Chapter 954
Eivass’s Battle Plan
May 2nd, the war began.
The Pope’s mobilization speech had a stronger effect than expected. Eivass’s initial goal was merely to quell the chaos and prevent a civil war—however, he seemed to have underestimated his own importance in the hearts of these soldiers.
Because he himself was “living history.”
As the first human Pope in history, Eivass was already a pioneer of the future. This meant that Eivass had long since proven to the people that the era of humans had arrived—and he himself was the proof.
Slay a god alongside the first human Pope!
This incredibly clear feeling of “I am in the midst of a historic event” was intoxicating enough.
Of course, this was also because Eivass didn’t explain things clearly when he conscripted soldiers…
If he had directly told them, “We’re recruiting soldiers, and our hypothetical enemy is a Fallen Heavenly Envoy,” it would have sounded like a lie, like sending them to die on the front lines.
Soldier: “Huh? I’m fighting a Fallen Heavenly Envoy? Seriously?”
They thought they were coming to clear out demons, and then Eivass would tell them—”We’re making history. And the most difficult part won’t fall to you; I’ll handle it myself. You just watch from the sidelines, and you’ll go down in history.”
Who wouldn’t be excited?
Besides, if they lost, Eivass would be with them! The noblest person among humans, the one with the highest status in the world, would charge ahead of them—what more could they ask for?
What further boosted morale was a casual remark Eivass made.
He said—”The Fallen Heavenly Envoy is afraid.”
Mainly… it was quite possible.
Setting them aside, the Pope represented the will of the Nine Pillar Gods. No matter how strong a Heavenly Envoy was, could they defeat the Nine Pillar Gods? Of course not!
And if all negative emotions like panic, jealousy, and anger were attributed to the Fallen Heavenly Envoy, their internal conflicts could be resolved immediately—”I lost control earlier, not because of my morals, nor because I disliked you, but because I was ambushed!”
“Could I possibly resist a Heavenly Envoy? I can’t either!”
“So, our conflict was very reasonable, but it had nothing to do with me!”
Once they accepted this explanation, the atmosphere within the allied forces once again became harmonious. Moreover, the Fallen Heavenly Envoy’s covert attacks on them were enough to prove that they were indeed afraid. The most crucial point was that it was entirely possible for the Fallen Heavenly Envoy to do such a thing—their arguments could have genuinely been due to the Fallen Heavenly Envoy’s interference.
Not just the Fallen Heavenly Envoy, but all the demons under their command were skilled at this—inciting others’ emotions, thus luring them into committing unforgivable sins. This would cause them to give up and sign harsher contracts or perform more depraved rituals.
It was like being forced onto Mount Liang—the demons were doing something similar.
After all, in such a highly orderly society, grumbling and complaining a bit was enough. People were living well, and they weren’t struggling to survive—as Extraordinary beings, they could always find work. There was no need to risk being hunted by the authorities to do something unforgivable.
Even with a Soul of Transcendence, one had to consider the cost-effectiveness and quality of life. For instance, if a superior kept making unwanted advances, a Transcendent who contracted with a demon would naturally try to get rid of them. However, their usual choice would be to hire an assassin from the black market, not to act themselves. But demons would entice them to do it personally, even to cruelly torture the other party; or to curse them using human materials in a ritual.
Otherwise, how would demons achieve their performance quotas? Souls were numbered; if they didn’t imprint the Mark of Sin beforehand, it would be difficult for the Fallen Heavenly Envoy to steal the souls.
To “make it impossible for people to turn back,” they needed demons to act—to subtly manipulate the Master’s emotions.
Since demons could do this, couldn’t the Fallen Heavenly Envoy? Of course not!
And as long as “the enemy’s conspiracy was seen through,” the morale of the allied forces would immediately surge—”If you truly weren’t afraid of us, why would you resort to such tactics?”
These soldiers generally didn’t know what a high-tier Phantom Demon was, nor did they understand priority. They didn’t even know the true function of the Supreme Holy Crown; in their impression, the Eternal Pope was simply the strongest. If the Fallen Heavenly Envoy descended, they should at least fight the Pope to see!
Thus, the internal strife ended, and morale was high.
The army’s morale was usable.
The next morning, the army departed in batches.
Because there were too many soldiers—mainly because so many people had been sent by the Black Hawk faction—Eivass didn’t intend to transport them all at once.
One reason was the lack of ships, and the other was that landing would be too chaotic.
The mission of these soldiers was merely to attract fire and stall for time, while those truly qualified to command them would fight in the inner circle. They didn’t have an overall commander for the allied forces; instead, the generals of each country commanded their respective armies, heading to their designated destinations to complete their respective missions.
