Many Will Die

Some things could be joked about, but other things had to be taken seriously. For instance, the first time Purr turned into a human, she had deliberately prayed to spite Luoya: "Oh, please grant this kitty power now, our dear little Brother Karen..." Luoya must have been thoroughly exasperated; after all, "Brother Karen" was the address that the Laks copper coin's artifact spirit believed belonged exclusively to her. Yet Purr had also paid a bitter price for her momentary playfulness—it seemed to have set into a formula. In the terminology of the Church of Principles, it was called: the Initial Incantation Formula. This usually occurred with self-created incantations. Unless a revolutionary improvement was made later on, anyone afterward—even the creator themselves—seeking to produce the exact same effect could not alter the incantation at will, because once created, the formula was already established. In short, when Purr tried to transform into a human for the second and third times, she tested various ways of praying: Aloof and cold tone: "Karen, give me strength." Warm and friendly tone: "Please lend me strength, Karen." Cat language: "Meow, meow, meow!" As it turned out, none of these worked; she failed to transform into a human. Testing step by step and continuously eliminating wrong answers, Purr had ultimately determined one essential condition and one semi-essential condition. The semi-essential condition was that the prayer had to be spoken in a tone approaching a coquettish whine. Without that tone, the trigger rate was only around fifty percent—meaning half the time, it failed to trigger at all. In everyday life, if she took a whim to turn back into a human and walk the dog, it didn't matter; at worst, she could pray a few more times and gamble on the odds. In critical moments, however, she could only choose the most foolproof approach. The essential condition was that the subject of the prayer had to be addressed as "Brother Karen." If those words were omitted, the prayer was guaranteed to fail. Karen was completely unaware of this even now, as Purr found it far too embarrassing to ever tell him. Still, that didn't stop her from throwing herself whole-heartedly into the prayer at this critical juncture. Fiery starlight flared, pushing back the surrounding mud at once, and from within the flames stepped a young lady clad in a black dress with a cowl over her head. The reason Karen had agreed to let Purr go to the battlefield was that, having gained the ability to briefly revert to human form, Purr possessed the means to protect herself. The sludge monster seemed terrified of the flames before it and did not rush to launch another attack. Purr, however, did not choose to wait. She raised a single hand, and a fire serpent surged from behind her back, rapidly lunging toward the sludge monster like a remarkably spirited creature of flame. An earthen wall appeared before her foe, but it failed to stop the strike. With a snap of Purr's fingers, the fire serpent seemed to transform instantaneously from a magical attack into a physical one. Bang! The earthen wall was punched straight through, and the fire serpent crashed into the sludge monster's body. "Roar—!" A shrill shriek rang out; she was in agonizing pain. Purr spread five fingers and pressed downward. Around the burning sludge monster, over a dozen fiery chains materialized, binding it fast. Any Order priest would find this spell familiar, as it derived from the Chains of Order, merely adapted by the former prodigy into a form she could wield. Constrained by the ceiling of her progenitor's power, Purr had no choice but to continually innovate and blaze new paths in areas like this if she wished to achieve greater growth and strength. The sludge monster still struggled, its vitality seemingly tenacious. In truth, she was by no means weak; the only reason she was suppressed so miserably was that she was facing Purr. Purr opened her arms, and wall after wall of fire arose around them. Looking closely, one could see the patterns on the fire walls bore an uncanny resemblance to those of the Church of Earth. The reason Philomena had wanted to laugh earlier when the enemy tried to impersonate her was that she thought the disguise couldn't fool a dog. In reality, the cat's vast experience also gave her a terrifying generational advantage over this era's Earth priests. Years ago, when she took a whim to turn into a cat for fun, Purr had researched the shapeshifting spells of numerous churches; after studying the Church of Earth's methods, she had judged them the absolute shoddiest and filthiest of all. Smack! Purr clapped her hands. The fire walls slammed together, like swatting a mosquito with a palm. In an instant, foul mud splattered everywhere as the sludge monster was crushed completely, its soul burned away into smoke amidst the searing flames. Having disposed of her swiftly, Purr didn't pause for a moment. Floating into the air, her wrists flicked continuously as flaming meteors condensed before her, hurtling toward the outer perimeter. Boom! Boom! Boom! Terrifying explosions and searing molten rock burst forth. Perhaps they couldn't rival even a primary magic crystal cannon in penetration or melting power, but in sheer visual spectacle, they matched a rapid cannon barrage. This frightening spell inflicted considerable casualties on the Earth priests attempting to close in from the perimeter. While it couldn't wipe them out completely, it delayed the completion of their encirclement, buying her subordinates precious time and room to break out. Having done all this, Purr did not linger. Rather than waiting until her final shred of power was exhausted, she fell backward, her body shifting back into a black cat midair. A split second before she hit the ground, Kevin appeared. He was an evil god, after all. Though his combat capabilities were somewhat pitiful aside from his