Ming Dynasty, New Rome, and Infinite Divine Machine

Titus's presence didn't change the situation on the battlefield; the elven army had already filled the narrow 5-meter area in the middle. However, the five desperate shadows continued to charge forward, forcing the cavalry guarding the laurel tree to converge in this direction.

The health bar dropped faster and faster. Unlike the Forest King, the Wild Hunt's army clearly had a thicker health bar, but the damage done to all the elves present weakened the army's collective health bar. Every time an elf fell, the health bar slipped slightly. But the battle line kept advancing, and the future seemed uncertain. If the elves could eliminate all the humans present before the health bar was depleted, they could still be the winner of this match.

"Tsk, Eloda must have just realized the offensive and defensive situation has reversed. Now they're the ones with the upper hand. The Qigong practitioners present are invincible, and neither are the Dragon Tooth Soldiers. Titus and his 'Hydra Troops' are inherently invincible," Apollonia sighed.

This was precisely the case. With the exception of the Qigong cultivators, who entered in their true form, neither the Dragon Fang Soldiers nor the Hydra troops truly committed their "true forms" to battle. Only true forms truly fear death. The Dragon Fang Soldiers were fearless spirits with a very weak sense of self, completely unconcerned with death. As for the Hydra troops, as long as Titus survived, the other five could be "refreshed" no matter how many times they died.

Killing the Qigong practitioners was the only way to contain the human forces. In reality, the physical strength of Wang Ting Junqi's cavalry had reached or even surpassed that of ordinary Qigong practitioners, so they could indeed do it. At least, if an ordinary Qigong practitioner was hit by an incendiary rifle, they would almost certainly die. After all, Qigong practitioners were still human beings in the true sense of the word, and if they were killed, they would die.

However, as a human Qigong practitioner, one's potential is nearly limitless. Physical strength isn't everything; everyone has some hidden weapons. At least Shangluo still has a 40-meter long sword he hasn't unleashed yet. He's holding back simply because he can't swing it. If it were extended to 40 meters, it would be quite dangerous; a single careless sweep could bring down a large group. And judging by the current situation, it doesn't seem like he'll need to use it.

With a "whoosh", a huge arrow passed by his head.

"Ah, is this really okay? Do you need me to do anything?" he asked Titus beside him.

"Wait a moment, I'm just worried about you, so I came in early. The army is behind us - once the lighthouse system is online, combined with your positioning, the army can directly charge in."

As he was speaking, he suddenly pressed his earphones and a call came in:

"I understand. I understand. Now unfold."

He opened his arms and motioned Shangluo to step back, then reached out and drew the dagger at his waist, and used the tip of the sword to touch the ground to carve a symbol: a cross.

Although Christianity existed in Rome, this cross was not a Christian cross. Instead, it represented the celestial pole, the relatively stationary center of the night sky as it rotates through the four seasons. There are many ways to depict the celestial pole, including swastikas, rice patterns, well patterns, circles, and nine stars. A cross is the simplest.

After making the sign of the cross, he half-knelt on the ground and inserted the Roman dagger into the center of the celestial pole symbol:

"Omnipresent, omniscient. Invincible Mithras Helios, please help us pass your trials and bathe in your light."

He finished muttering, holding his sword in place. The cross symbol also lit up, its four corners extending outward into eight poles, with eight rings illuminating at the ends. Within these eight rings, white light descended from the sky, revealing eight human figures.

Eight half-crouching Roman Guards emerged from the light, all half-kneeling in their own circle, swords in hand, like Titus. Not only were their postures the same, their phlogiston stealth gear was identical to Titus's, except their cloaks and clothing were ivory white.

The light around them dimmed, and Titus and the other eight people stood up at the same time.

"Thank you for your hard work, everyone in the Sphinx Army." He pointed ahead, "Let's get started. The Forest King is right there."

The "Sphinx" closest to the front turned around and walked out of the line, standing in front of the Dragon Tooth Soldiers brought by Han Xingzhi.

The Great Spring Spirit's lines continued to advance. He flung aside his cloak, revealing a row of glass test tubes beneath, each containing a dragon's tusk. His fingertips flicked across the tubes, selecting the dragon's second fang and thrusting it into the soil. The ground ahead cracked in a fan-shaped pattern, like the roots of a mighty tree reaching forward. At the end of the root system, an ivory-like hand emerged from the earth, clenched into a fist.

