Throne of the North.

Chapter 760 The Follower's Path to Advancement: The Spiritually Elevated Stag
To the north of the Kingdom of Andara lies a vast, snowy wilderness where, even in this summer, the surface of the wild grass is still covered with frost.

This is not outside the kingdom.

The reason for all this can be traced back to the warthog that carried the mountain. Since the war, when the demigod-level warthog arrived, a flat road appeared in the vast mountains of the kingdom's northern border. The mountains along the way were turned into rubble and piled up on the road, allowing the wind and snow of the north to descend unimpeded on the northern border of the Andara Kingdom.

In the years that followed, the Kingdom of Andara nominally still owned the wasteland, but in reality, it was deserted for thousands of miles, becoming a true no-man's land and battlefield.

After that, the Kingdom of Andara's desire to fight against the orcs in the North became incredibly strong, for one reason only: the capital of Andara, for all these reasons, became the front line of the orc war.

All that remained in the king's way was this fortified defense line, so how could the Kingdom of Andara not take it seriously?

……

A vast army formation covered the northern edge of the mountains and forests. Standing on the high slope, every noble member was filled with excitement and pride, but at the same time, they also looked at the supreme commander of the allied forces.

How will he win this war?

The nobles from the Kingdom of Coran did not understand, but the many nobles from the Kingdom of Andara were well aware of the number and strength of the Northern Orcs. They might be cannon fodder on other battlefields, but here, numbers could overwhelm everything.

Galic also arrived here. His three-day service at the Northern Wall fortress had ended, and he came to this battlefield before the deadline, attempting to take over the Kingdom of Coran's army as the commander of the Coran Kingdom's legion.

"You don't need to command your army."

Brand stopped him, which made Prince Domenico on the other side smirk. Galic understood that this was Ryan's hint to him, telling him to go back and tell his father what choice to make.

However, he already knew what Brand was planning to do. Domenico thought he could gain command of the Kingdom of Coran's army, but that was not the case.

He didn't care, so after dressing properly, he went straight to Brand and asked for a warhorse, then kept his distance from Brand.

The werewolf clans of the North are driving large numbers of orcs onto the battlefield of the Kingdom of Andara. Ulf is with them. The blood eagles circling in the sky make the werewolves very irritable. Scouts from the Frozen Territory are silently calculating the number of orcs in this land, but they can only give a rough estimate.

"There are over 400,000 of them. There are many orcs in the mountains and forests, and even the werewolves cannot be controlled."

"That's enough. Send a message to Commander Brand."

The Blood Eagle soared through the sky, heading towards the Kingdom of Andara from a height of ten thousand meters. On its way, it passed a lonely mountain peak in the wasteland, but instead of plundering the peak, the Blood Eagle detoured around it.

Everyone knows that beneath this mountain lies a demigod warthog, and that majestic mountain is part of it. The remaining warthog orc tribes live on it, occasionally ravaging the kingdom's noble estates.

The war between the orcs and the kingdom's army takes place further south.

Looking up, Brand could still clearly hear the Blood Eagle's shriek. He knew that the orcs had assembled and, due to their internal turmoil and savagery, their army was slowly moving south. When they discovered the humans, a terrible war would break out.

He waited, and only two days later, he saw the orcs from the North appear before him, panting heavily amidst the frost and snow.

The army formation stretched for thousands of meters, with Brand leading the Stag Legion at the center. Seeing the beast-like appearance of the orcs, even the northern warhorses subconsciously breathed out from their nostrils, ice crystals condensed in the void, and the warhorses began to rub their hooves, leaving a hazy frost on the ground.

The icy white frost gradually rose, and in the short hour-long standoff, the entire Bucks army was shrouded in cold air, appearing indistinct to onlookers, as if the army were hidden in the mist and could not be seen at all.

Galik moved further away, since he wasn't commanding the army anyway.

Brand slowly drew his knight's longsword, mounted his warhorse, and stepped out of the misty area. Looking at the roaring orc army ahead, an incomparably powerful, majestic, blood-red stag descended behind him.

A crimson glow is spreading; it is the will of the stag, the roar of the gods from Exner.

