Monster Girl Development Master

Page 124

Therefore, what follows is a "fair battle".

Two thousand six hundred Crusaders descended from the sky, leaving only eighteen hundred standing. They were all dressed in gray camouflage uniforms, with black sensor goggles pressed against the edges of their helmets. The goggles gleamed with a pale blue light as they scanned their surroundings. The barrels of their rifles gleamed with a cold, hard metallic sheen, and their designs were very futuristic. Silver military daggers and black pistols were tucked into their waistbands, and their chest belts were laden with round grenades, gray smoke grenades, and... red first-aid potions.

This stuff is much better than adrenaline.

A deep rumble echoed from behind the crowd as the engines of three [Divine Might] tanks slowly started, their tracks grinding through the gravel and leaving deep serrations. The previously anxious Crusader soldiers, hearing this familiar sound, seemed to find their anchor; their tense shoulders relaxed slightly, and their breathing became more even. The Gunnery Major General strode onto the turret of [Divine Might One], his black leather boots clicking on the metal deck. His taut jawline softened slightly, and as he looked at the distant Starr army arrayed in the distance, his eyes still held disdain for the "backward army of cold weapons."

Even during their parachute jump, they spotted the Starr Army lined up for battle—their steady rifles, complete equipment, and three still-functioning [Divine Might] tanks filled them with confidence in this "native army wielding swords," even with a touch of disdain.

Even the Major General of Gunfire wasn't worried about the Starr army, which clearly outnumbered them. Standing on the [Divine Might One], his cold gaze swept over the Starr army formation ahead, and he gave the order into the communicator: "All troops, disengage your weapons and advance in loose formation to annihilate all the natives!" His voice was completely flat, as if he were giving the order to "clean up the trash."

"Whoa whoa whoa—!" The Crusader soldiers shouted excitedly, their fingers gripping the trigger guards of their rifles. The sensor eyepieces activated instantly, displaying a dense array of red dots—the locked-on Starr soldiers. In their minds, as long as they aimed at those red dots and pulled the trigger, victory would automatically be theirs. At the same time, the cannons of the three [Divine Might] tanks slowly rotated, their muzzles pointing at the "high-intensity energy individuals" marked on the radar—the area where the Starr bloodline members were located. The indicator lights at the rear of the cannons began to flash, entering a ready-to-fire state.

"What do we do next?" Zero's translucent silver body gently pressed against Zhuang Sen's arm. At this moment, she had transformed into a "temporary battlefield reporter," capturing every detail of the battlefield from multiple angles. Her red eyes reflected the two opposing armies in the distance, and her voice carried a hint of curiosity.

Zhuang Sen's gaze fell on the Starr army formation, and he said with a smile, "Now, just watch Lysander's performance."

Following his gaze, Lysander stood firmly at the front of the Starr army—after evolving into the Centaur Tyrant, her green mane had turned dark red, gleaming with a metallic sheen, cascading down her neck and over her shoulders; her rune-plated armor clung to her taut muscles, and the family crest on her chest gleamed in the sunlight. She raised her lance high, the golden battle banner at its tip fluttering in the wind, her dark red eyes sweeping over the cavalry behind her, her voice carrying the weighty power of her awakened bloodline, piercing the battlefield's clamor: "Cavalry! Charge with me!!!"

The cavalrymen in formation swiftly lowered their face armor, the runic plates clanging crisply against each other. They gripped their lances and longswords tightly, adding the family motto to their pledge to the Duchess: "The giants are here!!!"

A torrent of steel surged down like a waterfall.

The author says:

作者的话：进度更新：月票32/50，催更票0/50，打赏1100/5000

Chapter 344: Probing War - Part 1

The horses' hooves, clad in heavy steel armor, pounded the ground, each step kicking up clumps of mud as they leaped into the air with a resounding thud. The heavy, sturdy full-body armor, engraved with intricate runes, radiated a bluish light that intertwined with the earthy yellow glow emanating from the knights' plate armor. This interplay accelerated them while simultaneously blocking the barrage of red beams of light. The scorching beams struck the light shields, leaving only sparks before vanishing without a trace. The cavalry surged forward like a raging torrent, swiftly crossing the open wheat fields and plunging into the scattered ranks of the Crusader army.

The crimson flames encased in the spearhead scorched the air, producing a faint crackling sound, and tore through the gray camouflage fabric without resistance. As it pierced through warm, soft flesh, the soft cracking of bones could even be heard. The impaled Crusader soldiers, like dolls strung on a long pole, were sent flying with the thrust of the spear, their blood dripping down the shaft and spreading dark red patches on the frozen ground.

