Wizard: My career panel has no upper limit

Chapter 690 Sacrifices
Dawn Tower, Operations Room.

The magic lamp was deliberately dimmed to better display the holographic projection floating above the table—a three-meter-square map showing the distribution of forces in the chaotic blood world.

Ron sat in the main seat.

Miller stood in front of the map, the veteran frowning, having not brought his flask today.

"According to reports from our informants within the three major clans..."

Miller's finger swept across the map, and three red dots lit up in turn.

The three points of light were located on the east, north, and west sides of Twilight City, like three sharp swords hanging overhead.

"'Teeth,' 'claws,' and 'wings' are secretly gathering their forces."

"What about the scale?"

"It's like they've mobilized their entire force, at least in terms of their elite combat power."

Miller zoomed in on the map to the eastern sea area:

"Let's start with the 'Ya' clan."

In the holographic projection, a deep blue sea was clearly displayed.

That is the "Blood Mist Sea"—the only ocean in the chaotic world of blood, which is shrouded in a layer of scarlet mist all year round.

Legend has it that the mist was formed from the blood of an ancient great wizard during a great battle with the primitive vampires, and it still carries a faint curse effect to this day.

"They assembled eight 'bloodsail warships,' each capable of carrying over a thousand elite soldiers."

He tapped the icons of the warships with his finger:
“What’s more troublesome is that…they summoned the ‘Leviathan’ from the seabed.”

The moment that name was mentioned, the expressions on the faces of everyone else in the operations room turned grim.

"Leviathan?"

Silas was sitting to the side, his voice tinged with disbelief:

"Those ancient sea beasts bound by bloodline contracts?"

"Exactly."

Miller pulled up a video file.

In the footage, a huge black shadow is slowly moving in the deep sea.

The figure... even describing it as "enormous" seems pale and powerless.

Its body is like a mountain range submerged in the water, its scales gleaming with a cold luster in the dim light of the deep sea.

The most terrifying thing is its "hair"—countless snake-like tentacles extend from the top of its head, each as thick as an adult's waist, slowly wriggling in the water.

According to ancient records, Leviathan was over two thousand meters long.

Miller had some concerns:

"Its hair can extend ten kilometers onto the shore."

"That is to say..."

He drew a circle on the map:

"As soon as this monster gets close to the coast, our port area will be completely exposed to its attack range."

Ron stared at the dark figure, lost in thought.

When he first arrived, the territory of Twilight City was still confined to the inland areas.

At that time, he foresaw that the development of the city must open up access to the sea—trade, resources, and strategic depth, each of which requires the support of the ocean.

Thus, after decades of development, Twilight City finally expanded its territory to the edge of the "Blood Mist Sea".

The newly built port has become an important pillar of the economy, with hundreds of merchant ships entering and leaving every day, bringing in a flood of wealth.

But now it seems... this development has also given Twilight City a weakness.

"The warship is also equipped with 'Blood Energy Tide Cannon'."

Miller continued:

"It is said to be incredibly powerful—one shot is enough to sink a small island."

"Eight warships, plus Leviathan... This isn't a war, it's an extermination mission."

No one spoke; everyone was thinking of a solution.

What about the north?

Ron broke the silence first, turning his gaze to another direction on the map.

"'Claw' clan, assassination force."

He switched the map to the northern region.

Unlike the open conflict in the eastern seas, the map to the north appears calm.

There were no signs of troop assembly, no traces of warships moving, nothing at all.

However, after Miller entered a password, the map suddenly changed.

Countless red dots emerged from their concealment, like stars suddenly illuminating the night sky.

What are these?

Silas frowned.

"Assassination node".

Miller explained, "More than thirty, all deployed around Twilight City."

He connected the red dots with a rune pen:

"These nodes form a three-dimensional assassination network."

"Through special spatial folding technology, assassins can teleport to any node location within three seconds."

"Three seconds..."

Silas's face turned pale: "This means our early warning system has completely failed."

"It's not just an early warning system."

Miller shook his head: "'Claw' clan sent all six 'Shadowblades'."

“That’s the ace assassin of the ‘Claw’ clan.”

He explained in detail:

“Each one is a marquis-level figure, specializing in stealth and a one-hit kill.”

He looked at Ron:
“What’s more troublesome is that they have prepared a ‘decapitation strike’ against our key personnel.”

