"Haa... haa."
Feixiao panted heavily, her entire body covered in wounds.
Behind her, the "Flying Aureus," symbolizing the blessing of the Reignbow, had suffered significant damage to its massive body and limbs under the offensive of "The Destruction."
In front of her stood the Cast Iron King. Although his furnace body also bore many cracks, the overall damage to this Lord Ravager was far less than that of the Reignbow Arbiter's Heavenly General before him.
This prick in front of her had quite the stockpile of Voidrangers stored inside him.
This meant that every time she wanted to exchange a move with him, Feixiao had to be drained of a significant amount of her state first.
Whirrr—clank.
The Cast Iron King emitted the roar of a steam creation, seemingly mocking the weakness of this Heavenly General.
Feixiao gritted her teeth, the taste of blood permeating her mouth.
Her gaze was fixed dead on the Cast Iron King, the fury in her eyes not diminishing in the slightest.
She hated it. She hated that she wasn't strong enough, hated that she didn't have the ability to avenge her soldiers!
If he were here... if he were here...
Feixiao detested her own weakness.
She thought countless times: if Leon were here, would all of this still have happened? No, it wouldn't.
If he were here, this farce would have ended the moment it began.
Feixiao forced herself to hold on, climbing the potential energy within her body up another magnitude!
But Leon couldn't be here.
The things he had to do concerned the lives of the entire galaxy; those were things only he could achieve!
A fog-like turbid breath was exhaled from her mouth.
Feixiao couldn't rely on him for everything; she had to rely on herself to solve things.
He was currently fighting a lone battle! Facing an "Aeon" alone... Feixiao didn't dare to imagine how great that pressure must be.
Looking back at herself? What did she look like right now!
No matter what, she could not drag him down any further!
"Soaring high without fall, victorious for ten thousand ages!"
Feixiao took a deep breath.
With a shout that resounded through the clouds, the "Flying Aureus," which had been trending toward exhaustion, instantly surged in momentum!
"I swear to the Reignbow!" she enunciated every word, her expression resolute. "The arrow of 'The Hunt' will definitely pierce your heart!"
Beyond Feixiao's side, the battles elsewhere were also undergoing their own changes.
Although three "Emanators" and many other reinforcements had arrived, the Coalition side was still trending toward a disadvantage overall.
The reason was simple: their lives were lives; if they were gone, they were truly gone, with no replacements. But the lives of that swarm of bugs and Voidrangers on the other side could hardly be counted as lives.
The latter were just consumables, the kind that could be replenished anytime, anywhere.
But they couldn't. One death meant one less combatant.
This war had been unfair from the very beginning.
"Is this the only extent of your power?"
Celenova fought Phainon to a draw, the former questioning the latter.
"Compared to that time, you are far behind."
She referred to the time when Phainon fought Zephyro. Only then could he be called the blazing sun of "The Destruction."
"If Zephyro were still here, the current you would not be worthy of his serious attention."
Phainon faced Celenova with cold eyes, not saying a word.
"If your ascension is only this much, then you cannot protect anything."
If Phainon could truly fully take over Iron Tomb's power, perhaps today's battle situation would have seen a different change. But unfortunately, there are no 'ifs' in this world.
The ascension of the blazing sun before her eyes was not pure; he had merely forced his way up using the Golden Blood.
After a round of exchange, Celenova had gained a rough understanding of this blazing sun's strength.
That he could circle with her for this long was already not easy.
As for taking a step further or something, he shouldn't even think about it; the current him couldn't do it.
Although the magnificence of sacrifice was there, Phainon was destined not to be like Leon, daring to command the sun and moon to change the sky.
"Have you won against me?"
Phainon spoke in a cold voice. "You have not yet defeated me, so how dare you assert that I cannot do it?"
As he said this, he imperceptibly stole a glance at the overall situation of the battlefield.
"Star-Shattering" had become a dead soul under Acheron's blade not long after she went all out.
This was not worth being surprised over.
Between "Emanators," even disregarding upper and lower limits, there are gaps within the same tier. When things are roughly equal, it comes down to the Path.
As mentioned before, "Emanators" are not as absolute as "Aeons."
In a situation where strength is roughly similar, it is not rare for a narrower Path to turn the tables and kill a broader Path.
But among them, there is one Path that should be considered an outlier.
Yes, it is precisely "The Nihility." This Path is in the top tier among the eighteen.
