It was forty minutes before the start of the test, and the minutes passed as Leafar carefully checked Ervly’s condition multiple times, extremely excited. Soon, there were no doubts: her entire physical body was completely regenerated. However, she was still unconscious due to the severe loss of her life energy. They were in a world where they didn’t age and were surrounded by vitality, so with time, this would be restored, but it could take a few years.
Leafar clenched his fists tightly. Now, he had to protect Ervly until she woke up, even if it cost him his life. Then, he turned to the whale, unable to say a word. At that moment, the whale took a step toward the now gigantic willow tree, as red as fire.
His tattoos glowed, and he touched the trunk gently. Leafar just watched in silence, and within seconds, he was shocked to see all of Ervly’s vitality being restored before his eyes. In a minute, all the scarlet leaves trembled without any wind, and everyone felt a warm presence awakening.
"Ervly!" Leafar exclaimed, excited.
The whale snorted and said, "We don’t have time for tears. I’ve fulfilled my agreement; now, both of you must fulfill yours."
Leafar, still shocked, nodded in understanding. They now only had half an hour. It was no use saving Ervly if they all died; they had to prepare for the fight. Leafar simply touched the trunk of the fire willow, and his eyes lit up. A part of his memory and feelings was transmitted in seconds, a unique connection with the plants.
Immediately, the fire willow lit up, and a humanoid figure appeared. Her appearance was similar to a simple human woman from the countryside, with no major curves or anything that stood out other than her long red hair and a gaze that seemed to radiate flames. Then, as if waiting for this moment, the robotic voice sounded, asking for confirmation that the two would cease to be heroes.
Ervly already knew everything thanks to Leafar, and the two intertwined their hands and knelt in front of the whale, confirming in words and gestures. The power of the hero converged on the whale; in turn, he simply held Ruri’s hand and quickly transmitted almost everything to her.
Quickly, Leafar handed a Jade Slip to Ruri, who smiled joyfully. Without wasting time, Ruri began to read everything. Meanwhile, Ervly turned to the whale and took out another Jade Slip, speaking softly.
"I also have to thank you for saving me. This is the divine technique of my race. Usually, humans don’t covet it because it’s a flame not so good for killing. But it is very useful for women, and for naturally purifying things. It’s what I have most valuable."
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The whale accepted without hesitation, quickly thinking of Almin. This technique seemed useful for alchemists. "This will be helpful."
Soon, the whale invaded their minds, erasing the presence of the queen without warning or giving them a chance to refuse. When they finished, while they were still stunned, he proceeded.
"Now, tell me everything about the test. We have to prepare."
***
Quickly, an hour had passed since their arrival on the floating island. Everything seemed as normal as when they arrived, so finally, the air grew heavy, and the sounds of the footsteps of a voluminous army echoed.
"They’ve arrived..." Leafar spoke anxiously, and everyone breathed deeply in anticipation.
The whale moved lightly and walked without any concern. The young girl ran to his side, equally light. Everyone immediately felt a great sense of security emanating from those two. Instinctively, the weight on them evaporated as if the connection between them calmed them. Then they followed in silence.
Leafar insisted a lot that the other two women, despite being a bit rough, were not bad and could help in a tough situation. Alm and Bruno remained indifferent and agreed to go to the location previously marked by them.
It was a slightly more open area, at the base of several mountains. Thus, everyone would be fighting within a few dozen meters. If something happened, they could help each other, having some minimal margin of safety.
’Remember, Ruri,’ Bruno spoke through the array. ’Don’t advance. Although you can escape with the new technique, if you’re alone and surrounded by the army, there are many methods to seal your escape. They just need to attack from all directions, and with your low cultivation, you’ll die in one move. Stick to the plan, no matter what happens.’
’Understood, master.’ Ruri nodded.
Everyone arrived at the location in a minute. The harpy Eavun was in the air, tension emanating from her eyes. The demoness Miaeth, on the other hand, seemed relaxed on the ground, just below Eavun. The two would fight together in a double formation, positioned twenty meters away from the whale’s group.
Leafar mentioned that the demoness asked for a simple formation that could be used with any race as a reward, instead of something exclusive to demons; not even he understood the reason for this choice. But, taking advantage of this, they usually fought together with this general formation alongside newcomers. With that, they survived until today.
Now, the two of them were alone. Leafar and Ervly would use a double formation between them, exclusive to their closely related races. The rest would stay close together. The two distant women just exchanged a look of ridicule towards the whale when the world darkened.
In the completely lightless sky, everyone saw a black figure with two long horns. He held a reddish orb, shaped like a skull, in his hand. It was the necromancer demon.