“Besides you, Silas, Euphemia, Ivy… and even the newly arrived Ms. Cecilia, each of them is a target.”

"Is there anything else I need to do?"

Cecilia's voice came from the doorway.

She had just entered the operations room when she heard her name called, and the little cake she was eating suddenly lost its appeal.

Ron ignored her, his gaze shifting between the red dots as if he were calculating something.

What about the west?

“'Wing' clan”.

Miller pulled up the last set of data: "Air power."

Switch the map to the western region.

This time, he presented a set of 3D projections, showing three huge buildings suspended in the air.

“They mobilized the Bloodwing Army—more than two thousand vampires skilled in air strikes—and established three ‘floating fortresses’ high in the sky.”

"Each fortress is equipped with a blood energy cannon array, which can continuously bombard ground targets."

He zoomed in on the image of one of the fortresses:

"These fortresses are mobile, and their attack range covers most of Twilight City."

"If they fire at the same time..."

He didn't finish speaking, but everyone understood what it meant.

Three major clans, three directions, three completely different attack methods.

At sea, there is devastating long-range firepower; to the north, there is an infiltrative assassination network; and to the west, there is overwhelming air strikes.

Twilight City is capable of dealing with any threat, even if it appears alone.

But all three arrived at the same time...

“Their actions were too synchronized.” Miller’s voice broke the silence:
"The three major clans usually have conflicts with each other, so it's impossible for them to cooperate so well—unless..."

"Unless someone is directing things from behind the scenes."

Ron picked up the thread: "Or rather... there's 'something' pulling the strings behind the scenes."

He stood up and walked to the map.

"Miller, is there any follow-up to the information you just mentioned?"

"Have."

Miller pulled up another set of data:
“Our scouts also discovered something else—a significant proportion of soldiers in the armies of the three major clans are showing early signs of ‘berst’.”

"Berserk state?"

Silas frowned.

"Can they form an army after going berserk? Won't they fight amongst themselves?"

"Yes, everything fits the symptoms of mania: red eyes, irritability, and a rapidly increasing thirst for blood..."

Miller listed the symptoms one by one:

"But the strangest thing is that they didn't completely lose control."

"Instead, it maintains a kind of..."

He seemed to be searching for the right word: "'controlled madness'."

These four words immediately reminded Ron.

"Controlled madness..."

He repeated the word, his mind racing:
"This means that someone is not just gradually 'awakening'."

His gaze swept over everyone present:

"He is still 'controlling' them, infusing his will into these soldiers and turning them into his 'extensions'."

This judgment was like a bombshell, exploding in the operations room.

"If that's really the case..."

Silas's voice trembled slightly: "Then the nature of this war has completely changed."

"Yes."

Ron walked back to the head of the table, but did not sit down.

He placed his hands on the table and leaned slightly forward:
"This was not an ordinary clan war."

"This is a test of us—or rather, a preparation for His complete resurrection."

"The three major clans are merely His pawns, and the soldiers corrupted by madness are just His tentacles."

"The real enemy... was never those clan dukes from the beginning."

Just then, the door to the operations room was gently pushed open.

Ivy strode in, carrying two sealed letter tubes.

"Owner."

Her voice carried a hint of nervousness:

"There are two encrypted letters, one from the 'Heart' clan and the other from the 'Eye' clan."

Ron took the mailbox, his gaze lingering for a moment on the two clan emblems.

These two clans have always maintained a subtle "neutral" stance.

They neither openly supported Twilight City nor joined the opposing camp.

At this very moment, letters arrived...

With that in mind, he opened the first mailbox—from the Heart Clan.

The letter paper had no grids, yet the spacing between words was as precise as if measured with a ruler, revealing the handwriting's owner's almost obsessive meticulousness.
"Your Excellency Ralph: "

A storm is coming in seven days.

The Heart Clan will remain neutral and will not participate in any military operations against Twilight City.

However, we cannot publicly support you, and we hope you can understand.

P.S.: If you survive this storm, perhaps we can talk... about the future order of the chaotic world.

—Al-Kadhir Valentine

Ron handed the letter to Miller, who then passed it around among those present.

"That old fox..."

After reading the letter, Miller couldn't help but let out a cold laugh:
"What 'remaining neutral'? It's clearly a case of sitting back and watching the tigers fight."

"After we and the three major clans have fought to the death, he will jump out and clean up the mess."