One by one, the Dragon Tooth Soldiers crawled out of the earth. Unlike the Dragon Tooth Soldiers summoned by Han Xingzhi, these Dragon Tooth Soldiers remained undifferentiated; each one was a Roman legionnaire, wielding a dagger and shield. A white silk thread connected to each legionnaire's back. A whole line of threads converged into a bundle, connecting back to the earth and ultimately to the dragon tooth. The inner guards from the Sphinx Corps held the dragon tooth, kneeling in their original position, holding the dragon tooth from which all the Dragon Tooth Soldiers had emerged.

The first row, emerging from the earth, cleared the path, and the second row followed closely behind. Row after row, the Dragon Tooth Soldiers emerged, forming a classic Roman tortoise shell formation, facing the pressing Wild Hunt. The Dragon Tooth Soldiers, attached by silk threads at their backs, displayed no self-awareness; they stood in unison, as if possessing a single mind.

The charging Wild Hunt army was like a tide hitting a reef, helpless in front of the Tortoise Formation.

At the same time, the "Sphinx," having detoured in other directions, released similar legionnaires, completing the encirclement in eight directions. The threads extending to the rear continued to entwine, fork, and spread. The eight components gradually merged into a single whole, with command functions distributed among the eight nodes. The entire legion's movements gradually synchronized, becoming coordinated and unified, even their steps following a single rhythm.

With a loud "bang", the legionnaires who surrounded Jinzhi smashed their shields to the ground, leaving only a sound.

"Synchronization completed." The first "Sphinx" in position breathed a sigh of relief.

He stood up and waved his hands. After the command network was integrated, only three or more Sphinxes would be needed to connect. As the commander, he could temporarily withdraw and help the entire team process external information.

He looked back at Titus, first confirming his identity by the badge.

"So, what happened? Why did the lighthouse suddenly activate?"

"I don't know. This is an order from Her Majesty Victoria."

"Never mind, I'll ask you later. So who will be the one to take the honor of breaking the branch? I'd like to meet you, since you'll have to make the final move. I don't know what you think, but I've really had my eyes opened tonight."

Chapter 181 Elodeasha

"Is that you? Then introduce myself. Marcus Claudius Longinus, you can just call me Marcus." He did not extend his hand to shake hands with Shangluo, because they all knew that the Zhendan people did not like physical contact, so they just nodded in greeting.

Shangluo nodded in return, taking the opportunity to look the man up and down. Honestly, it was hard to tell what his face looked like through the mask. But judging by his name, he must have come from a more noble family than Titus.

Roman names generally consist of three parts. For this particular person, Marcus represents himself, Claudius is his clan name, and Longinus is his paternal family name. The latter two generally remained unchanged, especially the middle clan name.

Because clan names are equivalent to "surnames" under Chinese etiquette, surnames like Ji and Jiang are virtually impossible to change. Family names are also relatively stable, primarily used to distinguish different clans within the same "Claudius" clan. They usually come from a prominent family member who was considered important enough to have a separate genealogy, similar in nature to a "clan name." His "clan name" is Longinus, indicating that his ancestor had a prominent figure named "Longinus."

Shangluo wondered if this ancestor was the one who stabbed Jesus to death.

However, his full name and surname indicate he does come from a prominent family. Titus himself lacked a clan name, only a surname, suggesting that none of his ancestors were worthy of remembrance. However, having been selected as a Roman Guardian, if he survived retirement, he would likely have been granted honors and become a noble. The clan name of his family would have begun with him.

Apart from anything else, based on the miracle we witnessed tonight, everyone present deserves to be recorded in history.

"Hello, Mr. Marcus."

"Well, then, let me get this straight. I also received a sudden mission today. The mission details are just one, which is to contain the Wild Hunt. So leave the Wild Hunt army to me, and you guys will deal with the Forest King. That's our division of labor. So who is the one who launched the Wild Hunt here? Do you know his name?"

"It seems to be called Elodeasha."

"Ah, that one, Irodeasa, the Elf King representing summer. It seems my choice was right. We can stop them with just heavy infantry."

