Chapter 473: Chapter 101 Absolute Defense_1
As Zong Yue and his companions were becoming increasingly anxious, suddenly, a gentle white light shone from the center of the ruins of the forest, bursting out from a pile of ash. The light enveloped two figures that floated out from within. It was Ah Dai and Xuan Yue who emerged, unharmed, though their clothing was a bit disheveled.
It turned out that a moment before the thunder and lightning collided with the elemental formation and reached its critical point, Ah Dai had used Instant Teleportation to move next to Xuan Yue and said four words to her: Absolute Defense. In such a colossal shockwave, Ah Dai and Xuan Yue were sure to be affected. Therefore, Ah Dai had already planned a way to deal with the recoil of the explosion when he prepared to attack. Xuan Yue, her reactions swift, immediately understood upon hearing ’Absolute Defense’. For the first time, she activated the Ring of Guardian’s most powerful defense mechanism. A pure white light instantly wrapped around their bodies. While the explosion’s force caused massive tremors within the Protection Barrier, it could not break through the final line of defense. Xuan Yue and Ah Dai could clearly see everything happening outside. Underneath the rampant destructive energy, swathes of forest were demolished. A large amount of dust and ash enveloped their Absolute Defense Barrier, preventing them from seeing the outside world. Xuan Yue continuously poured her Divine Energy into the Absolute Defense, controlling its intensity. It wasn’t until the defending energy had dispersed that she and Ah Dai used their own energies to create another protective shield around them. The shockwaves gradually faded away. With the Ring of Guardian’s Absolute Defense barring all impacts, it successfully protected Ah Dai and Xuan Yue from harm.
Feeling the energy fluctuations return to normal, Ah Dai and Xuan Yue burst out from the ashes. Seeing the expansive forest reduced to ashes, they both fell silent. Ah Dai has always had a special affection for forests, and his heart ached at the sight before him. The destruction of nature filled him with remorse, but what was done was done, they couldn’t turn back time.
Seeing the figures of Ah Dai and Xuan Yue, Zong Yue rushed to them urgently, asking, "Where are our team leaders? What happened here?"
Xuan Yue gave a disgruntled snort, "Those detestable skeletons provoked us for no reason, devastating this forest. Who knows where they are now? Probably turned into ashes like this forest."
Zong Yue panicked, exclaiming, "What? Our team leaders are..." The deputy leaders that came with Zong Yue drew their weapons, glaring at Ah Dai and Xuan Yue, ready to take action at any moment. The Four Skeletons were not only their team leaders but also their mentors. Over the years, every member of the Skeleton Mercenary Group has received guidance from them, resulting in a significant improvement in their strength. Upon hearing the news of the Four Skeleton’s deaths, they were all filled with rage.
Ah Dai slightly furrowed his brows, his True Qi burst forth, maintaining a white glow around them and said softly, "They have brought this upon themselves. But, your four team leaders might not be dead. Hurry up and look for them, they should be nearby." Amid the energy explosion, even though the Four Skeletons didn’t possess a super-defensive Divine Artifact like the Ring of Guardian, the power they released contained an immense energy. With the force of the shockwaves, they should have been able to neutralize some of the explosion’s power. Hence, Ah Dai believed that they had not died.
Zong Yue did not have time for revenge. He knew that if the Four Skeletons stood no chance against Ah Dai and Xuan Yue, they wouldn’t either. Now, his top priority was finding the four team leaders of the Skeleton Mercenary Group. As they began to search, Ah Dai’s initial anger gradually subsided. He sighed before turning to Xuan Yue, "Brother, how are you? Were you seriously injured?"
Xuan Yue shook her head, "I only underwent some shocks. That arrow from the Wind Skeleton was indeed powerful. I couldn’t even see it until it hit me. If it hadn’t been for the Ring of Guardian and the Phoenix’s Blood, I might have... Those skeletons were too overbearing. If we were weaker, we could have died at their hands. It would be better if they died, less of a nuisance."
Ah Dai shook his head and sighed, "Let’s drop it. They were just too competitive. The absolute defense of the Ring of Guardian is truly strong. It protected us at the critical moment. Otherwise, under such a strong impact, we could not have escaped injury." Looking at the seemingly weak white light protecting them earlier, Ah Dai subconsciously glanced at the Ring of Guardian on Xuan Yue’s hand.
"Ah! Over here." Zong Yue called out loudly. The members of the Skeleton Mercenary Group quickly gathered. They had found the bodies of the Four Skeletons in the ash. Ah Dai pulled Xuan Yue and landed behind Zong Yue. The Four Skeletons were in pitiful states, though Ah Dai could feel a faint hint of life from them, they were gravely injured. Blood Skull’s gray uniform had turned into a charred black, his golden hair was largely gone with what remained also charred to black, standing erect as a result of the electrocution. Wind Skeleton was in a similar state. As the most powerful among the four, he and Blood Skull protected Iron Skull and Ice Skull. Iron Skull was in a sorry state, his heavy armor was shattered at numerous places, his helmet lay to the side revealing his stern face, his hair, beard, and eyebrows were all charred black. Ice Skull had suffered the least damage among the four, as she was the youngest and the only female, others took most of the hits for her. However, she was still affected by the residual shock and lost consciousness. Her helmet fell off, revealing her seriously damaged silver armor and her golden hair, of which more than half had turned charred black, veiling her face. Her fair neck was visible and her body twitched slightly, apparently suffering agonizing pain even in unconsciousness.
