The ground began to tremble slightly, and a line of heavy trucks, tanks, and armored vehicles appeared in the field of vision like a river of steel.
Two armored divisions, 21,456 men, plus 200 Royal Air Force fighter planes.
This included 317 tanks, over 100 heavy artillery pieces, over 400 artillery pieces, and more than 2,000 vehicles and carriages in total.
This was the force Benjamin had mobilized over the past three days, and they had all arrived at the Ganges River.
"Report to Commander-in-Chief, all personnel assembled, awaiting instructions."
"Aim at the target area, stand by."
As soon as the words were spoken, fighter planes streaked across the sky, their roars echoing.
The 'Hastar' lair, towed by a giant truck, slowly appeared on the banks of the Ganges.
A clearing of approximately 2,500 square meters had been prepared on the Ganges Riverbank, paved with wooden planks to form an altar, upon which stood 417 shrines.
Four hundred and seventeen goddess priestesses, dressed in magnificent attire, each occupied their respective positions.
This was already all the goddess priestesses that can be found in West India.
The priests began preparations, lighting incense, purifying themselves, and calming their minds.
An attendant beside the wooden pole of the altar rang the copper bell on the wooden frame, its clear sound signaling the start of the ritual.
Led by the chief priest, the priests faced the Ganges, standing solemnly and respectfully, raising vessels filled with Ganges water with the most solemn expressions to offer prayers.
After the prayers, the priests returned to their respective altars, chanting and burning incense to the sound of the copper bells.
A multitude of sacrificial offerings, including cobra torches, chicken claws, copper bells, ritual lamps, peacock feathers, and yak tails, were presented in turn, swirling rhythmically in the directions of east, west, south, and north.
After each ritual offering was completed, holy water and flowers were sprinkled into the Ganges.
Two thousand female believers of the goddess outside the altar pierced their tongues and cheeks with silver needles, or had their arms and backs pierced with iron hooks, and walked barefoot on burning charcoal.
They expressed their faith in the gods in this way, measuring their devotion by the degree of pain and bleeding they endured.
Benjamin wondered if their gods liked this, but the hellish cenobites certainly would.
They circled the altar, displaying their faith to the crowd, hoping to receive blessings from the gods.
As the ceremony reached its climax, all the priests stood together, raised their arms towards the Ganges, and chanted ancient Indian script.
The chief priest glanced at Benjamin, who understood.
"Offer the sacrifice!" Benjamin gestured towards the trucks.
The 'Hastar' lair was slowly pushed into the Ganges by four bulldozers.
Seeing the sacrifice being pushed into the Ganges, the priests chanted even louder.
Benjamin concealed part of the offering from the priests, only telling them it was a sacrifice, without specifying its exact nature.
The priests assumed it was a large flatbread, believing Benjamin to be a devout believer who would prepare such a sincere offering.
At that moment, all the soldiers received an order and shouted loudly.
"Hastar is coming! Hastar is coming! Hastar is coming...!"
The shouts echoed along the Ganges.
Upon hearing this name, the priests paled, their chanting ceasing, and they looked at Benjamin in terror. Some began to flee.
Bang! Bang! Two fleeing priests fell to the ground.
"Continue chanting!"
The soldier supervising them from the armored vehicle pointed his gun at them coldly.
The chanting resumed, but the tone was much weaker and lower.
The flour on the surface of the nest, washed away by the river, began to peel away, revealing a scarlet outer layer.
This red grew increasingly vivid, as if it were about to drip blood.
The shriveled nest slowly swelled up, becoming rounded.
From within came countless hissing sounds, its surface constantly writhing and bulging, like a spider egg about to hatch countless tiny spiderlings.
The ever-flowing Ganges River seemed to change as well.
The river gradually became still, yet also turbulent, filled with an unsettling sense of contradiction.
A fierce aura seemed to be emanating from all directions, tracing its course along the river, sending chills down the spines of ordinary people!
Those present seemed to sense the change in atmosphere as well.
The soldiers' expressions were focused, their arms tense, ready to press the firing button at any moment.
"It's coming!" someone exclaimed.
Splash!
Water splashed as a figure burst from the lakebed, hurtling towards the 'Hastar' lair.
It was humanoid, a massive creature over four meters tall, with a head like a withered toad, red lava flowing from its belly, and a purple maw spewing flames.
"The Divine Child!"
"It's Torch Canaan! The Divine Child Torch Canaan!"
The priests cried out in alarm, their voices rising like a tidal wave as they knelt in unison.
The soldiers held their breath, silently awaiting Benjamin's order to attack.
At this moment, Benjamin was standing on the roof of an armored vehicle next to the helicopter.
The helicopter's fan was spinning, and if anything went wrong, Benjamin would rush over immediately and evacuate by flight.
Torch Canaan ignored everyone present, tearing at the goddess's womb with its fan-like, claw-like hands.
"Ha...S...Tar!"
The Torch Canaan let out a strange, low growl, its tone somewhat resembling the diminutive suffix of Hastar's name.
Blood and flesh splattered, fascia ruptured, and the seemingly indestructible goddess's womb was quickly torn open, a gaping hole appearing.
The power of the same origin could indeed destroy a goddess's womb.
Countless Hastars, like spiderlings hatching from their shells, surged wildly towards the Torch Canaan.
The Torch Canaan's belly swelled, its massive purple maw snapped open, and a burst of flame incinerated the swarm of Hastars into ashes.
However, there are still endless Hasturs rushing out, trying to bite the Torch Canaan and pass on the rotting curse to it.
While spewing scorching flames, the Torch Canaan continued to tear at its nest with its claws, widening the opening.
*Poof!* *Whoosh!*
At this moment, a figure suddenly pierced through the goddess's womb from below, and along with the shattered remains of Hastar, burst out from the hole at the top, shooting straight up into the air.
Another son of God has arrived.
It is over three meters tall, withered and emaciated, with blue skin, resembling a featherless fledgling, its hands and feet like sharp blades.
"God!"
The priests knelt and cried out, tears streaming down their faces.
"Our God has returned!"
"It is Needle-Romansa! The ninth son of God."
"Needle-Romansa, please forgive my sins!"
"This is a battle of the gods! Oh my god, it's all because of Your believers. I am guilty! I am guilty...!"
The priests went completely mad; some even prostrated themselves in worship towards the lair.
This time, no soldiers stopped them, for everyone gripped their rifle butts tightly, awaiting the commander-in-chief's orders.
Only steel and artillery fire could give them a sense of security.
"Commander-in-Chief!"
The four staff officers beside him exchanged a glance and couldn't help but shout in unison.
"No rush, the time isn't right yet."
Benjamin's composure eased their tension slightly. They had participated in hundreds of wars, large and small, but this was their first war against non-human creatures.
Needle Romsa and Torch Canaan began to coordinate.
Torch Canaan blocked countless Hastars, while Needle Romsa spun like a top, frantically tearing apart the Hastar's lair.
The lake in the distance stirred again, and the river surged with waves five meters high, as if propelled by a pod of whales.
The giant waves crashed against the Hastar's lair, and nine more monsters appeared, all with bizarre appearances: snake heads, rotten faces, two heads, multiple limbs... a veritable grotesque spectacle.
The Hastar's lair was instantly torn in half. No new Hastars appeared, but the remaining Hastar was rapidly expanding in size.
Three meters... five meters... seven meters... ten meters!