Chapter 1 After the Battle of Hebitson

After the battle of Hebitson, Soren and Mr. Mirror stayed in Mafa, then started guerrilla warfare.

They raided various ten-thousand-mage legions stationed in the occupied areas and ambushed top experts.

Although there were many mages descending from the Celestial God Plane, Mafa's territory was vast, and after the battle lines were stretched, the distribution of the magical legions became very sparse.

Often, a city in the occupied area would only have one or two ten-thousand-mage legions stationed there.

Originally, that had been enough.

With the blessing of the magic towers, one or two legions could withstand ten times more mechanical legions.

Even if they encountered a large-scale siege and were defeated, they could wait for reinforcements.

The Celestial God Plane guys relied on this method to control dozens of large cities in Mafa.

However, after Soren and Mr. Mirror, two top combatants, joined the battlefield, this situation immediately changed.

One of them could match any Ninth Order without losing, and the other's puppet legion could easily break through a ten-thousand-mage legion.

In combination, the mages from the Celestial God Plane had almost no way to deal with them.

Even if they gathered ten or eight ten-thousand-mage legions, the two could easily handle them.

Even if they were ambushed for some special reason, their excellent displacement abilities allowed them to retreat unscathed.

The people from the Celestial God Plane couldn't deal with Soren and Mr. Mirror, but the two could easily break through various city magic camps. This kind of battle was destined to be one-sided from the beginning.

The two were like sharp bullets,窜竄竄 back and forth inside a huge and bloated bear.

Moreover, Soren's ultra-long-distance spatial displacement ability allowed them to flexibly appear anywhere within Mafa. With the support of the United Empire's intelligence, they could always find some isolated legions elsewhere, or ambush top-tier mages.

Able to fight and able to run, the people from the Celestial God Plane completely hated the two and could only defend passively.

In this way, in the following short months, the two almost swept across the entire territory of Mafa, killing hundreds of thousands of enemies.

The mages from the Celestial God Plane could no longer be stationed in a dispersed manner and could only gather dozens of magic legions together to form super legions to protect themselves.

Even if new Ninth Order Archmages descended and wanted to change this situation, they became honest after being ambushed and killed by Soren and Mr. Mirror.

The Archmage-level experts could only hide in super legions and dared not be alone anymore.

As for the will of the gods, it never descended again.

After the battle in the Dragon Kingdom sea area, the god of the Three-Eyed Clan was severely injured after possessing the body of Saint Frank. Perhaps it was because of the injury, or perhaps because of some fear.

Or perhaps they were not in a hurry.

So, they did not descend.

A year or two was a long time for mortals, but for gods, it was probably just a snap of the fingers.

They probably felt that the Alchemic Plane was already in their grasp and would be captured by the Celestial God Plane sooner or later.

Sooner or later, it would not have much impact.

Moreover, just the descent of their will might not be able to win.

…

In this way, Soren and Mr. Mirror relied almost entirely on their own strength to suppress millions of mages, forcing them to huddle in their camps and unable to move.

In just a few months, almost all the occupied cities in Mafa were liberated.

During this period, the United Empire's migration fleet continued to migrate people from various coastal cities in Mafa.

Because there was no obstruction, hundreds of millions of people stranded in Mafa were successfully migrated.

Various large factories and equipment that had not been transferred before also had the opportunity to move away.

Only a part of the resistance army fighting on the front lines was left behind. They secretly modified secret fortifications everywhere underground, preparing for the future war.

And a part of them secretly continued to mine and produce in various mining areas, providing enough construction resources to the empire.

Because Soren and Mr. Mirror were stationed in Mafa, the Alchemic Plane gained a rare respite.

Luying also experienced explosive growth in national strength because a large number of people migrated there.

The benefits brought by the empire's national alchemy education policy and gene potions continued to ferment. A large number of amazing alchemic talents emerged from both the private sector and the military. As the base grew, various rare A- and B-grade talents, and even a few S-grade talents, emerged, and top professionals frequently broke through...

Furthermore, the development of mechanical technology blossomed everywhere.

Originally, the two major empires each possessed some trump cards, such as Luying's neural technology, Gusmao airships, and ancient mechanical blueprints treasured by the royal family and major nobles. They did not have the ability to manufacture them before, but now, after becoming the United Empire with Mafa, with personnel, technology, and equipment support, various secret mechanical equipment were also born.

