27: My strength has increased! Under the star, I am invincible

From this position, one could clearly see the entire situation in the arena.

Moreover, with the magic crystal, it was like watching a live broadcast; the camera could zoom in and out, go high or low, and even hear the voices of the combatants.

At this moment, two Knights were battling in the arena.

“Those two are from the Grosster Empire Knight Academy, here to hone their combat skills,” Ally said, pointing at the two Knights fighting.

Clarissa nodded. Coming here truly meant life-or-death battles, because opponents wouldn't hold back. It was either death or surrender… The “martial spirit” of the Grosster Empire was very strong.

“Want to place a bet?” Ally asked Clarissa.

“No, not much point,” Clarissa shook her head.

After watching the arena with Ally for a while, Clarissa found it somewhat boring and left the arena with Ally.

Buzz!

The token at Clarissa’s waist suddenly vibrated, and a surge of magical power overflowed.

“News from the front line!” Clarissa frowned.

“What’s wrong?” Ally’s expression changed.

“I’m sorry, but I need to head to the front line!” Clarissa told Ally. That token for the Vanguard Army was specifically for summoning them.

Normally, it wouldn’t be activated, but when it was, it meant an emergency summons.

Ally naturally understood, nodded, and watched Clarissa quickly depart.

She also left quickly for her family’s residence, feeling a bit preoccupied.

By the time Ally arrived at her family’s home, they had already received the news via magic communication, and this news made Ally’s face turn pale.

A large-scale Orc invasion!

…

When Clarissa arrived at the front line, her expression changed.

Because from afar, she saw a vast expanse of dark figures in the encampment, with elemental power continuously erupting, and the shouts of battle could be heard even from her distant position.

Whirlwind Sword!

Clarissa, charging directly into the battlefield, immediately initiated with a Whirlwind Sword upon entry.

Her figure advanced swiftly, and an Orc died on the spot.

Clarissa joined the battlefield, but her strength was still insignificant to the entire battlefield.

However, Clarissa couldn't change the overall situation; she just wanted to kill more Orcs.

While earning source points, she would also get her revenge! And at the same time, contribute to the Grosster Empire.

The great battle lasted for over an hour.

All the Orcs were annihilated, because Orcs had no concept of fleeing, so they all fought to the death.

The Vanguard Army won, a pyrrhic victory.

Over half of the Vanguard Army died, looking at the scene of corpses strewn across the field.

Especially some of the surviving recruits, who stood there dumbfounded.

The veterans silently began to clean up the battlefield.

Although the Vanguard Army camp was only a part of the border defense forces.

But even this area encountered such a large-scale Orc invasion.

There was no need to mention other places.

“The Orc tide invasion has actually begun! It’s completely different from previous years!”

“It’s terrifying!”

“I want to go home…”

The surrounding voices flowed into Clarissa's ears.

War truly was a meat grinder.

Clarissa looked at the battlefield strewn with corpses, her brows slightly furrowed, an unbidden feeling of nausea rising within her.

After a long while, the battlefield was mostly cleaned up.

The Vanguard Army reassembled.

The Vanguard Army General, standing on the high platform at the very front, looked at his men, more than half of whom were gone… He also fell silent for a moment.

Alas… The General sighed deeply, then regained his composure and shouted loudly: “We won this battle! I know, there are many new recruits this year! Perhaps less than one in ten survived! But this is our duty as soldiers! Behind us is the Empire! The people! Our families!

That is everything we protect! Everything we cherish!

And the Orcs are trying to seize all of it!

We should not retreat! We should not doubt or fear!

Soldiers! Orcs! Must die!”

“Orcs must die!” The soldiers present were all roused to anger, and the dull, silent atmosphere on the scene was swept away.

Morale soared.

The General breathed a slight sigh of relief; he was afraid that this sudden Orc invasion would shatter the morale of his subordinates.

“At the same time! I am also very grateful for the help of the Vanguard Army! Under emergency summons, you came without hesitation! The Empire has seen your performance! After this is over, you will receive everything you deserve!” the General shouted. He also did not forget the Vanguard Army.

“Now! Everyone, rest for a moment! There are even greater challenges awaiting us!” the General yelled.

“Yes!” Everyone responded loudly.

This wave of Orc invasion was merely an appetizer.

Next, the Vanguard Army would likely rejoin the entire border defense forces, returning from here to various heavily guarded checkpoints.

To enter the Grosster Empire, the Orcs must break through the northern fortress of Grosster.

Over a million Knights guarded it, and not only that, but magical siege engines and a large number of Elemental Mages were also present.

Although Knights were the main force and more common in daily life, that was because Elemental Mages were relatively rare in the Grosster Empire, and most of them served the Empire.

The situation in the Grosster Empire was different from other empires.

For example, the Dahra Empire was a magic empire, where the proportion of Elemental Mages and Knights was the opposite of that in the Grosster Empire.

This couldn’t be helped, due to the prevailing atmosphere in the Grosster Empire.

The people here were fierce, and the martial spirit was strong.

