Chapter 146: As the storm approaches

Late at night, Rosalia held the black crow and casually chose a large tree, curling up along one of its thick branches. The chains of the Greatsword of Gluttony were woven together into a nest that resembled a bird’s nest.

Even corrupted beings needed rest—a chance to empty their minds. If she thought for too long, she would lose control of herself and start saying ridiculous things.

“Corruption… my kind…”

A cold female voice echoed beside her ear.

Rosalia’s eyes snapped open. The Greatsword of Gluttony instantly appeared in her hand. Her figure flashed as she shifted positions in a blink, her vigilant gaze sweeping the surroundings.

“What was that sound? Was it a hallucination?” Rosalia patted her head.

Yet the voice issued another command.

“Creatures of the Nightfall Domain, gather at Starnight City.”

“Hm?”

Whose public channel mic wasn’t turned off?

“Creatures of the Nightfall Domain, gather at Starnight City.”

Rosalia frowned and looked around again. The corrupted corpses that had been wandering aimlessly suddenly seemed to power on. Roaring, they began running in large strides toward Starnight City.

“This is bad. A corrupted Divine Chosen is controlling them. They must be targeting the territory. Unfortunately, I don’t have the ability to command corrupted corpses.”

Rosalia gritted her teeth. Even before she had been contracted, she had never been able to control them.

Casually shattering a corrupted corpse that rushed toward her, Rosalia shook the black crow twice.

“Phield, wake up. The situation has changed.”

Seeing no reaction from the crow, Rosalia directly injected divine power, forcibly activating the empathic magic.

In an extremely quiet voice, Rosalia whispered, “If you don’t reply within three seconds, you’ll become my foot slave.”

Rosalia looked smug as hell. Hahaha, he definitely can’t hear that. Once three seconds pass, I’ll shout louder.

“Why are you looking for me?”

Phield jolted awake in fright, groggily opening his eyes but still muttering a reply.

“If you don’t get some rest, you’re really going to turn into an idiot.”

“Hmph. This lady is perfectly awake right now. A corrupted Divine Chosen is summoning the corrupted corpses. You should prepare in advance.” Rosalia pouted. “I’m heading back now to defend the territory. The enemy should be a commander-type, probably around the same level as me.”

Hearing this, all traces of sleep vanished from Phield. He shot upright in bed.

“What’s going on?”

This was way too sudden.

“Most likely there’s a vacant ecological niche in the Nightfall Domain. After Acorn was killed, another corrupted Divine Chosen from somewhere else occupied the Nightfall Domain and is now subjugating the corrupted creatures here. The good news is that her control is limited.”

Rosalia could clearly see a first-tier corrupted creature simply shake its head before wandering off on its own.

“Alright, I understand. Be careful.”

Once corrupted corpses accumulated in large numbers, the destruction they could bring to the territory would be fatal.

“Sigh… life is unpredictable. This came completely out of nowhere. I’d only just enjoyed a few peaceful days of farming.” Phield shook his head as he casually threw on an outer coat and shouted, “Ashina, assemble the army.”

The next day, Phield mobilized the war-ready forces of the Nightfall Domain.

Clang—

The heavy toll of a bell echoed through Starnight Manor.

Phield emerged from the main gate wearing two layers of iron armor. The war-ready forces of the Nightfall Domain had already assembled.

The veteran guards were long accustomed to fighting corrupted corpses. Each of them looked eager for battle, their sharp gazes fixed on Phield as they awaited the lord’s command.

“My lord, approximately three thousand corrupted corpses have gathered at the relay station outside Starnight City. Their target appears to be the main gate of Starnight Manor. They’re likely intending to attack Windrise Town.”

“One thousand corrupted corpses are passing through the eastern forest area, advancing from the direction of the lumber camp.”

“My lord, a large-scale group of corrupted corpses has been spotted approaching from the direction of Starnight Castle. The number is difficult to determine.”

Cavalry rode back and forth, continuously delivering information into Phield’s hands.

“Heh. It seems our new friend has quite a unique way of saying hello, so eager they can’t even wait,” Phield said, anger rising in his chest. “I hadn’t even gone looking for you yet, and you’re already delivering yourselves to my door. If you won’t let me farm in peace, then get ready to be beaten!”

“Huh? Why are there so many corrupted corpses? Didn’t we arrive here pretty smoothly?”

“We’re finished… should we run?”

The newly captured villagers trembled in fear. Violet had protected them well before, and this was the first time they had seen such a scene.

“Hmph. You want to run?”

Phield immediately gave an order.

“Two guards—take the newly arrived slaves to dig trenches. Anyone who slacks off gets whipped. Anyone who tries to escape gets killed.”

Sending these people—whose loyalty was extremely low and who had never seen the world—to dig trenches was the wisest choice. Leaving them in the territory would be like keeping a ticking bomb.

Phield slapped his warhorse and roared at the remaining soldiers and the temporarily conscripted young men.

“You know what those corrupted corpses are here for—to eat people!”

“If you don’t fight with everything you have, they’ll devour you, your families, and destroy everything we’ve built!”

Five villagers dragged over a cart full of tools.

“The young men will dig trenches and build temporary wooden walls. Soldiers, follow my command—hold the line to the death!”

“Hold the line to the death!”

The soldiers raised their arms and shouted, lifting their blades and spears high.

“Hold the line to the death!”

The citizens were also ignited with fighting spirit. Though only a few hundred voices, their roar seemed to pierce the sky.

Ashina’s eyes were sharp. With a casual flick of her spear, she thrust out more than a dozen spear blossoms.

“I’ll make those dead things die one more time.”

“Good. Ashina, lead the territory guards and eliminate the corrupted corpses at the lumber camp.”

The soldiers were no longer a burden to the Divine Chosen. They could now greatly share the pressure.

“Yes, my lord.”

Ashina wasted no words and led her troops toward the lumber camp.

“The rest of you—follow me to Windrise Town and intercept the enemies coming from the relay station.”

“My lord, there are many enemies coming from Starnight Castle. Should our main force…” Ben stepped forward and asked cautiously.

“I have other arrangements.”

The corrupted corpses coming from Starnight Castle could easily be handled by the greatsword warrior alone. Besides, Starnight Castle had extremely strong defenses. There were no people there and no production, so there was no need to worry about losses.

The key was Windrise Town.

Under the leadership of their various commanders, the soldiers of the Nightfall Domain marched forward in relatively orderly steps toward different directions.

On the open ground before the outer walls of Starnight Manor, nearly a hundred conscripted young men were digging furiously. Among them were both slaves and free citizens.

They rarely gathered together like this. Iron shovels swung through the air, lifting piles of soil and stacking them across the field.

Some of the young men remained on the open ground, pushing the soil into crude walls. Even though the defensive value was nearly zero, if it could slow the corrupted corpses for even one minute, it would be a success.

Rosalia chose to hide within the greatsword again, strapped behind Phield’s back. Although she could quickly clear out the weaker enemies, it was best not to reveal their trump card before understanding the enemy’s true strength.

“After all, the enemy seems to have intelligence. Better to be cautious. This is also a good chance to test the effectiveness of trenches.”

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