Chapter 186: Riftward’s Meat Grinder

Kelshore saw him too.

"Cassian? You’re... you’re supposed to be dead!"

He stared at the figure standing on Crystal Nine’s back.

"Did you fake your death? Is that how you fooled Lord Tervain?"

The strength of the older sectors was so firmly fixed in his mind that even now, he could not imagine the veterans losing. He still thought the invitation had been real.

"Ignorance must be a comfortable thing."

Cassian drew a deep breath.

"Origin Divine Fist!"

His voice thundered across the sky. Aether gathered into an enormous golden fist, blotting out the light above the Black Banner army. Below it, faces twisted in terror.

Cassian had little time. He held nothing back, driving the strike into the densest part of the formation.

"No—!"

Kelshore’s scream vanished beneath the impact.

He had risen above nearly a million Lords to become a Commander. One wrong choice had brought him here, and now there was not even a body left to bury.

Thousands of battle notices flooded Cassian’s log. The enemy formation had been loose. Packed more tightly, it could have lost several times as many to that one blow.

Most of these newcomer War Lords had Heroes and troops around Level 40, mainly Elite and Uncommon. Against Cassian’s force, they were far too weak.

His troops attacked after him.

"Black Hole!"

"Crystal Storm!"

"Thunder Javelin!"

The army that had come to loot Riftward dissolved into screams, pleas, and curses.

Twenty minutes later, Seven returned to report.

"Lord, every enemy is dead."

Compared with fighting the veterans, this had been almost effortless.

The rewards were anything but small.

Two hundred and forty million Battle Essence in twenty minutes.

If he wiped out all hundred thousand invading Lords, the total might reach tens of billions.

Of course, Kelshore had been in this group. His presence had brought its Epic troops close to a thousand, making it richer than an ordinary column.

Even so, Cassian could hardly have asked for better prey.

His forces swept through Riftward in three groups. Enemy columns of several hundred Lords, sometimes more than a thousand, fell wherever they met them.

With space and communications sealed, the other invaders knew nothing. They still dreamed of the resources they would loot and the Crown Lords they would kill.

After Cassian cleared his tenth group, Seven brought a different report.

"Lord, I’ve found a strange force. A strong one."

At first, he gave it little thought. As she described what she had seen, his expression grew serious.

"Three Lords, with hundreds of Legendary troops? They’re stronger than Osmund."

He considered the route.

"Osmund said the Black Banner hadn’t sent any other descending Lords. They wouldn’t have thought they needed more. And these three are heading straight for Ironwake..."

Then he understood.

"House Frost’s reinforcements."

The Jade Court had abandoned Tidecrown. It could not prevent every private family from acting. Aveline herself had been ready to give up the official position she had spent years building and descend to the newcomer sector. Cassian and Elara had stopped her.

Yet a private family could rarely stand against the forces of a state. In the Seventh Realm, the Jade Court held official authority. Even House Frost stood outside it.

Cassian could only imagine the price of sending three Lords that strong down so quickly. Given who Darian was, however, it made sense.

A smile spread over his face.

"Good. I can keep the profits to myself."

"As for the glory... Darian can have that."

——

A day later, the three House Frost Lords reached Ironwake.

They had come from Sector 642, a renowned war sector. There were only three of them, but their strength far surpassed that of the Black Banner Lords from Sector 663.

The moment they attacked, the veterans outside Ironwake lost their composure.

"These are the strong enemies Lord Tervain mentioned!"

"Could something have happened to him?"

Darian saw the reinforcements strike. He immediately led Ironwake’s Lords out through the entrance to join them.

"Kill the Black Banner dogs! Time to pay them back!"

The rescuers had all seen his picture. Relief and delight swept over them when they recognized him, alive and fighting.

"Lord Darian! I’m Marden, from Sector 642. We’ve come on orders from the upper Realm to bring you to safety!"

"Thanks!" Darian called back. "I wondered why their attacks had been so weak these past two days. You were keeping them busy out here!"

Marden was puzzled. This was hardly the time to discuss it.

"Let’s finish the enemy first!"

The other Ironwake Lords stared at their new allies.

"Our Warden can call down veterans from Sector 642?"

"The descent isn’t even the most frightening part. Registration from 642 normally takes more than twenty days. They’ve cut it to less than five! How much did that cost?"

Darian’s Homeworld recruitment office had been thriving. High-Quality Hero Sigils and Troop Sigils had poured into Ironwake, and more than half its Lords had moved their families into House Frost’s home territory.

They already knew their Warden had powerful backing.

Today, they learned how little of it they had understood.

With the two forces attacking together, the ten Black Banner Lords were soon dead. Their defeat cost Ironwake and its rescuers very few casualties.

"Marden, come with me. Our people in Riftward and Greyfen still need help."

Darian could barely contain his pleasure.

"Cassian, you finally need me to save you. Just thinking about it makes me happy."

Since the day the Realm opened, Cassian had kept getting ahead of him. In the last two Marches Rankings, Darian had gained Fortune and attributes largely because of Cassian’s victories.

Now he could finally hold his head high in front of him.

Even if his family had supplied the reason.

Marden hesitated. His orders were to protect Darian. He had no wish to involve himself in anything beyond that duty.

Maren’s voice cut through his hesitation.

"What are you waiting for? You heard Lord Darian."

A flash of annoyance crossed Marden’s face. Darian might hold an extraordinary position, but a Hero presumed to order him about?

He raised his head and saw her clearly.

His whole body jolted.

"You... you..."

——

Ironwake, Greyfen, and Riftward Region were freed in turn. Their Lords formed hunting forces of their own and joined the pursuit of the Black Banner invaders.

No one needed to tell them to leave no survivors.

When someone did slip through, Cassian’s Crystal Maidens quietly caught the fugitive before any warning could escape.

The hunt continued without interruption.

All of Riftward Marches had become a meat grinder for the invading Black Banner army.

Seven or eight days passed in a rush of battles.

Cassian checked his remaining Battle Essence.

Nineteen billion.

That was after spending sixteen billion to raise all seven hundred Eclipse Legionnaires in the hunting force and the entire Dawnwing corps to Level 55.

In less than ten days, the Black Banner invaders had supplied more than thirty billion Battle Essence. Ordinary hunting would have taken him at least two months to earn that much.

The equipment and Skill Books were too numerous to count at a glance.

Three days earlier, the Buildings required for his next Domain upgrade had finally been completed. He had paid for the advance to Rank XI, unlocking the Worlds Market.

He had been too busy killing enemies to study it.

Cassian counted the days.

"With space and communications sealed, nobody outside can know what’s happened here. But the seals are nearly finished. Once the truth gets out..."

He wondered what the rest of Tidecrown had been doing.

He had no idea that the Black Banner and Free Will were already bitterly arguing over who owned Riftward.

Faced with a prize that rich, the Black Banner had simply broken its agreement.

Tidecrown was Black Banner territory, its representatives declared. Riftward was an inseparable part of that territory. Naturally, Free Will could receive compensation elsewhere.