The ground trembled under the Battle Maiden Sect disciples' feet as they charged through the Ancient Beast Mountain Range toward the barrier. They didn't even need the Sect Master's orders to understand what they needed to do next.
Attack!
In the distance, a mighty roar echoed, resonating across the vast skies and dense forests as if nature itself was voicing its anger. The roars were soon joined by others, harmonizing into a powerful, almost musical outcry of rage. The Beasts had sensed the breach.
This was nothing short of a declaration of war!
Before they could make it very far, a blur shot through the sky at speeds only the Sect Masters could comprehend.
"What's the meaning of this, Aelina!? Why have you disturbed the peace?!" A massive red Wyvern appeared in the sky, blocking out the sun and casting long shadows over the Battle Maiden army.
"Heh~!" Aelina snorted, smirking, "Disturb, how? I just want a little peek is all."
Fire flared out of the Wyvern's nostrils as it glowered down at Aelina, "...I'm not in the mood for your petty games, woman. If you do not answer my question, then I'll have no other choice than to treat this as a violation of our agreement."
"Fufu~" She chuckled, getting another hostile look from the Wyvern. "A little birdy told me you guys are doing something interesting in there. I figured I might as well join the fun. And since you'd refuse me if I asked nicely, I had no other choice but to knock the door down." Aelina replied with a sigh as if she was innocent in all this.
Although she sounded like she was playing around, the Wyvern understood everything he needed to from those words.
"War it is, then." It grumbled as though he found this situation more annoying than dangerous.
Lifting his head up in the air, the Wyvern gathered a dense amount of Draconic Flames in its lungs.
Aelina's eyes gleamed, anticipating the attack. The atmosphere around the entire area turned suffocatingly tense, charged with a mix of magical energies and dread. The scent of burning ozone and the sharp tang of anticipation filled the air.
Even as the mighty Wyvern inhaled deeply, the other disciples of the Battle Maiden Sect shifted, their postures instantly changing to defensive stances, and the forest around them shimmered with the bright hues of their protective barriers. On the ground below, other smaller beasts stirred, revealing their positions as the undergrowth rustled and shadows darted about.
From the core of the Beast Clans' territories, the land pulsed with power. Mysterious auras emanated from the deep forests, mountains, and rivers, representing the various Mystic, Sovereign, and Divine Beast Clans. This was their domain, their land that they had dominated for thousands of years. And even with the looming threat of the powerful Sects, they would not let it be trampled upon easily.
Aelina's aura flared brilliantly, rivaling the intensity of the Wyvern's fire. "Come at me," she taunted, her voice echoing across the landscape, provoking not just the Wyvern but every Beast Clan present. The palpable tension was almost like a thick fog settling over the land, with both sides knowing that the next move would ignite an all-out war.
The Wyvern stared down at her arrogantly, and with a movement slow enough so that everyone could see, it opened its mouth to rain down its fire like a heavenly sun.
*BOOOOM!*
A fist slammed into the side of the Wyvern's head, sending it spiraling back toward where the barrier was.
Revealing herself afterward was a person who looked exactly like Aelina, with no real changes other than it seemed a bit weaker.
"What an arrogant creature," The original Aelina commented, but a smile never left her face. Without missing a beat, she turned around to face her disciples and said in a voice loud enough for all of them to hear, "Me and the other Sect Leaders will deal with the big guys, you all just focus on killing as many of them as you can."
With weapons raised, they didn't hesitate to heed her order.
"ATTACK!"
"KILL THEM ALL!"
"GIVE YOU YOUR BLOODLINES YOU FUCKERS!"
Amid the battle cries of the Battle Maiden Sect, the earth beneath them seemed to resonate with their fiery determination. The wind, a witness to the unfolding chaos, carried the tangy scent of metal and the acrid aroma of beast blood. Under the fierce gaze of the blazing sun, a dance of steel, techniques, and roars began.
Battle Maiden disciples, with their new bloodlines and increased power, unleashed a torrent of Qi upon the beasts that dared to defend their territory.
The metallic clang of weapons met with the anguished cries of beasts while the sounds of apocalyptic clashes shook the earth in the background. Flashes of a myriad of colors zapped like lightning, illuminating the ground in their war path. Every disciple moved in harmony, their attacks as lethal as the deadliest predator.
From the shadows of the forest, creatures of unimaginable shapes and sizes leaped toward the invaders.
Fangs bared and claws extended, they aimed to defend their homeland with every fiber of their being. But for each beast that lunged at a disciple, two or more would fall, cut down by an overwhelming might. The battle cries of the Battle Maiden Sect weaved an intricate web of power, sealing the fate of many a beast.
In the backdrop of this brutal confrontation, ten colossal figures rose, casting enormous shadows on the battleground below. Each figure, representative of a Divine-Grade beast clan, looked down upon the invaders with disdain. Their auras, like a suffocating storm, sought to destroy the Sect Masters.
A gigantic tortoise with runes carved on its shell stomped in front of the broken barrier like an unmovable object. Beside it, a cerulean blue sphinx, its wings spread wide, sent forth gusts of chilling winds.
An onyx-black manticore, with venom dripping from its tail, hissed in fury. Each beast that appeared was more magnificent and daunting than the last.
The Sect Masters stepped forward, answering the challenge. Blindingly bright energy formed around them, and as Aelina stepped beside her fellow Sect Leaders, the sky itself seemed to crackle with tension.
