Chapter 195: The Last Chance
The direction of the war exceeded many people's expectations.
In the Starlight Calendar year 1272, during the Book Scroll Moon, the Prosperous Star Empire breached the capital of the Snow Lion Duchy, resulting in its destruction.
In the Starlight Calendar year 1273, during the Winter Zither Moon, the Prosperous Star Empire destroyed the Newman Kingdom.
Later in the same year, during the Xia Long Moon, the Prosperous Star Empire annihilated the Atlan Duchy.
Throughout 1273, the Prosperous Star Empire, fueled by a swift and violent momentum, systematically destroyed its opponents at a breathtaking pace. Even amidst multiple battles on different fronts, it displayed a terrifying power that left many feeling utterly helpless.
By the Starlight Calendar year 1275, more than half of the dozen or so countries that had originally besieged the Prosperous Star Empire had been obliterated. Yet, the Empire showed no signs of decline; instead, it became even fiercer in combat. The scales of victory had clearly tilted toward the Prosperous Star Empire.
Many people were beginning to realize that the Southeast Region continent was on the verge of welcoming its true ruler.
While the war raged on like a wildfire, Su Nan immersed himself in cultivation. Over the past few years, the front lines had yielded more than twenty corpses of Spiderfied Elves, and the Divine Energy extracted from them had caused his Spirit refinement to soar.
By the time the Xia Long Moon arrived, Su Nan's Spirit refinement had already reached 22.62%. According to his original cultivation trajectory, it would have taken at least seventy years to achieve this milestone. However, he had accomplished it in a mere six years.
Recently, the frequency of Spiderfied Elf appearances had diminished. Although he had instructed the Star Alliance to deliberately hold back, the war, which had persisted for over five years, had entirely drained Spider City’s war power.
Now, the military strength of Spider City had drastically declined, rendering it incapable of defending the more than ten city-states under its jurisdiction. Their defensive lines had contracted repeatedly, forcing them to abandon the outer city-states one after another.
Just recently, the Dark Elves completely abandoned their last two subsidiary city-states, and all their forces have retreated into Spider City.
Given this situation, even if the Star Alliance does not actively attack, Spider City will likely lack the strength to counter any further.
It’s probable that before long, Spider City will be unable to continue supplying him with Spiderfied Elves.
"If only we could hold out a little longer; I should have told Xie Man to be a bit gentler."
"Should we halt the offensive and allow Spider City some time to recover?"
Su Nan rarely considered the enemy's perspective. After all, with only Spider City remaining, it wouldn't matter if it was left alone. It could occasionally yield some "tonics."
However, while the idea had merit, the real question was whether the Spider God Queen would cooperate with him.
None of the gods were fools. The strange actions of the Star Alliance over the past few years had likely already aroused their suspicion. Unlike the natives of the Starlight Continent, the gods were very familiar with wizards.
The Spider God Queen might have already guessed that he was collecting Divine Energy.
Shaking his head, Su Nan temporarily set the matter aside.
Apart from Spider City, the battle situation in the Northwest Region was also progressing very smoothly.
The so-called Falling Star Alliance was no match for the Star Alliance. After the newly formed Third Medium Golem Legion was deployed to the battlefield in the Northwest Region, the Falling Star Alliance, already at a disadvantage, showed even more signs of decline. Now they were retreating on the main battlefields, and defeat was only a matter of time.
Everything was developing in a positive direction.
In Spider City, the shadow of war loomed over the city.
The streets were unusually deserted. Occasionally, fully armed Dark Elf troops passed by, all in haste with grave expressions.
As Ta Jiana passed through the Lower City, where the slaves lived, he could still hear screams from many houses.
Clearly, there were Dark Elves in a foul mood tormenting the slaves. Many Dark Elves had taken to releasing their stress in this manner. Given the continuous defeats in recent battles, the pressure on their people was even heavier, causing them to resort to this method more frequently.
As a result, during this recent period, they could see many corpses of slaves being transported out of the city for burning every day.
Recalling the experiences of the past few years, Ta Jiana couldn't help but sigh.
This war may have been a mistake.
The Dark Elves gained absolutely nothing from it.
The Twelve Families of Spider City went from initial excitement and fervor to shock and disbelief, and now they find themselves in a state of bewilderment and frustration.
It serves as a vivid illustration of the saying, "joy turns to sorrow."
Over the years, the Twelve Families have held numerous rituals, giving birth to more than twenty Spiderfied Elves, all of whom met their end at the hands of that mysterious girl-wizard.
