Chapter 480: Inferno Fortress
Leaving aside whether I agree, the family council probably wouldn’t approve either. Everyone knows the real reason for joining the struggle over the Blazeforge Realm is to reach the Flameflow Mountains and explore the relics left by our ancestors.
"Magus Merlin, before you make any decisions in the Blazeforge Realm, you'd best consult Commander Thorne. It'll spare you a world of trouble..." The black-robed mage smiled, clearly doubting Leon's abilities, though his words were subtler than Edgar Merlin's. "Magus Merlin, apologies—I nearly forgot to introduce myself. I'm Uriel Merlin, transferred from the Ancestral Grounds."
"Lord Uriel, let's talk about this when we actually get to the Blazeforge Realm..." Leon couldn't help but frown. After speaking, he left Edgar Merlin and Uriel Merlin aside to inspect the planar legion. He knew this was only part of the force—Thorne Merlin probably took the lion's share.
Without lingering, as the order was given, a dozen guardian towers around the Ancestral Grounds flared with intense light, unleashing violent magical waves. Seconds later, as the surge peaked, space began to distort—a stable planar pathway appeared, leading straight to the Blazeforge Realm.
With over a thousand people crossing the planar path, it was bound to take a while. Leon walked at the rear; only after the entire legion had entered did he step onto the path himself. His vision blurred—the scenery changed. First came a wave of scorching heat, heavy and oppressive. Looking up, he saw a sky ablaze, as if stained with fresh blood—even the sun was crimson, casting a harsh, poisonous light. Welcome to the Blazeforge Realm, I suppose.
A thick aura of slaughter hung in the air, almost suffocating.
So this is the Blazeforge Realm...
For more than a thousand years, Auckland’s top powers have never stopped trying to conquer the Blazeforge Realm. Vast and rich in resources, every major force—including the Merlin Family—has reaped indescribable rewards from this place.
Yet after centuries of planar wars, the Blazeforge Orcs still hold key strongholds. Even if Auckland's greatest powers joined forces, conquering this realm outright would be a pipe dream—at least for now.
No getting around it—the Blazeforge Orcs are just a pain to deal with...
This place has buried more of Auckland’s brightest young geniuses than anyone can count. In fact, the major powers in Auckland usually send their prodigies here for training, but most end up staying forever—if you catch my drift.
Guys like Ross Merlin, Leon Merlin, and William Merlin—they’ve all set foot in the Blazeforge Realm. More than once, actually.
Leon’s boots crunched on the pitch-black earth as he moved forward, his magitech armor humming with energy. He quickly noticed the elemental rules—earth, water, fire, wind—were vastly different from those in Norsend World. He’d read plenty about the Blazeforge Realm before coming, and while it’s resource-rich, the terrain is brutal: volcanoes and lava everywhere. Perfect for Blazeforge Orcs, really...
Now, he and the planar legion were inside a fortress. Leon, who’d memorized every scrap of info on the Blazeforge Realm, knew this was the Inferno Fortress—under Merlin Family control. Of the three fortresses the Merlin Family holds in the Blazeforge Realm, Inferno Fortress is the most important... by far.
Inferno Fortress is one of the seven great fortresses in the Blazeforge Realm—a strategic goldmine. Any faction would kill to have it.
Legend has it, centuries ago, the Blazeforge Orcs teamed up with a demon from the Abyss to guard this fortress. Many Auckland powers tried to take Inferno Fortress by force, but all failed—badly. No one expected that demon to be so ridiculously strong.
After that, every faction wanted Inferno Fortress, but none dared make a move. Lesson learned, I guess.
Three hundred years ago, Merlin Family prodigy Thorton Merlin burst onto the scene and single-handedly killed the demon, letting the Merlin Family take Inferno Fortress. For three centuries, it’s been under their control—and its value is enormous.
You could say Inferno Fortress is the Merlin Family’s foundation in the Blazeforge Realm... without it, they’d be nowhere.
"Magus Merlin..."
Just then, the elderly Title Archmage Uriel Merlin came hurrying over, breathless and anxious. By the time he reached Leon, he was practically wheezing.
"Lord Uriel, what’s wrong?"
