【 MILLION-STRONG CAMPAIGN, REINFORCEMENTS FROM ALL SIDES 】

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Dark clouds formed from the power of the Abyss continued to spread across the sky, obscuring the once-clear blue heavens.

The roars of monsters rose and fell, faintly interspersed amidst the rolling thunder.

This was the southern region of the Maple Moon Free State, once a fertile and beautiful river bay. That former beauty, however, had long since faded into the past. In its place lay in withering decay and the pervasive spread of malevolent energy.

Its prior endless fields of golden wheat had been reduced to ash, while the rich and fertile soil had been stained with abyssal corruption. Across the land, grotesque demons surged forward like an unending tide, stretching beyond the limits of sight.

They advanced in coordination with the demonic creatures flying overhead, steadily pushing forward and scattering corruption across this once-prosperous land.

Down on the ground, Yeye stood upon a hillside, gazing out over the vast expanse before him, his emotions rising and falling like the waves of the ocean. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

It had been nearly five months since the Demons launched their full-scale invasion of the world of Seigües. By now, the defensive war of Maple Moon had already been ongoing for more than a month.

During this time, the participation rate of concurrent players had reached a whopping 86.3 percent.

Aside from the one hundred thousand players still holding out in the Wasteland of Desolation, more than eight hundred sixty thousand out of the remaining nine hundred thousand players had taken part in this grandest war since the game’s inception.

What kind of spectacle would a war involving nearly a million players be?

Before officially becoming part of the Elven Kingdom, Yeye had imagined it countless times. Especially while watching videos of older players’ battles over and over again, each large-scale campaign involving tens of thousands, stirring his blood with excitement.

Yet now, as nearly a million players took to the battlefield, the sheer scale and grandeur far exceeded anything he had ever imagined in the past.

Even after a month had passed, he could still clearly recall the magnificent scene of their departure.

That day, he rode his flying familiar, whilst looking down at the earth from the sky…

Across the plains, players stretched like a boundless flood, filling every corner within his sight.

Numerous banners blotted out the sky, and the thunder of cavalry hooves resounded like rolling storms. The surging masses stirred up clouds of dust that spread across the heavens, pressing forward without hesitation.

At that moment, Yeye only held a single thought:

With such a magnificent army, where could they not go?

What force could possibly stand in their way?

However, it was only upon witnessing the demon army that Yeye truly understood the immense difficulty of this campaign, one that had been rated as “hard” by the system.

The number of demons and monsters far surpassed that of the players, and the high-ranking demons possessed power far beyond theirs.

The Abyssal legion loomed like a black ocean of destruction, instilling dread within all who beheld it.

Their overwhelming numbers, coupled with their continued expansion over time, made every player realize that relying solely on their usual tactics of using city defenses to gradually wear down the enemy was no longer feasible.

Moreover, what they’re facing now was merely the vanguard of the demonic army.

As for how much force still poured through the dimensional passageway, no one could provide an answer…

Soon after, a massive battle on the scale of millions erupted near Seir Town in Maple Moon State.

Yeye found himself unable to adequately describe the brutality and grandeur of that war. He remembered only that his earlier fervor and ambition had vanished the moment the battle began.

He had once believed he would be like a superhero saving the world, a chosen one capable of turning the tides of war.

Yet when the war truly erupted, he realized that he was nothing more than an insignificant lone vessel adrift within the storm of battle.

This profound sense of insignificance reached its peak when Meryer returned from the Wasteland of Desolation to join the battlefield.

Standing amidst the vast player army, Yeye looked up to the sky, where the black mythical dragon clashed with an Abyssal evil god. The resounding dragon’s roar intertwined with the furious howls of the evil god, echoing across the skies.

The aftershocks of their battle unleashed terrifying waves of force.

Clouds churned violently, while space itself twisted, as the sky above bore apocalyptic signs of devastation.

Even from the ground, Yeye could sense the overwhelming power and terror of those mythical-rank beings, a presence that struck fear deep into his soul.

The vast disparity made him ever more aware of his own insignificance and of the brutal nature of war this otherworldly world.

Fortunately, the players’ side also possessed mythical-rank powerhouses, granting them the confidence to stand against the demonic legion. From what Yeye knew, several fortified cities of the Holy Maniya Empire had been reduced to nothing by the direct intervention of Abyssal Myths.

