"Keep them for now. I must immediately start my breakthrough. Alert Else, Verena, and Yvonne of the current situation and have them prepare."

　　Konrad instructed and hearing this, Astarte bowed and vanished in a white haze.

　　"As for you Krann, take command of the legion and stand ready to a.s.sist the mistresses if need be. I believe more of those -Zenith Ants- will show themselves. Their true depth is hard to fathom. No negligence is allowed."

　　Krann then took his leave, and only Konrad now remained.

　　"I didn't expect that Zenith Ants still remained within the Ancient Crystal World. Where could the nest possibly be?"

　　Konrad wondered. Having obtained a tremendous amount of knowledge from either the infernal souls or Selene, he knew very well what those creatures were. Those two were nothing more than average soldiers with unremarkable bloodlines.

　　"I'm as surprised as you are. According to common knowledge, the Ancient Crystal World's Zenith Ants were all killed by my father. But now it appears they found a road to survival. In the demonic hierarchy, they used to rank very high. This bodes no good for us."

　　Selene replied.

　　"Indeed. Maybe it's time we use the World Gate to ditch the Ancient Crystal World."

　　Konrad jested. From completing the seventh level of the main quest, he obtained two items, the World and Harem Gates. With the World Gate, he could travel to any mortal world without restrictions while the Harem Gate allowed him to open a door to any harem ring wielder and either bring them to his side or reach theirs.

　　Jasmine, Iliana, Nils, Freya, and Daphne were currently sightseeing in distant mortal worlds while laying down the foundation of their future invasions.

　　As for the eighth level, besides the Valkyrie Armors, he also obtained two startling items.

　　"Don't say it if you don't mean it."

　　Selene rolled her eyes.

　　"Touché. Oh well, my turn."

　　Konrad then sat crossed-legged in meditation, ready to start his breakthrough.

　　…

　　Meanwhile, within the Celestial Church, a crus.h.i.+ng silence reigned. If the rapid series of events should have swept the church with sorrow and dread, the appearance of those higher reinforcements certainly was a much-needed respite.

　　Or so it was meant to be. But reality often betrayed expectations. As soon as they appeared, the devas first gathered the legion of Celestial Church members in one spot. Then, a bald, silver-eyed man sitting crossed-legged within the air floated toward them. In the middle of his forehead, a vertical eye opened and swept the gathered church members.