Following the authorization from the King of Pale Moon, Takumi Akiwawa took command of the kingdom's army of 500,000. He would lead this force to reclaim Holy Tides City for the Pale Moon kingdom. This elite force primarily comprised various types of fishfolks and also included many powerful sea beasts, with combat power equivalent to three or four official imperial legions.
On the eve of the army's assembly, Takumi Akiwawa met with ten sea tribe Heroes. Among these ten Heroes, eight possessed Level 5 strength, and two had reached Level 6. They were the forces that Takumi Akiwawa had built himself. To keep his identity hidden, Takumi Akiwawa rarely made public appearances. These ten Heroes were leaders of elite Hero troops he had gathered and nurtured. By controlling these ten Heroes, he could indirectly command over two to three thousand elite Heroes on the Pale Moon Peninsula, thereby creating a secret force of his own.
"Our opportunity has arrived!" Takumi Akiwawa declared passionately. "The Azure Water Federation is in turmoil! The military power of the Pale Moon is in my hands! I have waited for this day for far too long! Once I flatten Holy Tides City and declare independence, we'll turn around and conquer Pale Moon Kingdom!
"Now that the Azure Water Covenant has been completely nullified, there's nothing left to stop me from taking control of this nation!
"Immediately gather all Heroes to join me in this endeavor. The time to make our mark is now. Our era is upon us!" he proclaimed.
The gathered Heroes were overjoyed. They had been lying in wait for this moment for so long.
At that moment, a drakefolk Hero with a saber at his waist stepped forward and said, "Congratulations, boss, but there's something I need to report."
Takumi Akiwawa immediately asked, "What is it? Speak!"
"The Pale Moon Kingdom is certainly due for a change of leadership," the Level 6 drakefolk Hero suddenly drew his saber and delivered a slashing strike through the air, "but unfortunately, this territory has already been claimed. I'm afraid you won't have the opportunity."
It happened so suddenly that no one else had time to react. Despite the distance of more than ten meters between the drakefolk and Takumi Akiwawa, a spatial rift appeared directly on Takumi, splitting him in half from head to groin, freezing his expression of disbelief on his face, his eyes wide with shock.
S-rank technique---Spatial Slash! This attack infused the force of space into the slash. Such a strike, based on spatial manipulation, was nearly impossible to dodge and could cleave through any material existence, showcasing the drakefolk Hero's formidable strength.
The others were horrified.
"Takahashi, have you lost your mind?" they exclaimed. "You've killed the boss!"
As Takumi Akiwawa's body fell in two halves, the drakefolk Hero's mouth curled into a cold smile. Sheathing his sword, he turned to face the other nine Heroes, raising his hands in a calming gesture.
"Gentlemen, there's no need for alarm," he said coolly. "I merely did what was necessary. The Pale Moon Peninsula belongs to the Deep Sea Hermit Society. What right or power did this man have to take the peninsula from the hands of the Deep Sea Hermit? It was a futile effort doomed to failure."
The drakefolk Hero, Takahashi, spoke loudly, "Instead of serving such a man, why not join the Deep Sea Hermit Society? I believe with your strength, it's more than enough. Then, we can be in charge of the Pale Moon Peninsula ourselves, without having to serve anyone else."
The expressions of the crowd shifted subtly upon hearing this. However, just as they began to waver, a sinister and hoarse voice belonging to Takumi Akiwawa resounded, "Heh heh heh, I always knew there was a traitor among us, but I never expected it to be you, Takahashi. To think I trusted you so much!"
Hearing this voice, the drakefolk Hero's pupils suddenly contracted. It was impossible; being hit directly by his Spatial Slash, there was no way anyone could have survived. Before the drakefolk Hero could draw his sword and turn around again, Takumi Akiwawa, wielding a giant sword, swiftly struck. A massive wave of sword energy swept through, breaking through the drakefolk Hero's protective Qi and cutting him in half at the waist as he let down his guard.
"This can't be... How can you still be alive?!" The drakefolk Hero's face was filled with horror as he looked at Takumi Akiwawa, who should have been dead.
