Chapter 992: The Heaviest Price
The other aliens found it shockingly difficult to understand that Hong Xi and Zhang Hanxiang were acting in this fashion precisely because they trusted Zhang Lie.
Zhang Lie had emphasized to Hong Xi to trust her own judgment, rather than to be led by the nose by the other superior worlds' forces, and Hong Xi had kept Zhang Lie's advice in mind.
On the other hand, the stubborn aliens continued to be entrenched in their position.
"These fellows—they're completely unwilling to listen to us! Look at the state of our battle lines!"
In truth, the formation of the forces had already been disrupted by the barrage of purple lasers even before Hong Xi's departure.
Zhang Lie and the other commanders' actions bought Nightdemon a bit of time, but in the end, he was unable to hold out any longer. The Shining Trapezohedron was forced back.
The ground quaked and split open. The coffin-carrier, who had been pressed into the ground, clambered out of it. The black, skeletal arm from within the coffin snatched at the purple laser.
Black energy wafted from the bone in a continuous stream. Struck by the laser, the bone seemed to transform, as though it were about to come back to life. It was surrounded by black energy that formed muscles around the bone.
The arm of black energy grabbed a hold of the purple pillar of light as space shattered around it. A storm of black and purple emerged from the void, and the aliens were forced to shield their eyes from the blinding light.
The black energy fought against the purple light, stabilizing the Shining Trapezohedron.
The aliens watching the scene all cheered.
"Our commanders are amazing!"
"Those rascals—with our commanders around, there's nothing we need to fear!"
"I told you all, didn't I? They're blind, useless commanders!"
Upon seeing the coffin-carrier block the purple laser, the aliens all cheered, as though victory were within sight.
"What do those women know about commanding an army? Who appointed them to that position? They must be crazy!"
"Unblockable? Our commanders have just blocked the attack!"
"Once the violet laser runs out of energy, it'll be our turn to counter-attack!"
The purple light was so intense that the bone forming the black arm began to crack—it boasted so much energy that it was beyond the level of a superior king to handle. As the black energy dissipated and the cracks propagated through the bone, the black skeleton seemed to be on the verge of falling apart.
Nightdemon turned his head and commanded, "Run! Disperse!"
Th-This wasn't going as planned!?The aliens' cheers suddenly halted. They could tell that something was amiss, too.
"Shouldn't we start running?"
"We should trust in our commanders... Start running!"
However, the skeleton crumbled more quickly than expected. By the time the aliens reacted, it was already too late.
The violet light washed over the coffin-carrier, whose resistance to the light was finite. It could shrug off the lasers from the ordinary death spirit battleships, but this thick pillar of light, with tens of thousands of times more energy, was completely different.
The upper half of its body was evaporated by the light. After losing the support of the skeleton, the Shining Trapezohedron was also on the verge of giving out. Nightdemon was unable to give the aliens more time to react; the Shining Trapezohedron was sent flying by the intensity of the light.
The solar corps and the frost spirits joined hands, combining a solar storm and icy blizzard, golden light and silver snow—but against the violet light, it was all meaningless. Their resistance succumbed in the blink of an eye.
Zhang Lie, Nightdemon, and the other commanders were already starting to flee when the aliens finally came to their senses. This was proof that no one could hold the violet light back.
Zhang Lie noticed approvingly that the Zongming and draconian worlds' forces had already retreated. He didn't care about the aliens from these other worlds—as warriors, they had to be prepared to die.
The violet light washed over the battlefield, and the aliens were unable to do anything to stop it.
Compared to the violet light, which could shatter even space, the aliens were powerless weaklings.
Only then, moments before their death, did they realize how foolish it was to hand their lives over to even someone as strong as Nightdemon. They finally understood Hong Xi's words, but their understanding had come too late.
If only they had reacted five minutes earlier! But instead, they had clung steadfastly and stubbornly to their conservative opinions and instead mocked Hong Xi for her actions.
In the end, they paid the heaviest price they could—their lives.
The void shook as the annihilating violet laser struck the battlefield, shattering the ground. Even boulders were vaporized by the beam, let alone the aliens within.
A huge crater was left in the ground, so deep and wide a mountain could be inverted into it. Within the crater, remnant purple light flashed and glimmered. Not all of it had dissipated into the air.
Fortunately, the Zongming and draconian forces had already retreated far away from the battlefield, and they were unaffected by the devastation. Everyone turned toward Hong Xi and Zhang Hanxiang in gratitude.
If not for their command, they would all have perished amidst the violet laser's destruction. Hong Xi and Zhang Hanxiang had saved them all.
Hong Xi couldn't help but recall Zhang Lie's advice. If not for her steadfast belief in Zhang Lie, Hong Xi wouldn't have insisted on following her own judgment—and if Hong Xi had saved the aliens, then Zhang Lie had saved Hong Xi.
Despite her close shave, Hong Xi wasn't elated at all. The situation didn't look promising. Most of the aliens, stubborn as they were, had perished where they stood. At least half the forces had fallen, and many were heavily injured. Only about a fifth were still in fighting condition, most of whom included the Zongming and draconian worlds' forces.
The coffin-carrier and gray monstrosities of the unclean world had been destroyed by the violet light, leaving behind only Zhang Lie, Nightdemon, the skiving Wilbow, and the weak frost spirit commander.
Their impending victory had quickly turned into an impending loss—the only consolation was that Zhang Lie was present, and he could very well turn the tides of the battle.
After shooting out the violet laser, the flagship grew dim, as though the laser had taken all the resources it possessed. Evidently, the intensity of the light, which even Nightdemon couldn't block, wasn't an attack that could be used at will.
Nightdemon shuddered. "The death spirits might not have a second fighter on the level of a superior king, but their weaponry is off the charts. We can't underestimate them." He peered at the remaining forces, only to find that the Zongming and draconian worlds' forces had survived almost intact. "Looks like you have a good subordinate!"
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