As he’d said he would, Lee Shin-Woo attacked two cities in the level 3 danger zone simultaneously. His goal was to confuse the Emperor, as well as the twelve generals serving him.

Although it was possible that two generals might be dispatched to both cities as a result, Lee Shin-Woo was confident that he could finish his attack and retreat before they got there. It wasn't really a problem for him. If the Empire became alerted by the unknown force...Ethan Cruz's plan either wouldn't work, or would have to be altered. Both would serve Lee Shin-Woo well.

"Of course, that's not the real reason. I just want to use all the strength that I've acquired."

"I'm glad you're honest."

Lee Shin-Woo, together with Jin and Kratia, led the Titans to attack one city, while Chi Paul, Shino Rendu, and Bisher Moon led the remaining Pauls to attack another.

Lee Shin-Woo had divided his forces with care. On one side, there were the Titans, and on the other side, there were the elite undead. It was the best way to sow chaos amongst his enemies, but there was one problem.

"It's too easy..."

Lee Shin-Woo ordered the Titans to attack all at once. Seeing the castle walls go down in one hit, he smiled wryly. Since Lee Shin-Woo and Kratia had preemptively intercepted the mages—Thunder Arrow was great for taking down low level ones—there was nothing stopping the Titans from launching their frontal assault.

"With these forces, I feel like we could easily take down a level 4 danger zone city."

"It's too dangerous."

If they went on to the level 4 danger zone, it would be impossible for them to conquer a city and retreat within a few hours. Not only did Lee Shin-Woo have to take into account the higher leveled undead, but the city itself would be huge! Moreover, they would be so close to the capital that one of the twelve generals could suddenly appear anytime.

"I'll have to conquer those cities eventually, but it's not time yet… It will come faster than I anticipated though."

Lee Shin-Woo watched as the Titans charged forward and broke the buildings barehanded. It suddenly dawned on him just how much he'd gained from the Giants' domain.

Not only had he recruited 3,000 of Metafel's troops, but he'd also acquired two level 7 Titan elites and the powerful Titans as his subordinate. Moreover, there was the Titan Golem. While it would take 60 day to recharge, it was a powerful weapon that could increase his strength exponentially.

"If the Archmage saw it, he'd be pissed. You have to be cautious making big moves in the level 4 danger zone."

[Master, I believe the lord is attempting to run away unnoticed.]

"What?"

Rem reported as it watched the enemies' movements from the sky, and Lee Shin-Woo's goblin fire swayed. However, he didn't even move; he simply shot a Breath of the Lightning God into the distance.

Borrowing Rem’s sight, he saw the lord running away with a company of knights guarding him. Although the lord was several kilometers away, he controlled the Breath of the Lightning God and pierced his forehead with great precision!

[Kuaaaaahk!]

"Good, a direct hit. Jin, let's take our time."

Before he even heard the sound from afar, Lee Shin-Woo saw through Rem's eyes that his attack had hit. His jawbone rattled as he smiled relaxingly and patted Jin.

He'd been practicing that ultra-long-distance sniper shot lately. Lee Shin-Woo would skillfully aim the bone with his will, and after ascertaining the enemy's location through Rem, he launched a powerful ranged attack!

It sounded simple, but at the end of the day, Rem’s sight was not his own, so getting a direct hit was difficult. He was, however, getting a lot of training done by choosing where to summon the Breath of the Lightning God, as well as improving his Assimilation with Rem. And this time, he succeeded without question.

"It'd be amazing if I could do it with a huge weapon later on… Ha, wait a sec. If I send this to Rem's inventory..."

"You just keep inventing more and more weird techniques," Jin grumbled in disbelief.

Kratia exclaimed with gleaming eyes, "Paul Zero, you're so cool."

She seemed to understand how difficult Lee Shin-Woo's technique was. Unfortunately for Jin, he hadn't realized that Lee Shin-Woo was docking points from him because of this.

"Did you kill him?"

"No, I'd like to meet him face to face. I want to know if he’s reported to his superiors. Hey, break that more thoroughly! There are knights hiding inside. Get on top and stomp on it!"

[Understood!]

Lee Shin-Woo and Jin advanced towards and through the city without rushing, all the while, Lee Shin-Woo encouraged the Titans to unleash more carnage and destruction along the way. In less than an hour, they arrived before the lord, who was lying prone on the ground with a Breath of the Lightning God sticking out of his head.

He was in a hidden passageway behind his castle, yet Lee Shin-Woo's Breath of the Lightning God had broken through the ceiling and pierced his head. Taking notes of the situation, the Titans rushed over to kill the knights that had been protecting the lord.

"Hello."

[You... I order you to remove this!]

Lee Shin-Woo approached the lord, who was fluttering around like a fish struck by a harpoon. As the lord so wished, he removed the blade. The lord struggled to sit up, but a part of his skull fell to the floor, and he was staggering. The lord realized then he had no hopes of recovering.

[Do you even know who I am... Who the hell are you!?]

"Listen, did you ask the Emperor to send one of the twelve generals?"

