Helping each other with countless me.

Chapter 563 Earthquake
Three months passed in the tense war situation in the Baikal Empire, like sand slipping through one's fingers.

Oakwood, once a peaceful border town, has now been completely transformed into a massive military camp.

The campsite was built against the mountain, large in scale, yet orderly, with a somber atmosphere pervading the air.

In the center of the camp, Li Zhongren stood on a makeshift platform, his gaze sweeping over the three thousand soldiers lined up neatly below like a hawk.

This is the newly formed "Earth Vein Army"!
He promoted three more men, bringing the total number of extraordinary centurions to thirty.

Right now, these thirty people stand like thirty pillars supporting the sky at the forefront of their respective hundred-person teams.

Their auras were all different – ​​some sharp as a knife, some heavy as a mountain, some swift as the wind – yet all exuded a terrifying extraordinary power. Each of them had broken through the 20-point limit, possessing unique extraordinary abilities and becoming the true backbone of the legion.

Behind them, three thousand soldiers stood silently like a mountain.

Their equipment was forged by Karenina from metal melted by black smoke. She made it for Li Zhongren before she left, and she almost exhausted herself doing so.

Equipped with this exquisitely crafted armor, the soldiers' morale visibly increased.

At the same time, these soldiers did not break through the extraordinary boundary.

However, the experience Li Zhongren gained in the previous battle was evenly distributed among the soldiers whose loyalty had been locked at 100.

Of course, being a jack of all trades and master of none, Li Zhongren only improved the physical fitness of these people. About a thousand people were improved to 15 points, while the remaining two thousand were improved to 12 points.

High physical fitness means endurance, resistance, and recovery ability far exceeding those of ordinary people.

More importantly, through special earth vein array resonance training, they are able to more effectively share and resist the corrosive load brought by the earth vein power when the military array is in operation, greatly reducing the risk of becoming a one-time "human pillar".

The entire legion, like a piece of refined iron that had been repeatedly forged, was shaped by Li Zhongren into a sharp and incomparably tough blade.

"call"

In the silent square, the sound of Li Zhongren's breathing could be heard.

He didn't waste any words with these soldiers who had already been locked in with 100% loyalty.

Just waved his hand.

"set off!"
-
Dividing line

Prince Cairns Baikal's rage nearly destroyed his palace.

The village of Huishi was deserted; Li Zhongren and his core forces seemed to have vanished into thin air.

After a thorough investigation, his subordinates finally discovered that all the clues pointed to the territory of his most hated sister, the fifth princess Carlos Baikal.

"That bitch! How dare she protect my mortal enemy!"

Keynes smashed everything he could get his hands on, his handsome face contorted like a demon.

"Fine! Very well! Since you want to protect him, I'll crush you first!"

Keynes's roar echoed through the palace once more, but this time, no one dared to stop him. They knew his character all too well; after being repeatedly tricked, his patience had reached its limit. Anyone who dared to step forward now would likely be killed.

Soon, under his orders, the entire Spider Territory was mobilized.

Farmer, grain, blacksmith, soldier, cannon fodder
Everything was expanding and sweeping across the front lines at an unbridled pace, regardless of cost.

Wave after wave of attacks swept through every castle in their respective territories.
And this is actually the source of the Third Prince's confidence.

His Spider Territory was more prosperous than his fifth sister's.

He hadn't made up his mind at first, but now that his pride had been thoroughly humiliated, he launched the attack without hesitation.

At this point in the war, it transformed from a so-called battle of wits into a simple war of attrition.
The atmosphere in the Fifth Princess's palace was heavy.

Several border lords who supported her arrived together, their faces showing obvious dissatisfaction and worry.

"Your Highness! The Third Prince's offensive is too fierce! Our soldiers have suffered heavy casualties, and our supplies have been depleted!"

"Yes, Your Highness, is it worth dragging us into a quagmire of all-out war for a 'Lord of the Mist' of unknown origin?"

"Where is the support he promised? Where are his men? Are they hiding in his military camp training troops? If they keep training like this, our territory will be completely overrun!"

Looking at the lords' questions.

Carlos remained expressionless, but a hint of disdain lingered in his heart.

They took the benefits for themselves, but didn't want to put in the actual effort.

How could the Baikal Empire possibly be reunified by following this swarm of insects?

