Fire Dragon Empire, Wansen City.
At this moment, Wansen City — the largest city in the southern region — had gathered over fifty million elite players. The weakest among them were third-class professionals of level one hundred or above, and the number of fourth-class powerhouses had surpassed ten thousand.
Yet the vast city was shrouded in an indescribable air of tension, leaving every player inside feeling on edge.
Wansen City was the southern region's greatest barrier. If it fell to the outer world's NPC armies, those armies would be able to charge straight toward Flame Dragon City.
And atop the walls of Wansen City, the higher-ups of the Divine Realm's major factions had assembled together, silently watching the outer world's NPC army hiding in the forest in the distance. Their faces were ashen.
"These outer world NPCs have gone mad. To take Wansen City, they've actually mobilized over a third of their forces. Are they planning a fight to the death?" Yan Yun Shiliu Meng, second vice president of the Tiger Pride Guild and a fifth-class professional, frowned as she studied the outer world's NPC army in the magic mirror.
Compared to the Divine Realm continent's forces, the outer world NPCs and players held an overwhelming advantage in sheer numbers of fourth-class powerhouses. Normally, splitting up to attack multiple locations would be the most strategically sound choice for them.
Because the Divine Realm continent's greatest advantage was fast resurrection — they could even respawn directly in the city or fortress under attack and rejoin the fight immediately. If the outer world concentrated their forces for a single decisive battle, that was actually the best-case scenario for the defenders.
After all, spreading their already limited number of powerhouses across multiple cities and fortresses to guard against surprise attacks was an enormous waste of combat strength.
"Maybe they feel their odds of winning are slim, so they want to concentrate everything for one desperate gamble," said Bumie Zhanxin of Battle Soul Unfallen, who had also reached fifth-class. He smiled as he spoke. "After all, the NPC armies from the Divine Realm's various kingdoms and empires are constantly arriving to reinforce the Fire Dragon Empire. The longer this drags on, the better it is for us. It's not unlikely they simply don't want to wait any longer."
During the prolonged blocking actions and defensive battles in the Fire Dragon Empire, they had indeed been at a disadvantage at first. But as time passed, more and more armies from other kingdoms and empires arrived, and their players' strength had grown continuously.
In just the past month alone, over a hundred newly minted fifth-class professionals had appeared!
It had to be said that this kind of world-scale conflict gave players an enormous boost. Especially in the Fire Dragon Empire's siege warfare — though the outer world's NPC forces on the Divine Realm's eastern continent had not yet fully assembled, the fighting across the entire Fire Dragon Empire had never stopped.
Constantly battling fourth-class NPCs and fourth-class powerhouses from the outer world, experiencing that razor-thin line between life and death over and over, allowed their experts to refine their mastery of mana and their understanding of magical elements to ever greater heights.
In the past, finding even a single fourth-class powerhouse willing to duel had been difficult, let alone seeking out top-tier or peak experts — or even the monsters that surpassed them.
Now they were fighting top-tier fourth-class powerhouses virtually every single day. Compared to battling upper-tier Legendary monsters or clearing Hell Difficulty team dungeons, the sharpening of their mana techniques was incomparably more effective.
For this reason, Bumie Zhanxin even wished such a war could continue even longer.
"I hope I'm overthinking it," Yan Yun Shiliu Meng agreed with a nod.
This kind of battle where both sides wagered their main forces was exactly the kind she favored most. Just the fifth-class powerhouses currently gathered at Wansen City numbered eighty. And that was before counting the hundred-odd Fire Beast Puppets Zero Wing had constructed, plus eight Azure Thunder Airships — all genuine fifth-class combat power.
And those numbers didn't include the fifth-class NPCs. Factoring in the NPCs that had converged here, their fifth-class combat strength numbered nearly three hundred.
The enemy's fifth-class professionals, according to intelligence reports, amounted to roughly four hundred between NPCs and players combined. The gap wasn't that large. Even at a two-to-one trade ratio, the defenders could still emerge victorious — after all, they could resurrect quickly at the Temples and rejoin the battle immediately.
