Chapter 133: The Unshakable Fortress

“Could it be… an Outer Mind?”

“You have a keen eye.”

Iselin and the elves approached.

The warriors growled, blocking their advance.

“That vast army is his power.”

“How is that possible?”

“It could be the Dimension System’s choice, or perhaps one of the boundless possibilities within the vast dimensional sea.”

“That is a power not permitted to a single individual.”

“Who are you to judge that?”

Grrrr…

KOOOONG!

Looking toward the source of the explosion, Ku-eong was clinging to the Bluestone Fortress.

He had been hit by the Devil Cannon a few times, his chitin gauntlet was cracked, and he was bleeding, but it didn’t seem to be a major wound.

The Bluestone Fortress was also damaged in several places from Ku-eong’s breath.

Walkers, Scouts, and Warriors descended along Ku-eong’s flank and dropped onto the Bluestone Fortress.

The demons panicked at the sheer number, which was in the millions.

Akila and Iselin could not afford to idly watch the battle.

A demon with immense demonic energy was falling.

KWAANG!

Despite an impact powerful enough to create a crater, not a single scratch appeared on the demon’s armor.

The Conditional Archduke, his head-sized warhammer resting on his shoulder, walked out of the crater.

Whoosh!

An arrow shot by Iselin struck the Conditional Archduke’s breastplate.

Even imbued with life mana, it was deflected weakly.

KWAAANG!

The Conditional Archduke, charging in like lightning, brought his warhammer down.

Iselin and the elves scattered, firing their bows.

The Barents beastmen clung to the Conditional Archduke, biting and swinging their axes.

“Do you think my armor can be pierced by such things?”

Thwack! Thwack!

With each change in the direction of the Conditional Archduke’s warhammer, several Barents beastmen were sent flying, reduced to bloody pulp.

Broken teeth clattered to the ground.

“Wait! You’re not meant to fight him alone!”

Iselin’s shout.

The excited Akila ignored her and charged at the Conditional Archduke.

Chjeong! Chjeong! Chjeong!

Axework that could fell a massive tree in a single blow.

The Conditional Archduke snorted in derision and swung his warhammer upward.

Akila, his left arm and ribs shattered, was sent airborne.

The Conditional Archduke leaped to finish him.

Iselin’s arrow shot forth like lightning, pushing the Conditional Archduke back.

Spirits of Wind flew out and pulled Akila to safety.

“I told you to wait.”

Iselin healed Akila’s wounds with life mana.

His shattered bones returned to their original state in an instant.

“If I wait, will a way to kill that thing appear?”

“Of course.”

“You don’t look stronger than it.”

“I’ll make you regret saying that.”

Iselin summoned spirits.

Her linked thought ability with other Apocalids had increased, allowing her to summon over a thousand.

All spirits that could be used offensively—fire, wind, lightning—were present.

At their center was a Spirit of Life.

As Iselin went all out, the Conditional Archduke could no longer fight carelessly.

A fierce battle erupted.

A firestorm raged, and spears and blades of wind hammered the Conditional Archduke.

KWAAANG! KWAAANG! KWAAANG!

The Conditional Archduke’s warhammer caused the ground to crumble and the atmosphere to roar.

Akila watched blankly as the elf and the demon fought.

“She seems stronger than my father…”

Akila’s father, befitting a lineage blessed by the Crystal, was strong enough to fight and defeat a demon duke.

However, he could not fight on par with a demon archduke.

His heroic death was also due to a mutual kill with a demon archduke.

Had it not been for that great sacrifice, Barents would have perished over a decade ago.

“I have a question.”

“What is it?”

Akila asked Arthil.

“Is this Outer Mind stronger than the Queen?”

“Yes. He is one, yet many. All that you see before you is due to his power.”

“Barents truly would have vanished in a single day.”

Akila had no choice but to accept that Iselin’s words were true.

And he trembled at the power that could single-handedly hold back an archduke’s fleet.

“Thank you. Even though the Queen and the Outer Mind are so powerful, you still tried to persuade me.”

“Please tell Her Majesty and him that yourself.”

“I will. If I survive this battle.”

Akila approached Iselin.

“I’ll help too! I can do the work of ten of your spirits!”

Akila exuded a different aura than before.

It was the look of a wolf trusting its pack.

Iselin imbued his axe with a Fire Spirit.

Akila, understanding Iselin’s attack pattern from the spirits’ movements, plunged into the storm of spirits.

Chjeok!

Akila slammed his axe into the Conditional Archduke’s back.

“The feeling is different!”

Before, he couldn’t even leave a scratch, but this time, a small crack appeared in the armor.

It was shallow, but if he kept striking, it seemed he could pierce the armor.

“Insignificant beastman!”

As the warhammer approached, Akila leaped.

A Spirit of Wind assisted him, making his leap speed far faster.

Akila’s axe drew a semicircle.

Chjeok!

Iselin also allowed a faint smile.

A large beastman like Akila was more effective at blocking the Conditional Archduke than intangible spirits.

This was also the role Iselin desired for the Barents beastmen in the Allied Forces.

A tough and sturdy shield to hold the front for the elves, who excelled at ranged attacks.

Akila was performing that role quite well.

He was a wolf who, once he gave his trust, would not take it back until death.

“These pests are annoying.”

The Conditional Archduke called upon demons and unleashed a great magic.

His great magic was very simple.

His armor’s defense grew even harder, and each swing of his warhammer caused demonic energy to explode outwards, sweeping away everything around him.

