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Chapter 481 Battle Begins, Shadows Annihilate!
Chapter 481 Battle Begins, Shadows Annihilate!
"The show's about to start," Sterl murmured, a look of interest flashing across his face as he observed the movements of Ashen and its allied forces.
Ashen's coalition forces consisted of three phalanxes, each one carrying five deities, totaling fifteen gods in action—more than a quarter of Ashen's divine power. It was clear that, if this ambush succeeded, Orichalcum would suffer a devastating blow. At that point, Ashen's other deities, along with their armies, would surely swarm in, aiming to strike while the iron was hot and crush Orichalcum in one fell swoop.
Even if Orichalcum's full strength managed to fend off this fierce assault, it would still suffer heavily, leading to a prolonged conflict that would leave them at a severe disadvantage. Ultimately, this would only hasten their eventual downfall to Ashen's forces.
"This is a war among gods—how could I miss the chance to witness it firsthand?" Sterl thought, smiling to himself.
Though his current power level allowed him to easily slay deities, he was still technically just a humble third-class being. Observing a clash of gods was bound to earn him some legend points.
Although he already met all the requirements to ascend to legendary rank, and had multiple legendary and even several Platinum and Iridescent-Level skills, legend points were always welcome. One could never have too many, after all.
Of course, Sterl's true aim wasn't merely to gain some legend points. His goal was to ensure that Orichalcum's three military staging grounds would suffer significant damage but not be completely overrun. That way, he could step in at a critical moment, providing aid and allowing Orichalcum to recover just enough to avoid losing too much of its strength.
If Ashen were to overpower Orichalcum, or if Orichalcum's godly combat forces fell too far behind, it would spell trouble for Sterl's future plans. If Orichalcum were left crippled, he wouldn't want to face the massive force of Ashen alone. Confident though he was in his abilities, he was no fool.
Until his plan was fully in motion, he would do his best to remain inconspicuous, taking advantage of Orichalcum's resources to the fullest extent possible.
With a quick shift in focus, he masked his aura and concealed all his information. Then, finding a moment when no one was paying attention, he swiftly activated his powers and sped to a position just outside Orichalcum's capital.
Sterl glanced once more at the Ashen coalition forces. Under the cover of
Shielding Power
, they had reached the outskirts of the three military staging grounds, undetected even by the deities stationed there.
"Even though Orichalcum has been at war with Ashen and these local factions for three years—and despite the six deities I eliminated earlier—Orichalcum's high-level power still surpasses that of Ashen's Alpha 8 gods."
Sterl analyzed the situation carefully.
Orichalcum was an enormous force, powerful enough that even he had been struck by the depth of its resources. As a power from beyond Alpha 8, Orichalcum's strength and foundation were undeniably solid. Their slight overconfidence toward native factions was understandable; after all, they had gained the upper hand through most of the three-year war, making significant gains. If this trend continued, Orichalcum's full integration into the world was almost inevitable. Once integrated, the suppressive power of the capital would become even more terrifying.
At that point, any Ashen troops approaching the capital would face intense pressure and might even be assimilated and enslaved by Orichalcum's power! And, after some recovery, they would replenish their six lost deities, setting themselves up to systematically eliminate the local factions one by one.
This explained why Ashen and its allied factions were willing to deploy so many deities in a desperate attempt, using
Shielding Power
to stage an ambush.
Once outside the capital, Sterl headed toward the nearest staging ground in the east, advancing covertly.
The Eastern War Preparedness Zone was the focal point of Ashen's planned assault on Orichalcum's capital. By first neutralizing the forces stationed here, it would then be easier for him to support the northern and southern fronts if needed.
As he moved, he kept a close eye on his map module. Once Ashen's forces had finished positioning themselves, the ambush began, unfolding with a silent ferocity.
From each of the three attack groups, a god stepped forward. With the map module's aid, Sterl immediately identified them as the God of Ghosts, God of Shadows, and God of Thieves.
All three were deities of low Divine Power, yet they specialized in stealth and ambush tactics. As they activated their
divine authority
and Divine Power, the trio vanished from sight, hidden entirely by
Shielding Power
, as if they had disappeared from the world altogether.
Sterl watched with a smirk of admiration.
