System's POV - Chapter 890

Chapter 890: Sticking To The Deadline
While everyone busied themselves by harvesting the beast cores of the dead beetles, Thirteen handled the aftermath of the battle.

The captured Brood Mothers and the Brood Queen were inside Rocky’s Mobile Fortress, their subconscious minds currently being inscribed with Evuvug’s imprint within.

As long as they were dealt with, the Brain Beetle didn’t need to exert too much psychic power to control its new minions.

All it needed to do was give an order, and the mind-controlled beetles would act to implement it automatically.

They were insect-type Jinns, allowing Evuvug to easily override their hive mind and make them listen to its orders permanently.

Thirteen understood that he couldn’t purely rely on his own soldiers to defeat the Jinns, who now numbered in the millions.

He would need to “recruit” or negotiate with monsters along the way, so he could effectively wipe out a good chunk of them before High-Ranking Jinns start appearing.

Unlike the previous Jinn Invasions, there was a high possibility for a Majin Prince or a Majin Princess to pass through the Genocide-Level Gate.

Athena had been absorbing solar power all these years and could now unleash three concentrated beams of light guaranteed to annihilate even a Majin King.

She was Zion’s ultimate strategic trump card, which he planned to use as a last resort.

The teenage boy knew that the moment Athena showed the world her power, the Monarch Clans and the Prestigious Families would no longer feel as safe as they used to.

But Thirteen had already made preparations when that time finally came.

For now, he would focus his attention on what was happening at present and deal with the consequences of his actions in the future.

“Are you done brainwashing them?” Thirteen asked.

“Yes,” Evuvug replied. “All I need to do is give them an order. So, what do you want them to do?”

Thirteen smiled faintly and showed Evuvug where he planned to place the Brood Mothers and Brood Queen on the map of the continent.

“A bold move,” Evuvug commented. “But if you do that, wouldn’t they get wiped out before they can even increase their numbers?”

“That’s where you enter the picture,” Thirteen replied. “You will protect them until they are strong enough to fend for themselves. There are currently no monsters on this continent that can threaten you. So, babysit them for a while, okay?”

“And Gwenn?” Evuvug asked. “Will she stay with me?”

“No.” Thirteen shook his head. “I need Gwenn on my side because she will help me take over the minds of the leaders of the monster armies I plan to subjugate.”

“Subjugate?” Evuvug asked. “Not eliminate?”

“Subjugate,” Thirteen stated. “As you may already know, not all of the Jinns in this continent are allied with each other. They’re only cooperating right now, hoping the other side will exterminate the Wanderers for them.

Once that was done, they would then make a move to kick them off the land and take it as their own.

The Rigel Continent had gone through the same event.

After the Wanderers were driven off from their homes, the Jinns had a turf war, with the Earth Dragon’s Faction winning in the end.

This made the Rigel Continent the exclusive property of their Master, who was still in the Jinn home world of Gomorra.

Due to Thirteen’s meddling, the Dimensional Gate had suffered damage, delaying the Majin King’s arrival to Pangea.

The Rigel Continent had a vastly different situation from the first continent that fell to the Jinn’s control, Antares.

Three Jinn Factions ruled the continent. Instead of fighting against each other, they decided to split the land, ruling over it together.

Although harmonious wasn’t the best word to exactly describe their relationship, the three sides made sure to rein in their subordinates and keep the status quo.

Thirteen planned to silently take over the weakest Jinn Faction in the Cygni Continent and make it attack their neighbor.

While this was happening, he would let Roland, the Central Government, and the rest of the Alliance attack the rest of the factions vying for supremacy.

He would then allow Evuvug to promote and hasten the growth of the Beetle Army. It would then select and help train Elites that would break through Rank 5 as soon as possible.

An elite army of Rank 5 Beetles was nothing to scoff at.

They would become an absolute menace anywhere they went, especially the Bombardier Beetles, who were very useful for long-range combat and siege battles.

Thirteen specifically chose to raise the beetles because they could fly.

This meant they could be mobilized anywhere on the battlefield and escape if they needed to.

With such a mobile army at his beck and call, Thirteen was confident he could create more effective strategies to his advantage.

“We will be traveling to the next city to resupply,” Thirteen said. “During that time, Rocky will send you to the location of your new base of operations. I’ll give you two and a half months to raise your army.

“That is the only time you have before the High-Ranking Gates start to open. Can you do it?”

“Even if I can’t do it, I will have no choice but to do it,” Evuvug replied wryly. “As long as there are enough resources, I can create the army you want.”

Thirteen smirked. “That’s why I placed you right at the center of two different factions. You will have more than enough resources to raise your army.”

Evuvug agreed with the teenage boy’s strategy as it suited its fighting style.

All it needed to do was mind control the leader of the monsters and order its minions to regularly supply it with fresh meat.

The Brain Beetle couldn’t fail even if it wanted to.

Just like Thirteen had stated, it was currently the most powerful monster on the continent.

At least for the next few months, there was nothing that could threaten Evuvug and its beetle army.

After ironing out their expansion plans, Thirteen returned to his makeshift tent, where Sherry waited for him.

“Are they done collecting the beast cores and valuable monster parts?” Thirteen asked.

“Not yet,” Sherry replied. “The Central Government is going to send transport helicopters to hasten the collection process.”

Thirteen nodded before looking down at the map spread on top of his table.

For some reason, a nagging feeling crept at the back of his head that he couldn’t shake away.

****

Moon of Artem…

“The final adjustments are almost finished, Your Majesty,” a researcher reported.

“Good.” the King of the Artemians, Astrion, nodded. “Just make sure to stick to the deadline. Do I make myself clear?”

“Yes, Your Majesty.” The researcher bowed respectfully.

The Azothralls had undergone some field testing to gain actual combat experience.

It was always a one-sided victory, and the experience they gained from those battles allowed them to better understand how to fight more effectively.

Astrion was only waiting for the barrier of Solterra to weaken, so he could send his biological weapons to the world.

However, Solterra wasn’t his true target.

It was none other than the homeworld of the Wanderers, Pangea, which was ill-prepared to face off against the Azothralls.

These genetically enhanced monsters had broken the rules of evolution and had taken it to the next level.

This was also the reason why “The One” had decided to ask for a truce with Metatron, jointly making the necessary preparations for the greedy king of Artem.

He had long wished to extend his hands in a world that wasn’t prepared to face the horrors that he had made for the sake of his revenge against the teenage boy, who had ruined his plan to break through and become a Celestial.