Chapter 918: Demon Palace Destruction.
Chapter 918: Demon Palace Destruction.
Dyrathos stomped the ground at Kyril's words, a wide grin spreading across his lips. "Yasenia Dravory, I must thank you for gathering everyone here! [Demon Monarch Sacrifice Storm Formation]!"
The sky was instantly swallowed by a dark red and black formation with energy arcs running along its outline.
Yasenia actually knew about this formation. It was one of the most common formations for demons, and it was also one of those tools that Yasenia was wary of.
The [Demon Monarch Sacrifice Storm Formation] allowed the user to summon a terrifying storm of destructive energies of near-transcendent level. The more deaths it incurred, the stronger the formation's final effects would be.
Once the formation came to an end, it would allow one person to gain the strength of a Quasi-Demon Monarch. This strength would be closer and last longer the more deaths it provoked.
The effects would differ if used by an Actual Demon Monarch, but if, like in this situation, an Arch-Duke Demon used it, then the effects above were the correct ones.
When the formation appeared, everyone on Yasenia's side felt a terrifying premonition. The energy gathered in it was as terrifying as a Heavenly Tribulation, making them want to flee the place. With the strength of this formation, Yasenia's army would probably be halved, if not worse.
The Sect Master of the Nine Golden Body Sect asked. "Alliance Leader, what do we do!?"
"I got it." Yasenia would naturally not stand still as this happened. She reached out her conscience into her spatial ring and retrieved an illusory green and gold Formation Core. Tatyana created this instant-use formation core, and she only had two of them. It was a complicated formation to recreate with their current strength, hence the lack of them.
Her Celestial Energy seeped inside the core, activating it, and she threw it skyward.Kyril appeared in front of the core Yasenia threw, ready to stop it. However, even before she could start her attack, Doriel's dagger materialized from a dark shadow at her side, rushing toward her neck.
Kyril's face hardened, and she quickly defended, lifting her weapon to block the dagger rushing at her neck.
CLANG!
Her body got pushed back several hundred meters, giving the formation core a way to reach the sky. Then, Yasenia chanted its name. "[Formation Reversal]."
A name so simple, yet its words shook the core of the Demons.
The core exploded and serpentine green and gold snakes moved alongside the entirety of the sky-blotting dark red and black formation.
Kyril clicked her tongue. 'Not even formations of this level work? She is truly a monster.'
Dyrathos shouted. "Activate the defensive formation! We can hold off the storm!"
Yasenia pointed at the Demon Palace with her sword and ordered. "Release all your ranged attacks."
Hurricanes of energy gathered in the surroundings as everyone on Yasenia's side prepared their attacks.
Right before their attack, a black and purple dome covered the entirety of the Demon Palace, and the reversed formation fell.
As soon as this dome appeared, a catastrophe descended upon them.
BOOOM!
An explosion that pushed all the clouds that had gathered apart struck the purple and black dome.
Yasenia's energy surged, and her body rapidly increased in size. Soon, a mountainous dragon appeared, her majestic wings casting shadows on the landscape below while her own body shone with the radiance of the Sun and Moon.
On the tip of her nose, Soluna appeared, energy gathering toward her figure.
The titanic dragon's figure was too prominent to ignore, and the aura she started accumulating made it even harder.
Yasenia knew that the defensive formation probably managed to withstand those attacks. They were incredibly destructive, but the formation was no joke.
With that in mind, Yasenia ordered one of her maids to prepare the secondary cannon of her flying ship while she herself prepared to make one of, if not her strongest, attacks.
Landing on a mountain that almost crumbled under her weight, The dragoness anchored herself and activated all her buffing skills.
Each time one of them activated, a shockwave of pressure exploded outward.
The dragoness left nothing in the chamber; even her recently recovered [Celestial Pearl] poured energy into her meridian system.
When the giant dragon opened her maw, an otherworldly aura descended onto the world.
Everyone felt heavier as the dragon and boat above prepared their attacks.
Dyrathos ordered. "STOP HER!"
However, how could they do that? Dyrathos was one of the strongest on his side, and neither he nor Kyril could reach Yasenia's current position without being intercepted by maids.
Kyril, who managed to return to the inside of the sect dome before Doriel heavily injured her, spoke lowly: "Dyrathos, we need to flee before she attacks."
The male demon shouted, "Do you really think she can breach our formation that hundreds of thousands couldn't, alone?"
Kyril looked upward. "That Flying Boat's firepower is already insane, and Yasenia never does anything she is not sure about. We really need to flee, or today might be the day we die."
Meanwhile, Alaia shouted. "All of you, prepare for an attack. I want you all to synchronize with Young Miss! Only then can we breach this formation! Now, GATHER ENERGY!"
With her shout, everyone on Yasenia's side started charging their own attacks.
Dyrathos's side was heavily lacking in fighting personnel. While they've been on the Continent for years, demons usually didn't recruit people of the original world as sect members. Their way to gain a foothold quickly was through reproduction. Male and Female demons were relatively fertile, so increasing numbers was much easier than for other races. Their genes were also dominant. Therefore, in the long run, demons could overpower other races by sheer numbers.
