novelraw #225 - Section 225
#225 - Section 225
This led to their high level of mental stress.
And prolonged stress inevitably leads to fatigue.
Even though high-level professionals have several times the physical strength and willpower of ordinary people, three days of continuous combat finally pushed their tense nerves to a breaking point.
It didn't take many to break down. As long as one of the spellcasters with anti-stealth abilities in Black Shark Fortress slipped up, Collins could seize the opportunity to sneak in.
A magical life form, granted the ability to move in secret by a god, entered the interior of Black Shark Fortress carrying fifty Hydrangea Fungi.
The city was empty. Besides the wounded, ordinary citizens had also gone to the city walls to transport combat supplies to the fortress garrison and do what they could.
The battle was incredibly tense. The Naga's attacks never stopped. Continuous fighting had everyone on edge, and the pressure of a potential massacre hung over their heads. Almost everyone's attention was on the city walls.
That was their lifeline.
At times like these, who would notice a stream of water wandering around the fortress's key locations, scattering starlight from its body along the way?
The Hydrangea Fungi were shrunk and placed in Collins's spatially modified stomach, immediately returning to their original size upon release, arranged for pinpoint demolition at specific locations.
This wasn't due to the carelessness of the Dowell Legion, nor was it Roger's failure to report. It was Nicole who was too ruthless.
She feigned attacks with a do-or-die, all-in approach, a desperate tactic befitting a fanatic, showing no hesitation in sacrificing lives. Who could have anticipated this?
Even the Naga generals didn't know about this arrangement, not even Nicole's own priest corps. Even her own brother, Thackeray Thousand-Whirls, was racking his brains, thinking about how to capture Black Shark Fortress.
Except for Nicole and Collins, the other Naga only knew that this was for the Lord's holy war.
Blessed by the priests round after round, they fearlessly stepped onto the battlefield, wielding their weapons with all their might against the enemy.
At the cost of over a hundred thousand soldiers, they created an opportunity for a magical life form already skilled in covert operations.
No matter how clever Roger was, he wouldn't have thought that Nicole would bet everything on Collins alone, without even considering using the Overlord Fungus.
This was a judgment that a normal general wouldn't make, because the battlefield is ever-changing, and everyone usually prepares multiple contingency plans.
Only a fanatic would have such unwavering trust in Collins because it was a power granted to him by the Sea God, willing to invest heavily in creating opportunities for him, leaving no backup plan.
In the group chat, everyone's impression of Nicole was that of a kind girl who cared about the living conditions of Naga children, shedding tears over the malnutrition of small fish and shrimp.
They knew she was a fanatic, willing to do anything for her god, but that preconceived image was too deeply ingrained.
Even if they had guessed it, they couldn't have prevented it.
Could Roger possibly remind Dowell to keep an unwavering eye on every inch of Black Shark Fortress during the seven days of war?
That was impossible, exceeding the limits of human capability.
Moreover, whether it was confidence or some mysterious premonition, Nicole didn't allow Collins to carry the Overlord Fungus.
Otherwise, it would have been like Yao riding on top of Lanling King, afraid that others wouldn't see his invisibility.
So, when Collins had placed forty-nine Hydrangea Fungi and was finally moving towards Dowell's location on the city wall, a mermaid mage finally discovered this unusual current.
"Everyone be careful, there's an assassin!"
The anxious cry quickly spread throughout Dowell's bodyguard. The warriors drew their weapons, and the spellcasters cast spells to break invisibility, finally seeing the vague, shadowy form.
But it was already too late.
"The glory of my Lord encompasses everything!"
A point of starlight bloomed directly from within Collins, and he flew towards Dowell's location, almost instantly tearing himself apart, expanding into a blazing sun!
In addition to the conventional fission bomb's shockwave, high temperature, radiation, and other damage, the faint divinity on Collins's body also exploded at this moment.
"Protect His Highness!" The bodyguards threw themselves at Dowell with their last resolve, and the mages desperately poured out their magic, deploying shields at any cost.
The light that could engulf the earth and purify all living beings rose from the inner side of the city wall, directly destroying nearly half of the city wall from the inside out, tearing the bodies on it into pieces and engulfing them in the instantly boiling and agitated water.
And this was just the beginning.
