Westheid lowered his head slightly and kissed Reiya on the cheek. The White-haired Dragon Lady’s beautiful eyes, a mix of navy violet and pale blue, immediately filled with a watery mist, and she began to hum softly.

For the next two days, the Floating Fleet charged straight into the Chaos Domain. The battleships continuously endured erosion and corruption, which the Ascension Ceremony alone could not completely purify. Westheid himself had to draw Shadow-Born and use the Flame of Extinction to clear away the corrosive material clinging to the ships.

Fortunately, the fleet managed to bypass the Land of Yonglan without any real danger and successfully reached the Dusk Lamp Territory.

"So that’s the Dusk Lamp Territory?"

Westheid gazed at the land in the distance from a window, raising an eyebrow.

"It’s just as Mivana described. Truly a land of exile, like the edge of the world."

The sky was almost perpetually shrouded in a thick haze, glowing with a faint, ashen light. A ceaseless, silent drizzle fell—bordering the Chaos Domain, even the rain in the Dusk Lamp Territory was corrupting.

"Your Majesty, where should we land?"

"Just find any open space. First, we’ll establish a base in the Dusk Lamp Territory and set up a Barrier while we’re at it. A war might not break out, but we should still be prepared."

The Floating Fleet thus continued onward. After crossing one swamp and forest after another, they finally spotted a field next to a town, and the fleet began its slow descent.

The sudden appearance of the Floating Fleet from the sky was clearly not something the Beastmen of the Dusk Lamp Territory had anticipated. The towns and settlements below fell into a panic, and one group of Beastmen, acting as if facing a great enemy, even took up bows, crossbows, and swords in defense.

"This..."

The navigator glanced back at Duke Qinghui and asked hesitantly, "Your Majesty, should we continue the descent?"

"Continue. Just explain our intentions to the Beastmen of the Dusk Lamp Territory. Mivana should have mentioned us to her people. There won’t be any conflict. We’re the royal army, after all!"

Westheid said with a wave of his hand.

Once the battleship had landed, Westheid and his retinue disembarked. Facing the extremely tense armed Beastmen, Duke Qinghui spread his arms, flashed an approachable smile, and spoke in the Yonglan language:

"Folks, don’t be scared. We... from Qinghui Territory. Are allies."

The young Beastman leading the group listened to the less-than-authentic accent, then looked at Westheid’s dazingly handsome face and said with sudden realization:

"Qinghui Territory..."

"You... You must be Mivana’s mating partner!"

The tall, Wolf-eared Beastman put away his weapon and eagerly came forward.

"I am Miliburn, Mivana’s clan brother. Mivana told us about you. You’re Duke Qinghui, right?"

’Huh? Mivana, what on earth have you been telling your brothers and sisters?’

"Ahem, yes, I am... the reinforcements Mivana spoke of."

Westheid immediately felt Reiya’s pointed gaze on him. He coughed twice and asked:

"But let’s save the small talk for later. I’ve heard about the critical situation here. Where is Mivana now?"

Miliburn’s brow furrowed, and he gritted his teeth. "She... She’s at the Boundary River right now. Mivana’s condition is very bad. Very bad. It seems she’s fallen into the same state as before."

"Is that so? Then the situation is indeed critical."

It was more or less as Westheid had expected. The reason for Mivana’s slaughter in Jinquan Territory must have been that she had lost control and gone on a rampage. He didn’t know what had triggered it, but the Cursed Source Blood’s rampage had to be stopped immediately. There was no time to lose.

"Bring up my mount! Reiya, we’re going on ahead!"

Westheid decided to go first to pacify and bring back Mivana. He called over the White-haired Dragon Lady, and they both got on his mount—

a heavy motorcycle with sleek lines and a red and silver paint job.

For Transcendents, especially powerhouses of the Legendary Celestial Rank, mounts were a flashy but impractical accessory. Essentially no living creature could compare to the strength of a Legendary Celestial Rank individual.

Even the Knight Path never specified the need for a mount. Low-tier Knights might ride Warhorses, Warg Mounts, Griffins, or Owl Beasts, but once they advanced to a High Tier, they all abandoned such "impurities."

However, even without a mount that could boost one’s combat power, a means of transport was sometimes indispensable. After all, sprinting across the ground would be rather undignified.

