Chapter 1128 - Into the Maws

General Dossin spoke of victory and defeat, but it was greed rather than righteousness that shone in the eyes of the assembled leaders. Zac wasn't surprised, and neither was the Dravorak leader by the looks of it. Concepts like the direction of the whole war were too far removed from early and middle Hegemons. Neither could glory keep you and your kin safe when marauders were kicking in your door.

In comparison, the promise of ancient treasure was far more palatable. Most soldiers were constantly wracking their brains to gain an edge, anything that would allow them to survive another day on the frontlines. The pressure was just as real for the leaders who faced not only the Kan'Tanu elites but also carried the weight of command. And what Hegemon didn't have an obsession for cultivation and an unquenchable dream of walking further down their path?

"Of course, the alliance is willing to purchase or exchange anything you may find," the Dravorak general continued. "Furthermore, we've already confirmed the System is awarding everyone on these critical battlefields quadruple contribution. In other words, you'll be richly rewarded even should you fail to enter the Mystic Realm."

"Fail to enter? Is the entrance contested?" a fiery-looking youth asked.

Speaking of, Zac realized most of the leaders in the room were quite young. And those who were older were invariably accompanied by an elite of Zac's generation. It made sense, considering the mission called for elites who could fight above their weight limit. However, Ogras once mentioned that one should be wary of two types of elites—the ruddy-faced youngsters and the spicy old gingers.

The latter were those hopelessly bottlenecked who never gave up on the martial path. Instead, they spent millennia polishing their foundations and braving dangers in hopes of finding an opportunity to take that next step. Most such cultivators ultimately failed to reforge their fate, but a few accumulated enough fortuitous encounters to give them incredible fighting prowess.

The room was veritably teeming with youthful exuberance yet lacking the measured experience of the skilled veterans who'd overcome countless obstacles. Was the System really gathering candidates for the inheritance, or was this part of some gambit devised by the alliance? Either case, the imbalance only increased Zac's misgivings, but there was not much to do but keep his eyes and ears peeled.

"Entrance? There is none," Dossin said. "Strictly speaking, the space surrounding our target is so unstable that it's impossible for a stable entrance to form. Neither have we successfully managed to install a doorway ourselves. The only way to reach the fortress is to stumble onto a temporary pathway."

"A temporary pathway? Like a Spatial Tear?" another commander frowned.You'll find the origin of this content at n0velb!n•

"In a nutshell."

Zac and Vilari shared a hesitant look. It was obvious they couldn't just jump into any random Spatial Tear and expect they'd reach the Mystic Realm they sought. However, they'd "enjoyed" front-row seats to one of the rare spatial anomalies connected to the Limitless Empire War Fortress just yesterday. They had better chances of survival flying into a sun than that terrifying explosion.

Others had similar doubts, but Dossin eventually lifted her hand to still the heated discussions in the room.

"The pathways I speak of differ from the chaotic eruptions many of you have witnessed. Those are formed by the fortress's protective barriers bleeding into our dimension, forming unstable energy exhausts. The pathways are rather gaps in these same barriers. You'll know when you've encountered one. Our challenge is that they only last a second or two, and it's up to fate who reaches them before the opportunity's gone."

"So we're just supposed to wait around and pray a pathway appears next to us?"

"No. Some regions have more promise than others. The situation is in constant flux, but it's not completely random. Our scholars are constantly monitoring the spatial deterioration and other clues to pinpoint potential hotspots. We'll move out the second they find a target near our base."

"I'm guessing the Kan'Tanu have similar means?" another leader asked.

"War will break out wherever a window of opportunity appears," Dossin confirmed. "Only a few will enter Mystic Realm while the rest of us deal with the Kan'Tanu. The more elites we kill, the fewer they can send into the fortress. And the further we push back their ranks, the more of the pathways will be used by our people."

"So we're just supposed to jump blindly into an unstable vortex when it appears? What if we don't wish to take the risk?" a thin elder asked.

"Everyone here was picked for their strength and ambition. Our assessment is that few among you would turn down this opportunity should it appear before you. Remember, there are no powerful War Machines or Late Hegemons inside the fortress. Furthermore, the alliance will provide incredible rewards to those who provide even the smallest assistance to the fortress's takeover. Just entering a passage entitles your faction up to 250,000 Alliance Merit," Dossin said. "Everyone present for this meeting will trigger the full award, while warriors of lower grade or rank will lead to smaller payouts."

