Chapter 308: It Begins
Outside Darkness City, in front of the Stellar Gateway, the Demon King's army was gathering once again. This was an unprecedentedly massive legion, primarily composed of four main divisions: the Draconian Legion, the Elven Legion, the Human Legion, and the Forest Allied Legion.
The Draconian Legion, aside from Long Yi, Zhang San, Li Si, and four other Dragon Kings, Zhang Nu had selected five Abyssal Dragons of equal potential to Long Yi during this period from the Dragon Legion. These dragons, possessing excellent talents and attributes, were elevated to Dragon Kings through the Soul Altar. This meant that within the Draconian Legion, there were now twelve Dragon Kings. In addition to the twelve powerful Dragon Kings, there were also two hundred Abyssal Dragons, over five thousand Demon Eye Guards, and sixty thousand draconian super soldiers, totaling over one hundred thousand elite draconian troops, with basic unit strengths ranging from Level 3 to Level 4. One can imagine how powerful this force was.
The Draconian Legion was the core of the Demon King's forces. However, the Demon King's elven and human forces had also developed to the point where they could stand alone. The Elven Legion, numbering over one hundred thousand, comprised entirely of elite elves, was led by leaders such as Nancilia and Marilyn.
As for the human troops, they had risen rapidly recently. During the process of conquering the empire's southern territories, the Demon King naturally incorporated a large number of troops, acquired numerous blueprints, and recruited many knights, mages, and top soldiers. The number of combatants from the human forces participating in this conflict reached two hundred fifty thousand.
The fourth part of the Demon King's army consisted of various forest races, such as giants, dwarves, orcs, and other forest groups, totaling about two hundred fifty thousand. The leaders of the Forest Allied Legion included the Giant King Jin Kui, the Orc King Gru, and the Dwarf King Zhang Dachui, among others. The combat strength of all units in this legion was also much stronger than the regular imperial legions.
This force, in terms of both number and scale, was undeniably massive, and these were not all the forces being mobilized. In addition to deploying a large number of powerful subordinates, the Demon King also dispatched fortress legions, including troops from the Citadel of Eternity. Just the magitek combat units numbered over one hundred thousand, with about eighty thousand mage units, totaling two hundred thousand.
Overall, the scale of the Demon King's army nearly constituted a veritable million-strong army. This force was not only terrifying in number, but their strength was also formidable, not merely amassed for the sake of numbers. Their power was enough to shock all other Demon Kings in the world.
"All warriors of the Federation! We will next pass through the Stellar Gateway, using the portal to directly enter the heartland of the empire, bypassing the outer defenses and aiming directly for the imperial capital!"
"Our enemies this time are extraordinarily powerful!"
"But this battle concerns the fate of the Federation! We must achieve victory and cannot afford to lose!"Long Yi, transformed into his dragon form, his powerful voice spread across the wilderness, making it clear to all warriors present, stirring and inspiring everyone. Winning this battle could decisively change the world's geopolitical landscape. The Demon King would lead the Chaos Federation to become a pivotal force in this world, potentially rewriting everyone's destiny. The enemy was indeed very strong, targeting directly at the heart of the empire. No one dared to underestimate the empire's depth.
However, the warriors felt no fear. They were absolutely confident in the federation's current strength. Moreover, even if they died in battle, as long as they performed well, they could be resurrected by the Demon King. With this in mind, why not fight with all their might?
After Long Yi finished his speech, he transformed back into human form and descended, saying, "My master, all units have assembled, all equipment, potions, and blessings are ready, we can depart and enter the battle at any moment."
Zhang Nu nodded in satisfaction. "Since that is the case, let us delay no longer, begin!"
He activated the Stellar Gateway, countless runes appeared on the gateway, terrifying energy continuously gathered, ultimately forming an open spatial portal. Simultaneously, above the plains near the imperial capital, the sky and earth abruptly changed color as a fierce wind arose. A vast energy gate was summoned in this location, still over two thousand miles from the imperial capital. This was the maximum range of the Stellar Gateway.
If Zhang Nu had not upgraded the gateway to a Level 6 building, summoning a portal on the imperial capital's great plains, or even near the Bachor Duchy, would have been impossible. Even at Level 6, the Stellar Gateway could not directly summon a portal near the imperial capital due to the distance. Even if a portal could be summoned across such a vast distance, the stringent defenses around the imperial capital would likely destroy it before it could fully form.
After the spatial gate was established, over two hundred Abyssal Dragons charged out first, followed by other troops, all proceeding orderly, and quickly a quarter of the troops had passed through the spatial gate. However, just then, large flocks of griffins suddenly appeared from all directions. Upon closer inspection, these were not just griffins but griffin riders. Each majestic golden-winged griffin carried a knight clad in golden armor, members of the imperial Royal Griffin Knight Order.
The Royal Griffin Knight Order was a well-known knight order of the Thunder Empire. Although this knight order was very powerful, it rarely participated in battle; their presence now only indicated that the empire had been well-prepared, guessing that the Demon King would appear here, so they had ambushed in advance, attempting to destroy the spatial gate. Such an act could only be achieved with prior foresight.
Meanwhile, at the imperial capital, "Your Majesty! The Demon King's legion has appeared!"
"Everything is as the prophet predicted! The timing and location of the invasion are exactly accurate!"
Emperor Frelio received the news and was overjoyed. He laughed loudly, "Good, good, good, let's see what tricks the Demon King can play this time!"