Chapter 211: Death of the Grand Duke?

"The three Dragon Kings of the Darkness City!" Bachor gazed at the trio of monarchs before him, finally grasping the reason behind the black dragon's unwavering confidence. Perhaps, right from the start, this had been the trap laid by the Demon King. The emergence of a Dragon King in the Chaos Forest was shocking and sensational in itself. No one could have anticipated it, let alone three Dragon Kings.

If he had known that the Chaos Forest harbored not one but three monarchs, Grand Duke Bachor would never have been so reckless as to venture onto the front lines. With his Level 6 monarch's strength, he could have dealt with three Level 5 monarchs in battle. But were these monarchs ordinary? No, they were not. They were not just monarchs; they were monarchs of the dragon-kind.

The leading black dragon - a true dragon aside, there were two others, a Golden Diamond Earth Drake and the other an Inferno Seven-Headed Drake. Both hailed from the earth drake and sky drake lineages respectively. Although their statuses were not as high as the ones from the true dragon lineage, they were still extraordinary beings, equal to Abyssal Dragons in rarity. Their immense racial talents, robust lifeforce, and longevity endowed them with power surpassing other monarchs of the same level. If he was against the domains of ordinary Level 5 monarchs, the combined might of three such domains would have been insufficient to suppress the asura domain.

However, at this moment, Bachor's domain had crumbled, stripping him of control over the battlefield. Li Si's Sacrificial Domain now reigned supreme, ensnaring anyone within its boundaries. Bachor was left helpless, he could not escape without dismantling this powerful domain.

Yet, Li Si's domain was unique among the abilities wielded by other monarchs. It lacked the typical effects of sealing, suppression or damage effects, seeming to only trap enemies within the domain without any apparent utility.

However, it was far from simple. Bachor had discerned the true potency of this priest's domain. Its effect was straightforward: within this expansive sacrificial ground, every unit slain, whether ally or foe, was converted into a sacrificial offering. The more lives sacrificed, the stronger the domain became. Li Si's power surged with each casualty. In just a few seconds, the altar's energy had become terrifying.

Li Si could harness the altar's might, employing various offensive and defensive strategies, and even offering support such as healing the Dark Dragon King's wounds. At this point, the Dark Dragon King had nearly fully recovered. It was crucial to note that prior to this, he had sustained severe injuries. Common healing methods were ineffective against such mighty creatures. Once wounded, beings of this magnitude found it increasingly challenging to regenerate. To achieve such swift recovery was mind-boggling, an unheard-of feat.

Bachor's lifespan was several times longer than that of an ordinary person. He had lived for over a hundred years, yet he had never witnessed such a potent, efficient, and downright terrifying rate of recovery in his entire life.

In a certain sense, Li Si's domain was even more challenging to deal with than those of Long Yi and Zhang San. As long as the altar's energy was not completely depleted, it was almost impossible for beings of the same level to defeat him. Even those with higher ranks would find him formidable. The sacrificial domain's effects were multifaceted. By gathering a sufficient amount of energy, it could provide limitless enhancements, strengthening, healing, and recovery for oneself and allies. In small-scale or one-on-one combat situations, this domain had little value. However, in large-scale battles, especially in massive wars, Li Si's potential was immeasurable.

Not only Li Si but also Zhang San was invaluable in such situations. Zhang San had activated various commanding auras, strengthening the draconian guards and reinforcing the troops. His skills could enhance others while empowering himself. He was already bolstered by the temple's divine blessings, and now, with the commanding aura, his strength had more than doubled from normal circumstances.

Among the Darkness City's three Dragon Kings, the Dark Dragon King stood out due to his abyssal dragon abilities, mastery of dark and undead spells, and overall combat prowess. In contrast, Zhang San was the premier commander, while Li Si acted as the ultimate support. When these three joined forces on the battlefield, their synergy was far beyond a mere sum of their individual abilities. Bachor would have preferred to face six Level 5 monarchs rather than engage in battle with the formidable trio of the Darkness City Dragon Kings. However, he had no other choice.

In the next moment, the battle erupted. The entire space was shrouded in the atmosphere of war. All the spectators on the scene were astonished by the magnitude of this battle. Bachor, the Grand Duke of the Thunder Empire's southern border, was undoubtedly the empire's most formidable guardian in the south. Such a figure held a deterrent value far greater than his practical combat abilities.

Precisely because of this, he would never easily intervene in conflicts. But now, Bachor not only intervened but was also suppressed by the combined might of the Darkness City Dragon Kings trio!

Yes, suppressed! No matter how powerful Bachor was, facing three Dragon Kings with nearly infinite HP, MP, and various buffs, he was destined to struggle!

"For the federation!"

"For the federation!"

"For the federation!"

Federal leaders like Marilyn, Jin Kui, and Bai Jin were filled with overwhelming excitement. It was unbelievable! The imperial forces, several times larger in number, were held back by the Chaos Federation! The Chaos Federation had a substantial number of draconian priests and elven mages for healing. Currently, their casualties were not very severe. On the other hand, the imperial forces were rapidly decimated under the firepower of the supreme magitek citadel. They were mowed down like grass. The balance of victory was completely tilted! The imperial coalition forces could no longer hold on. From the inside out, from top to bottom, everything was in chaos.

