Chapter 272: The Advancing Giant Beast

Karon and Ophelia followed Torathos, though they made sure to keep an absolutely safe distance from the massive creature.

In truth, if Karon were alone at the moment, he would probably choose to find a high vantage point with a better view, then stand or sit there and observe Torathos’s advance, as well as the countermeasures that would soon appear.

Ophelia could not do that. Given her status on the island, even if she was not reckless enough to simply charge at Torathos with her greatsword drawn, she could hardly remain at a distance with Karon and simply watch everything unfold.

The Darkmoon Blade granted Ophelia greater speed, and her physical constitution also served as a better vessel for bringing out the Darkmoon Blade’s power. On this point, Karon did not hold any advantage. His body had now been nursed to a state that could be considered decent, but that was only in regards to ordinary people. Fortunately, he had deep reserves of spirituality within him. At worst, he simply needed to consume a bit more spirituality in exchange for enhancing his speed.

However, to avoid being noticed by outsiders, Karon did not use the Darkmoon Blade to accelerate like Ophelia. Instead, he alternated between Order Arts that allowed him to accelerate and transforming into black mist.

It had to be said that witnessing Torathos’s advance and the sight of everything being crushed beneath it was truly shocking. This turtle was not merely a mount, but was a proper monstrous beast. Wherever it passed, whether forest, stream, or hillside, everything was flattened.

At this moment, more than a dozen black dots appeared ahead of Torathos. Ophelia slowed and leapt onto a large tree nearby. Karon also arrived on the other side of the tree. “That’s Uncle Tafmann and the elders.”

Karon looked further past the new arrivals, seeing a small force of Darkmoon guards had already been assembled and were beginning to form up.

Yet whether in numbers or in bearing, though they were also primarily armed with traditional steel rather than firearms, they were utterly incomparable to the Order Knights he had once seen. Even now, Karon still vividly remembered the terrifying sense of oppression and suffocation he had experienced when watching that Knight Regiment march out of the cave.

Still, this was the full strength that Darkmoon Island could gather at the moment. Usually, this was more than sufficient for maintaining harbor operations, local order, and similar matters. Even with two orthodox churches holding their meetings, the island was still able to spare enough manpower for the event’s security.

However, to mobilize forces to deal with the current situation was somewhat beyond their abilities. When the Church of Order went to war, the Whip of Order squads were merely in the third batch of deployments. No matter how excellent a police officer might be, if they were sent straight to a battlefield, the results would likely not be ideal.

At a time like this, attempting a single-point breakthrough might produce unexpected results. This was indeed a colossal being, but its massive body that was its advantage could also become its disadvantage.

Tafmann looked at Torathos before him. If only his fleet were present at this moment. Against such an enormous creature, the warships’ crystal-powered cannons would undoubtedly be the best solution.

But thinking about that had no meaning at this moment. If they did not quickly stop Torathos, the titanic beast would crush the entire town.

“Tafmann, your wound...”

“It will not affect my fighting. The clan leader has already gone to request help from the Church of Order. Although the church will certainly not stand by and watch, we still need to demonstrate our own usefulness as best as possible. I believe the elders here with me are also unwilling to let our Darkmoon Island be looked down upon like this.”

“We’ll listen to you. Give the order.”

“Tafmann, we’ll follow your command.”

“Even if we are to be dogs, we cannot be the most useless dogs.”

“Our goal is simple: break through its defenses and protect Elder Zimar while he goes to Torathos’s head to set up a ritual array. Go!” The order was brief, but that was because Tafmann believed the elders were all experienced enough to make their own choices according to the situation. Everyone simply needed to have a clear common objective in mind.

Most importantly, they were all completely unfamiliar with Torathos. Darkmoon Island did not have many records about the turtle that had been passed down, because after Torathos had carried Phileas and his people to Darkmoon Island, Phileas had arranged for the beast to enter slumber.

The elders removed their robes, revealing armor beneath. Some armor had been passed down as family legacies, while others had been personally designed and forged by the wearers themselves.

