Chapter 216 – The Tianyuan Lord Arrives Riding a Dragon

While newcomers like Wang Ba had already withdrawn and were leisurely resting, Lord Mu was still toiling away miserably.

“I’m truly diligent, really.”

The military exercise had now lasted over 36 hours.

Even with the recovery buffs and various supplies available in this special space…

The intensity of combat was simply too high.

By this point, every surviving lord had suffered heavy losses, and their remaining commanders and elites all showed clear signs of exhaustion.

In Mu Yuan’s case, his Treant Legion was down to just a handful of soldiers, the Garrison Legion had suffered devastating casualties, and the archers, Imperial Guards, and Skeleton Generals defending the fortress had lost over half their numbers.

The worst hit was the Falcon Legion – well, they were pretty much completely wiped out. Even Asun, who held a commander position, had been caught by some powerful entity during reconnaissance and blasted skyward with a single shot.

It was currently lying in its nest back in Tianyuan Territory, staring blankly at the ceiling and questioning its existence.

“At this stage, the monster tribes, roaming bosses, and special challenge points that can be found outside have become extremely scarce. Is the simulation exercise about to end?”

Mu Yuan pondered.

He was no longer holed up in his fortress, but had taken Seventeen and his remaining battered troops to lurk in the outer areas of the battlefield, contemplating his next move.

Fierce and peerless bravery? That would require having actual targets to fight.

「Prompt: As over 90% of the subjugation targets/challenge targets within the battlefield have been cleared, this simulation exercise is now entering its final phase.」

「Prompt: During the final phase, the battlefield map will continuously shrink from the periphery, while a monster city awaiting subjugation will appear at the center of the battlefield.」

「Note: This monster city is further protected by numerous surrounding tribes and bosses.」

「Note: Subjugating monster tribes and bosses during this phase will yield an additional 20% battle achievement points.」

These prompts echoed in the ears of the remaining lords across the battlefield.

At this point, the number of lords still in the field had dwindled to less than twenty. Not only that…

“Damn!”

“Why are the rules different from last session! There’s actually a second phase!”

One lord stared blankly at the few dozen battered troops remaining by his side.

“If I’d known there would be a second phase, I wouldn’t have expended my forces so early. What a huge loss!”

Meanwhile, some cautious lords showed excited expressions.

“Missed opportunities due to excessive caution? No, everything was within this lord’s expectations.”

“I still have substantial forces preserved. Now it’s my time to shine, cackle cackle cackle!”

Mu Yuan’s mental energy spread out, activating the mental energy seeds he had placed on various commanders across the battlefield. He ordered all squads and legions to advance toward designated locations.

They were gathering.

For the final battle.

…

At the battlefield’s core area, a completely new region had abruptly appeared.

Here, dark clouds hung oppressively low, the air was dry and stifling, and faint tendrils of crimson mist drifted through the atmosphere, representing ill omens and calamity.

Deep within the crimson mist stood gradually rising mountains.

Faintly visible atop the mountains stood a city with rough yet equally majestic architecture.Before the city, scattered throughout the entire Crimson Mist area were monster tribes of various sizes. Judging by visual observation and experience, most of these monster tribes were only first-level tribes.

Their scale was small, and they lacked powerful individuals.

However,

the distance between one monster tribe and another was not far. The Lords could not steadily conquer and gradually encroach upon them. Once a battle began, they would inevitably face attacks from several, or even more, monster tribes.

Time slowly passed…

Outside the Red Mist Zone,

Rumble—

A Lord led their elite corps, charging forward as the first to arrive.

This was a corps leaning towards the magical system, primarily composed of ‘Archmages,’ ‘Blaze Mages,’ and ‘Elemental Mages.’

Mage-type units were typically slow-moving, but the mages in this corps all rode various mounts.

There were Dire Wolves, Moon Wolves, Ironclad Giant Scorpions, and more.

At the forefront, over thirty elites and officers rode rare three-star units—’Silver Pegasi’—with silver-white bodies and snow-white wings.

“We’re here. This is the final area.”

Lord Huan Fa observed and surveyed the surroundings.

They were the first Lord to arrive in this area, but before they could seize the opportunity to gain an advantage, dust clouds rose in the distance, accompanied by the sound of rumbling.

Another Lord’s army had arrived.

Immediately after, as if by prior agreement, one Lord’s army after another appeared in succession.

Some of these armies numbered in the hundreds or even thousands, while others had dwindled to just a few dozen or a hundred. The soldiers’ armor was tattered, and they were stained with their own or the monsters’ blood, looking somewhat disheveled and far from their peak condition.

Even so, the aura of these corps remained fierce, exuding a palpable sense of pressure.

After arriving, the Lords maintained a safe distance of several kilometers from one another. None dared to enter the Red Mist Zone first. Perhaps they were waiting, waiting for everyone to assemble.

“How many Lords remain now?”

“Those who remain are the final competitors.”

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The earth trembled violently.

“It’s the Behemoth Lord!”

Someone exclaimed in a low voice.

This one was also a strong contender for the spot.

In the distance, clouds of dust billowed, and massive figures gradually became clear within the dust.

Giants! Skeleton Giants! Armed Giants!

At the forefront were two outstanding three-star Mountain Giants, advancing slowly. Each step they took shook the earth, as if stepping on the hearts of the Lords.

The pressure exuded by these two Mountain Giants, cultivated to the Third-Order Warlord Tier, was overwhelming.

Especially in sieges and assaults, Mountain Giants held a significant advantage!

