C1106 Pressure on the Battlefield
The chaotic scene weighed heavily on Yu Yuan's spirit.
After a moment's consideration, he suddenly set aside the Baneblade, manipulating it with his heaven soul to slaughter the weaker Warpbeasts at will.
His heaven soul maintained a connection with the Baneblade, aiding in the selection of targets.
Yu Yuan then soared into the Crucible of Evil, positioning himself at the rim of the cauldron. He beckoned Yu Ying, his grandmother in this life, to step into the cauldron with him, and they ascended slowly into the sky.
Before long, the cauldron had risen to the level of the Dissolving Fortress.
From afar, Chen Qinghuang and the pair exchanged glances, then, as if by agreement, they both looked down upon the expanse of Ionodios.
Nearly half of Ionodios was shrouded in frigid darkness, while the remaining land and skies teemed with cultivators, Warpbeasts, Ghouls, and Shura warriors.
Fierce battles raged everywhere, and with every passing moment, lives were lost.
Yu Yuan took a deep breath to steady himself and surveyed the battlefield. He noticed that President Lyi of the Skyreach Consortium was continuously issuing orders for a retreat away from the Deathwing Lair, with no intention of breaking through the wall to lead everyone to safety.
The wall, crystalline and chilling, was indeed formidable.
Yet, Yu Yuan doubted that such a barrier could contain powerhouses like President Lyi or Zhongli Dapan.
The wall's primary function seemed to be to limit the Otherkin with seventh and eighth level bloodlines and the cultivators at the Divine Level.
Given the current state of affairs, it wouldn't be long before the ice energy from the Dark Realm engulfed all of Ionodios.
When that happened, the combat strength of the Shura from the Dark Realm would reach its zenith!
Conversely, the other races within the reach of the ice energy would find their strength significantly diminished.
In this ebb and flow of power, the clansmen remaining in Ionodios might not suffice as adversaries for the invading Shura, not to mention the Warpbeasts, which were less affected by the ice energy, and the numerous Ghouls.
"President Lyi is not one to lose his composure."
Suddenly, from the nearby Dissolving Fortress, Chen Qinghuang's voice rang out. She swiftly pulled the Crucible of Evil with her delicate hand, catching Yu Yuan off guard.
The Crucible of Evil abruptly descended into the fortress.
Puzzled, Yu Yuan stepped away from the Crucible and stood beside her, exchanging nods with Ann Ziqing, Luo Yue, Elena, and the others while discreetly keeping an eye on President Lyi.
President Lyi stood aloft, hands clasped behind him, issuing commands with ease.
He was orchestrating the retreat of various clans in a specific direction, coordinating with Zhongli Dapan, Green Willow, and others to aid in the orderly evacuation, guiding Beru and other Otherkin powerhouses according to his directives.
President Lyi maintained a serene demeanor, his voice soothing, each word seemingly imbued with a calming magic.
Despite many visitors having perished in Ionodios at the hands of Shura and Warpbeasts, those who heard his voice instinctively felt a glimmer of hope for a turnaround.
Yu Yuan watched for a moment, sensing something odd.
"What is he waiting for?"
Ann Ziqing, after observing for some time, also sensed the undercurrents and formed her own theories. "I have a feeling that President Lyi and Boulderdawn are up to something. What we're witnessing are merely the overt moves of Blood King, the Demon God Grec, and the Abyssal Leviathan."
"The Skyreach Consortium and Boulderdawn have yet to reveal any strength."
"This clearly defies logic."
The future leader of the Colddeath stood tall next to Yu Yuan and Chen Qinghuang, her eyes gleaming like jewels, captivating and intense. "Beyond this realm, I've glimpsed an endless ocean of blood, likely the work of the Great Demon God Grec."
At her words, Yu Yuan involuntarily peered at the shimmering wall.
But he saw nothing.
"It's not just a sea of blood; the Abyssal Leviathan has also shown its true form," Chen Qinghuang affirmed gently, her hand as pale as ivory tapping the energy barrier of the Dissolving Fortress.
Suddenly, a luminous shield materialized, capable of casting light beyond the Star River.
