Chapter 606.5: Blood God - Haka!
Shells launched. Troops reloaded in tense rhythm.
They didn't even check their hits—just followed orders.
The greatest pressure fell on the wall's defenders.
Fortunately, the soldiers trained in formation combat no longer charged chaotically as before.
Instead, they held their positions and slaughtered the zombies scaling the walls.
More and more zombies clambered up, swarming the towering golems.
To the Swarm Tyrant below, Bloodmoon City's feeble soldiers couldn't possibly withstand its zombie army.
As long as the golems were dealt with, it could steamroll its way forward.
What it hadn't anticipated was Bay Territory's prioritization of sustaining golem combat readiness—since golems had long been integrated as standard combat units.
"Golems excel at offense, but are average in defense."
"Their massive size and somewhat clunky movements mean they can't dodge or block like regular soldiers."
"Under these conditions, greater attack power and range helps minimize damage taken."
At first, Knight Harley thought the long blades on the golems were clumsy and predictable.
But when Bloodmoon City's own golems began to fall to the unrelenting zombie assault—
The Bay Territory's golems simply replaced worn weapons and resumed their slaughter with full efficiency.
The contrast was undeniable, giving Harley much to think about.
Many seemingly trivial Bay Territory items proved incredibly effective on the battlefield.
The question was—why was it only Bay Territory that could identify, develop, and mass-produce such assets?
Try as he might, Harley couldn't fathom the reason. He shelved the thought and threw himself back into battle.
After explaining some new weapons to Bloodmoon's soldiers—
Most members of the Thorn Chamber didn't join the wall's defense.
Once confident the lines would hold, they rushed toward the underground ruin's entrance.
Underground Ruin Excavation Site.
The swarm beasts that had previously attacked the lines were now mysteriously gone.
High-level adventurers looked at the burned corpses and sighed in relief.
What none of them expected—
Was that Bay Territory began distributing new batches of magic and purification potions during their break.
A few adventurers gathered, munching bread for sustenance.
Watching the busy Bay staff, they clicked their tongues in amazement:
"You have to drink the purification potion—but I haven't even used my healing one yet..."
"It's a spare—use it when needed, don't be stingy."
"So generous? I've got a bold idea now."
"Big ideas won't matter if your luck's small!"
"Don't try any tricks with Bay Territory. Their magic detection alone would ruin you..."
"True that. Better we behave since they're giving us so much..."
"I wonder how many merits we'll earn from that last battle?"
"No worries—just find the record keeper and give your adventurer ID. You'll get it fast."
"I just got 3 merit points—that's like 100 gold or so..."
"Same here. Wasn't too risky, but the loot was great!"
"Hey, don't say that—it was a team of high-level adventurers, of course we performed well."
"Haha, still takes someone to rally the group."
"Glad I came on Day 2, or I'd have missed the gold rush."
"Gold rush might be a stretch—but a decent haul for sure..."
While the adventurers rested, Matthew frowned over reports as the ruin entrance neared completion.
"The Swarm Tyrant? The Church of Eternal Life actually made one?"
"Judging by its form, it's already at Legendary rank. If it devours enough souls and flesh, it might reach Demigod..."
"A major problem..."
"Yaya can't act yet—we still don't know the Church's real goal..."
"Lord Anne's location should be right below."
"The shadow mage tower down there is probably already under Church control, just like I remember..."
"There's tons of treasure in the goblin ruins—but no time to dig."
"..."
As Matthew pondered, the giant drill slowly halted.
The golem techs quickly reported the breakthrough.
Matthew, long prepared, exhaled and turned to Batum and Silverfang beside him:
"Once I go down, the enemy will launch another assault soon."
"Lead the defense. Guard this tunnel. That's your top priority."
"No one's allowed near. If there's no signal in 8 hours, begin evacuation."
Batum nodded with emotion. He'd poured immense effort into training the troll soldiers and teaching them Bay Territory's principles.
For trolls, the hardest part was earning enough merit to atone for their sins.
The suicide squads gave them that chance. Without it, Batum believed trolls would never succeed.
Trolls, skilled only in war and slaughter, couldn't aid a territory's growth in strength, science, or culture.
But—one success leads to another.
More young trolls were emerging—and more were teachable.
Batum was confident some could cast off savagery and ignorance to help build a new home.
Silverfang, too, was delighted.
After long effort and learning, he'd shattered many kobold mental barriers.
He passed Bay Territory's High Commander Exam and could now lead troops.
He was determined to complete his great master's task, gain more experience, and help the territory win.
Matthew had high hopes for this mixed-race army trained by Bay.
Though Matthew's surgical enhancements could elevate even average humans—
A single-species army had limits in potential.
