Chapter 273: The Battle Begins
The desolate expanse of the barren plains stretched endlessly to the horizon, the howling wind raging across the land.
The blood-red sky nearly swallowed the dim remnants of the setting sun.
The scarred earth, riddled with cracks, oozed faintly green liquid that emitted wisps of azure smoke.
As far as the eye could see, the desolate wilderness was dotted with sparse dead trees and countless rotting, iron-gray, grotesque creatures wandering aimlessly.
High above, six towering wizard towers floated in the air.
Su Nan and Lize stood side by side atop one of the towers, gazing down at the hellish scene below.
"The entire plane has been corrupted and infected," Lize murmured, marveling at the sheer terror of a god's power.
A single divine corpse had turned an entire plane into this nightmarish wasteland. Gods truly were like viruses in existence.
Su Nan extended his mental energy, sensing the environment around them.
"The concentration of energy particles here is high, and their activity far exceeds that of the Star Continent. This must be the influence of divine power," he remarked.
"But all the energy particles are tainted with toxins. Absorbing them would harm one's body," he continued.
"The air is thick with poison. Even a knight wouldn't survive more than a few days in these conditions."
Lize frowned. "That's going to be a problem. Our army's sustained combat capability will be severely impacted."
Before entering the Earth Crystal Plane, Su Nan and Lize had anticipated such conditions but hadn't imagined they would be this severe.
Fortunately, the main force of their army this time was the golem corps. Immune to toxins, they were far better suited for fighting and surviving in such an environment.
As for the magic-marked knight corps, they would have to rotate back into the wizard towers to rest and recover.
"Without wizard towers as logistical support, long-term combat in this environment is impossible," Lize sighed.
The plane's energy particles couldn't be absorbed, so the only way to replenish resources was through the elemental pools of the wizard towers.
Otherwise, a few moderately intense battles would leave the entire army crippled.
"Let's not waste time. Begin constructing the planar gates," Su Nan ordered.
With a wave of his hand, 9,900 golems stored in the Rubik's Cube appeared out of thin air on the wasteland, immediately commencing a sweep of the surrounding monsters.
Simultaneously, numerous wizards and apprentices flew out from the wizard towers, landing on the ground to begin building planar gates.
In just two hours, three large planar gates were completed, adding three colossal doors to the barren wilderness.
Soon after, massive Star Fortresses and fleets of flying ships emerged from behind the gates.
Each fortress and fleet carried thousands of magic-marked knights and clay golems.
As the Star Fortresses and fleets settled, the knights and golems disembarked, leveling the land and establishing camps.
Meanwhile, Su Nan began crossing through the gates repeatedly, using the Rubik's Cube to transport more golems.
As time passed, more planar gates were constructed, and the Star Alliance's forces streamed through them.
At the exact final second of the 24-hour window, the planar gates trembled violently, twisted, and then dissipated into the air.
At the same moment, Su Nan felt an invisible seal envelop the entire plane.
The true spirit wizards outside had clearly begun sealing the Earth Crystal Plane.
The unique battle for the divine corpse had officially begun.
"How many troops did we deploy in total?" Su Nan asked.
Lize glanced at the ledger in her hand. "Fifty-three Star Fortresses, thirteen flying fleets, and two golem army groups."
After the planar blockade was lifted, the Star Alliance had rapidly expanded its military forces.
With sufficient resources, their progress had been remarkably smooth, especially in the development of the golem army.
When the golem army was initially established, Su Nan had envisioned an "army group" consisting of eight large golem corps, totaling one million units.
Back then, the Star Alliance's military strength was too weak to realize this vision, but now they had the capacity.
Currently, the Star Alliance had four full army groups and five additional large golem corps.
To maintain defense on the Star Continent, Su Nan only brought two army groups this time.
Even so, that was a staggering two million golems—far more than the total forces deployed against the Wolf Tide Plane!
Without the Rubik's Cube, transporting such a massive number of golems within 24 hours would have been nothing short of a miracle.
"The magic-marked knights total around 120,000. Given the hostile environment of the Earth Crystal Plane, we didn't deploy reserve forces."
