Chapter 23: Chaotic Battle
The central area of the Atonement Heights.
Rumbling and whistling sounds continued to ring out as roots of soul vines shot up from underground like writhing claws. However, they could not stop the figure shrouded in rising black smoke, especially since he had nearly a hundred demon warriors behind him.
"Lord, I will not disappoint you this time, unless I die here."
A demonic figure wreathed in black smoke spoke. His specific features were unclear, only a pair of pitch-black horns and eyes that seemed to have flames burning within them were visible.
"Kill. Leave no one alive."
The black smoke demon practically ground out these words through clenched teeth. He pointed his flame spear forward, and the demon warriors behind him began advancing toward the central area.
Were the demons' opponents Saint Zacha? Not exactly. From start to finish, their opponents were the Feather Race. Both sides simply hadn't revealed their identities. This way, dying in the Atonement Heights could only be considered a private grudge, not a conflict between two races. The black smoke demon understood this, which was why he ordered: kill them all, leave no one alive.
The black smoke demon was named Ulysses. He had failed here once before. Originally, he thought this would be a lifelong stain on his record, but that lord had given him a second chance.
'Ulysses, I believe in you. I always have, and I still do.'
Crack, crack, crack...
Ulysses clenched his fists, and his eyes seemed to truly ignite with demonic flames. He could die in battle here, but he could not betray that elder's trust a second time.
...
Meanwhile, a woman with a cold, stern face, draped in a three-colored feathered cloak, stepped into the central area. Behind her followed nearly a hundred men and women in various attire. Unlike the rough-looking demon warriors, these were all handsome men and beautiful women. Their posture suggested they weren't here for a bloody fight, but more like attending a beauty pageant.
"Leave no one alive."
It was almost the same command, but this woman named Can Yu was even more direct. Her orders were simple: seize the Soul Fruit for their clan's Young Miss. That was all. Any obstacles along the way would be met with lethal force.
In the rear courtyard area.
"Unexpectedly lively."
Su Xiao lowered his binoculars. The central area was gradually descending into chaos. The Demon Race, Feather Race, and Assimilators were locked in a three-way melee. The Assimilators were the most numerous, almost surrounding the Soul Altar. The Demon Race and Feather Race, however, didn't start fighting immediately. They both focused on clearing the Assimilators first. As for Saint Zacha, he was nowhere to be seen.
"So? Make a move now?"
Sha, whose face was still somewhat pale, spoke. Although she was injured, she wasn't afraid to face Saint Zacha. At least, she wasn't lacking in spirit. In Sha's words, scum like Saint Zacha? When she was in her prime, she could kick seven or eight of them to death with one foot. Just a little piece of trash.
Setting aside Sha's confidence in her own strength, Su Xiao was ready to charge into the central area right now. The current situation was chaotic enough. If the Demon Race and Feather Race killed all the Assimilators, things would actually become unfavorable.
"Let's move now."
"Just charge straight in?"
This time, it was Sha who was a bit surprised. She didn't expect Su Xiao to be so decisive.
"That's right."
As he spoke, Su Xiao drew the longsword from his waist and quickly rushed toward the central area.
...
Central area, outside the valley.
Compared to the area near the Soul Altar inside the valley, the scene outside the valley was already like a Biohazard scenario. Assimilators were leaping down from the cliff face, while below the cliff was a small squad of demon warriors.
This was a five-man team. Two were in front, three in the back. Any Assimilator that came within a few meters of them was cut down with their cold weapons.
Pfft.
A heavy greatsword swung through the air. The victim was an Assimilator with pale pupils. It was cleaved in two from the shoulder, letting out an extremely piercing shriek.
Despite such a severe injury, this Assimilator didn't immediately lose its mobility. The 'blood vessels' inside its body burst out, shooting towards the nearest demon warrior like a volley of arrows.
These weren't blood vessels at all; they were clearly the roots of some kind of plant. Although Assimilators appeared to be living creatures, they were actually closer to plants.
With a crackling sound, the blood-vessel-like roots exploded. Orange-red flames rose, incinerating the Assimilator into ashes. It was demonic flame.
This proved that Assimilators weren't just cannon fodder. Each one had decent combat ability and strong survivability. Apart from being afraid of fire and radiation, they had no other obvious weaknesses.
However, this still couldn't stop the Demon Race's advance. They moved in five-man teams, not fast, but steadily pushing forward, leaving a trail of Assimilator corpses in their wake.
On the cliff face, Su Xiao dug one hand into the rock, dodging a tentacle that shot towards his face while simultaneously driving his blade through an Assimilator's head. Blue electric light flickered, and the Assimilator's body immediately went limp.
Rip! Sha tore an Assimilator in half with her bare hands. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Su Xiao casually flick the corpse off his longsword. She couldn't help but snort. Azure Steel Shadow energy was just too convenient.
Lilith hadn't joined up with the Demon Race. This naive female warrior probably still didn't know that what the Demon Race was doing right now was fighting for her to get the Soul Fruit.
Bubu Wang wasn't near Su Xiao. This mutt had already infiltrated the enemy camp and was currently beneath the Soul Altar, which was the growth bed for the soul vines. The Ash Sprout had also been moved there.
Ascending all the way, Su Xiao soon reached the top of the mountain he was on. Nearly half of this mountain was hollowed out. In fact, the entire underground of the central area had been almost completely excavated by the Ancestor's forces.
A gale swept through. Su Xiao looked down at the valley below. The U-shaped valley was densely packed with Assimilators. At the center of the valley, a faint outline of an altar could be seen. The center of the altar was currently sinking inward, and roots of soul vines were extending out, writhing irregularly, clearly having lost most of their combat effectiveness.
"Are we going to have to kill these hundred thousand or so one by one?"
Sha's mouth twitched. This tough woman wasn't the rigid type of powerhouse; she often joked around.
"Of course not."
Su Xiao hesitated slightly. In the current situation, one Apollo could solve the problem. The only issue was that the hatred level would easily max out.
Su Xiao was certain that if he threw an Apollo now, Saint Zacha would definitely notice him, and the hatred level would absolutely skyrocket. Remember, Su Xiao had already thrown four Apollos in Saint Zacha's territory, back and forth. Saint Zacha's losses were as follows:
179 ancestral tombs (turned to ashes).
270,000 Assimilators (vaporized).
Part of the soul vine roots destroyed.
35 underground palaces (partially collapsed, most irreparable).
...
What was certain now was that once Saint Zacha found out that the Apollos came from Su Xiao, the soul vines, the Soul Fruit—none of that would matter anymore. The person who bombed his ancestral graves had to die!
After weighing the options for a moment, Su Xiao decided to clear the field as quickly as possible. The Ash Sprout was also a good item. Neither the Demon Race nor the Feather Race would ignore it. If it fell into the Demon Race's hands, it would be okay. But if it fell into the Feather Race's hands, all of Su Xiao's previous efforts would be wasted.
An Apollo appeared in Su Xiao's hand. He took a deep breath and tossed the Apollo into the valley.