Chapter 137: Chapter 131 All-Out Attack
Half of the thousands of natives on the island were eventually massacred, a level of bloodshed that rendered the Fischer family silent.
Aaron's deputy wanted to rape a native mother and daughter, but was quickly stopped by Aaron, who sneered, "Since Byrne has already given the order, we should not break the rules! Otherwise, it will give him more leverage."
His deputy was very dissatisfied, "We silver descendants are not Fischer's dogs, why should we be so obedient?"
Aaron shook his head, his tone cold, "I don't want to say more, put away your pathetic sadistic desires. If you want women, you can find them anywhere!"
When the army returned to the camp, Byrne encountered Viscount Bast on the island and wanted to say something, but refrained.
"Does the recent massacre make you uncomfortable?"
Viscount Bast smiled slightly and said:
"This is not the domestic realm anymore. Overseas, it is actually like this. The natives even kill each other more excessively than us; they even indulge in cannibalism at times."
He narrowed his eyes, adding emphasis, "Many of our Cyart people have been cruelly devoured by them!"
"Our people also need to vent their hatred. Years of war have changed many, and some will never forget the madness they experienced overseas for their entire lives."
Byrne nodded slightly, saying calmly, "I already understand that this is the cruel overseas, but I still cannot become a thoroughly cruel person, and that's actually quite alright."
——
On the calm sea, a ship resembling a sea fortress, a flagship battleship, harbored the main members of the Garcia and Eagle families in the confidential and exquisitely furnished captain's room.
The name of Viscount Garcia was Seamus Garcia, and his nickname was "Reaper." The family bloodline he inherited was "Gale Wings Falcon."
In fact, the Garcia family's nickname is "Roarer," and "Gale Wings Falcon" is not the strongest bloodline in the Garcia lineage, just a common magic beast bloodline.
However, Viscount Garcia, through his own efforts and a good two fortunate encounters, plus the high-quality Magic Potions purchased by his family, forced his strength to the level of high-level Transmutation.
In the brutal wars with the Rhea People, the young man's ability to instantly deliver large-area invisible slashes capable of severing sturdy ships and cannons brought fear to many enemies on the battlefield.
He was rugged, with a beard, his eyes serious and wise, and his thick eyebrows were always furrowed, as if constantly vigilant and decisive.
Viscount Garcia, dressed in military uniform, was discussing with the head of the Eagle clan, "Black Hawk" Viscount Zavier, how to deal with the Lion clan and Viscount Bast.
He asked seriously, "After the war is over, should we completely fall out with Bast's Lion clan?"
"Black Hawk" Viscount Zavier was the head of the Eagle clan, the main rival of Viscount Bast.
Zavier had a cold complexion, deep-set eyes, and an aura that made people wary of approaching him.
"It's not time to fall out completely yet."
He, unlike the casually humorous Bast who favored tailcoats, always wore a pure black Priest robe, and the Lion clan called him 'the living dead in a coffin.'
This set of robes symbolizing order and judgment was, in fact, a very powerful Forbidden rare artifact.
Zavier, a cold and cautious man, wore it at all times, even refusing to take it off for sleep, instead ordering his subordinates to memorize cleaning type Spells to replace regular baths.
In just a few decades, "Black Hawk" climbed to power by siding with one of the Ten Great Pillars, the Hovern family, and alone lead the Eagle clan from a baronial family to a powerful clan capable of confronting the Lions.
Zavier continued with a stern face, "Although in recent years the Lion clan has never dared to confront us head-on, we still can't underestimate their depth."
"The Lion clan may still have hidden forces; even if our two families join forces, we may not be able to destroy them completely in the short term."
"Moreover, 'Iron Blood' Oder, and the 'Spirit Deer', 'Sunrise', three families are still their loyal allies, and the mysterious Alchemy Council also maintains ambiguous connections with them."
"In terms of hard power, we are not the advantaged ones."
Hearing this, Viscount Garcia could only nod in agreement; he certainly knew the terror of the Lion clan.
Zavier calmly took out a strange, edged stone that constantly emitted an unusual aura and played with it in his hand.
With every turn of the black stone, he seemed to get younger, gradually aging backward from around fifty to looking like a young man in his early twenties.
The youthful Zavier looked extremely handsome, with long, thick eyebrows, a tall nose, and a mesmerizing, aloof charisma.
With an expressionless face, he continued to say:
"We still need to wait. As long as Earl Hovern achieves Monarch Level and shifts the Hovern family's strategic focus to the East Coast, we will have won."
The two families' mutual supporter, the "Shattered Giant" Hovern family, actually faced a lot of pressure domestically.
Because most of the families among the Ten Great Pillars did not want Earl Hovern to reach Monarch Level; though the Hovern family had its own allies, the outcome was still uncertain.
If the Hovern family of Cyart falls, it's certain that the various families in the country that are dependent on them will meet a disastrous fate.
