Two days ago, while Zhang Nu was still grinding monsters in the underwater region, a new conflict had already begun.
In the southern border of the empire, there was a territory belonging to Count Tien. With the deaths of both Count Tien and Marquis Kregi, Tien City lost its lord. According to the inheritance order, the title and lordship automatically passed to the eldest son of the count, who also held another identity -- the Hero Cui Sheng.
Cui Sheng was feeling quite frustrated. He was a Level 4 Hero, a respectable level of strength among Heroes, but by no means the most powerful at the moment. With his current strength, challenging the Darkness Trio or the Demon King was nothing short of a dream.
One after another, territories such as Marquis Kregi's, nearby counts' and viscounts' territories, all fell one by one. There were even reports that the vast army from the Darkness City had entered the Tien territory. Cui Sheng reacted promptly: FLEE! When nobles faced war, abandoning their fiefs and escaping was a common response. Although holding the title of a count was hard to let go, under the current circumstances, there was no other choice. The Darkness City's forces were overwhelming, and what did he have to contend with them? In comparison to his noble status, his life was more valuable.
Cui Sheng was in the midst of gathering his wealth -- gold, silver, and valuables. He, along with his servants, disguised themselves as a merchant caravan and attempted to escape under the cover of night.
However, not long after leaving Tien City, they were suddenly intercepted by a military force. Although the number of troops was not large, it was evident that they were no ordinary force. Each knight rode on a creature with blood-red fur, wings on its back, resembling a mix between a lion and a tiger. They were clad in blood-red heavy armor and wielded three-meter-long custom-made knight spears.
The air was filled with killing intent, and their presence was imposing. Cui Sheng exclaimed in shock, "The Blood Lion Knight Corps!"
The Duchy of Bachor was different from ordinary noble territories. The majority of the empire's military strength in the southern regions was concentrated in the duchy. Apart from the imperial forces stationed there, the Bachor family, as a millennium-old lineage, possessed a formidable military. Among them, the six top-tier knight corps of the southern region were the most representative.
The Blood Lion Knight Corps was one of these six corps. Their strength was far beyond that of ordinary noble knights. As Cui Sheng observed, their numbers were densely packed, easily numbering in the tens of thousands. It seemed that the entire Blood Lion Knight Corps had been mobilized, and these knights were powerful enough to be intimidating.
[Knight of the Blood Lion Knight Order] Level 3 elite.
[High Knight of the Blood Lion Knight Order] Level 4 elite.
[Knight Captain of the Blood Lion Knight Order] Level 4 lord.
[Knight Major of the Blood Lion Knight Order] Level 5 lord.
[Knight Colonel of the Blood Lion Knight Order] Level 6 lord.
This army, totaling less than fifty thousand, was comparable to the empire's half-million regular troops.
"Are you the new lord of Tien?" The Blood Lion Knight Commander, leading the Blood Lion Knight Order atop a Level 5 lord lion king, emitted a formidable power that made the Hero Cui Sheng feel breathless.
This guy might have already reached the sixth tier, not as a sixth-tier lord but as a sixth-tier overlord.
"I am the commander of the Blood Lion Knight Order, acting on behalf of Grand Duke Bachor, participating in the defense of the Tien territory. However, as the lord of Tien City, you fled in the face of the enemy, what crime should you be charged with?"
Cui Sheng was scared and prostrated on the ground. "Sir Knight, spare me, I...I..."
The Blood Lion Commander said coldly, "According to the laws of the empire, a noble who flees and abandons his territory in the face of war will have his noble title permanently revoked, all family honors erased, and be charged with treason."
"Wait a minute!" Hero Cui Sheng exclaimed, but before he could finish his words, the Blood Lion Commander drew his knight sword. From about ten meters away, he swung down the sword.
In an instant, Cui Sheng was struck by the mighty sword Qi, cut in half from head to toe. His servants were left trembling in fear, all collapsing on the ground.
"Execute them all!" The Blood Lion Command ordered coldly. Accompanied by cries of horror and screams, hundreds of stewards, attendants, and maids became prey for the blood lions. The Blood Lion Commander did not spare a second glance at these insects. He dismounted and walked into the middle of the knight order. There was another special force here, though not numerous, numbering around twenty thousand. Despite their small size, their strength rivaled that of the Blood Lion Knight Order.
The leader of this special force was a group of about a dozen people, all of them members of the Thunderous Heros Guild. They led the elite forces of their respective Hero guilds and the native tribes under their command. Such a force, with its formidable strength, could not be underestimated.
The Thunderous Heros Guild force and the Blood Lion Knight Order, though totaling only about seventy thousand, were not inferior in strength to four or five imperial legions combined. Moreover, with such a powerful force, including a Blood Lion Commander with the strength of a Level 6 lord and nearly half of the sixteen top-tier Heroes having Level 6 strength, they were a formidable presence.
Among them, the leader was none other than the current most renowned magician in the Thunder Empire, known as the Mage King - Halyfax. Of course, his original Hero name was Luo Zheng.
"Grandmaster!" The Blood Lion Commander showed a respectful attitude toward the elderly mage. "Tien City is just ahead. The Tien family attempted to escape but were cut down by us."
Halyfax did not pay much attention to small fry like Cui Sheng. He calmly stated, "The Darkness Three Dragons are now entering the Tien territory and are expected to reach Tien City within two days. We must make preparations in the remaining time."
The Blood Lion Commander immediately responded, "Understood!"
