The military mobilization of the Typhons is still continuing, and legions of transcendent beings have been summoned from all over the country to the Winterfort area - this originally extremely wide deep defense zone now even seems "crowded", with each The Typhon Corps has already packed all the castles, cities and fortresses within the defense zone, and has set up a large number of camps and temporary military stations between the defense lines. Correspondingly, Cecil's troops are also coming in a steady stream. Head to the front line.
Of course, in terms of sheer numbers, Cecil’s army is still far smaller than the size of the Typhons, who have provided generous wealth.
The atmosphere in the entire war zone was extremely tense and depressing. In this special atmosphere and the gathering of huge personnel, the special "aura" permeating the entire area became more and more obvious day by day.
The number of "vision sighting reports" from ordinary people has begun to increase exponentially. The number of people fleeing from the border to the mainland has reached a new peak in recent days, even those who were unable to leave their homeland before. People who are not wealthy enough to move are now trying their best to stay away from this land of right and wrong.
In the Intelligence Office of Winter Wolf Castle, Amber is sitting behind an extraordinarily large desk - she is surrounded by intelligence documents sent from various channels, including those sent from the Military Intelligence Agency headquarters. including those collected by frontline investigation units, document departments, etc. Military Intelligence Bureau officers and assistant think tanks at all levels have streamlined and processed the documents as much as possible, but there was still a mountain of documents sent to her.
The petite half-elf is sitting behind this desk, looking almost overwhelmed by documents.
Amber moved her position on the large seat and adjusted to a relatively relaxed posture. Her legs swayed twice, and Amber's eyes once again looked between the quick analysis notes and clue maps. Sweep.
She is trying to find a certain critical point in time and the possible "hidden dangers of abnormal movement" in the Typhon people.
A bald man with a scar on his face and a powerful look stood opposite her. He was placing the arranged documents on the table and asked cautiously: "Boss, what are you looking for?" The expression...did you notice something?"
"As I said, call me 'Director' or 'Bureau Chief' in formal situations. It sounds more powerful," Amber raised her eyelids and looked at it. She, an old subordinate, then shook her head slightly and said, "It can't be called a decisive discovery...it's just a summary of some obvious conclusions." As she spoke, her fingers were scanning several of the clues. The picture waved: "The Typhons concentrated so many troops in a narrow area. Judging from the simplest common sense, we all know that it is impossible for so many people to spread out on such a huge battlefield-so no matter they want to use these If people come to fight Ares or attack us, two-thirds of the troops may not be of use. In other words, that Rosetta Augustus gathered so many people here must not all be used for fighting. A considerable number of them...their role should be in other waysnoodle. ”
“Other aspects? "Scar-faced Anton showed a hint of confusion, "What are you talking about? "
"If I knew I would have reported it to you long ago, why do I still need to chat with you here? Amber rolled his eyes, "And for this kind of issue involving military deployment, Philip and his staff are definitely more professional than me. I just tell them the doubts I see, how to analyze and investigate specifically, That is their business. Our really important task now...is to find out the time point so that we can take precautions in advance. "
"Is it the right time for the Typhons to take action..." Anton thought thoughtfully, then shook his head slightly irritably, "No one knows that the emperor of the Typhons is here. What are you thinking? If he really wants to fight against the gods with us, he should at least send out some signals..."
"He won't," Amber shook his head, his expression was quite understandable. Kai, "According to our Majesty, Typhon and Cecil can communicate with each other about anything, but this matter cannot be discussed. Turning the war into a tease and trap against the 'war' itself will make All efforts so far have been in vain. ”
As she spoke, her attention returned to the mountain of documents in front of her. If anyone else were present, they would be surprised that she could be so serious and devoted to a serious matter. But Anton knows that his "eldest sister" has been in this state for several days.
When something really fatal is about to happen, Amber, who is usually carefree, will become serious.
Amber didn't care about the feelings of her subordinates. She just thought about the clues she had come into contact with in recent days, trying to analyze the Typhon people's action arrangements. While summarizing those clues, She also expanded her ideas and tried to find breakthrough points from directions other than the existing clues.
Many times, it was not the people in the fog that cleared the clouds, but the power outside the clouds. .
She did not find any clues from the piles of paper on the table that could reveal the key timing of the Typhons' actions, but she raised her head and yawned in exhaustion, and her eyes swept across it inadvertently. There was a calendar hanging on the wall not far away.
