Crack!
The Battle Qi armor shattered like paper, swiftly obliterated by the barbed tail that whipped Laedros sideways, leaving streaks of blood arcing through the air.
After hitting the ground, Laedros involuntarily twitched as he tried to move, only to realize that his ribs were completely broken. While his Sky Knight constitution allowed him to stand, his combat strength was greatly diminished.
Using his greatsword as support, he steadied himself with his other hand on his deformed waist, his expression grim as he stared at the peak Half-Dragon and the true culprit of his sneak attack—a high-ranking Shadow Tiger. What terrified him was that the aura emanating from the Shadow Tiger was nearly as powerful as the Half-Dragon beside it, indicating that it was also a peak royal beastman! Just one step away from the legendary Saint Realm!
The water-element Battle Qi in his body rapidly circulated, hastily repairing his injuries. Sky Knights were not fragile; their regenerative abilities, though not on par with beastmen, were still impressive. But... given the current situation, these two peak royal beastmen were unlikely to give him the chance to heal…
At this moment, Laedros' heart sank to the bottom. His muscles remained tense, ready to react to any coordinated attack from the two.
Heisent and Balu, noticing the uninvited guest, felt the pressure multiply. They cursed but charged forward without hesitation. Despite the overwhelming strength of the enemy, there was no option to retreat. Letting the enemy eliminate their comrade unchallenged would only lead to a more dire situation later on!
The two of them attacked from the left and right, their blades enveloped in Light and Earth-element Battle Qi, unleashing scorching waves of energy as they thrust toward the peak Half-Dragon.
The surrounding soldiers also sensed the gravity of the situation. Seizing the opportunity created by Rhett's disruption, some mid-level knights and mages redirected their firepower toward the two peak beastmen.
Clang, clang, clang…
Fending off the two Sky Knights' assault, Phili had no time for distractions, allowing the Battle Qi arrows and spells to strike his body. They left only faint blackened marks, which quickly faded as his formidable regenerative abilities took over. His sole focus was creating an opening for Tailey.
Seizing the moment when Phili was under concentrated fire, Tailey wasted no time. In an instant, he entered a shadowy state, a flash of black light disappearing into thin air.
"So fast, I can't even see the movement... Is this where I meet my end?" Laedros' face grew pale. He wanted to counterattack but realized his speed was no match for the peak Shadow Tiger charging toward him. His face twitched in tension, and a sense of helplessness washed over him.
Quicksand Spell!
Suddenly, a circle of quicksand appeared in front of him. Laedros squinted, realizing that Rhett had come to his aid. Knowing how to cooperate, he quickly threw his greatsword toward the peak Shadow Tiger, whose speed was still hindered by the quicksand but who continued to force his way forward. The attack compelled the beastman to retreat.
The next moment, Rhett, riding a sand wolf, carved a bloody path through the horde of beastmen, racing to rescue Laedros. This was no simulation—if an ally died, there would be no saving them.
"Go, sand wolves!"
Under Rhett's mental control, two other sand wolves flanked the peak Shadow Tiger from different directions, their expressions cold and ruthless, their forms distorted and blurred by the resonant force they emitted. However, midway through, they veered off course, not toward the Shadow Tiger but instead toward the besieged peak Half-Dragon!
Rhett understood the principle of "saving the besieged by attacking the unprepared," so his initial maneuver was merely a feint. At this moment, taking down the peak Shadow Tiger was nearly impossible due to its incredible speed. But if they could eliminate the Half-Dragon first, the three Sky Knights, along with Rhett, would stand a good chance against the Shadow Tiger!
Shrouded in a dark purple mist, Tailey frowned as he realized Rhett wasn't targeting him. His claws tensed in frustration. For him, escaping the Quicksand Spell wasn't difficult. His legs trembled rapidly in place, disrupting the surrounding earth elements with sheer force and speed. Using this opportunity, Tailey leaped forward but didn't turn back to assist his comrade. Instead, he charged straight at Rhett and Laedros!