"Where did this Elodeasha come from?"

"Before this, you should know the origins of those elves, right? Throughout Europe, wherever Rome invaded, there are legends of elves and imitations. Legend has it that the elves in the forest would steal Roman children and replace them with an imitation. Besides those wild elves, the greatest of the elves is the Elf King. Elodiasa, we know her origins. She is from Romania. Just by hearing the name, you can tell how much the locals hate Rome. They even had their place names erased. It has to be said that they are pitiful. But as a member of the Roman Legion, I have no right to sympathize with them. All I can do is raise my sword."

"Have you ever tried to cleanse the locals to eradicate the elf threat?"

"We did try. But it was useless: those barbarians were not the summoners, manipulators or owners of the elves. In fact, those barbarians only ignited wildfires that they themselves could not control, because Irodeasha did not come from civilization, but from the wilderness. After the birth of the wilderness myth, it has no relationship with its creator. As for these... If it is the royal court of Irodeasha, then the ethnic group she leads is the Long Summer Elves." He looked up at the name on the blood bar: [The Wild Hunt Army of the Long Summer Royal Court].

"It seems the display is correct. This is something the mechanics won't show. The symbol of these Long Summer Elves is the rose, and their ritual is dance. Eloda is the name of the Lord of the Court, and Asha is her title. Every court has its own Asha."

"Sounds like... some wonderful jungle fairy?"

"If it were only that, it would indeed be wonderful. But the sole purpose of these Wild Courts is to wage war on behalf of the wilderness and destroy civilization. All Wild Courts, without exception, will launch the Wild Hunt, an unstoppable army of spirits that slaughters Romans and even local towns without leaving a single survivor. By the time we arrive on the scene, there are often only traces of the war ravaged by the Wild Hunt army. It is foreseeable that if civilization retreats, the Wild Hunt army will endlessly hunt down every human stronghold that falls into darkness. But our work is often not understood by those barbarians, and some even choose to worship the elves."

"What will be the end?"

"No, it's not a question of 'end'. The most troublesome thing about this worship is that, viewed on its own, there's nothing wrong with it. Because although Elodiasa is cruel, she is also very kind. Although she waged war on human civilization, she loves everyone who prays to her and actually responds. Romanian shamans travel in the name of various 'troupes', believing in a secret religion that worships Elodia herself. They assume the functions of shamans, exorcise evil spirits in the name of Elodia, protect those outside the Roman Wall, and bless the villages and fields there. Is this the Elodia you see?"

"Uh," Shangluo nodded slightly, "It does seem very complicated. I heard Karin—the abducted girl—conversing with Elodeasha. Elodeasha seemed to dote on this abducted human very much."

"We still don't know what life is like for the elves in the royal court. But one thing is certain: all gods like Elodeasha love humans, but they don't know how to love humans. Being doted on by her is not a good thing. She may just be using Karin as a useful weapon. If Karin truly enjoyed that kind of life, she wouldn't be fighting for humans now."

"Karin said she wants to hunt Elodai."

"Poor child," Marcus shook his head. "I've heard about what happened here. She must have suffered a lot after being kidnapped. She might even have participated in the Wild Hunt herself, killing many people she didn't want to kill."

"Perhaps we could ask Karin herself?"

"No, you can't ask. No matter how long that experience was, it was no different from a dream to Karin. Do you remember every detail of your dream after waking? Karin is no exception. Only those fragments of memory with particularly strong colors remain in her memory. For example, the blood-stained river, the cries of children, the smoke mixed with blood from the burning village. Her road to revenge will probably be very long. She won't even remember where the royal court is. Perhaps following those fragments of memory, she can gradually recall her years as an elf. But the more she recalls, the more painful it will probably be. She is not the first to vow to hunt those gods, but I hope she will be the last. These... damn gods!"

Marcus clenched his fists. "Now that Her Majesty has decided to activate the lighthouse, humans will never again allow themselves to be manipulated. I look forward to that day. I look forward to the day when Irodeasha also develops blood stripes."

Chapter 182 The Wild Hunt's Retreat

"The big shots are so sentimental." Titus shook his head. "Rather than those barbarians, I'm more worried about whether they'll deduct our wages due to the high costs this time."