If one were to discuss which Path guarantees victory within the same tier, then "The Nihility" absolutely occupies a seat. Those who can make progress on this Path are all ruthless individuals, so it is only natural that their strength is a bit more robust.
Regrettably, even though Acheron was so capable, she struggled to salvage this crumbling sky.
Although after beheading "Star-Shattering," she immediately ran to help several other Heavenly Generals, letting Huaiyan team up with Jing Yuan while she took on "Lightfade" herself.
Due to the characteristics of "The Nihility," she was not suitable for teaming up; otherwise, it would be easy to affect friendly forces.
And after taking over "Lightfade," who had been drained of considerable state, although Acheron maintained the upper hand, she inevitably fell into a stalemate.
Acheron was not Leon; she could not kill seven "Emanators" in a row without panting.
She also had limits.
Having just killed one "Emanator," even if she wasn't injured, the physical and mental exhaustion was real and could not be erased.
It wasn't just her. In this environment of high-intensity consumption every moment, whose state among those present remained good?
Just like Robin, who was applying buffs for them. Whether it was her voice or the support efficacy she brought, it had already declined significantly compared to the beginning. Everyone surely felt this.
Singing for such a long time, with such high-intensity consumption... it was impossible for her to keep her state online forever.
The soldiers fighting desperately against the Swarm and Voidrangers weren't any better off.
Who wasn't covered in wounds, holding on with a single breath?
"No, seriously, what the hell is Herta doing?!"
The Wolf Lord of Punklorde complained with a voice that was already showing fatigue while facing the enemy.
"It's been so long, why is there no movement at all!"
Seriously, can Leon hurry up and exert some force? If this goes on, everyone is game over! Silver Wolf screamed internally.
Although it was true she liked playing high-difficulty games, this one was a bit too high-difficulty.
More importantly, this thing wasn't just high-difficulty; it was also extremely hard to cheat in!
The hacks Silver Wolf could use were truly insignificant before this difficulty. The Wolf Lord account was the highest cheat she could activate, and the result was it was basically useless!
Her hacks, against this high difficulty, were just at the NPC level.
Turning them on was the same as not turning them on.
She couldn't even beat those who didn't use hacks; the stat bloat was off the charts, bro.
Now they really needed the big brother with the instant-kill aimbot to come.
Without the big brother carrying us, how are we supposed to contend with this heaven-defying numerical inflation?!
Firefly annihilated the Swarm once again, thoughts surging in her heart as she listened to Silver Wolf's words.
So much time has passed, yet not a single movement.
Is it that the time has not yet arrived, or... did the two of them meet with an accident?
Firefly immediately stopped her thoughts, unwilling to continue thinking blindly.
She hoped it was the former, absolutely not the latter.
No matter what the situation was now, whether this battle ended in victory or defeat depended on the result from Leon's side.
If Leon also lost, then was there truly anyone left who could save everything?
Please, let nothing happen...
Firefly prayed for Leon from the bottom of her heart.
"Then let's continue."
Regarding Phainon's retort, Celenova replied indifferently.
"Let me see your limit. Can you really achieve what you said?"
"You will see."
Having said that, Phainon lifted Early Dawn and slashed toward Celenova!
In the past. Amber Era 1XXX.
During the Swarm Disaster.
"You should have said earlier that you kept a trump card."
Herta spoke grumpily.
Just now, she had learned from Leon that he had obtained the legacy of the Astral Express. Borrowing the ascension authority of "The Trailblaze," he had two chances to make a move.
Rather than the one time originally anticipated.
"This makes what I said just now sound like what?"
After Leon confessed, the more she thought about it, the more awkward she felt.
Leon expressed that it was nothing. "It's fine, I loved hearing it."
"Hehe, you'd better truly love hearing it."
After a small interlude, the two continued to wait for the moment to act.
At the moment when "The Voracity" Aeon, Oroboros, re-emerged, Leon formally witnessed in the past this last remaining Leviathan of the galaxy.
After "Tayzzyronth" ascended, He did not conceal His desires in the slightest.
Breeding everywhere, leading His Swarm to rush toward the universe.
And in this process, He happened to encounter "Oroboros." When the insect tide was spreading at its peak, this "Voracity" Aeon appeared directly and blocked the road.
"Oroboros" opened the giant maw beneath His body, devouring the offspring of "Tayzzyronth" completely in one bite, taking countless worlds along with them.