The [Divine Might] chariot's cannon, which had been rotating for calibration, suddenly paused—as if it too was taken aback by the cavalry breaking through the barrage of fire. It then resumed rotation, the muzzle flashing blindingly, the thick smoke of gunpowder mingling with the acrid smell of burning metal, making throats tighten. The flying shell shattered the ochre-colored light shield, slamming heavily into the knight's steel armor. The immense impact sent both rider and horse flying into the air, followed by a deafening roar as an orange-red fireball exploded in the center of the battlefield.

A wave of heat, carrying shrapnel and debris, swept across the area, instantly scorching the air. Crusader soldiers, licked by the flames, curled up into charred ashes, crumbling into powder with a gust of wind; while the Starr knights, protected by their plate armor shields, only suffered minor falls—a few unfortunate enough to be too close—the rest pausing only briefly before regaining their footing, the runes on their armor still shimmering faintly. A brief silence fell over the battlefield, then erupted again with the sounds of fighting, gunfire, and the rushing of soldiers. This time, the Starr infantry phalanx, spears in hand, joined the fray in orderly ranks.

But arriving on the battlefield even faster than the infantry was a hail of arrows fired by the Starr's archers. Fel iron arrows, enhanced with explosive effects in the simplest way, whistled down, piercing the air with a sharp cry. These arrows, though unable to penetrate the knights' runic shields, were deadly weapons to the Crusaders clad only in "simple" cloth. Unfortunately, the Crusaders were already scattered in skirmish lines, greatly reducing the effectiveness of the arrow hail. Instead, from behind a broken wall in a corner of the battlefield, several thin, blood-red beams of light suddenly appeared, like the forked tongues of venomous snakes. Each flash pierced the chests of two or three archers, leaving gaping wounds from front to back, warm blood dripping down the beams and forming small puddles on the ground.

……

The battlefield chosen by Johnson was an open plain on the outskirts of Grandia. This land had once been the private property of Grandia, with several red-roofed, white-walled manors scattered across the fields. The vast golden wheat fields had already been harvested, leaving only low stubble. The open terrain was suitable for cavalry charges and for chariots to deploy. The barns in the fields and the low stone walls, though simple, were exceptionally sturdy, providing temporary cover for infantry without hindering the movement of large weapons—it couldn't have been a fair battlefield.

Johnson had originally envisioned the Crusaders using the manor's low walls and barns for positional warfare, employing long-range firepower to test the effectiveness of the runic items deployed by the Starr army in both offense and defense. However, the actual tactics employed were entirely different from his expectations: the Crusaders not only failed to hold their positions but also actively dispersed into skirmish lines to advance on the Starr army; Lysander, instead of sending heavy infantry to deplete the enemy's ammunition, led a frontal charge with her cavalry.

But looking at the situation on the battlefield, Zhuang Sen felt that both options were actually reasonable. If the Crusaders had initially huddled together and held their ground in the manor, those low walls, barely reaching waist height, would have been no match for the rune-enhanced cavalry charge. The entire army would have been reduced to mincemeat like straw crushed by iron hooves. It was precisely by dispersing into skirmish lines that they only lost a small number of troops and were able to flexibly evade the subsequent barrage of arrows.

Conversely, the Starr army, led by Rolisandra, did not launch a frontal charge to disrupt their formation. Instead, they preemptively turned the battlefield into a chaotic melee. The main cannons of the [Divine Might] chariots could then bombard the enemy with ease. Furthermore, the laser guns, activated by the [Overload] mode and capable of piercing the rune shields of archers, meant that even if the infantry had thicker shields, they would be easily killed due to their slow movement speed, without even having a chance to get close.

"Fighting is definitely more my style." Zhuang Sen stroked his chin and muttered to himself. "But it's okay, I may not know how to command, but my wives do." His gaze fell on Lisander in the center of the battlefield, wondering what his wife, who had just evolved into the Centaur Tyrant, would do next.

……

On the chaotic battlefield, the main cannon of the [Divine Might] chariot was reloaded, its barrel slowly raised, aiming at the archer phalanx behind the Starr army. The musketeer general knew that only direct artillery fire could kill knights. Now that the cavalry had charged into the melee, continuing to target the knights would only result in friendly fire; it was better to turn to the more vulnerable archers—no matter how superior the equipment, the human spirit is always fragile, and too many deaths would cause an army to collapse instantly. Even elite troops could only withstand 20-30% losses at most; beyond that, the entire force would be utterly routed, unable to mount any effective resistance.

Of course, this refers to something that is intuitive and obvious, preferably instantaneous damage. Otherwise, in the chaos of the battlefield, people might get carried away and fail to notice the losses. The [Divine Might]'s artillery fire can cause direct and instantaneous massive damage, making it the easiest way to break down the enemy's psychological defenses!

"Boom!" The cannonball whistled through the air as it left the barrel, landing precisely on the archer phalanx. The Starr archers, who had already witnessed the power of the cannon fire once, showed obvious panic on their faces; some even instinctively dropped their bows and arrows, trying to dodge. But this panic was quickly dispelled by a tall figure, replaced by a fierce fighting spirit.

