Awakening：The Infinite Evolution of My Talent as a Low-Level Awakener - Chapter 556

Chapter 556: The Swamp Lands – The Bloody Battle Begins!
If he waited too long to act, until both sides had nearly wiped each other out, this golden opportunity would slip through his fingers. He had been eager for ages to witness the true power of Orichalcum’s so-called Soul Treasure, their most prized and potent artifact.

“Thanks to the God of Life’s favor and blessings, we will achieve absolute victory in this battle! These invaders will be utterly obliterated!”

With Sterl’s direct order, all of Boris’s doubts and concerns vanished entirely. Even their master had commanded him to proceed as usual and launch an all-out offensive. Naturally, he wouldn’t hesitate. Moreover, if he could seize this chance to take down Eterna directly, it would be a perfect kill-two-birds-with-one-stone scenario, fulfilling his long-cherished desire.

“Kill! Kill! Kill!”

“Crush this damned turtle shell!”

“Long live the Ashen Temple!”

“Invaders, get out of our world!”

The army’s morale surged to its peak. Following Boris’s command, the fully revitalized cannon fodder legions launched another assault.

With the blessings and restoration granted by the God of Life, these disposable troops could now serve a significant purpose—wearing down Orichalcum’s forces. Meanwhile, the legendary legion marched behind them, ready to unleash devastating attacks at any moment.

In addition to the waves of infantry, numerous Colossal War Beasts and Gigantic War Puppets were brought into the fray. Though they lacked the divine energy of the Colossal War Beast previously used as a formation core, these puppets still wielded combat power comparable to demigod-level entities.

As the flood of soldiers advanced like a relentless tide, the troops of Orichalcum showed no fear or panic. At most, they exhibited caution.

The earlier exchanges had shattered their apprehensions and hesitation about Ashen’s forces. Victory or defeat? That remained uncertain.

Watching the army of Ashen roll forward like an unstoppable wave, Eterna took a deep breath. He did not rush to counterattack. Instead, he calmly observed the scene, allowing their own deities to activate their battle formations with divine energy as the formation’s core, preparing for what was to come.

It wasn’t until Ashen’s forces closed the distance to just 20 or 30 miles that Orichalcum unveiled another hidden trump card.

In the next instant, the earth within a 50-mile radius of the Royal City trembled violently. What had once been solid ground suddenly softened, transforming at an incredible speed into a vast, sticky swamp.

The change was so abrupt that Ashen’s forces could barely react before they found themselves bogged down. The transformation drastically slowed their advance, and as if that wasn’t enough, the swamp was riddled with hidden, lethal dangers.

This unforeseen turn of events caught Ashen off guard, throwing their assault into disarray and marking the beginning of a new, blood-soaked phase in the battle.

“Roar!”

A ferocious beastly roar shattered the tense silence. In the blink of an eye, a terrifying giant crocodile, dozens of meters long, erupted from the swamp. Its massive jaws clamped down, swallowing over ten soldiers in one gulp. With a sweeping lash of its tail, dozens more were flung into the air like helpless ants. Even with the God of Life’s blessings, many of them were left half-dead from the strike.

The surrounding soldiers quickly reacted, rallying to surround and attack the giant crocodile. But this was merely the opening salvo. From the depths of the swamp, countless venomous insects and massive beasts surged forth, launching a frenzied assault on the Ashen forces.

Almost simultaneously, Eterna issued the long-awaited order to attack!

Powerful and dangerous forces began to ripple outward from the Royal City. The formidable weaponry that had been carefully installed above the city now roared to life, unleashing destruction upon the battlefield below.

Boom!

A magitech cannon fired, sending a terrifying beam of arcane energy straight into the cannon fodder legions trapped in the chaotic swamp. In an instant, everything in the beam’s path was annihilated, soldiers disintegrating into ash. It was as if a line had been erased from a chalkboard—leaving a gaping void in the ranks of the Ashen army.

More attacks followed, raining down in an unrelenting onslaught. Massive fireballs, each with a diameter of dozens of meters, exploded with devastating force. Frigid waves of ice swept across a hundred-meter radius, freezing everything in their path. A barrage of lightning-infused arrows descended like a storm, carrying the destructive power of thunder. This divine battlefield had finally revealed its brutal, blood-soaked face.

In the very first exchange, over 100,000 Ashen soldiers were obliterated. But they were only cannon fodder, mere expendables, and Ashen’s commanders showed no concern for their losses. Under the leadership of Boris and other deities, the Ashen forces launched their counterattack.

“Go to hell, all of you!” Boris bellowed furiously.

The legendary legion immediately began gathering their power. A massive blade of energy, formed from a mixture of chaotic forces, materialized and swept across Orichalcum’s ranks with devastating momentum.

In response, Orichalcum’s soldiers unleashed their own unyielding roars of defiance, summoning every ounce of their strength. Their formations activated in unison, surging forward to intercept the attack.

The two forces collided, triggering an explosive shockwave that spread across the battlefield. The impact destroyed many of the weapons mounted atop the Royal City and inflicted significant damage on the swamp creatures. The force of the collision was so intense that Orichalcum’s soldiers felt their bodies strained and battered.