Leon frowned at Uriel Merlin’s flushed face—something was definitely wrong.
"Commander Thorne’s planar legion is battling an elemental army. Magus Merlin, please give the order to reinforce Commander Thorne, or Inferno Fortress will be in serious danger!"
Uriel Merlin’s words wiped the last trace of calm from Leon’s face. He pushed his mage armor to the limit and instantly caught the aura of elemental creatures and chaotic magical energy. The battlefield was kilometers away. Three Wizard’s Eyes flew out, feeding the scene directly into his vision.
Even with all his mental preparation, Leon couldn’t help but suck in a breath. Within a ten-thousand-meter radius, volcanoes erupted violently, lava swept in burning waves, and flames raged everywhere. The temperature in that zone was downright terrifying.
Just as Uriel Merlin said, the enemy was an elemental army. Through the Wizard’s Eye, Leon saw a sky full of fire elementals—so many it was absurd. The sky was crimson, packed with fire crows—thousands, maybe tens of thousands. He knew these weren’t real fire crows, but Volcanic Sprites...
Volcanic Sprites are like miniature fire elementals, but much smaller. They can take the form of fire crows and always swarm in massive flocks. Even a Title Archmage would get the chills facing so many at once.
Now, tens of thousands of Volcanic Sprites had turned into fire crows, painting the sky red and raining fire down like a storm. Their strength isn’t much—can’t even break a high mage’s shield—but with numbers like that, who cares about power?
The real threat to the planar legion isn’t the Volcanic Sprites—it’s the Ashen Sprites on the ground. These fire elementals are way tougher, built like earth golems and reeking of sulfur.
But their poison isn’t like what you’d find on hellish creatures—it’s a gas laced with pure venom.
Ashen Sprites move slow, but their toxic gas eats through the mages’ shields in seconds—just a whiff and the shield dims, no match for the corrosion. Within moments, the mages' skin turns red, blood congealing beneath—out of the fight, permanently.
On a battlefield this chaotic, losing your fighting edge is basically a death sentence...
Boom...
The battlefield shook with thunderous noise, as if the earth itself was trembling. Leon’s eyes widened at the sight—towering figures wreathed in flame, each a hundred meters tall, radiating blistering heat. Magma Giants. Lava flowed down their bodies, and every movement sent molten rock flying—deadly stuff, packed with fire poison. Even a high mage in the planar legion wouldn’t survive a splash; they’d be incinerated instantly.
A few Magma Giants wouldn’t be a big deal, but here, hundreds dotted the battlefield like mountains, each one a walking disaster. Countless have died at their hands.
Magma Giants are high-level elementals—the weakest among them can go toe-to-toe with a magus.
Still, facing such terrifying enemies, Thorne Merlin’s planar legion didn’t break rank. Under Thorne’s command, they attacked and defended with perfect discipline. Spells surged like a tidal wave toward the elementals. In the legion’s center, protected by layers of guards, the archers unleashed a volley skyward, and red sparks rained down—the Volcanic Sprites falling from the sky.
Thorne Merlin, meanwhile, led the elite force in the legion, hunting down Magma Giants...
Say what you will, but Thorne Merlin knows his stuff—his command of the Planar Legion is top-notch. The power gap between the Planar Legion and the Elemental Legion is huge. Anyone else in charge would've lost control by now, but under Thorne, most of the legion’s strength is still intact.
Even so, the fight had reached a stalemate. Some were already showing signs of exhaustion, mana running dangerously low. Worst of all, the number of elementals was actually increasing.
Even Leon could see that Thorne Merlin’s legion was staring down a major crisis.
If they couldn’t hold back the elementals, Inferno Fortress was as good as lost.
Without hesitation, Leon gave the order—his Planar Legion surged forward to reinforce Thorne Merlin. Spells flew everywhere, dazzling and deadly, tearing into the elementals. The counterattack stabilized their position in minutes. With the two legions united, their strength skyrocketed, shattering the deadlock and launching a coordinated offensive...
Facing countless fire elementals in the defense of Inferno Fortress, the Merlin Family’s Planar Legion was finally starting to gain the upper hand.
Whoosh...