The blue fungal tide surged forward like the Zerg from StarCraft, engulfing everything in its path. The Seaborn flying through the sky were not greatly affected, but those on the ground moved faster and faster, and the wounds they sustained after being struck down by the demons slowly healed beneath flashes of blue fluorescence.
A small hound-like Seaborn that had just been knocked to the ground had its legs severed by a demon, but before long, the missing limbs regenerated. It opened its sharp maw and tore the demon before it into pieces.
Once again, the Seaborn displayed terrifying destructive power upon this land. Fortunately, this time, they stood on the side of the Terrans.
As they watched the overwhelming Seaborn legion, many crew members shared the same thought: if one day they were ever forced to become enemies of the Seaborn... the outcome would be unimaginable.
Some among the crew had once read the history of the Great Silence, though its descriptions had always been vague and obscure. But after seeing this with their own eyes, they finally understood. If the demonic horde before them had been replaced by Terrans, then the Terrans likely would not even have survived the first wave of assault.
The number of Seaborn was astonishing. With the support of the fungal tide, their movement speed increased, their bodies became even more agile, and they could even heal themselves. It was simply unbelievable.
However, the crew soon discovered that the advance of the fungal tide was being obstructed by black collapses.
The black collapse was devouring the advancing blue carpet, while gray-black energy clung to the bodies of the demons.
Within the single eye of those demons, one could see collapsed black voids that devoured energy and everything around them.
Everyone heard the faint sound of cracking. The collapsed structures grew larger and larger, and everything around them lost its vitality and life. No one could escape that terrifying force of absorption.
In the blink of an eye, dozens of new black collapse bodies appeared around the original one, all undergoing the same process of splitting apart. At the same time, the demons, infused with even greater energy, seemed to possess endless strength as they clashed head-on with the Seaborn at the front line.
"Roar!"
A deep-sea dragon threw back its head and roared. Deep blue energy gathered within its open jaws, condensing into a column of high-pressure water.
The torrent came crashing down upon the demons, and the instant it struck the ground, it erupted in a deafening explosion, with the black collapse bearing the brunt of the impact.
Part of the blue energy was absorbed by the black hole, but most of it smashed directly into the surface of the collapse body, shattering the strange substance and wiping it out in an instant.
Little Blue raised a hand into the air, and at the same moment, deep blue light gathered before the jellyfish, whales, and sea dragons.
Then, in an instant, the vast ocean itself surged toward the Collapsals.
The demons struggled to move within the seawater, and were quickly surrounded and torn apart by crab and shrimp soldiers. More demons were swept away by the tide, their severed limbs slowly sinking into the depths below.
The demons were defeated.
Before the Seaborn, every one of their methods became meaningless. The corrupted land was swallowed by the fungal carpet, and the fractured collapses were destroyed. They lost all hope of victory, and what remained for them was only annihilation.
The crew stared wide-eyed at the battle before them, a battle that clearly did not belong to the Terrans. It was both difficult and easy to imagine that war on this scale could look like this. Asuna remained calm as she gave the next order.
"Begin cleaning up the battlefield."
"But Commander, that vast ocean..."
The crew member who had been about to continue suddenly froze in place, staring blankly at the sea before him.
As the deep blue rift appeared, it quickly dissolved into the air, along with all the sea creatures except for Little Blue.
"Any further questions?"
"No, Ma'am!"
The crew immediately sprang into action. Several warships moved into formation and established a defensive line, while the researchers aboard began setting up a temporary field laboratory. They were deeply curious about the nature of demons and needed a secure area in which to conduct their studies.
The crew got to work, while the players were left completely dumbfounded.
What even was all this? What even was all this supposed to be?
Was this still war?
At least, Magic ZX felt that if players had to fight either side from the battle they had just witnessed, they would probably stand no chance.
Play? Sure, players might not truly die, but if they kept getting instantly killed and the respawn timer kept growing longer and longer, then how was anyone supposed to play?
"Mr. Młynar, what do you think?"
Magic ZX's stream was still running, but at that moment, all he really wanted was his opinion.
