Chapter 149: Gathering the World's Strongest Fighting Force
Relying entirely on the system to sustain one's life, yet paradoxically moving to destroy it. It sounded completely contradictory, but in reality, it made perfect sense. This kind of chaotic logic aligned flawlessly with D's twisted personality.
"Looking at it that way, it's not much different from what I've already been doing," Ariel muttered as the realization clicked. After all, the core purpose of the Human-Demon War was to force individuals to raise their skill proficiencies through intense combat, ensuring that when they died in battle, the system could harvest the energy stored within those skills.
*Wow, look at me being an absolute tactical genius. Wa-ka-ka!*
"Even if it is theoretically possible, if we actually go through with breaking the system, will that entity truly permit it?" Güli-güli questioned heavily. He was well-versed in the sheer terror of D. That Evil God was like a walking cosmic black hole—completely unpredictable. If they inadvertently triggered her displeasure, the consequences would be catastrophic.
"Oh, relax. As long as things remain entertaining, she won't care how we handle it," Shiro chimed in to reassure him. She understood D's personality better than anyone in the room; watching a massive system get thoroughly dismantled from the inside out was exactly the kind of chaotic entertainment D would live for. A dramatic narrative of finding life after absolute destruction—who could possibly turn that down?
"But there is absolutely no guarantee with an entity like that. I am still deeply concerned," Güli-güli insisted.
Just as he was about to continue running in circles with his worries, Shirazawa directly cut him off. "There are no 'what-ifs' here. If you hadn't been so incredibly lazy with your administrative duties as a Guide all these years, would the situation have ever degraded to this point?"
The second those words left his lips, Güli-güli wisely shut his mouth, unable to offer a single counterargument.
"Hehehe, to think the grand Lord would actually be left completely speechless like this~" Nia couldn't help but giggle, her shoulders shaking as she let out a smooth, rolling laugh.
Güli-güli shot her a sharp glare before letting out a long, defeated sigh as he finally accepted reality. It was true. For all these centuries, he had merely played the role of a passive bystander, completely failing to take any decisive action—which was precisely what had catalyzed their current awkward bottleneck.
"While I am forbidden from directly entering the fray, I will provide you all with the maximum possible assistance from the sidelines." D had strictly banned him from interfering in conflicts involving the reincarnators, but that didn't mean his hands were completely tied.
Ariel instantly smelled a prime opportunity to score free labor, a massive grin spreading across her face. "Are you serious?"
"In that case, why don't you round up all your high-tier subordinates capable of taking human form and form the Ninth Demon Army? Lend them entirely to me for the upcoming operations."
"Very well." Güli-güli nodded. "As long as the directives don't cross any extreme boundaries, they will follow your commands."
"Then you might as well step up as the Commander of the Ninth Army yourself." Ariel showed absolutely zero hesitation, immediately drafting Güli-güli as a prime piece of muscle for her military.
Seizing the momentum, she seamlessly assigned Shirazawa and Shiro to oversee the Tenth Army. As for Wrath, who had recently come over to join their faction, his massive goblin army would function perfectly as free frontline units. Since the Eighth Army happened to be severely short on manpower, letting Wrath take over the vacancy was a flawless strategic fit. To wrap things up neatly, she assigned little Leest to step in as the Vice-Commander of the Eighth Army.
Sophia wasn't given an official military title, remaining directly attached to Shirazawa and Shiro's personal unit where she could be easily managed and kept under control.
Meanwhile, Merazophis was ordered to directly take over the reins of the Fourth Demon Army, allowing the previous commander, Agner, to step back into a macro-logistical role to manage the overall war effort. As for Agner's younger brother, Bloe, he was transferred to serve as the Commander of the Seventh Army. The original commander of the Seventh Army had been permanently eliminated by Ariel during the previous demon rebellion, leaving the seat perfectly vacant.
The remaining Second, Third, Fifth, and Sixth Armies were left untouched under their current configurations for the time being.
"Seriously now... isn't this a bit too much of an unfair bullying campaign against the humans?" Shirazawa rolled his eyes at Ariel. Having every single top-tier powerhouse on the entire planet consolidated directly under the Demon King's banner felt a bit ridiculous.
"Huh? We are actively working to save the literal world here! What's wrong with bringing a few extra swords to the table?" Ariel fired back, spinning her twisted logic with absolute confidence. At this specific moment, her self-assurance had soared to an all-time high. She felt like standing up and shouting, *Is there anyone else left to challenge me?!*
"What are we going to do about Potimas?" Sophia asked, her chin resting in her hands as she brought up the one name capable of instantly ruining everyone's mood.
The excitement surrounding Ariel instantly vanished, her face dropping into a sour expression. "Tsk~ I almost forgot about that incredibly annoying cockroach."
Shirazawa didn't particularly care about the old elf's survival; given their current line-up, wiping out the elf race would be as simple as breathing. Right now, his thoughts were focused entirely on how to preserve Ariel's life.
