Conquest

“Impossible. Those monsters ignored the people staying behind and came straight for us?”

Upon hearing the news that the ant colony had bypassed the central region of the Empire and headed straight north, Astaroth looked at Schuber's reaction, his rage flaring to new heights.

[God of Knowledge: What do you mean, “impossible,” you fool! It's all true! Those foolish humans have colluded with an Outer God!]

Only now did everyone realize that Calian had made some sort of deal with the Great Devourers. They were struck with utter horror, but it was already too late.

【Elise has ordered the total annihilation of the enemy forces】

The Great Devourers began preparing for the final sweep.

Without needing to bother filtering out the intermingled humans, the sole objective of this offensive was to completely wipe out Astaroth's servants gathered in the northern part of the Empire.

Faced with the Great Devourers swarming from all directions, the only thing they could do was fight to the death until the very end, only to be completely wiped out anyway.

“Help me, quickly! You fools, are you really going to hand over the entire territory of the Empire to those monsters?!”

In the midst of the chaos, Astaroth desperately pleaded with the other deities for help.

He even went so far as to threaten them, claiming that if he fell and the entire Empire fell into the hands of the ant colony, none of them would be able to bear the consequences.

[God of War: So noisy, get lost. It's not like we didn't try.]

[Earth God: Come to think of it, you merely annexed a single powerful nation back then, yet you acted as if you had already conquered the entire world.]

However, the reactions of the other deities were exceptionally cold. On one hand, Astaroth had been far too arrogant on the forum before; on the other hand, it was truly impossible for them to send immediate reinforcements now.

Both the Beastkin Kingdom and the Dwarven Alliance were pinned down by Kerrigan's migratory colony, barely managing to even enter the plains.

The elves, who were supposed to be rapidly heading north, were instead busy purifying the contaminated lands and systematically capturing refugees to use as slaves, caring only about lining their own pockets.

“Ah, it's over...”

Watching his defensive lines collapse one after another, Astaroth fell into utter despair.

He had firmly believed that with his advanced system and the vast resources of a powerful nation, he would lead the pack. Now, that dream was shattering.

“Fight until the end, and leave no regrets under the heavens.”

In truth, from the moment the deity Astaroth gave up his resistance, his servants had no choice but to fight their own separate battles as they awaited the arrival of the ant colony.

Including the commander-in-chief of the defensive line, Duke Arthas, most of them realized there was no retreat and chose to fight to the death.

【The vassals have reaped a bountiful harvest】

With supplies cut off and reinforcements severed, the defensive line quickly crumbled.

The spirit of the Empire's soldiers, who chose to perish alongside their defensive lines, was undoubtedly a tragic and heroic display of integrity and resolve.

But the reality was that the ant colony actually preferred them to stay and fight.

The more they killed, the more food there would be.

Although Lin Miao had already developed the technology to extract nutrients from magic stones, the ant colony could never have too many nutrients.

The ant colony busily transported the mountainous piles of enemy corpses, dissolving them into nutrient solution, before continuing their relentless assault to sweep away Astaroth's remaining forces.

“Where on earth did things go wrong?”

Sitting alone in the temporary headquarters of the fortress, Schuber stared at the empty meeting room, muttering blankly to himself.

Ever since he received Astaroth's first oracle, he had never given up hope of establishing a grand magitech empire that would rule the world.

He had once thought that the advanced civilization bestowed by the great deity, combined with the Empire's manpower and resources, would be enough to elevate them to seemingly impossible heights.

However, the Great Devourers surging from the northeast threw everything off course.

Completely contrary to the initial reports of “merely a swarm of magical beasts,” the Great Devourers reproduced at an astonishing rate, crushing surrounding factions one by one as they grew. Ultimately, they invaded this land that the Empire had dominated for centuries.

“Why? Why did it have to be us?”

Schuber was driven nearly mad by a sense of grievance. No matter how much he thought about it, he felt he had done nothing wrong.

The root of all their problems was simple: they had encountered the Great Devourers much earlier than any other faction.

Meanwhile, the civilizations far away from the Great Devourers were steadily growing and developing without interruption.

“What on earth is your master thinking? Do they really intend to let this land be covered by these terrible insects?”

Soon, the screams and chaotic noises drew closer, sweeping toward the meeting room where he sat.