Internal troubles had been eliminated, and external troubles were temporarily harmless. Empress Ekaterina also demonstrated her amazing ability to govern the country, and with the implementation of various policies, the United Empire achieved unprecedented prosperity for thousands of years.

Just like that, two years passed in a flash.

…

On this day, Zambra Iron Falls Province, in southern Mafa.

It was late autumn, and the weather was slightly cool, making it the perfect weather for soaking in hot springs.

Still, it was the pine forest hot spring in the deep mountains. The forest was silent, with only the sound of gurgling water.

In the clear spring water, three people were leisurely soaking in the hot spring.

Soren and Mr. Mirror would come to soak in it almost every once in a while.

After searching around, this mountain spring was the best hot spring in Mafa.

Of course, the most important thing was that there were almost no mage strongholds in other parts of Mafa. They were all concentrated near the planar channel. The two would often come over to see how the enemy's descent was going, so they often came here to soak in the hot springs.

"Pestoya, don't always possess Miss Qingduola's body and cause trouble. It's very impolite."

"Ah... but Sister Pandora said it was okay. She has descended to the Northern Continent Four Kingdoms and the Dragon Kingdom to collect faith. She also said to let Soren study it more and think about how to condense a godhead with an alchemic body for her as soon as possible. Right, Junior Brother?"

"..."

In the hot spring pool, Pestoya controlled Pandora's body and swam around in the spring water.

This girl couldn't swim before, but now that she had finally learned, she was showing off in various ways. Suddenly, with a "splash," the figure swimming underwater rushed out.

Pandora's figure was already proud, and the water that came out was a surging wave.

Soren was already used to it.

A wooden plate floated on the spring water, containing various fresh fruits and vegetables. The three of them would eat something when they were tired of soaking, which was quite leisurely.

"More and more magic airships are gathering at the planar channel. It looks like they are preparing to cross the Imperial Strait. Judging from the speed at which the number is accumulating, they should take action in the next few months."

"Yeah. They can't build shipyards along the coast, so they can only use magic airships. But fortunately, there have been recent messages from Lingdun that the United Empire has developed well in the past two years. The military is also prepared, and the steam airship legion has grown in scale. If we really fight, we will have a great advantage. I'm just afraid that there will be too many top-tier combatants among the enemies, who will directly decapitate us. That will be a big problem."

"That's right. As far as we can see now, at least twenty or thirty Ninth Order Archmages have descended in the past two years. Maybe there are existences with special abilities. The next decisive battle will probably be very tragic."

"Yeah. Unless the problem of the planar channel is completely solved, this problem will always exist."

"Are you planning to go to the Silent Forest?"

"It seems that it needs to be put on the agenda. There are already many Eighth Order peak professionals in the empire, and the shortage of source material is very large. If we don't advance a batch of Ninth Orders as soon as possible, future battles will be very difficult. Moreover, I always feel like the enemies are preparing for some big move."

The three of them soaked in the spring water, chatting idly.

Perhaps other people in the Alchemic Plane felt that the crisis had been temporarily avoided during these two years of rare peace, but Soren and Mr. Mirror had been on the front lines all along, and they knew very well that the situation would only get worse and worse.

The planar channel was becoming more and more stable, and it would be easier and easier for top experts from the Celestial God Plane to descend.

Although Mr. Mirror and Soren had been fighting all the time in the past two years, and their combat power had increased greatly, and they looked like great victories.

In the end, however, the planar war was not something they could influence on their own.

…

It was a very ordinary day, and it didn't look like anything special would happen.

The three of them soaked for a while and originally planned to camp on the spot for the night as usual.

But suddenly, Mr. Mirror received some kind of message, and her beautiful eyebrows furrowed slightly.

Soren looked and asked, "What's wrong, Senior Sister?"

Mr. Mirror said, "I just received intelligence from the Imperial Army. A quarter of an hour ago, a mage suspected to be a Ninth Order, leading hundreds of people, attacked a mithril mine in Mannyuhill, causing considerable casualties. They haven't left yet and are still in the mine."

When Soren heard this, his thoughts turned, and he immediately thought of something, "Oh, are they coming for us?"