top-tier detection and sensory abilities, he could at least read the battlefield, coordinate smoothly, and anticipate moves. Catching Purr perfectly on his back, the white feathers in the packs on both sides of his flanks drifted out as though they cost nothing. Sparks ignited them to grant an even greater burst of speed, whisking Purr away with a whoosh. Clawing into the fur on Kevin's neck with one paw, Purr let out a slightly tired yawn. "Ah... whew." Immediately after, she glanced behind them. Mm, should be safe now. Though pursuers still trailed behind, the stupid dog had already dashed past the other members of the reconnaissance team. Truthfully, she wasn't concerned about how the three swapped scouts were faring, nor did she care much about losing a few more members in this breakout. She had done everything she could and could calmly accept whatever outcome followed. As a former leader of an adventuring party, she was long accustomed to constantly mourning and bidding farewell to companions. The only person she cared about somewhat was Philomena. She hoped the Felscher girl would return safely, but she wasn't going to turn back specifically to look for her. Her time and power were limited and could not endure prolonged consumption; moreover, conveying this intelligence to Karen as quickly as possible was what mattered most right now. Chia Grand Canyon not only had garrison troops, but the enemy had even laid meticulous ambushes in advance. If Karen led the corps plunging in unprepared, the outcome would be truly dreadful. "Faster, stupid dog, meow!" *** The barrier was loosening. The eight priests who had originally appeared along the perimeter seemed to sense a tremor and departed at once, rushing off in another direction. The commotion Purr created over there relieved tremendous pressure on Philomena, creating a void in the forces that had been preparing to close the net. The four Earth priests who had stealthily laid the barrier to trap Philomena understood that time had run out. Exchanging glances, they made their choice. Before the barrier shattered completely, they retreated, sinking gradually into the earth. Once they vanished, the already teetering barrier collapsed entirely, restoring Philomena's freedom. These four array masters of the Church of Earth had undoubtedly made the wisest choice. Without the barrier's suppression, facing a terrifying assassin would have been no different from throwing their lives away. Gripping the Blade of Nightmares, Philomena hesitated for a moment before deciding not to head toward the explosions. Instead, she chose a different route to leave the area. Sharing Purr's perspective, as members of a reconnaissance team, bringing critical frontline intelligence back was the number one priority. *** Deep underground in a cavern, a man covered in tree roots sat quietly, several branches extending from his body submerged in nutrient fluid to continuously absorb nourishment. "Bilien, our plan failed," a middle-aged man wearing Earth robes said in frustration as he walked in. The treeman called Bilien replied nonchalantly, "Luke, your plan failed, not mine. From the very beginning, I opposed adopting such a naive, near-idiotic plan. Furthermore, I find that you people from the Church of Earth always have a baffling confidence in your own arts." "That was an elite squad under my command, personally trained by me! I thought their success rate would be high. Who would have thought they'd be exposed so quickly? Think about it—if they had infiltrated their corps and assassinated their commander during the briefing, what an enormous gain that would have been for us!" "Yet, Luke, I see no gain; I only see your losses." "Bilien, if you hadn't sensed that the monster beasts in their scouting squad detected our traps, I wouldn't have struck in such a hurry. Even now, I still suspect they might not have discovered anything at all." "Are you an idiot? Those two monster beasts made multiple turns and skirted nearly ten of our trap zones. Did you think that was just good luck?" The treeman rose to his feet, dislodging chunks of rock from the surrounding cavern walls; his roots had actually burrowed deep into the stone. "Fine, I won't argue with you," Luke waved a hand dismissively. Bilien said, "Can we intercept them? No, forget it, even if we do, it's meaningless. If their scout squad doesn't return, Order's commander will certainly realize something is wrong here." Luke shrugged. "I've already ordered the defense mode changed to prepare for Order's offensive. They'll attack, won't they? After all, they're so proud and eager to reclaim the face they lost last time." "What kind of loss of face is having a few militia regiments wiped out? Cannon fodder composed of low-ranking priests can be mustered by the bushel. We, on the other hand, lost the core of the desert rebel forces used as bait, not to mention those fools from the Church of Night—so many of them died." "Speaking of which, did you see the latest intelligence sent by the joint command? Facing us is a corps composed entirely of the Whip of Order. The Church of Order is truly fascinating; an internal inspection department managed to scrape together a full corps." "That's only because they've declined in recent centuries. In the past, especially during the confrontation between Order and Light, the Whip of Order was their ace." "Their corps commander is quite interesting—Karen Silva, the most prominent young figure in the Church of Order in recent years. By the looks of it, I have a feud with him. My nephew died by his hand, and his head was severed by him, reportedly put on display over at the Church of Order." "You bear a grudge against him, but I actually have quite a good relationship with him." "What, did you know each other before?" "Never met. He killed my brother, Daliwenluo." "Seems the affection between your brothers was rather poor." "Cousins. He was