......

In the Darkness City, Zhang Nu remained calm and composed. The frontline battle was incredibly intense, as evident from the continuous flood of information cascading down like a waterfall in the player logs.

[You've slain a Level 6 Hero. Hero's soul +1! Skill stone +3!]

The variety of troop types was overwhelming, ranging from imperial soldiers of various ranks to Hero factions, knight orders, adventurers, mercenaries, church officials, and nobles. The sheer volume of kill notifications was staggering. Zhang Nu simply did not have the energy to check them all.

Zhang Nu took a rough glance at the total earnings. Since the battle began until now, which was only half a day, his income had surpassed a billion gold! This was incredibly astonishing. War, for a Demon King, was indeed a money-making machine. With a battle of such a large scale, it would not end immediately, thus the numbers were still steadily rising.

Leaving aside other sources of income, just considering the amount of Heroes involved was jaw-dropping. There were far more participating Heroes than he had imagined. When he thought about it, he realized that prominent figures like the mercenary guild leader, Xiang Nanfeng, and the Radiant High Priest, Hong Xia, would bring along many powerful Hero followers. In addition to them, there were undoubtedly numerous Heroes mingling among the mercenaries, adventurers, and imperial army. Everyone wanted to try their luck, unaware that they were all walking into a death trap.

Up to this point, Zhang Nu had killed 2 Level 6 Heroes, 3 Level 5 Heroes, 38 Level 4 Heroes, 243 Level 3 Heroes, and 512 Level 2 Heroes. Besides acquiring a large number of souls, he had collected at least 200 skill stones. Among these, most were ordinary C-rank ones. B-rank skill stones accounted for less than a tenth, and there were only 8 A-rank skill stones.

Zhang Nu glanced at them and selected two for his personal use.

[Skill Stone: Radiant Healing] This was an A-rank skill with a wide-ranging group healing effect. It might not be directly useful for Zhang Nu, but lacking this kind of ability, he decided to learn it.

[Skill Stone: Sword Forming Technique] Despite its unassuming name, this was an extremely advanced and powerful martial skill, originating from Xiang Nanfeng. The Sword Forming Technique was quite simple in concept - it could transform energy into sword blades. This energy encompassed any tangible form of energy, including Qi, MP, elemental energy, and more. This was how Xiang Nanfeng's renowned weapon, the flame sword, was created. He wielded a massive flame sword, each strike incredibly potent and capable of harming even a Dragon King. Combined with the radiant divine art's buff, it became nearly lethal. Zhang Nu decided to learn this ability.

After using the two skill stones, Zhang Nu attempted to activate the Sword Forming Technique. Dragon flames condensed within his right hand, forming a scorching flame sword. Countless lightning bolts gathered in his left hand, creating a dazzling thunder sword.

"Interesting," Zhang Nu muttered to himself. He raised his hands and waved them a couple of times. The terrifying energy caused the air to burst, even distorting space slightly. With a thought, he released the skill. The dual swords made of flames and lightning disappeared from his hands. This skill could reduce energy consumption, increase energy density, and thus enhance his melee capabilities. For a Demon King, it provided a slight boost.

After glancing at the amount of gold in hand, Zhang Nu realized that there might be significant losses in this battle. He felt it was necessary to quickly build the Resurrection Altar.

50 million gold was a trivial matter for Zhang Nu. The soul requirement was not a big problem either. After this battle, activating his second Level 5 talent would also be no issue at all. Any surplus souls could be used to construct the Resurrection Altar. The main problem lay in the gems requirement.

The resurrection altar required a significant number of soul gems and spirit gems. Unfortunately, these gems were quite expensive. If he solely relied on purchasing them, it would cost at least 150 million gold or more to fill the gap.

After this war ended, his resources would be much more abundant. It might be possible to gather this sum. However, the amount was so huge that it was hard not to feel physical pain from it. Zhang Nu decided to simultaneously buy gems with gold and exchange goods for them. In the end, he would figure out a way to obtain some through dungeons or other means.

The following morning, the Kolo battle came to an end. A priest returned to report, his voice trembling with excitement, "My master, we successfully defeated the imperial army. The three Dragon Kings killed Grand Duke Bachor!"

"What?" Zhang Nu was astonished. Grand Duke Bachor was dead?

The priest continued, "Bachor joined the battle but was trapped by the three Dragon Kings. They fought fiercely for around two thousand rounds, and in the end, Bachor was defeated!"

"Are you sure?" Zhang Nu asked.

"His corpse is in Kolo right now," the priest replied.

This seemed odd! Zhang Nu opened the player interface but found no notification of the Grand Duke's death. That meant Bachor probably had not died yet, or at least he had not been completely killed. With these thoughts in mind, Zhang Nu decided to go and check out the situation for himself."