Cataclysm King

Chapter 424: The War That Collapsed the Empire

The moment enlightenment appeared, Ji Xun sensed a violent spatial fluctuation.

Looking up at the sky that was full of spider web cracks like a thunderstorm, he realized that an unimaginable fierce battle had just taken place in a hidden space.

That is a battle that the cannon fodder can only look up to.

Then, a mechanical angel covered in metallic silver light flew out from the crack in the void and turned into a stream of light and flew away towards the northeast.

The speed was so fast that even Ji Xun could only see an afterimage, and he murmured in his heart: "So the mechanical angel was destroyed here."

Before, he had seen an old mechanical angel with a broken arm in Tailong Mechanical City.

The appearance was exactly the same as the one I had just glanced at.

When Ji Xun saw this, his mind became active.

Based on the previous mission plot, it is not difficult to guess what happened.

This mechanical angel has been killing high-ranking rebels on the battlefield. Now, it seems that it was ambushed while chasing after the defectors.

However, for Ji Xun, this level of battle is just like the background plot of the game, which can be just watched.

The person who was able to trap the mechanical angel in the void and severely injure it, forcing it to break its arms before escaping, is most likely a god-level being.

At the same time, Ji Xun also began to look forward to it.

You cannot participate in the battle, but you can participate in the B-level task just mentioned: collecting angel mechanical fragments.

As long as you have access to the other-dimensional space, theoretically you have a chance of drawing it when you settle the card draw.

This is a good opportunity.

Reality didn't give him much time to think.

The sound of breaking wind was heard in their ears, and the orcs in the forest all looked up at the sky.

The flaming fragments in the sky fell rapidly like meteors, and instantly crashed into the dense forest within a radius of dozens of miles with a loud bang.

Looking at the lingering black light on the fragments, Ji Xun's expression suddenly changed: "Not good!"

Others may not know what this is, but he knows very well that this is the strange energy formed by the "Lightless Sun".

Just one look at it made Ji Xun feel as if his hair was standing on end and he was in a fatal crisis.

He quickly determined the landing trajectory of the hundreds of fragments in his mind, transformed into a werewolf, and ran away from the spot.

Almost in the next moment.

"Boom", "Boom", "Boom".
There was a constant sound like artillery bombarding the ground.

Hundreds of fragments smashed into the ground, remained silent for a moment, and then the energy contained burst out violently.

It was as if hundreds of volcanoes erupted at the same time, and the ground shook violently.

Then, as if some giant beast was about to rise from the ground, the hilltops within a radius of dozens of miles exploded with black light like eruptions.

In just a moment, the hundred-meter-high trees, the hard rocks, and the orcs who had not yet figured out what was happening
Any matter that came into contact with the black light would instantly vanish into thin air.

In a valley, Ji Xun, who had just teleported here, and dozens of stunned orcs nearby all stood there in a daze, watching the black light that emerged from the ground a hundred meters away annihilate everything in front of them in an instant. They were stunned and dared not move.

Ji Xun's eyes twitched suddenly, and he thought: "No wonder picking up trash is a B task, if you don't do it well, you will get killed by it."

Fortunately, this horrific movement was point-to-point, the shock wave did not cause much damage, and it only lasted for a moment. After several nearby hills were destroyed, it calmed down.

When Ji Xun saw this, he immediately ran to the nearest pit and saw a piece of metal debris the size of a silver coin in the hundred-meter-deep pit.

"【Angel Alloy】."

Ji Xun stretched out his hand and put the fragments into his bag when no one else was looking.

Enlightenment tip: this fragment can be exchanged for military merits in the imperial city, or it can be taken out of the space.

Ji Xun had no intention of exchanging his military merits.

After all, this metal cannot be found anywhere else in the outside world.

Previously, in the alien space of "Horror Insect Nest", Ji Xun drew a card and obtained an unprocessed alloy.

After studying it, he was sure that this was the metal with the strongest strength, toughness, and magical conductivity he had ever seen, and no other channels in the outside world had heard of it.

