Early September.
The last traces of summer were quietly slipping away.
At the end of the Argent Mountains, the straight mountain line suddenly bent south, splitting off into another range named the Varju Mountains.
The mountain range branching out here was still considered part of the Argent Mountains, but it was also the boundary point between the two.
On the last plain at the foot of the boundary mountains, the Demacian army had already arrived.
There had been no accidents along the way. Basically, after the Noxian garrison troops heard that the Demacian army was about to arrive, they withdrew and avoided them all the way.
Even the civilians in the cities fled to places far away.
At this moment, the Noxian reinforcements had also crossed the boundary mountains and regrouped with the troops that had retreated along the way. After that, they marched in Demacia's direction.
By autumn, the skies were heavy with rain, so they were often gloomy and overcast.
The cool wind howling past seemed to be guiding the opening act of a great battle.
As time passed, the armies of both sides were about to meet. The scouts in each army had already discovered the enemy's main force.
In this battle, both sides carried the resolve to win, so neither side wavered.
This time, Maradi Cook, who served as the commander of the Noxian support army, waved his hand directly after receiving the news. His eyes were firm, with a faintly ruthless light in them. "All troops, advance!"
Before setting out, he had been entrusted with an important mission by the Grand General. He had to strike Demacia hard and drive them back from Noxian territory.
For this reason, the Grand General had sent many mages, giant beasts, explosives, and even living weapons to help him fight Demacia.
Everyone knew that the current Demacia was powerful and difficult to oppose. No one knew how many Noxian reinforcements they had already wiped out.
If they could not repel them, then once Demacia crossed the boundary point, they would basically be a sword aimed straight at the Immortal Bastion.
Carrying this difficult mission on his shoulders only ignited Maradi's resolve even more. In this battle, even if it cost him his life, he had to drive Demacia back.
Rumble.
The enormous wheels of the war chariots rolled forward with the footsteps of the army, sounding like low thunder. Everyone knew that the war was about to begin, and they had all mentally prepared themselves for it.
"Prepare to sing the Noxian march!"
Following the commander's shout, an army of over a hundred thousand men began singing Noxus's war song in perfect unison.
The voices of everyone gathered together echoed above the plain, gradually filling each person with strength.
One hour later.
At a river channel on the plain, the winding river stretched far into the distance. On both sides of the river were the local farmlands. The crops in the fields had not been tended for a long time. With the change from summer to autumn, one side looked green, while the other looked yellow.
And on both sides, the Demacian army and the Noxian army slowly appeared.
At a glance, heads surged like waves. The number of soldiers on both sides combined exceeded three hundred thousand. One side was white, and the other was black. Fallen upon the plain, they looked like white and black pieces on a board.
At that moment, the atmosphere before the battle was incomparably tense. Restless battle intent surged into the sky, making the gloomy heavens feel even heavier.
Luke sat on horseback, his gaze leaping over the farmland and landing among the enemy army.
At the same time, Maradi was also observing Luke with his excellent eyesight.
If nothing unexpected happened, this person was the second prince of Demacia, Luke Lightshield.
He was now a famous figure in Noxus. Perhaps by now, his name had already spread throughout Runeterra.
Because he was the only person in such a long time who had made Noxus suffer such a huge setback.
The Grand General had even offered a sky-high bounty. Whoever could assassinate this man would immediately be granted the title of count, along with land, an enormous fortune, and enough wealth to ensure that their descendants would never worry about food or clothing.
However, at such a critical juncture, no one dared accept this bounty at all.
As for the Assassins' Guild, they had seemingly vanished several months ago and had remained silent ever since.
Looking at him like this, the other side truly did possess an extraordinary bearing. With only one glance, one could tell he was no ordinary person.
Maradi exhaled the breath weighing on his heart and adjusted his mentality. Then he turned and shouted loudly, "Demacia has acted recklessly, invading our territory, harming our people, and stealing our wealth. Looking across the history of the empire, no one has ever dared oppose Noxus like this. In this battle, we must make them pay the price. For Noxus, victory!"
He raised his arm and shouted.
"For Noxus, victory!"
In an instant, countless roaring responses rang out. The morale of the army suddenly rose.
Seeing this, Luke raised his hand and gave the order expressionlessly. "Sound the horn and prepare for war! Once we break through this defensive line, we will prove to Runeterra that Demacia has no cowards! Whoever attacks Demacia will be punished, no matter how far they run!"
His words fell like a thunderclap.
"Whoever attacks Demacia will be punished, no matter how far they run!"