Dyrathos shouted. "Yasenia Dravory, there are many children in this sect! Are you a monster that doesn't know right from wrong and will attack even innocent children!?"
Yasenia's stance didn't even flinch as her maw opened widely, and a faint light began appearing at the back of her throat.
Dyrathos words were not completely useless, as some people that were gathering energy hesitated. The attentive maids noticed. Alaia shouted once more. "Demons conquer, steal, and rape your people! Are you really going to feel compassion for the horrors that will be born from non-consensual origin!?"
Dyrathos shouted back. "Lies! Nothing was forceful! The mothers of the children are all there as well, and they can tell you how they care for their precious children! Didn't Yasenia Dravory just have children!? She will know compassion and sympathy if she isn't a heartless monster!"
The voice of the dragoness spread with terrifying pressure. "Sympathy? Heartless? The reason this war started was because MY children weren't left alone. Since that is a sign that enemies won't leave my family alone, what compassion do I need to have? You and everyone else who had such a thought will be eliminated!"
Right after her declaration, a bright light began shining from Yasenia's mouth, and the pressure around her increased enough that even the mountain below her gave in to her weight.
"Now, you should go back to the abyss where you came from. [Celestial Dragon Breath]."
Above Yasenia, Soluna followed her chant. "[Sun And Moon Spirit Affinity]!" The spirit's energy scattered in light rays that bent and mixed with the blue-ish light gathering in Yasenia's throat.
Following their chant, the world was swallowed by blue light. A beam that seemed to contain the cosmos within and accompanied by a double helix of silvery and golden colors shattered space as it rushed forward.
Yasenia, using her [Celestial Pearl]'s buff, already had strength similar to Half-step Dantian Spiritualization strength. Adding Soluna's boost, the attack managed to go beyond the World's current limits, forcing space to shatter in its wake and create a menacing black trail that quickly mended.
Her breath attack, boosted by everything possible, was accompanied by her army's several hundred thousand projectiles and the island sinking attack from her [Profound Skeletal World Jumping Warship].
All the attacks collided against the dome, and the world shrieked as the shockwave of the explosion rushed outward and pushed everyone back.
Yasenia looked closely, and Soluna spoke. "Yasenia! Leave everything else to the others. The dome has fallen!"
Yasenia sighed, feeling exhausted and in pain. That one attack had used her everything. Her mouth had partially melted because of the power behind her dragon breath. Something that hadn't happened to her for a while at the current level. Even breathing was difficult.
Her large wings extended, and she flapped twice, flying upward and returning to the Flying ship.
Yasenia was actually larger than this ship. With almost two and a half kilometers in total length, she usually wouldn't be able to enter. Thankfully for her, the Skeletal Warship was equipped with spatial formations.
From the outside, they saw the giant dragon disappearing into the smaller ship as if she had world-shifted or something, leaving them flabbergasted.
Once she landed on the dock, Yasenia didn't even bother changing back to human form. She felt more comfortable as a dragon either way. "I am going to rest. Soluna, tell me if anything happens."
Soluna was sitting on Yasenia's nose, and after hearing her wish, the Empyrean Spirit giggled. "Okay~, rest well, Yasenia."
"Hmm~ Thanks."
Through her spiritual sense, Soluna saw Yasenia's eyelids closing and began humming a lullaby song she had recently learned from Tatyana. "Dragon~, Dragon~, you who resemble the sky~, you who resemble the stars~, where will you rest? Where will you fly? Dragon~, Dragon~,..."
The dragoness's lips arched slightly as she listened, feeling peaceful. 'Now… The rest is up to the maids.'
Meanwhile, the Demon's situation was not optimistic at all.
Even before their dome was blasted into pieces, Kyril, Dyrathos, and the other six main Demons had rushed away. Leaving everything else behind.
Kyril grumbled. "I told you that we should've stayed with the Ocean Chasm Empire. They wanted to use us, but it was of mutual benefit! Now, what if we get caught?"
Dyrathos snorted. "Who would be able to find us if we go through this path anyway? Follow me!"
Using a hidden corridor, door, and even a hidden elevator that were all activated by energy signals, they were gone.
"I've found their tracks!"
Sadly for them, the maids had extremely powerful trackers even when Clara, Cecile's personal maid, wasn't here.
Doriel nodded. "Maids, follow her and reveal the exact path they took. When we approach, we should prepare an ambush. Don't be overconfident with Demons!"
Another maid chuckled. "After going to those hellish frontlines? As if I would ever underestimate a Demon."
Another sighed as they all followed the tracks left behind. "Their tracks are just… there, compared to when we needed to catch Ghost and Phantasm Assassins for water."
Another maid sighed. "Those days were… quite horrible."
Doriel ordered. "Focus. Alaia, use a squad of five to stop them when we are close. Then, I will hide in the shadows and wait to give a finishing blow to Kyril. That one is the most dangerous of them all. Prepare to use the spatial locking formation so they can't use their spatial rings."
"Understood!"
The maids then became shadows as they quickly followed the complicated paths and closed the distance.