Spider City even orchestrated multiple ambushes involving the Spiderfied Elves to take down the girl-wizard, but they failed to kill her; instead, they were utterly annihilated.
After several attempts, Spider City became frightened and deliberately avoided the City State where the girl-wizard resided, opting to attack other targets instead.
Yet, astonishingly, no matter which City State they chose to attack, the girl-wizard would appear on the battlefield shortly after the Spiderfied Elves did!
With each incident, the girl-wizard became a nightmare for Spider City!
She and the Star Alliance stood like a towering wall, unyielding no matter how fiercely they charged against it.
Their strength was terrifying, instilling a sense of despair.
All this war has brought to Spider City is a sharp decline in population.
Some were casualties of the war with the Star Alliance, while a considerable number were sacrifices made during the rituals.
Many of their kin willingly gave their lives, becoming part of the Spiderfied Elves.
Unfortunately, these sacrifices ultimately proved useless, bringing no victory to Spider City.
Ta Jiana still couldn't perceive even the faintest glimmer of hope in defeating the Star Alliance.
"Ta Jiana!"
A voice broke through Ta Jiana's spiraling thoughts. She turned and saw Vinya striding toward her, a puzzled expression in her eyes.
"What were you so deeply lost in thought about? I've called you several times."
"It's nothing." Ta Jiana shook her head. Noticing Vinya's travel-worn appearance, she asked, "Did you just return from outside?"
Vinya nodded. "The Martial Arts Chief needed a few skilled hands to investigate the situation with the Star Alliance, so I volunteered."
"Did you uncover anything?"
“No.” Vinya shook his head, his expression darkening. “Those Spider Puppets are too troublesome. Even I can’t sense their presence. We cannot get too close.”
Hearing this, Ta Jiana wore a worried expression.
Dark Elves were renowned for their assassinations and stealth, with very few creatures able to contend with them in the shadows. However, the Twin Blade Spiders of the Star Alliance were an exception.
These Puppets lacked a soul aura and could suppress their life force to an extremely faint level. When lying motionless in the darkness, even Dark Elves found them difficult to detect.
Moreover, they moved at incredible speeds, surging effortlessly through the complex terrain of the Underworld. It could be said that they were even better suited for scouting than the Dark Elves themselves.
Initially, the Dark Elves had underestimated the strength of the Twin Blade Spiders and suffered numerous losses while gathering intelligence. Many well-trained Dark Elf scouts met their end beneath the sharp limbs of the Twin Blade Spiders.
Now, no Dark Elf scout dared approach the territory of the Star Alliance. No one knew how many Twin Blade Spiders lurked in the shadows.
“Star Alliance has taken control of the two City States we retreated from, and now Spider City is completely surrounded,” Vinya said, his tone heavy and tinged with confusion.
“Ta Jiana, do you think we can win?”
Ta Jiana pursed her lips and replied softly, “Spider City still has the protection of the God Queen.”
Mentioning the God Queen instantly invigorated Vinya's spirit; he nodded firmly. “That’s right, we have the protection of the God Queen. The God Queen is omnipotent!”
Ta Jiana forced a smile, though she alone knew the insincerity behind her words. If the God Queen were truly omnipotent, Spider City would not have fallen into such dire straits.
“By the way, the Matriarch Meeting is being held today, right?” Ta Jiana changed the subject.
Vinya nodded, glancing toward the Central Temple. “It should be underway now.”
Each of the Twelve Families of Spider City had their own family temple, and communication between them was scarce. However, since the God Queen issued her divine edict six years ago, the Twelve Families had put aside their infighting and united against outside threats, pooling the resources of the entire city to construct a Central Temple.
The scale of the New Temple surpassed that of any single family temple.
In addition to housing the enshrined statue of a goddess, it also served as a venue for the Twelve Families to discuss crucial matters.
At that very moment, the Council Hall within the Central Temple was filled with the Matriarchs of the Twelve Families.
Twelve women, each possessing a unique figure and captivating beauty, sat around a long table. Their expressions varied from indifferent to somber, and all remained silent.
A heavy atmosphere permeated every corner of the hall.
After a long while, the Matriarch from the first family of Spider City, seated at the head of the table, finally broke the silence.
"The Star Alliance is closing in aggressively. Spider City is now completely surrounded by the Golem Legion. Does anyone have a viable solution?"
Silence fell once more.
Finally, the Matriarch of the Auroria Family spoke up.
"If we don't eliminate that Wizard, we won't be able to mount any counterattacks."
