As Zouren turned to see who was behind the attack, he was greeted by a hail of arrows that curved up over the nearby hill and momentarily blotted out the sky.
The next moment, the entire area was showered by waves of arrows as if it were raining in the skies above.
…
The rain of arrows continued nonstop for ten seconds straight before coming to a halt.
By the time the arrows stopped raining down, several of those from the ancient races were wounded or had already collapsed.
What was surprising was that the mortals in the area had somehow walked away completely unscathed despite being caught up in the middle of the widespread attack.
If it was just a few people, then it could only be attributed to their luck. However, for every mortal present to have escaped unharmed—without a doubt, it was by design.
During the time of the raining arrows, a new small structure had appeared near the lake.
A bundle of trees with thick trunks had emerged from the ground and twisted around one another to create a single spiraling structure.
The outside of the tree was currently riddled with countless arrows as its twisted shape unraveled and the trees sunk back into the earth.
“It would seem some people need to be taught a proper lesson,” Luxia said with a lovely smile; however, her expression did not match the cold look and killing intent in her eyes.
Just before the arrows struck, Luxia used her nature magic to create a strong barrier around herself, Zouren, and Agromin. As for the members of the ancient races and other residents of this Secret Realm—she cared nothing of their fate.
“Huh? How are they all unscathed? And here I thought they would make our jobs a lot easier. Ah, well. Hey, at least these ancient guys are a bit sturdy.” Agromin said as he swept his gaze across the mortals, most of whom were cowering in fear.
“Hmph, most of them are just a bunch of useless things that we were stuck with. If they die, they can only blame their own weakness. It’s not our job to babysit them.” Zouren commented.
“Now now, while I certainly understand your outlook, it would not look well if we were to return alone. Besides, there are still a few dependable ones, wouldn’t you agree?” Luxia said as she glanced over at a close-by group that consisted of four individuals from the ancient races.
These individuals were some of the few who managed to emerge from the rain of arrows without a scratch on them. In addition, the aura each one of them gave off was no less than that of Maragos, the anzeyta death warrior that Izroth faced back in the Ancient Wilderness.
Zeeeut!
Out of nowhere, one of the mortals by the lake vanished without a trace.
Zeeeut! Zeeeut!
Not long after, another pair of mortals disappeared. Soon enough, the disappearance of the mortals started to increase at an alarming rate!
“Audacious! You want to mess with our master’s sacrifice?!” One of the six powerful individuals from the ancient races spoke up.
It was a man who stood just above two meters tall and protruding from the top of his head were two mighty horns. He had a large muscular frame and his skin was more like the hide of a beast than actual flesh.
Name: Keeper of the Ninth Gate, Vagelrio(???)
Level: ???
Vagelrio was a member of the fierce Megada ancient race. And, while those of his race were not well known for their intelligence, they admired and followed the strong. This made Vagelrio and others of his race perfect candidates for the pillars, who ruled with strength as their core.
“The master’s orders must be carried out!” Vagelrio said as he removed the heavy battle axe from his back and brandished it using one hand.
Then, the next moment, Vagelrio swung down with an incredible force, causing the earth to fracture where his battle axe struck.
“Ahhhhh!”
“Have mercy!”
“Great deity, have mercy!”
The mortals in the path of Vagelrio’s attack cried out; however, it was too late.
Vagelrio’s attack washed over them, immediately reaping their lives in the process.
When the mortals perished under his battle axe, something bizarre happened. A white yet dim orb of light left each of their disintegrating bodies and floated towards the lake filled with black liquid—as if it were being called to it.
“Monster!” A voice abruptly sounded from above.
Swoosh!
All of a sudden, a figure descended rapidly from the sky as a sharp point rushed out at Vagelrio!
Bang! Crrrrrck!
Vagelrio raised his battle axe to intercept the attack as the ground beneath him shattered from the pressure.
The sharp point belonged to a spear, which was currently wielded by one of the celestials who were a part of Izroth’s group. And, just like Isylo, they were one of the few celestials who did not participate in the wager.
However, unlike Isylo, along with Astratis, they were one of the only three legendary realm experts in Izroth’s group.
It was a woman with snow-white hair that fell down to her ankles; however, this hair was currently tied up neatly and resembled a long tail. She possessed a pair of crystal clear blue eyes. And, at the moment, these eyes were locked onto Vagelrio.
Name: Celestial of Ripples, Kyamakri(???)
Level: 0
Kyamakri was different from most celestials when it came to her stance towards mortals. Just like Astratis, she believed that it was their duty as celestials to protect the mortals of this world and ensure that entities like the pillars never emerge again.
Seeing Vagelrio use his power to slaughter helpless mortals right before her eyes—how could Kyamakri sit still any longer?
“You wish to oppose the master’s will? Your life is not enough!” Vagelrio roared as his strength exploded outward.
But, Kyamakri was not pushed back. Instead, a rippling wave formed next to Vagelrio as caused his strength to mysteriously diminish.
“She couldn’t sit back after all. It’s not as planned, but… I guess we have no choice…! Attack!” Tox’s voice echoed. But, it was not out loud. Instead, Tox relayed his message via the mental channel.
As soon as Tox gave the order, several celestials emerged out of thin air all throughout the battlefield and immediately launched an attack on any nearby enemies!
“Oh? Where did these guys come from?” Agromin frowned as the unknown foes suddenly appeared.
“Does it matter? Since they want to interfere, their lives are no longer their own to keep.” Zouren scoffed.
“…How impolite of me. Since our guests have given us such a warm greeting, we should return the favor.” Luxia stated as she held her hand out towards the earth.
“Nature Magic: Great Forest Return.” The instant those words left Luxia’s mouth, in the distance behind the hill, a single tree sprouted from the ground. And, in the blink of an eye, this tree grew at an abnormal rate, shooting towards the sky!
Soon, a similar phenomenon began to occur within the surrounding area as trees sprouted out in a perfectly circular ring.
By the time the last tree rose from the earth, it was as if a great forest had been brought into existence.
Each tree stood more roughly 120 meters tall and grew flawlessly next to one another in a way that created a natural barricade. The trunks of the trees were also incredibly thick and emitted faint yet terrifying magic energy.
“With this, there will be nowhere left to run,” Luxia stated.
“Good.” A voice abruptly emerged from behind Luxia.
The next moment, a stream of cherry blossoms fell in front of Luxia’s eyes.
When Luxia witnessed this sight, her eyes widened in shock. However, immediately after the brief moment of surprise, Luxia’s killing intent seemed to soar to great heights.
“You-” But, before Luxia could open her mouth to speak, tens of thousands of cherry blossoms began to gather around her as the trephasia princess became trapped inside a large dome of cherry blossoms!
“Scatter!” Zouren roared as he rushed over to the dome of cherry blossoms as a massive wave of energy gathered around his fist. He wanted to break it from the outside!
Swoosh!
Zouren swung his fist towards the dome of cherry blossoms; however, he felt a cold chill run down his spine that caused him to instinctively redirect his attack to his back!
Bang!
Zouren’s fist collided with something solid as a look of disbelief appeared on his face.
‘Oh? He blocked it?’
“It’s you…!” Zouren grit his teeth as a look of anger formed on his face.
“It’s a bit rude to interfere in the personal matter of others. But, if you want someone to fight, I will keep you company.” Izroth stated with a carefree expression as Sword of the Storm was pressed against Zouren’s fist.
Truthfully, Izroth was a little surprised that Zouren was able to block his upgraded Sword of the Storm with his bare hands. But, Izroth soon discovered that something was off about the energy around Zouren’s hand.
‘This energy…. What is it?’