"Can't you raise your own goals a little higher?"

"Just understand, even though I earn six salaries, I still have six families to support! If 'my other self' asks you to borrow money, how can you refuse? What I'm most worried about is that the price I pay this time is too high, and I'll get fired. Then I'll be finished! Unemployment is six times the price!"

"I do know the Senate's attitude. You know, since we're divided into six, half of us will probably oppose whatever we do. So instead of worrying about that, we should think about the benefits of our action—at least, the battle here is very valuable. The chance of a head-on collision with the Wild Hunt army is extremely rare."

The battle had already begun. In just a short moment, Marcus saw many Wild Hunt soldiers he had never seen before. Among the Long Summer Elves, the Great Spring Elves were the most common, forming the backbone of the army. While their independent consciousness was weak, they were consummate killing machines.

The Royal Court's cavalry, now in the rear, held special significance: they were "awakened ones," aware of their past lives and equally willing to join the Wild Hunt—they were not dreaming; each one was awake. Only those who, in this conscious state, identified with Asha were granted the six-legged spirit steeds that symbolized the Royal Court's vanguard. The simultaneous presence of twelve cavalrymen clearly demonstrated the vastness and integrity of this Wild Hunt.

"Then let's begin. It's a pity Eloda isn't here."

He took a step forward, arms outstretched. Behind him, white threads broke through the soil, entwining and twisting in the air, stretching upward until they reached the back of Marcus's head and wrapped around his helmet.

"Forward." He gave the order calmly, and the front line began to advance.

The Dragonfangs didn't shout, only coldly following orders. Gathered within the tortoise-shell formation, the Dragonfangs followed the formation, pressing forward. The ruthless Dragonfangs seemed to possess an unstoppable force, forcing the elves' formation back. Every step forward pushed the ironclad elves back a step. The greatsword slashed against the great tortoise-shell shield. The scene felt familiar: the Celts, too, favored the sword. The Celtic barbarians of the Scottish Highlands similarly used greatswords against the Roman legions.

Yet time and again, the assembled legionaries were able to "push back" the barbarians.

He took three steps forward, the shield turned, and the legionnaire behind the shield thrust outward with his short sword. Then he immediately drew it back and continued to push forward.

"Oh, oh, oh!" Shangluo was surprised to see something happen—many elves in the back row were left with their feet dangling in the air, squeezed into the crowd. The large Yongquan elf, who had just emerged from the end of the line, was forcibly pushed back into the door, as if being "stuffed back in."

"Push! Push! Push them back!" Marcus's voice was louder than before. As the formation compressed, each step forward became more difficult than the one before. The invisible pressure of the legion was also transmitted to him through the silk thread.

Not only were the elves pushed back, but the Forest King was once again surrounded by legionnaires, even more outrageous than before. Previously, there had always been only a hundred or so, but now there were more than a hundred surrounding the Forest King himself. Elodeasha hadn't enhanced the Forest King's own strength, and he was pinned to the ground again, just as before. Karin couldn't even intervene; the other legionnaires, standing close to the trees, had no room to strike. Trapped in the crowd, the Forest King was once again overwhelmed by the swarm of men, this time with over a hundred Roman daggers thrust at him. Even Caesar hadn't been treated this way.

Shangluo looked up and saw that the Forest King's health bar was surging like a tap. Each slash didn't even take away 1% of his skin, but dozens of slashes were happening every second. If the Forest King's wounds hadn't healed immediately, he would have been chopped into pieces by now.

In less than 10 seconds, the first health bar reached zero. However, the bleeding never stopped, and it was followed by a second, a third, and a fourth. After being quantified, there was no significant difference between five levels of health and one. As long as there was a health bar, it would eventually reach zero.

Finally, when the fifth health bar began to weaken, a transparent background appeared behind it.

The obvious result made Apollonia gasp in amazement. A powerful being, scraped to death like scraping—though not dead yet, it was not far off.

What surprised her even more was that Wang Tingjun and his cavalry in the rear were also indifferent. They just stood there and watched.

"Why don't they move?" Shangluo asked.

