Chapter 285: The Race Against Time

Chapter 285: The Race Against Time

November 16, 2024

On a vast plain, a dense army was assembling in an orderly manner.

High above, a group of sorcerers gazed down, occasionally whispering to each other.

Among the Star Alliance's highest-ranking core First Tier Sorcerers, Xie Man, Cole, Artur, Ethan, Targana, and Fleming were all present, except for Second Tier Sorcerers like Staff, Rose, and Fachardo, who were in the conference hall attending a meeting.

"I heard we're planning to attack three planes simultaneously. Isn't that a bit overambitious?"

"While it's called a simultaneous attack, there's still a primary and secondary focus. Our main target is the Ulam Plane, and for the other two planes, we just need to engage Blackthorn Tower's forces to prevent them from having the leisure to withdraw."

"Speaking of the Ulam Plane, what kind of plane is it?"

Everyone turned to Artur simultaneously.

Even after reconstructing his body, Artur had devoted most of his energy to cultivation, but he still participated in administrative matters.

Among those present, if there was anyone with the most well-informed intelligence, it was undoubtedly Artur, who had once served as Li Ze's assistant.

Seeing everyone's gaze, Artur smiled and said, "The detailed intelligence has just been compiled, and it should be distributed to all sorcerers and legion commanders today."

Targana said, "Why don't you give us a sneak peek?")



"Yeah, let's have an idea of what we're up against," Fleming agreed.)



Seeing this, Artur didn't refuse. He said, "The situation in the Ulam Plane is similar to the Starlight Continent, with humans as the dominant race, a unified government, and the current ruler of the entire plane is the North Empire, which is Blackthorn Tower's proxy ruling force in the Ulam Plane."

Everyone's expressions became clear.

To maximize resource development and collection efficiency, the sorcerer forces usually support a unified government to act as their proxy in ruling the civilized races' planes under their control.

Just like the Star Empire on the Starlight Continent.

"With Blackthorn Tower's typical dark sorcerer style, the living conditions of the North Empire's citizens are probably not great," Xie Man said thoughtfully.

Artur nodded, "Indeed, Blackthorn Tower exploits the North Empire mercilessly, and this exploitation is then passed on to the common people by the North Empire's royalty and nobility. It's not an exaggeration to say that the lower classes live in dire conditions."

Fleming scoffed, "It seems like we're doing a good deed by attacking the Ulam Plane."

Everyone shook their heads and chuckled.

Targana asked, "What about the military strength of the Ulam Plane?"

Artur pondered, "We haven't been able to gather specific information, but the intelligence we have so far shows that the Ulam Plane has at least fifteen Sorcerer Towers and over thirty Blackthorn Giant Ships stationed there permanently."

"So many?" Xie Man frowned.

The rest also became serious, their smiles fading.

With such a robust defensive force in just one plane, it was no wonder the Codex of Wisdom wanted the Star Alliance and the Thousand-Headed Bird Army to join forces against Blackthorn Tower.

Considering that the Star Alliance had to allocate some of its forces to invade the Xig and Manro Planes, the actual number of War Constructs available for the attack on the Ulam Plane might be fewer than those in the Ulam Plane.

Even if the Star Alliance's Flying Fleet to make up the difference, they still wouldn't have the upper hand.

"What about the puppet army?" Cole asked gravely.

Artur shook his head, "I'm not sure about the exact number. I only know that there's also a Flame Scale Knight Legion stationed in the Ulam Plane, similar to our Sigil Knight Order, with members all possessing legendary strength, and their numbers are no less than thirty thousand."

Xie Man pondered, "That shouldn't be too difficult to handle. The Sigil Knight Order now has over a hundred thousand official members. Since we've decided to focus on the Ulam Plane, we'll dispatch no less than fifty thousand members, which should be enough to deal with the Flame Scale Knight Legion."

"The same goes for the puppets," Ethan said, "No matter how many puppets the Ulam Plane has, they can't break through the two Army Groups, and we still have the advantage in this regard."

Everyone nodded in agreement.

Although Blackthorn Tower is a top-tier second-rate sorcerer force, it's unlikely they can station a large number of puppets in twenty-two planes simultaneously.

Having two million puppets in a single plane is already impressive.

The Star Alliance currently has five Army Groups, and the forces assigned to invade the Ulam Plane will not be less than two Army Groups, which is two million puppets.

In terms of sorcerers, the Star Alliance has fewer members, but the existence of the Hunter Wizard Legion makes up for this gap.