Thud! Thud! Thud!!!
The ground trembled, and everyone looked around, seeing a horde approaching. The army of undead varied in size and undoubtedly had diverse abilities. There were close combatants, long-distance attackers, and those who used yin with simple magical techniques. They formed groups of ten that complemented each other and fought in a coordinated formation.
Now that Ervly was with them, there were 900 soldiers. All of them possessed the same cultivation level, mostly at the ninth level of the Core Formation Realm. For every hundred of them, a general commanded, being at the second level of the Heaven Stage Realm.
According to Leafar, each general was comparable to heroes, almost equal to Hexaalis in terms of power. These countless soldiers were particularly irritating; although weak in individual combat, they could tie up and have a significant impact on the amount of power that could be unleashed. They had to stay close to their companions and rely on formations. Thus, they had to defend in shifts and preserve their Qi until the time ran out.
In a few minutes, everyone was surrounded by a sea of undead. Then, from above, the necromancer spoke loudly.
"Kill them all, my children!"
Instantly, all the undead became even more excited. It was like a black and violent avalanche; they were instantly overwhelmed by wild attacks from countless demons.
Two hundred soldiers surrounded Eavun and Miaeth on the ground. Then, the remaining seven hundred covered the whale’s group. It was something already expected; the focus of this place was to train heroes, not massacre them. So, instead of everyone designating a target and killing it, they split up and attacked individually to train them. At least it had always been like that...
Leafar and Ervly stood in the center, holding hands. Quickly, a power of life and fire seemed to merge, and a sacred and warm flame spread in all directions. All allies had their bodies protected against Yin that could corrupt them; the undead were greatly affected by their Yin.
The couple stayed there, and by their side was Ruri. Sayqi, Oria, and Sesel surrounded them, each wielding short swords made of black metal. Everything was prepared and given by the whale in advance. However, they were not authorized to activate the runic seal.
Soon, a wild and frenzied battle began.
Oria and Sesel slashed and used their Qi in a disorderly manner. They should be infinitely superior to the soldiers, but after being imprisoned for almost five thousand years, their combat techniques had degraded. Ruri stayed behind, attentive to every move the two made.
They fought desperately, trying to recall with their bodies what they had lost, but quickly failed to move and were attacked from all sides.
CRACK!
Then, earth runes lit up and blocked the deadly blades. Ruri was the one providing support, using the laws of the earth through the array. When Yin techniques were unleashed in their direction, Ruri’s hero rune would light up, dispersing them.
In no time, Oria and Sesel felt their chests filled with vigor and willpower, fighting with all they had; this was the best training for them, and they were receiving adequate support.
Obviously, the generals noticed everything and had the soldiers attack the center, but the nature duo specialized in defense and regeneration. Infinite roots emerged and regenerated endlessly, protecting the two and Ruri; it was impossible to advance with numbers.
As for Sayqi, she was someone who had lived for a long time and developed a sense of danger and instinct somewhat similar to Alm and Bruno. She could cut with her sword and take down some, always escaping easily with her technique before being surrounded. She focused on finishing off those at a distance, like an assassin, and these soldiers never dreamed of catching her.
The harpy and the distant demoness fought with minimal pressure on them. They knew when to retreat and attacked only those problematic ones in the distance. They fought a battle of advance and retreat, and if everything continued like this, they could pass the hour without worries...
BOOM!
The two quickly turned their gaze to the side, startled. Then, they were met with the sight of a solitary round figure, surrounded by an endless horde of undead. He smiled sinisterly, like an ancestral demon immersed in the Yin of death, reveling in the carnage unfolding before him.
Raising his hands forward, a greenish axe glowed intensely. Something within it was awakened! The axe burst from his hand towards the space in front of him, causing the very environment to vibrate, and a destructive power advanced as if the fabric of reality had been torn.
BOOM!
An entire group of ten undead exploded as if they were nothing more than leaves in the wind before that axe. The whale then laughed villainously, raising his hefty arm. Suddenly, gravity seemed to invert, and the green axe returned to his hand with an irresistible force!
’So, this is the power of the runic seal ’Repulsion.’ It’s quite peculiar but efficient for surprising.’ Alm said excitedly, observing the unfamiliar seal on the axe.
Their earlier joy occurred because they had activated the seal before. A green screen appeared, allowing them to forge the seal and briefly describing its function. It excited them greatly to discover this feature.
’The repulsion effect is ideal for launching equipment at enemies, something close to the laws of space and winds.’ Bruno commented. ’We can make armor with this... don’t forget. It would be quite the scene if we shot ourselves with this body, looking like a giant round ball... it would be the apocalypse whale strike.’