When everything fell silent, a massive predatory ant smashed through the door. A sinister light gleamed beneath its head armor as its thick mandibles clicked together, locking onto him.

Staring at the dense spikes on the predatory ant's powerful front legs, which were dripping with fresh, crimson blood, Schuber clenched his teeth.

This was an adversary devoid of emotion, one with whom communication was impossible.

Without the slightest hesitation, the giant ant lunged forward and crushed Schuber's head in its jaws.

“We won.”

At that moment, Lin Miao realized that the ant colony had eliminated yet another deity from the competition.

To reach the rank of Mid-Tier Deity just one year after awakening, and to eliminate multiple high-tier deities in a row, was nothing short of a miracle.

It was no wonder the other deities mistook him for an Outer God.

“Your Majesty... countless defeated soldiers are fleeing from the north.”

“We can take in the ordinary soldiers. But those mages who pledged allegiance to the evil god... they are of no use to us. Block them.”

Upon hearing the news of the north being ravaged by the ant colony, Calian showed a sorrowful expression and lowered his head.

At least hundreds of thousands of people would be brutally slaughtered, and the families and friends of millions more would be affected.

All of this was the consequence of Calian's actions.

Even if Calian had done nothing, the probability of the ant colony winning was extremely high. However, there was a world of difference between an actual event and a mere possibility.

Although he had reclaimed the throne as he wished and successfully saved many citizens of the Empire, it had not been accomplished entirely through his own strength.

Now, most of the mages in the imperial palace had either fled or followed Schuber, leaving the defensive magic completely inactive.

“Are you in pain?”

Celia slipped silently into the imperial palace, appearing behind Calian as he stood alone on the terrace.

“I kept our agreement, and you fulfilled your promise. So now, what do the Great Devourers plan to do? Do you intend to rule over us as slaves?”

Calian was not particularly surprised by her sudden appearance.

This was because the Gene Stealer implanted inside him had already signaled her arrival.

Celia shook her head. “Not for long.”

Calian let out a self-deprecating laugh. “How can you be so sure? You are merely a part of that massive collective will yourself.”

Although he was not connected to the hive mind, he could intuitively sense through the Gene Stealer that the immense will flowing through it was far beyond anything Celia's own consciousness could compare to.

“Because my God does not wish for that.”

Confronted by Calian's lack of trust, Celia brought up Lin Miao.

The existence who had controlled the ant colony long before she joined, the only one capable of reigning in this catastrophic tide of ants.

Hearing of the entity now referred to by the people of Terra as an Outer God, Calian's eyes widened.

“The battle is far from over. The elves in the south have already subjugated the factions of the southern continent and are heading north. The beastkin to the west, who were repelled by our forces, and the dwarves of the Great Mountains are also beginning to make their moves. Next, we will wage war against them.”

“Elves, beastkin, dwarves... in other words, the human factions that could actually be called empires have been completely wiped out?”

Aside from the other continent on the far side of the Great Mountains, there were no longer any great human empires left on this land.

“That is why you must not let your guard down under any circumstances.”

Looking at the dejected Calian, Celia spoke with a firm, resolute tone instead.

“Think about it. When everyone else falls at the feet of the Great Devourers and is slaughtered to the last, what will be the fate of the survivors?”

Celia spoke of a future where the ant colony would leave this world after driving out all the deities' factions, causing Calian's eyes to light up.

“As long as you are alive, opportunities and competition will never end. As long as there are survivors, a new era will begin, and those who shape that era will be the rulers, including you.”

The all-sweeping ant colony would usher in a new era for this land.

The words sounded incredibly arrogant, but having witnessed that power with his own eyes, Calian could not refute them.

“In that case...”

After a brief silence, just as Celia turned to leave, Calian spoke first. “Then I should help you now. So that when the new era arrives, our Empire can survive... and take a step ahead.”

A glint of ambition flashed in his green eyes, and Calian's heart beat furiously.

“The bloodline of the imperial family is indeed extraordinary.”

Celia looked at him, sighing softly in admiration.

By the time the ant colony completed all its objectives and departed, the still-young Calian would become an emperor with a limitless future.

The puppet emperor who once held no real authority was now gradually transforming into a true sovereign.