Explosions erupted throughout Black Shark Fortress, in all directions, as if a disaster of destruction was occurring everywhere.
Over forty explosions directly destroyed the fortress's structure. Like a sandcastle encountering a giant wave, the split bricks collapsed and crumbled, and the core even melted into lava.
Countless desperate cries came to an abrupt halt, and red, turbid liquid seeped from the cracks in the stones.
The total destructive power of those fifty Hydrangea Fungi certainly couldn't cover the entire Black Shark Fortress.
But Collins had wandered around the city, planting nuclear warheads in key locations from the fortress's foundation to the seabed structure.
Like pinpoint demolition, the explosive power was maximized in enclosed and semi-enclosed environments, triggering a chain reaction, thereby creating this collapse disaster that destroyed the entire fortress.
The result was even more terrifying than a bomb ten times more powerful hitting the city wall.
It wasn't a bombardment, but an internal excavation!
Of course, in such a powerful explosion, Collins didn't have time to retreat, so he directly launched a suicide attack towards the location of Fourth Prince Dowell, the commander of the Sea Country at this moment.
The soldiers on the city wall tried desperately to swim outwards, but whether they were mermaids or Naga, under such earth-shattering power, only the instinct to escape remained.
But they were too close, unable to escape the shockwave chasing behind them.
The usually gentle seawater, under the energy released by the atoms tearing themselves apart, turned into the most violent, indiscriminate cannonballs and blades.
Even if it was only a very, very small amount of heavy element fission, the energy released was too terrifying for carbon-based life forms.
The Naga expeditionary force outside the city was also dumbfounded.
The wounded soldiers covered in bandages couldn't help but sit up, disregarding their open wounds, staring wide-eyed at this unbelievable scene, murmuring the name of the Sea God.
They had been attacking continuously for two months, and this fortress that they had fought to the death for three days suddenly collapsed?
The Sea Country and Naga soldiers together couldn't escape at all, mixing into a large, indistinguishable mass of minced meat.
The constantly rising mushroom-shaped water column was very similar to their newly acquired explosive weapon called Hydrangea Fungus...
The expeditionary force's generals were also at a loss, their minds blanked by the sudden change, gradually regaining their ability to think after a long while.
A single nuclear explosion wasn't scary, but the scene of instantly tearing apart permanent fortifications and destroying a city single-handedly with this kind of intrusion was still shocking to them.
They thought, could it be that the enemy had prepared suicide tactics, planning to send us to heaven after we entered the city, but accidentally sent themselves to heaven instead?
That's not right!
They seemed to be using the super weapons that we bought with loans...
"Saintess, could this be... your arrangement?" Camille Blue Coral looked at Nicole, whose expression remained indifferent and cold.
Nicole shook her head, her expression gradually becoming fanatical, raising her arms and shouting, "No, this is a miracle."
Camille: ???
Okay, so you did it.
The military generals instantly understood, and then became extremely angry.
This damned fanatic was truly ruthless, completely disregarding the Naga soldiers who hadn't withdrawn, and carrying out the nuclear explosion without any consultation with them.
They were taking turns charging, and the general commanding the battle this round had already been buried in Black Shark Fortress.
If he had been leading the charge at this time, wouldn't that mean...
"Don't think about it. I don't know when it will explode. This is the means of God, how could He consult with me? I deeply regret the casualties of our army, but this is a necessary sacrifice."
Nicole's calm voice answered the generals' questions.
Everyone didn't know if it was true or false, and didn't argue with her.
What's the use of arguing?
As long as they won, the Sea God Church would be the greatest contributor, greatly highlighting the military's incompetence. The Naga Queen would praise Nicole when they returned.
Nicole looked at the ruins of Black Shark Fortress, which were now completely silent, turned around, and excitedly shouted to the entire expeditionary force:
"Soldiers, this is the victory bestowed upon us by our Lord. The enemy's fortress has been destroyed, and the enemy's commander has been killed in battle. At this moment, let us praise the Sea God, praise the ascetic Collins Summernight!"
"Praise the Sea God, praise Collins Summernight!"
The shouts spread outwards from the center of the Naga expeditionary force's position.
The Naga, who were originally filled with shock and disbelief, suddenly nodded as if they had understood something after hearing that the enemy's fortress had fallen due to a miracle...
That's right, it should be so, only God could do such a miracle!