The knightly bloodline power belonging to Brand spread further and further. It was his power, but at the same time, it was also the last remnant of a great being.

[Divine Blessing]

In that instant, all the soldiers on the battlefield felt a great will blessing and favoring them. Their bodies were gradually covered by that crimson light. They felt the immense, surging power of blood and qi within Brand, and they also felt the final guidance from the great being.

They waited with deep awe and trepidation for Brand's command. Galick felt this inexplicable power enveloping his body and soul, and he understood why Brand had said those words.

It's not that he's not given command authority, but that in that instant, after the Spirit of the Stag's will takes over, there will be no second commander on the entire battlefield.

The will of the Spirit of the Stag, that is, the Legion Commander Brand, will become the Pope of this battlefield, the sole commander, for bathed in the aura of greatness, all the soldiers have become His subjects.

Brand is His will.

Under the crimson light, the army of over 100,000 people breathed in unison, and each of them felt that the weapons in their hands were much lighter, as if they had inexhaustible vitality.

Everyone roared in anger the moment Brand gave the order.

rub! ! !
Brand drew his longsword and swung it forward.

"charge!!!"

The iron hooves of the northern warhorses pounded the stiff, barren grass, tearing it to shreds in their wake. In the blink of an eye, the stag army galloped across the land, their thunderous stomping echoing like thunderclaps. Beneath their cold armor were pairs of fanatical eyes as they followed Brand, charging headlong into the orc army.

The charge of cavalry is incredibly terrifying, especially a legion whose horses and riders possess extraordinary strength. What's even more terrifying is that behind this extraordinary cavalry legion, a crimson wave surges across the land—the frenzied charge of tens of thousands of soldiers, each one becoming a part of Brand's life force.

In the distance, Commander Farrell, Grand Duke Leta, and Knight Daryl watched in shock and bewilderment as this pure war broke out. They never expected that Brand, who arrived in the name of Ryan, would ultimately command the war in such a simple and straightforward way.

There are no skills or strategies involved; it's purely a matter of fighting to the death on the battlefield.

"This won't do. We'll lose a lot of soldiers, and those orcs are just cannon fodder for the six royal courts!"

Grand Duke Leta spoke angrily, looking at the two people beside him.

"We have to stop him."

However, the two legends beside him did not move. "Ryan already wrote to me before, and I don't need to participate in this war unless he loses."

Farrell said this, while the raging elephant beneath him seemed eager to try its luck, sensing the bloody ferocity permeating the battlefield. However, it dared not lose control, respecting the great aura hidden within the crimson waves.

Knight Daryl remained silent. In the face of this war, the command of the Andara royal family had long been taken over by Ryan, and he also understood that Ryan was helping Brand to become a legend.

"Will he receive a legendary blessing more powerful than mine?"

Daryl felt the power within him; the will of the giant mammoth roared, yet was bound and unable to move, granting him legendary authority.

Grand Duke Leta snorted coldly, seeing that the two were unmoved, and knew that he could not command them.

"Since none of you care, I can't be bothered to care either."

The battlefield, the fighting in the war, was not as bloody as Grand Duke Leta had imagined.

Guided by the stag, armies charged into the battlefield in His mad dash, without any fortifications, engaging in pure slaughter. Yet, they possessed a defensive capability far superior to any construction, fortifications, or trenches.

That is the power of blood and energy bestowed by the spirit of the stag.

Orcs have sharp fangs, and many are far stronger than humans. On this vast battlefield, they can indeed inflict terrible damage on human soldiers.

However, such destructive power could not kill humans. The soldiers, bathed in the blessing of the stag spirit, saw themselves being disemboweled. Before the fear in their hearts could even rise, they saw their bodies glow with a blood-red light, and then their torn chests healed at a speed visible to the naked eye.

Furthermore, the immense strength that followed allowed the soldiers to lift the orcs up and pierce them with their spears.

The gods' favor turned this war into a massacre of orcs by human armies.

At the forefront of the massacre was a terrifying army whose scalding blood flowed across the surface of their cold armor.

