Chapter 460: Ren's Assault

Chapter 460: Ren's Assault

Lord Lothar and Lord Reginald remained silent, their gazes filled with disdain as they stared back at the two Mother Tree Cult elders.

This disdainful gaze clearly stung Perseus and Paxson, but before they could respond, a sudden tremor shook the ground, and two massive, yellowish-brown hands burst forth from beneath, reaching towards the two elders of the Mother Tree Cult.

"You!" exclaimed Perseus and Paxson, their faces turning red with anger at the Empire's dismissive attitude and sudden attack. They quickly chanted spells, and two blood-green spherical shields instantly protected them.

"Haha, can you block this?" Lord Reginald, the Imperial Guardian, smiled enigmatically as he stretched out his hands and clenched them tightly.

In sync with his movement, the two gigantic hands also clenched with tremendous force.

"Crunch!"

"Pfft!"

The blood-green spherical shields hastily cast by Perseus and Paxson lasted only half a second before shattering like watermelons under the powerful grip.

Lord Reginald, upon witnessing this, let out a soft 'Oh?' in surprise.

Logically, the two elders should have been severely injured, if not killed, but suddenly, two peculiar vines appeared and whisked them away at lightning speed.

The Imperial Legendary powerhouses, including Loza, who had been eagerly watching the spectacle, couldn't help but pause at this unexpected turn of events.

The two Mother Tree Cult elders abruptly reappeared over twenty meters away.

In other words, they had somehow managed to evade Lord Reginald's near-instantaneous Fourth-Tier Earth Spell, 'Earth Hand', using some mysterious means.

"Hehe, a swift Earth Spell of Dawn, you must be the Imperial Guardian, Lord Reginald, the Earth Pulse Guardian!"

"I admit that we wouldn't stand a chance against you in a normal situation, but unfortunately, this place is different," Paxson chuckled.

"The glory of our master shines upon Ferdinand City!" Perseus proclaimed loudly.

As his words echoed, heavy footsteps could be heard approaching.

A humanoid, crown-shaped tree, towering several dozen meters tall, strode towards them, carrying two figures on its branches.

"A War Tree?" someone from Loza's group of Legendary powerhouses recognized the tree's origin, puzzled.

This War Tree, originally belonging to the Elven race, was now strangely under the control of the Mother Tree Cult.

As the humanoid tree drew closer, everyone's faces filled with astonishment, and many gasped in shock:

"How did the Elven War Tree end up like this?!"

The massive humanoid tree's trunk and branches were oozing flesh, as if the bark couldn't contain the blood and meat within. Hanging from the dense branches were elves with smiles on their faces, their eyes tightly shut, tears of blood streaming down their cheeks.

"Hehe!"

These elves were emaciated, their cheeks sunken, appearing to be mere skin and bones. Their once fair skin now had an eerie bluish-gray hue, yet their movements were agile. They laughed as they swayed and jumped on the tree, seemingly playing.

"Do you see? Under the glory of our master, even the Elven War Tree serves us!"

"Since you refuse to accept our offer, let our master's modified War Tree entertain you," Perseus and Paxson said in unison.

A blood-green halo radiated from the Fallen War Tree, quickly spreading in all directions.

In the next instant, Loza and the others found their feet entangled by rapidly growing blood-red vines. Simultaneously, the bizarre elves on the War Tree, like monkeys, swung on long vines and rushed towards them.

"Earth Spike Domain!"

For the first time, Lord Reginald drew a stone staff and, with a swift incantation, pointed it at the enemy.

Instantly, countless sharp spikes erupted from the ground in a fan-shaped area, extending forward from where he stood.

The bizarre elves, unable to dodge in time, were impaled like skewered fruits, dying on the spot.

The earth spikes continued to extend until they reached a point about ten meters in front of the Fallen War Tree, where they seemed to balance with the blood-green halo emanating from the tree.

Lord Reginald, the Earth Pulse Guardian, clearly had the upper hand in this confrontation.

However, Perseus and Paxson showed no signs of panic. Instead, they exchanged a glance and smiled mysteriously, "Tsk tsk, such formidable power. You managed to withstand the War Tree's assault; no wonder you're the Imperial Guardian."

"Then let's add two more trees to the fun, shall we?"

"Hehe!"

As their words trailed off, heavy footsteps reverberated, and two more towering and eerie War Trees appeared beside the original Fallen War Tree.

Hmm? Lord Reginald's expression turned serious.

This scene also caught the attention of Loza, the Imperial Rampart Guardian, who had been observing from the side, and he narrowed his eyes slightly.

Three War Trees with power at the Epic level, even he felt the pressure of facing them.

"Lord Reginald, leave it to me. You find an opportunity to lead the team through," Loza said, taking a step forward.

"Lord Loza, you..." Lord Reginald glanced at Loza, his expression questioning.

