Chapter 1498: Forbidden Spell

It was long anticipated that there would be a fierce battle before Council City, but Aleister did not expect to employ the forbidden curse so soon. The battle had already deviated from his predictions, veering towards an uncontrollable edge. However, he wondered if all of this was within the Supreme Lord’s expectations.

“Lord Aleister, our men are still engaged in chaotic combat with the enemy, and using a forbidden curse at this moment!” the mage beside Aleister furrowed his brow, finding it difficult to comply with the command.

“Indeed! Sacrificing the Templar Order to achieve a pyrrhic victory with the opponent is too costly for us! We would lose a war-hardened army, whereas the other side would merely lose a group of Mechanical Puppets!” A Bright Bishop chimed in agreement with the opposition.

Hearing this, Aleister internally cursed the opponents vehemently. “If you’re really afraid of losses, then agree to Pei Yan’s demands! Now that the war has commenced, why hesitate?” Though his heart was seething, he couldn’t express this openly before so many people. Instead, he suppressed his anger and ordered, “Shift the forbidden curse attack range backward, to cover the rear formation of the Investigation Hall’s army as much as possible! If we don’t destroy the mechanical infantry corps at its rear now, allowing them to continuously launch attacks against us, then our losses will be the greatest in the end! After eliminating these forces, the mage corps can assist the Templar Order in encircling and annihilating the remaining Mechanical Knight corps!”

Seeing his subordinates grasp the intention and prepare to release the forbidden curse, Aleister added, “The opponent’s puppets contain certain essence-immune metals. To maximize the effect of the forbidden curse, choose to use a forbidden curse attack that can inflict substantial physical and magical damage.”

The Bright Church’s archbishops did not voice opposition to Aleister’s opinion. Instead, Urban halted the mage about to leave and issued an instruction: “No need to shift the forbidden curse attack range backward; directly cover the enemy’s mechanical infantry corps and their rear mechanical cavalry corps.”

Aleister angrily looked at Urban upon hearing this order. The current battlefield had become like a sandwich, with the most intense battle being the confrontation between forty thousand cavalry from both sides. And behind this Mechanical Cavalry Corps, ten thousand Temple Knights had inserted themselves, separating them from the mechanical infantry phalanx at their rear, and mixing the two major armies in chaotic combat.

Urban’s intention was clear: to directly use the forbidden curse to annihilate the Investigation Hall’s mechanical infantry corps, along with the ten thousand Temple Knights mixed in combat with them, and the closest rear of the Mechanical Knight corps. This attack method indeed could inflict the greatest damage on the enemy’s forces, but it was excessively ruthless and callous towards one’s own troops.

Facing Aleister’s furious gaze, Urban appeared exceptionally calm and said calmly, “Mr. Aleister, as a mage, you should understand that even if you shift the forbidden curse attack range backward, the aftermath of the attack will still harm the impacted Temple Knights. Since the damage is unavoidable, it’s better to maximize the benefit, as you said, the longer this battle drags on, the more disadvantageous it is for us.”

Urban paused and instructed the mage involved in communications, “Have the Forbidden Curse Mages ready, and await my command to decide whether to release the forbidden curse. If we can identify and kill the leading general creating this army before the forbidden curse is released, it’s best not to use it!”

Being able to reach the position of the Inquisition’s bishop, Urban was proud but not reckless. For over ten thousand church elites, he was more protective than anyone else. Of course, he wanted to preserve them. The mage transmitting the order glanced at Aleister, who closed his eyes, pondered for a moment, then reluctantly nodded, tacitly agreeing to Urban’s proposal.

“Damn it! It’s like picking a soft target for squeezing! These Mechanical Puppets belong half to Pei Yan, why don’t you dare to go for him but focus on chasing me!” Originally wanting to experience the grandeur of the Grand General commanding thousands of troops to clash, Jiang Feiyang, at this moment, could only hide within his mechanical infantry phalanx, blending with surrounding Mechanical Puppets like a mere soldier, carrying out monotonous and dull attacks. This made him extremely frustrated, unable to resist venting in his heart.

The reason Jiang Feiyang chose to hide wasn’t due to a lack of protection. At least three members of the Elite Squad maintained contact with him discreetly, ready to gather at a moment’s danger to rescue him. But no matter how they stayed connected, they couldn’t withstand the overwhelming number of those hunting him down. Within this brief period, at least five Grand Mages and ten Mages repeatedly searched above the Templar Order with their thoughts, identifying any potential target resembling Jiang Feiyang, and once suspicious spots were found, they would jointly launch attacks against it.

This search indeed led them to discover a few targets, with several decoys possessing Jiang Feiyang’s aura getting found and pulverized by the opponent. Still, this left Jiang Feiyang both shocked and sneering. Already at the eighth-level awakening, he could casually swap his physical form with any of his released puppets, and the number of puppets capable of offsetting a lethal attack for him had increased from three to eight. As long as he wasn’t singularly locked down by a Heavenly Dao top-tier adversary with continuous pursuit—within the puppet army—he had ample measures for escape. Moreover, if a genuine Heavenly Dao top-tier expert attacked, there were people like Pei Yan at heights to confront them.

Exactly as Jiang Feiyang grumbled internally, Council City indeed had woven its own cocoon. Initially mobilizing a grand army below the city was to capitalize on the Investigation Hall’s lack of elite, aiming to suppress by force without engaging in battle. But who would have thought the opposing side wouldn’t yield to such tactics, instead matching them with a grand army head-on? If the confrontation fell into a Heavenly Dao top-tier melee, then the knight orders on the ground and half of the city district would be forfeited. Exactly how powerful Pei Yan was remained uncertain for the three major councils, but they certainly understood the scale of destruction he could unleash.

“The Council City begins to employ the forbidden curse!” Hidden in the sky, Lin Daozi felt the potent magical fluctuation from within Council City and thrillingly closed his fan. Today’s battle intensity far surpassed his expectations.

“Indeed! Just a quarter-hour into the battle and Council City is already considering deploying the forbidden curse, Pei Yan; this has forced the opponent into dire straits!” Liu Xuanji beside him couldn’t help but agree.

“Hahaha, faced with such a situation, even if it were us, we would have to resort to extraordinary measures, right? Pei Yan and his Investigation Hall are undeniably becoming increasingly assertive and versatile in their tactics.”

Lin Daozi caught Feng Tianhe’s cynical tone following his cold laugh, glanced at him knowingly, and approached to ask, “What? Has the impact on the Mo Sect been that significant?”