The Shining Star Above The Heaven-Chapter 417: Incoming Battle

A woman clad in armor, exuding both beauty and a deadly aura, was Elena. Her hair was tied in a ponytail, and despite wearing armor, her elegance did not diminish. In fact, it only enhanced her charm in some way. She truly resembled a battle angel who had fought through a thousand wars.

"I’m sure, Father. I will try to ask for his help. From our last conversation, he seemed interested in our legacy artifact—at least from my perspective," Elena answered Baron Rosalind.

Her father, a middle-aged man with black hair and a tall posture, looked her with a serene gaze. However, his voice betrayed his expression, carrying a slight tone of worry for his daughter.

"However, are you sure he wants to help us? According to the last report we received before losing contact with our scout, he was still staying in Caritas. I thought his hands might already be full with his own battle against the second prince’s force," Baron Rosalind said.

They were, of course, discussing Aldrian. The news about the mysterious swordsman was too important to ignore, so their scout, tasked with gathering information, had relayed the report through their secret communication channel. However, not long after, they lost contact with the scout, leaving them blind once again.

With this clue, Elena volunteered to go to Caritas to seek Aldrian’s help. She wanted to go herself to demonstrate her family’s sincerity. Besides, she had already met and come to know him. They still did not understand why Aldrian was in this empire or why he had antagonized the second prince, but it worked in their favor—after all, the second prince had gained another powerful enemy.

Although they felt bad about asking Aldrian for help, they had no other choice. Their situation was truly dire.

"With his power, I believe the second prince will have to restrain himself from making a move on Caritas and instead focus on other areas. That’s why the troops besieging us for months launched such a fierce attack yesterday—they must be in a rush to wipe us out as quickly as possible so they can turn their attention to young master Aldrian later," Elena said.

"With the second prince avoiding Caritas for the time being, young master Aldrian has no reason to worry about it. However, even if he leaves Caritas and the second prince still recklessly decides to attack, there is someone remaining there to stand guard."

Baron Rosalind knew exactly who his daughter was referring to.

"The Sword Saint?"

"Yes, with the Sword Saint guarding the city, Caritas is at least safe when young master Aldrian leaves. As long as the second prince doesn’t send a force as large as the one that attacked Caritas a few days ago, the Sword Saint alone is enough to hold the fort," she said confidently.

She was certain of this because she knew how powerful Xin Haotian was. While not as absurdly strong as Aldrian, Xin Haotian was already one of the continent’s strongest cultivators, despite his cultivation being "only" at the low Emperor stage.

Baron Rosalind nodded as he considered his daughter’s words. They made sense. Although he disliked dragging a man he had originally invited to examine their legacy artifact—hoping he would help uncover their history—into their problems, this was the only option he could think of.

"Alright, you can try to persuade him, but be careful on your way. The blockade is getting stricter. If it becomes too dangerous, use the return talisman without hesitation."

"I will, Father," Elena said, bowing before turning to depart for Caritas.

"My lord!"

Before Elena could step outside the room, a soldier clad in armor suddenly ran in from the hallway, blocking her path. He came to an abrupt stop in front of her, momentarily stunned, before quickly bowing.

"My apologies, young miss, my lord," he said before straightening and turning to Baron Rosalind.

"My lord, we have movement from the second prince’s troops! They... they’ve sent a flying fortress here!"

Hearing the soldier’s report, Baron Rosalind and Elena widened their eyes in shock. Without hesitation, they used their movement techniques to reach the city walls, where they had a clear view of the second prince’s massive army.

Upon arriving, the sight before them left them astonished. A flying fortress was already visible in the distance. Though it was still quite far, its speed made it clear that it would reach them soon.

The fortress continued its steady approach toward the second prince’s encampment.

"I think you should postpone your departure. We need to hold them off now, or we won’t last another week at this rate," Baron Rosalind said, his gaze fixed on the approaching fortress.

"Also with the arrival of the flying fortress, I doubt you’d be able to break through their defenses right now."

Elena nodded in agreement with her father. With the flying fortress approaching, security would be at its highest, and the enemy would be ready to attack at any moment.