The figure was ten meters tall, with rough, bluish-gray skin covered in cracks. Its bulky body resembled a pile of boulders, its short, thick neck almost invisible, topped only by a head larger than a millstone—a single, murky eye embedded in the center of its skull, its pupil gleaming with the dark red aura characteristic of a fourth-level bloodline [Cyclops]. It strode forward, its steps shaking the ground, and stood directly in front of the cannonball's path, its broad chest slamming into it.

"Boom!" Flames and smoke shot into the sky. The Cyclops only staggered back two steps, his heavy feet accidentally crushing a foot soldier who couldn't dodge in time, sending him sprawling into the soft ground. Then, he bent down, plunged his thick hands into the ground, and violently lifted two stone balls, each half a person's height, and hurled them like shot puts at two other incoming cannonballs. "Bang! Bang!" Two loud explosions rang out as the cannonballs were smashed by the stone balls in mid-air. The shockwaves created a gust of wind that extinguished the flames burning on the Cyclops's chest, revealing charred skin—and beneath that skin, tender new flesh was wriggling and regenerating at a visible speed. The cannon fire had only added a shallow wound to it.

This level of bombardment alone wouldn't be enough to fatally damage a Cyclops with its thick skin and tough flesh. This horrifying scene caused the Crusader soldiers, who had been resisting, to change color drastically, their morale plummeting to rock bottom.

The Starr Army, of course, has its own high-ranking bloodline members! This is an army preparing for rebellion; without even a few level-four bloodlines, they wouldn't even be able to penetrate Grandia, let alone anything else. And after witnessing the power of the artillery bombardment, the Cyclopes who felt they could withstand it didn't mind contributing their strength to the new Duchess.

The situation reversed once again. The gunner, looking at the Cyclops standing in the distance, first gave orders to his personal guard—composed of real Philo—and then, via radio, issued the same command to the three [Divine Might] tanks on the entire army's communication channel: "All [Divine Might] tanks, activate divine power, set output to maximum!"

At the same time, Lysander, having just completed a charge, reined in her horse, causing it to rear up and neigh. She raised her lance high, the golden banner at its tip fluttering in the wind; its once dazzling gold was now soaked with dark red blood, yet it still reflected a bloodthirsty sheen in the sunlight. Lysander didn't shout any more slogans; instead, she took a deep breath, her chest heaving, and slammed her lance down. A dark red aura spread from beneath her horse's hooves, washing over the ground like a tide, finally coalescing before her into a ferocious beast's head—the [Centaur Tyrant]'s ability, [Rampage Aura].

The cavalrymen following behind her instantly felt a surge of intense power coursing through their bodies, sweeping away the fatigue of the previous charge and filling their muscles with renewed explosive power. They shouted excitedly, leveled their lances, and raised their horses' hooves once more, launching a new charge towards the chaotic Crusader positions with an overwhelming momentum. Dark red halos spread along the cavalrymen's horses, leaving long trails of light behind them, like shooting stars crashing down on the enemy lines.

Chapter 345: A Probing War, Part 2 (3007 words)

A crimson glow of charge cast afterimages across the frozen ground as Lysander's cavalry surged forward like a runaway tide, hurtling towards the three [Divine Might] chariots still adjusting their cannons. The thud of hooves grew louder, like rapid drumbeats pounding in everyone's hearts. The lances in the knights' hands blazed with even fiercer flames, the red glow of the runes at their tips intertwining with the earthen sheen of their armor, weaving a blazing net of light in the sunlight. Some Crusader soldiers tried to stop them, throwing smoke bombs or grenades, but these projectiles couldn't keep up with Lysander and her cavalry's speed, only creating layers of explosions and smoke behind them, making them appear even more terrifying and unstoppable.

Leading the charge, Lysander reached the chariot first, her lance whistling through the air. Under the terrifying force of the Centaur Tyrant's charge, and enhanced by her powerful armor, she pierced directly through the frontal armor of the Divine Might II. In a head-on clash between the "land kings" of the cold weapon era and the firearms era, the mystical power of bloodline ultimately prevailed. With the [Explosive Flame] rune's enhancement, Lysander sent the entire Divine Might II flying!

The knights following closely behind her didn't possess her terrifying strength. They aimed their leveled lances at the tracks of the [Divine Might] chariot—its weakest point. "Clang!" With a crisp metallic clang, the rune-enhanced lance tip pierced directly through the thick steel tracks, the "click-clack" of the gears instantly turning into a piercing screeching sound. The chariot, its tracks broken, lost its balance, tilting violently to one side. Sparks flew uncontrollably from its cannon, which then crashed heavily to the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.