Just like that, He happily enjoyed a buffet.
It had to be said, this "Propagation" and "Voracity" were truly a pair of wretched lovebirds.
No cap, truly a wretched pair.
Among the eighteen "Aeons," including their corresponding Paths, it really was "Tayzzyronth" and "Oroboros" who were the closest.
One loved to breed, one loved to eat. Propagation and Voracity were both instincts; they both had their own species, and their lower bodies were both unique mount-styles.
Simply a perfect match.
If nothing else, just based on that last point, it would be impossible for there to be no commonalities in their essence.
Among the eighteen "Aeons," have you seen any others whose appearances were similar to each other?
Either they were directly humanoid, or they were directly not human.
The former included: "Nanook," "Xipe," "Yaoshi," and so on.
The latter included: "HooH," "IX," "Qlipoth," and so on.
Only the appearances of "Tayzzyronth" and "Oroboros" corresponded everywhere.
"Lan" didn't count; He was a serious centaur, while these two were neither human nor ghost.
Leon looked at the scene before him, saying nothing.
He only silently protected Herta behind him when "Oroboros" and "Tayzzyronth" made their moves.
The confrontation between "Aeons"—the mere shockwaves were enough to directly kill most "Emanators."
Not to mention Herta was an Emanator of "The Erudition"; her dharma body was as brittle as paper.
If that "Trailblaze" status hadn't yet completely dissipated, Leon probably would have been unable to withstand it a bit. It really wouldn't do if he didn't risk his body to protect Herta.
Facts proved that Leon was right.
Influenced by the two "Aeons," just as Herta felt the pressure explode and was about to speak up to ask Leon to help block it, the pressure disappeared directly.
Coming without a shadow, going without a trace.
Replacing it was Leon's back, shielding her immediately without needing to be told.
Herta looked at him sheltering her from the wind and rain, pursing her lips.
She wondered, was she dragging him down a bit?
Herta had come for the truth.
As a scholar, she came for the truth of why exactly "Tayzzyronth" hadn't died completely.
And for the whereabouts of "Oroboros."
She was satisfied coming here as a scholar, but as Leon's assistant, should she really have come?
Or rather, was there really a necessity for her to come?
What could she do for Leon? Aside from some introductions, it seemed there was nothing else, right?
Not only could she do nothing, but she also made him spend more mental effort to look after her...
No, since she was here, she was here. Instead of thinking about this here, it was better to think about how exactly to help him.
Herta took a deep breath. She never engaged in internal friction, because that had no meaning.
However, she did feel she owed him two words: "...Thank you."
The voice of thanks was very small, as if she didn't intend to let Leon hear it from the start.
"You actually know how to say thank you?"
But Leon's vision and hearing were both top-notch.
Herta's action of just reaching out to grab the tail of his clothes to increase her sense of security paused at these words.
"You heard wrong. I didn't say anything just now."
She was never a woman who liked to reveal her soft side to others.
Hearing this, Leon just silently moved to the side, seemingly planning to move away from in front of her.
"I said it, I said it!"
Seeing this, Herta immediately admitted defeat!
That hand which had originally stopped finally grabbed the corner of his clothes in the end.
"What did you say?"
Leon stopped his movements, looking at her askance.
"I! SAID! THANK! YOU!"
Herta bit her lower lip tightly, her voice much louder than before.
Since the person had already heard it, she might as well smash the pot and thank him openly and brightly.
"Then say no more, sister. I give it to you."
Leon withdrew his gaze with satisfaction.
Little Herta, I don't like your arrogance ('tsun'), but I like your dere ('jiao') very much.
While the two conversed, the struggle between "Tayzzyronth" and "Oroboros" did not stop for even a second because of this.
"Oroboros" stood out at this time; for the galaxy, He should have been a savior.
But unfortunately, He was not only not a savior, but instead the beginning of a heightened nightmare.
The confrontation between "The Propagation" and "The Voracity" directly affected two-thirds of the inhabited areas of the Universe.
Countless planets perished thanks to this.
"Oroboros" did not save the common people; instead, He greatly increased the casualties of the entire Swarm Disaster.
Seeing this scene, Herta found it hard to imagine just how much pressure Leon was withstanding to guard in front of her.
This kindness, she couldn't repay it all!
"No, something is strange."
Herta noticed some points that were amiss.
____
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