The holographic image projected by the Mana Net terminal flashed, creating a wonderful atmosphere of fantasy and technology in the room after dusk. Gwen sat in front of the communicator, listening carefully to Kamel's report from the laboratory at the back.
"… Pitman has confirmed that the high-ranking Crystal Cluster Giants are transformed from the clerics of the Finality Order. We can't rule out the possibility that there will be 'commanders' transformed from other Extraordinary individuals in the future, but from the looks of it, the fanatical believers of the Finality Order are the core of the Crystal Cluster Army …
"The Crystal Cluster Giants transformed from ordinary people have a smaller body size and lower strength. Their thinking ability, or what is left of their rationality, requires the maintenance of superior individuals. There is a wonderful dependence between superior Crystal Cluster Giants and inferior Crystal Cluster Giants. The inferior Crystal Cluster Giants can think, but their thinking is not complete …" "That's right.
"Pitman and I have conjectured that the unique connection of the crystal giants means that they have a certain degree of 'telepathy'. Commander-level crystal giants may be able to control nearby units through telepathy, or perceive the state of the crystal army in the distance, but this kind of telepathy is not very clear and will weaken dramatically with distance. This is the conclusion made after several isolated and controlled experiments.
"After losing their commander, the inferior crystal giants will quickly weaken and lose their rationality, degenerating into monsters that completely rely on instinct. It will take about an hour for them to completely weaken, and their rationality will cease from the beginning …"
Gwen listened to Kamel's report without missing a word, frowning and relaxing occasionally.
Thanks to the researchers at the back, the soldiers fighting on the frontline did not have to face the unknown enemy. As more and more infected samples were sent to the rear, and as Kamel unlocked his memories from the Gondor era, the various characteristics of the Abomination Infected were finally unveiled to the world.
Beside Gawain, Knight Philip, who was listening to the conversation, had a thoughtful expression on his face. "A certain degree of telepathy … No wonder they were able to organize a large-scale pursuit of Solderlin in such a short period of time, and maintain such a high level of organization even without regular scouts and messengers …"
Gwen looked at Knight, who was still young but had become a mature general. "What do you think?"
"The telepathic ability of the Crystal Cluster is a tricky advantage for us. It means that the speed of information flow on a small battlefield is no worse than ours. It may even be faster," Philip said. "But it is clear that their telepathic ability is also limited. The command system established by them is relatively chaotic and vague. It is not impossible to deal with them. Also, I feel that compared to the advantage of telepathy, the huge loopholes in their organizational structure are more important. "
Gwen nodded slightly. "As long as the command node is destroyed, they will quickly collapse. Irrational monsters are much easier to deal with than organized soldiers."
"I will work out a feasible tactic with the adjutant, staff officers, and think tanks," Philip said with a serious face. "If it works, our progress will definitely be further accelerated."
Gwen could not help but feel a little emotional. Without Byron's jesting, Philip's brain efficiency in coming up with tactics had obviously skyrocketed. Perhaps he had saved the thread of the supporting actor to come up with tactics …
Then Kamel continued to report the results of the research. "In addition, we have observed and compared the magic reaction and erosion rate of the Abomination carriers and the mutants. We have a preliminary conclusion about the 'ritual power' that caused them to mutate from carriers to mutants. It has something to do with divine interference."
Gwen took a soft breath. "So it is the power of the gods …"
"I found activated Abomination Factors in the infected who had completely mutated into Crystal Cluster Giants. Although I could not completely isolate them due to the limitations of the equipment, I can tell that they have been triggered. Just like how the ancient Kingdom of Gondor extracted the flesh and power of Amoun the Giant Deer to create the first generation of Abominations, the Doomsday Cult also needs their own 'energy source' to reactivate the Abomination Factors that had become recessive hereditary factors. So far, while we have not found any direct evidence, we can theorize that the Doomsday Cult has some sort of divine power in their hands, or a substitute for the divine power … "
Gwen's face was calm, and he was not surprised at all.
Long before the outbreak of this disaster, he had already realized that the Doomsday Cult was brewing some sort of shocking conspiracy behind the scenes, and had a vague guess that it had something to do with the 'gods'. After all, the fall of the three dark cults was obviously inextricably linked to the divine realm, and it was not surprising that their ultimate target was the gods.
Thereafter, Gawain had a conversation with Tyr, where the siren who was experienced in eating and cooking in the God-Devouring Domain revealed information that confirmed his guesses. For this reason, Gawain even requested Tyr to make some preparations in advance to deal with the possible existence of a terrifying conspiracy involving the gods.
At this moment, Kamel's research finally provided some evidence: the Doomsday Cult had dragged the 'gods' into this battle.
This put a lot of pressure on Gwen, but he did not despair because of it.
The power of the gods was terrifying to mortals, and if it was really an angry true god descending, perhaps Cecil would not be able to resist, but could the Doomsday Cult get a true god to help in this battle? Obviously not. At most, they would have found something similar to Amoun the Giant Deer's flesh and activated a part of it, or used a forbidden artifact to create a powerful monster with part of the divine. Regardless of the possibility, since it was created by the cultists using human spells, it was definitely not impossible to destroy.
Something that even the cultists could control … should at least have a HP bar?
Even if the Doomsday Cult had created a living 'artificial god' that Cecil's cannons could not destroy, they still had Tyre and the sirens behind her to help. Those deep-sea idlers might not be able to deal with a true god (although they usually ate sashimi of the Lord of Storms all day long, they ate corpses that would not resist), but as the Fallen Empire's eldest daughter who had mastered advanced technology, they would have no problem dealing with a 'skewered' fake.