It wasn't just Yan Yun Shiliu Meng and Bumie Zhanxin who thought this way. The fifth-class experts of every major faction shared considerable confidence in this city defense battle.
As long as they won this fight, the outer world's NPC armies would find it extremely difficult to make any further headway.
Just as teleport after teleport delivered batches of experts from the major factions to Wansen City, and the number of converging players exceeded seventy million, an island appeared suddenly in the sky above the city — massive enough to blot out the sun and clouds. Instantly, every player and NPC in Wansen City erupted into an uproar.
"Holy crap! Zero Wing! That's Zero Wing's Sky Fortress!"
"Wasn't Zero Wing's Sky Fortress stationed at the Tower of the Secret Covenant?"
"No, that's not the same one! I've seen the Tower of the Secret Covenant's fortress — its defensive barrier has two layers. This one has three layers. It must be a newly built Sky Fortress from Zero Wing!"
"Incredible! Zero Wing truly deserves to be the number-one guild in the Divine Realm. Those outer world NPCs and players are done for now!"
Everyone in the Divine Realm knew about the Sky Fortress. It was precisely because of it that Zero Wing had cemented its position in the Divine Realm world.
Now, with such an aerial behemoth helping to defend Wansen City, how could the crowd not be thrilled?
Just as the players of Wansen City were buzzing with excitement, over a dozen figures descended from the Sky Fortress, sending the entire city into a frenzy. Even the fifth-class commanders and NPCs stationed in Wansen City went forward to greet them personally.
"Holy crap! Bai Qingxue, Shuise Qiangwei, Huo Wu, Ziyan Liuyun, Yan Tianxing, Yi Luofei, Wusheng Daoke, Banxia Qingcheng, Hanguang Shiying, Chi Mian, Ji Luorong, Jing Wuming, Qing Shuang, Zhao Yueru, Yu Bai, Yan Wudi — all sixteen of Zero Wing's top experts are here!"
"Zero Wing is insane. Fifth-class demigod NPCs are actually going out of their way to greet them. What's going on?"
"I heard that the two vice presidents, Bai Qingxue and Shuise Qiangwei, have already been anointed as new members of the Sacred Ten by the War God Temple. Their strength is so great that they rank among the top five of the Sacred Ten. The ones in the top five are rumored to be capable of matching sixth-class professionals, and the top three can rival sixth-class gods!"
"Zero Wing really is a den of monsters. I heard it took three of the old freaks from the five super guilds ages just to scrape into the Sacred Ten. Zero Wing has two members in it at once — and in the top five at that…"
"I wonder when I'll make it into the Sacred Ten. If I could, even at the bottom, I'd die without regrets."
The appearance of Zero Wing's members instantly made them the center of attention in Wansen City — and indeed across the entire Fire Dragon Empire — especially for newcomers who had only recently entered the Divine Realm. Watching the live broadcast from Wansen City, they couldn't help but look at Bai Qingxue, Shuise Qiangwei, and the others with undisguised longing.
Every one of them dreamed that one day they too could stand as proudly as Bai Qingxue and Shuise Qiangwei.
Fifth-class NPCs were still terrifying presences for even the major factions — a single kingdom could rarely produce one.
Yet even such fifth-class NPCs had to pay their respects. It was almost inconceivable.
Only the experts from the major super powers present truly understood what the Sacred Ten represented. They were the ones who truly stood at the pinnacle of the Divine Realm.
Though Bai Qingxue and Shuise Qiangwei were both fifth-class, same as the fifth-class experts of the super powers, the gap in their combat strength was like heaven and earth. Killing other fifth-class professionals was as easy as child's play for them.
Among the first-rate guilds preparing for battle in Wansen City, Galaxy Alliance's leader Xinghe Wangxi and the accompanying 190-level fourth-class magician Zi Tong stood amid the sea of people, silently watching Bai Qingxue and Shuise Qiangwei hovering in midair. Their expressions were indescribably complex.
Back in the Star Moon Kingdom, they had all been rivals, evenly matched. Now they had each successfully advanced to fourth-class and ranked among the top fourth-class experts. Reaching fifth-class in the future wasn't impossible.