Another bloodline member among the cavalry, and the previous commander of this cavalry, was different. She let out a chilling wolf howl, her body beneath her armor deforming into a grotesque werewolf with twisted muscles. Her warhorse instantly reared up, and she gripped her lance tightly in her claws. Using the momentum of her horse's leap, she aimed the lance tip at the hatch of the fallen chariot's driver's compartment. "Boom!" Flames and runic power erupted simultaneously. The lance tip, like a red-hot iron, pierced through the metal, and the hatch was forcibly ripped off. A few short screams came from inside, followed by silence. The third chariot attempted to turn its cannons to retaliate, but was entangled by cavalry flanking it from both sides—some knights used long spears to pry open the chariot's armor, while others hurled disposable explosive darts at the hatch. With a series of "bangs," the chariot's engine emitted black smoke, and it came to a complete standstill, becoming a pile of immobile steel wreckage.

Just when the cavalry thought victory was assured, the crippled third chariot suddenly emitted a piercing energy hum. A blinding blackish-green light emanated from the damaged muzzle, growing brighter and brighter until it even stained the surrounding air a cold white, and a suffocating energy pressure spread out. The moment Lysander charged, Gunfire Shao entered the cockpit of the third chariot, [Divine Might One]. The situation on the battlefield told him he was no match for Lysander, and he alone could not seal Lysander's bloodline. Even if he could, he couldn't deal with the remaining knights. Therefore, he chose to retreat temporarily and personally carried out the orders he had just given.

"Divine power, activate! Disintegration Beam Cannon—fire!"

"Watch out!" Lysander shouted sharply, swinging her spear. Instantly, vines sprouted from the soil, forming a wall of vines to try and block the terrifying attack. But the moment the vine wall touched the dark green light, it melted away like ice meeting fire. The pillar of light released by the "divine power" was silent, yet filled with terrifying power. At this critical moment, the Cyclops, with scorch marks still visible on his chest, roared and instinctively lunged forward, trying to block this inexplicable attack.

But in that instant, several silver-white figures suddenly appeared. They were the Gunfire Major General's Ferro personal guard. Their hearts blazed with fury, yet their movements were meticulous and flawless, smoothly completing the final task given to them by the Gunfire Major General—bloodline sealing!

The Cyclops let out a deafening roar, its single, murky eye bulging wide. Its thick legs tried to run, but its body grew increasingly heavy, as if weighed down by lead. The weakness from its sealed bloodline power spread rapidly; its arm, which could once easily lift boulders, now struggled to even lift. The wound on its chest stopped healing, and beneath its charred skin, even the tender new flesh had lost its luster. The green-black laser beam was almost upon it. A flicker of despair crossed the Cyclops's eyes; it could only watch helplessly as the beam hurtled towards it.

"Roar--!"

A deafening dragon roar suddenly erupted across the battlefield, and crimson-gold dragon wings, like a cascading sunset, instantly obscured half the sky. Serafina swooped down from behind the clouds, her scales gleaming metallically in the sunlight. She opened her massive maw, and scorching dragon breath erupted like magma—not ordinary flames, but crimson-gold flames infused with the power of dragon blood. The moment they touched the air, they incinerated the surrounding smoke into ashes, and the temperature so high that the ground began to crystallize.

The green-black pillar of "divine power" collided with the crimson-gold dragon breath in mid-air. Instead of the expected violent explosion, a sizzling sound of dissipation filled the air. The dragon breath, as if alive, enveloped the pillar of light, causing the green-black glow to dim visibly and eventually be completely consumed by the flames. The dragon breath, still raging, continued forward, sweeping over the collapsed chariot and the panicked Crusader soldiers—those struck by the breath were instantly reduced to ashes. Those nearby, caught in the blast, suffered large blisters on their skin and collapsed to the ground screaming in agony. The [Divine Might] chariot, still releasing energy, was directly enveloped by the dragon breath; its body rapidly turned red, softened, and finally collapsed like melted wax into a lump of scrap metal, never to move again.

The tide of battle turned completely in Starr's favor. Deprived of the support of the [Divine Might] tanks and having witnessed the terror of dragon breath firsthand, the Crusader soldiers' morale collapsed. First, several soldiers dropped their rifles, raised their hands, and knelt on the ground, shouting "Surrender!" Then more followed suit, some even abandoning their equipment and turning to run, stumbling and falling in their panic, trampled by those behind them. The skirmish lines were completely scattered; some soldiers tried to hide in the manor's barn, only to be blocked by pursuing Starr infantry; others ran wildly towards the edge of the plain, only to be caught by patrolling cavalry and forced to surrender.

The Major General, seeing the rout before him, was ashen-faced. His personal guard was still trying to put up a resistance, but against the high-spirited Starr army, their strength was like a drop in the ocean. When a cavalryman's lance was pointed at his throat, his grip on the energy rifle finally loosened, and the metal barrel clattered to the ground—he had lost, utterly and completely.

