Max's anger over the betrayal subsided once he reached the riverbed.
The ceaseless flow of water reminded him of his countless hours spent under Khnum's rigorous tutelage.
He could almost hear the old sea god smirking as he talked down on him, " You think you can hold the river down? You can surely try, boy! "
Max was sure that was what he would say if he were here, his attitude lighting a fire under Max to prove him wrong.
Max raised his arms slowly, palms facing the onrushing water. Silence fell over the scene as the rushing river responded to his silent command. Its incessant roar softened, the mighty waves subsiding as the water parted, leaving a dry riverbed.
A collective gasp rang out from the assembled fourth legion. Their Lord, Ravan Bloodfall, had just single-handedly parted an entire river, an astonishing show of control and power that made their respect for him surge like the river he now held at bay.
Uptil now they had heard the tales of the legendary might of their Lord, about how he single handedly routed entire planets of barbarians, but not many had got a chance to witness his prowess first-hand.
Now that they were witnessing it firsthand they began realising that their Lord's strength was the real deal.
He could part entire rivers at will!
Shifting his focus, Max closed his eyes and connected to the earth beneath him. An enormous trench, 30 metres deep, began to form under his command, a challenging task that required him to stretch his powers in both water and earth manipulation to their limits.
He could feel the strain, the pull of the water yearning to return to its course, the earth resisting the reshaping, but he held firm. His mental and physical strength pushed to the edge, Max kept the elemental forces in check as Anna ordered the fourth legion to spring into action.
" GO! GO! GO! EVERYONE KNOWS WHAT THEY NEED TO DO, MAKE SURE THE DAM IS UP BEFORE THE LORD LOSES STAMINA " Anna commanded furiously as she jolted the troops into action.
The men knew they were racing against time, against the stamina of their Lord and their actions represented that they understood the need for haste.
They swiftly moved into the trench with their materials. Their actions were a carefully choreographed dance, each soldier knowing his place and duty.
Steel rods were driven into the trench to provide a skeleton for the dam, followed by the rapid placement of pre-cast concrete blocks, each fitting perfectly into its designated spot. The blocks were then secured by a layer of grout, adding stability and strength and was layered with wet cement for added strength.
Mages and soldiers with flamethrowers began rapidly drying the concrete as they practically baked it to become dry.
Every component was swiftly connected, piece by piece, each layer built with precise measurements, every soldier working in unison.
As the minutes ticked away, fatigue began to set in for Max. Holding back a river was no small task, and even he, with his immense strength, was beginning to feel the toll. But the sight of his men working tirelessly, their determination to not let their Lord's efforts go in vain, gave him the strength to persevere.
He couldn't fail now, that would completely ruin his image, hence for his pride he persevered.
Finally, after a gruelling 45 minutes, Anna gave the signal. The dam was completed. With a sigh of relief, Max slowly lowered his arms. The river surged back to its course, crashing against the newly built dam, testing its strength and finding it unyielding.
A cheer broke out among the soldiers of the fourth legion, their hard work rewarded, their awe and respect for their Lord even more pronounced.
" WE DID IT! "
" We made a project that would take years to build in under an hour "
" We did the impossible! "
" The Fourth Legion is the best! "
" Glory to Lord Ravan! "
" Lord Ravan held back the river till the project was completed! That's our clan's leader! "
The cheers of the fourth legion were so loud they could be heard kilometres away at the area where the first legion was stationed.
The dam was in place but it was wildly letting the water rush away without guiding it at all.
To make the plan a complete success Max had to reroute it to make a circle, carefully flooding one end near the forest and turning it into a swamp and keeping the other end solid like a horseshoe.
As if holding the river back was not enough, Max slapped himself on the chest a few times to hype himself up as he exhaled sharply and began reshaping earth to create a new pathway for the river.
The fourth legion soldiers that were exhausted just after building the dam watched in horror and awe as their lord continued to work and single-handedly redirected the flow of the overflowing river.
The land behind where he walked turned into a deep and wide trench as he carved through the terrain as if he were carving through paper.
Anyone and their mother could see that he was beyond exhausted, his steps were shaky and drool was dripping from his open mouth through which he was gasping for air.
But despite his physical condition there was a shine in his eyes and a smile on his face as he continued to carve the earth to make a new riverway.
This was his sheer willpower that was built through decades of training within the time chamber that was fuelling him on.
Max was letting every last soldier know that their lord was cutting no corners while working hard and that they should follow his lead and try their best as well.
His actions spoke louder than any motivational talk as an hour later Max managed to turn the forest into a swamp and the area under the orb where there was a raging river just a few hours ago into dry land.
" FIRST LEGION! START BUILDING THE FORT! " The clone commanded as he took advantage of the fire the troops felt by seeing their lord work so hard into motivation to work hard themselves.
Exhausted thoroughly, Max rested on Mira's back as the young dragon wrapped her tail around him and gave him warmth and protection.
" You're a madman…. And a lot lot stronger than I remember you to be " Mira said as she complimented Max and admired his new prowess.
With her infinite mana and unbelievably high talent Mira never thought someone could surpass her in progress. But it seemed like Max did achieve that, he had become much stronger than her in the period where both of them went from tier4 to tier5.
The scene that Mira had watched unfold today made her sure of the fact that he had truly outdone himself today, in a way it made her worried but in a way she felt that it was extremely sexy.
It felt good to rely on a man stronger than herself who could keep up with her growth rate.
*********
( Regus Aurelius's POV )
" There is some bad news my lord. Three vampire clans lost their orb today. There were traitors hiding within their ranks that coordinated an attack on the orb once the army reached the vicinity.
According to reports a total of 27 orbs have been destroyed across the light faction by traitors.
We are on the backfoot before the war even began " The soldier reported as Regus Aurelius heard the news with his usual stoic face.
Internally Regus wanted to curse the lords who could not even protect their orbs for a day, but he knew that as a King he needed to be more rational.
" Tell the ones that have lost the orb to now focus on offence. Let them redeem their clans honour by destroying some orbs from the dark faction " Regus said as he decided to not focus on the has been but rather focus on the upcoming future.
The war had not even started, yet the enemy was 27% on their way to trigger the first disc raid.
At this rate the first disc scuffle would start within the first month of the war breaking out.
He could hope that the border clans held firm, but he needed to be prepared for the worst.
Maybe the first triggered disc would belong to the Vampire's, that would surely test Regus and the entire vampire society to its limits.