After a moment of confusion, she blinked and asked casually as if remembering something: "How many more days... is the new calendar?" Festival, right? ”
Anton was slightly startled, probably because he didn’t expect that his boss’s leaps of thinking were so amazing. However, after thinking about his boss’s daily style, he felt that the boss’s attention to holidays could be both a holiday and something useful. It was a very natural thing to get a subsidy and earn a living openly, so he nodded: "Yes, in two days it will be the New Year's Day, the first day of the year... But to be honest, this Given the current situation, don’t think about drinking on vacation..."
Amber didn’t pay any attention to Anton’s teasing in the second half (in the past, she should have kicked him out Kicked into the Shadow Realm), she just seemed to be in a trance and mutteredThinking of the word New Year, he then lowered his head and glanced at the shorthand notes he had written casually on his hand, and a little light flashed in his eyes - "I know!"
......
"Three days later? New Year's Day?" In the frontline command hall, Gawain looked with some surprise at Amber who suddenly came to him to report the situation excitedly, "Are you sure?"
In After living in this world for so many years, he is no stranger to traditional festivals like the "New Calendar Festival". This is a day somewhat similar to the New Year, the first day of the cold month and the first day of the whole year. On this day, the frost constellation begins to descend and the fire constellation begins to rise. Although the entire following month is called the "cold month", in fact, the coldest days of the year will soon pass - as As the Moon of Resurrection approaches, people will celebrate this special festival in various ways. The "people" here include not only humans, but also elves in the south and many races in the western part of the continent.
While recalling some knowledge about the New Calendar Festival in his mind, an idea suddenly flashed through Gawain's mind like lightning.
He seemed to know what Amber had discovered.
"On the New Year's Day, the gods need to rest and rearrange their governance of the world," Amber said unhurriedly. "For this reason, all religious activities in the world will be suspended for one day. ——Believers of any god, even those who are swindlers, will remain 'silent' on this day. People will not pray, do not go to church, do not worship at home, and even try to avoid mentioning the names of the gods. …God rests on this day.”
The key to uncovering the mystery is not in any intelligence clue, but in a traditional custom - everything in the world is indeed wonderful.
Amber had a smile on his face: "Rosetta Augustus couldn't make everyone stop praying to the God of War at the same time just by her own orders, even though he relied on the army to forcibly control it. The activities of the God of War Church in various places have forcibly banned public and formal sermons, but he can't stop people from secretly praying at home, he can't ensure that there aren't a few underground churches that secretly operate among the nearly 100 million people, and he can't control them. To those God of War churches outside Typhon... But the power of traditional customs can do this, at least better than him.
"On the New Year's Day, everyone will stop praying, no matter what. Which god they believe in, no matter whether they obey Rosetta's orders or not, everyone will do this, and according to our research on the laws of the gods' operation, in this case, the power of the gods will lose their 'replenishment' ..."
Gawain's expression became extremely serious. He gently rubbed the knuckle of his index finger and said in a low voice: "So, if he wants to take action against God, then the New Calendar Festival will be the most appropriate time. One day... there is not much time, but there is still time to prepare. ”
……
A few days passed in an instant.
In a meeting hall near Winterfort, a huge brazier had beenAfter lighting, candlesticks and iron sacred utensils were neatly set up around the altar, and the scent of incense emanated from the bonfires and candles, spreading throughout the entire assembly hall.
A large number of priests in black or gray robes were led into the assembly hall in a daze, and gathered in front of the sacrificial altar like a group of shaking zombies. They stood there sluggishly, as if they had lost their normalcy. Humans have the ability to think, but there are continuous whispers or murmurs coming from the depths of those thick hoods. It seems that each of them is talking to some invisible object, and even... We had a great time talking.
Wearing black armor, the Obsidian Imperial Guards guarded the edge of the assembly hall. Under the masks made of alloy, they revealed an indifferent gaze with almost no emotion.
A Forbidden Army commander glanced at the mechanical watch in his hand, and then looked at the sky outside through the large window not far away.
The cold wind blew into the assembly hall through the open windows, and the snow particles accumulated in the past few days were swept in.