Her calm face and flat delivery would make it seem she was covering some inconsequential details, but another wave of shocked and excited discussions erupted within the room. The dangers were still there, but the juicy carrot the alliance had dangled before them would make it even harder to pass up on the battle for the war fortress.

"Go!" Zac ordered, and the Acheron Company moved as one.

They appeared on a designated spot outside their barracks, every warrior teeming with conviction and killing intent. They knew the upcoming battles would be grueling, but they'd also entered the Atwood Empire's strongest unit for these kinds of opportunities. Contribution, merit, and treasures were all up for grabs, and those who survived would have taken another step forward on the road of cultivation.

Dossin had already taken up a position in the center of the square, but she didn't give any order to set out. Zac looked around with confusion, wondering if the hotspot was right in their backyard. A spatial collapse would undoubtedly impact the environment, and Zac didn't have to wait long for signs to appear.

A deep rumble soon shook the camp, and one barrack after another crumbled as waves of incredible energy surged through the ground. The only structures surviving were two black pillars Zac assumed were Array Towers.

"We're moving," Vilari suddenly exclaimed, and Zac sharply inhaled upon realizing what was happening.

The commotion wasn't created by spatial turbulence. The whole square slowly rose into the air, casting off all temporary structures connected to it as it rotated. The whole base was actually a supersized flying vessel and not a simple one, judging by the energies involved.

"Get ready. This ship is made for speed and little else," Dossin warned.

There was no time to ask for clarifications before one of the towers shattered with a deafening bang. A sharp tug rocked the whole platform, but the soldiers of the makeshift army were all Late E-grade or stronger. A few had to take a steadying step, but that was about it. Of course, the situation would have been very different without the sleek barrier a few meters above their heads.

Zac was shocked to find they were moving at a speed approaching the levels of an escape treasure, leaving a mile-long streak of spatial chaos in their wake. Their acceleration had been nigh-instantaneous, shattering both space and the atmosphere. Mountains and rivers were reduced to flashes of light as they roared across the continent, but the indistinct landscape suddenly became clear.

Most seemed to think their mad dash had already led to the hotspot, but Zac's brows furrowed as he gazed upon a massive storm formation in the distance. This couldn't possibly be their destination. He could tell space was incredibly solid, to the point their vessel had lost most of its speed. The kind of environment that could endure powerful War Arrays.

This was an ambush.

A stone bell the size of a city block emerged from the vortex, and even the reinforced space buckled from its mere presence. It seemed to be made from emerald-green jade, but it had seen better days. It was covered in cracks, and one section was completely missing. The whole clapper had also fallen out, leaving a rotten rope within.

Its state wasn't good, and there were no cultists around to box them in or control the huge treasure. Still, you'd have to be blind to not realize the bell, damaged or not, was a terrifying treasure. It alone was more than enough to deal with their motley army.

The whole bell reeked of forbidding power, but the most terrifying emanations were released by the lines of engravings covering its surface. The bottom row had been ruined by the missing section, which seemed to prevent a mirrored engraving on the bell's top from activating.

However, the three bands in the middle remained intact and left Zac's soul shuddering. Two were bands of complex scripts Zac didn't recognize, but something about them made Zac's skin crawl. They were sinister but in a different way from the Kan'Tanu's heritage. It felt more like a force of nature than a heretical treasure.

The middle band wasn't another formation but rather an exquisitely depicted scene. The bell was dozens of miles away, but Zac could see every detail for some inexplicable reason. And it filled him with an immense sense of wrongness.

The engraving portrayed a motley procession approaching a small cave entrance. The cave looked completely normal, like something you'd find on any mountainside. Yet it filled Zac with much greater dread than the arcane scripts. It was like a primordial evil lurked within, staring back at him from within the bell.

The procession was comprised of beings of all shapes and sizes, from powerful cultivators to small critters. All different, yet all the same. Everyone was decked in matching robes of finest red silk, even the small mice, and they had joyful smiles plastered on their faces. They could have been a wedding procession, but the celebratory gifts in their hands were their own beating hearts.

Zac had no idea what this kind of treasure would do, but he had a looming feeling they would find out sooner rather than later.

So much for not using large-scale weaponry.