Chapter 123 - 120: Demon Beast Battlefield, the Wasteland War Restarts

His consciousness sank as Lince entered the Game World once again.

The first thing he did was sense York’s situation.

York was arranging personnel for an expedition into the Underground City, but Lince paid him no mind after learning this.

Instead, he immediately contacted the Earth Bear through their contract.

"Phemos, it seems Amos has hidden a lot from me about the situation on the Oakland Continent."

"I’m preparing to return to the Oakland Continent and take a look. I’ll leave things here in your care for now."

On a mountain peak in Dawn City, Phemos, slumbering in a massive cave, slowly opened his eyes.

"Your Highness, is this about the war between the Demon Beasts and the Human Race?"

"You know about it?"

"I don’t know much. The last time I went back, Master Amos didn’t say much, but I learned a few things from some of the other Demon Beasts."

Phemos replied calmly.

"A Saint Tier Magical Beast is involved?" Lince mused.

Phemos was taken aback. He didn’t know where Lince had heard this, but he still answered frankly.

"I don’t know the details, but this matter is indeed related to Heinrich, the Saint Tier being from the Demon Beast Divine Hall."

"Heinrich is the Saint Tier Magical Beast most trusted by the Demon God in the mortal world. Its true form is an Aurora Bird."

"It is even older than Master Amos and has lived through at least three Wars of the Gods."

"But now, after the gods vanished, it seems that without some sort of divine blessing—the nature of which I don’t understand—even Heinrich is nearing the end of its lifespan."

"Therefore, this Beast Tide is essentially the result of the Elf Race persuading Heinrich, which led to the current situation."

"As for what the Elf Race used to persuade it, Master Amos speculates it was likely some treasure that could extend its life."

"However, the situation is becoming increasingly complex. I’m sure there’s far more to it than just that."

"I don’t know the specific details. You’ll have to ask Master Amos yourself, Your Highness."

Phemos laid out everything he knew in one go.

This brought a sudden sense of realization to Lince.

’A Demon Beast nearing the end of its life, a treasure that can extend it... It’s only natural that a Demon Beast would cooperate with the Elves for something like that.’

’But the situation now is clearly far more complicated than just a life-extending treasure.’

After all, the Demon Beasts and the Human Race on the Oakland Continent were about to beat each other’s brains out.

’This can’t possibly be just for a life-extending treasure.’

’Besides, the Aurora Bird can’t be the only Saint Tier Magical Beast. Wouldn’t the others have something to say about this?’

’But then I remember the story of the so-called Saintess of the Storm from three hundred years ago. Burning herself out at the end of her life to secure benefits for her people... it doesn’t seem so hard to understand.’

’But do Demon Beasts really possess the same high-minded consciousness as the Human Race?’

Lince found that highly unlikely, so he said to Phemos:

"Okay, I understand the general situation now."

"I’m heading out, but I’ll be back soon. Phemos, keep an eye on things here."

"Yes, Your Highness."

With that, Lince hesitated no longer.

He first changed his form into that of a Black Dragon.

At the same time, he immediately used the power of his contract to sense the location of the Giant-toothed Mountain Rat on the other side.

Then, in the very next instant, ripples spread through space.

「Deep within the forests of the Swamp Territory.」

There, high above the Middle Tier Magic Crystal Ore, a colossal Black Dragon abruptly appeared.

The Black Dragon’s appearance caused a momentary panic among the surrounding Demon Beasts.

But soon, with the squeaks of the Giant-toothed Dragon Rat poking its head out from below the Magic Crystal Ore, everything quickly calmed down.

The Giant-toothed Dragon Rat was now Tier Three, and its entire appearance had changed significantly.

First was its Body Type; it was now no smaller than an elephant.

Squatting on its hind legs, it stood over eight meters tall.

Lince simply placated the large creature before looking up toward the distant Demon Beast Mountain Range.

Then, with another thrum of space, twenty-five kilometers passed in the blink of an eye.