But combining multiple races—leveraging their unique strengths and growth ceilings—would create a superior force.
Still, human soldiers—stable, compatible, fast learners—would be the army's foundation.
Matthew wasn't racist—but he wouldn't abandon his main supporters.
He didn't believe his plans could stop the terrifying future.
But he'd fight with everything he had to lead his people—to battle, to change, to conquer!
After adjusting his mindset, Matthew built up mental defenses and was ready to enter the underground ruins.
The moment he entered—
Pale green flames ignited.
Their dim light spread outward, illuminating a vast space.
Unlike most ruins of stone, what appeared before Matthew was a massive metallic wreck.
Even after millennia, some metal parts still gleamed like new.
"Unnamed Alloy: Anti-Corrosion +6, Durability +5, Toughness +5, Heat Resistance +5."
"Unnamed Metal: Anti-Corrosion +9, Durability +7, Toughness +3, Heat Resistance +2."
"Unnamed Alloy: Heat Resistance +11..."
Over a dozen new alloys and metals made Matthew feel the trip was worth it.
And this was just a glance—digging deeper would reveal even more.
But—he had no time now.
He had to reach the heart of the goblin ruin fast.
Matthew avoided small skeletal undead—
Their ghostfire eyes wandered aimlessly through the debris.
Once the negative energy faded, they'd collapse into bones.
Or be reanimated by lingering souls—becoming weak skeletal undead again.
Matthew remembered—Level 1 of the goblin ruin wasn't very dangerous.
As long as you didn't fall into a bone pit or meet a burrowing worm, even low-rank adventurers were safe.
As he moved, he felt the sheer complexity and scale of the ruins.
Having helped build the territory from scratch, he better understood planar tech and productivity.
Just this millions-ton metal wreck would take the Netheril Empire ten years to produce.
Even Bay Territory, with extra elemental furnace lines, needed 2–3 years.
And even the corroded scraps were high-grade alloys.
The ruin's vastness showed the goblin empire's power.
Yet such an empire vanished without a trace—barely mentioned in history.
It was as if it had been erased.
Feeling history's weight, Matthew moved swiftly through the familiar-yet-foreign goblin ruin.
Avoiding hundreds of tiny skeletons, he reached the door to the next level.
A metallic gate, glowing with dazzling gold.
Not gold—but rarer adamantine.
Matthew smacked his lips, mind already made up.
Separating rare metals from alloys was tedious—but there was so much here!
If they took this ruin and built rare metal processing plants—
Bay's rare metal supply would be secure for 5–6 years.
The thought flashed through his mind—then came the real problem.
How to deal with the ever-growing swarm monsters down here.
This was a flat, open space—like Bay's underground realm, just lacking glowing moss.
But it wasn't natural—it was dug out by force.
Chkk! Chkk! Chkk!
Sharp claws carved the rock.
Falling debris turned the digging ants below white.
Yet they kept chomping rock, unbothered.
As big as adult buffaloes, their gray-black chitin was spiked.
Hideous, but they joyfully devoured stone.
Yes—this cavern was dug by these giant bull-ants.
Why call them bull-ants?
First—their size matched bulls.
Second—deadly horned charges just like wild bulls.
Third—like oxen, they toiled tirelessly.
Always eating or hauling stone.
Model laborers.
Lastly—they were "profitable" like dairy cows.
Cows eat grass, give milk.
Bull-ants eat stone, give blood.
When they died—
Their bodies became food for others. A "feast."
Hundreds of thousands filled the cavern.
Tough and low-maintenance, they survived on little.
They bred well—eighteen per litter? Easy. Eighty? No sweat.
Thanks to them, other creatures here had food.
Yes—these terrifying bull-ants were the food chain's bottom.
Matthew waited, studying their data.
Discovering they weren't pheromone-controlled like surface ants—but individuals—
Gave him ideas.
Such resilient beasts, wasted on rock-chewing alone?
Risky on the surface—they'd overrun everything.
But what if placed in the deadly half-plane of Catachan...
As Matthew imagined, crazed roars echoed.
The bull-ants panicked, scattering.
Massive claws impaled two.
Even so, they writhed, trying to flee.
Until the claws lifted them—into the dark.
Crunch!
Silence.
Matthew stood still, staring at the hulking shadow—a spider the size of a hill.
Giant Predator Spider.
Challenge Rating: 18+
Species: Hahoran Swarm.
Status: Flesh-Corrupted (Hungry).
The info matched Matthew's memory.
Except—the red-tagged "Flesh Corruption" shouldn't be on Floor 2.
Watching it feed greedily, Matthew's expression darkened:
"So... Blood God Hakkar's seal really has been partially broken..."
Deep in these ruins was the troll's blood god of worship and sacrifice—Blood God Hakkar!