Below the World Tree, a battle of epic proportions was happening.
Sylmare, along with the Queen, was fighting off five of the Aura Saints while the elven guards attacked the remaining soldiers.
Since this was a battle between Aura Saints, space seemed to be trembling in each attack as if ready to burst open at any moment. Unlike the battle with the Half-Demon, where the Saint had to hold back to not accidentally kill his subordinates, the Saints here were using all of their force to defeat the two demonic elves.
Sylmare's eyes were bloodshot as she screamed like a beast as loud as she could, a black fog covering her entire body. The Elven Queen, on the other hand, had a dull expression and only moved when necessary. It was clear to the Saints that she wasn't entirely there at the moment, so they only sent two Saints towards her. Three Saints attacked Sylmare, while two attacked the Queen.
As the battle continued, Sylmare's black fog grew denser and more intense. She was using all of her power to fend off the aura of Saints, but despite her efforts, the three Saints were proving to be too much for her.
One of the Saints, a tall, muscular man with a golden aura, swung his sword at Sylmare with incredible force. Sylmare managed to dodge the attack, but the ground beneath her feet shattered into a million pieces.
The other two Saints, a woman with long blue hair and a man with fiery red hair, attacked from both sides. Sylmare managed to block the attacks with her sword, but the force of the impact sent her flying several meters away.
Since Sylmare still hated the Queen, she didn't assist her in any way during the battle, only caring about her own life. Despite that, she was currently in a sorry state due to the constant beating she had to endure, but that was the least of her worries. She had to assist Dean since if he died, the corruption of the World Tree would stop, and there was a high chance that Ioelena, the Elven Queen, would be able to escape from her state as a slave.
Sylmare quickly got back on her feet and, without wasting any time, charged towards the aura Saints with her sword. As she reached them, she unleashed a barrage of attacks, trying to overpower them with her brute strength.
The Saints were caught off guard by Sylmare's sudden attack and struggled to defend themselves. However, they quickly regained their composure and started to counterattack.
The golden aura around the muscular man grew even brighter as he swung his sword at Sylmare with incredible speed. Sylmare barely managed to dodge the attack, but she could feel the intense heat radiating from the sword.
The blue-haired woman conjured a powerful ice storm, which created a thick layer of ice on the ground. Sylmare lost her footing and fell to the ground, leaving her vulnerable to attacks.
The red-haired man took this opportunity and charged towards Sylmare with his fiery fists. At that moment, Sylmare used her aspect, [Velox], her figure disappearing from the spot, making the Saint attack only an afterimage.
[Velox] was a wind element aspect that would accelerate the user's body functions, from their agility to their thinking process.
When activated, the user's movements become a blur, and they can outrun most opponents. They can also dodge incoming attacks with ease, making them incredibly difficult to hit. However, using the aspect for too long would quickly drain the user's stamina, leaving them vulnerable to attacks. As such, it was best used in short bursts during critical moments.
Realizing that his attack missed, the red-haired man frowned and coated his fists in a blue flame; this was his aspect [Azure Pyroclasm]. It was a unique aspect that bestowed the user with the power to manipulate blue flames through their fists. It taps into the core essence of fire but with a unique twist. While traditional fire aspects harness the intensity and destructive force of red and orange flames, [Azure Pyroclasm] harnesses the energy of elemental flames.
The significant difference between the sapphire-blue flames and regular flames was the intensity and force since the blue flames were much more substantial. The Saint had used this aspect to reach this stage, accelerating his growth greatly.
Sylmare quickly realized the danger of the blue flames and activated her aspect once again, disappearing from the spot and reappearing a few meters away. However, this time, she didn't use all of her speed, saving some of her stamina for later.
The Saints were surprised by Sylmare's speed and agility, but they didn't give up. The golden aura around the muscular man grew even brighter as he charged toward Sylmare with his sword.
Sylmare knew that she couldn't continue like this forever, so she decided to change her strategy. She jumped back and threw her sword at the man, hoping to distract him.
The man easily deflected the sword with his own, but it gave Sylmare enough time to charge towards the blue-haired woman. The woman tried to conjure another ice storm, but Sylmare was too fast.
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Sylmare jumped over the ice storm and landed behind the woman, delivering a powerful kick to her back. The woman fell to the ground, stunned by the impact. [Ice Storm] was the woman's aspect, and she used her Eather to conjure a hail of ice.
Sylmare quickly turned around, only to see the red-haired man charging towards her once again. This time, she was ready. She activated her aspect once again, dodging the man's attack and delivering a powerful punch to his stomach.
The man grunted in pain, but he didn't give up. He charged towards Sylmare once again, but this time, he was surrounded by a blue flame that grew in intensity with each step he took.
Sylmare knew that she couldn't dodge this attack, so she decided to take the full brunt of it. She activated her aspect once again, but this time, she used all of her speed, moving so fast that she created a shock wave that shattered the ice on the ground.