Viscount Garcia spoke gravely, "The Donnerklaue clan, relying on their marriage alliance with the 'Wasteland Beast' Frosac family, still plans to remain neutral, not wanting to offend anyone."
Zavier nodded, his expression unchanged, and continued:
"We still need to win over the Donnerklaue and Sunrise clans, especially the Sunrise clan. I know something - the water source of Sunrise Lake has been polluted by the factories in the southern part of Fein City in recent years, and they have a huge dispute with Viscount Bast."
"The factories in Fein City that were one after another established, represent the interests of many families on the East Coast, and to ensure the support of most of these people, Viscount Bast can only sacrifice the interests of the Sunrise clan."
The Sunrise clan can be swayed, and as long as four out of the seven viscount families on the East Coast stand in opposition to the Lion clan and the important supporter, Earl Hovern, is able to successfully reach the Monarch Level, then the future of the Eagle clan will become much smoother.
Viscount Garcia suddenly asked, "By the way, Mr. Zavier, you know about the Fischer family, don't you?"
Zavier nodded slightly and calmly replied:
"I've heard of them; they are 'Big Squirrel,' 'Cowardly Fisherman,' 'Vampire,' and also supporters of the Lion."
"People say their patriarch, Byrne, has never fought in his life, not even the youngest girl could lose to him, the only thing he can do is kneel on the ground and polish Viscount Bast's shoes."
Anger appeared on Viscount Garcia's face, his brows furrowed tightly, as if spitting out hatred through his teeth.
"Although the church has determined that the Kesse family was tragically struck by the Sea God Cult's poison hand, I believe it was definitely the Fischers who acted, that family is not as weak as they appear on the surface."
"I even suspect that the disappearance of my son-in-law, William, might also be their doing, because it all happened on the same night."
Zavier's face remained expressionless, and after pondering for a moment, he said indifferently:
"I've already mentioned the situation in Nasir Town to Earl Hovern, and people from his family will drive the Fischers out of Nasir and confiscate their factories."
"That's good."
Because dealing with the insignificant Fischer family was a minor matter, the two did not talk about it much but moved on to the next topic.
Zavier thoughtfully said, "In some time, the final assault will be launched, isn't it? We will completely eradicate the foundation of the Sea God Cult."
——
In the following period, the Fischer family followed the army in subjugating several islands, finding their resistance was stronger than the first island they encountered.
But Byrne quickly realized that not all Cyart people plundered and slaughtered recklessly after conquering each island, but had different strategies due to various reasons.
The first island they blood-washed was actually the homeland of a Sea God priest called "Hailan."
And that priest of the Sea God Cult, "Hailan," was the opposing leader who killed the most Cyart people in the naval wars, so avenging his homeland had always been part of the plan.
The Fischer family was already controversial, and even in the subsequent battles, they maintained a conservative position, and not even one of their soldiers died, further subjecting them to much scorn and abuse.
Unable to bear it, Archibald angrily suggested to Byrne that the Fischer family should take the forefront in the next battles to show their courage to those people.
Aaron and Abbott, the siblings, also felt that Byrne was too cowardly, and Verne wanted to support this "cowardly act" but couldn't bring himself to say it.
Byrne vividly remembered his father, Lucius's words, "Always be a wise coward, rather than a brave useless person."
He felt nothing for so-called honor and flatly rejected Archibald's suggestion.
"We absolutely cannot be in the forefront, even during the most advantageous stages of a war, casualties still exist on the front lines, and our family simply cannot afford the loss."
Finally, after several months, a total assault that would definitively determine the outcome of the naval war was about to begin.
The priests of the Tempest Church, in advance, drew a very complex blue spell inscription on every soldier, including Extraordinary Exponents, in the shape of an equilateral triangle. When the drawing was completed, there was also the sound of the sea breeze.
As for Byrne and Chris, who were at the "Transmutation Level" of the Extraordinary Exponents, the unique spell inscriptions they received were very different, more complex blue triangles emitting the light of the sea, continually producing the sound of the waves upon completion.
As long as the priests subsequently cast a collective spell, the Tempest Bishop and many Transmutation Level powerhouses would be able to use these unique spell inscriptions to draw upon the spiritual power and even the life force of everyone in the army, providing endless sustenance for themselves.
However, if the transmitters were too far from the transmission range or lost concentration, the sustenance would cease.
Fight-hardened soldiers, with greater spiritual and life force than ordinary civilians, and the lower-tier Extraordinary Exponents, obviously had even higher quality, were unlikely to easily break and run, being able to focus for an extended period.
When the intensity of the battle reached the higher echelons, the greatest contribution of the mortal army and lower-tier Extraordinary Exponents was to harass with firearms and consume themselves to provide sustenance for the stronger Extraordinary Exponents.
Finally, the whole army set out.
Their next target was the Sea God Cult's main base in the White Sea region, a large island with a population of tens of thousands, where the remaining seven priests of the Sea God Cult's command layer had retreated.