Disastrous Victory (4)

Whoosh, whoosh. Step, step, step, step, step. Stomp- stomp- stomp...

Heian Ciemnosc limited himself and his team to watch as the rest of the army rushed forth. Once more than half the troops were before them, he looked at Violet before running into the fray alone, without following his sub-commander's 10,000-strong group. Violet nodded at him and glared at the rest of the team. They left their spot and the cannon at once, leaving it for another one with mostly Conflagrate and Obsidiafying realm students to keep firing with.

The Concealed Ornamental Team became one of the many teams charging towards the City, and the enemy within it was none the wiser. With the sand and dirt lifted it was practically impossible for anyone in the First Step to discern the entire scenario except Heian Ciemnosc. Not only could he visualize the distance between the army and the City with his Spirit Sense but also the inside of the City after the hole was punctured into the walls.

From the back of the cannons, the army had waited for the City to become besiegeable and had rushed forth, leaving not a single student tropp behind except those in charge of the cannons after they left. But now, it was most lonely, with even the transporting ships coming closer except for the commander’s, who was left behind to cover the cannon teams. With the distance and the time they took to create a gap, some reinforcements had to be nearby.

The transporting ships moved slowly, not wanting to attract attention and give hints to what was happening below. Yet, even as they entered the 9,000-meter mark, the enemy cannons didn’t dare shoot as they were too high. Still, the enemy didn’t waste their shells and waited for the dust to clear. Though they were worried the enemy might be charging at them as they waited, they couldn’t simply shoot blindly. It was optimal to wait for the student troops to reveal themselves.

However, even as they waited for minutes, the sand below was still unmoving, as if no movement had been made… Meanwhile, within the still mist of sand and dirt, Heian Ciemnosc positioned his team at the rear left again. They rushed with a mild speed. After the army started marching forward, charging under the enemy’s noses, one sole velocity was shared amongst all sub-commander’s 10,000-strong groups.

Heian Ciemnosc was still alone, but so were some dozen other teams, so he didn’t attract attention. Even then, Lionel, who was above and could see each one of those teams and its members moving in a panel, felt nervous with Heian Ciemnosc being so cautious. And below, every single team worked together with an array formation to move at a fast speed without tiring themselves one bit.

Heian Ciemnosc and his team weren’t using an array formation, but they were fiddling with some objects in their hands. Not only the CO’s, but the entire team’s members. A few teams bypassed Heian Ciemnosc’s, but he didn’t speed up or block others from overtaking them and continued with his own pace. His team didn’t grow anxious or impatient, knowing they could be targeted by the commander’s orders.

At some point, silence fell upon everything. Even the student troops slowed down and slowly came closer together at last. Meanwhile, the enemy’s cannons atop the City walls lowered their barrels, aiming at a midway range from the city, waiting for any movement. They had permission to shoot as soon as they saw even a light disturbance in the mist.

… … …whistle, whistle… whoosh- step-...

The cultivators atop the city wall suddenly felt pressured, as if they were in a heavy situation. But everything before their eyes and Spirit Sense was alright. Even the Spirit Rebirth realm cultivators behind them looked calm, so it naturally spread to the rest of the enemy cannon teams. But, suddenly… someone’s footstep was heard. Not within the City, beside them, or behind them… It came before them!!

“Shit, sir! I think they arr-” Ckrsheeeeeerrrrr.

Just as a cultivator behind a cannon spoke with realization behind his words, a steel ball with several smallish blades installed in its interior rotated and smashed through the cultivator’s body. His innards, organs, and flesh were hurled to the other cultivators nearby, and they were paralyzed. Flesh, crushed organs, and broken bone pieces flew around, directing everyone’s attention there. But then, a Spirit Rebirth realm cultivator pointed to the front and warned with his eyes visibly losing all hope.

“Be careful!! Shoot, shoooot! To your fro-” STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP… pum, pum, pum, pum, pum- boom boom boom boom boom boom boom boom boom boom boom boom…

In just some seconds, tens of thousands of student troops rushed towards the City. The gap in the wall was blocked by several cultivators. But they became mentally overwhelmed by the number of enemies they were facing!

The student troops said not a word. They crashed through the blockade and began slaughtering their way in, leaving not a single cultivator without being hurt. They didn’t stop to fight like idiots but advanced and continued to do so while slashing, sweeping, and thrusting their weapons. Power Energy flashed intensely. It flew over their heads, below their feet, and between everyone’s arms and shoulders.