When it comes to sorcerer-level combat strength, the Star Alliance might not be inferior to the combined forces of the Ulam, Manro, and Xig Planes.

Overall, in terms of basic combat strength and high-end combat strength, the Star Alliance, when facing off against three planes, might not have a significant advantage, but they won't be at a disadvantage either.

The only issue is with the War Constructs.

War Constructs are extremely expensive and time-consuming to create, and the sorcerer forces, including the War Constructs within the Sorcerer Towers, have been accumulated over thousands of years.

The Star Alliance, with its rise of less than two thousand years, has always been lacking in this aspect.

Seeing everyone's solemn expressions, Xie Man tried to lighten the mood and said with a smile, "But this is a good opportunity. If we can capture a few more Sorcerer Towers, it will also enhance the Star Alliance's strength in terms of War Constructs."

At these words, many sorcerers' eyes lit up.

The Star Alliance currently has only twenty-one Sorcerer Towers but over four hundred sorcerers, creating a shortage of Sorcerer Towers for individual ownership.

If they could capture more Sorcerer Towers in this war, they might have a chance to exchange them for their own.

How could anyone not be moved by this prospect?

"With Su Nan leading us, we will surely achieve a great victory in this war," Targana said.

Everyone nodded subconsciously.

After the plane seal was lifted, they had access to more and more external information, and the more they learned, the more they realized how astonishing it was for the Star Alliance to develop to its current scale in just over a thousand years, starting from scratch.

And all of this was achieved under Su Nan's leadership.

The Star Alliance now had an unwavering trust in Su Nan.

Whatever orders he gave, no matter how unbelievable, they would execute them with all their heart and effort.

This time was no exception!

"This is the Ulam Plane's defensive military force."

In the conference hall, Li Ze distributed the files to the Second Tier Sorcerers present. After everyone had read through them, she spoke up.

"Due to the time constraints, the intelligence gathered by our people is limited. Most of the information about the Ulam Plane is provided by the Codex of Wisdom, but the details are also limited, allowing only for rough estimates."

The defensive forces stationed in the planes are undoubtedly the core secrets of any sorcerer force. Even with spies infiltrating the planes for intelligence gathering over the years, it's challenging to uncover the complete military deployment.

The assembled wizards understood this, so when they heard this, they didn't say anything. Instead, they all looked up at Su Nan, who was seated at the head of the table.

After a quick glance around, Su Nan lightly tapped the armrest of his chair a few times and pondered for a moment before speaking.

"Then we'll stick to the original plan and focus on the Ulam Plane as the primary target, while using the other two planes for distraction."

"Staff, you will lead the second army group of the Golem Legion, the third and fourth battalions of the Runesword Knights, to invade the Manro Plane. I'll provide you with three small Wizard Towers, one medium Wizard Tower, three flying fleets, and fifteen Star Fortresses."

The Runesword Knight Order is currently divided into ten battalions, each consisting of ten thousand official members and ninety thousand reserve members.

Even though it's just a distraction, the invading army still needs to be of a certain size; otherwise, it might be swallowed up by the enemy, and the consequences of sending reinforcements to the Ulam Plane later would be unimaginable.

Su Nan must ensure that the military forces attacking Manro and Xig are strong enough to suppress the enemy, preventing them from disengaging.

"Yes, sir!" Staff replied respectfully.

"The army invading the Xig Plane will be led by Fachardo, drawing on the third army group of the Golem Legion and the fifth and sixth battalions of the Runesword Knights. You will also receive the same number of War Constructs."

"Yes, sir!" Fachardo responded with equal respect.

Staff and Fachardo were the most senior and powerful wizards in the Star Alliance, and their leadership in the invasion of the Manro and Xig Planes was unanimously accepted by all.

"Regarding Sorcerer-level combat power, each of you will draw on one-fifth of the Sorcerers and Sorcerer-level puppets. The logistics supply list is included in the file I just sent. You have five days to make the necessary war preparations."

"Remember, your task is only to distract the enemy. You don't need to achieve significant victories, but you should be able to prevent the enemy from supporting other planes while preserving your own strength."

Staff and Fachardo responded in unison.

After further instructions on specific details, the meeting concluded, and the wizards left the chamber in a hurry, each going to make their own preparations.

In an instant, the council chamber was empty, leaving only Su Nan and Li Ze.

"Have you been researching the Elemental Furnace lately?" Li Ze asked.

