Crimson Shadows over the Blood-Soaked Cradle

The third Orbach not only mirrored the true Orbach in battle qi level and Secret Technique maneuvers, but his battlefield decisiveness and choice of striking points were also utterly worthy of the title ‘Orbach, the First Battle General of the Fallen Gods’!

At this moment, Dud held Lei Zhan captive, suspended above the sea. Du Chen and Andy stood before them, while Xue Ji, on the Precious Lotus Scripture, tended to the gravely injured Jamis, floating to Du Chen’s left. The third Orbach, having unleashed the Beast Emperor's Unyielding Wall to Du Chen’s right, instantly conjured a spatial void — a black hole a meter wide and infinitely extending — directly before him! This black hole didn't target anyone; instead, it surged towards the empty space between Du Chen and Dud!

Yet, at this crucial juncture, everyone was stunned into immobility by the sudden appearance of the third Orbach, their reactions a beat too slow. By the time they recovered their senses, the space between Du Chen and Dud had already been filled by the black hole, forming an insurmountable chasm between them…

The third Orbach let out a soft, effeminate chuckle, then once again deployed the Beast Emperor's Unyielding Wall, striking at Dud, who was guarding Lei Zhan!

Dud had already regained his strength. Though momentarily startled by the third Marshal’s shocking arrival, his innate combat instincts swiftly pulled his focus back. He yanked Lei Zhan backward, simultaneously roaring, “Stop, or I’ll kill Lei Zhan!”

Before the third Marshal could reply, Lei Zhan chuckled first. “It’s no use! His objective is to kill me, to prevent me from revealing the Scarlet Army’s secrets!”

Indeed, when the third Marshal struck again, he paid no heed to Lei Zhan’s potential danger. The black hole formed by the Beast Emperor's Unyielding Wall was no longer a narrow fissure but a wide-ranging, engulfing vortex that bore down upon both Dud and Lei Zhan!

Dud coldly eyed his opponent. With one hand pressing down on Lei Zhan, his other hand suddenly raised a long halberd… The Secret Techniques of the two were identical, their battle qi nearly equal. In such circumstances, how could Dud hope to defeat his opponent while also protecting a captive? But Dud wasn't aiming for victory. He only sought to stall for a move or two, to buy Du Chen time to bypass that chasm with Andy. Once the three reunited, wouldn’t it be simple to subdue an ‘Orbach’!?

His idea was sound, but at that moment, the third Marshal transmitted a message directly into Dud’s ear, “Mount Wanliu, the torrents of a thousand cliffs, how did you enjoy the intermingling flavors of water and fire?”

A sudden ‘buzz’ echoed in Dud’s mind, and a fragmented memory abruptly surfaced from the chaos: a cliffside waterfall, its upper reaches raging with water, its base solidified into ten thousand years of ice. He was clad in heavy armor, half-frozen and immobile in the frigid ice… But then, raging flames descended from the heavens — precisely the glow of Fiery Thunder blasts — instantly charring his flesh and bones!

The interweaving of ice and fire; this torment seemed to re-descend upon Dud in an instant, causing his head to split with pain. So… he had been ‘burned to death’ at Mount Wanliu!

Conflicting memories once again flooded his mind. Dud’s vision blurred, his head buzzed, as if he were about to be torn apart. “Ah!!” He cast Lei Zhan aside, clutching his head with both hands as he screamed in agony!

The third Marshal smiled faintly, watching Du Chen, who was now pulling Andy, circumvent the chasm through the air, about to reach him in the blink of an eye. He didn’t rush to eliminate Dud, but instead, with a swift grab, he snatched the discarded Lei Zhan, hoisted him onto his shoulder, and soared off into the distance!

“Damn it!” Du Chen collected Dud with the Precious Lotus Scripture. A quick glance confirmed it was just a relapse of an old ailment, nothing serious, which brought him relief! But he then glared at the departing third Marshal, stamping his foot fiercely. Damn it, it wasn’t that he couldn’t pursue, but what good would it do? Not only did this person possess Orbach’s abilities, but the Fiery Thunder blasts in his hand alone were enough to blast Du Chen into smithereens!

But if he didn’t pursue, what if this fellow carried the Thunder Cannon over Battle God Isle and bombarded the Pontiff a few times!? The limit for the Grand Hot Spring Array was three blasts, as had been previously stated, and now the array had already endured two…

Du Chen had never been so exasperated as he was now! But he knew even more clearly that the more chaotic his mind was at this moment, the worse the situation would become!

Taking several deep breaths to steady himself, Du Chen immediately clarified his priorities. He pressed the small beast by his ear, urgently saying, “A sudden incident has occurred. All war zones, attention! A Master impersonating Orbach, the Supreme Father God, is heading towards Battle God Isle with a Thunder Cannon on his back! He disappeared from my location, which is the northwest corner of the Battle God Isle waters. Everyone, pay close attention to this direction!” Then, Du Chen released the small beast and roared to the sky, “Great Triangle Navy, listen! I, Francis, request that you intercept a black-clad individual heading towards Battle God Isle, at all costs!”

