Thousands of 5th stars. Hundreds of 6th stars. Dozens of 7th stars.
This was an army unlike anything seen, or at least in this part of the world. This was an army that could make even the greatest empires tremble. And that wasn't counting the numerous outliers that had arrived with them.
The five soldiers who returned with the report had no choice but to return to call for reinforcements from their legions.
The grand commanders of the Sunblade Legion, Radiant Legion, and the Darkan family stepped forward with their elite 6th star subordinates. This wasn't a battle they could afford to chip away at. Attrition would only drain them before they ever reached the 7th stars.
They knew it in their bones: one of them would not leave this battlefield alive. Thousands of their men would die. But they could not and would not let the enemy cross into their lands.
The chaos and destruction they would bring would be unimaginable.
So, they stilled their hearts, surged into the chaos, and tore through the frontline toward the heart of the outlier formation, toward the enemy's strongest.
As they approached, the 6th stars on both sides withdrew. The energy radiating from the battlefield was overwhelming even for them.
And like that, the battlefield split into three.
Ironically, the smallest skirmish zone with the 7th stars took up the most space.
Three 7th stars for the empire against thirty-one for the outliers.
Twelve 6th stars stood for the empire against two hundred and fifty outliers.
And about seven hundred thousand soldiers from the Radiant Archers, Sunblade Legion, Darkan Dragon Knights, and the Church of Five Suns against over a million outliers, not including the fresh wave of reinforcements just arriving.
This was a battle already lost. No one had to say it.
There were no rousing speeches, no battle cries, no grand declarations.
The battle simply began.
BOOOOOOOOOOM!
Flames and arcane blasts erupted across the field. Screams tore through the air.
The Darkan family head raised his hand, and a crimson halberd with a very intricate design on its blade and its hilt etched with ancient runes appeared.
It was the heirloom of their family, crafted from the scales and heart of their ancestor red dragon.
His crimson armor ignited with matching flames, and a ten-meter domain of fire surged around him.
Shaaaaaa!
He became living fire, charging straight into the heart of the outlier horde.
The other grand commanders revealed their domains as well, rippling golden-red auras pulsed from their bodies. There was a large difference between the commanders and the regular soldiers, in that, disregarding the level of strength they must attain upon reaching that level, they also learned the empire's exclusive aura cultivation technique —the mark of the sun.
This technique gave their flame a golden glow, representing the sun.
The Radiant Commander's bow sang with thunderous force as every arrow shot sounded like cannon fire. The Sunblade Commander carved through the ice-covered ground, melting it with every radiant swing. Deep cuts split the battlefield.
But the outliers were far from idle. Barbarians, their bodies fused with beast blood, and nomads wielding paired weapons in each hand, surged forward.
Their chaotic assault immediately forced the empire's commanders onto the defensive, overwhelming their attacks with sheer numbers and ferocity.
...
Meanwhile, the battle among the 6th stars also mirrored the chaos.
One of them had fallen so quickly, forcing the remaining commanders to stay united to unleash their combined techniques.
"Solar Pinion!" one legion commander roared, and the archer raised their bow, eyes closed in silent prayer. Even the sword masters lowered their blades and joined in the chant.
A blinding light gathered at each arrowhead. Then—release.
A wave of radiant arrows was revealed, paralyzing every enemy who gazed upon the light.
Then came the next,
"Zenith Judgment!"
The swordsmen raised their blades to the sky and struck down. The swords glowed golden, infused with the sun's fury.
BOOOOOOOOOOM!
Their charged sword strike of condensed sunlight exploded amidst the paralyzed outliers.
"AGAIN!"
Another Solar Pinion. Another Zenith Judgment.
"Cough—AGAIN"
Light and heat exploded outward, swallowing the outliers in its path.
The main purpose of their attack wasn't the explosion. It was the heat. The heat from the sun, just how much damage did it cause this time?
When the light faded, the cost was clear. Nearly half the outlier 6th stars had been wiped out. Only a little over a hundred remained. Of the dead, not even ashes remained, and of the survivors, burn marks could be seen among them.
For the first time, the outliers displayed an emotion that the commanders could read, and they hesitated.
Shock.
It wasn't just the outliers who could form allies, the empire had its own ancient weapons and techniques that made them who they are.
But the cost had been steep. Their aura reserves were nearly gone, and from their distance, the healers from the Church couldn't aid them.
...
On the battlefield of the 7th stars, the three commanders stood bloodied. The Darkan head was faring better, having gone all out from the beginning, but he now carried the burden of defending the others, sustaining wound after wound.
"We have no choice now," the Sunblade Grand Commander said.
The Radiant Commander nodded solemnly.
Then, their auras began to shift.
Sensing this, the Darkan head let out a primal roar and poured every remaining ounce of power into his halberd, even abandoning his protective flame domain.
The runes on the halberd ignited, absorbing his flames and his aura. At the weapon's head, a fiery dragon began to form. A roaring head of flame, growing larger and larger, greedily devouring his strength.
The outliers, sensing danger, lunged.
Within seconds, they were upon him.
But he smiled a wide, bloody grin.
"Got you. Dragon Breath."
The dragon's head opened wide, and a torrent of condensed flame surged forth, its intensity and force incinerating two 7th stars in an instant.
The others recoiled in horror.
But the halberd was already turning a sweeping flame in wide arcs, injuring four more before retreating.
He gasped, exhausted, but grinned. The brief assault had bought them time.
Behind him, the Sunblade and Radiant commanders finished their techniques.
"Zenith Judgment!"
"Horizon's Wrath!"
The sky exploded once more.