light. It was also the closest boundary to that magic crystal mine from the Church of Light's side.
A mass deployment of troops on this scale could not possibly be hidden from the Baruch Kingdom, so they naturally quickened their march.
At the Sheli County border, nearly two hundred thousand troops had already gathered. The forces that had rushed here would rest for a day or two before joining the war.
"It's time for a decisive battle against the Baruch Kingdom."
In a quiet courtyard, Cardinal Gilmore gazed at the northern sky. The main commander of this war was not Alfonso, but Gilmore. After all, in terms of influence, Cardinal Gilmore was the stronger figure.
Moreover...
During the war, Saint Realm experts were not permitted to fight. Alfonso's presence would be useless, whereas Gilmore, as a ninth-level Grand Mage, could actually exert considerable influence.
"What a pity. A youth who could have been of tremendous use to our Church of Light back then has now become our greatest enemy." Gilmore sighed inwardly. He had watched Lin Lei grow throughout his journey — from a seven-level magic prodigy to a ninth-level powerhouse capable of killing Clyde.
After eight or nine years of silence, Lin Lei had killed six ninth-level angels in one fell swoop, immediately making a name for himself throughout the O'Brien Empire. And then... he had gone on to establish the Baruch Kingdom in the Chaos Region.
"Twenty-some years have passed. Lin Lei has now grown powerful enough that the Chief Judge and the others on the Sacred Island no longer dare to come out." Gilmore sighed to himself.
"Your Eminence?" His subordinate knight respectfully reminded him.
Gilmore snapped out of his thoughts, glanced at the knight, and said calmly, "Let's go. Come with me to the Code County border. We'll pay a visit to the Church of Darkness's Black-robed Archbishop and see whether this Black-robed Archbishop 'Westport' has made any progress over the decades."
The capital Baruch City, inside the royal palace.
Wotton, Lin Lei, Bark, and the others had gathered in the great hall. In the center stood a large military sand table. A resolute middle-aged man was pointing with a thin rod, sketching out plans as he spoke. "Everyone, the magic crystal mine is here. If only the Church of Light attacks us on their own... the closest point of attack they could choose would be here at Sheli County."
Lin Lei and the others nodded slightly.
"However," the middle-aged man shook his head, "unless the Church of Light's commander has something wrong with his head, they won't choose this as their main point of attack."
"Oh?" Bark raised an eyebrow.
The middle-aged man continued, "The magic crystal mine is over three hundred li from the capital, and the Sheli County border is also four to five hundred li from the capital. Those are straight-line distances! If they were to attack from Sheli County all the way to the mine, even along the main road it would be nearly a thousand li. A thousand li of march, with over ten cities and towns along the way. The Church of Light's forces, deep in our territory, fighting over a thousand li? Nearly half their army must be garrisoned at the borders with the O'Brien Empire and the Rauo Empire — only half their forces would be available to attack us."
"So their military strength is about the same as ours."
The middle-aged man pointed at Sheli County. "With equal strength, we hold our ground, they attack, and they're deep in our territory. Attacking over a thousand li? It would be suicide."
"Therefore," the middle-aged man took a deep breath, "the Church of Light has only one way to attack us — by allying with the Church of Darkness. They have no other choice!" He drew his rod across the sand table. "The Church of Darkness's border with us spans over a thousand li, and the point closest to the magic crystal mine is undoubtedly here!"
"The Code County border!" The middle-aged man pointed this out.
"The magic crystal mine is outside the small town of Nifeng. Nifeng is a small town under Code County's jurisdiction. From the magic crystal mine to Code County City, it's only a hundred-odd li." The middle-aged man's expression was grave. "As long as the enemy breaks through here, the terrain behind is flat and open — they have several routes to reach the magic crystal mine!"
Lin Lei nodded slightly. The sand table made everything crystal clear.
"Watts." Wotton suddenly spoke up. "If I give you full authority to deploy the army for this war, do you have the confidence to win?"
Bark added, "Moreover, I'll provide you with more than thirty magic crystal cannons, and I'll handle the transportation of magic crystals and other supplies." Bark held an exalted position in the Baruch Kingdom — he was the kingdom's sole Marshal, and his personal strength was extremely formidable. Not long after Lin Lei had reached the Saint Realm in human form, Bark had also reached the Saint Realm. Once he transformed, he became a peak Saint Realm Undying Warrior. Having already comprehended 'Force,' Bark was now no weaker than Usenot.
When Watts heard about more than thirty magic crystal cannons, his eyes lit up immediately. He straightened his back and declared forcefully, "Your Majesty, as long as you grant me full authority, I only need five hundred thousand of the kingdom's troops, and I'll have a hundred percent confidence in keeping the enemy out at Code County!"
"Very good." A smile appeared on Wotton's face. The Baruch Kingdom's standing army already exceeded one million, not including the ordinary city guard troops.
"Your Majesty," Watts said solemnly, "I worry that the enemy may field terrifying forces beyond our expectations. If those uncontrollable factors arise, even a successful defense would be in jeopardy."
"Terrifying forces?" Wotton asked in confusion.
"Yes. If Saint Realm powerhouses suddenly appear, or if the Church of Light deploys their legendary, massive mage corps, we'll be in grave danger." Watts's tone was grave.
The Church of Light and the Church of Darkness both invested enormous effort in training mages. Both of these great powers possessed fearsome mage corps — the weakest member of which had to be a seventh-level mage, while the highest-ranked were ninth-level Grand Mages. Over a thousand powerful mages gathered together, led by numerous ninth-level Grand Mages, would unleash collective magic with power not the slightest bit weaker than a Holy Magister's Forbidden Spell.