Behind him, the army suddenly erupted into a deafening roar. The battle spirit in the hearts of countless Demacian soldiers burned to life.
Their momentum was even more oppressive than that of the Noxian army.
Because to the soldiers of Demacia, this was not a war of invasion.
It was a war of vengeance.
Looking across history, they had never provoked any nation. It had always been Noxus that started trouble first.
They occupied land, slaughtered civilians, and plundered resources.
Demacia had never once taken the initiative to invade any nation.
Enduring once did not mean they would endure again and again.
Luke's blade had awakened every Demacian.
The words that had been suppressed in their hearts for so long finally roared out at this moment.
Whoever attacks Demacia will be punished, no matter how far they run!
Woo.
The sound of the horn echoed over the army, bringing an invisible strength to everyone. Hot blood burned in their bodies at that moment.
Maradi shouted the order in a thunderous voice. "For Noxus, kill!"
Rumble, rumble, rumble!
The sound of enormous war chariot wheels rolling rang out. Noxus was the first to send out enhanced war chariots. In order to counter Demacia's explosives, they had abandoned most of their offensive functions and focused on strengthening defense.
At a glance, each war chariot, standing over ten meters tall, was as solid as a fortress. The army followed behind the war chariots, constantly closing the distance with the Demacian army.
And at the front of this army followed two enormous figures like small mountains, only slightly shorter than the war chariots.
They came with ferocious momentum, their bodies rising and falling with every step, like surging giant waves that wanted to rush onto the shore in one breath and sweep everything away.
They were two giant beasts. Their bodies were bound by enormous iron chains, allowing them only to advance with the war chariots. Their entire bodies were covered in rough, heavy fur, and their eyes were covered by huge hoods.
Behind these two giant beasts was a beast legion, drakehounds, dragon lizards, war bulls. This was the second offensive wave Noxus was using to close the distance with the Demacian army.
Looking at the war chariots slowly pressing closer, Luke gave the order without hesitation. "Fire!"
Boom, boom, boom, boom!
In an instant, the sky was filled with fired cannonballs, raining down on the war chariots one after another.
The flames of explosions swiftly swallowed the farmland, blasting this stretch of plain until it was covered in devastation.
Noxus had indeed put in effort. Those war chariots actually endured the first round of attacks. Although cracks were blasted into them, they continued advancing.
Without needing Luke to give another order, the second round of artillery had already fired.
Before the Noxian army entered attack range, they would inevitably lose part of their combat strength under the artillery assault first.
But in the eyes of Noxus, who had already witnessed Demacia's strength, this was something they had prepared for.
If they did not fight head-on and only competed in long-range firepower, they would never be able to repel Demacia.
As the battle lines drew closer, the war chariots could no longer bear the pressure. One after another, they collapsed under the bombardment.
Following right behind them was the beast legion, roaring as it launched its charge. These fierce beasts required countless resources and effort to cultivate.
Previously, Noxus had already lost one batch to Demacia. This current batch was even greater in number, so they had clearly invested heavily.
These beasts of flesh and blood naturally could not withstand artillery bombardment like the war chariots.
Their advantage lay in their charging speed, as well as their thick hides and tough bodies.
So through the sacrifices of one fierce beast after another, the distance between the two sides kept closing.
Sensing that the time had come, Maradi immediately ordered, "Release the giant beasts!"
The order was given, and the hoods covering the heads of the two giant beasts following the army were finally removed.
"Roar!"
"Roar!"
The moment the hoods were removed, the giant beasts unleashed terrifying roars, as if declaring that they were about to destroy everything before them.
Looking over, they were unmistakably two behemoths.
Above those ugly, twisted beast mouths was a pair of pitch-black eyes. Their faces were covered in fangs, making them look hideous and terrifying.
Maradi looked at the enraged behemoths. Seeing their mountain-like bodies, the pressure on his heart lessened slightly.
These two behemoths were originally powerful magical beasts from the cold lands. In order to capture them, Noxus had paid an enormous price.
Fortunately, they had ultimately succeeded and brought them back to Noxus to be domesticated.
Ordinary battles would never warrant deploying them.
At this moment, the beast handlers opened the mechanism and released the iron chains. Like they had gone mad, the two behemoths locked onto the Demacian army. Then they spread their legs and charged over there with twelve thick, massive legs.
Their defensive power was astonishing. Cannonballs landed on them, yet they failed to produce even the slightest knockback effect.
Braving the artillery filling the sky, they led the beast legion and continued charging.
Whoosh!