The Buck Legion, this extraordinary legion, is built upon powerful blood energy. The initial Blessing of the Buck made the blood energy of each squire knight far surpass that of other knights of the same price. Their most basic knight breathing technique comes from the great spirit of the Buck.

At this moment, the final blessing of the Spirit of the Stag that they received was the most intense. In these final moments, the great being who had died left all its remaining will to this extraordinary legion.

An intensely rich aura of blood and qi permeated all the attendants. With every casual wave of their hands, crimson waves of energy tore the flesh and blood of the orcs in front of them to pieces. The charge of the stag legion was just like the story of freedom told by the ancient bards of Exner.

The stag roams the land, mountains, and seas, never stopping.

This extraordinary legion did not stop at all on the battlefield of hundreds of thousands of orcs, and no orc could make them slow down. The northern warhorses galloped wildly into the depths of the battlefield, for one minute, ten minutes, one hour, two hours.

Their entire bodies, the gaps in their armor, were already filled with scalding hot mud of flesh and blood. The blood of the orcs gathered behind this extraordinary legion, forming a crimson path. The fragmented remains piled up to form thresholds on both sides of the path. Only when the world ahead opened up and the mountain on the back of the demigod warthog was within reach did the squires of the Stag Legion realize that they had already broken through this army of 500,000 orcs.

How far away was it? They didn't know. All they knew was that even after hours of relentless slaughter, the number of orcs on this battlefield still didn't appear to be significantly reduced.

Brand turned his horse around, and his eyes were now pure blood-red, like brilliant rubies. The world before him was all blood-red; it was the vision of a god, the gaze bestowed upon him by the spirit of the stag, allowing him to see what the world looked like through the eyes of a great being.

Brand did not hesitate. After the Bucks turned around, he raised his longsword once again.

"charge!!!"

A deep roar shook the void and the earth trembled. The Spirit of the Stag once again raised its head and let out a deafening roar above this extraordinary legion. It ran wildly across the sky of this battlefield, just like its free spirit in the world called Exner.

That is the name of that world, and also His name.

Today, before that vast and magnificent spiritual world, He felt His end was near. In this new world, He had no place. He was destined to die, just like the world covered by the North.

However, that world will forever exist in the bard's story, just as it is now. It will die completely, but Brand, the successor it chose, will live on in the spiritual realm with its will.

He revels, His great will is completely sublimated in His dying moments, and every ray of blood-red light on this battlefield is a part of the spirit of the stag.

The warthog carrying the mountain on its back had awakened at some point. It raised its head, filled with deep fear, and the mountain on its back trembled. Looking at the blood-red stag in the distance, which resembled a wild horse, the demigod warthog buried its head deep into the earth again, daring not to raise its head.

It sensed that the great being was dying. Such a fallen god is incredibly mad in its final moments, and fearing the other, it continued to feign death.

【roar------】

The stag roared to the sky once more, charging wildly into the void ahead. This time, it could no longer hold on, and its massive body shattered, transforming into countless pure, blood-red specks of light that scattered across the battlefield.

In that instant, all sentient beings on this land, those with extraordinary perception, became frenzied. Whether it was the demigod warthogs in the distance or the thousands of raging elephants behind the kingdom, they all showed restless emotions, eagerly watching the falling blood-red light rain.

But no superhuman dared to make a move, simply because the Bucks army, which had been rampaging and killing relentlessly from morning till night, had stopped. They stood quietly on their warhorses, motionless like statues.

That blood-red rain fell on them.

Brand's eyes no longer exuded a majestic aura; they had become normal human eyes, but countless times clearer and purer than before.

His flesh and soul were sublimated and became one under this spiritual rain. The legendary staircase was beneath his feet, and the path called spirituality opened its doors to him. In that instant, Brand also saw the spiritual world that only Lane could see.

That was a vast and extraordinary new world.

“I will grant you authority—a spiritual body.”

Ryan's loud voice resounded in Brand's mind, and the next moment Brand's body seemed to burst forth with endless vitality, as if spring had arrived after winter.

This is his legendary gift: the spiritual body.

It's not a grand name, but it represents the most fundamental rules and authority within a completely new and extraordinary system.

(End of this chapter)