Chapter 1009: Chapter 1008: "Miraculous

The Mortal World Serpent and the Iron Scepter Armored Train tasked with the escort mission raced along parallel tracks. The two war machines had left the plains behind and entered the mountainous region near the Shadow Marsh a few minutes ago—small, undulating mountains swiftly swept past the train windows, and the daylight seemed increasingly dim compared to before.

Maryland approached the window and saw that the sky outside the train was completely shrouded in iron-gray clouds, with faint sunlight barely piercing the cloud cover, casting an unsettling pale glow within the depths of the clouds. The cold wind howled outside the train window, lifting snow and dust in the distance, forming a floating, murky curtain in which the depths were barren and uninhabited.

This is a typical no-man’s land on the northern frontier, and similar desolate scenes are very common here.

The cloud-covered weather has also been very common lately during these days.

However, an inexplicable sense of unease lingered in Maryland’s heart, a feeling he couldn’t pinpoint the source of, but years of experience crawling through battlefields made him never dismiss such an "intuition" casually. He always adhered to the philosophy of the great scholar Farrell from the First Dynasty of Anzu, who once famously said: Behind every intuition lies clues overlooked by the conscious mind.

This sense of unease shouldn’t arise out of nowhere; something out of place must be happening around him, something he hadn’t yet discovered, but his subconscious had already taken note of these dangers. It was now that years of accumulated life-and-death experience were making subconscious alerts.

"General," the adjutant beside him noticed Maryland’s gloomy expression, which seemed particularly abnormal after a successful military mission, "Is something the matter?"

"Any findings from aerial reconnaissance?" Maryland asked, furrowing his brow, "Any news from ground reconnaissance units?"

The adjutant hesitated, unsure why the officer suddenly asked about this issue, but promptly replied, "We just contacted them five minutes ago; everything is normal—we’ve entered the long-range artillery coverage area of Height 18. The Typhon have suffered here before, and they shouldn’t repeat the same stupidity, right?"

He paused briefly, then continued, "Additionally, the Dragon Cavalry Troops just reported that the cloud cover in the sky is increasing and has already affected visual reconnaissance. They are lowering altitude."

"Clouds..." Maryland instinctively repeated the term, his gaze once again fixed on the thick clouds in the sky, and suddenly he noticed that their shape and color seemed strange, not resembling natural conditions, raising his alertness to the highest level, "I feel something’s off... Have the Dragon Cavalry watch for movements within the clouds. The Typhon might use the clouds to launch an airstrike!"

The adjutant’s eyes widened slightly, quickly executing the officer’s command before returning to Maryland with a tinge of doubt, "Is that possible, sir? Even with cloud cover, the Flying Mages and gryphons shouldn’t be a match for the Dragon Cavalry..."

Maryland didn’t respond; he simply stared at the sky outside. Within those iron-gray clouds, snowflakes began to fall, and in a mere ten seconds, they rapidly increased and thickened, and the wind howling outside the window grew stronger. A word flashed like lightning through Maryland’s mind—snowstorm.

At that moment, he suddenly conjured a seemingly absurd yet chilling thought: In winter in the northern regions, wind and snow are common, but what if... the Typhon used some powerful miraculous force to create a snowstorm artificially?

What if this snowstorm was more than just a snowstorm?

"Sir!" A technician suddenly reported loudly beside him, "The onboard magic sensing device has failed! All sensors are being interfered with!"

"Contact the Shadow Marsh base, request aerial support from the Dragon Cavalry Special Operations Squadron," Maryland ordered without hesitation, "We might be facing trouble!"

...

The wind howled outside the barrier, and the harsh and piercing high-altitude airstream carried ice crystals sharp like blades, with thick clouds swirling like dense mud, sending faint howls and whispers with every surge—this was an environment unfit for human survival, and even sturdy military gryphons found it challenging to fly in such clouds. However, Clement felt no pressure or harm from this severe weather; quite the contrary, he felt as if he was in the warmth of spring at the source of the snowstorm.

The hundreds of combat Mages flying alongside him and an even larger number of Gryphon Knights felt similarly at ease.

