I am the old, fiery-faced man from the senior department.

……

The darkness under the endless night was so profound that even the brightest rays of the sun could not reach that frozen land.

In the endless darkness, a golden dragon stands horizontally. Compared to the blazing sun behind it, its light is dim and barely visible, but in the face of the darkness before it, it is the blazing sun of this frozen land.

"The third and fourth defense platforms in the eastern section of Beiming District are fully deployed. The target is within firing range. Requesting permission to fire."

"All defense platforms in the western section of Changyuan in Yumen District are fully deployed. Request permission to fire."

"Fire is permitted, gentlemen. Do not hesitate, give it your all!"

"Adjust the gun barrel! Target bearing: 1:15 AM."

"Warlock, prepare your firepower."

"Draw the bowstring! Load the ammunition!"

"Fire!!!"

Golden light covered the sky, and even the eternal night could not block out its intense radiance.

The deafening firepower covered the ghouls driven by the alien species, with bullets and arrows clashing and blasting them apart.

The mindless ghouls wouldn't even try to dodge, and the thick horde of ghouls was torn apart and crushed by Nagagaki's firepower.

"boom--!"

The jet-black energy orb was hurled from the horde of ghouls, falling high into the sky and crashing down, creating a hexagonal energy shield above the city walls. The next instant, it was torn to shreds by the relentless firepower, annihilating the ghouls surrounding it along with it.

"The enemy has begun to counterattack. We cannot sit idly by."

"Subordinates of the Divine Dragon Lord! Heed my command! Unleash our full power!"

"Serving the emperor with utmost loyalty! Concerned for the country as if it were his own home!!!"

The dragon's roar resounded through the heavens, and with each response, the war between the wise and the demons erupted in Changyuan.

The situation in the Thirteenth District remains undecided.

The invasion of evil spirits is completely different from wars between nations.

After war breaks out between two countries, their commanders will assess the situation and try to win the most brilliant battle with the least losses. But demons will not do that. For them, rather than annihilating the enemy, they prefer to make the enemy remember them in various ways and spread their terror.

The more knowledgeable people have about them, the stronger they become.

Therefore, their most common attack method is to use terrifying and unreasonable force and numbers to charge into the enemy's formation, spread fear, and demonstrate their strength.

But... this time they were not facing an army lined up in formation, but a massive wall as large as mountains, and a network of firepower as vast as mountains of knives and seas of fire.

They were unable to penetrate the area covered by the Long Wall's firepower, and the ghouls they commanded were no different from them; both were equally vulnerable under such circumstances.

Weak individuals could not withstand the terrifying firepower and break through the wall, while powerful individuals could not instantly shatter the wall's energy shield. The powerful spells of the Divine Dragon Venerable and the alternating firepower of dozens of defensive platforms annihilated them.

"But with an offensive of this magnitude... those fourth and fifth stage mutants haven't made a move... what exactly are they planning?"

The attack launched by hundreds of thousands of ghouls and hundreds of thousands of demons could have indeed broken through the defenses of any country in the past, but now Changyuan has the support of all member states of the community, and the most advanced technological creations and the most powerful elites are here.

The opposing side only attacked the vanguard ghouls and the low-level alien species before stopping their offensive.

"Sister Ling, what are you thinking about?"

After watching the visual feast, Nian glanced at her older sister who was frowning and leaned over to ask her a question.

"I'm thinking about the origins of these ghouls..."

Ling pointed to the horde of corpses that was now nothing but scattered pieces outside the wall, his words tinged with doubt.

"When we fight against these alien species, we will decompose the remains of our warriors after the battle is won."

"Sister Ling, you mean..."

Nian realized it instantly.

If all the bodies of the fallen warriors were disposed of, even if some helpless corpses remained on the tundra, there shouldn't be such a large number of ghouls.

At present, the number of corpses in the east and west sections of Changyuan alone is roughly over 100,000, not to mention the Beiming District, which is being attacked by the "main force" of the alien species.

"Look! Your sister!"

The calls for a new year have drawn everyone's attention.

"What...what's going on?!"

He stared in astonishment at the frozen ground.

The ghouls they killed were weathered away like rocks that had been eroded by fierce winds for countless years.

No, it is not.

That's not weathering, it's just a kind of disintegration similar to weathering.

It's like when a virtual data image breaks down.

"Fake……"

After watching for a long time, only a sigh came from Ling.

She, who was an expert in this field, failed to notice it.

"No, it's not fake."

Xi, who had been silently watching the whole thing, spoke up and shared her thoughts.

"This is turning the abstract into the concrete."

“Those ghouls are real, those alien creatures are real, and the destruction they caused is real.”

"What is true may be true, and what is false may be false."

The elder brother gave the final conclusion.

"Those ghouls are real now, and they are also fake now."

"They bear the marks of time."

"These ghouls are beings that thing was separated from the past and imprinted into the present."

"Manipulating time... even stripping things from the past into the present..."

Everyone stared in silence at the now empty tundra.

"Pass down the message: have all observers... no, have more patrols deployed, and have the soldiers be on high alert and ready to fight again at any time."

"All defense platforms must be repaired immediately. All mobile cities must be mobilized."

"Also... we need to report to the imperial court that we need more supplies."

As the Grand Commander of Changyuan in the Great Yan Dynasty, the Old Celestial Master decisively issued numerous orders.

"Such an offensive cannot happen only once. We must assume..."

"The opponent's ability can be used indefinitely, and... the consequences are minimal."

Gazing at the darkness in the distance, which showed no signs of weakening, the old master sighed softly.

"...Is that guy really as powerful as they say?"

Living in the clouds, having witnessed the entire battle below, Sui asked Bai Zhou in astonishment.

"It is indeed true."

The daytime also observes that darkness.

"But it's slightly different from what they said."

"What's the difference? Does it mean the consequences of that guy using this ability are severe?"

If that's the case, Nagagaki's defenses will be a bit easier.

“I remember saying that.”

Bai Zhou squinted, flicked his fingers on his collar, and only continued speaking after confirming that the dust was gone.

"This is an innate ability of its."

"To be able to make use of the remaining fragments of the world around us."

"These ghouls... are all warriors who once died on the frozen plains."

"It glimpsed the fragments of time that recorded these things, devoured them, and then created these ghouls."

"The same goes for those different species. In fact, they are even easier to create because they share the same origin. One begets two, two begets three, and three begets an endless cycle."

"So, this ability of its doesn't have any side effects, does it?"

"How much food a person can eat depends on the quality of their digestive system. If you eat too much, exercise can help with digestion. And how much nutrition you can get from food depends on the quality of the ingredients."

"...I understand."

The man grinned, staring at the blurry sky in the distance.

This is a vicious cycle.

As the alien species' cognitive abilities increase, and since most of the things they attack are the other party's toys, the cognitive abilities they develop regarding these things will also be attributed to the other party.

The other party uses the power they acquire to consume more power to create these things and repeat their previous actions.

but……

Soldiers get tired, and ammunition runs out.

If the fight drags on for a long time, the only one who will benefit will be the other side.

and……

If Changyuan is breached, and a few Divine Dragon Venerables or... immortal beings die, then next time they will have to face people who were once on their side. The other side may even directly mass-produce an equal or even excessive number of troops.

When do you plan to make your move?

This is a question posed at the age of [age missing].

He believed that daytime would prevent any trouble from happening at Changyuan.

"Be patient, the time will come... just like just now."

"?"