by Feng Yue
“My name is Ye Qingxuan,” he said.
Hand of God, Ye Qingxuan.
563 Counter-attack
At the moment, at the bridge of the Sovereign, a dead silence ensued.
“An unknown warship is approaching.” The lookout turned his head in shock and looked towards the command post. “The warship has fired at the demons. Is it from friendly forces? It does not have an identification code, do we cooperate or do we not?”
The command post was empty.
Loud bangs roared.
The second observer was ecstatic. “The tide summoner is badly hit! The red-spotted squid as well! The other six sea monsters within observation range have transferred their aims! The unknown warship is increasing its speed and has entered the coastal waters of Avalon. The two parties have begun to fight!”
The representative of the aristocrats, who had taken over Servin’s place, was stunned. His expression changed as he had not expected such an event to occur, nor did he know where the unknown warship, which was key to the battle, had come from.
“Sir, the situation is great!” The staff officer looked up and asked, “Do we follow up the victory with a hot pursuit?”
“…” The representative wrinkled his brows, a cloudy expression on his face. “No need for that, it’s just nice that someone is helping us attract firepower. Sail homeward! Carry on with the evacuation plan.”
The staff officer was silent. He thought, withdrawing now can save the Royal Fleet, but this means leaving all the pressure to the unknown reinforcements. The pressure faced by the unknown warship will probably double in such a situation. Abandoning the miraculous assistance, but instead choosing to continue with the Dunkirk evacuation…
“No, there will be no more evacuation.” Someone opened the door and entered, pushing the representative in his seat aside.
Servin put on his hat, and he was in high spirits. “We counterattack! Fully cooperate with the reinforcements, and take Avalon back from the demons!” Amid everyone’s shocked expressions, he turned and looked behind him. “So I’ll leave it to you, thanks, Mr. Ye.”
“It’s my duty.” Ye Qingxuan nodded. In the confused gazes, he pinned the badge representing the Fifth Division on his collar, then stood in the middle of the bridge unceremoniously.
“Attention, all. From now on the command of the ship is transferred to Ye Qingxuan, the temporary person-in-charge of the Fifth Division. Next, we will launch a counterattack against the catastrophe.”
From the communication array, Servin’s voice rang out on board each surviving warship. “Victory is in sight. I hope that all of you will fight courageously, and not tarnish the glory of the kingdom!”
“Counterattack?” The navy on board the ships was stunned at first, then ecstasy and cheers rose among them.
Counterattack! The time to counterattack is here!!!
Soon, after installing the interval of identification, the communication channel between the Royal Navy and the Religious Court of Inquiry was set up.
An ancient voice sounded from the array, “This is the Mountain of Nomadism.”
“Shi Dong?” Ye Qingxuan asked.
“Yep,” came the reply.
“Get ready for the war! You will need to take the lead in the coming counter-attack. ” Ye Qingxuan said calmly, “The good name of the Religious Court of Inquiry has just been reinstated, and everyone is looking forward to our performance. If it is smashed by the demons, we really will lose face.”
“All glory and victory in the mortal realm will be yours, Grand Inquisitor,” Shi Donggong replied. “Very soon, the demons will know who they are fighting against today.”
Ye Qingxuan smiled, leaned against the chair and adjusted his posture until he felt comfortable. “Alright, I’ll wait and see.”
…
“Did you hear that?”
On the deck of the warship, Shi Dong turned back. Behind him, the knights of the Witch Hammer, who had finished putting on their armor and equipment, went down on one knee and affirmed in unison.
“Then you may go.” Shi Dong lowered his eyes and said, “I’m getting old, and have limited energy nowadays, so let’s make it quick.”
The knights nodded silently, turned and left.
Against the hurricane blowing right at him, Shi Dong gazed at the giant squid waving its countless tentacles about and stirring up waves amid the glow of the burning fire.
Ten-thousand-hand Clergy.
