Chapter 411 - The Book of Strategy for the Sub-Divine Artifact

Gaven, of course, knew what Zalanda was asking and directly gave the answer he’d already prepared, "At Nort Castle, I was hit by a boulder from a goblin trebuchet and lost consciousness. During that time, I had a dream."In that dream, I saw the entirety of my future life.

It was a life I did not like.

When I woke up and found everything developing towards that dream, it was only natural that I would resist.

As a result, things turned out the way they are now."

The truth is always the best answer. ʀᴇᴀᴅ ʟᴀᴛᴇsᴛ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀᴛ NovᴇlFir(e).nᴇt

Gaven now understood that many things need not be concealed.

His four lifetimes were, in themselves, incredibly mysterious.

It mainly depends on the perspective you choose to look at things from.

From the perspective of Zhang You in his first lifetime, it was four lifetimes.

From the current perspective of Gaven, the first three lifetimes were nothing more than real dreams of midnight reverie.

Did everything really happen?

No one, including Gaven himself, could explain clearly, because too many paradoxes were involved.

It was probably such paradoxes that gave birth to the unique phenomenon known as the Milestone of Destiny.

After listening to Gaven’s explanation, Zalanda did not show surprise but rather an expression of ’that figures,’ propped herself up with interest and beauty, and asked, "Did you change that dream?"

Holding Zalanda tightly, Gaven smiled and said, "Some parts have already changed, and I’m still working on the rest."

Zalanda, being extremely clever, instantly understood what Gaven meant and frowned, "What was I like in that dream of yours?"

"I think that’s a meaningless question, so it doesn’t matter if I don’t know," Gaven said with certainty, "The part of the dream about me will definitely never happen, at least some things will not happen again."

"That’s true, knowing it would just be adding to one’s troubles," said Zalanda with her usual open-mindedness, not dwelling on what had never occurred, "By the way, I have something to show you."

Just as Zalanda was about to rise, her legs gave out, and she sat back down in Gaven’s arms.

Their recent battle had been too intense, especially given it was her first time.

Her body felt incredibly sore and numb, particularly her legs which didn’t quite respond.

"My lady, where do you want to go? I’ll take you," Gaven said, standing up and lifting Princess Zalanda in his arms.

Although they were reunited after a long separation, the two were still as familiar with each other as they were yesterday; their love resonated with familial affection, making their interaction utterly natural or perhaps even more so.

"Over there," Zalanda pointed to the book she treated like a treasure on regular days.

"The Book of Strategy!"

Gaven recognized the book at first glance.

Though its appearance had changed significantly.

The current Book of Strategy was no longer assembled in that patchwork fashion of the beginning.

It now had the bronze cover that Gaven had wanted to make but didn’t get around to, engraved with mysterious runes.

Just this cover alone elevated its status by yet another level.

Even without opening it, one could tell from the side that its pages were all of the same material.

It was either rewritten or his own original version.

But the material had been changed through non-ordinary means.

When Gaven touched the Book of Strategy, his expression became solemn, then changed dramatically, "Divine Nature? Has a deity read this book and imbued it with Divine Nature Radiance? Could it be the Red Knight, Goddess of Strategy?"

This book was no longer an ordinary text on warfare; it was an out-and-out spellbook, a Divine Artifact.

The Book of Strategy.

Intelligence Boost (Special Ability) — The bearer of this book gains +4 Intelligence.

Intelligence Grant (Special Ability) — After spending one month reading this book, the reader will get a permanent increase of 2 points in Intelligence, an innate enhancement, usable once a year, and only once in a lifetime by the same person (this ability has been used and cannot be used for another 262 days).

Tactical Deployment (Special Ability) — You can choose to have a unit manifest in a location you designate, with a strength determined by your Intelligence Modifier per one hundred individuals, operable within a distance of one kilometer, usable once per day.

Revenge Storm (Special Ability) — You can cast Revenge Storm without consumption, once daily, with a spellcasting level considered as level 20.

Summon Red Falcon Knights (Special Ability) — You can summon a small squad of Red Falcon Knights to serve you for twenty-four hours, usable once every seven days.

Indestructible (Special Ability) — The book has been imbued with Strategy Divinity, elevated to a Quasi-Divine Artifact, and cannot be destroyed by ordinary physical and magic means.

After all, this book was created by his own hands, and there was a mystical connection between them. There was no need for identification, as the attributes automatically appeared in Gaven’s mind.

Just like those magic items made through the Destroy Evil process.

After reviewing all its attributes, Gaven already had the answer to his earlier question.

This book was definitely read and blessed by the Goddess of Strategy herself.

Lady Strategy, also known as the God of Strategy, the Red Knight, or simply the Red Knight.

She was one of the mortals elevated to divinity last year.

Her origins, name, and appearance are unknown.

For when she appeared before the public, she always wore a red full-body armor, leading a powerful armed force known as the Red Falcon.

Before her divine enthronement, those she helped revered her as the Yin Hong Red Knight.

It is said she never revealed her true face to the world because she was too beautiful, and even the Goddess of Love and Beauty, Shuni, was envious of her.

To avoid undermining her own prestige on the battlefield and to earn respect through strength, she chose not to expose her true visage to the public.

In 1358, she led the Red Falcon Knights Templar to Thacel at a time when magic was rampant, order had collapsed, old gods had fallen, new ones were rising, and the warlords of Thacel were in the peak of their struggle for power, as monstrous races uncontrolled from the surrounding mountains swarmed out, causing great suffering among the people.

The Red Knight, with but a single sword, a single steed, and a single cavalry troop, traversed the lands far and wide—wherever she went, a bloody tempest followed, unrivaled and unmatched, by neither monstrous armies nor regional warlords.

Under her supervision and threat, the regional warlords had no choice but to sign a decade-long pact.