Darkmoon Island’s forging techniques had always been famous, yet they were not trade goods that were exported. This was not because they were unwilling to allow weapons and armor they forged to go outside, but rather that the things they forged all needed to be paired with the power of Darkmoon to display maximum effect. To outsiders, aside from some value as collectibles, the practical value of such equipment would be very low.

More than a dozen people all erupted with dark crimson radiance and charged at Torathos together.

Elder Zimar consciously moved to be in the most protected central position. His arms were already filled with all manner of ritual array scrolls.

The blood mist that surrounded Torathos served as the first line of defense blocking the attacking humans. This blood mist had already devoured countless lives of animals and plants during the turtle’s advance.

Four elders split into two files as they surged ahead of the main group. Drawing blades and swords, they pushed the Darkmoon power within themselves to its limit and directly struck the blood mist.

The blood mist was torn open, and a huge breach formed. Two elders on each side held the rift open, forcing it wider and keeping the passage open for those approaching.

Breaking through the blood mist was not especially difficult. The real challenge lay in holding the passage open. In effect, they were using the power of Darkmoon within their own bodies to contend in direct attrition against the power the giant beast carried.

Tafmann led the other elders straight through the blood mist.

Seeing this, the four elders who had opened the path withdrew their weapons and quickly retreated. Whether those who had gone inside would succeed or not, when they needed to leave once more, the four would have to work together again to open another fissure in the blood mist.

Torathos’s gaze lowered a slight bit, as though it had only just noticed what was happening below. However, the creature did not choose to stop and deal with the attackers. In fact, its speed did not even change in the slightest as it continued on toward the island’s town. That was the place of the greatest concentration of the Darkmoon bloodline, the target of its vengeance.

“Onto its body!” Tafmann held his blade with one hand. He served as Elder Zimar’s final line of defense. The other elders began spreading out to help block the dangers that would soon come.

Although Torathos did not stop specifically to deal with them, it reacted much like when a person is bitten by mosquitoes; There would be some instinctive movements and reflexes, but for such comparatively tiny existences, those were still terrifying threats.

Scales began to fly off of Torathos’s body of their own accord, launching towards the elders. Each one was the size of a house. The Darkmoon elders swung their weapons without pause, splitting the scales apart in midair. One elder cleaved through seven in succession, but when he struck at the eighth, the scale shattered to reveal that it was merely an outer shell concealing a second layer of a smaller scale.

The man could have evaded it then and there, but if he allowed the scale past him, the group being escorted up to the turtle’s head behind him would be caught in the blast, and their advance disrupted.

For that reason, he chose to take it head-on.

While he managed to deflect the scale off course, the impact hurled him backward. Before he could recover his balance in midair, a vortex of wind created by Torathos’s movements dragged the man in.

Whether he lived or died was unknown.

Next, once the group climbed onto Torathos’s neck, its enormous whiskers began to sweep toward them without pause. Every strike of a whisker carried terrifying force.

One elder was swatted away and sent plummeting downwards. No one knew what became of him after he fell.

Another was caught between two of the sweeping whiskers, and he burst apart to form a cloud of blood.

Humanity had many ways of dealing with colossal monstrous beasts, but when circumstances were urgent and fighting in close-quarters was the only option, the disparity in raw power became especially stark.

In that regard, Darkmoon Island’s martial tradition put them at a particular disadvantage. Their overall attainments in Arts and ritual arrays were not especially impressive, even after Bernard had introduced portions of the Church of Light’s systems and strengthened the clan in that area.

They preferred, and were more accustomed to, fighting with their own bodies and martial skill. Arts and ritual arrays were treated merely as supporting tools.

Of course, the most important reason was that the study and inheritance of Arts and ritual arrays demanded immense and continuous expense. Simply recording them in books did not constitute a true legacy. The true cost lay in training each generation, refining their skills and preserving the knowledge across the years.

This was also why, after Allen Manor’s decline, the family had not had even a single usable teleportation array.

At the same time, this was also where the orthodox churches stood out. They possessed the greatest resources and reserves of talent. Only they could maintain the oldest and richest legacies across multiple generations while also developing and expanding upon their original foundation.