As the sun set, the smoke of battle gradually dissipated. Johnson walked from afar, his feet sinking into the still-warm frozen earth. The air was thick with the mingled smells of gunpowder and burnt metal, with scattered weapons and tattered armor visible intermittently. He reached Lysander's side, noticing the blood and dust on her clothes, and reached out to brush the dust from her armor. "Well done." Lysander smiled, her dark red mane gleaming softly in the sunset. "Luckily, Serafina arrived in time, or we would have been finished."

Serafina also came over and handed over a battlefield statistics report: "The casualty ratio is about 1:5. Our side mainly suffered more losses in archers, while the knights and infantry were relatively unaffected. More than 800 Crusaders surrendered, and the rest... most of them are no longer breathing." Zhuang Sen took the report, his fingertips tracing the data on the paper, his brows furrowing slightly before quickly relaxing: "The summary is almost complete. Our advantages are obvious—the individual burst power of the Bloodline Warriors and the defense of their rune-enhanced heavy armor can easily defend against their conventional individual firearms; but the disadvantages are the same. The destructive power of their heavy siege weapons can also be no less than that of the Bloodline Warriors. Although they are not as agile as the Bloodline Warriors, their versatility and mass production capabilities are obviously much higher."

Lysander nodded in agreement: "And then there are those completely transformed Fero people. They can temporarily seal their bloodlines. If you're not careful, it's easy for them to behead high-level bloodline users. We have to be on guard. Also, these Crusaders are stronger than I expected individually. If we don't count the equipment and bloodline bonuses, these semi-mechanized soldiers are actually stronger than our soldiers."

Zero then walked over and interjected, "I've finished inspecting them. These machines all have the structure of our robot technology, otherwise the suppression effect would be even better. It's just that the other side arranged it very well, right outside the bottom line of direct robot control. If I want to be able to directly control these machines, I need to spend some more time studying them... The success rate is probably about 70%."

The robot maid was somewhat unwilling, but Zhuang Sen was already quite satisfied with a 70% chance of acquiring firearms from the Ferro world. Without firearms, the Ferro world would have absolutely no advantage over the Monster Girl world. Of course, Zhuang Sen wasn't blindly optimistic. Overall, the two sides were evenly matched, each with their own advantages. But this was under the premise of only ordinary soldiers and ordinary bloodline users; Zhuang Sen's true elite forces hadn't even appeared yet… The strength of the Monster Girls was far greater than that of the Starr Army. So, if only theoretical values ​​were considered, Zhuang Sen's side actually had the advantage.

Zhuang Sen chuckled and ruffled their hair, the setting sun casting long shadows of them. The battlefield wind grew cooler, and the sounds of soldiers clearing the battlefield drifted from afar, occasionally punctuated by the neighing of warhorses. "Alright, leave this to the Starr army. We should head back and prepare to deal with the real culprit."

The author says:

作者的话：进度更新：月票36/50，催更票9/50，打赏1200/5000

Chapter 346: Fort Fahd

Time flies like water, and two months have passed in the blink of an eye.

The newly established Holy Demon Kingdom, under the leadership of an explosive influx of monster girls, successfully got on the right track. Meanwhile, the leaders of various kingdoms, large and small, who had left the Holy Demon Kingdom, returned to their sweet homelands with varying numbers of monster girl nests, activating them and greatly expanding the reach of the monster girl world. The Mountain Kingdom, with its advantageous terrain, took the most monster girl nests, placing two in the capital palace and the rest at the mountain fortress bordering the Holy Kingdom. They even went so far as to feed them with bloodline beings, thus enveloping the entire area around the fortress in the rules of the monster girl world.

Thanks to this, the offensive of the Holy Kingdom—the world of Ferro—was successfully contained. Their heavy firepower was simply unable to function properly around the fortress, and if they dared to further utilize "machine technology," Zero would have to show them what a machine crisis truly meant. Without this heavy firepower, attacking a fortress with walls over fifty meters high and wide enough for four carriages to run on foot was virtually impossible for ordinary people, let alone those with rune equipment and bloodlines.

So, King Gaoshan has been living a very comfortable life lately, even though he can only hold the fortress and can't launch a counterattack. Once they leave the area around the fortress covered by the monster girl's lair, they will be instantly destroyed by overwhelming artillery fire. Even if he transforms into a red dragon, he will still be shot down by the enemy's anti-aircraft fire and fighter squadrons. Fortunately, he ran fast enough to return to the vicinity of the fortress, otherwise he would be past his seventh day memorial by now.