At that moment, dazzling golden light flashed, and scattered brilliance sliced through the air, illuminating the gloomy sky until it was as bright as daytime.
A few seconds later, the stone giant's golden wings flapped, stirring up a strong wind. Then he leapt high into the air and slammed down into the Noxian army's charging formation.
"Now these are the enemies who should taste my fists!"
Looking at the two behemoths, Galio's deep voice carried a trace of excitement.
He felt that he had finally encountered enemies worthy of a fight. In his memory, the last time he had fought beasts like the two before him had been many, many years ago.
And staring at the white colossus that had descended from the sky, the urgency in Maradi's heart returned. "What had to come has still come."
This white colossus was the hardest one to deal with. These two behemoths were only meant to stall him.
They had to seize the time and quickly deal with the Demacian army before the two behemoths fell.
He hurriedly ordered, "Everyone, charge! There's nothing left to hesitate over. Release the living weapons!"
The order was given, and one escort cart after another rapidly arrived at the front of the army.
Inside those iron cages were restless, starving figures. They let out wailing roars. The bloody smell on the battlefield had already drawn out their killing instincts, making them even more frenzied.
Their pairs of bloodthirsty eyes stared fixedly at everyone.
At this time, the two behemoths had already launched their charge at Galio. Their rumbling footsteps shook the earth.
They came from the left and right, using their shoulders to slam into Galio's waist. But in the next second, their violent charge stopped in place.
The colossus stretched out both hands, grabbing one behemoth's giant horn in each hand, locking into a contest of strength with them.
The behemoths had six legs each. At this moment, the two of them were frantically scraping the ground with their rear legs, hoping to push away the colossus in front of them.
"Now this has some kick!"
The next moment, Galio suddenly exerted his strength and laughed loudly. Bringing both hands together, he made the two behemoths crash into each other with a loud bang.
The two behemoths let out painful groans and collapsed onto the ground. Then, still unwilling to accept defeat, they rose from the ground again, their furious eyes fixed tightly on Galio.
They were clearly very resistant to being beaten.
"Open the cages!"
Following the order, the mechanisms were activated, and the cages imprisoning the living weapons were finally unlocked.
The next instant, one starving figure after another rushed out of the cages and sprinted toward the place where blood was concentrated.
Their faces were crazed, and there was only slaughter in their eyes. Their speed was extremely fast.
They even far surpassed the charging beasts. Their bodies looked like those of normal humans, yet they seemed to contain terrifying power.
Among them, Briar also broke into a sprint, blending in perfectly.
Luke naturally noticed these living weapons at once. He roughly counted them. There were more than ten.
Each living weapon possessed the strength to oppose an entire warband, so they naturally could not be underestimated.
"Do not underestimate the enemy. Attack!"
Without hesitation, he took the lead and charged first.
In an instant, the army behind him also launched their charge together with Luke.
Tianna and Lev fought side by side for the first time in a long while. Looking at the scene before her, she also galloped forward, battle intent surging across her entire body. "I'll show that brat I haven't gone dull yet!"
Her weapon was a standard Demacian steel sword, broad and dignified, only a little smaller than a greatsword.
As the marshal of a nation, Tianna's strength was naturally deeply hidden.
She directly locked onto a living weapon crouching on the corpse of a drakehound and gnawing flesh in a bloodthirsty frenzy, then swung her sword.
The steel sword fell extremely quickly. A sharp gleam flashed over the blade, and it gave off a humming sound.
That living weapon sensed it in an instant and was about to stand, but it was still one step too late. The moment it rose, one of its arms was cut off.
It looked as if it felt no pain or itch, only rage. It roared at Tianna, opened its mouth full of bloody flesh, and pounced.
"Nothing but trash!"
Tianna snorted coldly, leapt down from her horse, and slashed down from above, carrying a domineering sword aura.
With one strike, she sent the living weapon in front of her flying more than ten meters away.
Lev also faced one of the living weapons. As the captain of the Dauntless Vanguard, his strength was naturally not weak either.
Luke had informed them of the situation in advance, so they all knew they had to deal with these things immediately.
Otherwise, ordinary soldiers would not be their match.
These things would become stronger and stronger through bloodthirst, and they could even recover from fatal injuries.
So right from the start, all the powerful forces within the army had already taken action.
Poppy smashed a living weapon into the ground with one hammer blow, then followed up without hesitation with another strike. After that, she continued hammering it one blow after another like she was playing whack-a-mole, producing terrifying heavy impacts.