If they cannot unify the Baikal Empire, these small principalities will eventually be swallowed up by larger empires.
The more this happened, the more she felt that investing in Li was the right decision.
Of course, she was also glad that she was a woman, otherwise there would have been no possibility of such a marriage alliance. More importantly, that Li was a farmer by birth and did not have a noble surname, so adding a Baikal surname to her name was not an insult to him. After all, the first Baikal king who established the Baikal Empire was a figure who had made civilization known throughout the world.

"Everyone, please be patient."

Carlos Baikal gently raised his hand, silencing the crowd.

Then, he picked up a thin parchment scroll from the table, which had been delivered through special channels. It contained only a few words and a very brief route map.

"have a look."

With the help of the waiters, the parchment scroll was transferred between the lords.

Then, the meeting room fell silent.

Because everyone knows that this is a crazy plan.

If it's true, then these people really have no right to criticize the Lord of the Mist.

"So, everyone, if you have anything to say, you can say it now."

"Yes, Your Royal Highness."

One of the older lords stood up, bowed slightly, and said...

“Your Highness, please forgive my bluntness! It’s not that I doubt this man’s abilities, but although the Third Prince is currently fighting us with all his might, it doesn’t mean that their rear is undefended. In fact, their all-out effort has only mobilized half of the troops within their territory. The other half is still stockpiled in the cities of various strategic locations.”

"The Lord of the Mist's courage is admirable. He devised a so-called decapitation plan, bypassing various castles along the way to directly attack the royal court. However, Your Highness, let's not even talk about how he managed to bypass the layers of defenses to reach the royal court. Even if he did get there, how could he possibly conquer it?"

The other lords also looked at Carlos.

Although they didn't speak, their meaning was the same: you want us to hold the line on the front lines, fine, but you need to provide concrete evidence that this Lord of the Mist possesses at least the ability to threaten the Third Prince.

After all, they knew that guy well; he was narrow-minded, prone to changing his mind, and might actually do something foolish like withdrawing his troops if the royal court was threatened.

"this."

Carlos Baikal couldn't help but feel a pang of emotion at the man's prophecy, for he had known all along that such a thing would happen.

So I kept a gift for myself.

Thinking of this, she clapped her hands, and the waiter walked in through a small door on the side of the conference room, along with a small cart.

On the cart sat a metal box, exquisitely crafted, exuding a unique aura.
"Open."

"Yes, Your Highness." The attendant carefully opened the box.

Several lords gathered around, curious about what was inside the box.

Then they saw a cloud of yellow mist.
Yes, it's the fog.

A mist that seemed both real and illusory.

Suspended inside the metal box, it appears to be flowing, yet it gathers in mid-air, like a gemstone.
"Now, put your hands in, like this."

As they were talking, Carlos was the first to stick his hand in, setting an example.

This proves that this thing is not dangerous.

The lords followed suit and placed their hands in as well.

Then, they felt a mysterious force, unlike anything they had ever experienced before, sweep over their bodies.
At the same time, they even felt as if they had the ability to manipulate the earth.
"Wow."

However, this force quickly dissipated like yellow sand.
"This is a unique ability of the Lord of the Mist."

Carlos withdrew his hand and spoke.

"He can control the earth; his army can even move secretly under the cover of the earth. With the help of this power, traditional cities are nothing to him."

"It's practically useless."
-
Dividing line

A silent army, like a shadow blending into the earth, is moving at an astonishing speed through the vast heartland of the empire.

Li Zhongren personally led three thousand Earth Vein Army soldiers.

They didn't take the main roads, but instead chose to forcibly cross the wilderness through remote mountains, valleys, and even at night.

The soldiers carried heavy equipment and rations, yet they moved with incredible speed and long breaths. When they encountered impassable terrain, they would use earth magic with the aid of Li Zhongren's army formation to traverse it, avoiding major towns and patrols without leaving a trace.

Because the power of ley lines is different from traditional psionic magic, many mages on patrol teams cannot detect these fluctuations unless they are nearby when Li Zhongren uses his abilities, in which case they might be able to sense them.

In particular, the team now has thirty more extraordinary centurions.

They acted as the most stable core, and the power of the general's formation spread out, greatly reducing the various obstacles Li Zhongren encountered when manipulating the earth's veins.

Therefore, this ghostly army, like a poisoned dagger, silently stabbed at the heart of the empire—Lionheart Castle.

Finally, on a dark night when the stars and moon were dim, the Earth Legion appeared like ghosts in a dense forest several miles outside Lionheart Fortress.

The majestic castle, like a crouching beast, stood in the night, brightly lit, with the silhouettes of patrolling soldiers faintly visible on the walls.