Within these ten years, they were to recover and rest, forbidden from large-scale warfare against each other, lest they become the targets of her and the Red Falcon Knights’ retribution.

This deterrence reached its peak after the God of War, Tempus, promoted her to the status of a divine entity with the portfolio of strategy.

No mortal could withstand the wrath of a deity, not even a newly-enthroned demigod.

While transcribing the Book of Strategy, Gaven had once contemplated whether he could offer it to this newly-risen Goddess of Strategy, to gain divine favor and assistance.

After all, both her sphere of influence and special abilities fit extremely well with Zalanda; she could even be appointed as the head cleric to exchange for her full support.

However, he had not anticipated that the Book of Strategy would attract her so greatly that she herself would descend to read it.

The ascension of the Book of Strategy to a divine artifact was likely not a simple blessing by the Goddess of Strategy; it very likely came about through resonance during her reading, culminating in the enhancement of both the Magic Network and divine power.

As Gaven flipped through the book, he became more certain of this.

The text on the pages was still in his own handwriting, but now each word carried with it magical power.

Beneath, there were additional annotations in Thacel’s language, in golden ink—at first glance delicate, but upon closer inspection, the script was firm and the style elaborate and varied, exuding a strong aura of divine nature.

These were the Goddess of Strategy’s insights after reading, a further sublimation infusing the local laws of Felen and an integrated application.

The Book of Strategy truly deserved the name of a divine artifact; even as a lesser divine item, its potency far surpassed that of ordinary magical equipment.

The Intelligence Boost hardly needs to be mentioned, as it is a core attribute for mages, and a +4 increase is something even Gaven coveted deeply.

If he equipped the Book of Strategy and activated the Bionic Art and Overclocking, his own intelligence would skyrocket to a frightening 30 points. Although it would not be an intrinsic attribute, and thus ineligible for legendary rewards, the secret additional abilities conferred by the increase in intelligence would all be there.

But that, compared to the Intelligence Grant, is not nearly as significant.

Because equipment that increases intelligence is not uncommon in Felen, especially the Wisdom Circlets, which are ranked in various grades—the highest-tier legendary Wisdom Circlets can offer a +8 external attribute increase.

The same type of attribute bonus can only be utilized from one source.

For example, if someone equipped the Book of Strategy and then donned the legendary Wisdom Circlet, their intelligence could only increase by +8, taking the highest value of the two, not +12 (the sum of both).

However, the Intelligence Grant is different; it is an intrinsic increase, a clean addition to one’s existing stats.

This ability has already been used, and the user, doubtlessly, is Zalanda.

The question is whether I will be able to use this ability when the time comes since the Book of Strategy’s original version came from my own hand and I know the content inside out.

But then again, considering the Red Knight’s personal annotations below, it seems that one might look forward to it after all, since it’s the handiwork of a deity and can’t be entirely measured by common sense.

The ability of Tactical Deployment is somewhat monstrous—truly a divine skill for the battlefield.

With the Book of Strategy in her possession, Zalanda’s intelligence must be no less than twenty.

This means that she could use this skill to transport five hundred people at a time.

Five hundred elite troops, handpicked and appearing unexpectedly at crucial locations on the battlefield—for example, at the enemy command post, or behind or beside the enemy archer or cavalry formations.

Any way you think about it, it’s a disaster.

If Tactical Deployment represents the rational use of forces, then Revenge Storm is the battlefields’ endgame.

It is a ninth-level spell.

This spell creates a black storm cloud with a radius of one hundred meters, replete with lightning and thundering booms.

Those beneath the Revenge Storm must make a fortitude save or be deafened by the thunder for a period of time.

In the second round, acid rain begins, and those below suffer 1D6 damage.

In the third round, the caster can summon six bolts of lightning to attack the enemy; each bolt inflicts 10D6 damage, each targeting different enemies.

The fourth round drops hail, dealing 5D6 bludgeoning damage to those still trapped beneath it.

From the fifth to the tenth round, a fierce tempest and torrential rain beset the area, obscuring vision so much that all creatures are unable to see anything more than two meters away, even those with dark vision.

Below the Transcendent, there are few who can withstand a minute under the relentless assault of Revenge Storm.

Even those above the Transcendent, if they survive, would likely be left in a near-death state.

Most importantly, this power is wielded using the Book of Strategy, and the spellcaster expends no resources of their own.

Just thinking about it is terrifying.

The summoning of the Red Falcon Knights is also not to be underestimated.

The Red Falcon Knights were the foundational strength of the Red Knight before her ascension to godhood.

As the saying goes, when one person attains enlightenment, even their pets ascend to heaven.

Having been knighted by the Red Knight, they naturally became the Divine Guard Squad of the Goddess of Strategy.

Regrettably, the Red Knight is still a quasi-god, having not yet raised a God Kingdom, and this Honor Guard hasn’t evolved into celestial beings, remaining stationed in the Material Plane.

Even if they remain human, their strength is terrifying.

Each one possesses Transcendent strength.

And without exception, like the Red Knight, they wear red armor and mount red steeds.

This is the origin of their name as the Red Falcons.

A small team of Transcendent knights is more than enough to carry out decapitation missions.

As for the Indestructibility feature, it is a characteristic of all divine artifacts.

It’s not that they truly cannot be destroyed, but rather that destruction requires a particular set of stringent conditions.

There is also a simpler method—that is, to extract or expel the divinity within; once the divine artifact becomes mundane, it can then be destroyed by ordinary means.

Unless under special circumstances, few would attempt to destroy a divine artifact.

Not only because doing so risks offending a True God, but also because divine artifacts usually possess powerful, almost heaven-defying effects.

With this book in hand, it wouldn’t be easy for Zalanda to lose.