Yet now they were merely anonymous faces lost in the crowd at Wansen City, while Bai Qingxue and Shuise Qiangwei had ascended to the pinnacle of the Divine Realm — looked up to by countless players, and treated with utmost caution even by fifth-class NPCs and the fifth-class monsters of the five super guilds.
It wasn't just Xinghe Wangxi and Zi Tong. In the Illusion Mythos team, Matt and Brightstead were equally troubled by complex emotions.
Fang Shihan had once invited Matt to join Zero Wing as well, but he had declined, believing he would progress faster at Illusion Mythos.
Reality had proven entirely different…
He was still stuck at fourth-class, while Yu Bai, who had gone with Fang Shihan, had already advanced to fifth-class — someone Matt now had to look up to.
As for Brightstead, he couldn't quite understand why Fang Shihan had improved so rapidly.
In terms of raw talent, he far surpassed Fang Shihan. Though they were both fifth-class now, their Mana Bodies had been completed to very different degrees when they advanced. He had broken through to fifth-class at 118% Mana Body completion, while reports indicated Fang Shihan had waited until reaching 120% before advancing.
According to what Lord Odin had told him, Fang Shihan was now considered a candidate for the Sacred Ten. Given enough time, it wouldn't be surprising if she defeated an actual Sacred Ten member. Her strength had already approached that of a demigod-level NPC, while he himself was merely at the peak of fifth-class…
While Brightstead was lost in thought, Zero Wing's members arrived at Wansen City's main gate.
"Took you long enough," Bumie Zhanxin greeted them with a laugh. "Now that you're here, those outer world NPCs and the other factions' experts have even less chance of breaking through Wansen City."
Setting aside Zero Wing's fifth-class experts — even the weakest among them possessed peak fifth-class combat power — Bai Qingxue and Shuise Qiangwei alone were worth twenty to thirty fifth-class powerhouses. That alone had dramatically narrowed the gap in fifth-class combat strength between the two sides.
"How does the situation on the enemy side look?" Bai Qingxue asked.
At her words, Shuise Qiangwei and the others turned to Bumie Zhanxin as well.
Over the past few days, they had been wholly focused on exploring an ancient ruin atop the Summit of the World. They didn't have detailed knowledge of the Fire Dragon Empire's battle situation. After receiving intelligence from the Celestial Mechanism Pavilion, they had rushed over immediately with their newly constructed Sky Fortress.
"I can't say it's optimistic, but we absolutely have the strength to fight," Bumie Zhanxin replied. He produced a recording crystal and projected the gathered intelligence. "According to our current investigations, the enemy has assembled roughly over a hundred million third-class NPCs, around one hundred and fifty thousand fourth-class professionals, over two hundred fifth-class professionals, nearly two hundred million third-class outer world players, over fifty thousand fourth-class experts, and more than a hundred fifth-class experts."
As Bumie Zhanxin laid out the numbers, even the assembled fourth-class experts felt a wave of suffocation.
Leaving aside the staggering numbers of third-class forces, the disparity in fourth-class professionals alone was immense. They had gathered only about fifteen thousand fourth-class experts so far, while the enemy had over fifty thousand…
If the city's defensive barrier were breached and even a small number of fourth-class experts poured in, Wansen City could very well fall — the City Lord's Manor's defenses were no stronger than the city's barrier itself.
The only consolation was that the fifth-class combat strength gap was manageable. Combined with the city's magical wards, they at least had a fighting chance.
"Looks like the outer world people are really going all in this time," Shuise Qiangwei murmured, slightly clicking her tongue, as she gazed toward the distant forest.
Such terrifying combat power could obliterate an entire empire with ease.
"Isn't that perfect? If we can wipe out this army, everything after that becomes much simpler." Huo Wu licked her lips, pulling a Void Blade from her inventory, her eyes blazing with fighting spirit.
Last time at Black Wing City, they had been beaten into a sorry retreat. But in the time since, her strength had undergone earth-shaking transformation. She had even touched the threshold of the World Laws. Beyond wielding a Legendary weapon, she now wore two pieces of Legendary equipment.