[Keuk, you already knew about that, yet you attacked the city regardless? Are you insane...? That's right, the moment you broke through the castle walls, I reported in! The Vulture General is coming!]

"Vulture...?"

A Vulture.[1] He was definitely one of the twelve generals, but the word 'Vulture' really bothered Lee Shin-Woo. There was the possibility that it simply meant the general would have a bald head, but...perhaps he was the one general other than the Archmage they would have to worry about.

"It would be different if Feotane Von Seldin came. I'm not particularly afraid of the Vulture General."

[Hahaha. So many have said the same thing about the general, but they all ended up having their heads cracked by the Vulture General's arrows!]

"Oh, like you?"

[Keuk...!]

Alright, now he knew the Vulture General used a bow. Lee Shin-Woo had learned just how annoying archers could be from his previous experience with Setoin. He frowned and looked up at the sky. He couldn't stop worrying, so he asked the lord about him.

[Kik, you're so arrogant. Be afraid of the general's sharp wings!]

"Ah, so that's how he attacks."

[Huh? Kuheok!]

The lord had taken the bait. Although Lee Shin-Woo still didn't know the specifics, apparently his opponent flew in the air! Now that he had gotten the answer he wanted, he immediately cut off the lord's head with his sword.

[You have completely purified the Intermediate City, 'Semillan'! You have acquired 2 permits to Goddess’s Secret Shop. You have acquired 100,000 Perium. Proficiency in all combat-related skills has increased. As a reward for faithfully doing your duty as a hero and purifying several cities, the size of your inventory has increased, and from now on, all quest rewards will increase.]

[You have completely purified a city at an unprecedented speed! Destroying a city with a corps is karma much too great for one person to achieve. All stats have increased by 5.]

"With this, we're done. An air strike, huh...?"

"Is that what you thought of when you heard the word 'vulture'?"

"To be honest, the first thing I thought of was a bald head."

Yep. To Lee Shin-Woo, who had reached level 7 and acquired an army, the only things he had to worry about were the Archmage Feotane Von Seldin and his spatial magic, or an air strike from the sky.

As proven by Rem, flying through the sky allowed for greater utility than moving on the ground. He had suspected that the Empire would have someone who could fly on their side, but who would’ve thought his hypothesis would be proven this way? And the general would be coming now of all times.

"To fight, or not to fight... Alright, let's fight."

"Didn't you make the decision too quickly!?"

Jin felt drained hearing Lee Shin-Woo mutter. However, Lee Shin-Woo didn't change his mind at all.

"Fighting a flying opponent is tough, but it's best that I take him down while he's alone."

However, Lee Shin-Woo didn't have enough forces with him at the moment. He contacted Bisher Moon and instructed him to get all his forces here as soon as they were done purifying the city.

The moment he issued the order, though, he got a message that the other group had finished purifying the city, followed by a list of rewards. One thing in particular caught his attention.

[You commanded an army and purified two cities simultaneously. You have proven that you are powerful enough to single-handedly take on the Empire. Everyone in the Empire, including the Emperor himself, will know about you and will pay special attention to you.]

[You have acquired the title, 'Heaven Defying General'. All stats have increased by 20. High Rank Command is now Lv6, and all stats have increased by 5. When you fight the Empire's twelve generals, the power of all your skills will increase by 20%. The stats of your troops have permanently increased by 5%.]

He'd acquired an extraordinary title and simultaneously, his stats had increased significantly! Lee Shin-Woo was a little excited. His stats had now surpassed 9,000 and amounted to 9,086 in total.

"Ah, wait a sec. If I had divided my army into five groups and made a cute star...!"

"No matter how strong your troops are, splitting them into five is a dumb idea, you idiot!"

Jin’s retort managed to calm Lee Shin-Woo down, and he checked his new title with a cooler head. Whenever he fought the twelve generals, his skills would become 20% more powerful, which was a simple enough description. When he thought about it, though. it was even more overpowered than a 20% stat increase.

Rather than raising his stats, the title would increase the power of his skills, which utilized his stats. The latter was obviously superior. His elemental equipment would become more powerful as well.

"What system bestowed this title onto me...?"

"Didn't the goddess give it to you?"

"No. It's not that simple. It seems more like it's being influenced by something..."

Heaven Defying General. It was a title that really suited him since he had Rebellion. However, the ‘general’ part of the title would make it seem like he was an ally to the twelve generals.

"So long as I don't talk about it, it should be fine. Alright boys, get ready for battle. Apparently, our enemy flies, so let’s create a catapult!"

[Understood!]

"Hey, will a catapult really work against a flying opponent?" asked Jin.

"It'll definitely work. Wanna bet?"

"...Nope."

Jin was about to accept the bet, but quickly shook his head when he saw the Titans making a 30 meter tall catapult by stripping the castle walls.

They soon created dozens of monstrously sized catapults, but strangely, the air strike they had been anticipating never came for the next few hours.

1. T/N: This can mean 'eagle' as well. Toy Car gave us the Chinese characters early on this time. ☜