Before such beings, anyone below them were nothing but ants.

After the outbreak of this war, Yeye came to understand this truth more deeply than ever.

Here, he was merely an ordinary soldier…

And the only thing he could do was contribute his small measure of strength, joining with others to form a greater force that could be hurled against the demons.

Thus, he charged forth at the command of the higher leveled commanders, fought desperately, and used his own flesh and blood to halt the advance of the enemy until death claimed him.

Then he would respawn and immediately return through the hastily constructed teleportation arrays, rejoining the fray once more, pressing forward again under the hoarse shouts of command, tearing apart every enemies in sight.

There were no elaborate strategies, nor loopholes to exploit…

When the scale of war expanded to such a terrifying degree, the once vast battlefield had become unbearably crowded, leaving no room for tactics to be effectively employed.

At most, under the directives of battlefield command, they could rely on real-time system communication to coordinate brief, concentrated strikes against the demons, maximizing the advantage of player unity.

Yet even this greatest strength was offset by the demons’ higher average level.

Amid the relentless clash between both sides, the once-beautiful Maple Moon State was transformed into a horrific grinding slaughterhouse.

Yeye no longer knew how many times he had fallen in battle over the past month, nor how many times he had been resurrected.

He did not know how many demons he had slain.

He only knew that each time he logged in, the first thing he did was rejoin the players’ army, fighting under the hoarse commands of the battlefield commanders who had been replaced countless times due to exhaustion.

He only knew that the resurrection coins he had painstakingly saved were exhausted within the very first week of the war.

Had it not been for the war mode limiting level loss when resurrection coins ran out, then he might have already fallen from peak of Silver-rank back to Iron-rank by now.

Fortunately, the constant battles also brought immense amounts of EXP. Though his strength fluctuated with each death, it remained roughly near its peak.

He was but one ordinary individual among nearly nine hundred thousand players.

And there were over eight hundred sixty thousand others just like him within Elven Kingdom.

Some of the more dedicated players had even effectively taken up residence in their gaming pods, completely immersing themselves in the war to defend the world of Seigües, while leaving only for meals and essential rest from time to time.

Everyone shared a single goal:

To defeat the tides of demonic army, to destroy the dimensional passageway, and drive back the invading demons back into the Abyss.

Alas, the demons were simply too numerous…

As time passed, not only did the players fail to repel the invading forces from the Maple Moon State, the demons even somehow managed to steadily pushed them back under their relentless assault.

As such, with each loss, one village after another was reduced to ruins as fields and forests alike were corrupted into barren wastelands by the spreading abyssal miasma.

Over time, the million-strong player army dwindled with each battle, scattering under the invasion. Commanders were replaced again and again, and control over the player forces gradually collapsed.

Witnessing the deteriorating situation, a newly appointed chief battlefield commander, who had gone without sleep for several consecutive days, broke down in tears over the public communication channel.

Only the solemn war bgm continued to play, echoing steadily through the communication channel and striking deep into the hearts of every listening player.

After a month, most of the southern Maple Moon Territory had fallen under the control of the invading demons and their vanguard forces was now less than one hundred kilometers from Maple Moon’s capital, Zelouan.

To say that their current situation had grown increasingly dire would be an understatement.

Standing upon the hillside, Yeye looked toward the reassembling demonic army in the distance as it drew ever closer, and he took a deep breath.

This was the players’ second full mobilization following the first million-scale battle.

However, this time was different.

After their crushing defeat in the first engagement, the high-leveled players in charge of command had summarized their experiences, revised their plans, and dispatched envoys to allied factions to request reinforcements.

Today, those allied forces had finally arrived on the battlefield.

In addition, over the course of a month, the players had managed to construct a long defensive wall along the key route leading to Zelouan, forming a line of resistance against the advancing demons.

Fortunately, the most experienced battlefield commander in the game had also finally returned.

Shifting his gaze, Yeye looked toward the figure standing at the very front of the player army.

The man stood upright despite his slender frame, with black hair and dark eyes, clad in a sacred druidic robe. His gaze upon the battlefield was unwavering and resolute.

Li Mu.

A legendary player who had commanded countless large-scale campaigns within the Elven Kingdom, possessing extraordinary leadership experience.

It was said that, upon learning of the worsening situation in Seigües, he had decided to abandon a highly rewarding hidden quest and instead chose to die and return immediately to assume the role of chief commander.