[I don't know, maybe they're waiting for orders. Look at the health bars, the Wild Hunt's health bars are also at the bottom. Goodness, they weren't killed, they were pushed back. Pushing them back is faster than killing them directly. Hmm? Wait, it seems like there are orders coming.]

A different reminder tone from Apollonia sounded in Shangluo's mind again:

[Elodeasha's Wild Hunt army retreated.]

The moment the prompt sounded, the elves, pushed toward the gate, disbanded their final formation and retreated back inside. Wang Tingjun rode behind, preventing the Dragon Tooth soldiers from following the fleeing troops into the gate, and finally retreated back inside one by one. When the last six-legged warhorse disappeared, the flaming gate closed.

"Today, you have won. But as long as Roman tyranny persists, the Wild Hunt will never cease." Elodeasha's voice echoed in the wind. With these harsh words, like a boss, all traces of the elves' existence vanished completely.

"We won?" Wen Yuan lowered his gun. He was still blasting the Junqi's heads until the very end, wondering if he could leave anything behind.

"Probably so."

"Now what?"

"Wait a minute? Wait a minute."

Suddenly, Marcus turned around and said, "No need to wait. Look at the health bar."

Shangluo looked up: the Forest King only had 5% of his health left, but that last 5% was locked by a golden box and did not fall any further.

"Now it's your turn to make the final cut. Well, just like the high priest makes the first cut in a ritual. As the new king of the forest, this cut is yours."

"But..." Shangluo looked ahead: the densely packed Dragon Tooth Soldiers hadn't dispersed yet, stuck in place like sardines in a can, leaving no room for anyone to get in. Under the laurel tree, the Dragon Tooth Soldiers were piled up, the ones in the front already as high as the branches.

"How do I get there?"

"Easy." Marcus loosened his right fist. A line of legionnaires lowered their smooth, curved shields and lifted them up with both hands, extending all the way to the laurel tree. The outermost legionnaire half-crouched on the ground, motioning Shangluo to step on his knees and move upwards.

"Let everyone's hands carry you over. Want to give you a sense of ceremony? Come! Play the French horn for you! ROOOOMA!"

Chapter 183 Moonlight's Gift

As if welcoming a hero who had just saved the world, the Dragon Tooth Soldiers lifted Shangluo into the air and held him up.

Under the moonlight, raised shields formed a silver road. Dragon Tooth Soldiers played Roman horns, and rose petals, symbolizing the spirits of the long summer, fell from the sky.

He stepped on the shield, standing at the highest point higher than everyone else, and with the support of the Dragon Tooth Soldiers, he approached the laurel tree step by step.

The closer they got to the Golden Bough, the louder the Forest King's roar grew. The Forest King himself could sense the impending doom, and his shouts couldn't even drown out the Dragon Fang soldiers pressing down on him:

"Traitors! You all betrayed me! Humans! Elves! And gods! You all betrayed me! I won't accept this!"

As he spoke, subtitles appeared in front of Shangluo, translating the Forest King's classical Latin into Chinese.

"Tsk, that's really tragic," Apollonia couldn't help but say, because this was truly tragic for the Forest King. He wasn't the true Forest King who ruled Lake Nemi; he was just a temporary scarecrow. And this wasn't the first time; it had been here since the Romans stopped breaking branches.

He would suffer every time during the ceremony, being pinned to the ground and beaten by everyone, and then the golden branch would be taken away. After that, they would not replace him, but would come back to beat him more than ten years later.

Originally, they would have beaten him, but the elves showed up uninvited. As a result, Rome was forced into a corner and directly played his trump card, using the ultimate force to make the Forest King experience the ultimate despair.

What's even more painful is that the "damage" these guys inflict is like scraping. It's not like a lion hunting, but rather a slow, living eating.

If he had really violated the laws of heaven, it would be understandable that he was tortured like this. But he was innocent, he was just a tool.

"Ahhhhhhhh!" The Forest King's cries became more and more shrill, making Shangluo feel a little bit unbearable.

He was escorted all the way to the end by the Dragon Tooth Soldiers, and the innermost Dragon Tooth Soldiers gently placed him on the ground.

The Forest King was right beside him, just ten steps away. He could even see the Forest King's struggling pale arms through the gaps in the crowd.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk."