No doubt about it—this was absolutely mind-blowing! Ethan was practically buzzing with excitement. His heart was racing, and for a moment, he felt like he was about to lose control. But then he took a deep breath. No, he couldn’t let himself get carried away . If he did, it would only put unnecessary pressure on both Cicero and himself. That wouldn’t help anyone.
Better to stay calm, keep a clear head, and let things unfold naturally.
Still, after thinking it over, he couldn’t help but glance back at Auremax and ask, "Auremax, do you have any leads on this whole evolution thing?"
"Leads, huh..." Auremax fell silent, clearly deep in thought. After a long pause, he finally spoke. "Master, Prince Cicero... I only know of three possible methods that might work."
"First, there’s an ancient legend—really old stuff. It’s said that in the world of Ashan, back in the earliest days, there existed a divine structure called the Mountain Temple..."
"Mountain Temple?!" Ethan’s eyes widened. That name hit him like a bolt of lightning. He instantly thought of something from the game in his original parallel world—a special building called the Ancient Hill Fort. It could upgrade low-tier units into high-tier ones. Could it be the same kind of thing?
His heart slammed in his chest, and his whole body trembled with excitement.
His face lit up with pure exhilaration.
Because if this Mountain Temple was anything like the Ancient Hill Fort from his world, then that meant this path was real—it could actually work! If they could just find the Mountain Temple, Cicero might really be able to evolve into a Tier 14 Mythic Unit hero!
Where the Mountain Temple was, how hard it would be to reach it—none of that mattered right now.
What mattered was that they had a direction.
And to Ethan, that meant everything.
"Exactly..." Auremax nodded slowly, his eyes gleaming. "According to legend, the Mountain Temple was formed from the divine power that spilled out when the great creator god, the Order Dragon Asha, forged the world. That raw, primordial energy condensed into a structure that embodies the very laws of magic. That’s why the Mountain Temple is said to be godlike—capable of creating and reshaping the world itself."
"But... it only exists in legend. I don’t have the slightest clue where it might be."
"What about the other two methods?" Cicero suddenly asked, his voice calm but firm.
"The second method involves some extremely rare artifacts. Supposedly, they have the power to trigger evolution in Crimson Ultimate heroes. But I don’t know exactly what these artifacts are. I’d guess they’re at least Tier 5, maybe higher."
"And the third method?" Cicero pressed.
Auremax turned to look at him, his expression serious. "The third method is the hardest... but also, in my opinion, the most likely to succeed."
"What is it?" Cicero asked again.
"It’s you, Prince Cicero," Auremax said slowly.
"Me?" Cicero blinked, caught off guard.
Auremax nodded again, his tone steady. "The first two methods rely on external forces. Technically speaking, they’re shortcuts. Whether they’d actually work... I’m not sure. But real evolution? I believe it comes from within. Look at you, Your Highness—you’ve already reached the peak of your race’s potential, and you did it all on your own, without any outside help."
"So if you keep pushing forward, keep growing stronger... maybe, just maybe, you’ll evolve on your own. And besides..."
"...And," Auremax continued, pausing for a moment as his eyes narrowed slightly, "from what I know, every time a Crimson Ultimate hero awakens, they receive a gift of Lawforce—a kind of divine energy that enhances their Primordial Force and makes them stronger. This gift is known as the Blessing of the Creator."
He looked directly at Cicero now, his voice steady. "And Your Highness, you still have two of those blessings left. That might just be the key to pushing you even further... to help you evolve."
A flicker of realization lit up in Cicero’s eyes.
"I get it now..." he said quietly. Then he turned to Ethan with a wide, confident grin. "Don’t worry, Master. I won’t let you down. I will evolve. I’ll become a Tier 14 Mythic Unit hero—no matter what it takes!"
"I believe in you," Ethan replied with a smile of his own.
Then he clapped both Cicero and Auremax on the shoulder and said, "Let’s go."
"Time to deal with those bastards from the Dungeon faction."
"Emerald Castle—victory is ours!"
Inside the Dungeon army’s war camp.
With Drexon, Xenodrath, and Skarvex already dead, the remaining eight Dungeon Lords had gathered together—and they were ready. The final assault on Emerald Castle was about to begin.
And as the hours passed...
It didn’t take long before the horizon was completely swallowed by the Dungeon horde. Towering monsters, grotesque and countless, surged toward Emerald Castle like a living tide. From the castle walls, it looked like a swarm of locusts—dense, endless, and terrifying.
But what made it truly horrifying wasn’t just the numbers.
It was the quality of the army.
Among the sea of regular troops were massive high-tier units—monsters that could crush entire battalions on their own. Tier 14 Black Dragons. Tier 13 Red Dragons. Tier 13 Shadow Dragons. Tier 12 Venomspike Manticores. Tier 12 Dark Hydras. And more.
The pressure was suffocating.
A wave of dread swept over Emerald Castle like a storm.
"They’re here, huh..." Ethan muttered under his breath.
He stood atop the battlements, eyes scanning the endless black tide of Dungeon forces closing in from every direction.
"I can’t even tell how many Black Dragons, Red Dragons, or Shadow Dragons are out there... It looks like the whole damn army is made of them. This is insane."
Even though he’d mentally prepared himself for this moment, Ethan couldn’t help but frown deeply. The sheer scale of the enemy force was overwhelming.
A system notification chimed in his ears.
Player Valkarion has triggered SS+ Tier Special Story Mission: Dungeon Army Siege Battle!
Objective: Repel or eliminate enemy units and Hero Units.
Survive to succeed. If Emerald Castle falls, the mission is considered a failure.
Final rating will be based on survival rate and enemy kill count.
Tier 11 – Manticore x1000, Cave Hydra x700, Shadow Witch x500 Official source is novel~fire~net
Tier 12 – Venomspike Manticore x600, Dark Hydra x400, Shadow Matriarch x300
Tier 13 – Red Dragon x400, Shadow Dragon x450
Tier 14 – Black Dragon x500
Ethan’s mouth twitched violently.
And for a moment, he just stood there in stunned silence.
Nearly four thousand Tier 11 and Tier 12 Royal Units. Eight hundred and fifty Tier 13 Legendary Units. And five hundred Tier 14 Black Dragons.
What the hell kind of numbers were these?
This... this was insane.