3 months felt neither fast nor slow for Damien. It was best to describe his state as a forced limbo.
With his chaotic perception of time and singular focus on completing the task assigned to him, he quite literally imprisoned the man known as "Damien Void."
Damien Void could come back when the time was right.
But only Damien understood his thought process.
For those outside, it had been six months since the last time they saw or heard from him.
The situation in Grand Heavens Boundary had been slowly intensifying.
From the looks of recent battles, the Nox were starting to organize their forces.
The destructive wave of reckless Lesser Nox still existed, but it was only a strategy to gain momentum at this time.
The real army was built from those who had sentience already and served a Lord.
Thus far, the Inhuman Emperor was showing the most enthusiasm. His forces didn't just kill enemies, but captured and tortured them for pleasure.
This created a much more brutal atmosphere in a war where hostages were previously never a problem.
The Karmic Emperor was also somewhat active. It was rare to see his troops, but that was mainly because they hid themselves behind enemy lines and in the ranks of their allies.
These forces were much more troublesome.
While the Inhuman Faction was brutal, they were direct. The Karmic Faction used schemes and trickery to turn people against each other.
The Ghostly Plains of Eien were already taken by them.
600,000,000 universal troops were first subjected to betrayal in which a large portion of their forces deserted in the midst of battle and left their comrades for death.
500,000,000 survived, but roughly 150,000,000 turned traitor.
The rest…
When they returned to their basecamps, they were struck with plague beyond measure. It ate through their mana systems and crippled them before invading their minds and turning them into abominations.
They still roamed the plains as mindless zombies who fed on anything in sight.
The Giant Domain was almost breached during this calamity, but luckily, a complete invasion was barely prevented by the sacrifices of over thirty thousand extreme peak masters.
Nevertheless, some Nox still made their way into the universe, and not all of them had been found and eradicated yet.
The Ghostly Plains Calamity was the universe's first major loss in this war.
It was also the first great event in general.
To follow up the great rallying cries sounded by the experts of the universe with such a defeat painted a terrible picture, and thus, a strategy was formed.
"The Blood-Drenched Wilderness was mostly recovered from Nox influence previously, but it was once again become a feeding ground for them. The environment supports their nature, so they are naturally strengthened there. It is a point we need to secure as fast as possible," a man said, his eyes panning over the crowd before him.
He was none other than Commanded Huo, who could only contribute his mind to the cause.
He refused to be uninvolved with the war because of the restriction. Just as always, he made sure to give his soldiers absolute surety from the backlines while supporting them as much as he could.
"A Void Corridor opened here several years ago, so the space is still unstable. It seems the Nox have been unable to penetrate the area because of this disorder," he continued.
"We are going to attack this place in three days. There are four main fortresses that must be taken down and several smaller encampments scattered around the area. I will separate you into units and give you your tasks individually. For now, disperse."
The crowd was made up of men and women old and young. These people were all at least at 4th class, with a large number of extreme peak masters among them.
"Huu…"
Commander Huo exhaled a breath of impure air as he watched them leave.
These troops were not his, just those assigned to him. He could already feel their hesitation, and he did not like it at all.
But, they were all he had. He could only make sure they did their duties properly when the time came.
"You guys can come in now."
He glanced away from the door and closed his eyes as it shut.
Click!
The lock turned on its own. A group of ten appeared from thin air.
Rose, Ruyue, Elena, Long Chen, Xue Fang, Xue Yue, Atticus, Aishia, Su Ren, and Ximen Wuhen.
A collection of those from the younger generation who had close relationships with Damien.
These ten in particular developed a habit of moving together over the past half year. Their skills complemented each other and their personalities were able to mesh well too.
Damien acted as a connection point for them at first, but they had enough time to form relationships outside of him.
They weren't the only ones in their group, but they were the main force.
Commander Huo sighed as he looked at them.
These kids were still just fledglings, but the number of merits they'd each gained in recent times was staggering.
"Judgement Order" was what they called themselves.
They stood with their swords pointed at enemies from the outside and traitors from within. They did not show mercy for anyone who crossed their line, which led to them assassinating several high-level traitors and fighting on the frontlines against powerful Nox foes.
Their reputation was high among the soldiers and even higher among the common people, but Commander Huo couldn't see their organization as anything but rebellion.
Not against Grand Heavens Boundary, but against the system that ran it.
What happened to Damien shook them all.
Yes, he was their friend, but it was more than that.
They realized that their power wasn't enough, and they realized that their status didn't matter.
As long as one of those strong forces felt the desire, they could bring them down in an instant.
They understood their purpose. Being the greatest geniuses of the universe, calling them its hope wasn't wrong.
Their growth potential put them in a position where they truly could tip the scales of war if they progressed properly.
It wasn't a matter of arrogance, but responsibility.
Those willing to act for selfish gain by oppressing those who represented the universe's hope did not need to exist in this land.
The Judgement Order, created to judge the wicked whether they be human or god!
"Let me guess. You want to participate?" Commander Huo said blandly.
"Yes. We can be of use in this battle," Rose responded as the spokesperson for the group.
"No. We already have enough people. Adding more will just muddle our efficiency."
"I understand that, which is why I propose a joint operation."
"Joint?"
"Yes. While your soldiers raid the Nox Strongholds, ours will take care of those sending support from the back."
"You mean…"
Commander Huo's eyes widened.
These kids were crazy, but they couldn't be that—
"We will attack the shadow army."
—crazy.
They were insane.
"Do you understand the weight of your words?" Commander Huo said menacingly.
"I do. We have already discussed this. We believe we can at least gather intel, if not assassinate a few top-level targets in the process."
"No direct combat?"
"Not until we understand the enemy's formations."
It was crazy.
The so-called "shadow army" was a term used for those who controlled the frontline forces from the darkness.
Their existence had long been detected, but any moves towards bringing them into the light were shut down immediately.
The enemy was extremely serious in protecting the privacy of that hidden force.
Yet, these few budding geniuses wanted to try it?
"Are you planning to get yourselves killed before he returns?" Commander Huo asked.
His expression was a mix between a harsh army commander and a concerned grandfather.
However, their expressions didn't budge.
"We will not be killed before he comes back. Instead…"
Rose's eyes turned solemn. A powerful invisible aura radiated from the group as a whole.
"…we will kill everyone that stands against us and present their heads as a gift when he returns."