The castle's defensive magic circle emitted a faint glow, wary of threats from the air and powerful magical fluctuations.

Li Zhongren stood in a clearing in the woods, his wartime perspective encompassing the entire Lionheart Fortress and its surrounding area.

He saw the thickness of the city walls, the distribution of the garrison, the location of the magic nodes, and also the tallest and most sturdy main castle in the center of the castle, the residence of the third prince, Keynes.

"spread"

"Form ranks."

Li Zhongren's voice resonated through the ranks, clearly reaching the minds of every centurion and soldier. There was no rousing pre-battle mobilization, only cold commands.

Three thousand soldiers, including thirty centurions, all sank underground and moved across the land at an extremely fast speed, enveloping the entire royal court and creating a huge military formation barrier that covered the entire royal court!
An invisible, vast power began to flow and converge among them, resonating with the deep earth beneath their feet!

"Om-!"

A low, almost silent tremor spread quietly from the Earth Vein Army as its center.

This tremor did not originate from magic, but was purely a pulse of the earth!
It cleverly bypassed Lionheart Castle's magical defense array, seeping into the rock layers beneath the castle like mercury spilling onto the ground.

Li Zhongren closed his eyes, his mind highly focused, like a deity wielding the power over the earth.

From his war perspective, the foundation structure, rock strata orientation, and stress weak points of Lionheart Fortress are clearly visible. He guides the power of the earth veins with three thousand ley lines, using them as the most precise probes and crowbars to accurately inject them into those fatal nodes!
"shake!"

Li Zhongren silently recited this in his heart.

“BOOM Boom Boom Boom!!!”

There was no earth-shattering explosion, no dazzling magical light.

The entire Lionheart Fortress, and the hill it sits on, began to tremble violently without warning!

The feeling was as if a sleeping giant beast had been suddenly awakened and was letting out a painful roar!
Caught off guard, the soldiers on the city wall fell to the ground like tumbling gourds, their terrified screams piercing the night sky.

The lights inside the castle flickered violently, and countless utensils fell to the ground and shattered.

The sturdy tower emitted a teeth-grinding groan as bricks and stones rained down!
"Earthquake! It's an earthquake!"

The defenders shouted in panic.

Even more terrifying is that the force of this vibration was not released evenly, but was guided by Li Zhongren, like an invisible giant hammer, smashing hard against the foundation and key load-bearing structure of the main castle!
“Crack! Crack! Crack!”

A chilling sound of rocks cracking came from deep underground.

The towering walls of the main castle were instantly covered with huge, spiderweb-like cracks that spread rapidly!

The massive stone pillars supporting the dome groaned under the strain, beginning to twist and crack!
"Mage Corps! Mage Corps!!"

Inside the castle, the general in charge of guarding the castle was shouting at the top of his lungs.

The mages hastily attempted to gather magic to reinforce the building, but their magical light was forcibly dispersed by an overwhelming and irresistible force emanating from the earth!

Li Zhongren had been waiting for this moment, as he had experienced it firsthand last time. He knew that magicians in this world were indeed formidable opponents once given enough time to prepare!
"Crash!!!"

Finally, with a deafening roar that shook the heavens and the earth, amidst the terrified and desperate gazes of countless soldiers and civilians, the entire massive royal court, centered on Lionheart Castle, collapsed inward like a giant whose spine had been removed!

Smoke and dust rose into the sky like a raging wave, instantly engulfing the area where the main castle was located, and broken rocks and trees fell like a torrential rain!

Under the moonlight, Li Zhongren slowly opened his eyes, looking at the huge column of smoke rising in the distance, and the castle ruins that were faintly visible within it.

His face was slightly pale; such large-scale, high-precision manipulation of the earth's veins was a huge burden for him.

He waved his hand gently.

"Earth ley lines, charge!"

"Target: Ruins."

"Capture Keynes Baikal alive."

With the power of the earth's veins, the three thousand soldiers instantly traversed the ruins and, guided by Li Zhongren's map, effortlessly arrived at their target location.

There is a small barrier here, created by the Third Prince's constant defense spell, which protected him from the threat of collapse.

From Li Zhongren's true perspective, one can see this guy's bluster and cowardice, and his anger, like a volcano ready to erupt at any moment.
Then, Li Zhongren personally moved to his feet, and with unparalleled power, enhanced by the earth's veins, he directly shattered the defensive barrier and pulled him into the ground.

A second later, the mage group arrived, but all that remained were empty ruins.
(End of this chapter)