Indeed, Takumi Akiwawa had been split in half. His body was still in two pieces. Yet, eerily, the two halves were coming back together. The huge gash, still about four or five centimeters wide, no longer bled; instead, flesh writhed and blood vessels interlocked continuously. It was utterly bizarre. What kind of ability was this?
Everyone present was completely astounded! A person who had been cut in half from brain to groin, who should undoubtedly be dead without question, was undergoing something inexplicable.
After a few seconds, Takumi Akiwawa's body, after several attempts at reattachment, finally came back together seamlessly, although the scar running down from his forehead remained. His armor was shattered. To everyone's astonishment, Takumi Akiwawa's body had undergone severe mutations. His skin was covered in unsightly, varicose veins, all converging at the heart, where a large green eyeball was embedded, emitting light continuously. It was this strange organ that emitted a power capable of miraculously repairing Takumi Akiwawa, who should have been cleaved in two and undoubtedly dead.
"See?" Takumi Akiwawa declared. "I possess an undying body! Being cut into two pieces, even five or ten, cannot kill me. And you thought you could assassinate me? That's utterly laughable!"
As he spoke, Takumi Akiwawa crushed the drakefolk Hero's skull with a stomp. He then swept his gaze over the other Heroes present. "Do any of you still want to try me?"
The nine Heroes were thoroughly shocked by Takumi Akiwawa's bizarre abilities and formidable power, realizing that their leader was far from ordinary.
"We swear to follow you to the death!" they proclaimed. "Please command us at your will!"
Takumi Akiwawa was very pleased. The situation had been extremely perilous just moments ago, but fortunately, he had fused with a fragment of an Evil God, using a special method to confine the mutation within a limited area. This allowed him to retain most of his abilities while also leveraging the potent talent of the Evil God. Thus, Takumi Akiwawa's true strength was underestimated. Both the Hero and Demon King rankings reflect conventional strength, but the power of an Evil God and its talents would not be included in the ranking assessments.
Takumi Akiwawa's own strength had reached the level of a Level 6 Overlord. The minimum standard for the Hero Ranking was a Level 5 Monarch, which meant Takumi Akiwawa didn't appear on the Hero Ranking, but his actual strength far exceeded that. With the enhancement of an Evil God''s talent, Takumi Akiwawa had the strength to challenge a Level 6 monarch. Such power would place him in the mid to lower tier on the densely populated Hero Ranking, far from being a mere nobody to be overlooked.
"Truly unexpected!" the Heroes exclaimed. "Takahashi, that guy, actually sided with the Deep Sea Hermit and even tried to assassinate the boss!"
"Yeah, now that he's met this end, he only has himself to blame!"
"The boss is the true ruler of the Pale Moon Kingdom. We all willingly follow the boss and will never betray him!"
These Heroes were quick to change their stance, immediately starting to flatter.
Takumi Akiwawa was very pleased with this. He waved his hand and declared, "With Takahashi gone, his forces will be taken over by you all. Our next urgent task is to swiftly take down Holy Tides City."
"Yes!" everyone immediately responded, ready to carry out the orders.
......
At the same time, in the southern territories of the Thunder Empire, within the main city of the Elro region, Marquis Elro had been enveloped in fear recently. No one knew the battle that took place here not long ago better than Marquis Elro himself.
Duke Bahol personally led four knight regiments, with the addition of the Sunset Empire's Sword Saint and the Radiant Church's Archbishop... Such a lineup was terrifying, fully capable of launching a war of annihilation against an ordinary kingdom. However, even such a formidable force was crushed by the army of Darkness City and the powerful figures of the Chaos Federation, suggesting that the current strength of the Chaos Forest might already surpass that of ordinary kingdoms.
The growth of the Demon King's power had already broken through the limits of imagination. Now, the Demon King's supreme magitek fortress remained like a thorn in his own territory, with the Demon King's troops striking out in all directions. The nearby small nobles and several key traffic routes in the Elro territory had all been cut off.