King Gaoshan was still very happy, because he had essentially used the power of his entire nation to successfully hold off the Holy Kingdom, which had conquered half of the opposite continent. This greatly increased his prestige within the Gaoshan Kingdom and even within the entire Holy Salvation Alliance. His prestige, which had declined due to his offense against Zhuang Sen and his comical act of losing his hand, had rebounded. Moreover, due to the visible threat from the Holy Kingdom and the exchange of resources within the Holy Salvation Alliance, the Gaoshan Kingdom, which was relatively barren due to its terrain, became more united and prosperous, entering a peculiar phase of rapid development. Even the number of people with bloodlines had increased.

Sometimes, King Gaoshan wished things could stay this way forever. After all, no matter how fierce the siege, he wouldn't be the one to die. And he had ample reason to deceive Zhuang Sen and the rest of the Holy Salvation Alliance.

However, Zhuang Sen didn't see it that way. He wasn't some "medieval native" like Gao Shan Wang; he knew very well the power a technologically advanced industrialized nation could unleash when fully committed to militarized production. He didn't want to one day see a torrent of steel rushing towards him, even though steel was currently no match for his and his wives' well-trained bodies—but who knew what kind of advanced technology the Ferro World might pull out?

Moreover, although the land route to the Holy Kingdom is the only way for them to reach the other side of the continent, if they choose the air or water route, no one knows where the Holy Kingdom will appear, just like the army that appeared in the Fallen Star Kingdom before.

So, on this unremarkable day in June, he personally led an army of five thousand monster girls to the “Fahd Fortress,” which is now the focus of the world’s attention.

The sudden surge of people put the soldiers of the High Mountain Kingdom guarding the lair on high alert, and they raised their weapons. But as Zhuang Sen revealed his six wings, everything calmed down again. The soldiers respectfully knelt on one knee, offering their sincere respect to the great Holy King. They also showed awe and gratitude to the angel girl, centaur girl, book demon, Lamia, and others behind Zhuang Sen. After all, they were really going to fight the Holy Army, and in their eyes, the monster girls were bloodline beings, and very powerful ones at that.

With the support of so many powerful individuals, they are sure to win and survive!

Where is Vottigeng?

Zhuang Sen looked at a soldier wearing runic plate armor, presumably a captain, and asked about the location of the High Mountain King. The latter clutched his helmet, sweat beading on his face, looking quite conflicted. It was clear that Vortigern wasn't doing anything worth boasting about. Zhuang Sen nodded knowingly, about to head out to find this useless fellow, when a sharp alarm suddenly blared, shattering the previously peaceful atmosphere. Tension and commotion instantly filled the entire fortress. The soldiers who had just been kneeling instinctively stood up, while the captain, relieved, put on his helmet and said to Zhuang Sen, "Your Majesty, this is an enemy attack alarm. It seems the Holy Kingdom is attacking again. We must reinforce the defenses."

"Go." Zhuang Sen waved his hand. The captain, as if granted a pardon, took a few steps back, then turned and sprinted towards the distant city wall, putting in every ounce of his strength. Mainly, he couldn't afford to offend either the Holy King or the Mountain King. But to be fair, the Holy King was definitely better; at least he didn't have that arrogant, domineering attitude, and he would proactively send strong reinforcements. He wondered if he might even send one or two high-level bloodline individuals to their defenses, which would greatly increase their safety—

The captain, who had rushed to his assigned defensive line, looked at Zhuang Sen, who was already gazing out from the city wall, and fell into self-doubt. He turned to look behind him at the temple built specifically to protect the [Holy Beacon]—the monster girl's lair—then looked at Zhuang Sen before him, and finally smiled with relief. Of course, how could a high-level bloodline user be slower than a soldier like him relying on [Rune Armor - Wind Sprite]?

Rather, if the Holy King is actually on his defensive line, then wouldn't none of them die in this battle to defend the city?

Praise be to the great Holy King!

Zhuang Sen was unaware that he had gained another group of followers. He simply gazed at the densely packed Crusader army below the city, which resembled ants, and sighed, "There are as many people as there is garbage. Could it be that the other side has already unlocked cloning technology?"

“I don’t think so, otherwise, the number would be too small, Master.” Zero was still dressed as a maid. “At this number and level of weaponry, the threat to us is practically zero.”

“You can’t keep using it in places like this… But since we’ve run into each other, there’s no need to just watch.” Zhuang Sen raised his hand and summoned the Holy Lance. “My dear wives, just play around a little, don’t go too far.”

The next moment, the troops that had surged in like a flood suffered a devastating blow.

Chapter 347: All-Out Attack

The Holy Lance descended from the sky, piercing through the mechanical body of a certain Philo and sinking straight into the ground with a "whoosh." Before the surrounding Crusaders or the soldiers on the city walls could react, a pure white light had already shone.

