Chapter 260: The Five Elements Formation

The Wall of Earth flickered.

It seemed to rise reluctantly by a little more than ten centimeters.

Darian was silent for a while. Then understanding came.

"Cassian again. Did he clear out a whole nest of bosses?"

His shoulders sagged.

Maren was shocked too, but she lowered her voice to comfort him.

"Don’t be discouraged, Lord Darian. Your father thinks highly of Cassian. He’s on our side. And defending the Temple will still depend on us."

At the mention of his father’s approval, Darian brightened.

"Then let’s work harder, Maren. We can’t fall too far behind him. House Frost has a reputation to uphold."

From then on, Cassian submitted his enormous haul of Elemental Pearls at a steady pace. It drew no more attention, though the Temple continued rising before everyone’s eyes.

Two hours passed quickly.

Fivefold Heaven shifted twice during that time. The Spatial Vortices changed with it, but no other Legion appeared. They probably understood that the Wonders were still too incomplete to make plundering them worthwhile.

[The Five Elements Temple has reached 10% completion. The first monster siege will begin in ten minutes. First Homeworld Legion, prepare to defend.]

The Temple was already a thousand meters tall. The Domains below looked pitifully small beside it.

A World Wonder indeed.

Every Champion in the First Legion received the notice. They could have checked the progress at any time, but seeing that figure still felt unreal.

[Isn’t this... a little fast?]

[Our drop rates are high, but there are so few of us.]

[At this rate, won’t we finish before the three days are up?]

[No race has ever completed its World Wonder during the contest.]

[They say it gets slower the further you go.]

[Even so. This feels too fast.]

Rowan, the First Legion’s diplomat, spoke up.

[Wait here. I’ll find out how the others are doing.]

He entered the All-Races Champions Channel.

[Rowan Ashford: Friends, these Pearl drops are miserable. Two hours of work, and our Temple has only just reached one percent.]

He thought he was being very cautious.

The answer still surprised him.

[One percent? That’s fast. Our Flower Legion has only reached 0.8%.]

The Flower commander had replied readily, then seemed to remember something.

[Wait. Doesn’t the First Homeworld Legion have only a thousand or so Lords?]

A Winged Folk commander joined in.

[Lord Rowan, I sympathize with what happened to you. But there’s no need to make up stories for attention.]

[Verena — Florentia: I am grateful to Commander Cassian for sparing my sister. But lying is hardly becoming of a gentleman.]

Other Lords hurried to mock Rowan’s exaggeration.

The Crown Champions looked at one another, their expressions strange.

[Soren Hartwell: Are they working together to make fun of us?]

None of those speakers belonged to a particularly powerful race. Even so, they commanded full Legions with tens of thousands of Lords. And they were only at about one percent?

It was hard to believe.

Nerissa Vaust appeared.

[Nerissa Vaust: Weakness is a failing, but it need not be a disgrace. You Crown Lords disgrace the Homeworld by making spectacles of yourselves.]

She must have received permission from her commander to post. She was certainly making use of it.

[Rowan Ashford: Get lost, you shortsighted Black Banner dog.]

[Nerissa Vaust: I am Osric Vaust’s great-granddaughter! How dare a nobody like you speak to me that way?]

She seemed to have looked into his background. Forcing down her anger, she issued a challenge.

[Nerissa Vaust: Proving your claim is simple. Show us a picture of your Temple.]

She was utterly confident. The much larger Second Homeworld Legion had only reached 1.8%.

Rowan had no intention of taking a picture.

If the other Legions learned that their Temple was already at ten percent, the whole Channel would explode. A treasure could bring danger to its owner. He knew that much.

[Rowan Ashford: We reached one percent, and I’m still not taking a picture. I’m not going to waste time arguing with you. Bite me.]

His refusal to be provoked only made Nerissa angrier.

[Nerissa Vaust: An ignorant thug!]

Cassian added one last jab.

[Cassian Vale: Lady Vaust and Rowan seem made for each other. I support the biting.]

He closed the Channel without waiting for her reply.

After a brief silence, the Crown Champions began talking again.

[They didn’t sound as though they’d planned that together. Are they really only at one percent?]

[Could our Temple be a reduced version?]

[Maybe the Realm has changed the rules to help us because we have fewer people.]

[Everyone says the Realm is heartless. Perhaps it has some sympathy after all.]

[Then will our ranking rewards be reduced too?]

Cassian cut through the growing speculation.

"The siege begins in a few minutes. It’s a danger and an opportunity. Get ready."

After Dragon’s Blessing, his authority was unquestioned. Even the eight Governors who had joined under orders from above were now convinced of his ability.

This was his first Legion Contest. He would not be careless.

He had Liora bring the Stormlance and part of the Dawnwing force back by Teleport, then contacted Darian.

"How are the defenses?"

"Leave it to me," Darian said proudly. "However many monsters come, we’ll kill them all."

"That confident?"

Nessa shouted before Darian could answer.

"Look! They’re here! There are flying ones too!"

Elemental Beasts filled the horizon. Countless flyers came with them. They ignored the Domains below and hurled themselves toward the Temple, eyes wild.

They seemed to care about nothing except destroying it.

Most Champions from outside Divine Province went pale. Tens of millions of monsters were coming. The sight looked like the end of the world.

"This could be troublesome," Cassian muttered.

Then he raised his voice.

"All flying troops, take to the air! Stop them!"

If necessary, he would bring out the main Dawnwing force.

Darian turned to Maren.

"Your turn."

She nodded and rose into the sky.

"Formation—rise!"

Hundreds of rays shot up from the Domains below. Before the stunned watchers, they joined into an intricate formation that enclosed the entire Temple, tens of kilometers across.

Cassian drew a deep breath.

"The Equinox School’s Five Elements Formation?"

"Exactly!" Darian’s pride was unmistakable.

"I had three hundred and sixty-five Epic Formation Banners brought from the Homeworld for this. Even the Realm is helping us. Here in Fivefold Heaven, the formation’s power rises by another fifty percent."

He looked up at Maren.

"With a Legendary Hero controlling it, the Temple is safe. What reward do I get?"

Cassian took a moment to settle his excitement.

With that formation protecting the Temple, much of the pressure had lifted. No wonder Darian had been so confident. He had earned the right to be proud.

House Frost was beginning to show the depth of its resources. Cassian had become rich quickly, but there were things that money alone had not yet given him.

"A reward?"

Hundreds of meters above, Maren kept forming signs with her hands to control the great formation. Cassian watched her, his expression serious.

"Don’t worry. You’ll be satisfied with what I give you."

As he spoke, the Elemental Beast army reached the defensive line formed by the Crown Domains. Battle erupted.