Chapter 941: Quiet Reflection
It was already foreseeable that our points would soon catch up with Burning Tower and Skyhold Fortress.
Beyond the Odin Kingdom's strongest—Skyhold Fortress, Burning Tower, and Dunespire Tower—there are also the Henry Family, Shadow Tower, the Jackson Family, and the Maxwell Family. All of them have broken into the top ten rankings.
Faced with this situation, Cloudspire Tower and Black Tower couldn't sit still any longer. They immediately contacted Leon to convene a projection conference.
Leon sat alone in the empty conference room. On the table, a crystal ball radiated with light, and on either side of the table, the illusory figures of Joey and Heron were projected.
"The Odin Kingdom's strength is simply overwhelming—especially Skyhold Fortress. Their power is almost unbelievable. We've always known Skyhold Fortress excelled at warfare, but I never expected them to be this formidable.
I watched the crystal recording of Skyhold Fortress attacking an orc stronghold. Their floating battle squads seem born for war. They flew straight in, and the orcs' attacks barely scratched their war fortresses. The orc warrior legions were utterly useless—just waiting to die.
And I never expected Skyhold Fortress to be able to deploy a war fortress over three hundred meters long into the Blazeforge Realm. Against such pure engines of war, unless you're a Heaven-rank powerhouse, there's almost no one who can withstand them.
And then there's Burning Tower and Dunespire Tower—their strength keeps growing as well.
The deeper we push into the heartland of the Blazeforge Orcs, the drier the air grows and the stronger the power of flame becomes. Burning Tower and Dunespire Tower's strength multiplies, especially Dunespire Tower—their points have already overtaken Cloudspire Tower to become third.
And with the other powers of the Odin Kingdom, catching up is just... too difficult for us.
Joey's eyes were heavy with worry, his face drawn with helpless exhaustion. These days, Cloudspire Tower had been fighting at full capacity, yet their points were barely on par with Dunespire Tower, which couldn't even deploy its full strength for the moment...
Especially Skyhold Fortress—their absurd score left even Star Sage Joey, who has presided over Cloudspire Tower for years, feeling utterly hopeless.
Heron's face was dark and grim, his worry almost impossible to hide.
"We have to come up with something. Relying on our own strength alone, there's no way we'll catch up. We must get the other forces in the rear of Greendale to fully cooperate in the campaign. If this goes on, even if we conquer the Blazeforge Realm in the end, we'll still lose to the Odin Kingdom..."
Joey and Heron were both deeply anxious. Leon, on the other hand, was perfectly calm, unfazed by the situation.
"Archmage Leon, do you have any good ideas?"
Heron couldn't help but ask, seeing Leon so composed.
Leon replied mildly.
Will worrying solve anything? All we need to do is speed up our offensive. The points look huge now, but the real prize is still ahead. Who the final victor will be—it's far from decided.
We can fall behind in points, but as long as we're not lagging in conquest... that's all that matters."
Joey and Heron exchanged glances, both understanding what Leon meant. The gap in points at this stage wasn't impossible to close—later on, the points would come in much greater numbers, and a temporary lead wasn't insurmountable.
It's just that the disadvantage right now is too great. Comparing the total points of the Odin Kingdom and the Andalusia Kingdom, Odin's points are nearly double that of Andalusia.
That gap isn't so easily closed. For Andalusia to win... it's almost impossible. The odds are slim to none.
The phantom conference yielded no real results—just an exchange of information, then everyone went back to the campaign.
The people from Cloudspire Tower and Black Tower were like their tails were on fire, pushing their offensives to the limit. Even Heaven-rank powerhouses occasionally showed up.
Leon, meanwhile, kept to his usual steady rhythm, advancing at a measured pace.
The Blade Alchemical Golem Legion charged forward; the Spellcasting Alchemical Golem Legion unleashed torrents of wild magic, crushing everything in their path.
All offensive duties were handed over to the Alchemical Golem Legion. Even when strong enemies appeared, the Patchwork Alchemical Golems took them on. Leon, Reina, Hubert, Anderson, and the others rarely had to intervene.
The Mage Legion's task shifted from fighting to sweeping the battlefield and collecting spoils.
Every time a fortress was conquered, the surrounding resources were surveyed by the Mage Legion, then collected by the alchemical golems. If any ruins were discovered, Leon led the team to excavate them.
Defenses and fortress management were all handed over to the Merlin Brothers. The three of them had improved rapidly in recent days—the most promising young heirs of the Merlin Family, now relegated to logistics duty...