"Ring the bell! We’re about to face another battle!" Baron Rosalind shouted.

The soldiers responded swiftly, sounding the alarm to signal the incoming attack. The citizens, already familiar with the procedure, quickly took shelter in their homes or nearby establishments. Meanwhile, soldiers still in their barracks rushed to arm themselves and hurried to their posts.

The entire city instantly became a hive of military activity, its streets now devoid of civilians.

"I suppose your assumption was correct, my daughter. With the second prince sending a flying fortress here, he truly seems desperate to crush us in one swift strike. I imagine the situation with Grand Duke Arim and Duke Marle is the same. The second prince certainly isn’t hesitating to squander his resources on this war."

"Considering how quickly that flying fortress arrived from its main base in the central region, they must have injected a large number of peak-level energy stones to accelerate its speed. And they’ll still have plenty left for battle."

Baron Rosalind sighed at the thought. The sheer wealth of the imperial family ran deep and could not be underestimated. Sending a flying fortress showed just how determined the second prince was to end the rebellion as quickly as possible.

Not long after, the flying fortress landed behind enemy lines, and Baron Rosalind watched as it deployed reinforcements—roughly ten thousand additional troops. Moments later, the fortress took off again, this time directing its course toward the city.

Atop the city walls, cannons loaded with explosive projectiles infused with the energy of heaven and earth stood ready to fire, maximizing their destructive power.

While these cannons would have little effect on cultivators at the duke stage or above, the sheer impact of their blasts would still be devastating to the lower-level troops. These weapons were sky-grade artifacts, highly effective for both defense and siege warfare.

However, on the opposite side, the enemy forces had their own cannons—ones far more powerful at heaven-grade.

Those cannons were effective for prolonged attacks on the city’s barrier, gradually wearing down its durability. If the barrier was continuously bombarded and its strength dropped to a certain threshold, the enemy army would immediately launch an assault, knowing that a joint technique from their cultivators would be enough to shatter what remained.

However, right now, aside from the cannons, the second prince’s forces also had a flying fortress. Its primary weapon, the lightning cannon was capable of unleashing an attack on par with a high emperor-stage cultivator if pushed. With that level of firepower, the city’s barrier would break in a much shorter time.

Although Rosalind City’s barrier could withstand high emperor-stage attacks, it wouldn’t last indefinitely. Right now, its survival depended on the flying fortress’s crew and their available resources. If they chose to recklessly deplete their energy stone reserves and fired the lightning cannon three times, the barrier would collapse instantly.

Alternatively, they could fire twice and change the remaining attack to the standard cannons, which would also drastically shorten the time needed to breach the city’s defenses.

The troops under Baron Rosalind were already stationed at their posts atop the city walls, prepared for the incoming attack. They watched as the massive flying fortress, accompanied by tens of thousands of troops, advanced in unison, creating a majestic yet intimidating sight.

The low, constant hum of the fortress sounded like the approach of death itself. This battle might very well be their last—the one that would determine their fate.

Baron Rosalind and Elena also saw several figures flying above the fortress, a clear sign that they were cultivators above the grand duke stage. Among them were new faces, the reinforcements sent by the capital to this place.

One was a middle emperor-stage cultivator, a middle-aged man, while the other, at the peak king stage, had a much younger appearance. Baron Rosalind and Elena, however, recognized them both.

The newcomer at the emperor stage was Duke Schmidt, the patriarch of the Schmidt family—a family that had a poor relationship with the Rosalind family.

The peak king-stage cultivator was Adel Schwertwächter. Like Elena, he was one of the ten great swordmasters of the continent.

With their arrival, the composition of the second prince’s forces had become more formidable than ever. Four emperor-stage cultivators, more than a dozen king-stage cultivators, and tens of thousands of troops, all supported by a flying fortress. Such a force was enough to make any noble family tremble at its might.

The approaching troops halted five kilometers from the city walls, and Duke Schmidt floated closer so his face could be seen clearly by everyone in Rosalind City.

"Rebels! Your struggle ends today. This battle will be the one that erases it for good!"