The terrifying winds and frigid temperatures seemed to consciously avoid these Typhon soldiers, and the tangible obstruction forces within the clouds did not affect them in the slightest. Clement flew amid the gales and dense clouds, which not only did not obstruct his vision but rather acted like an extra pair of eyes, allowing him to clearly see everything inside and outside the clouds.

He slightly lowered his altitude, gazing from the cloud’s edge at those Cecil flying machines patrolling in the distance, while his peripheral vision scanned the armored trains moving on the ground. Boundless Magic Power surged around, and he felt every breath replenish his own strength, a sensation rare in his decades-long Mage career.

This was one of the War God’s miracle rituals—Armies in the Storm.

As a Mage, Clement was not well versed in the details of the Sect of the God of War, but as a scholarly person, he was at least familiar with these renowned miracle rituals and their corresponding religious anecdotes. Among the many great achievements described about the War God, one passage recounts the image and actions of this deity: marching in the storms, the wicked looked to him with fear, seeing only a giant standing amidst the storm cloaked in gray armor. This giant was invisible to ordinary eyes, with only the ubiquitous storm serving as his cloak and banner, and the warriors followed this banner, granted limitless strength and three lives in the storm, eventually securing destined victory.

Now, those mages and Gryphon Knights flying in the snowstorm, ready to execute air raid missions, were the "warriors" of the allegory.

Clement took a deep breath, feeling the surging Magic Power within him, and activated the communication spell: "Disperse the formation, group according to plan, close in on those flying machines—first take out those damned machines, and the Cecil moving fortresses will be easier to handle!"

The combat Mages and Gryphon Knights within the clouds swiftly began executing the commander’s orders, forming mixed-squad formations to close in on those flying machines visible with utmost clarity in their sight. At this moment, the snowstorm had fully formed.

...

Within the curtain formed by the howling winds, swirling clouds, and icy water vapor, visibility was rapidly decreasing. Such harsh weather conditions had already begun to interfere with the normal flight of the Dragon Cavalry, and to counter the increasingly deteriorating weather conditions, the patrolling flying machines activated additional environmental protection.

More solid and heavier than usual, the barrier began to shimmer around each flying machine. The power spine of the craft hummed, diverting more energy to the defense and stabilization systems, while the "dragon wings" on the sides of the cone-shaped body slightly retracted. The edges of the wing-shaped structures lit up with additional magic circles, and stronger wind blessings and elemental affinity spells were applied to these massive steel machines. With the effect of temporary enchantments, the flying machine gradually stabilized against the turbulent airflow.

The commander of the Dragon Cavalry Squadron tightened his grip on the control stick, focusing intently on his surroundings. As an experienced Gryphon Knight, he had executed flight missions in adverse weather before, but this was the first time he had encountered such a massive snowstorm. Communication from the ground had heightened his alertness, and the suddenly strengthening airflow seemed to confirm his superior’s worries: this storm was abnormal.

The Typhon people might be hiding deep within the clouds.

Visibility had dropped to an unsettling degree, and it was no longer possible to rely solely on the naked eye to see distant conditions. The Mechanic activated additional filters around the cockpit, and under the detection distortion spell effect, the surrounding clouds appeared vaguely in the Squadron Leader’s view. It wasn’t clear, but at least it served as some form of warning.

Towards the ground, the sweeping snowstorm was also severely disrupting visibility. The silhouettes of two armored trains appeared blurry, only vaguely could it be discerned that they were gradually accelerating.

At that moment, the Squadron Leader suddenly saw a flash of fire in the distant clouds.

In the detection distortion filter view, a large area of obvious spell fluctuation suddenly appeared in the previously empty airspace.

"Enemy spotted visually!" the Squadron Leader shouted a high-pitched warning on the internal channel, "Southeast direction—"

"Unit 12 is under attack!" "Unit 6 is under attack!" "Under attack! This is Unit 7!" "Engaging the enemy! Request cover! I’m pinned down!"