Of course, this was just the thought of ordinary people. Those military generals had certainly heard of the name Collins Summernight and knew more about Nicole's operations.
This must have been Nicole's arrangement, tricking Lord Collins into entering Black Shark Fortress to carry out destruction in a way that he couldn't return!
Cold-blooded Saintess, terrifying religious leader!
As fellow believers, they also unconsciously felt terror at some of Nicole's actions from now on.
Collins Summernight, the younger brother of Marshal Cromwell, was actually more famous than Cromwell ten years ago.
Because he was the human spokesperson of the Sea God, the only Son of God since the establishment of the Naga's Sea God Church.
He was also Nicole's teacher, nurturing and supporting her step by step to the position of Saintess, becoming the new leader of the Sea God Church.
After that, Collins became an ascetic, living a secluded life.
No one would have thought that after Cromwell's death, the former Son of God would come out of the mountains and directly blow up the enemy's fortress in an incredible way!
What kind of role did Saintess Nicole play in this?
Under her kind, beautiful, and holy appearance, was there a completely black heart, even sending her own teacher to his death?
As long as doing so was beneficial to the Lord she served!
Nicole's voice sounded again throughout the army:
"Expeditionary force warriors, let us rush through Black Shark Fortress, go to the landing point, and welcome a new era belonging to the Naga! Everything you see along the way, whether soldiers or civilians, are enemies; all items belong to the first person who sees them. From now until the sun rises again, it is a moment of revelry belonging to the warriors!"
"Praise the Sea God!"
The Naga soldiers boiled over.
War has always been cruel. Even the soldiers of the victorious side constantly bear enormous pressure, and continuous accumulation will cause the soul to be distorted.
After a long battle, releasing through violence, plunder, and sex is a desire deep in the souls of many intelligent beings.
Especially in the era of cold weapons, soldiers are motivated by glory and money, especially to stimulate the bloodiness in their hearts. Massacres have an attraction that normal people cannot imagine.
The Naga soldiers were suppressed by military discipline and priests in the past, but now that the Saintess directly ordered the massacre and looting of the city, an unimaginable enthusiasm immediately erupted!
"Praise the Sea God! Praise the Saintess!"
The Naga army rushed out in a chaotic formation. Black Shark Fortress had fallen, but the explosion couldn't cover the entire city. There must still be survivors, and there were also supplies worth looting.
A prince was stationed here!
What's more, many Sea Country villages and towns are scattered along the line through Black Shark Fortress to the land, and they are now open to them.
Nicole saw the faces of many soldiers, so excited that they were distorted, and a trace of unbearable pain flashed in her eyes, and she gently closed her eyes.
But when she opened them again, she had regained her composure.
For the glory of the Lord, all sacrifices are worth it.
......
......
On the Naga's blockade line, the partial army commanded by Nichol was fighting against Shaker's troops.
At this position, they could see the water column rising from Black Shark Fortress with their naked eyes. The fighting parties stopped unconsciously, looking at the distant changes with surprise and uncertainty.
This was a situation beyond the expectations of both commanders. Neither of them had received advance notice and were shocked by such a commotion.
The ground was constantly shaking, and large areas of chaos that could not be measured appeared on the magic sandbox, large enough to directly cover the entire Black Shark Fortress.
"It's over, Black Shark Fortress has fallen, the Sea Country is over, it's all over..."
Inside the Prince Whale car, Shaker squatted powerlessly on the ground, covering his head and refusing to accept this fact.
Any contact information from Dowell's side was unresponsive, I'm afraid it was ominous.
Reconnaissance guards acting secretly on the sea reported that Black Shark Fortress had directly collapsed into ruins under unknown attacks.
Just a second ago, Shaker was still looking forward to cooperating with his fourth brother to encircle the Naga.
As a result, in the blink of an eye, they received the news that Dowell's troops might have been completely wiped out and that the Sea Country's frontal battlefield had been lost.
"Stop howling! This war isn't over yet!"
The little devil gave Shaker a direct kick, scolding, "The soldiers outside haven't given up yet, what qualifications do you have as a prince to give up?"
After the upheaval, the first reaction of the Sea Country's soldiers was to launch a more ferocious attack, wanting to break through Nichol's blockade and go to the frontal battlefield to find out what happened.