“Let’s start with a big one.” He whispered softly, “It makes me upset to see the warehouse so empty. If we catch this creature, it should be able to fill up a significant portion of the empty space, right?”
Shi Dong turned back and ordered softly, “Remember, capture it alive.”
So, the pitch black Mountain of Nomadism roared, separating the waves and advanced. After the three main batteries took turns firing and carpet-bombed the demons, they were all overheated and were in the midst of cooling. At the moment, the warship had almost zero firepower. However, the most dangerous thing about the warship had never been itself, but the group of old devils on the ship who were craving demon blood. The craving was so strong that it was almost driving them crazy.
Booming movements suddenly burst forth. In the bilge, all the purifiers gathered together, achieving coherence via the alchemy array. Using the sound of heart of the Mountain of Nomadism as the main axis and a landmark, the disorganized movements of their sound of heart was constantly changing, until they finally had the same rhythm.
Vast aether waves were born from it. The waves in the pool of aether tumbled as if they were boiling. Inexhaustible energy rose against the flow and ascended into the sky, gathering on the burning holy emblem in the sky.
Then, from the holy emblem, a vague figure appeared.
It was the Vacuum that materialized after more than a hundred purifiers joined forces to carry out nature interference, their sound of heart converging. Attaching their tenacity on it, their powers merged into one, constructing the embodiment of discipline with their music theories from the same school.
The phantom clergy, who was wearing a crown, donning a robe and holding a rosary made of rose quartz, lowered his head and gazed at the world. He reached out and pointed at the surface of the sea. So, in an instant, the huge red-spotted squid let out a scream of fury.
Benediction De Dieu Dans La Solitude.
The horns blared in a high pitch, seemingly excited. Hot steam spewed out of the hull of the Mountain of Nomadism, followed closely by the serious and cold melody.
It was a pipe organ.
It was a gigantic pipe organ that had been built into the hull during the manufacturing process, with the central pool of aether as its source. The six layers of piano keys played on their own, and the organ stops popped up and down, as the organ played a solemn hymn.
In the melody of the hymn composed by the King of Blue of the first generation, the music theory containing the essence of the School of Abstinence spread out. As the figure pointed, it fell into the sea.
Nature interference!
‘Build the temple of God here.’
‘Prepare his way, pave his road, turn the seven seas into a thoroughfare… And solidify the sea completely!’
The nature interference of terrifying scale had completely altered the seawater in the whole region, turning it into a rock solid state. The initially turbulent waves disappeared, leaving only seemingly frozen, solidified ripples.
The red-spotted squid, with half of its body floating above the water surface, was completely trapped, its angry tentacles whipping the water surface furiously, causing loud bangs that sounded like iron and stone scraping against each other.
On the front deck of the Mountain of Nomadism, the metal assembled in arrays flowed silently. Two iron tracks, like that of railroad carriages, rose from the cracks in the deck. They fixed themselves on the deck and extended outwards bit by bit. In the end, they were directed at the Ten-thousand-hand Clergy struggl
ing angrily.
“Everyone get ready!”
“The battle begins!”
At the vanguard, the grand knight put on his helmets and stepped onto the iron tracks. In a flash, the tracks whistled sharply, ejecting the armored knight forward in the midst of sparks resulting from friction. He broke through the air, traveled a long distance and slammed towards the huge demon.
The next moment, they brushed past each other. The horrifying amount of kinetic energy provided by the armor caused the Epee of Sighs to whistle sharply as it smashed through the air, tearing a huge crack open on the red-spotted squid. The putrid blood gushed out as a heavy tentacle was cut off neatly. It fell on the frozen sea and curled unconsciously due to the residual nerve signals.
The overloaded power armor emitted a burning glow. The Grand Knight abandoned his sword and removed the heavy steel banner he was carrying on his back. Holding it firmly with both of his hands, he stabbed the squid with all his might.