Energy surged within them, and just like what happened with Aelina, copies of themselves formed before them like a mirror image.
However, seeing that, Aelina wasn't all that happy.
'Damn thieves…' She internally grumbled but didn't let it show. It was her choice to give them her "Avatar" technique, after all. She could only hope that whatever the beasts had in store for them was worth it.
"Seems like your disciples have gotten a lot stronger since we last met, Aelina," Alexander said, his sword sitting relaxedly by his side. His Divine Sense was spread out, locked onto each of the Divine-Grade Rank 10 beasts, but his eyes were glued to her army.
"Mmm." She nodded, "I really do pick the best, don't I? So talented yet so hard-working."
"No, I mean, they've REALLY gotten a lot stronger." He stressed, then continued in faux-ignorance, "I wonder what could've happened in this short span of time to make them like that."
"Me too." Aelina shrugged with a mocking smile.
Alexander's brows furrowed, and part of him began to feel like the decision he made a while back was a mistake.
'Was this all planned? Why was there a sudden spike in overall strength within her Sect just months before this plan?' He couldn't help but feel that maybe he had let a tiger in to deal with a few wolves.
'Perhaps, my greatest roadblock is standing right beside me…'
"Enough of the shit! Let's clear the way and see what's in this Secret Realm!" Damon, Sect Master of the Divine Weapons Sect, shouted, diverting their attention away from one another.
"He's right. You can kill yourselves later. First, we have to deal with the problems before us." Flora, Sect Master of the Profound Elements Sect, chimed in, her eyes drawn to the massive beasts coming their way.
Meanwhile, the Ghost Reaper King just gave them a nod, and both he and his clone disappeared from their senses. Apparently, he had gotten bored of their ramblings.
"...Seems like only one of us is taking this seriously…" Flora muttered, feeling frustrated, but before she could say anything else, she felt a chill down her spine and hurriedly dodged.
*SHING!*
The sounds of metal slicing through the air passed through where she once was. Missing their target, the metal, which turned out to be feathers, cut through a few mountaintops before eventually exploding into a million little pieces.
In a split-second decision, Alexander unsheathed his sword and met the assault head-on. Each swing of his blade met the onslaught of feathers, producing intense sparks and devastating shockwaves. The land itself bore the brunt of these clashes, with deep chasms opening and the earth upturning.
Aelina, not one to be outdone, lunged forward. A gargantuan Qi sword made of steel, thunder, and water appeared beside her, a technique called [Poseidon's Wrath].
"Mmph!" Her muscles clenched as she tossed it at the massive tortoise while her clone kept the metal bird coming their way at bay.
The gigantic tortoise, sensing the imminent threat, withdrew within its colossal rune-carved shell, spinning rapidly. Like a behemoth of destruction, it bulldozed through the terrain, attempting to crush the clones and the Sect Masters.
Flora, however, summoned a whirlwind of elemental energies. Torrential water, blazes of fire, and jagged earthen spikes took form around her. With a determined glance, they raced toward their intended targets.
Damon, in contrast, flashed an array of divine weapons. Swords, spears, and halberds circled around him in a deadly dance. With a swing of his hand, they zipped through the air, seeking the blood of the beasts.
The cerulean blue sphinx let out a thunderous roar, conjuring a tornado that spiraled toward the Sect Masters. As it clashed with Flora's elemental cyclone, the sky illuminated with a spectrum of colors, sending ripples of energy cascading through the battlefield.
The onyx-black manticore, with a whip of its tail, released a barrage of toxic darts. Aelina swiftly summoned barriers of Qi, but the darts, imbued with potent venom, seeped through, releasing a noxious haze.
From the corners of the battleground, the roars and growls of the smaller beasts combined with the battle cries of the Battle Maiden Sect disciples, creating a deafening cacophony. The sheer force of their collisions caused the very ground beneath to quake.
Ghost Reaper King, who had disappeared from sight, re-emerged from the shadows, his blades swinging in an arc. Each swing reaped the life force of any beast unfortunate enough to be in its path. He didn't care what strength or grade they were. If they were near him, he attacked.
However, he and his clone attacked at intermittent timings. While one was in the spotlight, the other was waiting for an opportunity. Then, when that one stuck, the other would disappear.
But the beasts were not mere fodder. They coordinated, leveraging their strength and numbers. The air became a storm of scales, fangs, and elemental magic. Massive tails, talons, and wings became the harbingers of death.
As Aelina's [Poseidon's Wrath] and the tortoise collided, a blinding explosion ensued, sending shockwaves throughout the Ancient Beast Mountain Range. Amid the smoke and debris, a silhouette of Aelina emerged, her clothing tattered but her aura even more ferocious.
The Sect Masters, while formidable, were not invincible. With every beast they felled, another took its place. The continuous onslaught tested their limits.
Damon, facing a barrage from multiple beasts, grunted as a clawed swipe left a gash on his arm. But with a growl of determination, he retaliated, sending a spear piercing through the assailant's heart.
Flora, caught in the middle of a maelstrom of attacks, chanted an incantation. Suddenly, a massive tidal wave surged, washing away the beasts surrounding her and providing her with a brief respite.
But, as the battle raged on, it was evident that at this rate, neither side would be able to cope with the losses. Nor would the environment.
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