A mage's journey begins with a battle mage.

Chapter 687 Gathering of All Parties

The silver-white army marched slowly and steadily forward. Along the way, apart from the clanging of armor, there was only deathly silence, as if they were not a group of people, but a group of machines.

This is Tyr's main force, a large army composed of paladins.

Their target, however, was the city of Saint-Ilan.

"Have you heard anything about that guy?"

In a palace built on the back of a giant dragon, with several legendary priests and paladins kneeling around him, Tyr asked a question.

"Report: That person was recently spotted in Saint-Ilan City."

The pastor below spoke.

Upon hearing this, the angels standing to the side instantly became restless. It seemed that they had long been eager to strike down evil like Jiang Shuzhou.

Tyr waved his hand, stopping the angels.

The situation is still unclear, and Jiang Shuzhou is no pushover either. They need to gather the power of the gods, otherwise, it's uncertain whether they can win.

This time, Tyr went all out, dividing his forces into two groups. One group, led by Joan of Arc, was responsible for reclaiming lost territory, while the other group, led by his avatar, was responsible for directly confronting Jiang Shuzhou.

When necessary, He can also descend in His true form.

Of course, relying solely on Him to deal with Jiang Shuzhou was not enough, so naturally, He also contacted those ancient gods and several old friends with powerful divine abilities.

Furthermore, several powerful Abyss Lords and Hell Lords were also very interested in their plan to surround and kill Jiang Shuzhou.

Whether they will come or not is another matter.

The so-called support might just be lip service. After all, these evil people don't know what unity is. To put it bluntly, they can only win when things are going well. Once things go wrong, these people will be the first to stab you in the back.

Tyr was pondering his next move, while the other gods were also making preparations.

Crimson armor, his entire body wrapped in black cloth—this was the "Paladin" of Cyric, the God of Murder, or rather, the Fallen Knight. In stark contrast to the noble Paladins, these Fallen Knights were utterly devoid of any moral compass. In fact, some of them rose to power through scheming and murder of other Fallen Knights.

It's fair to say that these fallen knights had a pitifully low level of organization.

However, they also possess formidable individual combat abilities.

"My lord, we have prepared everything as you commanded. Now, we simply await the opportune moment, and those who have overstepped their bounds will surely die by the blade hidden in the shadows."

"It was said by a person who was completely shrouded in shadow."

He is both a priest and an assassin, or rather, this is the characteristic of Cyril, the god of murder: assassin and priest in one.

"Very good, proceed as planned."

On the throne, a dark shadow writhed, emitting a chilling sound.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

dong dong dong.

The holy knights of Gaia, the Earth Mother Goddess, marched in perfect unison across the land.

The entire ground trembled, not from being trampled, but as a response from the earth.

As paladins who are Mother Earth, Earth Knights receive significant buffs when standing on the ground, whether it's rapidly restoring divine spells, healing injuries, or gaining a defensive boost.

They firmly believed that as long as they stood on the ground, they were invincible.

The ancient and rustic hall bears the marks of time, and the surrounding stone pillars are adorned with many exquisite and ancient murals.

This is the palace of Gaia, the oldest deity and the Earth Mother Goddess, or rather, the place where she lived before she ascended to godhood.

Now, this palace is carried on the back of a mountain giant, heading to the front lines alongside the knights of the earth.

"He has desecrated nature, desecrated life, and desecrated the gods. The ancient gods have been revived. It seems that he has long been a crisis."

This was the only sentence Gaia uttered, and then, like the earth, the deity fell silent.

Perhaps, this deity also felt that Jiang Shuzhou's rise was ill-timed; if it had been a few thousand years later, He might have already passed away.

Having been a god for so long, Gaia has resigned himself to his fate, and even sees the law of return as a form of liberation.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

On a golden plateau, an army is slowly marching.

They were dressed in gleaming gold armor, with nonchalant expressions on their faces.

These knights of fortune, who came for wealth, were not concerned with this war.

Merchants in peacetime, knights in wartime—that's the most accurate description of them.

But the gods have demands, and they cannot refuse.

Thus, these knights of fortune had no choice but to dawdle and procrastinate.

After traveling for so long, they hadn't even left the parish, or rather, this place was still practically their doorstep, the outer plains of the City of Wealth.

It was still glittering with gold, still a palace.

Compared to the unique characteristics of other gods, the only distinctive feature of Wojnarowski, the god of wealth, is that he is rich.

Everything displayed here would be ridiculously expensive in the outside world.

Perhaps this is the aesthetic of the nouveau riche: all glitter and flashy, just like a tycoon.

"Yes, yes, they're planning to ambush you. That's right, I'm among them. What? You need help? That's probably not an option. I haven't arrived yet; it'll probably be about six months."

Vol'jin is completely different from other gods.

She had already betrayed the gods and chosen to throw herself into Jiang Shuzhou's arms.

Are you suggesting that she send troops to attack her biggest customer and boss in order to protect her and her biggest boss's business, namely Jiang Shuzhou?

They attack their own trading partners just to protect their trade with them.

Woking would never do something so idiotic.

Especially when one has long been prepared to betray.

When the gods asked him questions, Vol'jin simply replied that he was on his way.

As for how long it will take?

Depending on the situation, it might take a year or two.

In short, it all boils down to one word: procrastination!

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

"Goodness, they've all come?"

Jiang Shuzhou looked at the intelligence sent by Woking, clicked his tongue, and although he was a little wary, he didn't pay much attention to it.

"Pass on my order: Construct Knights, move out! Destination: The Underworld!"

Since these gods intend to come to Saint Yilan City, Jiang Shuzhou will attack the Underworld.

If they don't care...

Jiang Shuzhou readily accepted the souls of those believers.

Although it is bound by faith, the soul can still be used after being cleansed; at worst, it can be crushed and used as nourishment.

Anyway, it's not Jiang Shuzhou's stuff, so feel free to use it.

Of course, Jiang Shuzhou himself will be here to let those gods see whether Saint Yilan City is a pushover or not.