To Sylvia, Phantylia's current form very much resembled what one might call a "third phase" in a video game.
It was that same state where a golden Abundance energy veiled a pitch-black body.
But truth be told, Sylvia had released less than thirty percent of the power she was channeling from the greatsword.
Phantylia, however, believed her own attempts had finally begun to unlock the sword's secrets.
That was why she had managed to reclaim her power.
It was, after all, her own power of Destruction, coupled with the Abundance energy belonging to the Ambrosial Arbor.
Both were intimately connected to Phantylia in her current state.
So, even though it came from the greatsword, Phantylia found controlling and wielding this power now came with effortless ease.
"Is this some kind of game?! How does she have a third phase?!"
March 7th yelled in exasperation as she fought the dark lotuses, while Stelle beside her nodded in solemn agreement.
The enhancement of Phantylia's power had also strengthened these dark lotuses.
The pressure on them suddenly grew heavy.
BOOM—!!!
A dark-golden lotus bloomed within a massive palm and smashed down savagely upon the long blade of the Lightning-Lord!
Amidst the violent explosion and deafening roar, it actually managed to block all of the Lightning-Lord's attacks.
Simultaneously, her other hand gripped the longsword tightly, swinging it towards Dan Heng and Jing Yuan.
She forcibly repelled both of them, crumbling their offensive momentum.
In this state, Phantylia could truly be said to have taken the first, rudimentary step in merging the powers of Destruction and Abundance.
The step she had been unable to complete before due to insufficient energy was now fulfilled by the power fed back from the greatsword.
Once Phantylia's power broke through to a certain threshold, this crude application of the merged power was achieved as naturally as water finding its course.
Consequently, the pressure on Jing Yuan grew even greater.
But it seemed he could still hold on.
Sylvia controlled the power output from the greatsword, not releasing any more for now.
Her goal was merely to use this to disrupt Phantylia, creating a suitable opening at the critical moment.
This would allow Jing Yuan to sever Phantylia's connection to the Ambrosial Arbor.
She didn't actually want Phantylia to brutally pummel Jing Yuan and Dan Heng.
Though things were leaning that way a bit now.
Because of Phantylia's sudden power boost, neither Jing Yuan, Dan Heng, nor even Welt dared to hold back any longer.
Their attacks grew increasingly fierce and heavy-handed.
This managed to pull the overall situation back from the brink somewhat.
Of course, this was also partly because Phantylia kept a portion of her attention fixed on Acheron.
Having witnessed Acheron's blade, Phantylia had ranked her threat as the highest.
The erosive nature of Nihility itself destined its practitioners to possess the deadliest lethality among those of a similar tier.
Add to that the fact that Acheron remained motionless, her gaze perpetually fixed on the longsword in Phantylia's hand.
As if she was waiting for something.
This made Phantylia even more wary.
If struck by Jing Yuan's Lightning-Lord, she could rely on the Abundance energy channeled from the Ambrosial Arbor to recover swiftly.
But if she were slashed by that Nihility longsword...
She would first need to expend a massive amount of Abundance energy to purge the tenacious, maggot-like Nihility before even considering healing the wound itself.
The expenditure of power and time required for this back-and-forth would increase dramatically.
Hence, Phantylia remained constantly vigilant.
Jing Yuan, shrewdly perceiving this, grew bolder in his assaults, adopting a posture that seemed to disregard his own openings, focusing solely on attacking Phantylia.
Phantylia, in turn, dared not devote her full concentration to dealing with Jing Yuan, forced to rely on her superior stats and exceptional regenerative ability to skirmish with him.
But this, too, was within Phantylia's plan.
It was all about stalling.
Dragging things out until these people from the Xianzhou and the Astral Express were worn down to death.
As for Sylvia at this moment...
Noticing the increased pressure on the Express crew, and not wanting Dan Heng and Jing Yuan to be distracted, she summoned Bella.
"ROAR—!!!"
"Bella, go help March 7th and Stelle!"
The piercing dragon's roar, accompanied by soaring battle intent, saw Bella beat her wings and charge straight at the dark lotuses.
Bella, once part of the same Legion of Destruction, recognized the enemy before her as likely her former supreme commander.
But now, she was long since Sylvia's subordinate.
Her intelligence had been elevated, and she had gained her own name.
Bella beat her wings, not only daring to roar at Phantylia but even daring to charge in for a fight.
Fortunately, although Bella's fighting spirit was ample, Sylvia's command held the highest priority.
Giant claws descended from the sky, accompanied by a screeching roar, tearing one of the dark lotuses to shreds.
Then, her massive body landed behind March 7th and Stelle, sheltering them beneath her!
"Ha—It's Bella!!"
Although she had almost been hit head-on by Bella's beam once, March 7th was, after all, a thick-skinned goofball.
She naturally no longer cared about such things, even happily waving at Bella.
She wanted to climb onto her, trying to find a vantage point to launch attacks.
--+--
Bella's sudden appearance caused Phantylia's expression to suddenly turn grim.
Some days ago, a small detachment of the Legion had gone missing near The Blue, along with a Doomsday Beast.
While these losses meant little to the Legion's overall strength, and a single Doomsday Beast wasn't a particularly crucial unit...
Being killed, and being enslaved, were two entirely different matters.
The current Bella was covered in traces of Heliobi, and a great amount of Permanence energy swirled around her.
Coupled with Sylvia's command, Phantylia was forced to realize:
Before she could even attempt to turn Sylvia and Jing Yuan into pawns of Destruction...
This despicable woman had already beaten her to it, turning a warrior of Destruction into her own slave!!
She had even transformed a Doomsday Beast into such a state.
"Vile insect—!!! You truly deserve death!!"
This was no longer just a matter of personal enmity.
This was an insult to Destruction itself!
With an enraged shriek, Phantylia swung her arm, violently knocking aside the Lightning-Lord's long blade, and tanked Dan Heng's attack.
She raised her palm, gathering the frenzied power of Destruction, and launched herself at Sylvia with nearly her full might, intent on killing her!
Even Sylvia hadn't anticipated Phantylia's reaction being this intense.
But she shrewdly realized that now was the opportunity!
So Sylvia didn't retreat; instead, she advanced, her entire body erupting with intense flames.
The powers of Abundance and Destruction, mediated by Permanence, surged within Sylvia's chest.
The churning crimson flames erupted with immensely powerful force!
Sylvia let out a long cry and shot skyward!
Like a crimson meteor, she charged straight at Phantylia!
"Insignificant insect, overestimating your own strength!"
Phantylia sneered, just about to crush Sylvia on the spot when—
Suddenly—
The longsword in her hand went whoosh, transforming into a cluster of flames that dissipated into thin air.
And along with it vanished the immense power, receding like a tide!
The Abundance and Destruction powers that abruptly withdrew from her body felt as if they had been drained into nothingness.
The instantly plummeting energy caused a flaw in Phantylia's offensive momentum.
It even forcibly knocked Phantylia out of her previous state.
This sudden, unforeseen turn of events created the largest opening Phantylia had shown since the battle began!
--+--
T/N: I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
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If you guys wanna check it out.