KWAAANG! KWAAANG! KWAAANG!

Akila’s body was instantly shredded by the demonic energy explosions.

Iselin healed him immediately, but she could do nothing about the drain on Akila’s mental strength.

Akila’s movements gradually slowed.

His reactions were no longer as swift as before.

The cycle of damage and recovery piled up fatigue, leaving him like someone who hadn’t slept.

“Fall back.”

Iselin sent Akila to the rear.

His body was fine, but his eyes blinked like those of a sleepy person.

“What to do? Your shield is broken.”

The Conditional Archduke taunted as he walked forward.

His armor was covered in scratches from the spirits’ relentless assault, but that was all.

Nothing had dealt him a significant blow.

“I dislike your expressionless face. Let me soak it in pain and fatigue.”

Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!

The ground shook with the Conditional Archduke’s footsteps.

Iselin’s expression showed no change.

To her, who could sense Choi Kangjoong’s approach without even looking, there was no reason to fear a large demon.

Choi Kangjoong, who had reached Iselin’s side unnoticed, dropped the heads of Barents beastmen.

One of them belonged to the Pofish Elder.

“Thank you. I’m in your debt again.”

“What debt is there between us?”

“I have much to say, but we should eliminate that first. I’ll handle the underlings.”

“Alright.”

Iselin flew up and headed toward the group of demons maintaining the great magic.

“So you are the Outer Mind. I hear Archduke Ventresca and Archduke Luderlock died by your hand?”

“Correct. They were tasty.”

“You’re quite proud of killing the archdukes of the Chaos Legion and the Immortal Legion. Today, I’ll show you what true power is.”

The Conditional Archduke brought his warhammer down.

KWAAAAANG!

Within the tremendous explosion, Choi Kangjoong summoned the Lutal.

Both now had boosters attached.

The Lutal used the booster’s propulsion to attack the Conditional Archduke.

Even when the Conditional Archduke launched a heavy blow, the Lutal easily dodged and scored the armor.

The Death Blade dented it deeply but did not cut through.

“It’s quite sturdy.”

Grrk.

“Would it survive if we dropped the Bluestone Fortress on it?”

Grrk.

Lutal replied that would be a severe waste of nutrients and they shouldn’t do it.

“Of course, we should put it in the Soil Pit. I wonder if it would melt even if we put it in whole.”

Choi Kangjoong was relaxed.

In the dimensional sea, Ku-eong had already gained the upper hand.

The Great Mana Storm had wrecked all the demon dimension ships.

The characteristic of magi suppression was spread wide, leaving the demons weakened and mere prey for the Apocalids.

The Bluestone Fortress was also being dismantled by Super Titans clinging to it.

“We’ll finish this soon.”

“You shouldn’t say that.”

Akila said urgently.

“Why?”

“In Barents, there’s a saying that if you say you’ll finish off an enemy, they become stronger.”

“These ones can’t get stronger.”

Suddenly, a mana fluctuation occurred.

It was long and powerful enough to reach this far.

Choi Kangjoong turned his head toward its source.

A large Gate had opened, and a dimension ship emerged.

Its sleek and sharp form was familiar.

They were the ones from the dimension where Silvius had called Choi Kangjoong.

That wasn’t all.

There were also Gratis dimension ships, used as slaves by the dark elves who followed Silvius.

One of them was as massive as the Bluestone Fortress.

The Gratis were a rat beastmen race corrupted by magi, known for their high reproductive rate, cunning, and frequent betrayals.

The weapon called the Pajijik Cannon was excellent in rate of fire, accuracy, and firepower, making it extremely strong in firepower battles.

“Get away from the Bluestone Fortress.”

The Super Titans chewing on the Bluestone Fortress quickly shook themselves and moved back.

The cannons beneath the Gratis fortress moved and fired a purple flash.

KWAAAAANG!

A section of the Bluestone Fortress collapsed.

It was where a Super Titan had been.

“Get away from the demon dimension ships. If you stay attached, we’re in danger.”

“Ku-eong.”

The Apocalids inside the demon dimension ships rushed out and climbed onto the backs of Titans or Super Titans.

The Titans holding the demon dimension ships quickly moved.

“Reform the formation.”

The Super Titans and Titans gathered around Ku-eong.

Before long, the Gratis fleet approached and began firing Pajijik Cannons wildly.

The chitin gauntlets were pounded relentlessly.

Thanks to extensive evolution of the chitin gauntlets, no Titan suffered critical injury from just a few hits.

The Gratis fortress fired its main cannon.

The Titans moved to dodge, but several were caught, losing half their bodies.

“Let’s deal with that first. I’ll handle this demon.”

Iselin said.

“Can you do it?”

“I’ve almost killed the demons maintaining the great magic.”

Indeed, the demonic energy imbued in the Conditional Archduke’s warhammer had significantly decreased.

At that level, it seemed Iselin could lead the Apocalids and finish him off.

“I’ll go.”

“Be careful.”

Choi Kangjoong and the Lutal flew up toward the Gratis fortress.

Thousands of flashes fired from Pajijik Cannons rushed to block Choi Kangjoong.

“You stay back. I’ll get close and summon.”

Grrk.

Choi Kangjoong unleashed the Source Space Severance.

As he suddenly disappeared, the Gratis panicked.

Even when they rubbed their eyes, they couldn’t find him, so they fired the Pajijik Cannons randomly.

With no coordinated barrage, there was no way Choi Kangjoong would be hit, and he easily approached the Gratis fortress.