Ji Xun wasn't sure what these metals were used for, but an empire as powerful as Taron had only produced one mechanical angel.

It’s never wrong to keep it.

Ji Xun picked up all the fragments collected from the nearby hills, but only found three pieces.

More of them fell into the hands of other orcs.

But the good news is that it didn't take long before the orc commander also ordered the collection of fragments.

It looks like the fragments will be gathered together soon.

Ji Xun also quietly notified Nan Jing and Chu Jiu who were lurking nearby, asking them to pay more attention to the whereabouts of the fragments.

Wait for a chance to kill them once and for all.

The sudden incident ended with the death and injury of tens of thousands of orcs.

However, the orc army was not affected much and continued to march towards the eastern imperial capital Behemoth.

In the eyes of the Outer Gods, these low-level rebel soldiers are nothing more than cannon fodder.

Ji Xun used to be disdainful of that kind of superiority, but now as his rank gradually improves, he now seems to understand the feeling of that kind of god.

There is an essential difference between higher life and lower life.

A life that cannot understand the truth of the world is itself like a weed.

Ji Xun followed the large group all the way, while also inquiring about the whereabouts of the "defector".

After all, this involves an important A-level plot mission.

"According to the course of history, Behemoth broke into the city and the surrounding area was shattered. The defectors in history should not have been found? That's why the artifact that stabilized the space didn't work."

As Ji Xun walked, he deduced the situation based on the known intelligence. "That's right. The Mechanical Angel was almost ambushed and killed because of this. Taron will definitely not easily send people to ambush defectors again."

"Speaking of which, since the [Space Stone] can activate the artifact, it must be a treasure. If you want to get it, you have to do it as soon as possible. Now is the time when the defector has not yet contacted the rebel leaders. But if you want to complete the mission, regardless of how difficult it is, at least you have to find the 'defector' first."

"But since the spatial will has determined that it is an A-level plot, there should be an opportunity to take advantage of it. Since it is the 'bait' of the ambush angel, it is possible to find it by following this line."

"."

Ji Xun also frowned for a moment.

He felt that he was lucky.

It just so happened that the "defectors" were fleeing in this direction of the Orc Legion.

But there are hundreds of orcs in the army, and the defectors didn't put any words on their heads, so it's not easy to find them.

Ji Xun felt that if he was fully focused on completing this A-level task, it would be possible for him to spend more time.

But now he has more important things to do.

When this thought came to his mind, Ji Xun originally thought that he could only try his luck.

But when he was sorting out his thoughts, he suddenly discovered a brilliant point: "Hey, is the [Space Stone] a Space Treasure?"

It is difficult to find someone among an army of millions, but it becomes clear if you change your mindset.

Since the defector escaped with the space gem, as long as we find the gem, won’t we find the person as well?
Ji Xun thought of something and patted Ivan who was sleeping soundly in his pocket.

The little Lolita rubbed her sleepy eyes and muttered, "Is it time for dinner, Mr. Ji Xun?"

They were already very familiar with each other. Ji Xun smiled and pinched Ivan's face, saying, "Not yet. It's time to work."

Ivan pouted, "Ah, not eating."

Ji Xun fed him a large piece of dessert and asked directly: "Ivan, I am looking for a [Space Stone] now. Can you sense where it is?"

Ivan looked confused. Her limited knowledge of the world made it impossible for her to understand certain human terms: "What stone?"

Ji Xun himself didn’t know either.

If it weren't for the enlightenment mission, he wouldn't even have heard of this treasure.

Thinking about what it should be, he took out a space crystal core and said for reference: "It is a special energy stone. Well, the space law fluctuations of this [Space Crystal] are many times stronger."

"Oh. Let me feel it."

Ivan blinked as if he understood something, then tilted his head as if he was meditating.

Soon she sensed something and said, "There are a lot of space cracks nearby. There is also a broken space bubble, and there are bugs, big bugs."

