Chapter 1098: 851
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A single star? Is that just a disguise? The average strength of my soldiers is around eight stars, could it be a group of nine-star warriors?
"Gather the power of the Mage Tower within the Imperial City! Remember, leave their commander for me, I want to hear from them how they managed to pull this off!"
Dana ordered, and those so-called ministers below immediately laughed and left. Compared to pretending to be ministers and drafting policies, combat was actually easier for them.
Combat, isn’t it just the game of unfurling the Auffa Circles to terrify the enemy into soft-legged surrender?
For a long time, to those from the Ancient Mage Tower, the idea of combat against these ground-dwellers simply didn’t exist. People like Long Yi, they instinctively included under the name of the Ancient Mage Tower, telling me he’s a ground-dweller? Don’t make me laugh!
Therefore, when these individuals realized that it wasn’t Long Yi standing opposite them, everyone’s mood was very relaxed and pleasant.
So much so that a mere twenty people had come to meet the enemy.
The Divine Auffa Empire’s thousand-man brigade was divided into four teams: three hundred in each of the three teams tasked with the main assault, and one hundred left to move freely, ready to provide support. And these twenty individuals were the first to intercept that group of one hundred—and, very unfortunately, Ai Lin was among that group. Ai Lin chose to be here to gauge the strength of the troops she had trained from a grand perspective, never expecting to be the first to encounter the mages from the Ancient Mage Tower.
Twenty against a hundred, in the eyes of the mages from the Ancient Mage Tower, was utterly a bullying situation. It wouldn’t matter if the enemy had ten thousand—it’s not the number of people that count in a mage’s duel, but who possesses the superior mana strength. Otherwise, no matter how many come, it’s useless.
"Haha, looks like we are in luck, we just came out and encountered their commander! Didn’t our Empress specifically want to see her? Let’s get this straight first, you guys can’t compete with me for this credit!" the leader among those twenty-plus people said with a laugh.
The rest immediately burst into hearty laughter: "Haha, big brother, what are you saying! With just a mere hundred people on the other side, you alone could handle them all, we’ll just cheer for you here!"
Hearing this blatant flattery, the man felt like he was on cloud nine. From afar, he pointed at Ai Lin and called out loudly, "Are you the commander of this team? Since you’re a girl, just come with me, and I assure you no harm will come to you!"
Ai Lin, however, chuckled and said, "Actually, I’m very eager to see how you would make things difficult for me."
The man immediately burst into laughter, "A gutsy little girl, but unfortunately, you’ve chosen the wrong place to show your courage!"
The Auffa Circle unfurled behind him, the vigorous flow of mana spreading outward. He then looked up high, waiting for Ai Lin’s worship. But after a while, there was no response, and he grew puzzled—had he shocked her into stupidity? Looking down, he saw Ai Lin looking at him like he was a fool, and not just Ai Lin, but even the soldiers behind her appeared as if they were watching a monkey.
"What’s the matter, you’re hoping your mana emission scared us to death?" Ai Lin simply added another remark. Instantly, the man was fuming; if ordinary soldiers managed to possess four-star mana strength, that would already be considered decent. Even if your group of soldiers is quite impressive, having used some special method, at most they’re just eight stars, breaking into nine stars is hitting the ceiling! But I am of Sanctuary strength! What does Sanctuary imply? It’s not just a small margin above nine stars—it is a qualitative leap!
Looking down on a Sanctuary mage?
"Seeking death!" the man roared, launching a lethal magic attack. He hadn’t wanted to waste his mana initially, because in his view, these nameless soldiers should have knelt before him respectfully, so why waste time? However, clearly, his show of force hadn’t convinced anyone yet.
If you don’t submit, then I’ll fight until you do!
Magic spells whirled through the air, roaring towards Ai Lin with howls.
"Protect the Commander!" Ai Lin’s adjutant yelled, several soldiers beside her reached out simultaneously, a robust mana shield emerging above Ai Lin’s head. The magic that rained down from the sky all bombarded the shield, the explosion of light and blast wave engulfed everything.
"Hmph! Poor deluded fools with no sense of your limitations! Hell has no place for repentance!" The man stood with his hands folded behind his back, waiting for the soldiers who had lost their commander to kneel and surrender.
However, the soldiers didn’t seem to have any extra reaction, and some even looked mockingly at him.
"If that’s your perfect strike, I’d advise you to come down honestly and surrender, you’re even weaker than I expected by quite a few notches." The voice of Ai Lin came, as the magic dissipated, the sturdy mana shield was almost completely undamaged. That supposedly perfect strike had been entirely ineffective!