In the tree, Karon glanced at Ophelia. Seeing her tighten her grip on her greatsword, it was clear that she wanted nothing more than to rush forward as well. But she was even more aware of her own strength, and knew charging in such a manner would see her becoming a burden.

What made her even more helpless was that even if she went to the newly assembled army at this moment, there was no role she could play there, either. She was not a skilled commander. Although she had read books on the subject and had received guidance from her uncle, she had never participated in actual combat. Naturally, it was impossible for her to run over and take command now.

Ophelia turned to Karon and anxiously asked, “Why has the Church of Order still not stepped in to help?”

“It takes a bit of time to gather people,” Karon could only offer an excuse.

Because the day’s meeting had ended early, and Order was the victorious side to begin with, everyone had rather relaxed spirits. Yesterday had still been all right, but today, an especially large number of people had slipped away to enjoy themselves. Even if they certainly sensed the enormous commotion caused by Torathos’s awakening, it still took time to gather everyone.

However, after seeing that the Darkmoon Island guards had already formed a loose army, Karon believed that the Church of Order must have gathered even faster. Every Whip of Order squad present was an elite unit from its own region. Once the black crows had flown out, they must have immediately located their positions and assembled.

But he could not tell Ophelia that the Church of Order was deliberately holding back, intending to step in only at the most critical moment, when the importance of their actions would be greatest and the gratitude they received would provide the greatest benefits.

Nor could he tell her that Order also wanted to see just how capable its newly adopted dog truly was, and so they were letting Darkmoon make the first move.

Under the escort and path-opening of the elders, Tafmann and two other elders finally succeeded in protecting Elder Zimar and escorting him to Torathos’s head.

But the moment the four landed on the turtle’s head, Torathos’s two long brows swept towards them. Two elders leapt up and slashed at one of the long brows each, but after the brows were cut apart, they scattered a moment later, only to transform into thick iron chains that locked down both elders.

The two each let out their own roars as they deliberately dropped down to the turtle’s neck. They drove their weapons into it, though Torathos’s skin was practically a rock wall to them. They used themselves as nails to pin the two long brows on each side.

“Set up the ritual array!” Tafmann shouted to Elder Zimar.

“All right!” Elder Zimar began setting up the ritual array. He was the elder with the greatest skill in ritual arrays. At this moment, he used every Arts scroll he had accumulated, all for the sake of completing the ritual array as quickly as possible.

By this time, Torathos’s massive body had already advanced very close to the Darkmoon army.

“Behind us are our families. Warriors of Darkmoon, summon your courage. We cannot retreat!” The elder commanding the military formation gave the final order to complete their ranks.

Although this army had only been patched together, and its formation was very loose, the fact that it had not yet collapsed in the face of such a terrifying creature was by itself quite commendable.

As soon as a little more distance was closed, they would begin attacking Torathos by swarming it like ants. The army’s losses would inevitably be severe.

Behind the army, cannons that had been urgently transported over were just finishing being assembled. There were not many, only a bit more than thirty, and they were all small-caliber cannons that were only capable of firing Arts shells.

Darkmoon Island’s fleet was capable of outputting powerful firepower, but by the time it was able to return, the town would already be crushed who knew how many times over.

There were also large-caliber Arts cannons and crystal-powered cannons on the island, but they were all placed at the harbor and other places where it was easy to make landfall. Because the main island of Darkmoon Island had seen almost no combat for nearly a hundred years, and its fleet cutting off all threats from approaching, these military devices might also have suffered from age and poor maintenance.

But even if there were no such issues, there was no time to move them in front of the turtle. Large-caliber Arts cannons took time to dismantle. After the crystal-powered cannons were moved, their internal ritual arrays needed to be rearranged and carved before the cannons could be used again. There was simply no time.

As for attacking from the docks or coastal defensive facilities, that was also impossible. Torathos had been sleeping on the island all along. It had not landed from the sea.

Karon had once seen the catapults that the Order Knights took when they marched to war. Though they appeared to be far more primitive than cannons, every single one was engraved with spatial ritual arrays. They may have an old-fashioned appearance, but in battle, their destructive power and striking capability far surpassed crystal cannons.