At Tier Seven, a single instance of Space Travel covered twenty-five kilometers. This was Lince’s current limit.

After just three such jumps, Lince soon arrived at the peak of a familiar mountain in the Outer Mountain area of the Demon Beast Mountain Range.

By now, the giant Dragon Turtle was gone.

The only one remaining was a Little Sub-dragon Lince recognized.

"Who’s there?!"

"Whoa! What a huge, pitch-black dragon?!"

"It’s even bigger than Crimson."

"Where did you come from? I don’t recognize you!"

The Little Earth Dragon, Vittorio, stared up at the sky in astonishment.

The first thing he saw was the enormous Black Dragon, which was over two hundred and fifty meters long.

The Tier Seven Demon Beast guarding him immediately began to growl warily.

Lince wasn’t surprised by this reaction.

He simply chuckled, then used Spiritual Transmission to say:

"What’s this, little one? You don’t recognize me anymore?"

"??? This voice? You’re... Ah! You are! You’re Nigredo?"

The Little Earth Dragon’s eyes shot wide open, the little guy completely dumbfounded.

"How... how is that possible!!!"

"Nigredo doesn’t look like this at all! And he’s not this big!"

"You must be tricking me! You’re just some big liar! Don’t even think about fooling the clever Vittorio!"

The Little Earth Dragon’s pure, adorable foolishness made Lince laugh.

So, he quickly descended toward the summit.

As the frightened Little Earth Dragon watched, shrinking back a few steps, Lince immediately changed his form.

"Well, Vittorio, how do I look now?"

The next moment, the familiar form of the Rock Steel Giant appeared.

The Little Earth Dragon heard Lince call out his name and watched as he took on his familiar form.

For a second, it was as if his entire brain had crashed!

But the next moment, the little guy started spinning around Lince like a top.

He jumped as he spun!

"WOW!!! WOW WOW WOW!!!"

"You said my name, and you have the same familiar scent!"

"Yes, you really are Nigredo!"

"WOW WOW WOW!!! Nigredo, you’ve gotten so, so big!"

"Where have you been all this time? I asked Father Dragon, but he wouldn’t tell me."

"Also, also! Nigredo, you’re so big and strong now! How on earth did you do it?"

"Vittorio wants to grow up fast too! I want to help Father Dragon fight!!!"

"..."

The little guy was incredibly excited, his high-pitched shouts never ceasing.

The look of worship and excitement in his eyes was so intense it seemed ready to burst out.

’Kids really are the most endearing, aren’t they!’

Lince lowered his massive dragon head and said with a chuckle:

"Alright, little one, I’ll tell you how to get stronger later."

"But first, you have to tell me: where is your Father Dragon, Amos? Where is he right now?"

Hearing Lince ask about his Father Dragon, the Little Earth Dragon paused for a moment, then his expression soured as he muttered unhappily:

"Father Dragon? He went somewhere really far away."

"He said he was going to fight the strong people from the Human Race. Many of my brothers and sisters went, but Father Dragon left only me here. Hmph, he’s so biased."

"I’m really strong too, you know."

At this, the Little Earth Dragon’s eyes suddenly lit up as he looked at Lince.

"So, Nigredo, are you going to look for Father Dragon?"

"Then take me with you! I can sense his general direction. I guarantee you’ll find Father Dragon in no time. How about it?"

Lince looked in surprise at the eager expression in the Little Earth Dragon’s eyes.

He then glanced at the Tier Seven Sparrow that had been guarding the Little Earth Dragon.

He immediately sent a Spiritual Transmission:

"Did Amos give you any specific orders?"

"Will it be a problem if I take the little one with me?"

The Tier Seven Sparrow had clearly recognized Lince by this point.

It was both shocked and flustered.

As one of Amos’s direct subordinates, it knew some of the inside story about Lince’s identity. Still, the fact that he had become far more terrifying than it had ever imagined in the blink of an eye was a massive shock.