Ji Xun can now basically understand the little girl's vocabulary.

The Light Chaser Fano had said before that there were a large number of irregular space cracks near the imperial city. It seems that these are them. As for the space bubbles, they should be the trap where the angel was ambushed and killed before?
Big bug. Mysterious bug queen Karakta? It was pretty much what Ji Xun thought.

This is an alternate dimension, and Ivan is not within the plot of the space, so there is no need to worry about triggering anything.

Ji Xun was not going to cause trouble for the Outer Gods, but to find treasures, and he gave a precise hint range: "Feel it, it should be near the big bubble."

The bait is placed in the trap, just as cheese is placed on the trigger of a mousetrap.

Based on the places where previous battles broke out, he roughly deduced the possible locations of several baits.

Because the description was precise enough, the surprise came suddenly.

Not long after waiting, Ivan suddenly had a reward: "I found it! Over there, there are two stones with huge spatial energy fluctuations!"

Ji Xun was also delighted when he heard this, and thought to himself, "Did they really find it?"

He asked, “Where exactly?”

Ivan said, "Fifteen degrees east by north, twenty kilometers."

This little Loli has an extraordinary accuracy when it comes to distance.

When Ji Xun heard this, he immediately matched the coordinates on the map in his mind.

The location happened to be similar to the range that Fano described, so he didn't hesitate and walked towards the target direction.

The rebels had lax discipline, especially the orcs with low intelligence and high savagery. There were wounded and stragglers everywhere in the mountains.

Anyway, everyone was heading towards the battlefield, and no one cared about a werewolf who seemed to be lost and couldn't find his team.

However, not long after walking, Ji Xun climbed over a mountain and came to a pass, where his view suddenly opened up.

A big sun in the sky illuminates the huge basin in front of us, which is lush and green.

At the end of the field of vision, an extremely exaggerated and majestic city suddenly came into view.

Under the sunlight, the outline of the city appeared like a giant.

The hundred-meter-high white stone city wall surrounds the entire city like a winding white jade belt.

Like the horizon, there is no end in sight.

The magic crystal stones on the wall sparkled under the sunlight, and the layers of barriers were like flowing circles of light, covering the entire city.

Ji Xun was at a very high position, where he could just see the well-arranged Gothic spires in the city, with their colorful glass sparkling.

The most exaggerated thing is that there is a sky palace floating above this city.

A waterfall flows down from the palace in the sky, and a seven-color rainbow wraps around the water curtain like a ribbon; even from such a distance, you can see the beautiful gardens in the palace.

This is the legendary capital of Taren, a city that shares the same name as a certain mythical beast - Behemoth!
Whether from an artistic or strategic perspective, this is the most stunning building Ji Xun has ever seen.

Especially the palace floating in the clouds, which is probably a scene that only appears in many people’s dreams.

“That’s really an exaggeration.”

Ji Xun looked at the city from afar and was shocked for a long time.

In his eyes, the city was like a beautiful woman lying on her side, truly perfect to the extreme.

It was because Ji Xun knew that this city and the nearby void had collapsed into pieces in history that he felt a sense of pity.

However, despite its magnificence, the city’s current situation is not optimistic.

The city was surrounded by rebels on all sides, and fierce fighting was taking place at all times.

The sun in the sky illuminated the entire field of vision. Ji Xun was at the pass and could just see the battle on the west side of the city wall. It was like looking at a sand table, with the whole situation at a glance.

The rebels have been besieging the city for nearly a month. The area outside the city is in ruins, and the ground outside the city is full of holes caused by magical artillery.

Just when Ji Xun looked over, a new round of charge began. Densely packed orcs like ants were running towards the city on the plains. At that moment, another round of artillery fire broke out from the tall white stone city wall.

Magic energy shells of various colors exploded in the siege troops in the distance, creating a brilliant magic shock wave.

Just as Ji Xun watched in the blink of an eye, tens of thousands of orc cannon fodder died, and countless more continued to charge forward.