A bitter smile appeared on Młynar's lips. With his own strength, he was confident that he could deal with it.
There were perhaps one or two hundred demon warriors, their bodies bearing the traces of how they had died.
Their combat skill was physical, but soulless swordsmanship was no match for Młynar.
But that was only a few hundred. His stamina had limits. The demons did not.
Could the Grand Knights of Kazimierz truly win a war like this?
This was a war of attrition, and worse, a war in which no victory could be seen.
"The knights of Kazimierz will raise their swords for the beliefs they hold dear. Even if this is a war with no hope in sight, I will still tell Speaker Russell that Kazimierz must join it."
Indeed, this war would be a one-sided meat grinder. But for the sake of justice, for the sake of protecting the land of Kazimierz, and for the sake of Terra itself, Młynar could not simply stand by and do nothing.
He was a knight of chivalry, someone who helped those in need. Now Kazdel had become that person in need, and Młynar wanted to do more than merely cheer from the sidelines. He wanted to stand beside them and fight alongside them.
Of course, he had another reason for coming here as well.
"Mr. Młynar, where are you going?"
"Keep looking. I'm only searching for a couple who came north."
"Really? Then Mr. Młynar could just ask the commander. She mentioned earlier that there does seem to be something here."
There were settlements here that still fought for their own survival. Perhaps he could learn a great deal from her.
"Understood. Thank you."
Magic ZX nodded, after glancing at the live-stream comments, his face quickly fell again. "Guys, I can confirm it now. This is version 3.0's final major event. By the final stage of this mission, no one could remain untouched by Terra's power."
"I don't know whether you've all noticed, but our actions really do affect the land of Terra. Even after several updates and major version changes, some of the decisions we made back in the 1.0 era are still influencing the direction of the story now. For example, didn't we players take Brisamar City in Iberia with our own hands? That happened at the end of 1.0, but now in 3.0, it's still there, and it has even become one of the safest cities in Iberia."
"What I want to say is... this demon crisis matters. If we players successfully hold back this crisis, then I believe we'll get a wonderful 4.0. But if the demons are allowed to ravage the land of Terra... then I think the 4.0 world map may be nothing but emptiness. At that point, all the time and passion we've poured into this game might disappear along with the coming of the demons."
Ordinary viewers did not take his words too seriously, but Yang Yan XF, who had been listening to the stream in the background, did not think that way at all. He knew Magic ZX was right. The arrival of players could influence the course of the story, and the story itself did not have a fixed ending. Not every arc would end happily. Some would be bitter, some oppressive, and sometimes even the NPC who gave the quest might die, making the mission impossible to complete.
This was a game where choices could not be undone.
If the Demon Crisis truly was the final chapter of version 3.0, then Yang Yan XF believed players had a responsibility they could not escape.
For no reason he could explain, he suddenly recalled the words spoken by the King of Dawn during the 3.0 expansion:
"The continent stands on the verge of catastrophe, and only through unity can victory be won..."
Perhaps those words had been referring to the crisis of the demons all along.
Yang Yan XF did not keep those worries to himself. Instead, he discussed them with the members of the strategy group. They temporarily set aside their current work and headed straight for Kazdel. Their goal was to board the next battleship bound for Sami in the North. After all, some things needed to be seen with their own eyes.
Once the strategy group left, the professional players naturally noticed, but they were not especially curious. After all, they were still immersed in fierce battlefield fighting, killing and being killed every day. Non-PvP events did not interest them much, especially when the war itself had not yet ended.
Only a small number of professional players who had close ties with the King of Dawn sensed that something was wrong. Among them were Yanfei of Yanyu Pavilion, the key figure who had triggered that earlier conversation, and the member of the Emperor's Children Legion. They had come here carrying a mission, having entered the battlefield with Felix's approval. Now that the King of Dawn had encountered an enemy, how could they possibly choose to stand aside and do nothing?
Just as Kumori and the others were discussing when they should return to Kazdel to investigate the situation, something shocking happened across all of Terra.
Not long after Felix, the Liberation King, returned to Kazdel, he issued a proclamation to all of Terra.