Even against the highest-tier Fallen Angels, she could hold her own.
Zero Wing's members all nodded in agreement. Under Shi Feng's guidance, they had significantly upgraded their weapons and equipment during this period. Even without Legendary weapons, they had at minimum Legendary equipment, and the weakest among them carried Legendary fragments. In terms of gear, they were fully on par with fifth-class NPCs.
Among them, Bai Qingxue, Shuise Qiangwei, and Ziyan Liuyun had been the luckiest, each assembling a full set of Legendary fragment equipment. In terms of base stats, they were completely comparable to true sixth-class professionals.
But just as everyone was contemplating how to counter the outer world's NPC army and players, the enemy forces hidden in the forest suddenly made their move.
BOOM!
With a deafening roar that shook the heavens, the cloudless sky over the forest was instantly swallowed by dark clouds, turning day into night. Then the entire sky tore apart, and two colossal claws — each hundreds of meters across — emerged from the fractured heavens, slowly rending the sky in two.
From the infinite dark void, a colossal mouthed monster materialized. It was tens of kilometers in size, covered with over a hundred eyes and hundreds of razor-sharp claws, its body shrouded in endless turbid mist that corroded the very space around it, causing reality to crumble and fail to heal for a long time.
Every person in Wansen City and every soldier in the outer world's army froze in stunned silence.
"So that's the legendary World-Devouring Beast?"
In the forest, Hundred Ghosts' lone elder Zhu Fengying gazed in disbelief at the titanic creature in the sky, his heart flooded with overwhelming shock.
The World-Devouring Beast existed only in legendary accounts. He had stumbled upon a fragmentary record about it by chance.
Born in the infinite void, the World-Devouring Beast fed on worlds — the end of all life. Among the many races of the Divine Realm, even the mightiest dragons were utterly insignificant before it.
A mere fourth-class juvenile could devour a fifth-class dragon.
And the World-Devouring Beast before them was a fifth-class adult. Even a true sixth-class god would choose to avoid it…
Beside him, Qi Yuan — who had already advanced to fifth-class — stared at the massive creature in the sky with gleaming excitement. "Incredible! We've got this in the bag now!"
World-Devouring Beast, Chaos Magical Beast, Sacred Domain rank, Level 210, HP: 3,000,000,000,000
The assembled players from the outer world's major factions erupted in excitement.
Meanwhile, Huo Wu and the others in Wansen City stared at the World-Devouring Beast, their eyes grim.
Though none of them knew exactly what a World-Devouring Beast was, its three-trillion HP told them everything they needed to know about how terrifying it was.
A typical level-200 Sacred Domain monster had two to three hundred billion HP at most. Even the mightiest Fallen Angel had only nine hundred billion HP. The World-Devouring Beast had more than three times that amount…
"All defensive formations, full power! All Mana Towers, prepare! The Fire Dragon Empire shall prevail!"
The 200-level fifth-class demigod commander, Melca Boerd, raised his sword at the gate as the World-Devouring Beast advanced, shouting the rallying cry.
Instantly, layer upon layer of magical barriers materialized over Wansen City.
Four layers of magical barriers in total stabilized the space within a ten-thousand-li radius and made Wansen City appear as though it existed in an entirely separate dimension — completely isolated. The World-Devouring Beast's terrifying spiritual pressure could not penetrate the city at all.
"Miniature World — Descend!"
Shuise Qiangwei immediately activated the Ring of the Gospel Shi Feng had given her — their greatest gain from the ancient ruins. They had upgraded it to Legendary rank, enabling it to deploy a complete Miniature World, its effects rivaling the World Mirror.
Of course, the cost was steep. Maintaining it for thirty minutes consumed five thousand Magic Crystals, and all enemies within a fifty-thousand-yard radius would be suppressed by the world's power. Those below fourth-class could not channel any mana at all. Even fifth-class experts could not draw upon the mana or magical elements within the space. Enemies below sixth-class suffered a 30% reduction in stats and constitution, while even sixth-class professionals experienced a 15% decrease.