Amid the roars, the flag tore a red spot resembling a holy emblem apart like a nail, pinning the squid’s head on the surface of the sea. Then, a fiery flame ignited from the banner, providing a guide to the phantom clergy in the sky.
The glints of armors crossed the night sky one after another, the stars falling like rain. In a flash, tens of knights of the Witch Hammer had descended from the sky, plunging the iron shovels they carried with them downwards.
In the end, tens of burning banners were erected from the sea. They pointed upwards at the sky as if they were guiding the descending destruction, and flames flared up.
In the sky, the phantom clergy pointed again. The pitch black layers of clouds were torn apart, and horrifying meteors fell from the sky. They were made of iron condensed within the clouds. The iron was cast in the thunderclouds and shaped into stakes. With the howling wind, they descended over a long distance and smashed towards the Ten-thousand-hand Clergy in the impassioned blaring of the horns.
They dedicated themselves to declare that the dawn had arrived.
Night on Bald Mountain!
The next moment, a sharp hiss sounded from the beak of the red-spotted squid. Innumerable stakes of a scorching red nailed into its body, the Purifying Fire blazed and spread, covering its whole body, as if it had been thrown into a burning purgatory.
Although it was surrounded by the sea on all sides, it could obtain no solace from the cold waters. In the burning fire, it convulsed in pain. Countless tentacles suddenly whipped out, breaking the iron nails, but also leaving many appalling wounds behind. Then, it spat thick, pitch black ink out from its beak. Such liquid was a manifestation of its abnormal nature, a weapon produced in the demon’s organs by gathering the evil elements in the bloodline of the catastrophe.
Although it looked like ink, it was actually how catastrophic music theory looked after it had eroded reality. By simply appearing, it swallowed everything less than a kilometer away from it instantly. Even the glow of the fire was as faint as that of a firefly in comparison.
For it, the area covered by the thick ink was its paradise, but for all other creatures, it was a desperate situation. But in such a desperate situation, a hurricane swept here.
At the moment, the old knight holding his sword raised his eyes, a steel-like glint in his murky pupils. “It’s time for a meal,” he murmured softly.
So, flames resembling the eyes of a monster burst forth in the ghastly white bones of the snake, which formed the stem of the ship. The ship charged into the thick ink.
The heart in the pool of aether pumped wildly, stirring up waves. A magnificent amount of power flared, spurring the humongous Mountain of Nomadism into the fog. The steel-like seawater was shattered under the impact. The armor covered in scales scraped against the steel-like seawater, causing loud bangs.
The terrifying weight and momentum of the entire warship was immediately exerted on the gigantic monster. The ram made of demon bones, smelted in a furnace under high temperature, ruthlessly hit the body of the squid, glinting in dark green. It overpowered the squid as easily as crushing dry weeds and rotten wood, smashing into the enemy territory with an unstoppable and formidable force…
What other weapons would it possibly need?
The Mountain of Nomadism itself was like a famed, tempered blade! A weapon fit for war, armed with its own mass and the added momentum provided by the heart of a behemoth!
Even a legendary warship could not withstand a direct slam from it under full force. According to calculations, even an island made of stone would split to form a straight passageway if hit by a Mountain of Nomadism in full force, let alone mere flesh and blood?
For a moment, innumerable tentacles were crushed into pieces. The Ten-thousand-hand Clergy whined in pain, as it was almost cut in half. In the excruciating pain, the monstrous red-spotted squid waved its tentacles about forcefully, wrapping them around the Mountain of Nomadism. Countless tentacles tightened forcibly, scratching against the hull and tearing the steel on the outer layer apart as if it was trying to pull the entire hull apart completely.
In the past, it was a really useful trick.
Initially, apart from a particular warship of Asgard that resembled a fortified city, everything else was fairly fragile when wrapped in its tentacles.
Unfortunately, this time, it had chosen the wrong opponent…
564 Avalon, I’m Back
In the ink-like pitch black darkness, sharp sounds rang out one after another.