If not for his map module, Sterl would never have detected these stealth techniques, which were practically flawless. The Orichalcum deities stationed at the staging grounds, caught completely off guard, were utterly oblivious to the approaching danger.
Ashen's command seemed to come through, and the three deities began carefully advancing toward the staging ground. Meanwhile, the remaining gods held back, leading their demigods, legends, and even third-class troops, waiting in silence.
Each staging ground was defended by five deities, with Orichalcum's main forces still concentrated within the royal capital. Furthermore, since Orichalcum had not yet fully integrated with the world, many of its deities hadn't manifested at full strength. Outside the capital, their power was considerably weaker.
The twenty deities stationed at these staging grounds represented Orichalcum's absolute limit. In case of an attack, these five deities could hold out for a while, buying time for reinforcements from the capital.
Most importantly, Orichalcum had never imagined that these "native" forces would be capable of advancing this deeply into the core area outside the capital.
Ashen's objective was clear: these three deities would strike hard, possibly even assassinating one of the Orichalcum gods. If successful, they would severely weaken the forces at each staging ground. With enough speed and Shielding Power on their side, Ashen could take down all three staging grounds before the capital had time to react, eliminating fifteen gods in one swift blow!
Such a blow would cripple Orichalcum, setting the stage for a full-scale invasion. The prospect of seizing Orichalcum—a force potentially even stronger than Ashen itself—was a prize no deity could resist.
Under the combined effects of their
divine authority
,
Divine Power
, and
Shielding Power
, the three Ashen gods boldly stepped into the staging grounds, unnoticed. They bypassed the legendary and demigod guards with ease, arriving swiftly at the central area where the five deities were stationed.
"Die, you accursed invaders! Go to hell!" the God of Shadows muttered darkly, eyes fixed on a nearby Orichalcum deity. Boundaries among deities were distinct, and even in shared spaces, they maintained distance. Too close, and differing
Divine Power
and
divine authority
would create needless friction.
As a result, each deity was effectively isolated!
The God of Shadows had his target in sight—a deity carefully chosen and well-researched, none other than the God of the Prairie from Orichalcum's Nature Pantheon.
Both were deities of low Divine Power, but the Nature and Environmental Pantheons were considered some of the weakest, with far less resilience and defense than other pantheons. Choosing such a target maximized the chances of a swift, lethal strike.
Without hesitation, the God of Shadows concentrated his Divine Power, unleashing his divine authority ability: [Shadow Annihilation!]
[Effect: Ignores all defenses (effect halved for low Divine Power or above), harnessing the annihilating force of the shadow world to inflict massive damage on the enemy. If the target's health is below 20%, they will be forcibly killed by the power of the Shadow Realm (this effect is nullified for low Divine Power or above). If the target's health is above 20%, they will suffer a one-second paralysis of fear, with all attributes reduced by 50% and stamina depleted by 80%.]
As the God of Shadows' killing move, Shadow Annihilation was powerful enough to plunge any unprepared, low-health deity of his rank into utter despair.
A frontal assault was hardly necessary; even a direct strike would likely leave the God of the Prairie defenseless.
Suddenly!
The God of Shadows unleashed his power, dispelling the concealment effects of his own
divine authority
and
Shielding Power
. In that instant, his divine might blanketed the entire staging ground.
The God of the Prairie, deep in meditation, snapped her eyes open, a flash of raw fear appearing in her gaze. She could feel it—a deity's power, directed solely at her.
Alarm bells rang in her mind, and she began to mobilize her Divine Power to evade and defend. But after gathering his strength for so long, the God of Shadows wasn't about to give her the chance to react!
A dark beam flashed across the field, and the skies over the staging ground turned as black as night. Around the God of the Prairie, the air thickened with shadows, as if the entire world had been cloaked in ink.
Before she could fully process what was happening, the devastating force of Shadow Annihilation descended upon her, the immense power of the Shadow Realm tearing at her body and divine authority.
"Enemy attack!" she cried out in desperation. "It's Ashen's God of Shadows! Damn it! For a god to resort to such cowardly tactics—how despicable!"
The other four deities stationed in the Eastern War Preparedness Zone instantly sensed the disturbance. But it was too late.