A declaration of war.
In the image, the Liberation King wore a military uniform, held a scepter in one hand, and sat upon a golden throne. In the glow of the setting sun, his features were sharp and stern, and within his eyes there seemed to be a lion poised to strike.
"The land of Terra trembles, and the Originium veins boil. Standing upon this scorched and burning land, I can hear every crack in Terra crying out. This is no longer a struggle for the survival of a single city-state. It is a decision of life and death for an entire civilization."
"A month ago, I stood upon the frontier and slew thousands, even tens of thousands, of demons that came to attack. Those demons clung to the bodies of our fallen warriors, used their corpses to defile this land, and brought untold suffering to all. Our living space has been threatened. This is not only an attack upon the living, but also a desecration of the dead. Do you know what I saw in those ashes? Not despair, but countless sparks that refused to go out. Every spark was a trampled dignity. Every wisp of smoke was a soul that refused to yield."
Nearby, a video played showing a tide of demons surging outside Lumen Pass. Their forms were grotesque, their movements twisted, and their eyes shone with emptiness and void. The moment they spotted an enemy, they swarmed forward.
The response that met them was artillery fire.
Then flames surged upward and burned the demons to ashes.
"People of Terra! We are not lambs awaiting slaughter! We are warriors who fight for Terra!"
"The war has already begun. No, it began long ago. Here and now, as one who stands at the forefront, I call upon every nation and every force upon Terra to join this war, a war in which we may only win and must never lose. March north, and drive from Terra every last demon that has corrupted our land!"
"Do not even dream of peace. Peace given through charity will only end in death. We must fight!"
"I, King of Kazdel, hereby declare: Kazdel enters a state of martial law. Kazdel will immediately lift all restrictions on Originium weapons. To every warrior who lacks arms, we will place stronger weapons in your hands. To every nation that lacks the necessary technology, we will share with you the means to defeat this evil!"
"Do not fear the flames! Only when our children no longer have to endure the wars of our generation, only when the tombstones of our soldiers are no longer left desolate, shattered, or swallowed away, only when our living space is no longer polluted, only then will this fire truly be extinguished!"
"At this moment, turn your eyes toward Kazdel!"
"The ley lines have pierced the clouds. The Originium network is linking together. Our roar is the trumpet call of the final assault. Let our warships be loaded with lava shells! Let our astrolabes lock onto the enemy's nests! Let our iron cavalry grind the demons' lairs into dust!"
"Terrans!"
"Either rot within the filth and emptiness of the demons in worshipful submission, or be reborn in flame, becoming a torrent that burns even the stars!"
"For Terra!"
This was a declaration of war.
Before such a raging torrent, no one could escape, and no one could avoid disaster, because this was Terra's calamity.
Some timid civilians burst into tears. Many more turned pale with fear as they watched the demons battling on the screen. At the same time, some nobles and wealthy magnates glanced at the world map, then began preparing to pack up and flee south. After all, the demons came from the north. Surely going south would solve the problem?
From a god's-eye view, that did not seem entirely unreasonable. After all, the greatest threat in the south, the Seaborn, had changed from enemy to ally. Yet those nobles and wealthy elites had no idea of that. They could only sweat nervously as they discussed which mobile city they might be able to flee to for safety.
Hildegard Grimmacht, the Black Empress, slammed her fist into the round table hard enough to leave a hole in it. "Why were we the last to know? What exactly is Kazdel's attitude? Aren't we allies?"
"But... but our relationship with Kazdel is only a normal trade relationship..." the clerk beside her stammered, drenched in sweat.
"Hah, I do not care. The battle shown in that video took place in Yan. That means they have clearly already formed an alliance with Yan! Damn it, are they looking down on us, on Leithanien?"
The clerks and attendants standing nearby did not dare answer. No one dared say a word.
"Alright, do not be so angry." Empress Lieselotte Ewigegnade let out a soft laugh and took a seat in front of Hildegard. "This is an invitation from the Liberation King. Perhaps we should take the initiative and go to Kazdel."