Inside, there was indeed a vast, blood-red ocean slowly encroaching upon Ionodios. Yu Yuan's heart raced as he peered at the sea of blood through the light shield. The Altar of Rebirth within him stirred with a fear of being overwhelmed and devoured.
Without a second thought, he knew that the great Demon God, Grec, must be within that crimson sea. And there, a similar Altar of Rebirth, innate to Grec's being, mirrored the one within himself.
"Take a look at this," Chen Qinghuang said, pointing her slender finger to another area of the light shield. Yu Yuan focused his gaze and was met with a sudden shift in the scene, revealing a giant fish that defied his wildest imagination.
He had been fortunate enough to witness this colossal creature in the Embers Sea, the primordial form of the Abyssal Leviathan. Yet now, the giant fish within the shield appeared even larger than Ionodios itself, as if it could inhale the entire realm with a single gulp.
"Is this the true form of the Abyssal Leviathan?" Elena, Wen Lu, Tong Laoqian, and the others watched from a distance, their faces etched with astonishment.
"It's not even the Abyssal Leviathan's most powerful state," the Songbird Queen, heir to the secular bird's legacy, inhaled deeply, her voice laden with awe. "From the ancient memories of the secular bird that I've assimilated, the Abyssal Leviathan's mightiest form is about five times larger than Ionodios."
"At the dawn of chaos, the combat prowess of cosmic giant beasts often correlated with their size."
"This suggests that even after breaking free from the Embers Sea's confines and surging into the extraterrestrial Star River, the Abyssal Leviathan has yet to fully reclaim its lost strength."
With a flick of her finger, the light shield vanished, taking the images with it.
Yu Yuan's expression grew somber as he pondered deeply.
Time was slipping away rapidly. The ice energy pouring from the Deathwing Lair had gradually claimed nearly two-thirds of Ionodios' domain. Many of the Otherkin elites and mighty had perished unknowingly.
Yu Yuan had intended to confront Kennard, one of the Children of the Forest, but he was slain by several Shura from the Dark Realm. His guardian, Selter, was besieged by an onslaught of Warpbeasts and Ghouls. Mia, an elder of the Shadowkin, only managed to escape the forest unscathed thanks to Jun Chen's intervention.
Gradually, an overwhelming number of Warpbeasts, Ghouls, and Shura warriors, along with the ice energy from the Dark Realm, gained an absolute upper hand.
Curiously, the skies above the Deathwing Lair remained untouched by the pervasive darkness.
Noeyr, the Chief Elder of the Voidweaver Clan, knelt devoutly on the World-Sundering Stone, bowing her head and murmuring in an indecipherable tongue.
Beneath her, divine light rippled outward, boundless.
Her stance suggested she was using the power of the World-Sundering Stone to carve out a new world.
"How does it feel to have someone toy with your belongings?"
The Ghost King, Tian Zang, materialized out of thin air just outside the Dissolving Fortress. He had conjured the Azurefiend's Blood Altar, his towering demonform crafted from Dhoreus's body. Below the altar, the Spawn of Chaos pulsed with a chaotic psionic power that was nauseatingly intense.
He laughed heartily, blissfully unaware of the impending disaster, and teased, "That old woman made a fool of you, and you're not upset?"
"I have no desire to delve into that darkness, to take that risk, and therefore, I cannot reclaim the Dragon Slaying Stage," Yu Yuan responded with impatience.
"I have a message for you," Tian Zang said, smiling.
"What message?" Yu Yuan asked, his brow furrowing.
The next moment, Tian Zang's lips moved silently, yet a voice reached Yu Yuan's soul, "He said, not even the gods of the Star River could wrest the Dragon Slaying Stage from your grasp."
The words thundered through Yu Yuan's Mindscape like celestial thunder.
A memory sparkle within the Lunar Spirit seemed to explode, forced open.
An ancient breath, sealed for eons, struggled to construct a complete, immense phantom form within his Lunar Spirit, striving for a semblance of revival.
With a gasp, Noeyr, still kneeling on the World-Sundering Stone, suddenly coughed up blood and collapsed, unconscious.