Everything proceeded in perfect order. Leon's ranking stayed at tenth, occasionally climbing to ninth after capturing a fortress, only to be overtaken again soon after.
Time flew by—more than half a month passed in the blink of an eye.
After conquering another small fortress, Leon, as usual, found a quiet spot to meditate and reflect.
Lately, Leon had hardly made a move in battle, pouring all his focus into comprehending the Rules.
Once he'd laid the foundation for his own thread of Rules, everything after was just a matter of time and constant insight.
As time passed, no matter how much progress he made, it was always a step forward. Unlike before—when he hadn't taken the first step, it was impossible to deepen his understanding.
Now that he'd found the right door, Leon wasn't about to waste any more time.
As his insight deepened, his understanding of the Senluo Chapter slowly began to change as well.
After spending several months, nearly sleeplessly comprehending, the Death Tome finally showed a trace of change.
On that blank page of the Senluo Chapter, some mysterious aura appeared. Besides the four characters for Senluo Chapter, a gentle white light also manifested.
In an instant, Leon felt his comprehension of the Senluo Chapter rise to a new level, and his understanding of the four foundational rules—earth, fire, water, and wind—also reached a new tier, as if he had advanced a small grade.
Leon slowly opened his eyes, and the four elemental powers—earth, fire, water, and wind—that had been swirling around him faded away.
Using the Elemental Chapter to aid my comprehension really worked!
Basing my foundation on the four elemental rules was far stronger than I imagined—much more powerful than basing it on just one rule. In fact, they're not even on the same level.
But the difficulty of comprehension has increased a lot, too...
If not for my core meditation law being the Elemental Heart of sixteen core formulas, my magic runes being magi-gear, and the assistance of the Elemental Chapter, I wouldn't have achieved this rate of comprehension.
Silently calculating his current combat strength, Leon sighed inwardly. His magic power hadn't changed much, but just a deeper understanding of the rules had already transformed his strength dramatically.
Using Dubois as a reference, before, during confrontations, Leon had to flee with all his strength just to have a chance of escape.
Now, Leon felt that in another confrontation with Dubois, he could at least hold his own for a while—instead of having to run away immediately upon meeting.
Time sped forward with an unstoppable momentum, and soon, another month had passed.
The offensive in the Blazeforge Realm continued steadily, and Leon's points firmly held him in the top ten, while Odin Kingdom still far outpaced Andalusia Kingdom.
In that month, Leon barely concerned himself with how his legions developed—fortress assaults, resource plundering, and excavation of ruins were all left to his subordinates.
Leon stayed in the demi-plane, comprehending the rules. The more he understood, the more he realized that endless magic power might not compare to a thread of rule power. A little more insight could boost his strength even more than leveling up.
The earth, fire, water, and wind of the demi-plane had already stabilized. As Leon’s insight deepened, the evolution of the demi-plane accelerated, and the rules even resonated with his comprehension.
This not only deepened Leon's connection with the demi-plane, but also allowed him to personally experience the slow settling, stabilization, and evolution of the four elemental rules—earth, fire, water, and wind. That was the most precious thing.
At the same time, because Leon’s insight deepened, the demi-plane evolved ever faster. The four elements—earth, fire, water, wind—were in perfect balance.
Boom...
A clap of thunder exploded in the demi-plane. The magic vines, which had already flown out of the demi-plane and into the void, began to thrash wildly. In an instant, a dozen more magic vines took root and sprouted, then rapidly grew as they devoured magic. One end of the vines burrowed into the void, drawing chaotic magic from the emptiness to replenish the demi-plane.
The demi-plane, which had already reached two or three hundred kilometers in size, expanded once again. The land became broader and thicker, many mineral veins began to form, and the mountains grew taller and larger. Snow-capped peaks appeared, along with wide, rushing rivers.
In some places, volcanoes radiating heat appeared; elsewhere, wild winds howled, clouds and rain filled the sky. At the edge of the continent, a vast ocean began to form, and inside, simple life forms even began to emerge.
Tempestuous winds and rain, peals of thunder, the earth shook, volcanoes erupted—it was as if the end of the world had arrived.
But as the demi-plane trembled and the world grew larger, those apocalyptic changes slowly faded. The magic vines rapidly consumed the plane's magic, and the magic concentration throughout the world plummeted.
After half an hour, everything calmed down. The wild winds and rain became gentle breezes and drizzles; rivers surged, and a thick vitality filled the world. Simple life began to be born in both the continent and the ocean.