"The core force of wyvern knights is fully deployed, along with thirty dragons, 285 wizards, and 1,363 third-tier wizard apprentices. The apprentices will primarily handle logistics and won't participate in combat."
Su Nan nodded in satisfaction. "That's sufficient."
The Star Alliance's deployed forces accounted for about half of its total military strength.
Even major wizard forces like the Deep Blue Alliance and Wisdom Codex couldn't have sent significantly more troops within the same time frame.
As for other wizard forces, their deployed forces were likely less than one-tenth of their total strength.
This limitation was by design.
The true spirit wizards had deliberately set a 24-hour deployment limit to keep the conflict controlled.
Without such constraints, allowing unrestricted deployment of forces would inevitably escalate the conflict into a full-scale war, which was not in their interest.
However, Su Nan couldn't shake a lingering question: how did this controlled skirmish eventually escalate into the Wizard Civil War?
"Forget it. One step at a time. Let's focus on the task at hand."
After pondering for a moment without answers, Su Nan shook his head and turned to Lize.
"Start the search for the divine corpse. Deploy the star cores as well."
"Understood," Lize replied, issuing the commands.
The vast army mobilized swiftly.
Centered around their base, the magic-marked knights and golem armies surged outward like a flood, crushing all infected creatures in their path.
Above them, the Star Fortresses and flying fleets advanced at a steady pace. Upon encountering large groups of monsters, they unleashed devastating barrages, reducing the creatures to ashes in moments.
After every expansion of their territory, wizards and apprentices disembarked from the ships to deploy star cores.
As time passed, the Star Alliance claimed an increasingly larger area, and the Star Eye network began taking shape.
But then, the Star Alliance encountered its first real resistance.
"What is that?"
Inside a Star Fortress, Fleming frowned as he observed the tide of approaching creatures, a hint of surprise in his eyes.
It was a group of small humanoid beings.
They stood about 1.3 to 1.4 meters tall, their stout bodies nearly as wide as their height.
Their heads were thick and elongated, with prominent crystal beards covering their chins, and two small crystal tusks jutting upward from their lower lips.
Standing only about 1.3 to 1.4 meters tall, these creatures were unusually stocky, their width almost matching their height. Their heads were thick and elongated, with their chins covered in dense protruding crystalline beards. Two small crystalline tusks jutted upwards from their lower lips.
Crystals also covered their shoulders, joints, and hands, forming thick armor-like layers. Their bodies were clad in heavy armor, and the exposed skin was ashen gray, with numerous spots of rot revealing the decayed flesh beneath.
Their faces displayed a sickly green hue, as though poisoned.
"They're Earth Crystal Men," Tajanah said solemnly. "They've been infected and turned into monsters."
Earth Crystal Men were the dominant native species of the Earth Crystal Plane. Skilled in combat, they were naturally capable of manipulating earth and stone.
An adult Earth Crystal Man had the strength equivalent to a knight.
Elite individuals could reach the level of great knights.
Moreover, due to their natural affinity for earth manipulation, Earth Crystal Men could easily sense earth elemental power, and legendary figures among them were not uncommon.
Now, a species already formidable in combat had been strengthened by divine power. Their terrifying potential was clear.
As the monstrous Earth Crystal Men swarmed like a tide, the expressions of the wizards inside the fortress grew grim.
"Spell cannons, open fire!" Fleming decisively commanded.
The Star Fortress emitted a deep hum as its top glowed brilliantly, like a rising sun dispersing the blood-red sky.
In the next moment, over a hundred spell cannons fired simultaneously. Dense beams of spell energy tore through the void, crossing a thousand meters in an instant to strike the Earth Crystal Men army.
In a deafening barrage, hundreds of Earth Crystal Men were reduced to ash before they could even scream.
From above, the tightly packed army looked as though it had been plowed with over a hundred lines of devastation.
On the ground, the golem army and the magic-marked knights charged forward like a surging flood, colliding violently with the Earth Crystal Men. Flesh and blood splattered, and severed limbs flew in every direction.
The same scene unfolded across other parts of the wilderness.
Within a thousand kilometers, the noise and commotion of the Star Alliance forces attracted infected Earth Crystal Men and creatures from all directions, converging toward the Alliance's encampment.