Elro was under siege, unable to flee or seek help. It had become inevitable that this place would fall just like Kregi. Although both were Marquises, Marquis Elro was not strong, even less so than Marquis Kregi. The Elro territory was one of the agricultural bases in the southern part of the Empire, lacking any significant military strength. How could there possibly be any resistance?
"Father! What are you still considering?"
"The Elro family is in imminent danger! We can only survive by aligning with the Demon King!"
"The Demon King's army will soon attack Elro City. For the sake of the people in the city and the continuation of our family, we must do this!"
At that moment, a female knight had burst into the Marquis's office. This person was the eldest daughter of Marquis Elro, Carina Elro. Carina was regarded as the heir to the Elro family. She enjoyed a very high reputation in the Elro region, possessed the strength of a Level 5 overlord, and was known for her decisive nature.
Marquis Elro then said, "But I had learned that the Western and Eastern Grand Dukes, along with the Empire's Chief Knight, had already arrived in the southern territories to reinforce."
The Marquis, known for his indecisiveness, contrasted starkly with his daughter. If the entire southern territory had fallen, it would have been one thing for the Elro family to join the Chaos Federation. However, with the arrival of the two Dukes and the Chief Knight, a significant portion of the Empire's power would have been injected into the southern territories, and the outcome of the ensuing battle remained uncertain. A wrong choice could have led to irreversible consequences.
Carina shouted, "The Empire had not given up on the southern territories, but it had completely abandoned Elro. Otherwise, why hadn't they sent troops to rescue us? Because they simply couldn't!"
Marquis Elro said, "Let's wait a bit longer. If the Empire hadn't arrived within three days, then we could..."
"It was too late!" Carina interjected. "We couldn't pin our hopes on the Empire. Even if the Empire hadn't given up on Elro, this place would have still been destroyed in the war. The family's thousand-year foundation and millions of civilians would have become casualties of war!"
With that, Carina had clapped her hands. Thirty to fifty female knights in red armor, members of Carina's Rose Knight Order, barged in. Marquis Elro's expression had changed drastically. "What were you planning to do?"
"From today onwards, just stay here quietly. You don't need to worry about the affairs of the territory anymore. I will take care of everything!" Carina had said.
After leaving her knights behind, she had turned and left with heavy steps.
......
The next day, Elro City opened all its gates, lifted the defensive barriers, raised the flag of the Chaos Federation, and all combat units disarmed, declaring surrender to the Chaos Federation.
Carina was taking a gamble. She knew that once this action was taken, the Elro family could never return to the empire. She could only hope that the Demon King, as rumored, was not an extremely cruel being and would spare the Elro family because of their unconditional surrender, giving them a chance to survive.
Before long, dark clouds loomed over the city, accompanied by flashes of lightning and thunder. From afar, Carina felt an overwhelming oppressive force approaching from above the clouds. Soon, dragons pierced through the electrified clouds and appeared above Elro City.
Dragons! Actual true dragons!
Carina had never seen such mythical creatures before. At that moment, not only did dragons appear above Elro City, but over a hundred of them circled overhead, with the threat of deathly flames and stormy thunderbolts ready to strike at any moment. The sight was utterly shocking! The Chaos Federation had so many dragons?! Carina believed that the mere presence of these hundred or so dragons was more than enough to completely decimate Elro City. Resistance would only lead to annihilation; only surrendering like this could secure a sliver of hope for the family and the city.
Shortly afterward, the great Demon King of Darkness City received a notification:
[You've conquered Elro City!]
[You gained a "Gorgeous Mythminite Treasure Chest"!]
[The Elro family and its subjects plead for surrender.. Do you accept?]
Seeing this notification, Zhang Nu felt very satisfied. Another major city, along with a marquisate and several counties and viscounties, had been taken under his control. Zhang Nu believed that after this round of conquest, the human population under the control of the Chaos Federation would reach at least twenty to thirty million, a considerable number. As for the nobles' plea for mercy? Zhang Nu didn't hesitate to accept it. This would serve as an example that by accepting the surrender of nobles and offering them certain treatments, the subsequent conquest of other territories would be much smoother."