Keiza's heart skipped a beat, her pupils constricting. However, after a moment, she slowly managed to calm down. She realized what was happening and made the same deductions as everyone else a step quicker.
She didn't know a lot about this formation. Although she had been monitoring Leonel all this time using Libra family twins, the level of clarity their methods could bring was limited. While they could cover very large regions and their methods were difficult to detect, there was a tradeoff that came with that as well.
Even so, she knew enough to know that this formation was the formation that Leonel had used to clear the Gold Grade trial, and also further knew that he needed soul constructs to make use of it. Even though many had died in this battle, they were ultimately just a drop in the bucket, they weren't nearly enough to turn the tide.
In addition, she had seen through this formation's obvious weakness: it only worked within the bounds of the formation itself. Even if Leonel had some other trick up his sleeve, it would only take a slight step out to deal with this situation.
That didn't even mention the fact it greatly drained Leonel.
Not only was their army stronger than a three million strong Gold-Grade tide, Leonel was already feeling hints of fatigue. How long could he possibly use the formation?
All of these matters made Keiza sneer, but right then, all she saw in Leonel's eyes was disregard. He looked at her not like an enemy, not like a beauty, not like a peer, but rather like a lamb on a chopping block. She wasn't just an annoyance, she was an inferior life form. Despite the fact she had the high ground, it felt as though she was already being trampled beneath his feet.
Leonel took out three cracked city cores and pressed them together at the same time. One had failed a Silver-Grade upgrade while two had failed a Bronze-Grade upgrade. Taking the Silver-Grade upgrade failure as their core, they combined into a new Bronze-Grade village core.
Before anyone could wonder what Leonel was doing, he had already swept through and accepted the Silver-Grade upgrade challenge.
Keiza's expression changed. That was impossible. According to the rules, an upgrade challenge couldn't be triggered when there were a number of enemies within a certain distance of your territory. She couldn't understand how Leonel could even accept the upgrade when it shouldn't have been available in the first place.
But even so, what was the point of this?
A realization overcame Keiza but it was already too late.
Leonel's finger flickered and just as the tide formed, a bolt of lightning descended from the skies, killing them all. He had activated a Silver-Grade instant clear reward.
Suddenly, outside an encirclement of thousands, 12 000 soul constructs appeared, each one of them with flickering red-gold flames in their eyes. A demonic aura rose into the skies, a vicious momentum causing the dark clouds above to roll and rumble.
It was only 12 000, not even 10% of the number here, but their pressure was even greater.
At that moment, they all extended their hands and a spear appeared in each one of their palms. Some were long and wirey, some were scaled, others were short and stocky… all of them exuded a different sort of aura, but they were all, without fail, of the Life Grade.
Leonel's body trembled just once as a blinding Bronze Aura rose from him. His halo descended and his body was coated in his second tier armor. However, rather than billowing with radiant blue fog, a violent torrent of red gold flames billowed out from its vents.
Everywhere he stepped, the ground crumbled to ash, large pits forming beneath him.
BANG!
The red-gold flames erupted from Leonel's back, forming a large pair of overbearing wings.
"Don't move."
Leonel's words were calm, but the air seemed to crackle and pop as he spoke them. It took a while for others to understand that he wasn't referring to his enemies at all. Instead, he was talking to his allies. His meaning was clear…
If they moved, he couldn't guarantee that they wouldn't die too.
Leonel suddenly flickered and vanished. A heat wave rippled across the battlefield as his wings of Scarlet Star Force trembled just a single time.
This wall of heat crashed into the wall of enemies around him. The weak among them were immediately burnt to ashes, rows of several hundred fell in droves, the residual heat alone being far too much for them to handle.
However, what was even more shocking was that they weren't even Leonel's target to begin with. He appeared before Huon first, his palm stretching out for the latter's head.Têxt belongs to .
"HUON!" Droet roared, sending his rope dart forward with the greatest strength he could muster. The sound barrier boomed and the air whistled, a large accumulation of spiraling Force appearing before Leonel's forehead.
However, Droet's rope dart seemed to meet an impenetrable barrier an entire meter from Leonel. Then, under his astonished gaze, the rope dart trembled and then fell into a rain of ash.
Droet's eyes widened. That rope dart… it was a top of the line Gold Grade treasure, how could it possibly just…
Leonel's hand landed on Huon's forehead. Not once did he look in Droet's direction the entire time, it was as though he had already expected them to be able to put up no resistance at all.
BANG!
Huon's head exploded like a watermelon, but even the rain of blood and gore didn't last long before it was burnt to ash. Without the protection of Huon's Force, his flesh had no ability to protect itself in Leonel's presence.
"HUON! Droet roared, his gaze turning bloodshot. "I'LL KILL YOU!"
The words had hardly left Droet's mouth when he registered that Leonel was already before him. The world felt eerily silent at that moment, all he could hear was a high pitched whining.
He looked down at his chest, only to find that an arm had already ripped through him and pulled his heart out, burning it to ash.