Luke had warned her that these things had thick hides and tough bodies. She had to make absolutely sure they were smashed dead.
Lux locked onto a living weapon, then raised her staff. Without hesitation, she gave a soft shout and directly released a pillar of light.
The pillar of light instantly blasted the opponent away, then continued following it, emitting powerful light magic.
Light magic seemed to be extremely effective against the blood magic inside these living weapons. The living weapon, two meters tall and covered in muscle, emitted waves of sizzling flesh as it burned, accompanied by its painful roars.
But the one with the strongest crowd control ability was still Sona.
Sona holding her instrument could be called the most special existence on the battlefield, and also the one who could least be underestimated.
The value she could display far surpassed an army of tens of thousands.
Her eyes were cold as her fair hand plucked the strings. Etwahl emitted a faint glow.
Immediately after, she suddenly played explosive music.
The sound of the strings shot forward and struck several living weapons on the spot.
The surrounding air was instantly filled with golden light, dazzling and brilliant. Then, an eerie scene occurred. Those living weapons began twisting their bodies crookedly, moving their hands and feet wildly, as if they were marionettes.
When Sona was gentle, at most she would make them dance.
But the current her was not gentle.
So she played another note, and the dancing movements of those living weapons became even wider.
Their arms bent behind them at bizarre angles, and their heads twisted over with cracking sounds. They began dancing in all kinds of strange postures while letting out painful roars.
Because they were products of blood magic, they would not die easily. Even severed arms and broken necks would quickly reconnect.
So they continued dancing like this, suffering repeated fractures again and again.
In the end, what awaited them was encirclement and annihilation by the Demacian soldiers.
Among them, however, a figure suddenly jumped out of Sona's control. Carrying a strange pillory on her back, she hopped away like a rabbit in a flash.
Sona narrowed her eyes. It was already too late to pursue and control her.
At this time, in the logistics unit at the rear of the Demacian army.
Annie was being very well protected here. Unless every Demacian soldier was sacrificed, no one could break through to this place.
She could hear the rumbling sounds outside, like thunder, and anxiously fiddled with the teddy bear in her hands.
"Tibbers, Luke and the others seem to be fighting other bad guys."
She spoke to herself, sitting obediently on a chair alone, because Luke had not brought her to the front.
But she felt that she could clearly help too.
"How about you go help Luke?"
She tried communicating with Tibbers and encouraged him. "Annie will cheer for you from the back."
As she spoke, the teddy bear had already begun emitting heat. The people protecting Annie around her felt the temperature rise by quite a lot.
"Go, Tibbers."
The obedient little girl's voice fell, and a burst of firelight flashed.
At this moment, Sona, who had controlled several living weapons at once, naturally became a thorn in the eye of the Noxian army.
Maradi looked at the Demacian army in disbelief, unable to imagine that they could actually fight against these living weapons.
It seemed those soldiers who had escaped back had indeed been telling the truth.
If they did not truly fight Demacia once, they would never understand just how powerful Demacia was.
Looking at the light magic flying everywhere, the swinging great hammer, that eerie music, and the living weapons that could almost completely fail to break through, he felt his heart trembling.
Logically speaking, those living weapons that had been starved for so long should have been slaughtering everything in every direction by now.
Yet now, everything was completely different from what he had imagined. The ones being suppressed were actually the living weapons.
At this time, the two behemoths were also wrestling with Galio, but from the looks of it, they clearly would not hold out for too long.
"Attack that musician! Don't let her keep playing!"
Maradi loudly gave the order, his tone carrying anxiety.
The more living weapons were controlled, the greater the impact on their combat strength.
In his eyes, that musician playing the instrument was even more terrifying than the Demacian generals who could fight the living weapons one-on-one.
Because music was vast. It could spread.
The ones controlled by Sona's music were not only a few living weapons, but also some beasts and charging soldiers.
Lives were almost effortlessly broken there.
At once, Sona became the target of an encirclement attack. However, a strict defensive line had been specially arranged around her, so how could it be easily broken?
At that moment, a smaller living weapon with extreme speed had already locked onto Sona.
These creatures had powerful instincts and could distinguish who posed the greatest threat, so he marked Sona as the first target to kill.
He had been lurking long enough. Like an extremely patient hunter, he suddenly erupted with terrifying speed in an instant, becoming almost an afterimage as he pounced toward Sona.
"Roar!"
A flash of fire appeared. The living weapon leaping through midair was suddenly grabbed in a giant palm.