One renowned Lord after another arrived in succession.

There was an army that seemed like a white cloud, approaching from afar, treading silently on the ground.

This was the Divine Cat Lord’s Booted Cat Corps!

The entire corps was composed of rare two-star units—Booted Cat Swordsmen. They resembled upright-walking white cats, clad in exquisite small armor with swords at their waists.

They were small in stature, but their numbers reached over three hundred!

They moved in perfect unison. An intangible force spread out, sketching the form of a giant white cat above the corps.

“That over there must be the Tyrant Dragon Lord!”

Tyrant Dragon had lost a General, but his corps remained formidable.

Three Earth Rock Dragons, three Azure Wind Wyverns, and one Blaze Roaring Dragon slowly emerged from his corps.

Especially the latter.This is yet another outstanding three-star dragon-type unit!

“Tyrant Dragon Lord truly lives up to his name as the macho man who fully embraces the dragon lineage! Damn it, I’m so envious!”

“It seems Tianyuan also has an outstanding three-star dragon girl. Though her rank is still low now, she’s a dragon girl! Imagine how terrifying she’ll be when she develops to the peak of the Fourth Order in the future! Damn, why don’t we have such luck!”

At that moment,

A sword light cut through the sky, arriving from the horizon’s end and instantly reaching the front of the Land of Red Mist.

Amidst the vast sword aura, the white-clad Limitless Lord slowly manifested.

Behind him, several generals came charging forth.

Rumble—

From the other side of the Land of Red Mist, a black legion came rolling in.

Military banners fluttered, war chariots galloped.

This was the army of Secluded Mountain Lord!

“Rumors say Secluded Mountain Lord’s overall strength surpasses both Limitless and Kongming.”

“It’s not just rumors. Secluded Mountain Lord recruited a group of fierce generals during a great opportunity, and the strongest among them is… Epic!”

“A truly deserving Epic existence!”

“He calls himself the Lord of Flesh Mountain, and it seems he already possessed considerable rank when Secluded Mountain Lord recruited him. Now… without exaggeration, the Lord of Flesh Mountain is the strongest presence here, surpassing even Limitless Lord.”

The lords each displayed their divine abilities, all turning their gaze toward Secluded Mountain’s legion.

Within the legion, the unit types were rather diverse and numerous.

There were Minotaur warriors, Obsidian Gargoyles, Shadow Knights, and more.

But regardless of the unit type, they all paled in comparison to the presence at the legion’s center.

There, several undead war horses pulled a massive war chariot. On the chariot, a throne made of white bones supported a massive figure seated upon it, large as a small hill.

His face was covered with fierce-looking flesh, his features ferocious, his body corpulent.

Behind him seemed to be mountains of corpses and seas of blood.

No, not just seemed!

People could see a mountain vaguely materializing above this entity.

A mountain… built from piled flesh and blood.

This was the origin of the Flesh Mountain.

“Seventeen lords, these must be all the competitors.”

“Oh wait, there seems to be one more legion – Tianyuan? Tianyuan is actually still alive?”

The older lords were somewhat surprised.

But those who knew about Dolai devouring the Crimson Dragonkin weren’t too shocked.

After all, Tianyuan possessed a very powerful hero.

Under this hero’s protection, as long as Tianyuan played it safe, surviving until now wouldn’t be difficult.

However, while individual strong fighters can ensure survival, they’re far from enough to influence the war.

Truly powerful lords have no weaknesses. Just like how Tyrant Dragon Lord, even after losing his general, still possesses the Blazing Roar Dragon (not much weaker than the Crimson Dragonkin), his third general, and fourth general. He also commands an entire invincible legion.

He remains powerful, a strong contender for the spot.

Tianyuan is the opposite.

A single top-tier expert cannot support everything.

“This is already surprising enough! How long has Tianyuan been in the Eternal World?”

“Indeed, to reach this level with just a few months of accumulation, Tianyuan should be proud.”

Beneath the ‘Yuan’ character insignia stood tattered, battered remnants of soldiers, numbering only twenty or thirty.

But a few lords had glimpsed the Tianyuan Legion in battle before.

They faintly sensed something wasn’t quite right.

Besides, where was Tianyuan himself?

Thump! Thump! Thump!The earth trembled with the synchronized stomping of feet as a black legion marched from the distance, halting within Tianyuan’s defensive positions.

They were the undead!

They appeared to be Skeleton Generals, or perhaps some similar hidden troop type.

“Is this Tianyuan’s true trump card?!”

“No, it doesn’t seem to be—we haven’t spotted Tianyuan Lord himself yet.”

Thick mist suddenly swirled, and a chilling wind swept across the land.

The sky darkened.

Amid the dense white fog, two eerie blue lights abruptly ignited, and a colossal figure emerged from the mist.

It bore jet-black scales and deep blue eyes, with majestic horns crowning its head. Its massive form seemed encased in thick layers of ice crystals, radiating a bone-piercing cold.

Its wings spanned dozens of meters, and its roar shook the heavens.

It was the Incarnation of extreme cold, the executor of Death.

Merely hovering there, it exuded an overwhelming pressure, like a king surveying his subjects or a deity scorning mere ants.

This was the dominance of a higher life form over lesser beings.

“It’s… it’s a Frost Dragon!”

“An epic life form—the Frost Dragon!”

And upon the back of this noble, revered, and magnificent epic being stood a figure with hands clasped behind his back.

It was Tianyuan Lord! He was arriving astride the Frost Dragon.

Chapter One…

(End of Chapter)