A deafening roar shook the surroundings, the earth trembled and shattered, the bright sky darkened, and the mountains that guarded Fahd Fortress on both sides howled. Containing vast amounts of demonic iron, their otherwise indestructible bodies cracked under the impact, sending boulders of varying sizes tumbling down, threatening to shatter and collapse. Whether it was the Holy Salvation Alliance on the city walls or the Philistines and Crusaders below, all were filled with utter terror at this horrifying attack. The Crusaders, in particular, were terrified; their newly assembled ranks and boosted morale crumbled instantly under this earth-shattering, mountain-shaking blow, and they retreated in disarray to their camp.

They were not unfamiliar with such destructive power; among the technologies that had been reproduced in the world of Ferro, there were creations capable of collapsing mountains and destroying cities. But precisely because of this, these Crusaders, who knew how powerful and unstoppable that force was, were even less able to maintain their morale.

The undisputed defeat elicited thunderous cheers from the walls of Fahd Fortress, and Johnsen's highly recognizable image instantly spread his fame. When King Vortigern of the Mountains, who had just emerged from the fortress's luxurious rooms, heard the commotion, his heart nearly stopped. Although he believed he had done nothing wrong—merely engaging in illicit relations with a woman during a serious war—which Johnsen himself had done—he had no intention of arguing with Johnsen. At that moment, he only wanted to slide to his knees.

Father, what brings you here?

When Vortigern rushed to Zhuang Sen's side, his first words were roughly this: It's clear that Zhuang Sen had no intention of taking in a son, otherwise he really would have said that.

"Of course I'm here to deal with the Holy Kingdom." Zhuang Sen planted the Holy Lance on the ground and looked at the obsequious Vortigern. "It's been two months, almost three months. The Fallen Star Kingdom has sent aid twice, and you haven't even set foot on the Holy Kingdom's soil. How could I not come?"

Vortigern swallowed hard, his voice a mixture of fear and grievance: "Lord Alliance Leader, wars between nations are inherently long, and this is not just a simple conflict between two countries. Moreover, outside the influence of the holy artifact you bestowed, the Holy Kingdom's evil and terrifying machines are far too powerful. We simply cannot conquer that fortress filled with cannons and aircraft, and even setting up camp is difficult."

In the borderlands, it wasn't just the High Mountain Kingdom that had fortresses; the Holy Kingdom had also built one. However, unlike the High Mountain Kingdom's fortress, which was naturally situated on a mountainside and only required defense on one side, the Holy Kingdom's fortress was built beside a large river, which should theoretically have been easy to capture. But after the Ferro World stopped installing its fortifications, the originally ordinary city walls were now filled with automatic turrets, anti-aircraft guns, and laser nets. And just like how the Fahad Fortress now sealed away high technology, it had also sealed away bloodline power and monster girl technology. It was like transforming from a sewer rat into a storm rat, and its combat power was no longer on the same level.

"That's why I came here, instead of sending you to White City." Zhuang Sen scoffed at the first half of Vortigern's statement, but reluctantly agreed with the second half. The reason he said he reluctantly agreed was that with the resources that had been sent to Fahad Fortress over the past two months, even without a strong desire to break through the Holy Kingdom's fortress, setting up a camp or even just a surveillance point nearby could have been easily accomplished.

But Vottigeng simply refused.

If it weren't for the fact that Johnson currently has neither the interest nor the energy to conquer another kingdom, Vortigern would have already become a warm [Bloodline Essence].

But let's not talk about these things that are over now. Now that Zhuang Sen has regained his full power, he will take the initiative to completely destroy and crush the foolish Ferro people who missed the opportunity to fight for two months, and then drown them in the gentle embrace of his wives!

"I'll give you half an hour to organize all the troops and prepare for the attack." Zhuang Sen put away the holy lance in his hand and looked at Lydia. "My dear, I'm leaving the advance to you."

Zhuang Senjun's only designated female marshal nodded slightly, then called out: "Serafina, Lysander, Piper, Goya... bring your people with you, the rest of you serve your master well."

The "female chieftains" responsible for commanding their respective tribes followed Lydia to prepare the armory and assess the situation firsthand. Meanwhile, Zhuang Sen, escorted by his still-large entourage of wives, began patrolling the Fahd Fortress, visiting the temples built to protect the monster girl lairs and upgrading them. With Liliana's return—that is, after the return of the [Relic: Transcendence Transformation]—the functions of the monster girl lairs were once again strengthened and enhanced, though the enhancements needed to be manually applied one by one, which was somewhat tedious.

With the teleportation function available, this wasn't a major problem; Zhuang Sen was primarily checking the situation inside the fortress with his own eyes. Fortunately, although Vortigern had a tendency to harbor bandits for his own benefit, he wasn't foolish enough to disregard Zhuang Sen's strict orders. The atmosphere and discipline within Fahd Fortress remained as Zhuang Sen had hoped. Twenty-five minutes after Zhuang Sen issued the order, the Holy Alliance forces, already assembled on the city walls, completed their preparations for attack.