At this moment, the twenty-plus who were ready to enjoy the show also flew over. They had been prepared to cheer from afar, but their strike had no effect. This raised everyone’s vigilance. It seemed that these soldiers from the Divine Auffa Empire might be stronger than everyone had initially thought!
"Very good, excellent! It seems you want to use your pitiful magic to contend with us from the Ancient Mage Tower?" The leader, who was initially slightly shocked and worried that his strike had no effect, now stood with his brothers beside him and naturally had nothing to fear.
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"No, you’re wrong," Ai Lin said. "Do you plan on using the weak mana of your Ancient Mage Tower to contend against the mighty army of The Divine Auffa Empire?"
As soon as she spoke, the people around her erupted in cheers. Although they were a bit nervous when actually facing the forces of the Ancient Mage Tower, the soldiers’ morale was always high when their patriotic fervor was stirred.
"Since you’re so eager to die, I’ll oblige you! I had planned to take you alive to the Empress, but now it seems there’s no hope for that." The more than twenty mages from the Ancient Mage Tower simultaneously initiated the Auffa Rings, and their spells emerged clearly.
"Full force attack!" Ai Lin commanded, and a hundred people also simultaneously initiated the Auffa Rings. This sudden turn of events caught every Mage from the Ancient Mage Tower off guard. If you said these hundred people came from the Ancient Mage Tower, then their all displaying the Auffa Rings wouldn’t be questioned, for the Ancient Mage Tower signifies the pinnacle of mages.
But now, all of these soldiers from The Divine Auffa Empire were deploying the Auffa Rings?
In a nation’s battle system, the combat power of ordinary soldiers should have been the weakest. Yet now, suddenly, where did these soldiers with Sanctuary Mage capabilities come from?
"Don’t panic! Maybe it’s an illusion!" someone shouted.
However, as the spells from both sides began to clash, everyone immediately realized that this was no illusion, but true strength!
The mages from the Ancient Mage Tower never imagined they would encounter their match here!
A full hundred people, all with Sanctuary capabilities, and real Sanctuary capabilities at that, completely flabbergasted the couple of dozen adversaries. After a few tentative attacks, they were sure that the hundred’s Sanctuary powers were genuine! What was there left to fight? One hundred against twenty, even an idiot knew who would win!
"Retreat! Retreat immediately! Report this to the Empress at once!"
The leader shouted loudly.
But how easy would that be?
From the beginning, they had not considered the opposition a serious threat, so they had disregarded whatever formations the enemy took. And now, you want to run?
Not so easy!
The Sanctuary soldiers of the Divine Auffa Empire might not have as sturdy a defense as the Divine Armor warriors of the Sanctuary Empire, but they were more accustomed to traditional mage combat. Especially in preventing the enemy from escaping, they had plenty of experience in interception and pursuit.
It was already too late to run; caught in the hundred’s inescapable net, not one of the twenty-plus could slip away; they were all annihilated!
The outcome of the battle was immediately reported throughout the ranks. Being able to defeat the mages of the Ancient Mage Tower boosted every soldier’s morale exponentially! The previously tense atmosphere immediately dissipated, and their march forward grew more resolute.
When Dana heard that the more than twenty reinforcements sent later had been completely wiped out, she couldn’t believe her own ears!
"What exactly happened? Could it be Long Yi coming?" Dana asked loudly. Although she was proud, she understood there was one person she absolutely wouldn’t dare provoke, and that was Long Yi. Perhaps in the future, she could find a way to deal with Long Yi, but not now. If Long Yi really had come here, she would have to avoid his edge.
"No, it’s not Long Yi!" the Mage observing the battlefield said urgently.
"Not Long Yi? Could it be that the group of soldiers from The Divine Auffa Empire suddenly turned into Sanctuary Mages?" Dana frowned deeply.
"Your Majesty is wise to guess!" the Mage’s eyes lit up.
"I’m wise?" Dana was stunned at first, then she stood up from her throne in shock, "What are you saying? Those people really turned into Sanctuary Mages?"
The Mage nodded heavily and said: "Our men, more than twenty in total, happened upon their hundred, and their commander was among them. After a verbal exchange, the battle began. At the moment the fight started, those soldiers from The Divine Auffa Empire suddenly displayed the strength of Sanctuary Mages! With the Auffa Rings behind each of them, their fierce magic bombardment left our men with no power to fight back. Despite their attempts to break through, in the end, they were completely wiped out due to the sheer numbers disadvantage!"
Dana sank heavily back onto her throne, muttering to herself, "Duped! I underestimated them!" (To be continued. If you like this work, please visit Qidian (qidian.com) to cast your recommendation votes and monthly votes. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please go to m.qidian.com to read.)