In the past two years, the two of them had attacked the Celestial God Plane too many times, and the enemies already knew their methods.

So, it was absolutely impossible for a Ninth Order to come out alone to die again.

But now that they had appeared, it meant that the other party was confident.

Mr. Mirror also nodded, "It should be."

Obviously, this was deliberately showing off and provoking them to show their faces.

After pondering for a moment, she thought of something and said with a solemn tone, "I'm afraid a demigod has descended."

Soren's eyes narrowed slightly when he heard this, "A demigod... After hiding for so long, are they finally going to strike?"

That was what he thought too.

A normal Ninth Order had no chance of winning at all, and since the enemy dared to show up with hundreds of people, it was very likely that there was combat power far beyond the Ninth Order among the enemies.

It could only be a "demigod."

Soren had previously harvested the memories of those Ninth Order Archmages and had an accurate concept of demigods in the magic plane.

In the mages' understanding, they were mages who had not condensed a godhead but had mastered some divine power. They were usually called "Archmages."

That title represented the peak of human power.

Soren was not completely ignorant of the power above the Ninth Order now. In his opinion, those Archmages were likely existences who had mastered some "rules of power."

If there really was such a strong person descending, if it were Soren himself, he would not be able to swallow this breath.

The mages had been huddled for two years, and they were bound to come out and vent their anger.

The people who attacked the mine had not left yet. After Soren and Mr. Mirror briefly discussed a few words, they disappeared from the hot spring pool.

Even if the enemy was deliberately provoking them, they had to go.

First, to learn about the strength of a demigod-level mage;

Second, to see what the guys from the Celestial God Plane were planning.

The longer it dragged on, the greater the changes would be. Getting the intelligence earlier would allow them to prepare earlier.

…

Soren had left spatial coordinates in almost every major city in Mafa. After several teleports, they arrived at Mannyuhill, which was known as the second-largest city in Mafa.

It used to be a super mining city with a population of over ten million, but now it was a ruin.

Apart from some resistance army members, there were almost no residents left in the city.

The population had all moved to Mafa during the migration operation in the past two years, and even the factories and steel buildings in the city that could be moved had been moved and transported to Luying.

As soon as Soren and Mr. Mirror arrived, they heard the sound of explosions coming from the mine outside the city.

There was a high-yield mithril mine outside the city, the value of which was immeasurable. This was also the foundation for the city's development, and the resistance army had been mining it for the past two years.

Soren and Mr. Mirror teleported again and arrived on a barren mountain.

As soon as they arrived, they saw more than a hundred people wearing mage robes floating in the open-pit mine.

Most of the mages were watching the show.

Only a small number of Fifth, Sixth, and Seventh Order mages were using magic everywhere to bombard it, using earthquake spells to try to collapse the underground mine tunnels.

But the resistance army had been prepared for this and detonated some bombs that had been buried in advance. The noise was very loud, but few people were seen.

Soren's eyes flashed, and he stared at the group of mages, immediately distinguishing, "There are two Ninth Orders."

The All-Knowing Eye of the Second Soul could identify the height of the law of the magic shield, and with the soul perception, it could almost immediately identify the target's accurate rank.

Originally, two Ninth Orders were not a big problem for the two of them.

But looking at the female mage wearing a silver robe and a golden mask in the crowd, Soren's pupils suddenly shrank.

The golden mask was surrounded by a faint halo, which was identified as a legendary-quality magic guide. When ordinary people looked directly at it, they seemed to see a god, and they would involuntarily feel awe in their hearts.

And the female mage wearing this mask was standing in the most conspicuous position.

The other hundred or so people were all behind her, including the Ninth Order old man, who all looked like... servants.

This ostentation had already indicated the special identity of the female mage.

When Soren looked at the lines on the golden mask again, he immediately recognized her identity and reminded, "Senior Sister, be careful, that should be Princess Octavia Fielding of the Aissidun Empire. She is said to be a Celestial God race member with a natural three-eyed anomaly."

The Three-Eyed Celestial God Race was the holy race of the Celestial God Plane, the people closest to the gods.

"Okay."

Mr. Mirror's eyes also sharpened when she heard this. She also felt a strong threat.

Obviously, even if this golden-masked female mage was not a demigod, her strength was by no means comparable to ordinary Ninth Orders.