Zhuang Sen completed the upgrades to all his lairs and arrived outside the city to stop Vortigern's plan to build him a platform for a speech. He simply spread his six wings, which had become increasingly wide, beautiful, and holy. Accompanied by surging light, the Holy Salvation Alliance army of 126,500 men, along with the 5,000 demon girls Zhuang Sen had brought, naturally experienced a surge of abundant power in both body and spirit. Some of the bloodline users even noticed an increase in their bloodline development. This sudden surge of power filled the soldiers with fierce confidence, making them wish that a group of enemies would immediately appear before them so they could test their invincible strength.

Naturally, there's no need for speeches or anything like that.

Ascending on Lysander's back—fulfilling her wish—Johnson raised his holy lance, pointing its tip at the Holy Kingdom's fortress just two hundred miles away, under the watchful eyes of the crowd: "All troops, attack!"

There was a bang.

A variety of battle cries resounded across the sky, but even more dazzling were the various halos and support abilities emanating from the monster girls, from [Saint Lamia], [Divine Craftsman Dwarf], [Flower Empress], [True Ancestor], [Harpier], [King of the Dead], [Moon Weaver], [Divine Slime], [Red Dragon], [Centaur Tyrant], [Fenrir], [Medusa], [Morning Star Angel], [Behemoth], [Multi-purpose Robot], [Book Demon], [Ghost Mermaid], [Ghost Succubus]...

The countless light effects and power completely enhanced the entire Holy Salvation Alliance Army to a superhuman level, and in this way, they officially declared war on the enemy who was still two hundred miles away!

—I'm coming to kill you right now!

The author says:

Author's Note: It should be finished sometime this month, but there's a twist at the end, hehe. Update progress: Monthly tickets 41/50, urging tickets 9/50, donations 1400/5000

Chapter 348: The Power of Three Relics Gathered

The enormous ball of light, formed by dazzling illumination, could be seen even two hundred miles away. The Fero people, of course, remained vigilant, not to mention the Crusader troops who had gradually fled back to the fortress, bringing back intelligence that Holy King Johnsen had personally led the charge. Combined with this, even the most foolish of them, the current Crusader general in charge of the fortress, the former High Pope of the Church of War, Tal Talos, understood what awaited him. Fortunately, the fortress was protected by the True God; all bloodline power was suppressed and sealed away, while the steel and fire bestowed by the True God functioned normally, and their effects were even enhanced!

That's right. Just like when they were at a disadvantage when they attacked Fahd Fortress, now it's the turn of those so-called Holy Salvation Alliances to enjoy the failure of their proud power and be left only to be passively beaten!

Drop drop-

Suddenly, a rapid alarm sounded, and a former priest reported loudly: "General! The radar has detected a high-energy reaction, estimated at 80,000... 90,000... 120,000... 130,000! They are rapidly approaching the fortress and are expected to arrive in three minutes. Please give the order!"

Just as Tal Talos was about to drink some water to calm his nerves, he froze on the spot. The exquisite porcelain cup in his hand shattered silently, and the rare tea spilled onto the expensive table, creating ripples on the fluorescent keyboard. A silence fell over the command post for about ten seconds before Tal Talos snapped out of it. Wiping the table, he ordered, "Level one alert for the entire army! All firepower units, open fire freely! Crush those backward heretics!!!"

Snapped!

The expensive silk, soaked with tea, was slammed onto the table. Tar Talos, veins bulging on his forehead, roared through clenched teeth, "Send out all the bombers, fighters, and transport planes! Annihilate those damned heretics on the way! Let them know that the creation of the true God is invincible!!!"

"Yes!"

The officers in command post rose in unison, shouting orders before swiftly settling back down to operate the still-novel machinery before them, issuing unquestionable commands to each unit. Meanwhile, within this ancient yet modern fortress, artillery emplacements glowed with a ghostly blue light, locking onto their respective areas of responsibility; tanks roared as they assembled at the city gates, preparing for the impending charge; and expensive aircraft took to the skies in orderly fashion, laden with devastating [Disintegration Bombs], flying towards the vast crowd already visible, enveloped in countless rays of light.

Even deep within the fortress, in the cemetery of the flattened ancient city walls, several deep wells opened their hidden entrances. A massive, cone-shaped object slowly rose within a colossal mechanism, pointing obliquely towards the sky, awaiting the possible moment of activation. This was the ultimate weapon called [Wrath of the Gods], but its power was far too immense. If it were launched now at an approaching enemy, the fortress would likely be affected and destroyed. And as a creation far more advanced than airplanes and tanks, it couldn't possibly function properly within the Fahd Fortress; therefore, it could only serve as a last resort.