During the recent war, the reason the Order Knights had been able to overrun one of the Church of Reincarnation’s holy lands after another with such speed was that, in most cases, a few volleys of those catapults had been enough to simply shatter the defending ritual arrays. Once that was done, all that remained was for the Knight Regiment to roll in and wipe out any organized resistance.

***

“After this, Darkmoon Island will definitely ask to buy some war weapons from us, and they will be begging and crying for them.”

Hearing the bishop beside him, Wolfram nodded. “Yes. But the external sale of war weapons involves too many things. It mainly depends on his Grace’s opinion.”

Cardinal Claude, seated nearby, said nothing. He only quietly watched the enormous figure ahead continue drawing closer.

Behind the group of bishops, more than half of the Whip of Order squads had already assembled. At the same time, on both wings, two bishops who specialized in ritual arrays were leading personnel in temporary teams to finish arranging some arrays.

In terms of efficiency, the Church of Order surpassed Darkmoon Island by who knew how much. Moreover, the Order priests all appeared to be very calm. They could even point at the scene before them and discuss it with little panic visible.

One had to know that this was also a negotiation delegation. Even so, it was easy to find ritual array specialists among the negotiators. This another demonstration of the terrifying foundation of the Church of Order.

Just as Karon had guessed, the Church of Order was in no rush to act. In any case, the giant beast was still some distance away from the town.

Cardinal Claude lightly twisted his neck twice. Then, as if suddenly being too lazy to continue watching the scene ahead, he lowered his head directly, appearing to doze off.

At the outer perimeter, Clan Leader Veynar neither cried out nor pleaded himself hoarse. He merely knelt in place, utterly still, his heart calm while also full of helplessness.

***

“How much longer?” Tafmann shouted.

“Soon, soon!” Zimar answered.

At this moment, with him as the center, a very large-scale detonation ritual array had already been arranged. He was currently embedding precious materials into the array to increase its destructive power.

Transmission scrolls continuously burned in his hands, constantly teleporting precious materials from his personal stores. Throughout the process, he showed not even the slightest pain or hesitation.

Usually, the Council of Elders was a place where internal factions fought for power and profit, but when faced with the threat of their home being crushed, everyone united against a common enemy.

At this moment, Torathos seemed to sense a threat from the top of its head. Scorching breath exhaled from its mouth, and in an instant, white, high-temperature smoke completely enveloped the area above its neck. Those outside of the area were unable to perceive anything within the smoke, while those inside simply felt as if they were in an oven.

Immediately following that, Torathos began shaking its head. The terrifying inertia and the winds formed around them greatly obstructed Elder Zimar, who was still finishing the ritual array.

Seeing this, Tafmann released the power of Light from his body, bent down, and pressed a palm to Torathos’s head.

Seeing this scene, Elder Zimar froze.

“Finish the ritual array!” Tafmann roared.

Elder Zimar immediately continued focusing on the ritual array.

When Tafmann emitted the aura of Light, Torathos, which had been shaking its head, suddenly quieted down. Although its body continued advancing on the town, it no longer shook its head. It seemed to greatly enjoy the feeling of Light stroking the top of its head.

It released an unusual deep hum for the first time since awakening, as if responding to Tafmann on its head and telling him of the longing deep in its heart.

Because Light served as the medium, the minds of both were connected at this moment, communicating more directly and far more pure than words could allow.

While continuing to emit the power of Light, Tafmann’s face was covered in tears.

***

On a distant hillside, Nio shook his head. “Oh, so you can still be this shameless after all? Tsk, tsk. If this really succeeds, not only will it be boring, it will also leave behind regret, perhaps even... disgust.”

He reached forward, and a sacred pattern of Light appeared. As it began to turn, a white-robed phantom appeared above the center of the pool on Torathos’s shell.

This was the spiritual imprint Phileas had left on Torathos, which had previously been used to communicate with the beast. Its body was simply too vast, so even when seated on its back, trying to call out to the turtle would be like shouting across mountains.

The white figure held the exact same posture as Nio on the distant hill.

Nio spoke, and as he did, the white figure spoke in unison, “He has already betrayed Light. Guard your head.”