Furthermore, Gwen had seen the battle report of the 'Deicide Fleet', and was an atheist in his previous life. He might be nervous or cautious when facing problems in the realm of the gods, but he would always have some leeway — although at the current stage, that leeway might just be blind confidence.
But at least it was confidence.
Gwen was curious about Philip's thoughts after knowing that the Doomsday Cult might have a taboo power.
"I don't have any thoughts," the young Knight said solemnly after hearing Gwen's question. "It is a knight's duty to obey the orders of the monarch, and it is also a knight's duty to protect the territory and the people. Under this premise, I only care about where the enemy is, not who the enemy is."
Gwen was a little surprised by this answer. He looked at Philip from head to toe, and felt that the young man's fearlessness was a little unreal. "Even if the enemy is a god, or an evil god, or something beyond human understanding?"
"It's the same." Philip nodded. "It doesn't matter who I charge at, the only difference is whether I can come back or not."
Gwen was dumbfounded. Two seconds later, he shook his head. "I thought you would at least be a little scared."
Philip's expression was a little weird when he heard Gwen's words. He then lowered his head and thought for a moment, and said awkwardly, "Actually, I am a little scared …"
"Oh?"
"So when it comes to that kind of battle, I will pull down my mask to prevent others from seeing my lips trembling. I will tie my weapon to my hand to prevent it from falling out. But I don't think I need to write a will. I don't have a wife, children, or any other relatives. The property under my name can be returned to the duchy directly …"
This answer was very real in an instant.
Looking at the young Knight's serious face, Gwen suddenly wanted to press his hand to his forehead. "I think I can understand why Byron is so keen on bickering with you …"
Philip reacted for a moment, but he did not get it. "… Huh?"
"All in all, you don't have to think about dying generously in advance. We are fighting a war, not going to die. No one is going to die." Gwen patted Philip on the shoulder. "Go arrange your tactical meeting. We have to enter the Maple area as soon as possible. If we can open this passage as soon as possible, maybe there is still hope for the last remnants of the Royal Army."
Philip left the barracks, and after a final report on the operation of the laboratory, Kamel also left the communication channel.
Gwen sat at the table. In the process of sorting out his thoughts, his eyes swept over a message on the table sent by Amber.
"The situation in the Eastern Region has deteriorated. The Iron Throne has set off — Heti."
"It's good that your situation has deteriorated …" Gwen sighed softly. "Saves me a lot of trouble."
…
Ever since the mutation occurred, the entire Eastern Army was swallowed in a thick fog. The entire area west of Solin Castle was cut off, and there was no news from the Duke of the Eastern Region and Prince Edmund. The order of the entire Eastern Region quickly slipped into the abyss of chaos and disorder.
Rumors spread everywhere, and no one could control them. The local nobles who stayed in the Eastern Region smelled something terrible, but no one had the ability to control the entire situation or restrain the order of the Eastern Region. The news of the army's annihilation was rampant. The small families were the first to lose control, followed by the nobles. Chaos spread from the west to the east. The Eastern Region, which was originally under the joint control of Prince Edmund and Duke Loren, showed signs of falling apart. What made the situation worse was the terrible news from the border area between the Western Region and the Divine Spirit Plains.
An army of monsters stood up from the remains of the Eastern Army and were wandering in the Divine Spirit Plains.
Those monsters did not seem to have put their attention on the Eastern Region. Their target should be the Saint Sunils further north. However, the existence of the monster army itself destroyed the last trace of restraint that allowed the nobles of the Eastern Region to maintain basic order.
The nobles on the ground quickly made the most normal response in this era. They gathered their vassals, sealed the borders of their territories, and returned to a state of separation overnight. Then, in the tense confrontation, vigilance against the monsters, and vigilance against each other, the situation of the entire region became as tense as a pot of oil.
In such a situation, the White Sands Mining Company, which was the bridgehead of the Cecil Duchy, sent vital information to the territory.
A war machine that had just completed all the technical checks and tests in the Gilen Region responded to this information and rushed to the Eastern Region.
A path filled with magic power extended across the land, and a continuous magic shield shrouded the entire track. Accompanied by the low rumble of steel wheels and magic gears, a huge train was solemnly driving into the White Sand Mining Area.
In the orange-red sunset, the body of the train, which was covered in solid steel armor, flashed coldly. The large railguns of the train and the densely arranged gun turrets shone in the sunset. Its carriage was filled with fully armed soldiers and heavily armored White Knight, and its carriage chassis was fixed with neat rows of chariots and towed howitzers. It was like a fully armed steel castle, or even a walking fortress wall, heavy and full of majesty.
Holme, the general manager of the White Sands Mining Company, stood on the tower beside the train station and quietly watched this miracle of the magic industry, the treasure of engineering, the symbol of Cecil's power.
Armored train, Iron Throne.
Twenty minutes later, Holme stood on the platform that was usually used to load and unload ores and heavy machinery. He saw the middle-aged Knight, who was commanding the Iron Throne, wearing black magic armor, with deep eyes and a face full of vicissitudes.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Sir Maryland."
"Please don't call me Sir." The middle-aged Knight smiled and frankly reached out to shake Holme's hand. "That was the conferment of the Moen Royal Family. It's already in the past."
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