The charging outer world army collapsed like a line of dominoes. Every third-class professional hit the ground, moving like turtles — fighting was simply impossible. Only fourth-class professionals retained some combat effectiveness, but even they could no longer take to the air.
The World-Devouring Beast in the sky, however, was barely affected — only a 10% stat reduction…
Still, this was enough to bring some relief to Wansen City's defenders. Without the horde of third-class troops and fourth-class support, they could focus their strength on the fifth-class professionals and the World-Devouring Beast in the sky, along with the thousand-plus airships and over ten thousand fourth-class flying mounts.
"Holy Domain Radiance — Activate!"
The outer world's super powers in the forest had come prepared. Over a thousand fourth-class casters formed a triple-layered massive magical barrier, contesting the Miniature World's effects.
Though it couldn't completely nullify the Miniature World, it allowed all outer world forces to channel mana once more — albeit with reduced stats and constitution.
Tens of thousands of fourth-class professionals and a vast tide of third-class troops launched a frenzied assault on Wansen City.
In the sky, the World-Devouring Beast drove hundreds of claw strikes toward the city's magical barriers, each claw carrying the power to shatter space itself.
"Full firepower! Block those claws!" Huo Wu ordered the Sky Fortress and all Azure Thunder Airships without hesitation.
Instantly, beams of annihilation light flashed and hammered into the incoming claws, while Wansen City's Mana Spirit Towers and Energy Towers also bombarded the World-Devouring Beast.
Boom boom boom…
A relentless barrage scorched the sky into emptiness, but it only deflected a portion of the beast's claws. Over a hundred still slammed into the magical barriers.
The four-layered barriers shattered instantly under the World-Devouring Beast's assault, utterly incapable of withstanding its attacks.
"World-Devouring Beast, magnificent! You natives can all die!" the outer world's players laughed as they watched the barriers crumble in a single volley.
They had originally braced for a grueling battle, but now it had turned into a one-sided slaughter. Even without the players' assistance, the NPCs and the World-Devouring Beast alone could easily annihilate Wansen City.
Everyone inside the city felt their hearts turn to ash.
How could they fight such a monster?
"There's no choice. Shuise and I will hold the World-Devouring Beast. The rest of you, find a way to stop the ones breaking through." Bai Qingxue glanced at the dozens of fifth-class NPCs currently engaging the beast and issued her command. "As long as we hold the core formation, the Divine Realm will send more experts and NPCs!"
The leaders of the various factions nodded and sprang into action, deploying their respective reserves for a war of attrition against the outer world's army.
The World-Devouring Beast was fearsome, but they were not without a chance of victory.
The Divine Realm continent's many reinforcements had not yet arrived. The longer they held out, the better their chances.
Bai Qingxue, Shuise Qiangwei, and Ziyan Liuyun charged at the World-Devouring Beast.
Bai Qingxue raised her greatsword and swung — Mana Sword Art: Spatial Severance.
Dozens of sword beams slashed into the claws bearing down on Wansen City, deflecting every one. Shuise Qiangwei waved her staff, and giant serpents made entirely of seawater — hundreds of meters tall — erupted from the void, all snapping at the beast's claws and preventing them from drawing even half a step closer to the city.
"Are they monsters?!" the outer world's experts gasped as they watched Bai Qingxue and Shuise Qiangwei battling the World-Devouring Beast on equal terms.
Even the outer world's fifth-class experts watched in silent astonishment.
Each of the World-Devouring Beast's claws carried power equivalent to the peak of sixth-class. Fifth-class experts wielding Legendary weapons could barely block a few strikes using their weapon skills. But Bai Qingxue and Shuise Qiangwei, without using any weapon skills at all — relying purely on mana techniques and combat prowess — wielded power that matched the peak of sixth-class…
The entire sky had become their stage. Bai Qingxue, Shuise Qiangwei, and the World-Devouring Beast formed the absolute center, and even fifth-class professionals dared not draw near — the shockwaves from their clash alone could annihilate ordinary fifth-class experts.