This time, the leader against the main force of the Demon King was the Mage King. He was dispatched by Grand Duke Bachor to assist the Thunderous Heros Guild. Originally, according to Grand Duke Bachor's plan, he intended to wait until he was fully recovered, gather all the forces, and then join forces with the Thunderous Guild to besiege the Demon King.
However, Luo Zheng could not afford to wait any longer. The Thunderous Heros Guild had already received intelligence because both the Sunset Empire and the Azure Water Federation were offering substantial rewards for the Demon King of the Darkness City. This information had reached not only local regions but also reached Heroes from even more distant places.
With only one Demon King and one big reward to go around, the more Hero organizations involved, the smaller the share each could expect. As the leader of the Thunderous Heros Guild, Luo Zheng naturally hoped that his guild could exclusively enjoy the rewards. Additionally, he was eager to reach the Tree of Eternity.The Tree of Eternity was extremely precious, and he could sense its aura. He knew that other powerful beings could also detect it. If he did not act quickly, there was a risk of stronger entities seizing or damaging it during the battle. For Luo Zheng, this would be a significant loss.
"Ladies and gentlemen," Luo Zheng addressed his guild members. "This opportunity is extremely rare. Although we are confident and well-prepared for victory, the strength of the Darkness City's three dragons should not be underestimated. Everyone must remain vigilant and not let their guard down!"
The members of the Thunderous Heros Guild immediately affirmed their understanding. However, deep down, many of them did not take the Dark City's three dragons too seriously. This was because, unlike in previous encounters, the Thunderous Guild was now going all out. With their current strength, they believed that no Demon King, no matter how powerful, had a chance of escaping unscathed.
The next morning, the Dark Dragon King led his forces and smoothly captured the first city in the Tien. The entire process encountered little resistance as the legion of the Darkness City advanced like an unstoppable force. At present, they had seized a marquisate, two counties, and an additional five viscounties. It could be said that, once they took control of the Tien, the Darkness City would achieve a significant expansion milestone. Approximately one-tenth of the southern border of the empire would be under the control of the Darkness City, posing a serious threat to the empire.
However, at this critical moment, Priest Sun Liu approached. "Dragon's Shadow has sent an urgent message!"
As the leader of the three overlords of the Darkness City, the Dark Dragon King, acting in his capacity as a Demon King in human territory, naturally oversaw the intelligence system.
"What has happened?" inquired the Dark Dragon King.
"According to Dragon's Shadow's urgent message, there is a significant risk in the current Tien city!" Sun Liu reported.
Long Yi was quite puzzled, "Tien's strength and population are far inferior to that of Kolo's. It is merely the least remarkable county in the southern border of the empire. How could there be a major risk in such a place?"
Sun Liu replied, "A unit quietly arrived at Tien city last night and imposed strict blockade and curfew measures. According to reliable intelligence, this unit is not an ordinary force; it is the Blood Lion Knight, one of the six knight orders of Bachor."
"Blood Lion?" Long Yi was familiar with this knight order. It was indeed a troublesome situation. The strength of this knight order was close to ten times that of the regular imperial army. If they held Tien city with determination, it could turn into an impregnable fortress. Given the current strength of the legion of the Darkness City, they could take it, but not without a significant cost.
Sun Liu continued, "If it were only the Blood Lion Knight Order stationed in Tien city, it wouldn't be much of a concern. With your strength and the cooperation of the other two Dragon Kings, it should be easily taken down."
Long Yi asked, "Are you suggesting there is another threat?"
Sun Liu nodded and said in a solemn tone, "The biggest threat is the Heroes, and we received intelligence from an undercover Dragon's Shadow Hero under the Thunderous Society. The entire Hero Guild, including the president and the Mage King Halyfax, is also involved."
Long Yi finally understood the situation. This had severely complicated things. Mages were not typically a threat to dragons, even if they were powerful. Dragons had the ability to resist magical attacks. However, Haliifax was no ordinary mage; he held the title of the Mage King. If he dared to make a move, he must have been confident. Moreover, not only was the Mage King personally present, but also several superiors from the Thunderous Society joined in. These Heroes each commanded Hero guilds or elite forces. With these forces combined with the Blood Lion Knights, the scale and intensity of that battle would have surpassed the one in Kolo. Fortunately, the Dragon's Shadow Hero brought this intelligence. Otherwise, if Long Yi had attacked Tien City alone, it could have fallen into the trap set by those Heroes.
But now, they could prepare in advance. Long Yi immediately issued orders, and Zhang San and Li Si each led their respective troops to rush to the scene. Since the battle of Kolo, the Three Dragon Kings had been conducting separate operations, which explained how they were able to conquer more than ten provinces and capture over ten million people in such a short time.
"Has the empire finally reacted?" Li Si calmly remarked. "I thought they were going to continue to act like a cowardly turtle."
Zhang San laughed heartily, "Finally, we have some tough bones to chew on. Such battles are more meaningful than one-sided slaughter!"
It was evident that the Three Dragon Kings were not afraid at all. Their confidence stemmed from their own strength, the support of their master, and, most importantly, the anticipation of the Dark King. In the past couple of days, the Elven King Nancilia had been dispatched from the Chaos Forest, leading tens of thousands of battle elves. She had discreetly joined the army. The Three Dragon Kings could sense that this Yong Elven King's strength had reached Level 6. With such a top-tier ruler helping, even the empire's Mage King would be unable to stir up much trouble.
"Depart! Our target is Tien City! Eradicate all the Heroes!"
After the legion of the Darkness City completed its assembling, it moved with an imposing momentum, abandoning several small towns and directly heading towards Tien City in the mountains."