"Mhm," Su Nan nodded, having no reason to hide anything from Li Ze.

"To further upgrade the Starlight Wizard Tower, we must make a breakthrough in energy supply. The current Elemental Reservoir has reached the limit of the Wizard Tower's size, and it's impossible to reinforce it further. I can only focus on improving efficiency and see if I can create a simplified version of the Elemental Furnace."

A hint of emotion flashed through Li Ze's eyes upon hearing this.

Upgrading Wizard Towers is not uncommon in the wizarding world.

For instance, the True Spirit Heirs of various wizarding forces, when unable to build more advanced Floating Cities, would choose to modify their large Wizard Towers.

However, due to limitations in ability and resources, most people can only modify one or two aspects.

Perhaps the Tower Spirit, the Elemental Reservoir, the Mystic Lock Protective Energy Field, or the Long-Range Firepower.

Or perhaps the Integrated Puppet Army.

Li Ze had never heard of a case like Su Nan's, where a Wizard Tower was upgraded in all aspects.

The current Starlight Wizard Tower had already far surpassed a large Wizard Tower and could even be classified as an even higher tier, such as an ultra-large Wizard Tower.

Even so, Su Nan was still not satisfied and planned to further modify it, even intending to install a simplified version of the Elemental Furnace!

This was the Elemental Furnace, the energy supply device of Floating Cities!

Even if it was a simplified version, its energy storage, output, and recovery rate would far exceed that of the Elemental Reservoir!

Li Ze couldn't imagine how much the Starlight Wizard Tower's combat power would be enhanced if Su Nan's plan succeeded. Perhaps this was the key to Su Nan's confidence in conquering the Ulam Plane! Thinking of Su Nan's glorious past achievements, Li Ze couldn't help but feel a sense of anticipation.

After gathering her thoughts, Li Ze asked, "The modifications to Dusk Valley are almost complete, and the wolf pack has reached its incubation limit. Will we be using the wolf pack in this battle?"

Su Nan nodded in agreement, "Although the wolf pack's combat power is not as strong as the Golem Legion, they make excellent cannon fodder."

The incubation of Black Wolves in Dusk Valley was relatively fast. Even if all ninety-plus thousand Black Wolves were wiped out, it would only take around forty years to incubate a new pack, which Su Nan didn't mind using as cannon fodder.

However, the Dusk Wolves took over seven months to incubate, and it would take over three hundred years to reach the limit of six hundred and two. With such a long incubation period, they needed to be utilized wisely.

"But initially, the main force will still be the Golems," Su Nan said.

In essence, plane invasions are a race against time.

During the time it takes for the defenders to react and gather their forces, the invaders try to transport as many troops as possible, establishing a foothold and creating an outpost in the plane.

The success of a plane invasion in its early stages largely depends on how many troops the invaders can transport before the defenders can respond.

In the case of the Wolf Tide Plane, one of the main reasons for Yu Xi's defeat was the Star Alliance's swift response.

Within just two or three hours, they had gathered enough troops to block the Dark Throne's invasion, preventing them from quickly expanding their outpost and establishing more plane gateways to transport additional forces.

In this regard, the Star Alliance had an undeniable advantage.

The actions in the Crystal Plane had already demonstrated the massive role of the Magic Cube in transporting troops.

In just twenty-four hours, they had transported fifty-three Star Fortresses, thirteen flying fleets, two Golem Legions, and twelve thousand Runesword Knights into the Crystal Plane.

In other words, if the Star Alliance wished, they could transport an entire Golem Legion within half a day and launch an attack.

Unless the Ulam Plane, like the Starlight Continent, had established a monitoring and teleportation network covering the entire plane, there was no way they could gather enough troops to defend within such a short time.

And this time difference was sufficient for the Star Alliance to establish a foothold in the Ulam Plane.

The wolf pack, being intelligent lifeforms, couldn't be transported through the Magic Cube and would take time to send into the Ulam Plane, so the initial assault would still primarily rely on Golem puppets.

Once all the troops had been transported, the Star Alliance should have already made some progress in the Ulam Plane, and they could then use the wolf pack to support the troops in launching more aggressive attacks.

After discussing for a while longer, Li Ze left the council chamber to attend to her tasks.

Su Nan, who needed to focus on the Elemental Furnace, couldn't afford to be distracted by other matters, and most of the pre-war preparations fell to Li Ze, keeping her busy.

Su Nan also left the council chamber and headed straight for the laboratory.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end