Mystic Calling：Stone of Glory-Chapter 463: A whole new tier of power

As soon as those words left her mouth, Ethan’s brow twitched.

He was clearly surprised.

An army of 800 units made up of Black Dragons and Red Dragons?

That alone wasn’t too shocking.

After all, we’re talking about a full-fledged Dungeon King here. If he couldn’t even muster that kind of force, it’d be downright embarrassing.

And honestly? Pretty unlikely.

What really caught Ethan off guard—

Was the 9,000-strong army of 12-Tier Shadow Matriarchs.

Sure, Shadow Matriarchs were only Tier 12 on paper.

But when you’ve got that many of them?

That kind of sheer volume starts to shift the balance. It’s not just numbers anymore—it becomes something else entirely.

With 9,000 of them, no exaggeration, they could probably take down at least 1,200 to 1,500 Tier-13 Legendary Units.

And that’s not even the worst part.

The kicker? Malenthia herself is a Hero Unit—also a 12-Tier Shadow Matriarch. With her leading them, those Shadow Matriarchs would be fighting with a serious buff. We’re talking a 20 to 30 percent boost in combat power, easy.

And on top of that, Malenthia’s a Crimson Ultimate-class Hero.

That’s a whole different level of power.

In that kind of setup?

Forget a thousand Tier-13 Legendary Units—even a thousand Tier-14 Mythic Units would have a hell of a time trying to take them down.

Unless, of course, you had a Crimson Ultimate Hero of your own to go toe-to-toe with her. Then maybe.

Ethan thought for a moment, then asked, "Lilith, tell me—if Malenthia wanted to rally all those Red and Black Dragons, plus the Shadow Matriarch army, how long would it take her?"

Lilith paused, then shook her head. "My Lord, that’d be tough. Malenthia’s mixed Dragon forces are stationed along the teleportation routes. In the Dungeon, those routes are absolutely critical."

"Unless it’s a total emergency, no one’s gonna abandon their post at a teleport gate."

Ethan’s eyes lit up at that. "So what you’re saying is—we don’t need to take them head-on. We can just pick them off one by one?"

"Exactly." Lilith nodded, her eyes gleaming. "If we launch a surprise attack, we could focus everything we’ve got on crippling Malenthia’s mixed Dragon army. Sure, some of them would probably escape, but even then, we’d be cutting down her strength. Especially the Black Dragons—Malenthia only has Creature Dwellings for Red Dragons. She doesn’t have any for Black Dragons."

She paused for a beat, then shook her head again.

"But this kind of plan? It’s a one-shot deal. And even then, there’s no guarantee it’ll work. Dungeon forces are used to ambush tactics—they’re always on alert."

"If they sense something’s off, they’ll retreat. And then we’ll be forced into a straight-up fight."

Ethan’s expression hardened. "Then so be it. If it comes to a slugfest, we’ll take it head-on. No matter what, we have to take Malenthia down this time."

His voice was firm, his eyes burning with resolve.

First off—

If you want to make a serious move into the Dungeon, you need your own route and territory. But those routes? They’re called "golden lines" for a reason—every inch is worth its weight in gold. And over the years, they’ve already been carved up by countless players and major factions. There’s nothing left just lying around.

So what do you do when there’s nothing left?

You take it.

You rip it out of someone else’s hands—and once you’ve got it, it’s yours.

And the benefits of establishing a foothold in the new world? Obvious.

First, the resources. The Dungeon is loaded. We’re talking three to five times the resources of the main world—maybe even ten or twenty times more in some areas.

With that kind of payoff on the table?

Anyone with ambition and confidence would be insane to pass up the chance to enter the Dungeon. It’s practically the only road to real power.

It’s not optional—it’s essential.

Second, the Dungeon is a battlefield. Factions everywhere, power struggles nonstop. Wars break out constantly. And that chaos? That’s exactly what Hero Units need to grow fast.

If you want to level up?

You need war. No way around it.

You need to grind—kill enemies, rack up experience, and push your units to the next tier as fast as possible.

Third, and maybe most important—stealth.

In the main world of Glory Lords X, Ethan wanted to keep some cards close to the chest. That’s why he kept Kaiin and Orryn under wraps. But that also meant they couldn’t fight. No battles, no kills.

And no kills? No XP.

But in the Dungeon? None of that matters.

Because of how the Dungeon works, no one knows who you are—and more importantly, no one cares. Even the so-called Light Alliance turns "chaotic and evil" down there.

Everyone’s out for blood—fighting over land, resources, and experience. It’s raw, brutal, and completely transparent. No politics, no questions. Just kill or be killed.

In that kind of environment?

It’s like a natural smokescreen.

It protects Kaiin and Orryn’s identities, keeps Emerald Castle’s secrets safe—and at the same time, gives them all the war they could ever want. All the grinding, all the leveling.

It’s the perfect setup.

"Besides," Ethan muttered to himself, "if Cicero really evolves into a Mythic Unit Hero... we might have no choice but to lay low in the Dungeon for a while."

If Cicero actually reached Tier 14 and became a Mythic Hero Unit, that would be a massive win.

There are two things that the major factions use to block new lords from rising:

One—having a Tier-14 Mythic Hero Unit.

Two—owning a Tier-14 Mythic Creature Dwelling.

And Ethan? He already had both.

All that was left was time. Time for Cicero to grow into his full potential. And once that happened, Emerald Castle would no longer be some upstart faction—it’d be a real power player in the world of Glory Lords X.

A name everyone would know.

But of course, nothing comes without a price.

If Cicero really does become a Tier-14 Mythic Hero Unit...

Yeah, that’d be amazing—but let’s not kid ourselves. It could also bring a whole storm of trouble.

Because like we said before, Mythic Hero Units and Mythic-tier Creature Dwellings are the two big choke points the major factions use to keep up-and-coming lords from climbing the ladder.

In other words...

That’s one of their hard lines.

Cross it, and you’re stepping into territory they don’t want you in.

So if word gets out?

Ethan’s Emerald Castle could be in serious danger. The Castle and Tower factions might not react right away—but the Forest faction? They might not take it so lightly.

Strictly speaking, Cicero, Seraphina, even Auremax—they all have ties to the Forest faction. In the eyes of the world, Green Dragons and Gold Dragons are practically the Forest faction’s signature units.

So if Emerald Castle suddenly starts fielding Mythic-tier Green and Gold Dragons?

Yeah, the Forest faction might start asking questions. Or worse—taking action.

Sure, the Forest faction is technically part of the Light Alliance...

But Glory Lords X isn’t some black-and-white fairy tale. Most of the time, it’s all shades of gray. A little light in the dark, a little dark in the light—that’s just how things work.

So yeah, better safe than sorry.

You can’t afford to be naive.

And that’s exactly why the Dungeon is such a perfect solution. As long as they stay buried deep in there, out of sight, no one’s gonna care who they are.

Crimson Ultimate Hero?

Mythic-tier Hero?

Doesn’t matter. The Dungeon’s full of monsters—literal and otherwise. No one bats an eye at power down there.

So whoever shows up?

It’s just another player in the game.

No one’s asking questions.

Because from the moment you step into the Dungeon, everyone’s already an enemy. If they’re not with you, they’re against you. Simple as that.

But Ethan’s decision to go after Malenthia wasn’t just about all that.

There was something else—something deeper.

He wanted to use this war as a stepping stone for Seraphina.

If everything went according to plan, this battle could push her past level 70—straight into level 71.

And that?

That would be the threshold for her to evolve into an Intermediate Deity.

A whole new tier of power.

...

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