PUMMM, PSHIFT, pshift, pshift, pshift, phhshk, crreeshhk, ckrsheerr, bugsh, sshglaaghh~…

The battle had just started, but several sounds of student troops with array formation surrounding them and their tools and armor crashing against the blockade were heard. The wall’s hole was several dozen meters wide and half as tall as the City walls, more than enough for every student trooper to run, float, or jump across. The enemy cultivators felt overwhelmed and tried resisting going all out. However, their Power Energy often cut through, by, and onto their comrades before even arriving at the student troops.

The student troops had no such problems. They weren’t randomly mixed, and even then, teams didn’t hurt other teams as their Power Energy traveled between their fellow student troops to accurately hit the enemy. A few cultivators used a student trooper to block an incoming Power Energy attack. But such attacks were weakened before they could land on said fellow student.

The cannons 10 kilometers away no longer aimed at the same spot, targeting where many enemy cannon teams atop the walls were, putting heavy pressure on them as the first City’s barrier began thinning down.

Beautiful, smallish explosions occurred around the enemy’s first City’s barrier. The student troops fought with all their strength, not using Power Energy attacks before charging immediately. They had to get closer. Otherwise, the rest of the army would be targeted by the enemy’s cannons even if they were pressured to aim at the Academy’s cannons!

Within just 10 minutes, the enemy’s first blockade was pulverized as ten thousand enemies’ corpses lay on the floor, mainly incomplete ones. However, there were at least 1,000 casualties from the student troops. However, as they continued charging forward to meet the second blockade, some troops carried their fellows’ corpses back or stored them in their Covert Space bags while trampling on the enemies’ carcasses.

However, the enemy’s second blockade had begun bombarding them with Power Energy attacks and forming waist-level thin barriers of Power Energy before them, slowing the student troops for a few minutes before they could get into close combat quarters. At least 50,000 student troops entered the City. The rest weren’t all waiting in one line but had encircled the City and placed themselves as close to the walls as possible.

Heian Ciemnosc was already inside, but his team took the left extreme wing of the army and barely met any enemy cultivator. Right now, he looked towards the vanguard, where the enemy’s second blockade held tight and exchanged life for life with the Academy. Their faces were stern and cold, but they weren’t robots or puppets. Their every move to strike a student troop was filled with hate and thirst.

“...” Looking at Violet, who stared at him longer than a second, Heian Ciemnosc tilted his head to the left and said nothing, keeping his team’s position as more student troops continued to be killed back by the enemy. Violet imaginarily nodded and continued to maintain her position. The rest of the team watched this and continued to do so.

“... What’s going on? Our deaths are rising!” Meanwhile, as the army fought below to barge into the city. Above in the sky, Lionel turned around and walked to the middle of his transporting ship’s center. He was observing as a few hundred enemy cannon teams came from their rear but were pulverized by the machine guns on the ship’s rear. Now, he looked into the video transmission and stared at Cari, who wore a slightly uneasy expression. “You said it wouldn’t be a problem!”

“Lionel, take the advice I gave you and give him permission. You didn’t listen to me. And now all our Spirit Rebirth realm troops are focused on killing the enemy’s Spirit Rebirth realm cultivators. We have no overpowering force in the vanguard. My army fraction will fall apart…” Cari commented, looking distressed at the end of his words with his hands facing the ceiling at his waist level.

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“...” Lionel said nothing and looked at Cari with his eyes’ veins bulging. Before long, Lionel lowered his left hand to press buttons and spoke into a communication channel.

… Back to the battle below, Heian Ciemnosc dispatched an enemy cultivator at the peak of the Crabstynian realm with a swing of his right Claws Out after taking his heart out with his left one. Then, his eyebrows jolted as his medallion heated up. He looked in the direction where his sub-commander was sending Power Energy attacks into the enemy lines, nodding at him, and then faced his team.

“...” They were already facing him when he turned his head. Heian Ciemnosc blinked and looked back at them in silence before opening his mouth. His voice was calm. “To the front and make a gap, ongoing!!”

“HUO!” His team yelled in unison, attracting the army and the enemy cultivators’ attention. Several seconds later, Heian Ciemnosc’s team left its position and rushed to the vanguard. Without disturbing the troops heatedly fighting the enemy, they fearlessly floated above them. A few Spirit Rebirth realm cultivators came to aid the team in case other enemies of the same cultivation base appeared, as Heian Ciemnosc’s team suddenly found themselves becoming a magnet of enemy Power Energy attacks.