The green axe roared for the third time on the brink of destruction...
CLANG!!!
This time, not a boom emerged, but the muffled sound of metal colliding with something that seemed like metal. A giant black bone shield appeared, and the whale grunted with the undead general ruining his fun.
They triggered the runic seal, and the axe broke the space, returning to their hands. Unfortunately, it was an axe made for dwarves to use; its material was tough but not very heavy. Soon, a message was sent to Ruri, and she gripped her katana in readiness.
"RAAAAAAAAAAW!" The gigantic general and many soldiers roared, attacking the whale furiously, like a wave trying to drown him.
"F*ck off!" The whale spat, and the Manifestation of Instinct was triggered, filling his body with power.
With a step, the earth bowed under his dominion, and the whale shot forward at an abnormal speed. The advance sent all the soldiers flying, and the axe attacked the general with a destructive momentum.
The general grunted; that level of power wouldn’t break through his defenses. But... the whale changed the direction of his strike and attacked from below, catching the gigantic general off guard and launching him into the air.
A suffocating cutting force was felt by everyone.
All they saw was a katana and a girl in the air. When the general was thrown upwards, an opening was revealed in his defenses. Ruri immediately used her movement technique and slashed the general’s chest.
"Eternal Bond!!"
Slash!
"Argh!" The general glared furiously at the weak and mediocre human and then disappeared into the air. Only a mortal Yin remained, and then an afterimage dispersed...
Ruri returned almost immediately to her place without any expression, and the sound of the blade returning to the sheath echoed among all the shocked onlookers. The whale returned to the group with satisfied eyes, and Ruri seemed to now be able to control her emotions well during the fight.
"Hmm?" The distant necromancer demon frowned upon seeing this happen. "Attack, everyone." He ordered with a scowl.
The remaining eight generals instantly got excited and roared in a war cry!
At the same time, Eavun and Miaeth felt a foreboding. This went completely out of the norm, and anything could happen now.
When the generals moved, all the just over five hundred remaining soldiers around the whale’s group took steps back. Soon, only the eight generals surrounded them... and as a consequence, all the soldiers joined forces and attacked the two in the distance.
The two had twisted expressions of shock and fear. Leafar saw that and turned to the whale, who just waved without caring.
"Use everything and run towards us! We can help!" Leafar roared loudly.
The two looked in Leafar’s direction; Miaeth was chillingly calm, and Eavun felt a slight internal conflict. But... both snorted, calming down as they looked at the whale, who stared at them expressionlessly.
Alm and Bruno clearly saw through the demoness’s intentions. However, Bruno wanted to give the harpy a chance.
’No hero tied to the queen will leave here alive. If she can’t swallow her pride and bow even in danger, she must die.’ Alm spoke dryly in his mind, and Bruno just sighed... but didn’t oppose.
It didn’t take two seconds for Eavun to roar, unleashing all her power. "They’re just soldiers; don’t be ridiculous. I don’t need any help!" Her pride was greater than reason.
Leafar tried to argue but stopped when he felt Ervly’s grip on his hand. Soon, golden feathers covered the world, along with the harpy’s hero power pushed to the limit.
Her destructive power roared violently. She could really fight... but perhaps, her power might run out before the end. Leafar thought. But the demoness beside her wouldn’t take that risk, and Alm and Bruno knew it very well.
"Die!" Eavun spat, attacking in all directions.
In the same second, Bruno snorted with the whale, already knowing the outcome. The eight generals were already thirty meters away, so their eyes gleamed, using all available laws of the earth, creating a runic shield around the group. He didn’t activate the earth yet, anticipating the event of the next second...
Puff...
A muffled sound came, and Leafar jumped incredulously. The golden feathers suddenly dimmed, tainted by demonic black.
"Argh!" A murmur of pain escaped the harpy, then she saw a black blade piercing through her chest in the air. She recognized that blade... but didn’t have time to confirm.
Her entire life and energy were drained, and she only threatened a roar of pain... but her body withered without strength as if all her blood had been sucked. Then she fell to the ground... already lifeless.
Only the demoness remained, with her blade dripping blood and pulsating with an even more destructive nefarious power. "How naive," the demoness murmured, smiling.
Slash!
Those were also her last words. Then her head fell backward.
Right behind her, Sayqi emerged with a short sword ignited with her runic seal activated, and a cold expression. She snorted... it happened exactly as the whale instructed her before the fight... Yes, the whale predicted the demoness would betray the harpy, and that was the right moment for Sayqi to get rid of potential future troubles.