Beyond Bai Qingxue and Shuise Qiangwei at the center, the sky above Wansen City was alive with fifth-class experts locked in combat. The fourth-class professionals dared fight only on the ground, not daring to take to the air — any fourth-class who flew up would be reduced to ash in an instant, condemned to serve as cannon fodder on the ground alongside the third-class troops…
Midair, over seven hundred fifth-class combatants fought in a chaotic melee.
Wansen City's forces, originally at a severe disadvantage in fifth-class numbers, were now holding their own against the outer world's fifth-class powerhouses — a sight that left the enemy experts deeply frustrated.
"Damn it! How are these natives all so strong?!" Qi Yuan glared at Ji Luorong before him, feeling utterly exasperated.
A single Ji Luorong was simultaneously fighting two fifth-class NPCs while also keeping him in check. Her method of wielding mana was nothing short of incredible.
And Ji Luorong wasn't even the most conspicuous one.
Ziyan Liuyun — the petite girl he had met briefly at Zero Wing and once wanted to recruit — was now a full-blown monster.
Alone, with only the Domain to her name, she fought over a dozen fifth-class NPCs to a standstill. To make matters worse, Elder Zhu Fengying — who wielded a Legendary weapon — had joined the fray. Without his intervention, one or two of those dozen fifth-class NPCs would have already fallen…
As for the hidden Huo Wu and Fang Shihan, they were simply reapers of death. Under their coordinated assault, fifth-class NPCs couldn't survive more than five exchanges, and fifth-class players couldn't endure even two or three.
As time wore on, the Divine Realm continent's fifth-class experts gradually gained the upper hand.
"Elder Fengying, we've already lost over twenty fifth-class experts. If this continues, the situation will become very unfavorable for us," Fei Ye said, swinging a great axe to repel a fifth-class NPC. She glanced at the distant fifth-class expert whom Huo Wu had just eliminated and couldn't help but address Zhu Fengying. "Zero Wing's Huo Wu and Hanguang Shiying — nobody can stop them…"
They had started with only around one hundred and seventy fifth-class experts. After barely any time in combat, over a tenth of them were already gone. The Divine Realm continent side, meanwhile, had lost only about a dozen — and those could resurrect and rejoin the fight with replacement equipment likely already prepared, barely diminishing their combat effectiveness.
As the gap widened, continuing the battle would only lead to total annihilation, handing over all their premium weapons and equipment to the enemy.
Zhu Fengying's brow was deeply furrowed. A single Bai Qingxue and Shuise Qiangwei were already astonishing enough. Now Zero Wing had other monsters too, so powerful that a single Zero Wing member's fifth-class combat strength could rival every fifth-class expert on the Divine Realm continent combined.
Just as Zhu Fengying was about to order a full retreat, the space near Wansen City suddenly shattered, and a young man in a pale blue robe with deep purple divine runes etched upon his face stepped calmly through. Behind him followed a highest-tier Fallen Angel — Silvar, the Fallen Angel.
With their arrival, the entire city fell deathly silent. Even everyone in the sky involuntarily ceased fighting.
The young man's presence was too overwhelming.
Like a sun blazing in the dead of night, simply standing there made everyone's soul ache — even fifth-class experts were not spared.
"What a pack of useless fools. You still haven't dealt with these insects?" The young man glanced at the outer world's fifth-class supreme commander, a flicker of displeasure in his eyes.
"My lord, these Chosen are far stronger than the intelligence indicated. Even the World-Devouring Beast can't suppress them for the moment…" The outer world's fifth-class supreme commander — Phyris Ted, one of the Seventeen Stars of the Chalice — wiped the sweat from his brow as he answered.
"Them?" The young man glanced at Bai Qingxue and Shuise Qiangwei near the World-Devouring Beast, a hint of surprise in his expression. "Cross-realm travelers? So that's how they can contend with the World-Devouring Beast. But they're still far too weak!"
With that, the young man raised a finger and pointed.
Instantly, time itself seemed to freeze for everyone on the battlefield. All players below fourth-class lost even the ability to think. Only the young man's finger remained, before which a five-layered magic formation took shape.