Chapter 462: Chapter 452: Aftermath

The east was faintly white, and the morning light fell on the already unrecognizable mouth of the valley.

When the giant Puki self-destructed, its destructive power swept through the gorge, consuming most of the valley entrance. The explosion’s shockwave collapsed the rock walls on both sides of the valley entrance.

The once narrow and treacherous valley mouth had turned into a wasteland made up of broken rocks and soil, with the rock walls on both sides leaning inwards to block this only opening. The fragile support points made it prone to a secondary collapse at any moment.

In the crevices between the rubble, pieces of shattered armor and broken weapons were faintly visible, along with patches of congealed, blackened bloodstains.

A large number of Demon Race soldiers, under the harsh command of Sigmund’s adjutant, were digging in this wasteland. These were the rear troops who couldn’t rush in due to the narrow entrance, and they had instead become the only remaining combat force.

Besides them, some Demons with a bit of power who were positioned further back also managed to escape, as well as those Blood Race elites who had been fighting on the aerial walkways. Most of them successfully returned after the explosion.

But the biggest problem was… Sigmund was buried inside.

“Dig what dig, if he’s not dead he’ll crawl out himself. If he’s dead you won’t dig him up anyway.” Leaving this sentence behind, Virelis took her remnants and left; none of her troll troops had managed to escape, and she was in a rage.

However, Sigmund’s adjutant could never give up. He could only continue organizing people to dig in that pile of rubble.

But the fact was, as Virelis said, that digging was futile.

The not-dead Sigmund crawled out on his own.

A ruin made of stacked giant rocks suddenly exploded from within, with stones and dust shooting out in all directions!

Sigmund’s figure emerged from it.

At this moment, he was in the worst state possible.

The enchanted armor that once symbolized status and power was now twisted and deformed, hanging on him like scrap metal that had been ravaged by a great force.

His once meticulously groomed silver hair was now covered in dust, falling messily to obscure half of his pale, chubby face.

He stood up straight, breathing slightly, and although his posture seemed weak, the dangerous aura emanating from him caused all the Demon Race soldiers around to involuntarily take half a step back, bowing their heads in awe.

Only the adjutant was the first to rush forward, his voice trembling slightly with excitement: “My lord! You’re alright… that’s great!”

Sigmund’s eyes slowly moved to him, the crimson pupils glinting through the gaps in his disheveled silver hair, his voice sounding very calm: “What are the casualty reports?”

“The vanguard… was completely wiped out. The middle division also suffered heavy losses, barely able to form a complete unit. Only the rear troops… remain relatively intact…” The adjutant’s report carried a tone of sorrow, as capturing the High Castle Fortress had not cost as much.

The adjutant spoke with grief, lamenting that not even the capture of High Castle Fortress had seen such losses.

Sigmund, covered in dust, merely listened expressionlessly to the grim casualty report, glancing back at the collapsed valley entrance: “Set off, return to High Castle Fortress.”

“What about… Prince?” The adjutant hesitated slightly.

“It’s nothing but enduring some punishment.” Sigmund said, “With our current strength, even if we rushed to participate in the Three Mountains City battle, it would be of no use.”

What the adjutant did not know was that Sigmund’s own condition was far worse than it appeared.

The power within him was in turmoil, and the backlash of a dark curse throbbed quietly. More importantly…

There were too many questions that needed to be clarified.

Why were those storm elements being driven? What secrets did that Puki, which made his roommate unusually excited, actually hide? And that enigmatic roommate who always spoke in vague riddles, now rambling on about “he who possesses the Puki shall rule the world”…

Logically speaking, with his roommate now cohabiting the same body, with life and death interconnected, it would be almost impossible for either side to make secret moves against the other.

But still, there were many things that were hard to explain.

Sigmund had had enough of this feeling of being kept in the dark. He had to start investigating all of this.

But the biggest problem was, how was he going to conduct this investigation without his body-sharing roommate finding out?

…

The valley had become a complete disaster zone, and the surviving humans were all busy.

“Under Inanna’s command, the healing potions are already depleted, and the healers who accompanied us have long been exhausted… many of the severely wounded are likely…”

“Don’t give up! Use mycelium symbiosis! Try to save their lives!”

“Commander, numerous cracks have been discovered near the rock walls at the valley entrance. It’s very unstable and could collapse again at any moment!”

“Relocate the entire camp further back. Now, we no longer need to hold that valley entrance at all costs.”

“Lady Inanna, and food supplies also…”

Alama had an arm severely injured and was unconscious, while Lorenzo was heavily wounded with exhausted magic power. Almost no one knew how he managed to barely escape from Virelis, who was blinded by rage, with his magic staff broken. The warriors on the walkways suffered almost complete casualties in this battle.

Now, in the valley, the one with the highest status and most able to unite people was none other than Inanna.

Not only was she the commander who brought reinforcements, she was Alama’s only daughter, the legitimate heir to the Duke’s title, and the hero who single-handedly summoned the giant Puki, turning the tide of the battle and pulling everyone back from the brink of annihilation.

Therefore, even if Inanna didn’t actively step forward to give orders, all decisions naturally gathered around her, seeking her opinion, and she was already being regarded as the temporary leader.

For this reason, Lin Jun specially pulled Hunting and Xing Huo into the Fungal Network as her “inner advisory group”, quietly providing Inanna with guidance through the Fungal Network. So far, it seemed to be working well.

As for Lin Jun herself, she was completely immersed in continuously producing Pukis to join the escort team, ensuring that Knight Puki could successfully carry the Sunstone Fragment back to the Underground City.

In reality, if no one disturbed her, Inanna wanted to hide away and have a good cry.

Those Knight Pukis who lived with her day and night, protecting her and accompanying her, had sacrificed themselves one by one in front of her for her and her father.

And now, her father lay there heavily injured…

Gravely injured…

She instinctively picked up a passing ordinary Puki, gently squeezing its cap to release spores.

She cradled this Puki, walking into the tent where Alama was placed. Coming to the bedside, she looked at her father’s pale and peaceful profile and held up the Puki she had in her arms, trying to bring it closer to her father…

“For now… I have no plans to become a Puki Master.” A weak yet clear voice spoke up. Unbeknownst to her, Alama had already opened his eyes, quietly watching his daughter with a complex gaze.

“Stubborn…” Inanna muttered softly, retracting the Puki, though her eyes were slightly red.

“Perhaps,” Alama did not argue, merely asking softly, “Now, how are things outside?”

Inanna gave a rough account of the camp’s situation, the personnel casualties, and subsequent arrangements.

“What about the Sunstone?” Alama asked.

Inanna shook her head, “After the explosion, it was buried at the valley entrance. We haven’t had a chance to dig it out yet.”

Upon hearing the news of the Sunstone’s temporary loss, Alama showed neither agitation nor regret.

In his mind, the mere fact that so many people could still survive in the valley was a miracle in itself.

His gaze fell on his daughter, filled with mixed feelings of relief, pride, and an ineffable trace of worry.

Ultimately, he gently encouraged, “You’ve done very well… my child. I will need to rest for a while longer. These coming days will be hard on you, but go forth with confidence. Come to me if any problems arise.”

“Mm!” Inanna nodded heavily, holding the Puki in her arms even tighter.

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