Soren held the black umbrella, and his perception was released with all his strength. "There is no ambush nearby, Senior Sister. Are you going to make a move?"

The other party had obviously deliberately not brought many people, waiting for them to come to their door. Mr. Mirror nodded and said calmly, "Let's try it first."

Demigods were unattainable for others, and they would even feel some fear instinctively because of the unknown.

But for Mr. Mirror, it was nothing.

Because she had seen the existence of the strongest demigod in the Alchemic Plane!

…

Just as Soren and Mr. Mirror were observing, the golden-masked female mage floating in the sky above the open-pit mine seemed to have discovered something, and suddenly turned her head and looked at the hillside in the northwest.

Soren's expression tightened, and he muttered, "Her perception is very strong."

Knowing that they had been discovered, the two of them did not hide anymore. The mirrored camouflage disappeared, and the figures of the two of them were revealed.

Looking at the golden-patterned cloaks on the two of them, the golden-masked woman obviously knew that the people she was waiting for had arrived.

When the two sides looked at each other, two terrifying pressures suddenly covered the entire mine, like two tsunamis colliding.

There was a loud bang.

The top experts' mere leakage of aura caused the surrounding rocks to crack and sand and stones to fly.

Whether or not they could win the fight, the royal family still had to have their ostentation. The holy race princess couldn't just show up and take the field personally.

Just as Soren and Mr. Mirror leaked their aura for a moment, the hundred or so follower mages also reacted and rushed towards the hillside.

Seeing the Ninth Order old man attacking, Soren sneered, and his figure disappeared on the spot.

He knew his own limits. He couldn't beat a demigod, but he could try to fight an ordinary Ninth Order.

Although he recognized the identity of the golden-masked female mage, the limited information only went that far.

It was said that this female mage was an "Archmage," but no one had seen her take action. But judging from the aura she leaked just now, she was definitely above the Ninth Order.

Even if she wasn't a demigod who had touched the limit of human power, her inherent talent as a Three-Eyed race member was already not to be underestimated.

【s-009-Myriad Manifestations True Understanding】. Even an Eighth Order Frank before was so difficult to deal with, let alone a real Ninth Order.

It was better to let his senior sister explore the bottom line first.

Soren fearlessly rushed towards the Ninth Order old man, and as the Domain of Death spread, a layer of dark and bizarre domain field surrounded his body.

Two years ago, he might have been wary of a Ninth Order Archmage, but not now...

Without the pressure of rank, Archmages were still a threat in his eyes, but not a fatal threat.

From the Battle of Clementon to now, he had harvested the souls of a full seven Ninth Order Archmages, and now he had a very thorough understanding of the magic system.

Measured by combat power, he was no less than a Ninth Order.

However, what surprised Soren slightly was that the Ninth Order old man was a dual-cultivation rune mage of both magic and martial arts. Not only was his magic power extremely strong, but his rune flesh's close combat ability was also extremely powerful.

That guy was as fast as lightning. There was only a crackling sound of thunder in the sky, and the figure had teleported several miles away.

Looking again, he had already appeared in front of Soren, and rushed over to unleash a heavy punch.

"Boom," "Boom," "Boom"...

Each punch exploded in the air, creating sonic booms that could create large holes in the mine from hundreds of meters away.

The old man was shining with purple thunder all over his body, and he could throw thunder spears comparable to Eighth Forbidden Spells at will. There was also a strong paralyzing sensation in his holy domain range near him.

Fast speed, strong body, strong magic power, and powerful holy domain.

This kind of enemy who was proficient in both magic and martial arts was difficult to find a weakness to overcome, and ordinary people really couldn't deal with them.

As soon as they exchanged blows, Soren had to admit that this guy was the strongest Ninth Order Archmage he had encountered, apart from the Time Mage back then.

Unfortunately, Soren's Dragon Pattern Golden Body-enhanced hegemony body was not weaker than this guy at all.

He had taken the [Thunder Dragon Breath Fruit] in the Dragon Kingdom sea area before, and his thunder resistance was also very high. Even in close combat, he was not at a disadvantage at all.

Furthermore, no matter how fast the [Arcane · Thunder Flash] enhanced by thunder magic was, there were no secrets in Soren's eyes.