my uncle's bastard, born to a lowly mother, though his talent was unexpectedly good. Over recent years he was on the rise, so the family wanted to bring him back and bestow the family name upon him, but he refused, leaving the family in an awkward spot. Now that he's dead, the family actually breathed a sigh of relief. When he was young, I often sat on the balcony enjoying the sight of him kneeling at our front gate with his mother. The little bastard's eyes burned with unmistakable hatred. Hey, do you know? That bastard seems to have killed his own mother with his own hands." Luke appraised Bilien, who looked almost entirely like a tree, and remarked, "Why do I feel like you're more of a bastard?" "I won't get angry over that remark; I'll only consider you too ignorant to appreciate the higher manifestations of life." "Right, I'm guilty. Fine, we can get to work now. I'll handle digging more tunnels, and you handle scattering more seeds. Let's make sure this canyon ravine is soaked in the blood of Order." *** Columns of cavalry galloped out of the encampment, riding toward Chia Grand Canyon to search for and reinforce their reconnaissance squad. When Purr transformed into a human, Karen had not only felt the pulse through their symbiosis contract, but a wave of weakness had washed over him as well. He had blurted out, "Something happened with Purr." Evidently, a few clandestine mines where greedy operators risked their lives for point coupons couldn't possibly pose a threat to Purr and the others. Even an ordinary small garrison force wouldn't force Purr to turn human. Karen did not wait in anxious anticipation. Instead, he immediately requested a communication conference with the commander of the 12th Regular Regiment. After Karen reported the situation, the commander of the 12th Regular Regiment, Pilg Doug, said placidly, "Commander Karen, Chia Grand Canyon is the objective assigned to your unit. Therefore, whatever unusual circumstances arise there, you and your unit must face them alone. We all have our own targets and lack the capacity to support you for now. Besides, with your equipment allocation, I imagine you hardly need our support anyway." Beside him, Neo, who was studying the map, smiled upon hearing this reply, as it corroborated his earlier suspicion. The Whip of Order Corps' lavish equipment and logistical provisioning had aroused the jealousy and envy of their peers. The other militia regiments might not care as much, but in the eyes of the regular army: why should a corps cobbled together from secret-agent task forces enjoy such high-grade treatment? Karen naturally heard the undertone in the man's words, but he suppressed his anger and said calmly, "Commander, I wish to remind you that if the situation in Chia Grand Canyon has changed, is it really possible that the objective areas assigned to the other corps in our army group are still the empty, unguarded zones predicted earlier?" Karen gave him no face by dropping any title of respect, nor did he use honorifics. "You need not worry about that, Commander Karen. I will make arrangements. What you need to do now, Commander Karen, is quicken your marching pace and strive to capture Chia Grand Canyon as soon as possible. Otherwise, it would be a real waste of those hundreds of Golden-Armored Dragon Turtles and more than a hundred giant elders under your command. In wartime, you know, such waste is a crime!" Karen's expression darkened. "You are welcome to file a complaint against me with the Knights Command." "Heh heh, why would I do that? Hardly necessary. But I do hope, Commander Karen, that your style of command reflects a touch of your personal charisma—show a bit of that youthful vigor." With that, the communication conference ended. Slumping into his chair, Karen drew a deep breath and slowly exhaled. Neo said, "I thought you were going to say: 'You can report me, and I'll report your conduct to the Whip-Wielder.' I'm sure if you'd said that, he wouldn't have been chuckling. He used to be a garrison regiment commander, no longer part of the Knights system. If the Whip of Order wants to mess with him after the war, it'll be child's play." Karen shook his head. "I didn't want to tear off the veneer and get into a screaming match with him." "Then there's no helping it. Anyone who reaches this rank in other departments has usually been tempered through layer after layer; even the bitterest rivals maintain superficial civility. The military is different—it's a breeding ground for stubborn asses with inexplicable tempers." "What should we do next?" "What else can we do? Even though Purr and the others haven't returned yet, odds are that Chia Grand Canyon already has regular garrison troops. Barring any surprises, they've likely built tight fortifications using the canyon's terrain. The intelligence work fell short, but we can't even complain about it, because intelligence in the desert is currently handled by our own department. Reach out to the head of intelligence here, but don't report straight to the Whip-Wielder." "I know." Snap! Neo lit a cigarette, took a deep drag, blew out a smoke ring, and asked curiously, "Hey, aren't you worried about your cat?" "Worried about what?" "Her safety." "I'm still alive." "Oh, sorry, I forgot." Neo held the cigarette between his fingers, gazing at the canyon's topographical map before them. "Now I can only hope that whoever is garrisoning this place isn't the Church of Earth, nor the Church of Life." "Neo, we're on the back of a dragon turtle right now." "Yeah, what about it?" "I mean this height is just like the rooftop." "Heh heh heh, so you've started believing in divination too?" Karen stood up, walked over to the topographical map, and asked, "So, if either of those two churches is garrisoning this place, what does that mean?" Neo snuffed out the burning cigarette butt with his fingertips. He answered: "It means many of us will die."