The man's attack missed, but the shock-wave sent Sylmare flying through the air, making her crash into a nearby tree, coughing up blood.
On the other hand, the Queen was fighting off against Grand Duke Victor Rothsgomery and an elderly man with short white hair, the crow's feet on his eyes being significantly pronounced and creating a kind expression on his face.
Since these two Saints were the most powerful of the group, they were more than enough to deal with the Queen, who, for better or worse, didn't perform her best due to the forced demonic slavery Dean had used on her, cornering her in a short time.
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William was breathing heavily, having sustained a bit of damage from the aftermath of the fight. Things had taken an unexpected turn once Dean began killing the weaker soldiers.
White energy emanated from the bodies of the dead soldiers, flowing directly into Dean's maw, his tongue elongating and his facial features becoming more devilish with each second.
Since William was extremely weak in this situation, all he could do was back off and wait for reinforcements from the third squad.
The third squad didn't consist of any Saints, but their soldiers were the strongest in the group. Malcolm was the leader of the team, and William had assigned Vincent to it, knowing it would be the best group for him to accumulate souls.
The Saint had long stopped holding back since Dean was becoming more powerful by the second. This was the issue with demons; the more life force they consumed during battle, the more powerful they became. Thankfully, this power wasn't permanent, but it would still last for quite a while.
Dean once again used his space attribute aspect, launching a few dozen attacks towards the Saint and the soldiers. William, who was hiding behind the back line, instantly fled the spot and retreated even further. He knew that he was only a hindrance in this battle despite having a significant amount of experience.
To begin with, a twelve-year-old boy shouldn't have been allowed to participate in such a battle; they only allowed him as a strategist, and that was it. Fighting in the front lines would be a stretch even for him as someone who returned from the future, especially when he was still so weak.
Malcolm's squad finally arrived on the battlefield, and they charged towards Dean without hesitation. They were all experienced soldiers who had been fighting for years, and they knew exactly what they were up against. Half-Demons have appeared from time to time since the first demonic invasion. Letting them grow unhindered would slowly turn them into real demons, so they were directly killed when they were found.
Being a grand knight, just below an aura Saint in strength, Malcolm engaged Dean in a fierce battle. Dean was surprised by the sudden attack, but he quickly regained his composure and fought back with all his might.
Meanwhile, Vincent was using his unique ability to absorb the souls of the fallen soldiers as well as the demonic slaves, and he was slowly but steadily becoming stronger. William watched from a distance, knowing that he couldn't do much to help in this situation.
As the battle raged on, it became clear that the third squad was starting to gain the upper hand. Dean was tired out, and his attacks were becoming weaker and less frequent. The Saint seized the opportunity and struck a decisive blow, shooting off one of Dean's arms with an arrow.
Dean roared loudly, his emotions clouded by rage, but the reason within him stopped the outburst prematurely as his figure retreated.
'As if I'll let myself die here. As long as I can continue purifying my bloodline, I will be able to do anything.'
He thought, scoffing to himself. At first, he had been arrogant, knowing that they would attack, so he engaged in battle with confidence. Even though he was being egotistical, as soon as he noticed that he was at a disadvantage, he quickly realized that they had brought much more significant reinforcements than he had anticipated.
'The saints are an issue on their own, especially since they have split my forces and attacked my two most powerful fighters. If only I could enslave the rest of the captured elven Saints and grand mages, it would have been much easier, but alas, enslaving the Queen took all my strength.'
His thoughts wandered, his running figure twisting lightly to avoid the countless arrows that were shot towards him.
At that moment, he saw a figure absorbing energy from the deceased people and quickly changed his course of direction.
For him to purify his bloodline, he would need a vast amount of life energy, and that person had the most significant amount on this battlefield.
Seeing him approach, Vincent smiled, not knowing what to say.
"Out of all the people in this place, you chose the one that literally counters you as a demon?"
He couldn't help but mutter as he waved his hand.
With that single wave, hundreds of black shadows appeared around him and Dean, momentarily shocking the latter.
Vincent smiled cynically, waving his hands once again, as his whole figure was engulfed by darkness, leaving behind only two white orbs that acted as his eyes.
As soon as he activated his aspect, [Death Sworn], his switch was completely flipped as his alternate personality had taken over him.
In this state, he was utterly insane and only wanted to draw blood.
The dozens of shadows directly looked at Dean's demonic figure, making an incredibly creepy scene, even causing the horrifying Half-Demon chills.
Vincent spoke, his voice hoarse, as the shadows that hid his features somehow formed a mouth that was even creepier than the scene before.
"I wonder, do Half-Demons taste different from demonic slaves and apparitions?"
William, who knew that Vincent was out of control at the moment, ordered all the soldiers to back off and let the two fight, informing his father and the Saint to not interfere in the battle unless they wanted to be attacked by Vincent.