Daniel opened his inventory and took out the six legendary-grade items gained from this battle.
"Aliris."
He called her over.
Aliris sheathed her sword and walked up, the aura of fierce combat still clinging to her.
She dropped to one knee. Golden blood from the elven powerhouse still stained her silver-white light armor.
"My lord duke."
Daniel held the six legendary-grade items out to her.
"These are yours."
Aliris snapped her head up, disbelief filling her pale golden eyes.
Her lips parted, but it took her a long mont to find her voice again.
"Thank you for your reward, my lord! Aliris is willing to brave fire and water for you—to die ten thousand deaths without regret!"
Daniel smiled.
Aliris’s loyalty to him had already reached the level of life-and-death devotion.
Strengthening her was the sa as strengthening himself.
He took another item from his inventory—a crystal radiating seven-colored light—and handed it to her.
"You should have enough accumulated strength by now to break through to legendary-grade, shouldn’t you?"
Aliris accepted the [Star-Tier Stone (Legendary-Grade)]. Feeling the vast power contained within it, a confident gleam flashed in her eyes.
"I am completely certain!"
Daniel nodded.
Aliris stored the six legendary-grade items away, drew a deep breath, and crushed the crystal in her hand.
A pillar of golden light descended from the heavens, piercing through the clouds and enveloping her entire body.
The light was blazing and sacred, as though so ancient god were gazing down upon her.
Within the beam, Aliris slowly rose into the air. Her silver-white light armor shattered into fragnts within the golden radiance, replaced by a new suit of armor flowing with golden runes.
The human powerhouses around her stared at the sight and collectively sucked in a sharp breath.
"Wait... th-that’s the sign of advancing to legendary-grade!"
"As expected, war is the cruelest field of flesh and blood—but also the finest whetstone for tempering the strong!"
The players, anwhile, stared blankly up at the pillar of light that connected heaven and earth.
"By the gods... that light pillar is way too flashy. Is Faustus ascending to godhood?"
"If that were the case, you’d hear an announcent first!"
"What did Faustus do this ti? I just took a look with Hawk Eye—it seed like that female NPC is leveling up?"
"Epic-grade promotion? No, that has to be an advancent to legendary-grade. Otherwise there’s no way it would have this kind of effect. But this is insane! Even Faustus’s captain of the guard is legendary-grade now?"
"So this is what you get for following a big shot? I want to be an NPC too..."
[Ding! The powerhouse under your command, "Aliris (Legendary-Grade)," has successfully advanced to "Legendary-Grade (Early Stage)"!]
The golden light faded, and Aliris slowly descended from the sky.
Her aura was now completely different from before. Those pale golden eyes had beco deeper and more profound, and a faint divine radiance seed to flow around her body.
Daniel cast a detection spell.
[Aliris · LV100 · Legendary-Grade (Early Stage)]
The corner of his mouth lifted slightly.
This was now the second legendary-grade follower at his side!
...
At that very mont, a world announcent rang out across the entire world of Stellar.
[Server-Wide Announcent!!!]
[Congratulations to player "Faustus" for conquering the elven main city "Ariahold"! Rewards: Contribution Points 100,000! Gold coins 100,000! Special Troop Class Awakening Scroll ×10! NPC Population 100,000! Achievent Earned: "Territory Pioneer"!]
The announcent sounded three tis in succession, golden text flashing before every player’s eyes.
The World Channel exploded instantly.
"Faustus has taken another city!"
"By the gods, that makes the third non-human main city, doesn’t it? Beastfolk, dwarves, elves... Faustus has cleaned up all three races!"
"@Faustus, when are you opening teleport permissions, big bro? Don’t misunderstand—I just want to appreciate the architecture of the elven race."
"Hahaha, everyone knows what you’re really thinking. I’m on-site right now, and let just say this bluntly: if you ca here, you’d just be an ugly freak!"
"Damn it, you’re not any better!"
"So what? I’m guarding a bunch of elves right now!"
"Pfft! Go die!"
...
[Ding! Contribution Points 200,000! Gold coins 300,000! Achievent completed: "Expand the Frontier"!]
[Ding! NPC Population 10,000,000! Special Troop Class Awakening Scroll ×200!]
Listening to the system notifications in his ear, Daniel’s lips curved faintly upward.
The series of rewards left him deeply satisfied.
That much NPC population would be enough to let him maintain overwhelming nurical superiority throughout his expansion.
And the Special Troop Class Awakening Scrolls ant he could upgrade the powerful warriors in his legions into elite troop classes.
Yet before the smile could fully fade from his face, three blood-red announcents stabbed into every heart like three crimson blades.
[Ergency Announcent for World Zone 616: Tiana, Deputy Legion Commander of Winterhold and legendary-grade powerhouse, has fallen in battle!]
[Ergency Announcent for World Zone 616: Cole, Deputy Legion Commander of Winterhold and legendary-grade powerhouse, has fallen in battle!]
[Ergency Announcent for World Zone 616: Upton, Deputy Chief of Staff of Winterhold and legendary-grade powerhouse, has fallen in battle!]
The World Channel fell into instant silence.
Then ca a flood of questions.
"By the gods... what happened?!"
"Three legendary-grade powerhouses all died at once? What the hell happened at Winterhold?!"
"Oh my god, this ga’s background setting is way too imrsive. I instantly got pulled into this whole Empire-on-the-brink atmosphere!"
"Yeah, if this keeps going... are we humans going to lose?!"
"Hahaha, who cares? If the NPCs don’t make way, how are we players supposed to rise?"
"Exactly. If the devs want to keep players around, they have to focus on players. These NPCs are just background props..."
"So where’s the ga’s official website?"
"..."
Unlike the heated discussion among the players in the World Channel, the smile on Daniel’s face vanished at once.
NPCs?
Those were living, breathing lives!
Three legendary-grade powerhouses had fallen at the sa ti. The brutality of the war in the north far exceeded his imagination!
Winterhold was likely already on the verge of collapse.
Once the fortress fell, the nearly trillion-strong Sixfold Host would pour into the Empire’s heartland like a tidal wave.
And when that happened, what kind of catastrophe would the Empire’s people in the north face?
Hos destroyed. Families torn apart. Wives and children separated from their loved ones...
He had seen such scenes far too many tis.
Daniel took a deep breath and forcibly suppressed the urge to rush north imdiately.
That was a battlefield for legendary-grade powerhouses.
With dozens of legendary-grade experts fighting there, even lower- and mid-tier legendary-grade combatants could do little more than barely protect themselves.
With his current strength, even if he went, he would not be able to change the tide.
Rather than throwing his life away, it was better to continue pinning down the strength of the non-human races behind enemy lines.
Every non-human main city he captured was one more share of pressure taken off the northern front.
But for the situation in the north to have deteriorated this far...
It was deeply worrying.
In the end, it all ca down to one thing:
The Empire was still not strong enough.
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