Vyra responded, [Sorry, I am already too busy leading the long-range unit, but I will try.]

Translation: she doesn’t give a shit. As the daughter of the poison lord, she could outright refuse Lucien’s request without needing to give him any face. In fact, she did not even have to attend this war, but she did so to grow stronger, not to entertain the arrogant prince’s request.

Lucien could only show a polite smile while cursing the annoying bitch in his mind; the Poison Lord was too protective of his daughter. If he dared to be rude to her, there would be too much unnecessary trouble. Not to mention, Heinz Gil would be too damn furious.

To his frustration, his dear cousin sent an even more infuriating reply, [You can go fuck yourself.]

Lucien frowned, [What the hell is wrong with you, Ken?]

Ken Dusker scoffed, [You can order around someone else, I’m not interested.]

Lucien said darkly, his mood turning worse, [Then you must be careful, cousin, if you’re about to die by the hands of some no-name undead, I won’t be able to come and save you. Please don’t hold it against me.]

Ken did not respond, but he only sneered in his heart, ’Stupid bastard, you’re not gonna save me either way. Besides, I want to have nothing to do with you. That demon doesn’t have any good feelings for you.’

He could only shake his head at the sheer ignorance of his cousin, ’You don’t even know whose game you’re playing. The only reason you’re even alive is that the Demon allowed you to live.’

Ken was sure that most of the key players here were already dancing to the devil’s tune without even realizing it, the thought of which made him shudder, and he was one of the few who knew the least about the devil’s schemes. He could only grit his teeth in frustration and fear, while using this chance to grow as strong as possible.

Then maybe, just maybe....

He could plead to Axel to spare him and his mother by becoming useful enough. Otherwise, he knew the wretched fate that awaited him.

Lucien, who did not know any of these things, gave his cousin one last condescending look. Standing before the entire army, he finally gazed at the ghastly mass of deathly darkness encroaching towards them.

This time, there was no army of cannon fodder at the lead, only the strongest and best of the best sub-species of the ghost race, the strongest 3rd phase existences, numbering more than three thousand, were rushing in this direction, similar to their own numbers.

But Lucien could feel it; every one of those existences was strong, terrifyingly so. The instincts of his dragon bloodline warned him that every single enemy was at least mid-3rd phase, whether human or ghost.

There were a few stronger presences, hiding in between the marching evil army; their battle prowess had probably reached well into the 4th phase.

But most importantly, all the way behind the approaching enemy army stood the true 4th-phase existences. Lucien could feel it in his blood. He was not ready to face those beings, not even close, not unless he broke through the third phase. 𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦

He was not sure when it would happen. It seemed like there still was a considerable gap he had to cross.

Thankfully, right at the back of their own armies also stood 4th-phase powerhouses to counter enemy 4th-phase existences.

As for the reason behind why the 4th phase seekers were on the battlefield in the first place?

It was because technically this would be the last clash between the two armies, a very long and drawn-out battle; unlike the previous two clashes, this time the individual prowess of both armies’ soldiers would matter more than the collective teamwork.

When a seeker ascends to the third phase, one already starts to impose a fragment of their willpower onto reality; of course, that Will was so pathetically weak that it could be mathematically expressed as less than 0.00000001% of the real thing.

While this number may seem insignificant, it still exists. Furthermore, as this Will cannot be controlled or realized by the third-phase seekers in any shape or form, when too many of such existences try to fight alongside one another, it unconsciously backfires.

Thus, ultimately diminishing a part of their own prowess rather than increasing it collectively for group battle. So, in a way, the higher you climb in the ladder of Seeker’s path, the more space you automatically require, as an individual, to truly go all out, without any hindrance.

Historically, it is commonly known that at most 5 to 10 third-phase seekers could fight together as a unit, depending on their strength on the third-phase scale. Anything more and the result is a collective weakening instead.

Lucien exhaled, looking at the ground filled with dried blood, and the moment he looked up, his expression became cold and resolute once more. He held his sword upward, and all 3000+ soldiers stomped their feet on the ground, making the ground quake.

As the enemy armada was merely 600 to 700 meters away, Lucien Suncrest signaled the final clash of this racial conflict. "ATTACK...."

The armada of more than three thousand third-phase seekers did not move in a synchronous rhythm; they ran towards the enemy with a brutal killing intent flashing in their eyes. Their combined battle cry and rushing figures generated a literal storm of mana.

In the first clash of the 1st phase seekers, the Ghost race won overwhelmingly.

In the second clash, it was a resounding victory for the great kingdoms’ side, almost thanks to Heinz Gil alone.

So, this would be the concluding event, the final war that will determine who will be the true winners of this conflict.

Would it be the minor kingdoms that wished self-sovereignty, as well as a big stake in the rich lands of great kingdoms?

Could it be the Ghost race who were stealing one of the continent’s most priceless resources right under the nose of the kings of humanity?

Perhaps it might be the Great Kingdoms, who wanted to purge the ghost race out of the human lands and take back the control of the measly minor kingdoms that dared to rebel against them?

Or.. It would be someone else...

A 4th party guiding...

Manipulating...

Controlling...

The necessary evil that was plotting everything...

From the shadows.