This was also to prevent endless bickering from delaying time. Even if someone could command a foreign army, putting aside whether they could actually command them and political issues, the war casualties alone would fall on them. It would likely be more troublesome in the end.
Eivass didn’t expect these soldiers to be of much help to him—but at least they shouldn’t distract him or force him to mediate.
One pre-war speech was enough; any more would be endless.
Therefore, Eivass’s chosen strategy was: the smaller groups would go first and establish a foothold. The Moon Children, who were afraid of water, were mixed into each wave of troops to prevent flying demons from flanking and sinking ships when they departed in a large group.
After all, the Moon Children were the weakest at sea; even if they transformed into bats, they couldn’t cross flowing water. If the ship sank, even a Fifth Tier expert would die. Therefore, these Moon Children had to be prioritized and protected to ensure their safe landing as much as possible.
Eivass requisitioned merchant ships from Avalon and the Church, supplemented by Avalon’s main naval force and warships dispatched by the Church.
The first wave heading to Star Antimony consisted of two newly built “Cruel Preachers” from the Church, along with the original two, totaling four ships.
They spread out in front, forming an anchor formation to lead the way. Behind them were ships of varying sizes and designs, continuously transporting soldiers.
The first wave of soldiers traveling by ship to Star Antimony was the mage corps of the Daffodil Duchy and the newly re-equipped Holy Gryphon Knights. They were the elite of the elite and were suitable as vanguards. The highest-tiered Moon Children were also all here.
According to the plan, after landing at Leipzig Port, the mages would head to the Spirit Tower under the escort of the Moon Children from various countries. With magical assistance, the march would take about an hour.
Afterward, they would convert the Spirit Tower into a temporary Mage Tower—this was not difficult, as the Spirit Tower was essentially a Mage Tower in essence.
Once the mages linked themselves to the Mage Tower, they would have a forward operating base. With the mages connected to the Mage Tower, they could create “war fog,” allowing them to observe the situation on various battlefields from afar. With the enhancement of thousands of high-tiered mages, their detection range could reach nearly 300 kilometers!
Although this range wasn’t particularly high and couldn’t even cover the entire Star Antimony Kingdom, it was sufficient.
Because it could already cover the capital, Lionheart City!
With the power of the Mage Tower, the mages could project various support spells over extremely long distances—such as changing the weather, erecting barriers, providing buffs, projecting combat spells, commanding real-time battles across hundreds of kilometers, and even teleporting a unit from one side to another!
The Moon Children would surround the Mage Tower, and with the buffs from the Paradise of the Complete Man, they would protect the Mage Tower from the constantly attacking demon legions.
From the second wave onward, it was the Iris Flower Legion. After they landed and were ready, they would attempt to control the entire city of Leipzig, pushing the front line against the demon legions beyond Leipzig. This would allow the Spirit Tower, turned into a Mage Tower, to operate normally instead of entering a self-sealing Preserved State, and to control churches occupied by demons.
The Church’s Paladin Order and Priests would land at this time—they would re-enter the churches and set up barriers for defense. Afterward, they would escort the Priests to the Nine Pillar God Churches outside, lighting them up one by one, which had been desecrated by demons.
Once they occupied one-third of Star Antimony’s Nine Pillar God Churches, they could begin a synchronized prayer.
There was no need to pray to all the Nine Pillar Gods—it was enough to focus on praying to Hourglass (Deity).
These Priests were all Elf Archbishops of Fourth Tier or higher, and their power of Devotion was by no means comparable to the human priests of Star Antimony, who were mostly Third Tier and very few in number.
This balancing power, which could dispel all bewitchment and dismantle Extraordinary Power, would continuously spread outwards from the Nine Pillar God Churches, greatly shaking the Fallen Heavenly Envoy’s integration with the Star Antimony Kingdom.
If the Archbishops’ prayers were completed, these demons might even be driven back into the Dream Realm!
At this point, the Fallen Heavenly Envoy would have to make a move no matter what.
Because the prayers would ring out simultaneously, and the Fallen Heavenly Envoy’s power, suppressed to Sixth Tier, would not be enough to deal with everyone at once. At this moment, they would have to dispatch their personal guards to launch suicide attacks on all the churches.
Eivass would then engage the Fallen Heavenly Envoy—if they moved out a little earlier, they could corner and fight them within the palace; if they moved out a little later, they would likely be in the process of attacking some church.
The Gryphon Legion could arrive the first to stall for time, giving the Mage Tower time to teleport Eivass and his companions.
Once Eivass engaged in combat, the Spirit Tower would no longer need to continue with command and coordination.
At this time, Black Shadow would drive the Spirit Tower, with the help of the Dragon, to the core battlefield to rendezvous with Eivass and the others.
—This was the combat plan Eivass had prepared.
(End of this chapter)
