Chapter 1027: 1027. Battlefield

Daniel stood in front of an army of heroic cultivators above what had once been a poisonous swamp. Faith was at some distance from him, and hundreds of Elders floated behind her.

The alliance had deployed both armies after the usual scuffle among the powerhouses, and the experts of the Elbas family had flown out to face them.

Daniel and Faith looked at the massive army of the Royals before exchanging a worried glance. As leaders of their respective troops, their mission was to contain the losses and come out victorious from the conflict. Yet, the Elbas family had deployed more heroic cultivators than their groups put together.

That strange phenomenon had happened for a while by then. The Royals would progressively increase the number of heroic assets deployed in each battle, making it seem as if there was no limit to their power.

Faith cracked a quick smile before moving her eyes on her designed opponent. June stood among the Royals wearing her usual orange robes, but a large hat on her head hid her expression.

June had started to wear that inscribed item a few years after the beginning of the battles. Her power surges had become rarer since she had started using it, but she still experienced them every once in a while.

Faith couldn't help but feel sorry for her friend. Since the events with Ravaging Demon, all the heroic forces of the Elbas family had remained inside its domains, unable to join political meetings and compelled to become stronger.

June had never met her friends in those years, and the enmity between the Royals and the alliance stopped any negotiation or neutral event. She had been alone for almost two hundred and fifty years.

'This wouldn't have lasted for so long if you were here,' Daniel thought as he saw Faith's actions and turned his head toward the enemy army. Noah's figure appeared in his mind, and he could almost imagine him coming up with a reckless plan that allowed the Hive to win instantly and seize some benefits.

Daniel's mindset had changed after Ravaging Demon's sudden attack killed Amos Udye. He had understood the reason why Noah craved power with such intensity, and he had begun to desire it too.

However, he was different from Noah. He couldn't see himself as a lone existence. His light was a pure beacon that could show the path to those that chose to follow him.

That was one of the reasons why Elder Julia had put him in charge of the army. Daniel had exceptional leadership skills, and he could take the best out of his troops. Moreover, he valued their lives, which made him a better captain than Noah.

Still, he lacked the sheer power that Noah could express, but that wasn't his fault. Noah was the best cultivator in history. Any comparison would be unfair.

"Attack!" Daniel shouted, and Faith echoed his order. The alliance's armies shot toward the troops of the Royals and engaged in a fierce battle as multicolored lights filled the sky.

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Some weeks before, in an area north of the new continent, Noah's group came out of the sea, and the rebels remained speechless when they saw the sun.

Noah wasn't in the mood to waste time. His mind hurt too much, and he was barely stopping the cracks on his sphere from expanding.

Skully's moved her attention between the environment and the lizard carried by Noah. Her hunger and happiness for her return fought inside her to take the spot of predominant feeling.

Noah became aware of his position in a few seconds and pointed toward the new continent's northern coast before flying in that direction. The rebels wanted to stare at the blue sky, but they promptly followed him for fear of remaining alone in that foreign world.

No one spoke during the flight, but surprised gasps resounded among the group as the coastline became visible. Noah quickly adjusted his direction to avoid the Elbas family's domain and fly over the mountain chain to return to the Hive.

The Elders of the Council couldn't miss his return. Noah and Skully's auras were enough to warn everyone in the nearby territories that powerful existences were flying above them.

Yet, no one dared to interrupt them. The Elders recognized Noah, but any desire to greet him vanished when they saw the huge lizard hanging from his grasp by its tail.

Noah's space-ring was full and couldn't contain anything else. He had even left most of the black sky behind because of that issue.

He could only carry the rank 6 creature with his hands. The effort didn't affect him, but those who witnessed that event remained speechless and grabbed their inscribed notebooks after he went away.

The news spread quickly, but its details sounded unrealistic. The Demon Prince of the Hive had returned, carrying the corpse of a rank 6 magical beasts with him, and followed by an army that featured a being in the sixth rank!

Those who heard the news from their notebooks thought that the witnesses had suffered from some unorthodox technique's after-effects. However, as more and more Elders began to report the same event, the higher-ups felt forced to investigate the situation.

It was needless to say that their reaction was the same and the others. Noah's uncaring attitude as he carried the lizard left them so astonished that they almost overlooked the powerhouse flying together with him.

Noah mostly ignored the glances in his direction, but the rebels began to feel uneasy. They had never witnessed such incredible scenery, and it felt unreal to see so many cultivators shooting in the sky to stare at them.

'Why are there so few of them?' Noah thought as he proceeded forward. He felt glad that no one was interrupting his return, but he understood that something was off.

He had crossed most of the Council's domain by then, but no welcoming party had arrived, and the Hive had yet to contact him. The only conclusion he could reach was that everyone was busy with something else.

Then, his innate awareness perceived the shockwaves released in the battle above the eastern coast. Noah sensed the sheer amount of power deployed on that battlefield, and he changed direction after giving a few orders to the rebels.

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A blinding white halo shone around Daniel as he floated across the battlefield. His light turned every spell aimed at him into "Breath", and purified the tissues of any cultivator in its range until only their bones remained.

He appeared invincible in that form, but the other Elders struggled due to the high number of cultivators on the enemy side. All their opponents even had a series of luxurious inscribed items that made them hard to kill.

'We might have to retreat,' Daniel thought as he inspected the battlefield, but a violent aura suddenly covered the entire region and forced the fights to a stop.

When the cultivators turned toward the source of that pressure, they saw a young man with furrowed brows carrying a giant lizard.