The moment the system is systematically dismantled, a massive portion of everyone's existing skills would be forcefully stripped away and reclaimed. The resulting backlash would inflict an immense amount of pain upon an individual's soul. As the reigning Demon King, Ariel possessed a staggering five full pages of registered skills—meaning she would sustain the most catastrophic damage out of everyone on the planet. Given that her natural lifespan was already ticking down to its absolute end, hitting her with a soul-rending backlash like that would likely cause her to drop dead on the spot.
Shirazawa needed to think out a concrete solution to help Ariel achieve full godhood and safely detach herself from the system's bindings before the grand dismantling took place. The exact same requirement applied to Sophia and Leest as well. They couldn't allow the powerful skills they had spent so much effort cultivating to simply dissolve into nothingness.
For the very first time, he felt like time was running dangerously short.
"Güli-güli, go round up your subordinates. Ariel, focus on consolidating our military forces. I will personally head over to coordinate with Pope Dustin regarding our joint offensive against the elf race. Shiro will be responsible for incubating and training a fresh batch of spider clones to reinforce the Tenth Army."
"Wrath, whip your forces into proper shape as quickly as possible. As for Leest and Sophia... forget it, you two just focus on growing up quickly."
"Three years from today, we launch our final crusade against the elves."
"Does anyone have any objections to this?" Shirazawa laid out the plan, cleanly structuring their respective tasks before looking around the room for feedback.
"Agreed!" a chorus of voices echoed in unison.
Sophia raised her hand in protest: "I object! I'm already incredibly strong, I want to be an Army Commander too!"
The crowd casually voiced their collective agreement with Shirazawa's plan, completely ignoring Sophia's frantic protests.
"Alright, the strategy is officially locked in. Let's begin our preparations." Shirazawa waved his hand dismissively, and the assembled group filed out of the room.
Three years from today would mark the definitive execution date for Potimas. The reason Shirazawa had intentionally set a three-year buffer window was to guarantee that Shiro could fully master Metatron's contract authority, ensuring they could cleanly eliminate the threat lingering inside Ms. Oka's soul. Simultaneously, it bought him enough time to thoroughly research a viable path to guide their allies into full godhood.
On a side note, the younger reincarnators currently scattered across the world would almost certainly have zero opportunities to join the upcoming battles. By the time they grew old enough to wield weapons, Shirazawa would have already settled all the planet's affairs and marched straight toward the divine battlefields of the cosmos.
However, there was a specific silver-haired girl who had caught Shirazawa's attention; she might still prove useful to his plans. That variable happened to be one of the primary reasons he was heading out to meet with Pope Dustin. He had caught wind of a certain fanatical, slightly dim-witted Saint candidate operating within the Word of God Religion. Given that his personal authority revolved around the harvesting of Faith, a fanatic like her could potentially be utilized to maximize his power.
Amidst Sophia's lingering complaints, the council members quietly parted ways. Wrath set off toward the Demon Spire Mountains to guide his loyal goblin troops back to civilization, while Güli-güli led Nia toward a hidden, secure chamber buried deep within the Demon King's Castle.
This specific chamber was the resting place of the legendary Demon King Sword. The Dark Dragon, Reis, was an ancient creature belonging to the same primordial generation as Nia, and his lifelong mission was to guard this specific blade—an armament capable of actively threatening the lives of gods. However, the sword had mysteriously vanished many years ago. Because the weapon was gone, there was no longer any logical reason for Reis to remain cooped up in the dark.
The trio of ancient dragons joined forces, setting off across the world to rally the remaining dragon clans, including the Wind Dragon, Hyuvan.
Meanwhile, following the plans of their strategy, Shirazawa arrived at Pope Dustin's office to lay out their terms, while Ariel had Shiro teleport her directly into the lowest depths of the Elroe Great Labyrinth.
That isolated coordinate housed the absolute core mechanism of the system—the exact place where the Goddess Sariel was bound.
It was a vast, silent void.
The Goddess Sariel appeared completely embedded into the fabric of the open void itself. Her lower torso had entirely dissolved into nothingness, and her arms were pinned rigidly to her sides, her forearms long since fused into the empty air. With only half of her body remaining, the Goddess leaned forward with her eyes tightly closed, her lips moving continuously as she mechanically broadcasted the global announcements known to the world as the Divine Voice.
"Proficiency threshold reached. Skill <...> has met the requirements for advancement..."
"Proficiency threshold reached. Acquired skill <...>..."
"Experience points have accumulated to the required level. Individual: <...> has leveled up..."
"..."
Inside that dead, desolate space, nothing remained except for the endless, mechanical echoes of the Voice of Heaven.
Ariel slowly raised her right hand, her fingers gently brushing against the Goddess's cold cheek as a soft, trembling murmur escaped her lips.
"Mother..."
---
[100 Ps = 1 Bonus Chapter.]
[25 total review = 1 Bonus Chapter.]
[] Patreon:
➔ Unlock advanced chapters & exclusive supporter roles in discord!
➔ For 50 adv chapters. [email protected]/Prince_of_LanLi