Before long, the corpses of the dead orcs, driven by the necromancy spell, charged forward in groups, and then turned completely into ashes, becoming the dust that covered history.

The battlefield was as brutal as a meat grinder.

Although this is a plot reproduced in another dimension, this brutal war actually happened.

Ji Xun watched as his eyes gradually became absent-minded.

He watched first as a spectator, then as a rebel soldier
At a mysterious moment, he felt as if he was in the torrent of history.

In this war, individual strength is like an insignificant fallen leaf, drifting with the tide.

Even if one is as powerful as a god, he is just a thick piece of driftwood floating in the torrent.

At first Ji Xun was shocked by the cruelty of war, but gradually, he felt that his soul was constantly floating up, and then overlooking the entire battlefield, he had a new understanding.

It seems that this war itself is a kind of "rule" that is bound to occur in the operation of the universe.

Unconsciously, Ji Xun fell into a mysterious state of enlightenment.

And he couldn't help but recall the conversation he had with the Light Chaser Faro last night.

The words I heard before seemed confusing, but at this moment, I had a different understanding.

Ji Xun seemed to have grasped something, and suddenly an idea flashed through his mind: "So that's it. Is this the higher realm of I am the world that the Light Chaser mentioned before? Only by standing high enough can we deduce the laws of the world's operation more accurately."

For a moment, Ji Xun saw a different scene in his eyes.

Every soldier on the battlefield has a destiny line of different colors.

The card segments of the fate line cover every stage of life, from their birth, employment as a card master, advancement, adventure, battlefield, death.

Countless silk threads converged together and gradually formed a torrent.

A glimpse of fallen leaves can herald the coming of autumn. At this moment, Ji Xun seemed to see the logic of the universe.

Ji Xun gradually lost himself in thought. Just as he was thinking, an orc behind him shouted, "Brother, are you scared? Don't just stand there, hurry up and gather!"

Ji Xun came back to his senses after hearing this shout.

He responded with an awkward laugh and walked down the pass.

The entire battlefield layout is already in my mind.

Ji Xun was certain that unless the resources in the imperial city were exhausted, it would be almost impossible to break through Behemoth by relying solely on such human wave tactics.

In comparison, it is even less likely that the rebel camp will be able to sustain a protracted war.

The appetite of the card masters is very amazing, and a large army besieging a city requires a lot of food and resources.

Especially the insects under the command of the mysterious insect queen Karakta. Without sufficient food, they will eat up their teammates in the first place.

If a city is really besieged, this kind of mob will surely collapse first.

But historically, Behemoth was the one who finally broke through the city.

Ji Xun was also curious about what strategy the rebels would use to break into the city.

Judging from the current intelligence about the "defector", it is most likely an "internal problem".

The collapse of a powerful empire always begins with internal disintegration.

He learned from the Light Seeker Faror that the "Mad King" Alduin had now become completely deformed and had killed many loyal subjects who were determined to stick with the empire to the end. Everyone in the city was in danger.

Ji Xun suddenly had some ideas in his mind: "If I want to break into the city, breaking through from the inside is the best option."

He immediately realized that the previous "defector" might be the key to breaking the city.

Not long after, Ji Xun quietly came to a valley.

An elite team of a hundred men is stationed here.

Judging from the badges they still had on, they were an elite squad from the 11th Legion of the Imperial Guard.

When Ji Xun arrived, this group of soldiers, still wearing the armor of the Talen Knights Legion, were plotting something.

"Lord Roden, what should we do next?"

"Now that we have the [Space Stone], it is enough to build a large teleportation array that can accommodate top-level warriors. The war is about to end."

"But."

"No buts. Someone will always be charged with the crime of being a 'defector'. No matter how future generations record our actions, we just need to have a clear conscience. Besides, even if we don't admit it, the collapse of the empire is irreversible. Your Majesty has been completely distorted. Even if we don't do this, more people will die sooner or later. The only person we trust now is Lord Nan."

"."

(End of this chapter)