The Rise of the Black Plain
chapter-2604

Days later, Minos and his three companions had left allied territory, passed through neutral territory, and then entered enemy territory.

Now the four of them were cautiously sailing toward the Monastery of Chaos, located only 250 kilometers north of their current position.

Minos could easily cover that distance in a few moments if he used all of his strength. However, just as he had done in the first test with the Supreme Corpses, he needed to infiltrate the enemy territory before he could act violently and openly.

But with his clairvoyance at its peak, navigating those hundreds of kilometers would be easy for Minos. In a few minutes, he and his three companions would stand behind a bush, watching the enemy forces standing guard around the Monastery of Chaos security area.

"Are you sure we should act so openly?" The level 114 General asked Minos, having already heard his plan for this attack.

He was now aware of the tests Minos had planned for him, Abby, and Ruth, as well as the method of getting past the enemy defenses.

Knowing how Minos had invaded a force with three Supremes years ago, he didn't doubt this guy's invasion skills. But he was worried about the battle ahead.

"Fear not, General. With my wife's skill, we can use the very people who fall in battle to rise up against their former comrades and masters." Minos placed a hand on Abby's right shoulder and smiled confidently.

The General looked at Abby and secretly clenched his fists, not doubting it would help, but still feeling strange.

They would soon make way for the enemy group to enter the protected area of this headquarters, with the two women and the level 114 alien following behind Minos.

Once inside the force headquarters, there was no turning back for the group. The level 114 Sovereign took a deep breath and advanced with the group on this suicide mission, following in disguise as the Monastery of Chaos subordinates.

"Unfortunately, I'm not stronger. Otherwise, I could help you reach level 115, at least temporarily. But it's likely you'll be able to show off superior combat skills during this fight. Come on, don't be afraid," Minos said as he walked ahead of his group, his golden hourglass appearing in one of his hands.

The men standing guard at the entrance to the force immediately felt the effects of Minos' divine power, freezing in time and space.

They would soon make way for the enemy group to enter the protected area of this headquarters, with the two women and the level 114 alien following behind Minos.

Once inside the force headquarters, there was no turning back for the group. The level 114 Sovereign took a deep breath and advanced with the group on this suicide mission, following in disguise as the Monastery of Chaos subordinates.

When they entered the headquarters of this force, they would feel how true the information given by the General earlier had been.

'Indeed. Most of them are here. Your observers are sharp, General.' Minos praised as he sensed numbers similar to those the alien had commented on earlier.

'These are competent men. But I don't know if this is a good thing. I'd rather they were mistaken and there weren't so many enemies here.' The General said to the minds of his companions while his eyes were fixed on a lighted area ahead, where some kind of fraternization was taking place.

Abby looked in that direction and saw several beings native to Zocarro celebrating in an area the size of a city, but with no typical city buildings around it. The place looked more like the remains of a quarry, where a few tents, some special structures, occupied some of the magnificent space.

But most of the area was just ruined rock, and the locals were spread out rather irregularly, with a few campfires here and there, and lots of conversation in the language of the region they were in.

'Is this kind of gathering common?' The blue-haired woman asked, narrowing her eyes.

From the looks of it, many of the creatures were eating and drinking, so this area of several square kilometers was like a large banquet.

'Yes. Commanders usually have banquets before and after battles. Pre-battle is rarer, but it can happen, especially if a lord has called their vassals to fight alongside them. After the battle is more common. Men spend a lot of their strength in battle, get injured, and come close to death. There's nothing better than a feast to satisfy the masses of soldiers.'

'I see...'

Ruth asked Minos. 'How should we act here? We're already undercover, so we can do a lot of different things.'

Minos continued to lead the team towards the banquet place. 'Let's see what they're talking about. We're already here, so there's no point in wasting it, right? There's bound to be enough fighting for us, even if we take the enemies by surprise with a few kills.'

They moved on without questioning his decision and soon passed through an area where hundreds and hundreds of Sovereigns between levels 110 and 113 were.

They passed almost all of them unnoticed, wearing disguises that only Supremes would notice as long as they didn't activate their powers.

Soon, they were close enough to the leaders of the region to overhear the preparations for the battle against the enemies in a few days, when they would avenge the alliance's defeats against the enemies in this region.

"In a week at the most, we will march against the Wicked Field and spill the blood of our enemies! Did they take Soul Pagoda? We'll take the Wicked Field!" shouted one of the level 114 Sovereigns, who was between the strongest men to attend the banquet.

Shouts of "yeah!" erupted from the crowd of high-level fighters amid the comments of warriors eager to get to the battlefield.

Most seemed eager for bloodshed, some with obvious interests in avenging fallen comrades.

A war began with the interests of powerful individuals, but it grew in all directions, with great acts of brutality generated by revenge for deaths caused by the conflict itself.

The Firestone Mines alliance had accumulated more negative than positive results since the missions of the Armhands' Elders and the Supreme corpses began. As a result, subordinates like these thousands of individuals were being assembled to advance against groups like the one Maximillian now belonged to.

The Armhands' Elders couldn't be everywhere with the Supreme corpses. While they were fighting the major battles, important pillars of the Armhands' allies would suffer from the enemies' plans!

'This is bad. If the guild and our allies don't react accordingly, even if we win the war, we could lose many Sovereigns and weaken the foundation of our forces!'

Ruth and her companions realized the problem.

'We will inform the guild about this later. For now, let's act!' Minos said as he took a step forward, drawing the attention of some of the strongest in the area.