Coupled with the lower “requirements” for Knights, this area produced a large number of Knights.

The Grosster Empire Knight Academy was second to none in the entire world.

Every year, a large number of foreign exchange students came.

Clarissa knew that next, it would be the days when the fires of war would erode the Grosster Empire.

“I must become stronger!” Clarissa thought to herself.

To survive this outbreak of war, strength was the best guarantee.

In this war, Clarissa “earned” 45,600 source points.

Clarissa didn't know why there were so many, but since there were, it was right for her to use them.

As a “believer” of the gods, everything she possessed was given by the gods!

Perhaps the gods saw her slaughtering Orcs, reducing the danger to the people, and this was their reward?

Clarissa, with her “believer’s mind,” didn’t know the specific meaning of “changing the world” or “influencing the world.”

Her killing of Orcs on the battlefield had no small impact; perhaps because she killed two more Orcs, ten fewer people died…

Clarissa had 48,000 source points, and she immediately upgraded her two talents.

Talent Enhancement III → Talent Enhancement IV

Swordsmanship Mastery III → Swordsmanship Mastery IV

Clarissa felt as if the world in her mind “buzzed” and “exploded.”

The world in her eyes seemed to have changed.

Countless insights surged forth.

Basic Swordsmanship - Great Accomplishment directly broke through to Basic Swordsmanship - Perfection.

Moreover, under the influence of Basic Swordsmanship - Perfection, there was a very strong additional “swordsmanship bonus.”

Because Basic Swordsmanship was the root.

And the two low-level combat techniques, Whirlwind Sword and Earth Shattering Slash, also reached the level of Perfection under Clarissa’s terrifying talent and the bonus from Basic Swordsmanship.

A perfected Whirlwind Sword could unleash 39 slashes with a single strike.

A perfected Earth Shattering Slash could amplify strength by over 300%!

With 8,200 source points remaining, Clarissa decided to “pay to upgrade” herself again.

Clarissa searched around and found “recommendations.”

Dragon Blood Warrior I: Enhances physical talent, greatly strengthens physical toughness, greatly improves stamina recovery and injury recovery. (Requires 5000 source points)

Clarissa chose to exchange it without hesitation.

Thump! Thump!

Clarissa seemed to hear her heart beating powerfully, like a drum.

Waves of hot energy spread from her heart to all her limbs and bones.

Clarissa felt as if the blood flowing through her entire body was magma.

Hot! Hot!

Clarissa felt like she was on fire.

If an outsider were to see Clarissa now, they would see her entire body glowing red, red to the point of luminescence, and with each breath, white steam even exhaled.

Fortunately, the Vanguard Army had already departed at this moment.

As part of the Vanguard Army, Clarissa was naturally “free to act.”

So Clarissa was “left” here, and no one could see her abnormality.

After dozens of breaths, Clarissa slowly returned to normal.

“This…” Clarissa felt her terrifyingly strong body, her breathing became incredibly long, her heart beat powerfully, and her entire being was filled with boundless energy.

It was as if she had evolved into another species.

Fortunately, with the perfected Basic Swordsmanship, Clarissa quickly mastered the powerful strength after the transformation.

Clarissa opened her system panel to check her changes. She only knew she had become very strong, but to know how much stronger, she still needed to look at the data.

Rank: Elite Knight

Physical Quality: 52

Cultivation Method: Knight Breathing Technique - Star’s Lament (Non-attributed)

Talents:

Talent Enhancement IV: All talents enhanced. (Upgrade requires 50000 source points)

Swordsmanship Mastery IV: Swordsmanship talent enhanced. (Upgrade requires 50000 source points)

Dragon Blood Warrior I: Enhances physical talent, greatly strengthens physical toughness, greatly improves stamina recovery and injury recovery. (Upgrade requires 50000)

Skills:

Basic Swordsmanship - Perfection: Mastered perfected Basic Swordsmanship, provides a great bonus to swordsmanship. (Max level)

Low-level Combat Technique: Whirlwind Sword - Perfection: Swirls out, unleashing 39 attacks in an instant. (Max level)

Low-level Combat Technique: Earth Shattering Slash - Perfection: Slashes down with full force, unleashing an extremely powerful and heavy strike. (Max level)

Clarissa had entered the realm of an Elite Knight.

Of course, in terms of pure physical strength, Clarissa could compare to a Star Knight.

[1 is an Apprentice Knight, 10 is a Formal Knight, 30 is an Elite Knight, 50 is a Star Knight, 100 is a Glittering Moon Knight, 200 is a Blazing Sun, 500 and above is a Legend.] Of course, this is under normal circumstances, and it is purely the minimum physical strength. The specific rank division is actually more complex, and the combat power gap at the same level can also be very large, because various situations exist.

In short, rank can only be a reference. In this world, there is no concept of cultivation realms; this division is just a general description to allow people to roughly understand the “gap.” These only have a minimum scope.

And Clarissa, with the power she wielded, belonged to the Elite Knight rank, but her physical quality was comparable to a Star Knight.

In other words… Invincible among those below Star Knight!