After accomplishing all this, Du Chen withdrew the Holy Light from Jamis, concentrating all his energy on rescuing Dud, who could create vacuums with the Beast Emperor's Unyielding Wall! He treated Dud while slowly approaching Battle God Isle, but dared not get too close to the third Marshal.

On the Precious Lotus Scripture, Jamis didn’t mind that Du Chen had ignored him. Instead, he nodded approvingly and reminded, “Francis, I have two questions for you!”

“What?!”

“First, that person had completely seized the initiative just now. He had the strength and the means to turn around and blast us all to death with a Thunder Cannon, but… why did he let us go and turn away?”

Du Chen furrowed his brow. This was indeed a peculiar point. Recalling the situation, Dud had already collapsed, screaming uncontrollably, and though he and Andy had rushed over, that person possessed Level Fourteen strength and held a Thunder Cannon. He had ample time and ability to kill them, so why had he spared them?!

Jamis posed his second question, “Though my battle qi is temporarily crippled, my eyesight is still keen! That person seemed to have made two preparations — save Lei Zhan if possible, but if not, kill Lei Zhan on the spot to prevent him from revealing the Scarlet Army’s secrets!”

Du Chen nodded. That was indeed the case; Lei Zhan himself had already admitted it.

Jamis pouted slightly. “But that raises a problem! Lei Zhan is one of the nine Venerables of the Scarlet Army, one of its highest echelons. And that person just now was clearly allied with the Scarlet Army. So… would a subordinate of the Scarlet Army dare to disregard the life or death of one of the nine Venerables?”

Du Chen rubbed his nose. “Meaning… the nine Venerables of the Scarlet Army, or at least this Lei Zhan, is not the true head of the Scarlet Army, but merely a high-ranking executive within the Scarlet Army who can be sacrificed at any time for core secrets!”

Jamis nodded. “It seems the Scarlet Army is far more complex than we thought! What your mother Phil knows isn’t the whole truth about the Scarlet Army!”

Du Chen’s brows furrowed even deeper as he asked, “Do you have any The Clues regarding the three Orbachs?”

Jamis’s bitter smile was also rather alluring. “Oh, I’m confused too! But Francis, I have no clue why Dud remembers himself as Orbach. As for the identity of the third Marshal… I can offer you a possibility, though it might not be accurate!” Jamis pointed a finger at his own nose. “The third Marshal does indeed use the Beast Emperor's Unyielding Wall, and he’s quite effeminate. But… there’s someone in the Scarlet Army who can also use the Beast Emperor's Unyielding Wall and knows my tone and mannerisms extremely well, perfectly capable of mimicking my unique effeminate style!”

Du Chen’s heart stirred, and he urgently asked, “Are you saying the Undying Death God, Orbach’s Eldest Brother, Lynch Baton?!”

Jamis gave a slight nod, smiling wryly. “The possibility I’m giving you is… my Eldest Brother has been controlled by the Scarlet Army and is impersonating me today to assist the nine Venerables of the Scarlet Army!”

This was indeed a logical deduction, but after the string of Orbachs appearing, Du Chen dared not believe it a hundred percent…

Jamis gently hooked a slender ‘jade finger’ and chuckled, “Come, let me summarize for you from the Scarlet Army’s perspective — we should believe there’s a mastermind behind the Scarlet Army. Today, when the nine Venerables of the Scarlet Army attacked Battle God Isle, that mastermind, feeling uneasy, sent my Eldest Brother, Lynch Baton, to secretly assist them, authorizing him to kill one or two of the Venerables if necessary to protect secrets! And this summary also explains my first question just now: why that person didn’t take the opportunity to kill us — it must be that even though my Eldest Brother is controlled, deep down he couldn’t bring himself to harm his own flesh and blood, which is why he let us go!”

Again, a logical deduction, but Du Chen still couldn’t believe it a hundred percent. Damn it, there were far too many unexpected twists tonight! Who knew if a fourth Orbach would suddenly appear?

While the two spoke, the third Marshal, carrying Lei Zhan, had reached a point a hundred nautical miles from Battle God Isle. It was there that the Great Triangle Navy, responding to Du Chen’s request, suddenly launched its assault. An entire integrated Sea Clan Legion, a force of one hundred thousand, erupted from beneath the waves, attacking the third Marshal with a battle formation that spared no expense. “Distance, maintain distance! The Weapons in that person’s hand are terrifying, do not approach, use War Instruments to bombard from afar!” The one fiercely commanding this vast army was the King of the Great Triangle Sea, Du Chen’s student, Gode!

The dense artillery fire left the third Marshal with nowhere to evade, and he was instantly engulfed in a web of flames. Meanwhile, two colossal absorption whales surfaced, using their massive bodies and sucking power to drain elemental energy from the nearby sky, denying the third Marshal any opportunity to use his Thunder Cannon!

Seeing this scene from afar, Du Chen still couldn’t relax the anxious knot in his chest. He quickly relayed the situation to the Pontiff again, finally asking, “This place should hold out for a while, but urgent reinforcement is needed. How are the situations in the other war zones?!”