A blinding crimson beam swept in from afar. Fortunately, they were on high alert in advance; the power spine of the flying machine was already operating at full power and had activated all the defense systems. The beam struck the barrier, creating ripples. The Squadron Leader controlled the Dragon Cavalry’s posture while launching a barrage of arcane bullets forward with the onboard Arcane Missile Launcher, all the while giving continuous orders: "Spread out to the flanks!" "Teams Two and Three, strafe the southeast cloud layers!" "Turn on all identification lights and distance yourselves from the enemy!" "Request ground fire support!"

The fierce battle erupted suddenly, as if countless enemies had appeared out of nowhere in the snowstorm—Typhon combat Mages and Gryphon Knights emerged from the thick clouds, engaging in dogfights with the Dragon Cavalry Aircraft made of steel and flesh. Compared with the impression of the Typhon air force that the Cecil Clan had, these suddenly emerging opponents were evidently abnormal: more agile, faster, and more fearless. The adverse environment of the snowstorm made the Dragon Cavalry Troops feel restricted, yet those Typhon people, who should have been more vulnerable, seemed to have gained additional strength in the storm, becoming fierce and formidable!

The combat Mages and Gryphon Knights started to attack the flying machines with missiles, lightning, and high-energy beams. The latter retaliated with even more ferocious and sustained barrages. Suddenly, the dim sky was lit up by continuous fire, clouds and snow were blown apart by explosions high in the sky, and each flash revealed countless dueling shadows in the storm. This scene left Clement with a surging heart.

He had never witnessed such a spectacle, never experienced such a battlefield!

Flesh and steel machines fought desperately in the snowstorm. Missiles, lightning, and beams tore through the sky as the two armies fought for dominance in the air. Regardless of today’s outcome, this unprecedented aerial battle was destined to be recorded in history!

High-intensity lights suddenly swept across the sky, illuminating the silhouettes engaged in aerial combat. The next second, there came a continuous series of explosions and howling from the ground direction—the pale blue tracer of shells and crimson high-energy beams swept across the sky, and the exploding shrapnel and deafening roars rocked the entire battlefield.

The anti-air cannons of the Iron Scepter and Mortal World Serpent opened fire.

Earl Clement frowned—he and the combat Mages he led had still not moved close enough to attack those armored trains.

"Loyalty to our Empire!" In the force field formed by the wide-area communication spell, he heard a fanatical Gryphon Knight Commander let out a roaring cry, and the next second, he saw a gryphon descending under the mind control of its rider. The brave knight maneuvered through the anti-air and air-to-air barrages, but his good luck soon ran out: a Magic Crystal Shell from the ground zipped past him, and upon sensing the passing magic aura, the shell exploded in midair. The terrifying shockwave and high-temperature mass effortlessly tore apart the protective aura around the knight, ripping him and his gryphon into pieces.

A second later, the shredded knight and gryphon reformed at their previous spot of death, charging downward once more.

The War God bestowed a miracle, granting the brave fighters in the storm endless power and... three lives.

A flying machine sailed past the fanatical knight, launching a series of dense barrages. Fearlessly, the knight charged into the barrage, hurling a spear made of lightning energy—the next second, his body was torn apart again, but the flying machine was also struck at a critical point, exploding into a bright fireball in the sky.

Moments later, Clement saw the knight appear again, his fragmented body reassembling in the air. He sped through the fierce wind, with tendril-like proliferations and a cloak of flesh fluttering behind him like a grotesque monster, charging once more into the anti-air barrages.

Miracles have a price—those near to God are no longer human.

A blinding beam sliced through the sky, and the grotesque and twisted knight was hit once again by anti-air fire from the armored train. His fluttering flesh cloak and tendrils were instantly ignited and vaporized by the high-energy beam, leaving his entire form as scorched remnants falling from the sky.

This time, the knight did not reappear.

This was the third time—the miracle is finite, and those who exhaust it return their soul to the gods.

"It seems that even with the three lives granted by the gods, they’re not quite enough against the Cecil Clan’s ’new toys’."

Clement laughed, raising his hands high, calling upon the powers of storm, lightning, frost, and fire, charging ahead once more.

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