Born in Blood

Chapter 409 War

At dusk, the war came to a halt.

The Line flickered with an invisible wall of force, and the two sides were instantly separated.

A moment later, the once flat, now ravaged ground between them opened up, swallowing all the corpses on its surface.

Abomination and humans alike.

It wasn't a physical opening though.

A thin, glass-like barrier held up the living that stood on top of it, while allowing the dead to plunge into an umbral abyss.

That was that.

No one had managed to touch the star in the sky.

Neither side was able to!

And there were massive casualties.

21,300 from the Couragist's side, and 19,000 from the Fearist's side.

Yet, the battle of fifty Rank 5 Zeniths resulted in 3 deaths.

2 from the Fearists, and 1 from the Couragists.

That was no small loss. It was even worse than losing 10,000 Mortal cultivators!

New batches of cultivators came once every 2 weeks.

This meant that, for the next two weeks, the Fearists would have to fight with 48 instead of 50!

While the Couragists would fight with just 49!

When considering this fact generally, this wasn't a big deal.

But the reality of it was different.

The lives of the Fearists got way harder.

They needed to use strategy and tactics to close the gap between them.

Although the gap was small now… it could be made much, much worse over the next two weeks.

In fact, this rule was made for that exact reason.

What use would a war be if both sides kept replenishing their numbers?

This battle wasn't just battle prowess.

One side had to completely dominate the other!

During the nighttime, there was unrest.

Within the corners of the Line, on the Fearist's side, pretentious rumors of a legendary Abomination were spreading to other Battle Stations.

They called it…

The Reaper.

The Cloaked One.

The White Assassin.

…So pretentious!

And stupid!

Who would believe such a thing?

Dropping behind enemy lines and killing hundreds?

Stupid!

A mere soldier killing several Zeniths?

Stupid!

A children's story was more believable.

Most of the Fearists were unamused by the gossip.

Especially the Rank 5 cultivators.

They weren't even aware of such a thing.

They had their own problems to worry about.

Mainly about winning the war!

Not engage in silly talks about something that probably didn't even happen!

Thus, the rumors remained as mere rumors.

Then came dusk.

More death.

More corpses.

More blood spilt.

Booms.

Bangs.

Shockwaves.

Chaos.

Then…

There it was.

The vulture…

And the Cloaked One above it!

The Fearists barely caught a glimpse of it before it flew behind the enemy's line.

A moment later, his shrouded form had completely disappeared.

Hours passed as the battle raged on.

…But just like last time, the Couragists realized they weren't going to receive support.

Their battalion was quickly cut down.

And the Fearists claimed yet another major Battle Station!

But when they investigated the place in question… they saw the same thing.

Mutilated bodies.

Separated limbs.

Flesh ripped apart.

Some were twisted like cloth.

A few had their lower jaws cleanly severed off, as though they never had one in the first place.

Some deaths were more graceful than others.

Needless to say, the rumors started to surge with newfound believability.

It spread from one Battle Station to the next, like a virus infecting a cell.

Then, it was dawn again.

A pause was granted to both sides.

Unfortunately, it was another loss for the Fearists.

They lost two Rank 5's, while only killing one in return.

But the rumors continued.

"The Reaper… could he actually exist?" a Zenith Fearist said to another. "I haven't seen many Abominations with cloaks."

"Everything has a basis," the second said with a sage-like expression.

"If so many people are saying they've seen it with their own eyes, then they probably have."

"But in war, things get blown out of proportion."

"People see what their minds want them to see."

"But there's proof of it, so… there is a high chance this… so-called Reaper exists."

The first one nodded seriously, as though this was a very serious topic.

Just as important as the war itself.

"We'll have to see."

Before long, it was dawn again.

Then, dusk.

It happened again!

Except this time, three major Battle Stations were claimed, along with more than a dozen smaller stations!

They were all killed in the same manner as before. Gruesomely mutilated and dispatched.

At that point, the rumors could no longer be called rumors.

They were real.

The Reaper, the Cloaked One, the Assassin in White… was real.

Dawn.

Dusk.

Dawn.

Dusk.

There was no question about it anymore.

This Reaper was a serious problem.

After a while, no one saw where he was anymore!

In a week and a half, more than 15 major Battle Stations were picked apart!

In fact, because of it, the Rank 5 Fearists were able to close the gap after a couple of days!

They'd received so much land over the other side, that they could set up defensive strategies with relative ease.

Even with their inferior numbers.

The Fearists gained a major boost in morale.

Whoever this Reaper was, it didn't matter.

Most important of all, the Reaper was on their side.

Though, the Reaper was just as famous on the other side.

"I heard if you look at it for more than ten seconds, you're bound for death!"

"They say it can change shape! It can take any form! It could even be you or me!"

"I've seen it blink from one place to another! Seen it melt into the shadows!"

The Couragists now numbered 30!

Against 38 Fearists!

They were under mountainous pressure.

So much so, they seriously considered the issue of this mysterious figure.

In truth, there was a way to end the war in the case of an emergency.

In case of foul play or otherwise.

Both sides had a device to do so.

But the side that used it would end up automatically losing until the case was resolved.

And contacting their emperor, or empress, also had a similar penalty.

There was no way this Reaper was legitimate.

But if they caught the Reaper itself?

They could win the war… and they wouldn't even have to fight!