Pshift pshift pshift pshift pshift pshift pshift pshift pshift pshift pshift pshift pshift pshift pshift pshift pshift pshift pshift pshift pshift pshift pshift pshift…

Heian Ciemnosc looked at the incoming hundreds of Power Energy attacks, and a smile slowly formed on his lips. His darkest eyes consumed every sheen and possible glow those Power Energy attacks might’ve reflected on them and swiftly took his Vocón Link from his right palm. It extended unlimited for several tens of meters as everything seemed to turn into a slow motion.

Heian Ciemnosc was at the front and alone, with the rest of his team forming a square formation behind him, floating forwards, brandishing their Mortal weapons and tools and letting their armor be looked at by the hatefully flaring enemy.

The Vocón Link extended slowly, like a coiled snake lunging at prey or its enemy. But its head was lowered, and it was constantly being lifted as it elongated. The enemy Power Energy attacks came closer and closer. This would’ve caused anyone and any team to tremble and fear. But even Heian Ciemnosc’s Concealed Ornament Team’s newest members were calm as they simply observed the enemy but paid attention to their team leader.

Heian Ciemnosc smoothly swung Vocón Link just as it extended to 70 meters. It retracted as his right arm folded and his hand pulled to his left jaw’s side. With his fist closed, his right-handed dark claws merging with the Vocón Link’s base, its expanding speed increased!

Heian Ciemnosc moved his right arm back up, a little behind his right ear, as if he was trying to flex his right arm’s biceps. Thus, the Vocón Link, already retracting, with its extreme end returning quickly towards Heian Ciemnosc’s face, ‘jumped’ into the air and became flexible and loose again. Its direction was 30 degrees in correlation to Heian Ciemnosc’s head, but it was already 130 meters long when this happened.

It formed a crooked interrogation point but kept elongating. Heian Ciemnosc’s arms showed his dark veins, and dark Power Energy was concentrated into the Vocón Link. Even though any Mortal weapon would’ve been encompassed by a thick layer of his dark Power Energy at this point, his Vocón remained 4-inches-thick without any dark Power Energy surrounding it. But it was there, empowering it besides the 32,000 kg of bodily strength. It was fully enhanced with Heian Ciemnosc’s dark Power Energy.

Whiiiiiiiiiii… Heian Ciemnosc abruptly leaned his body to the left, but only his ribs and upper torso moved. The rest remained the same. His right arm had much more space to move as it lashed his arm forth like a cobra lunging forth. From a folded position, his forearm twisted to the right as his upper arm thrust leftwards, his elbow in the middle put the strength behind everything as his wrist transmitted it into his hand and the Vocón Link…

…-plaaaaaaaaashh! WHOOSH WHOOSH, CRAAACK- pshift pshi- boom bo- pum pum pam pam pom… Heian Ciemnosc’s Vocón Link grew to a 160-meter length before it was sent forwards. It streaked through the sky, breaking air as it broke through pure energy unbeknownst to any cultivator watching and participating in this battle!

Vocón Link’s extreme end, now 160 meters long, became fully stretched from his hand even as Heian Ciemnosc kept floating forwards. The moment it could no longer streak forwards, it seemingly ‘hit’ the air and became stuck. This strange but ostensibly unimportant development attracted the twists and turns of many heads and necks. When they looked at the place they were intuitively forced to watch, the Vocón Link had become stuck, and the air 160 meters around cracked with wind blades forming but stopping as if stuck in time.

But time was simply alright, and it had never stopped. One second later, the wind blades separated, crashing against one another and creating a windy wave assaulting everywhere above the student troops and enemy cultivators’ heads. But that wasn’t the impacting result. What caused their shock was the sudden self-detonation of every enemy Power Energy attack! Every attack the enemy sent with their Power Energy became useless. From the Spirit Birth realm to the middle stages of the Spirit Formation realm, they all became totally… useless!!

But instead of dissipating, they did a number to their nature, and their detonation directly bashed back and moved to hunt for their owners! Cultivators were sent down to the ground, their heads cut off, smashed, crushed, and flattened as the Power Energy attacks fell upon them! However, before the students could finish forming their smiles and their skin numbed to the maximum, the CO’s took out some strange spheric tools the size of a baby’s torso.

These tools weren’t fully ‘sealed’ and appeared about to break at any moment. The CO’s held them gently but weren’t afraid of them. In the past, Heian Ciemnosc might have been worried these kinds of tools would be dangerous for oneself. But after so much practicing in the Wrath Nihility Academy, their full potential was about to be unleashed.