It was an enormous figure that had rushed over in a very short time. Its entire body burned with terrifying flames. It was unmistakably a giant bear, its mouth full of fangs, with thick strands of sinew connecting its limbs to its torso like stitches.
Surging flames wrapped around it and burned, releasing tremendous heat in every direction. Human bodies looked like children before it.
The living weapon that it held in its hand like a toy burst with strength, trying to struggle free.
The next second, the giant bear squeezed hard. The living weapon's head made a cracking sound. Under many terrified gazes, the giant bear forcibly tore this living weapon's body apart, then placed it in its mouth and chewed. After that, seemingly disgusted by how filthy it was, the bear spat it out.
The flames purified the filth on the giant bear's body. It glanced at the toy in its hand with disgust, then hurled it hard toward the Noxian army.
Then it roared and broke into a sprint.
The giant bear's powerful combat strength instantly filled many Noxian soldiers with fear. They could not imagine what kind of monster this was.
How could Demacia have something like this?
Maradi's eyes were full of terror. He could not understand the existence of that flaming giant bear. What kind of creature was that?
Were there bears in this world that burned with flames?
And its combat strength was extremely powerful. It had instantly killed a living weapon.
Many people watched helplessly as the giant bear charged into their formation and began slaughtering with its giant paws, looking exceptionally excited as it did so.
The flame demon naturally loved war, because only then could it let its flames devour even more creatures.
Some Noxian soldiers discovered in horror that ordinary weapons had no effect on this giant bear at all.
It was as if there were a special flame shield around its body, blocking all damage.
"Damn it, how could this happen?"
Maradi's mood grew increasingly anxious. His gaze swept across the battlefield, then he suddenly thought of something.
Right, Briar!
Where was Briar?
He saw the cage that had imprisoned Briar. It was already open, and she was not inside.
The Grand General had specifically told him that Briar was the most special and most powerful among this batch of living weapons.
She could even compare to Sion.
But she was also very difficult to control, and it was highly possible that she would begin slaughtering without distinguishing between friend and foe at any moment.
Where was she now?
Maradi searched the battlefield with his gaze. Very soon, he found her.
Briar, carrying that hemolith pillory, was very conspicuous. Seeing that she was still restrained by the hemolith pillory, Maradi secretly gritted his teeth.
"Damn it, did no one remove that pillory for her?"
He angrily questioned his subordinate.
That pillory had been specially made from hemolith. It was extremely sturdy, and at the same time, it sealed part of Briar's abilities.
"There wasn't time to undo it at all. She rushed out right away. She was too fast."
A guard said with a bitter expression.
Undoing the hemolith pillory required a special incantation. He had practiced it countless times.
However, the moment he began chanting the incantation earlier, Briar had already rushed out and vanished instantly.
He was not sure whether he had undone the hemolith seal, but from the looks of it, he had not.
At this moment, Maradi no longer had the time to scold him, because his gaze had landed on the person opposite Briar.
He held a snow-white longsword and wore bright silver armor. He looked valiant and heroic, with extraordinary bearing. His cold eyes were like winter stars, naturally giving people a strong sense of pressure.
The second prince of Demacia.
The person Briar had run into was actually him.
Maradi's eyes trembled, but he also saw a sliver of hope.
Even with part of her power sealed, Briar's strength was still very great. If that prince accidentally opened the hemolith pillory...
If the true Briar was released, then there was still hope for everything.
As long as that prince died, Demacia's morale would definitely be affected.
His eyes locked tightly on Briar. He placed all his hope on her, feeling even his breathing become urgent.
For some reason, he suddenly felt that Briar at this moment was somewhat strange, or rather, different from the others of her kind.
But Maradi could not care about that much anymore. Perhaps this was what made Briar special.
No matter what, this was their final chance.
He saw Briar suck in her drool and take a beast-like pouncing stance, gathering strength and ready to strike. His whole body immediately shook.
Briar!
He roared wildly in his heart, gripping his fists in excitement.
The next second, he saw Briar suddenly move. She charged toward a gap on the left and bolted.
Her two bare feet swung one after the other at an incredibly fast speed, even leaving afterimages. In the blink of an eye, only a shrinking back remained.
Maradi: "???"
She turned and left, as if she had made up her mind about something.
But what she left behind was a completely dumbfounded Maradi.
What the hell?!
What was going on?
Weren't living weapons supposed to be crazed, bloodthirsty creatures?
Where was the madness? Where was the bloodthirst?
Damn it, why the hell did she run away?
Maradi's legs trembled, and his vision went dark. As Briar disappeared, his heart instantly turned completely cold.
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