’As Duke Qinghui, I’m a man of status. How could I look so shabby?’

So, Westheid had a custom Ghost Fire Motorcycle made for himself, to use as a means of transport when he needed to travel quickly.

To put it bluntly, he just wanted to indulge in some "play."

"Reiya, hold on to my waist."

Westheid said to Reiya, and the Silver-haired Princess happily complied.

With the girl’s body pressed tightly against his back, Westheid leaned forward in satisfaction.

He channeled Magic Power into the pipes on the side of the heavy, multi-purpose motorcycle. The Magic Power, infused by a Legendary Celestial Rank individual, immediately became energy that flowed through the machine’s entire structure.

VRMMMM—

A tremendous engine roar echoed as the rectangular exhaust ports and the inscribed Acceleration Technique activated simultaneously, blasting out an eerie blue torch of flame.

BOOM—

With ferocious momentum, it shot forward like a bolt of lightning. Anything Westheid used as a means of transport was naturally of the highest quality. The motorcycle continuously accelerated, breaking one sound barrier after another. Its outline blurred as it was torn at by the fierce winds, and it even leaped through the air, practically hovering.

.........

「At the Dusk Lamp Territory’s Boundary River.」

Beside the frozen river’s surface, a fine rain fell ceaselessly.

A blood-soaked Beastman figure was half-kneeling on the ground. Her purple-black hair, damp with rain, hung to the ground, its ends twisted into a withered gray. Her furry beast ears and tail drooped limply as her whole body trembled.

What should have been a marketplace was now nothing but a field of scattered ruins. In front of Mivana, crimson bloodstains were exceptionally glaring against the snow. Not long ago, this place had been littered with the corpses of many Knights, which were only collected by the Expeditionary Army last night.

Not far from the Boundary River, the vanguard of the Knightly Path’s Expeditionary Army had already established a camp. From high ground, they could see Mivana’s figure in the distance. Under normal circumstances, the Expeditionary Army’s vanguard should have been building a forward base on the border of the Chaos Domain—that is, in the Dusk Lamp Territory.

But because of the figure before the Boundary River, the vanguard had halted its advance, hesitating to move forward.

Oh, no, to say that would be to underestimate the courage and fearlessness of the Yonglan People. In fact, even knowing they couldn’t defeat this Beastman, and even though the vanguard had issued orders to avoid combat, many hot-blooded Knights still defied their orders and came to challenge Mivana under the cover of night.

And then they were torn to pieces. Under the edge of her Silver Sword, not even the Yonglan Knights, who were veritable stat monsters, could withstand a single strike.

HUFF... HUFF... HUFF...

Her heavy breathing was not due to exhaustion. On the contrary, boundless power swelled within Mivana’s body. Her boiling blood sizzled, steam rose from her snow-white skin, and even the surrounding cold could not soothe the bone-deep scalding heat.

She was struggling to suppress the murderous instinct within her.

Realizing that she was about to lose control, the Lady Knight had gone to the border of the Dusk Lamp Territory without hesitation.

’My actions will likely incur the wrath of the Yonglan Knights. To mete out punishment, slaughtering all the Beastmen of the Dusk Lamp Territory would be an excellent decision for them.’

Therefore, Mivana had to stand alone at the border and bury any enemy who dared to approach.

’This Dusk Lamp Boundary River is my natural fortress!’

Yet, no matter how she held the pass alone against all comers, Mivana couldn’t keep this up forever. She was only facing the vanguard; the main force of the Expeditionary Army, including the Grand Knights, had yet to arrive. Even Mivana herself was nearing her limit.

Her lucid, rational consciousness was growing increasingly blurry. Mivana didn’t even dare to close her eyes, fearing that when she next opened them, she would see an unimaginable mountain of corpses and sea of blood.

VRMMMM—

A noisy roar sounded by her ear again, like some kind of war machine starting up. This made Mivana incredibly furious.

’Can’t you all just stop coming to die! I don’t want to kill anymore!’

Mivana bit the tip of her tongue and staggered to her feet. The moment she picked up her Silver Sword, she suddenly realized something was wrong.

’Wait, that sound... is it coming from behind me?’

"Mivana!"

As the familiar voice reached her, Mivana turned her head and saw Westheid.