The new year begins today... It begins with a dark and bloody day. At this moment, no one knows whether this beginning will lead to a future that retains hope-the commander does not know this either. , his only task here is to carry out the orders given by his superiors.
"This may be the worst New Year's Day I've ever experienced in my life, it's so cold..." He muttered softly and walked towards a priest next to the altar.
As time goes by, the smell of incense floating in the assembly hall has begun to affect these delirious priests and priests. Some of them seem to have begun to pray in low voices, but this is far from being called A real "ceremony", so the commander came to the priest and said slowly to the face hidden under the hood: "The sacred time has come, why don't you offer a prayer?"
"Holy time...holy time..." The priest murmured to himself in a low voice, sounding confused, but seemed to maintain a trace of reason, "But I can't pray today...today..."
p>"The New Calendar Festival has passed yesterday, Mr. Bishop, you remembered it wrong," the commander whispered, "Look at the brazier and candlestick in front of you... This is a gift to God, the New Calendar Festival There is no such thing in the festival, right?"
"Oh...oh...you are right, the New Year Festival passed yesterday..." An increasingly confused voice came from under the hood, In the end, it turned into a murmur that was completely inaudible, and when the murmur gradually became hoarse and tearing, with a large number of syllables that humans could not pronounce mixed in, the commander had quickly retreated to the edge of the assembly hall.
Muffled prayers have already sounded around the brazier -
"...Blessed by the God of War, my heart is as steel and I have experienced hundreds of battles..."
It is difficult to The mental pressure of the words began to spread, and even the well-trained Obsidian Forbidden Soldiers couldn't help but feel their skin tightening and their lips dry.They clenched the swords in their hands and focused their eyes on their commander. The commander stared closely at the flames in the center of the altar that were gradually being dyed iron gray, and glanced at the altar quickly from time to time. Among the priests around him, slowly, his hands began to touch the sword at his waist.
In the assembly hall, the prayers were mixed together, and there seemed to be several other sounds mixed in. The flame in the center of the altar became more and more intense, and outside the assembly hall, in the howling cold wind, In the vast Winterfort area, in dozens of assembly halls of various sizes, the same thing was happening at the same time.
Abnormal gatherings of clouds suddenly appeared in the sky. Large swaths of iron-gray clouds seemed to suddenly appear out of thin air. In the center of the clouds, there was a shimmering, door-like thing. It has vaguely emerged, and it hangs high above the earth like the legendary gate of the Kingdom of God. As long as you are in the Winterhold area, you can clearly see it when you look up.
The remaining residents in this area felt the great pressure. In panic, they hid in their homes, got into cellars, and then closed the doors and windows tightly. The soldiers nervously waited for further orders. , countless commanders and messengers cast their sights in the direction of Winterfort.
Rosetta Augustus stood in the secret hall on the top floor of Winterfort, looking at the sky through the large floor-to-ceiling glass windows, looking at the scene that was already very clear in his sight. Divine projection.
Today is the New Calendar Festival, God wants to "rest", and prayer activities all over the world have been suspended. However, tens of thousands of the most corrupt God of War priests are praying here... This is some kind of Strong "positioning" is enough to accurately guide the connection between the Kingdom of God and the human world.
However, this seems to be not enough, God still has not really arrived - ordinary prayers cannot lead to qualitative changes through quantitative changes, and this still requires the most critical step to promote.
Rosetta withdrew her gaze and turned towards a blazing brazier in the center of the Secret Hall - everyone in the hall had already evacuated, including Parin Winterfort, and now this huge space Rosetta Augustus is the only one left, and only he can do what he wants to do here.
He stood in front of the brazier, then seemed to think for a moment, and then looked back in the direction of the Cecil Empire.
"I'm so far away...I'm afraid I can't even make eye contact."
The Typhon Emperor muttered to himself and made his only joke in more than ten years. Then he waved his hand and grabbed it in the void.
An illusive and hollow eye suddenly appeared behind him with the starry background, and in his hand, he grabbed a hazy and twisted figure that looked like a shadow.
That is the incarnation projection of Malm Dunit.
After grabbing this incarnation, Rosetta threw it directly into the brazier in front of her without even looking at it. Then he grabbed it again from the side - the second "Mal" "M. Dunit" was caught by him, and immediatelyThen he casually threw him into the brazier again.
Then, the third...the fourth...
It's like adding firewood to a brazier.