From the moment they awakened as servants until now, war had been etched into the very bones of the ant colony. It was a behavior they knew all too well, with the experience accumulated from countless battles long since deeply ingrained.
This war, where countless lives would fight with their very existence, was nothing more than a harvest feast for the colony.
The magic power of the humans, the flesh of the beastkin, and all the special resources the colony desired were now gathered in one place, waiting to be harvested.
The ant colony was fully prepared for a decisive head-on battle with their prey—the joint coalition army.
“Though I don't think they'll lose, we still need to avoid excessive casualties. If the colony wins this time, it'll probably be hard for the opposing deities to recover anytime soon, right?”
As the master of the colony, Lin Miao's gaze naturally fell upon the deities backing the joint coalition army.
Lin Miao knew very well that the ones driving this northern coalition army were those deities who kept sending him private messages.
They had already labeled Lin Miao as an Outer God who sowed chaos and were planning to join forces to eliminate him.
Especially after the previous battle, where Daniel had obtained a blessing from the Goddess at the cost of his life, unleashing power that surpassed his limits.
For Lin Miao, this was by no means a war he could take lightly.
His gaze fell upon the screen, where tens of thousands of ants were marching in a grand, sweeping wave through the forest.
【Your servants have resonated with your strong will】
At this very moment, the power matching his newly promoted deity rank finally awakened.
Looking at the system prompt, Lin Miao gave a bitter smile and murmured, “...At least you guys understand me a little. Thanks.”
Unlike the servants of other deities, Lin Miao's ant colony was still just a pack of beasts that couldn't understand his direct commands; they could only be influenced by his emotions, falling into a berserk state.
But strictly speaking, the colony now shared a single destiny with Lin Miao.
Without Lin Miao's help, the colony would never have made it this far. Thus, as their deity and master, Lin Miao also felt pleased by their growth.
On the other side, inside the coalition camp, the beastkin High Chief's lips curled upward upon hearing the scout's report:
“It seems those scattered monsters are frantically gathering back. Our core tactic is to defeat them one by one before they can complete their assembly.”
He knew very well how fast the ant colony reproduced, but even so, it was impossible for their numbers to multiply several times over in just a few days.
Everyone in the coalition believed that the hunting squads currently operating outside made up the entirety of the colony's combat force. Having taken the initiative, they held the absolute upper hand.
As long as they could completely annihilate these retreating hunting squads, the path to the ant nest would be practically undefended.
As long as the colony didn't hole up and play defensively, the coalition's marching speed would definitely outpace the colony's rate of reinforcing its ranks.
Count Merlin remained silent, only offering a flat response: “Let us hope so.”
He didn't boast, as there was no reason to indulge in empty bluster at a time like this.
And tactically speaking, their judgment was indeed an exceptionally brilliant choice.
Just then, a mage stumbled into the command tent, pale-faced as he reported the results of their observations.
Hearing the report, Bogut frowned and asked, “What do you mean by that? The number of monsters is far greater than we anticipated?”
However, the mage's voice shook violently: “It—it's true! Those monsters swarming in like a dark cloud from the east aren't the hunting squads that were active outside at all!”
Celia, who was organizing documents inside the tent, was also rendered speechless by the news.
The scouting results, obtained by the mages using familiars and magic, indicated that the approaching ant colony's numbers were more than double their estimate.
Startled, she hurriedly stood up and ran out of the tent.
Inside Count Merlin's main tent, an emergency meeting had already been convened, and the atmosphere was tense to the extreme.
The beastkin High Chief slammed his hand on the table, roaring in anger, “Are you sure your people didn't make a mistake?! How is this possible?!”
Count Merlin's face was grim. Pointing at the map on the table, he said in a heavy voice, “Nothing is impossible. For instance, those monsters might have hidden a portion of their forces from the very beginning.”
The marching routes of the ant colony were clearly marked on the map.
Looking at the map, Celia instantly understood the colony's intentions, her heart skipping a beat: They want to surround us?
The hunting squads that the coalition thought were retreating were now flanking them from both sides, while the main force of the ant colony, with numbers far exceeding their estimates, was pressing down from the front.
In the tent, which had instantly fallen dead silent, someone's bewildered whisper was clearly audible:
“How can this be... Those monsters actually possess such intellect? Did they foresee everything from the moment we decided to form the coalition, carefully orchestrating this situation and putting it into action?”
Hearing this, Celia finally understood why everyone present was so profoundly shaken.
Although they had repeatedly emphasized the need to acknowledge and stay vigilant against the colony's formidable physical and collective capabilities, deep down, they still harbored a deeply ingrained prejudice, viewing these ants as nothing more than mindless beasts.
Count Merlin sighed softly. “They are no ordinary magical beasts; they are the servants of an Outer God. Even the Goddess did not foresee that they would grow to such a terrifying extent...”
They were supposed to be the ones launching the offensive. Relying on an almost impossible-to-form coalition, they should have held the absolute advantage in combat power.
Yet in an instant, the roles of attacker and defender had completely reversed.
The ones who had laid the trap beforehand and were waiting for their prey to walk in were the ants;
while they had become the prey that stumbled into the trap, left with no choice but to fight desperately for survival.
Celia's body couldn't stop trembling, a single thought echoing in her mind: An Outer God, and the servants of an Outer God!
Fear washed over her like a tidal wave.
She finally understood what kind of existence an Outer God and the servants they commanded truly were.
They would drag the entire world into an abyss of destruction and ruin, just like her fallen homeland that she had witnessed with her own eyes!
At the thought of that emotionless slaughter of all living things about to repeat itself before her eyes, she couldn't stop shaking.
Just then, Bogut's confident roar echoed throughout the tent:
“There's nothing to be afraid of! It's just double! Since we've already gathered here, no matter how many enemies come, we must fight! All we have to do is slaughter them all and win this war!”
Meeting the gazes of everyone in the room, Bogut grinned, revealing his sharp fangs.
Anyone could tell that he was raising his voice on purpose, trying to dispel the gloomy atmosphere.
Count Merlin took a deep breath and picked up where he left off, declaring solemnly, “We can only prepare ourselves fully and fight to the end. Everyone, enter combat readiness immediately!”
This war of unprecedented scale and stakes had finally raised its curtains.
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