Having fought humans numerous times, Tailey knew that turning back would play right into their hands. It was better to use the same tactic against them. If he could kill the injured human first, reducing their numbers would ease the pressure on them in the ensuing battle.
Falling Rock Spell!
In the sky above, a massive meteorite materialized, over two hundred meters in diameter, casting a vast shadow over the ground below. The enormous rock was enveloped in resonant energy, emitting a distorted and hazy glow.
The sheer size of the rock made it difficult for Rhett to fully cover its outline with resonant energy. For the first time, his mental energy was being consumed at an alarming rate, causing a slight tremor in his head as his brow furrowed.
A rapid, intense buzzing sound descended from the sky, spreading outwards. Though the target was the area occupied by the Half-Dragon and Shadow Tiger, the massive meteorite's impact zone was wide enough to affect large portions of the orc army.
Sensing the impending disaster, the peak Shadow Tiger in its shadowy state moved with lightning speed, darting several hundred meters away, easily avoiding the Falling Rock Spell. But in the next instant, as it surveyed the battlefield, its eyes blazed with fury, and its fur bristled in rage.
Phili, the peak Half-Dragon, had been sealed within the falling rock's impact zone by Rhett and the three Sky Knights, crushed into a bloody pulp.
As for Rhett and his comrades, they emerged unscathed. As the caster, Rhett could manipulate the resonant force at will, switching to the dispersive element within a specific range. Even if they were struck, it would feel like being buried in sand.
The same principle applied to the human soldiers within the covered area.
The soldiers who had been fighting the orcs, many of whom had been on the brink of despair, suddenly found themselves alive after diving into the sand as the rock landed. They erupted into cheers.
"Damn it, Phili! I swear I'll bring reinforcements and avenge you!" Tailey, the distant peak Shadow Tiger, muttered curses under his breath, unable to comprehend that Rhett had mastered both resonant and dispersive elements, completely blindsiding him.
Standing on the corpse of a fallen orc, Tailey stared warily at Rhett and the others, particularly Rhett. A Grand Magister who had mastered resonant energy was a threat he had to handle with extreme caution. With three Sky Knights by his side, the odds were overwhelmingly against him. Continuing to fight would only lead to his own death!
"No, I can't die here. The orc battlefield still needs me. I won't throw my life away in this place!" Tailey clenched his claws in frustration, fury surging through him like a tidal wave. He subconsciously plucked a tuft of fur from his thigh, narrowing his eyes as he forced himself to calm down. "When did humans produce such a genius? Has he only recently been deployed to the Frost Barrier…? He's too strong! I've never heard of him before. But… I've memorized his appearance and aura. One day, he'll pay in blood…"
"Rhett, we can't let him escape!"
Laedros watched in dismay as the peak Shadow Tiger turned into a black dot, vanishing from sight. His face turned grim as he hastily spoke to Rhett, "You are our trump card. If they realize that, the orcs will undoubtedly prepare countermeasures, making it difficult to catch them off guard in the future…"
Heisent and Balu both looked at Rhett, then at Laedros, nodding in understanding. But Heisent quickly shook his head and said, "That's true, but who among us could catch up to that Shadow Tiger?"
"Indeed, the priority now is to end this battle and harvest… these orcs. Let that Shadow Tiger go," Rhett said urgently, turning his attention to the battlefield. He then directed his voice to Laedros, "Laedros, focus on healing. The situation is under control, and we can handle the rest. We can't afford to lose you if we encounter more powerful enemies later."
Laedros' eyelids twitched as a warm feeling spread through his chest. He nodded heavily, "Thank you, I owe you another one!"
"No need to be so formal…" Rhett shook his head with a smile. He then turned his gaze toward the remaining thousand or so orcs, a glint of hunger in his eyes.
"Tucker!"
"I'm here, Commander… Father!"