However, the legendary legion of Ashen remained unscathed—thanks to the twisted formation transferring all their damage onto the cannon fodder troops, ensuring they bore no burden of the clash.

The initial attack had proven effective, prompting Ashen’s forces to launch an even fiercer offensive. Eterna could only resist by relying on the bolstering effects of the formation, continuously fending off the onslaught while utilizing the Royal City’s weapons and the swamp creatures to quickly eliminate the cannon fodder.

As long as all the cannon fodder could be wiped out, the legendary legion would lose its damage-immune effect, allowing the Royal City’s weapons to effectively counter their assault.

However, the sheer number of cannon fodder on Ashen’s side was staggering. They had rallied forces from nearly every kingdom and faction in the world, amassing an army of over ten million! Even after suffering significant losses earlier, the remaining six to seven million soldiers still posed a daunting challenge. Despite being labeled as cannon fodder, these forces were far from weak.

The cannon fodder army was highly organized. Every ten thousand soldiers formed a minor formation, and every hundred formed a squadron. Over time, many of these formations adapted to the battlefield’s intensity and dynamics, coordinating with precision. Some units focused on healing and providing buffs, others specialized in defending against the Royal City’s weaponry, while the rest engaged the swamp’s giant beasts.

Though many of their defensive efforts were futile against the overwhelming firepower of the Royal City’s weapons, they at least avoided running around like headless chickens, and their cohesion allowed them to maintain formidable combat strength.

At this rate, it was possible that before Eterna could eliminate the cannon fodder, they might destroy the swamp themselves and merge into the confrontation between the two main armies.

If that happened, Orichalcum’s forces, already at a disadvantage, would find it nearly impossible to hold their ground.

At this critical moment, other deities—beyond those orchestrating the formations—finally joined the fray. In Orichalcum’s ranks, every deity except for the missing Hades and the uniquely positioned Diana appeared on the battlefield.

Ashen, too, unleashed their entire divine roster to participate in the battle. However, it was well known that Orichalcum had a numerical advantage when it came to divine-level combatants. Even without counting Diana and Hades, they still had three to four more deities than Ashen—a critical edge that could determine the outcome of the divine-tier battles.

If Orichalcum’s gods could successfully repel or eliminate Ashen’s deities, they could then turn their attention to the larger army conflict below. Even with Ashen’s legendary legion holding the upper hand, the addition of several—if not a dozen—gods descending to the battlefield would completely shift the tide.

This advantage was precisely why Ashen had placed such significant stakes on the Colossal War Beasts and the massive cannon fodder armies—to mitigate the disparity in divine power. Unfortunately for Ashen, Eterna’s precise countermeasures had disrupted their plans, throwing their carefully orchestrated strategy into chaos.

“Hahaha! Trash from the Ashen Temple, don’t you love ganging up on the outnumbered? This time, I’ll make sure you know what it feels like to be the one under siege!”

Morette let out a boisterous laugh as he and another god immediately targeted one of Ashen’s deities, launching a ferocious assault.

The overwhelming power of Thunder Law left the Ashen god utterly shaken. Every strike from Morette carried devastating force, and the Ashen god didn’t dare confront him head-on. To make matters worse, they also had to fend off the lurking threat of the second attacker, creating unbearable pressure.

The other three Ashen deities found themselves in similar predicaments, each being double-teamed. Frustration and desperation mounted in their hearts.

Initially, they had planned to regroup and hold a defensive formation. While they would still be at a numerical disadvantage, they believed they could at least hold out for a while. However, Morette and his comrades gave them no such opportunity, relentlessly pursuing and pummeling them into submission.

Before long, a piercing scream echoed through the battlefield. Under Morette’s unrelenting onslaught, one of the Ashen deities finally made a critical mistake, exposing a flaw. The waiting second god immediately seized the opportunity, delivering a sneak attack that dealt a devastating blow.

Although the Ashen god narrowly avoided death by burning a life-saving trump card, their fall was now only a matter of time.

Witnessing this, Boris was filled with a mix of fury and dread. In response, he mobilized the legendary legion’s full power, launching a reckless and ferocious offensive.

Throwing all caution to the wind, Ashen’s forces abandoned defense entirely, allowing their formation to absorb the brunt of Orichalcum’s attacks. All damage was transferred to the cannon fodder soldiers, sacrificing them en masse. The relentless nature of this strategy forced Eterna into an increasingly precarious position.

Despite gritting his teeth and fighting to hold the line, Eterna found it nearly impossible to counter the assault. Many of the soldiers within Orichalcum’s formation couldn’t withstand the relentless feedback from the enemy’s attacks. One after another, they collapsed and perished on the spot.

If this continued, the army formation would break apart long before the battle between the gods reached a decisive outcome. Should that happen, the ten deities anchoring the formation’s core—including Eterna himself—might be forcibly annihilated by the legendary legion’s overwhelming power.

In such a scenario, the victory or defeat of the divine-level combatants would hardly matter anymore.

Eterna’s heart sank with frustration. Both sides had nearly exhausted their trump cards. While a few options still remained, none were sufficient to turn the tide in this critical moment. The situation had become increasingly dire.

“Damn it!”

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