You're right.

Ron nodded, but his tone was not angry:
"But from his perspective, it was the most rational choice."

“Arkadi doesn’t want to offend that false king—in case He really does resurrect, the Heart Clan needs to have a backup plan.”

"But he also doesn't want to become an enemy of Twilight City completely—because he knows that if we win, we will dominate the future chaotic world."

"So he chose to wait and see, and then decide which side to take."

Ron's lips curled up slightly:
"But this also gives us a reason to marginalize him after we win."

He opened the second letterbox—from the Eye Clan.

The handwriting in this letter was completely different from that of Arkady; the strokes were thin and flowing, like spider silk tangled on the letter paper.
"young people:

The eyes are only responsible for seeing, not for doing.

But sometimes, what you see can 'just happen' to be known by others.

The attack routes of the three major clans have been attached to the letter.

good luck.

—An observer

Ron flipped the letter over and, sure enough, saw a detailed military deployment map on the back.

The level of detail in that picture is astonishing:

The Bloodsail battleships' course and expected landing points were accurate to every single time point;
The movement trajectory of the floating fortresses even shows their energy consumption cycles;
The exact coordinates of the assassination points, and even the assassin rotation schedule, are all clearly known;
The battle schedules, communication frequencies, and even personal habits of the three clan commanders...

"This……"

Miller took the diagram, his eyes widening: "This is practically all the military secrets of the three major clans!"

"How could Hilda possibly have obtained this intelligence?"

“She is the Grand Duchess of the ‘Eye’ Clan.”

Ron wasn't surprised: "'Seeing' everything is her ability."

Miller pondered for a moment: "The veracity of this intelligence still needs to be verified."

"But whether it's true or not, war is certain seven days from now."

"We must be prepared for the worst."

Ron nodded and began distributing tasks:
"Miller, activate the 'Deep Dive' protocol immediately."

"All non-combat personnel evacuate to underground shelters, and critical facilities are placed under wartime status."

"Silas, assemble the entire 'Daywalker' force." "I need them lined up within two hours and to conduct pre-battle assault training."

"Cecilia, wipe your mouth first..."

He looked at the silver-haired maid with a hint of helplessness; there were still cake crumbs at the corner of her mouth.

"Contact Eve later and have her prepare the 'Rainbow Gate'."

"If the situation worsens, we can call in reinforcements from the main world."

Yes! (×3)

The three responded in unison and quickly left the operations room.

Only Ron remained, standing quietly in front of the holographic map.

........................

A week has passed in the blink of an eye.

Before dawn, three floating fortresses drifted straight in from the western airspace, blotting out the sun.

Looking up from the ground, they appear as three inverted mountain peaks in the darkness.

At the base of the fortress, hundreds of blood energy cannons were charging simultaneously.

Crimson light converged from the cannon muzzle, emitting a chilling hum.

Silas stood on the top floor of the command tower, gazing at the three fortresses through the crystal windows.

His brow was furrowed, and his fingers tapped rapidly on the control panel.

"The range of the anti-aircraft artillery array... is two hundred meters short."

He muttered to himself, his tone tinged with frustration.

"Charging complete," the assistant reported.

"Dawn Shield is ready."

Silas took a deep breath: "Let them fire first."

"What?" The assistant was stunned. "But..."

“The shield’s energy is limited,” Silas interrupted him. “It must be used wisely.”

"call out!"

The first shell fell from the floating fortress.

It was a blood-red beam of light, as thick as a giant log, tearing through the air with a scorching heat.

Then came the second, the third, the tenth, the hundredth... Hundreds of blood energy cannons fired almost simultaneously, weaving a web of death.

"Now!"

Silas slammed down a button on the console.

Light curtains rose from rune nodes throughout the city, converging and expanding in mid-air to eventually form a massive dome that enveloped the entire Twilight City.

On the south side, the fighting was quiet, unlike the fierce battle on the main battlefield.

The assassins of the "Claw" clan have infiltrated the city.

After being "half-blooded and turned into mist," dozens of assassins silently appeared in various corners of Twilight City, stealthily moving toward their target.

Command post, ammunition depot, hospital, power generation center.

Each target was carefully chosen—destroying any one of them would deal a fatal blow to Twilight City's defenses.

An assassin prepares to infiltrate ammunition depot number three.

The ammunition depot was filled with blood crystal explosives, enough to flatten the entire block.

But just after he deactivated "half-blood mist"... a cold light flashed.

Before the assassin could even react, his head had already flown into the sky.

He staggered two steps and collapsed to the ground with a thud.

Blood gushed from the severed neck, staining the surrounding ground red.

Standing next to the corpse was a headless figure.

It also had no head, and only a smooth wound above its neck.

Shadow Sentry, one of Twilight City's most powerful secret weapons.

At this moment, it is under Cedric's remote command, clearing out the assassins who have infiltrated the city.

"Ammunition depot number three, cleared."

Cedric's voice came through the communication crystal:
"Four more targets are approaching the power generation center... Shadow Sentry, full speed ahead."

The headless figure nodded slightly—though it had no head and could only comically twist its neck—before quickly disappearing into the shadows.

On the eastern coast, the battle was equally intense.

The Bloodsail fleet had approached the outer perimeter of the port, with eight warships deployed in a crescent formation, covering the entire bay within firing range.

Further out on the sea, the enormous silhouette of Leviathan could be seen faintly.

The ancient sea beast had not yet fully surfaced, but it had already stirred up towering waves that crashed against the coastal rocks.

Euphemia stood atop the highest point of the coastal fortress, her pale face appearing even more stern under the blood moonlight.

"Contamination bombs are ready."

The vampire officer beside him reported in a low voice.

"hold on."

Euphemia's gaze remained fixed on the slowly rising behemoth.

Leviathan's "hair strands" have begun to extend towards the shore, leaving trails of churning foam in the seawater.

"It is testing our defenses."

Her fingers tapped lightly on her cane.

Just then, Miller's voice came through the communication crystal:
"Ms. Euphemia, the eastern flank is under too much pressure, we need reinforcements!"

"Hold on for five more minutes. Leviathan's weak point is in its abdomen. Once it fully surfaces, that will be our chance to counterattack."

The clamor of the battlefield surged in like a tide, with explosions, shouts of battle, and the wails of the dying coming from all directions.

However, amidst this chaos, one place remained remarkably quiet.

Command tower.

The tall tower, built close to the city wall, was now emitting a soft starlight.

Ron stood on the platform at the top of the tower, his black robes fluttering gently in the wind.

"grown ups!"

A messenger relayed a real-time distress call:
"The energy of the western shield is being depleted too quickly. Chief Silas requests backup!"

Ron spoke:
"Tell Silas that there is no need to worry about the shield energy."

He raised his right hand, and starlight poured from his palm.

The light initially appeared as a tiny point of light, but in the blink of an eye, it expanded, condensed, and eventually transformed into a giant hand.

A giant hand made of starlight stretched across half the sky, like the arm of a god reaching down from the heavens.

The soldiers on the city wall were stunned.

They looked up at the enormous hand that blocked their view, their eyes filled with shock and awe.

"Go."

The giant hand of starlight responded and slammed towards the three floating fortresses.

The vampire commanders in the floating fortress changed their expressions drastically.

"Full speed retreat!"

"Activate emergency shield!"

"Quick! Quick!"

The three fortresses simultaneously spewed out streams of crimson energy, attempting to accelerate their escape.

But it was too late.

A giant hand of starlight descended.

The shield of the first fortress collapsed instantly, and the entire building was crushed as if by an invisible hand. Bricks and stones flew, blood energy cannons exploded, and countless vampires screamed as they were crushed into bloody mud...

The second fortress was swept across its flank by the palm strike, causing the entire structure to tremble violently. Dozens of blood energy cannons detached from their mounts and crashed into the ground below.

The commander of the third fortress reacted the fastest, completing an emergency teleportation just before the giant hand landed, but at the cost of abandoning the formation formed by the three fortresses and being completely routed.

Three floating fortresses—one destroyed, one severely damaged, and one fled—were all destroyed by a single palm strike.

The garrison of Twilight City erupted in thunderous cheers.

"Long live the Lord!"

Long live Twilight City!

The soldiers brandished their weapons, their faces filled with ecstasy.

The fear and despair that had been weighing on my heart just moments ago have now vanished.

Instead, there is unparalleled confidence.

With Lord Ralph around, they won't lose.

With Lord Ralph here, Twilight City will not fall.

On the command tower, Ron withdrew his giant starlight hand.

For someone at his current level, that attack was nothing more than a piece of cake.

What truly alarmed him was never those floating fortresses.

"It went too smoothly..."

His brow furrowed slightly.

The three major clans mobilized all their forces and used such enormous resources, was their only goal to be defeated by a single blow?

This is not reasonable.

Neither Grand Duke Casano of the "Tooth" clan nor the leaders of the "Claw" and "Wing" clans were fools.

Since they dared to launch this war, they must have something to rely on.

What is that "reliance"?
Ron's gaze swept across the battlefield, trying to find any unusual clues.

On the west side—the remaining enemy troops on the floating fortress had suffered a significant drop in morale, and the elite of the "Bloodwing Legion" were all filled with panic.

On the east side, the naval fleet was bombarded by contamination bombs controlled by Euphemia, and Leviathan was also temporarily forced to retreat underwater due to damage.

On the south side—a small number of the infiltrated assassins have been wiped out by the Shadow Sentinels, and the rest are being surrounded by the garrison and will soon be defeated one by one.

It appears that Twilight City is achieving a complete victory.

However, just as everyone relaxed their vigilance slightly... six dark figures rushed out from every corner of the battlefield at the same time.

The average person's eyes cannot detect their trajectory; they can only see six blurry afterimages, like dust blown away by the wind.

But Ron clearly saw that the six dark figures... were all rushing towards him.

"Shadow Blade..."

Six marquis-level assassins, the ace killers of the "Claw" clan.
They didn't assassinate Euphemia, they didn't assassinate Silas, and they didn't even assassinate Miller, the weakest but most important of them all...

"This shouldn't be happening..."

Ron was genuinely surprised at this point.

Based on previous intelligence analysis, the mission of these Shadow Blades should be "decapitation".

As long as the core personnel of Twilight City can be assassinated, chaos can be created and morale can be shaken.

After all, he himself was a great wizard.

Six marquis-level assassins charged at him.
This isn't courage, this is suicide.

"What are they planning..."

Doubt swirled in his mind like a snake, but it did not stop him from taking action.

The power of the Silent Theater unfolds.

The invisible domain expanded outward from him, and the six black shadows were abruptly halted outside the command tower.

Their bodies were frozen in place by an invisible force, and no matter how much they struggled, they could not move forward an inch.

This is the "concealment" and "suppression" of the Silent Theater.

Within this realm, he can obscure perception, suppress magic, and even interfere with certain physical rules.

For marquises, this domain is an unbreakable prison.

"Let's try our best to capture them alive first and see if we can get any information out of them."

Ron thought to himself.

He was curious as to why these assassins would launch a suicidal attack on him.

There must be some conspiracy behind this.

However, just as he was preparing to further suppress the six assassins and completely control them...

He saw that there was no murderous intent in those six pairs of eyes, only... complete emptiness.

It was as if his soul had been ripped out, leaving only a lifeless shell.

Something's not right...

Ron's inner alarm bells rang loudly.

His ethereal power suddenly surged to its fullest extent as he attempted to "observe" the state of the six assassins on a deeper level.

Then, he "saw" it.

Inside those six bodies, blood was flowing in a strange way.

Every drop of blood contains an ancient, mad, and destructive desire.

It is awakening from every cell of the blood, breaking free from some invisible shackles, it is...

"Self-destruct—!"

Almost instinctively, he pushed the suppressive power of the [Silent Theater] to its limit.

However, the priority of "executing the explosion" within their bodies is clearly higher than that of their external control.

The bodies of the six assassins exploded at the same moment.

The blooming crimson lotus exploded within the domain.

The corrosion began; the power of blood erosion started to invade the boundaries of the Silent Theater's domain.

Ron could sense that the force was trying to "corrupt" his ethereal body.

It carries a kind of indescribable "will," mad and thirsty, wanting to drag everything into the abyss.

"This is... the source of the bloodline curse?"

The nature of this power is undoubtedly the root of the vampire's frenzied curse—a fragment of the will of the "Blood King".

However, these fragments should have been scattered throughout the bloodline of every vampire, so faint as to be almost imperceptible.

But these six clusters of blood-corroding power before me...

"They have been 'awakened'."

Ron understood everything.

Those six marquis assassins were, from the very beginning, higher-ranking "sacrifices".

Self-destruction was merely a means to an end; the true purpose was to release those fragments of will...

(End of this chapter)