Whistle, whistle, whistle, whistle, whistle… pssi pssi pssi pssi pssi pssi… phhshk phhshk phhshk phhshk phhshk phhshk phhshk phhshk phhshk…

“!!!!”

In a moment, dozens and dozens of cultivators, from the Obsidiafying realm to the Spirit Formation realm, were targeted by these tools the CO’s sent in the air. Heian Ciemnosc rushed into the enemy lines without fear with his CO’s behind and the rest of the team behind them, stomping the air and the ground alike to demonstrate they were there!

Flesh was pierced and pierced and pierced and pierced!! Thin lines were cleanly cut through by these Decimating Flash Rollers! They were thrown at the enemy covered with Power Energy. Before arriving at the enemy’s lines, they opened and revealed intricate blades connected to the roller’s inner structure. Even as they went through many bodies and the roller’s main body rotated, it didn’t break off nor destroyed but were even pushed into the air before returning. They were hellish tools that brought utter fear into the enemy’s hearts.

Mangling their bodies into not even corpses, those affected by these became layers of skin and blood, and their bones were sent flying while not even hair remained! Only some strands of hair, layers of skin, and blood of all colors were seen exploding, merging, and falling into and from the air. Whatever Race should been, wherever the Decimating Flash Rollers went, nothing remained!

With so many of those intricate blades, nobody was safe in a straight line for several tens of meters until it lost its effect. However, right after they lost their Power Energy after massacring so many cultivators and were seemingly depleted, or after a Spirit Formation realm cultivator in the later stages or higher stopped them…

Boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom… phhshk phhshk phhshk phhshk phhshk phhshk phhshk phhshk phhshk phhshk phhshk phhshk phhshk phhshk phhshk phhshk phhshk phhshk phhshk phhshk phhshk phhshk phhshk phhshk phhshk phhshk phhshk…

The Decimating Flash Rollers imploded, Power Energy tiny needles hidden within with anti-Spirit Sense array formation, so minuscule not even a Spirit Rebirth realm cultivator would detect without focusing… Blasted everything in a 30-meter radius, leaving not even bones and flesh behind, let alone hair! All that remained after these explosions was a sudden screen of blood spreading to all angles, smearing even those student troops just entering the City…

“...” There was only silence after the Decimating Flash Rollers showed each of their features. The student troops were shocked and paused. The enemy cultivators were shell-shocked and scared silly. Those a few tens of meters away when the Decimating Flash Rollers imploded were even paralyzed, feeling as if their senses slowly left them and about to lose consciousness. Even suffering deviation wasn’t far off the chart. It excessively impacted the enemy!

There was no daylight right now, so when the Power Energy attacks stopped flying from side to side, killing and being blocked nonstop… Only darkness remained…

“AAAAHH!!” A sudden shrill scream, followed by sounds of battle, bodies tearing and being moved after being cut to pieces or flattened on the ground. But the person screaming wasn’t dead. His weak but loud words were heard next. “He’s eating me! A… alive! He’s… eating meeee!”

Pshiiiiift, pshiiiiift, pshiift, pshiiiift… whoosh, whoosh…

A few cultivators in the early stages of the Spirit Formation couldn’t take it anymore and sent Power Energy attacks with a wave of their weapons to the place where the screaming came from. As they flashed through the City’s entrance, everyone watched as a .75-meter tall bump of corpses were gathered, all from the Crabstynian realm or higher. But on top of it, a pale teenager crouched down with his legs spread. On his hands, not on his knees, a Spirit Formation realm 7th stage cultivator was desperately trying to move. But his limbs and lower body were cut off.

“...” Heian Ciemnosc’s darkest eyes looked up at everyone. He lifted his head to reveal his dark fangs and the blood smearing all the insides of his mouth. Some pieces of flesh and veins were visible, while a lump of flesh had just gone down his throat, everything revealed by the 2 wave Power Energy attacks that flew towards him. However, because the responsible for those attacks were afraid beforehand or afterward, the waves of Power Energy passed by Heian Ciemnosc’s body to the sides and cut through part of the bump of corpses.

His dark fangs were particularly the creepiest as they were devoid of blood… But his darkest eyes were… terrifyingly deep!

Meanwhile, the Concealed Ornament Team massacred the stunned enemy cultivators near their team leader, gloating as they earned so many merit points.

…