The old men looked at each other upon hearing the scout's words, "Who could it be? Controlling a hundred Nascent Soul Beasts at the same time?"
They shook their heads and committed to silence. It didn't matter who it was, rather what they wanted.
As the Magical Beasts grew closer, some that had fought in previous battles recognized their unique shape and the dark glow emanating from their bodies. Their sixteen-meter-tall humanoid figures resembled that of red and black hedgehogs and their claws extended over a meter long, dragging across the ground as they walked toward the group.
"They're all Shadogs!" someone exclaimed in horror.
The previous Beast Tide only numbered about a thousand Magical Beasts, but among them were ten Shadogs. They wreaked havoc across the entire battlefield and even came close enough to the City to be engaged by the ballistae.
And now someone was leading over a hundred?!? Could it be a Soul Formation level enemy?
As everyone grew nervous, the Shadogs approached the one-kilometer mark from the battlefield and stopped. The man's figure became more visible at this moment, but spectators were disappointed to find that they could only make out a black cloak and nothing else.
The man broke away from the Shadogs and flew towards the walls where the higher-ups were present. A few Spells were launched in his direction, but they were all countered by his Spirit Aura.
"Stop attacking." the higher-ups ordered the Cultivators below, who had no choice but to listen.
The man raised his hood a little so his mouth could be seen, which was formed into a light smile. Next to William, Carl's clenched his fists so hard that he started to shake. He didn't reveal anything on his face, but William could tell that Carl was furious.
"What's the matter, Carl?" William whispered.
"Nothing."
"I see..." William didn't press any further. He looked up top, where the man was engaging in conversation with the higher-ups from Blue Moon City. He wondered if the battle was over, or if it had just begun.
His Cultivation Talent told him that the cloaked man was in the Tribulation Transcendence Realm, having passed three Tribulations. Despite that, William had an odd feeling that the man was more powerful than his own Realm suggested.
If they had to fight with this person, William knew that not even he would stand a chance. The best he could do is run.
Only a few minutes passed before the man suddenly turned around, waving his hand in an exaggerated manner while the cloak flowed in the wind. He looked down on the group of Cultivators below and spoke.
"Your current plight is not because of bad luck, nor is it the Heavens punishing you. No, this problem has a source!" he started.
"We are descended from the Heavens; we are the chosen ones! We are meant to restore the world to the way it's supposed to be, where Yin and Yang meet, and balance is restored!
While your Sect Masters and the Nobles are picking their noses in their offices, we are the ones doing the work. We are the reason why this chaotic Cultivation World has been peaceful for so long. Supreme Left betrayed us, and even he won't help us with the Beast Tides. He only cares about himself and his family, not the World."
The statement about Supreme Left's supposed betrayal was a complete lie, but it had the intended effect. Many Cultivators seriously considered joining Retribution, to make real change in the World and stop the Beast Tides once and for all.
A blonde youth holding a large staff embedded with many gemstones appeared from a portal in the distance. It was Supreme Left, and he was heading directly towards Tenebris at a speed that William could barely track.
The other Cultivators couldn't see anything, due to the manner of Supreme Left's concealment method and his great speed. They only saw Tenebris slightly turn his head to look in a certain direction.
Before Supreme Left could get in range of Tenebris, the man's figure suddenly burst into smoke and disappeared. As the smoke cleared up, Tenebris spoke one more time.
"If you want to join Retribution, take the portal."
A massive portal over a hundred meters tall and equally as wide opened up in the middle of the battlefield. While Supreme Left was investigating the portal for traps with an Artifact, a few dozen Cultivators passed through the portal, followed by over a hundred more that were quickly forming a long line.
Among the group was Jenny, whose long black hair swayed back and forth as her figure approached the portal. Behind her was Briar, who had snuck into the battle despite his Cultivation only being in the Foundation Establishment Realm.
Despite his status as a Noble, it seemed Briar had a few qualms with the current situation of the World. His eyes were unwavering as he grew ever closer to the portal, as if he was possessed.
William used the Space Element and teleported next to both of them, then teleported a few kilometers away to a random part of the Foam Desert with one in each hand.
"What the fu- " Jenny's vision blurred for a second from the teleportation, but she couldn't figure out who had done it.
William had already teleported away a second time and returned with Carl, who had already stored his Magical Beasts. He sat down on the ground and looked at the two people he hadn't seen in a long time.
"You're the healer Yuming, right? What's your problem, bringing us here so suddenly? I don't know you!" Jenny shouted in anger.
Briar felt the same way. Other than recognizing his great talent, Briar had no clue why this Yuming would suddenly bring him away from the portal that he was about to go into.
"Do you really want to join Retribution?" William asked.
"Huh? What does this have to do with anything?" Jenny asked.
William changed his voice to sound like his old self, then spoke again, "It's me."