The Sparrow immediately replied, flustered and respectful, "Your Highness, Lord Amos only ordered me to protect the young master and to do my best to keep him from running off on his own."

"Now that you are here, Your Highness, I’m sure it will be fine."

Lince nodded lightly at the Sparrow’s response.

"Good. You’ll stay here for now. After I leave, deal with any untrustworthy Demon Beasts. Also, have some of the others send any Low Tier creatures that saw me change forms to the Underground Space."

Lince gave the order, and the Sparrow immediately nodded.

"Understood, Your Highness. I will handle it!"

Lince was quite familiar with this Sparrow; it was trustworthy.

Therefore, it was the best one for the job.

And so, without another word, Lince grabbed the Little Earth Dragon with his forelimbs. The next instant, amidst a chorus of "WOWs," he shot into the high heavens, once again in the form of a Black Dragon.

’Is the Little Earth Dragon afraid of heights?’

’No, he won’t be for long.’

Lince felt a little mischievous.

He continuously used Space Travel with the Little Earth Dragon in tow. A few times, the little dragon fainted, and Lince would use his Magic Power to wake him up and make him point the way.

After consuming more than half of his Magic Power, Lince finally arrived high in the sky, far in the distance of a battlefield.

He was still about ten-odd kilometers from where the Demon Beasts and the Human Race were clashing.

He remained hidden within the clouds, using the Wind Element to conceal his form as he looked down upon the land below.

It was then that Lince finally laid eyes on the grand spectacle of the so-called Beast Tide clashing with the Human Race.

In a highland mountain range within the Western Border Silver Lion Duchy, a vast, continuous stretch of walls over fifty meters high had appeared as if from nowhere.

These walls snaked along the Western Realm like a dragon whose tail could not be seen!

Clearly, this ’Great Wall’ was a defensive line forged by the Middle-High Tier members of the Human Alliance Army.

And outside this long, narrow Great Wall, hordes of Demon Beasts covered both sky and ground.

On the Demon Beasts’ side, not a single blade of grass grew. Any part of the landscape that could be destroyed, had been.

Many enormous craters, clearly the result of violent explosions, pockmarked the terrain.

The Western Realm, ravaged by the Demon Beasts, now resembled a barren wasteland. The sight was no less shocking than a scene from a post-apocalyptic sci-fi film.

The Beast Tide was currently gathered at least ten kilometers away from the ’Great Wall’.

A dense, teeming sea of them stretched to the horizon, led by none other than the Mountain Range Earth Dragon and Red Dragon Crimson.

The Earth Dragon commanded the ground-based Demon Beasts.

The Red Dragon, meanwhile, controlled the Flying Demon Beasts.

All the Demon Beasts seemed to be awaiting a command, rapidly replenishing their Magic Power.

Behind the main force, massive numbers of supply-line Demon Beasts formed dozens of black lines stretching toward the front, moving like ants relocating their nest.

These supply-line Demon Beasts were transporting nothing other than Magic Crystals of varying quality.

Lince could clearly sense that the natural Magic Power in the air around the battlefield had long been depleted.

Evidently, repeated battles had completely drained the environment of its natural Magic Power.

On the human side, soldiers were also relying on logistical supplies to regroup and prepare.

Troop rotations were frequent, and high in the sky, the figures of many human Strong Persons could be seen gazing out at the Beast Tide.

Lince was truly shaken by the scene before him.

’A grand spectacle like this is truly extraordinary!’

However, Lince was also confused about something.

’Why were Crimson and the Earth Dragon assigned to the same front?’

’Does that mean the Beast Tides on other fronts have been taken over by the other Tier Nine Magical Beasts from the Demon Beast Mountain Range?’

’Two Tier Nine Peak Sub-dragons attacking the Silver Lion Duchy together, just to conquer the entire territory?’

Lince wasn’t sure, but he was out of time to ponder it.

Because he had arrived at the perfect moment.

The furious roars of the Demon Beasts began once more!

And on the human side, the war drums thundered in response!