It was caused by the tentacles of Ten-thousand-hand Clergy scraping against the steel.
In the tugging and restraint of the tentacles, the Mountain of Nomadism was almost snatched up from the surface of the sea, and the machinery hung on the deck was crushed in an instant.
At the foremost, Shi Dong stood quietly. Despite the thick tentacles stirring up hurricanes that brushed past him, he merely looked up and stared at the demon close at hand.
He looked at its strange eye.
And he couldn’t help but smile.
Instinctively, the huge squid felt an unexplained uneasiness. Just looking at the old man’s face made it feel threatened.
It had been more than 200 years.
From the start till the present…
Since Shi Dong held his sword for the first time, countless demons had seen the cold, forbidding smile at the corner of the old man’s lips before their deaths.
At the moment, the smile had been stained with blood, lending a grotesque note to it, and exuded a chilling and fearsome aura, like one of graves and bones.
Even though he was so ancient that he would soon return to dust, even though he was so old that he couldn’t stand without a cane, it hadn’t changed.
The iron-like fanaticism contained in the smile did not diminish at all, as if it was within his soul, or was a flame that was being passed from the carcass of a demon to another…
“I am here,” Shi Dong stood up, using his sword as support, and murmured to it softly. Then, a sound beyond tens of thousands of times louder than the noise just now burst forth.
On the huge hull of the Mountain of Nomadism, the innumerable fasteners hidden under the armor were detonated in an instant and detached themselves. The scaly armor fell off the hull like leaves dropping.
Wrung by the tentacles, the steel shell that had lost its support shriveled. However, its true nature that had been hidden under the camouflage revealed itself to the world for the first time as the crack spread.
It was like a monster breaking free from the cage holding it prisoner.
It was… alive!
Beneath the snake skull hung on the bow, the blazing glows, which resembled a pair of eyes, turned bright red.
The iron shell shattered and collapsed. Under the iron shell, a behemoth with warm and rancid breath revealed itself. The huge mouth full of sharp teeth, with its gums showing, was slowly opening! As if it was grinning, it lovingly gave the prey that had delivered itself to the doorstep a kiss, then…shut suddenly!
; The darkness was boiling.
The ink-like dark fog was like a dying leper, madly convulsing, expanding, contracting, roaring, crying…
First, a series of earth-shattering loud bangs rang out.
Then, painful screams sounded.
In the end, only a chilling munching sound remained.
Crack… Crack… Crack…
When the fog slowly dissipated, only the Mountain of Nomadism that was stained a dark green by the blood was still floating on the sea. Insignificant pieces of meat and residue slowly sank into the sea. As for the Ten-thousand-hand Clergy which had been reigning in the deep sea for centuries, it had completely disappeared without a trace.
“Elder Shi Dong, are you…” Carol climbed up the deck clumsily, full of worry, but lowered his voice without realizing it when he saw the figure standing in the pool of blood, with his back straight still. “Are you alright?”
“Me? I can’t possibly feel any better.” Shi Dong turned back with a smile on his aged face, and an indescribable sense of satisfaction in his smile. “I hadn’t been expecting such a refreshing appetizer right after reaching Avalon…
“Carol, I’m starting to like this era,” he said.
-
“What’s going on here?”
At the moment when it was clear who had won the battle, everyone fell silent for a short while, as if they were doubting their own eyes. But it was soon followed with boiling ecstasy and cheers.
“The Ten-thousand-hand Clergy has been defeated!!!”
The blood of the demons was ignited in the purifying movements. The Mountain of Nomadism bathing in flames cut through the waves and slowly advanced in the magnificent movements. Like an iron plow turning the soil, invisible forces from it continuously fished out demons hiding in the seawater and tore them apart.
So, the turbid seawater was dyed an ink-like crimson red. The viscous blood floated on the surface of the sea like grease, fueling the fire. The scorching hot flames spread in the water, illuminating the dark world.