Everyone remained silent, exchanging looks without a word.
They all acknowledged this truth, but no one could propose a viable plan.
Even the Spiderfied Elf was no match for that young Wizard—what could they possibly do?
If they could have addressed the issue, they would have taken action in the past five years.
"I'm beginning to wonder if the Star Alliance is secretly plotting something," the Matriarch of the Valedury Family suddenly said. "Their actions have been strange these past few years. It feels like they haven't been going all out and have intentionally let us remain unharmed."
The hall fell silent.
The Matriarchs exchanged glances.
The Philia Matriarch scoffed. "You're giving the Star Alliance too much credit!"
The Varaduray Matriarch shot her a cold glare. "I'm merely stating the facts."
"I believe it is your Valedury Family that fears battle and is deliberately conserving your strength. When we were defending Ulu City, your family fled first, causing the entire defense line to collapse. That’s why Ulu City fell into the hands of the Star Alliance!"
"That was just an accident. I've already turned the commander in charge into spider food afterward. What more do you want?"
"You..."
"Enough!"
The Lesta Matriarch, seated at the head of the table, intervened at the perfect moment, her eyes coldly sweeping over the two of them.
"Now is the time to unite. Put aside your usual grievances with one another for now. Or do you wish to defy the God Queen's Edict?"
As Lesta Matriarch invoked the name of the God Queen, the expressions of Philia Matriarch and Valeduri Matriarch changed simultaneously. They exchanged glares before falling into a tense silence.
Lesta Matriarch ignored them, her gaze sweeping around the room as she spoke in a grave tone, "After over twelve hundred years, the Dark Elf Clan has finally managed to regain the God Queen's attention. This is a hard-won opportunity!"
"We must fulfill the God Queen's Edict to once again receive Her favor!"
"If we fail and lose the God Queen's protection, Spider City won't be able to withstand the Star Alliance’s onslaught much longer!"
As Lesta spoke, the expressions of the Matriarchs grew increasingly solemn.
They understood the gravity of the situation.
Spider City was undoubtedly facing a life-or-death moment.
Once the God Queen turned her gaze away from the Dark Elves, Spider City, without her protection, would be utterly incapable of resisting the Star Alliance.
"But what should we do?" Oroli Matriarch asked, her brow furrowing.
"Conduct a larger ritual!" Lesta Matriarch replied without hesitation. "We need more Spiderfied Elves!"
Everyone frowned in unison.
The birth ritual of the Spiderfied Elf required not only Dark Elves as sacrifices but also a significant number of spider species.
However, in recent years, due to the rituals conducted, nearly all of the spider species raised by Spider City had been exhausted.
The newest batch of spider species had only just hatched and still needed time to mature.
Lesta Matriarch had naturally anticipated this. She spoke with a deep voice, “We will use a secret method to accelerate the growth of the spider species. That batch of slaves we brought over from the other City States is taking up too much space anyway; they can serve as fertilizer.”
Realization flashed in Oroli Matriarch's eyes.
Now it made sense why Lesta Matriarch had insisted on bringing along the cumbersome slaves from two City States; she was preparing for this very moment.
The others couldn’t think of a better solution and were about to agree to Lesta Matriarch's proposal.
But just then, their expressions shifted simultaneously as they looked toward a certain direction outside the Council Hall.
It was the location of the God Queen statue.
The next instant, a spider phantom materialized out of thin air in the void.
"God Queen!"
The twelve Matriarchs knelt on the ground in unison, their faces displaying respect and devotion.
Immediately after, a voice echoed in the minds of everyone present.
The content of the voice brought expressions of shock and bewilderment to the twelve Matriarchs. However, they quickly composed themselves, bowing their heads humbly to the ground.
"Great God Queen, your Edict is our mission!"
The spider phantom above the Council Hall slowly faded away.
The twelve Matriarchs remained in their kneeling position for some time before gradually rising to their feet.
"You all heard the God Queen's Edict."
Lesta Matriarch's face remained hidden in the shadows outside the firelight, making her expression unreadable.
"The God Queen is very displeased with our previous performance; now is our chance to make amends."
Philia Matriarch was the first to declare, "The Feliers are willing to provide one hundred of our most loyal Dark Elf warriors!"
Seeing this, the other ten Matriarchs, despite their somber expressions, voiced their support as well.
Soon, the Matriarch Meeting reached an agreement.
Following this, the twelve individuals departed, swiftly heading to their respective families to begin making arrangements.
They all understood that this would be Spider City's final chance!
Comments