---
In the Star Wizard Tower's meeting hall, the top members of the Star Alliance gathered around a long table.
Su Nan sat at the head, with Lize to his right.
Further down the table sat other senior members like Scepter, Rose, Facado, and Tulio—all second-tier wizards.
Currently, all second- and third-tier wizards of the Star Alliance were assembled.
Above the table hovered a three-dimensional model, displaying a panoramic map of the Earth Crystal Plane.
As the Star Alliance forces continued expanding, the map's revealed area steadily grew.
"Progress is smooth," Facado said with a smile. "Although the Earth Crystal Men have become stronger, they're no match for our magic-marked knights and golem armies."
Scepter nodded in agreement. "Indeed, the individual strength of our forces is comparable to theirs."
The golem army's basic units, stone golems, were equivalent to knights and could rival the Earth Crystal warriors.
The magic-marked knights were even more powerful, with each knight possessing strength akin to a legendary figure, easily overwhelming the Earth Crystal Men.
Additionally, the firepower from the Star Fortresses and flying fleets provided unparalleled support.
"The Earth Crystal Men are manageable, but the divine entities are the real challenge," Lize interjected, pointing to the panoramic map.
After the Star Eye Network's establishment, energy particle fluctuations could be detected and displayed on the map.
In the northwest, a bright point of energy stood out.
[Name: Unknown, Divine Entity]
[Energy Level: 25 (Equivalent to Tier 1 Gasified Wizard)]
[Threat Level: Moderate]
All eyes turned toward the glowing marker on the screen.
The Earth Crystal Men were merely a form of divine power-infected creatures, slightly stronger than other infected beings but ultimately not a significant threat to the Star Alliance.
Divine entities, however, were an entirely different matter.
These were creatures that had absorbed fragments of divine power from the god's corpse. Surviving their transformation, they underwent qualitative changes, often attaining wizard-level strength.
With the deathly attributes of the Toxic Sovereign, even creatures that perished during the transformation had a chance of being resurrected as undead.
This meant the Earth Crystal Plane likely harbored an exaggerated number of divine entities.
These entities posed the true threat to the wizards searching for fragments of the divine corpse.
"Who is in charge of that sector?" Su Nan asked.
"It's Artille," Lize replied. "She's operating a Star Fortress. She should be able to handle a Tier 1 Gasified divine entity."
Su Nan mused, "Divine entities often appear near fragments of the divine corpse."
Scepter immediately volunteered. "I'll handle this."
Others around the table hesitated, annoyed they hadn't spoken first.
Surprisingly, Su Nan shook his head.
"I'll go myself."
No one present had firsthand experience with divine corpses. Who knew what side effects might arise from the Toxic Sovereign's remains? To ensure the safety of his wizards, Su Nan decided to go personally.
---
Su Nan soon arrived at the site of the divine entity's appearance.
The battle had already concluded.
Under the Star Fortress's relentless bombardment, the divine entity—a grotesquely enlarged, winged frog with grayish-white, tumor-covered skin—had been reduced to a mangled corpse.
Viscous, toxic fluids oozed from its wounds, sizzling and corroding the ground into pockmarked craters.
"Master," Artille greeted Su Nan as she flew out of the fortress.
"Send the corpse to the Star Wizard Tower's lab. Also, conduct a thorough search within a 200-kilometer radius of this site. Leave no area unchecked. If any fragments of the divine corpse are found, report to me immediately."
"Understood, Master."
With Su Nan's orders, a fleet of magical ships spread out in all directions, searching for divine entities.
By pinpointing the locations with the highest frequency of divine entity appearances, they could narrow down the fragments' whereabouts.
"It's a pity we didn't have time to produce more star cores. Otherwise, deploying the Star Eye Network across the entire plane would make locating the fragments effortless," Su Nan thought to himself.
Still, he knew it was impractical.
Deploying the network across the Earth Crystal Plane was a monumental task, impossible to complete in a short time. Even if it were feasible, rival wizard forces wouldn't stand idly by; they would certainly sabotage the effort.
Su Nan doubted the black wizards would engage in any honorable competition.
In the Earth Crystal Plane, besides infected creatures and divine entities, rival wizard factions were also potential threats.
An hour later, the magical ships made their first discovery.