The BGM ‘Glory of the Goddess’ once again resounded through the public communication channel, igniting the players with determination and fearlessness.

Tempered by the fires of war, each of them now appeared more composed and mature.

The continuous defeats they had suffered had not crushed their will.

On the contrary, they had ignited a fierce resolve within every player.

This war was no longer mere entertainment.

For each of them, it had become a battle to defend their homeland.

Behind them lay Zelouan. Beyond it, several hundred kilometers further, stood the beautiful and fertile Elven Forest.

That was their home, a sanctuary they had built over years of effort, piece by piece.

It held countless cherished memories.

No matter the cost, they would hold the demons here.

On the hillside, banners fluttered in the wind.

At this moment, the concurrent number of players online had reached its highest peak since the game’s official launch.

A total of six hundred thousand players had formed into six grand formations, fully equipped and ready for battle.

More than a thousand mana crystal cannons, prepared under the leadership of major guilds, stood ready. Interwoven with over eight hundred heavy ballistae and five hundred catapults, they ensured complete coverage of firepower.

On the other side, a reassembled cavalry force exceeding one hundred thousand, with roughly one-third at Silver-rank, stood poised to charge at any moment.

Beside them were more than thirty thousand elves and half-elves.

These were reinforcements composed of purified elves and half-elves from the Demirealm of Ouros, frost elves, and volunteer forces from various elven clans.

Even when the players repeatedly tried to dissuade them, they insisted on joining the battle.

As Thranduil, the supreme commander of the elven forces, had stated, this war was not solely the Chosen Ones’ war, but theirs as well.

The defense of their homeland was equally their responsibility.

On one flank of the elven army stood a force of nearly ten thousand orcs who had pledged themselves to the Goddess. Beside them was a vast host of more than thirty thousand crypt spiders.

Farther in the distance, a dark army could be seen.

Clad in black armor, with blue flames burning within their eye sockets, they stood in silent formation.

This was the Legion of Heroic Spirits under the Goddess of Death.

Adjacent to them was a combined force of nearly twenty thousand dark dwarves and various races from the underground, the reinforcements dispatched by the Dark-State Alliance.

On another flank, the Maple Moon Free State’s own army, composed of human mercenaries and knights, stood ready for battle, numbering over one hundred thousand.

High above, dragons circled continuously through the sky, looking majestic and imposing.

These were the allied dragons from Dragon Island, numbering more than three hundred. Each possessing at least Gold-rank strength.

Near them flew more than a thousand drakes of various kinds, sub-dragons bearing the bloodline of true dragons, summoned to this battlefield by their kin.

They, too, were part of the Dragon’s reinforcements.

Surrounding the draconic forces were over thirty massive, ellipsoid constructs, their black cannon barrels gleaming beneath the sunlight.

These were the Zeppelin airships painstakingly assembled by the players over a long period.

Behind these airships stood one hundred thousand players mounted on flying magical creatures, along with several thousand dwarven griffin riders sent by the Dwarven Kingdom, all prepared to take flight at a moment’s notice.

At this moment, the teleportation arrays constructed by the players to connect their various allied factions finally proved their true worth.

Most of these reinforcements, drawn from different races and powers, had been transported through these arrays regardless of the immense consumption of mana stones.

This was a grand coalition army composed of many races and factions, a vast force exceeding one million in total number.

Within the clouds, the black dragon god Meryer surged and coiled, alongside the recently returned golden dragon Mars and his two silver dragon companions, presiding over the entire army.

High above the sky, the wind howled incessantly as dark clouds continued to spread over the horizon.

In the distance, a seemingly endless demonic tide kept advancing, shrouded in rolling clouds of dust.

Within the players’ ears, a solemn and stirring battle bgm began to play.

Hearing it, their gazes grew ever more resolute as their grip upon their weapons tightened.

And within their hearts, a blazing fire burned ever more fiercely.

Li Mu drew the Lionheart Sword, the symbol of supreme commander over the elven legion, and pointed it toward the heavens.

His voice, amplified by magic, resounded across the battlefield and echoed through the communication channels:

“Kill!”

“Kill—!”

A thunderous roar surged through the elven army like a tidal wave.

Accompanied by the roars of dragons and the thunder of artillery, the battle finally began.

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