A loud shout came from the crowd. Covered in blood, Tucker was fully engrossed in the battle. Despite the numerous wounds on his body, including three bloody gashes on his face and a nearly pierced heart by a fourth-tier nightcat, he remained fearless. The peril of being surrounded had sharpened his senses, and he felt his bottleneck loosening. Hearing his father's call, he slowly regained clarity, though he nearly let the word "father" slip out on the battlefield.
"Come to me!" Rhett commanded as he cast multiple Earth Spikes into the horde of orcs ahead. Though Earth Spike was a low-level spell, the quality of a Grand Magister's mental energy made it formidable. Most importantly, its simple spell trajectory consumed little energy, allowing for multiple casts.
Within the chaotic orc horde, rows of earth spikes shot up like shark teeth, clearing a safe path for Tucker.
When Tucker reached his father, his eyes widened in awe at the sight of the dead peak Half-Dragon. He laughed heartily, "With you here, Commander, this victory is ours!"
Rhett pulled two bottles of Giant Python's Kiss poison from his pocket and handed them to Tucker. "Enough talking. Your next task is to finish off the severely wounded or unconscious orcs! This Giant Python's Kiss is lethal to mid-level orcs—if you shoot accurately and hit their weak spots. Otherwise, it might not even penetrate the hide of a mid-level Minotaur."
Tucker, filled with determination, gripped his massive bow with confidence. "Don't worry. I may not be a Ground Knight, unable to infuse Battle Qi into my arrows, but I won't let you down!"
The other two Sky Knights glanced over but paid little attention. They wrapped their legs in Battle Qi again, preparing to charge back into the fray and end the battle.
But Rhett quickly called out, "Commander Heisent, Vice-Commander Balu, please wait!"
"Hm? What is it, Vice-Commander Rhett?" Heisent asked, his gaze curious but respectful of the vice-commander. After the brief encounter earlier, he was certain that Rhett's promotion to commander was only a matter of time.
"Yes, there's something I need your help with," Rhett coughed slightly.
Balu hurriedly said, "We'll certainly help you, Vice-Commander Rhett, but can it wait until after the battle? We'll personally thank you then!"
"No, it has to be now," Rhett insisted. "Would you two refrain from intervening, and let me finish this battle?"
Heisent and Balu exchanged puzzled glances, surprised. They both asked in unison, "Why can't we help? Wouldn't that end the battle faster?"
"Ahem, it's a quirk of Vice-Commander Rhett's. Once victory is assured, he likes to slay as many orcs as possible," Laedros explained, stepping in to clarify.
"I see…" The two blinked, their minds clearing. They knew that the world was full of strange things. It wasn't uncommon for soldiers or commanders on the battlefield to have an unusual penchant for killing orcs—or even more disturbing tendencies. Soldiers like that weren't rare.
"So Vice-Commander Rhett has this habit too…" Heisent muttered to himself. But remembering the assistance they had received, he couldn't refuse the request. After a moment of thought, he agreed.
With the approval of the eighth legion's commander and vice-commander, Rhett was free to harvest the orc army as he pleased. The process remained the same: controlling his three sand wolves and the Earth Dragon to rampage across the battlefield, trampling the orcs. He unleashed Earth Spikes and Stone Spikes to maim the mid-level orcs. But to avoid killing them outright, Rhett refrained from using the Resonant Force—simple magic sufficed to deal with these fodder.
High-intensity Earth-element fluctuations flickered across the battlefield, eliciting a series of harrowing screams from the orc horde.
After several minutes.
The battle was nearing its end, with only about a hundred orcs still clinging to life. To minimize losses, Rhett even ordered the knights fighting at the front to retreat, halting their pursuit of the orcs. The mages and archers in the rear also ceased their attacks, forming ranks under the commander's orders.
They watched as Rhett, the Earth Grand Magister, single-handedly controlled the battlefield, turning the tide with the flick of a hand.