"Rest assured, don't forget my title. Perhaps I can't defeat them, but that doesn't mean I'll lose," Loza smiled and raised the spiky giant shield in his hand, gesturing.

"Alright." Loza's words made Lord Reginald laugh.

"Oh? Paxson, listen, with these two lords in such a situation, how do you think we should break through their defense?" Perseus said with a sinister smile.

"They're really underestimating us, Perseus. I think it's time we show them what we're capable of," Paxson chuckled.

Their conversation immediately gave Loza and Lord Reginald a bad feeling.

After all, it was clear from the enemy's confident tone that they had something up their sleeve.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

Two more Fallen War Trees took large strides forward and stood beside the other three.

For a moment, the five Fallen War Trees stood in a row, their might unmatched!

This sight left Loza and the others stunned.

Those two black-robed elders were also Epic-level existences, which meant there were now seven Epic-level powerhouses in total.

Although they had confidence in Loza and Lord Reginald, the Imperial Guardians...

Seeing this, Loza's expression turned grave.

"Lord Reginald, it seems we're in trouble."

"It's not really trouble, but it will be difficult for us to break through," Lord Reginald said as he quickly chanted a spell.

A thick, earthy yellow light membrane enveloped Loza.

The Empire had sent them as a team because of this very reason.

A knight who infused his beliefs into his defense, naturally had a domain power focused on defense, and alongside him was a Dawn Wizard specializing in Earth spells, also known for their defensive abilities.

Combined, their defensive capabilities might not be the strongest, but they were likely to reach an extreme level.

"Whoosh!"

Countless controlled, eerie elves charged towards the Imperial team.

The overlapping blood-green halos put immense pressure on the Legendary powerhouses like Loza.

"Boom!"

Loza's aura surged, merging with the earthy yellow Earth domain, temporarily keeping the halos of the five Fallen War Trees at bay.

But the pulsating veins on his forehead showed that Loza was already at his limit.

After a brief stalemate, the two sides clashed!

The battle raged fiercely.

Perseus and Paxson smiled upon seeing this.

They knew they didn't need to defeat the Imperial double guardians and their team; they just needed to stall and, if possible, halt their advance.

When the Great Void Mother Tree descended, these Imperial powerhouses would be annihilated.

In the sky, some distance from Ferdinand City.

On the Swordsmen's Airship, Lady Olenna, Lady Claire, and Sir Lambert watched as the green dot containing Anna and the Pureblood Elves sped away. They were momentarily at a loss.

"Hmm? Lady Olenna, look over there. Isn't that the Imperial team?" Sir Lambert, with his arms crossed, narrowed his eyes and spoke to Lady Olenna beside him.

"Oh, it does seem like the Imperial team. They appear to be engaged in a fierce battle with the cultists!" Lady Claire followed Sir Lambert's gaze and exclaimed.

Lady Olenna, being the weakest among them, quickly grabbed a brass telescope to observe.

Soon, she exclaimed, "Wonderful! It must be the support team led by the two Imperial Guardians!"

Half an hour ago, she had received news from the Swordsmen's Headquarters about the Imperial support team.

It all made sense now.

"In that case, we should join them immediately," Lady Olenna decided.

"Also, Lady Claire, please contact Miss Bianca and ask her to report the situation with Miss Anna to Lord Ren as soon as she meets him."

"Yes, Lady Olenna," Lady Claire replied, her face flushed with excitement now that the Imperial reinforcements had arrived.

"Well, the situation might not be as optimistic as it seems, Lady Olenna. We should prepare the airship for battle."

At that moment, Sir Lambert, standing just a step away from the Sword Saint, spoke, his words somewhat dampening the mood.

"Sir Lambert, what do you mean?"

Lady Olenna immediately understood and grabbed the brass telescope to take another look.

As the airship drew closer, she finally got a clear view. Despite the Imperial squad having two Guardian Lords, they seemed unable to breach the heretic sect's defenses.

"Oh my, one, two, five... There are actually five monsters with epic-level power!"

Although Olenna didn't know what the gigantic humanoid tree was, the blood-green halos around it were a clear indication that it was some sort of domain.

In other words, it was an epic-level monster!

No wonder the Imperial squad was stalled here.

"Oh, Lord Loza is here too!"

This time, Olenna also spotted a familiar figure—Loza, riding a two-headed chimera, maneuvering around the humanoid tree.

"All personnel, prepare for battle!"

"Port and starboard cannons, ready!"

A series of commands were swiftly issued!

On both sides of the ship, three rows of dark gun barrels appeared, thirty-six on each side, totaling seventy-two heavy cannons.

As the Swordsmen's exclusive airship, it naturally possessed considerable combat power, and in fact, it was a battle airship designed with the hull of a battleship.

"Fire!"

"Boom, boom, boom!"

The tongues of fire from the heavy cannons kept roaring.

Although the Fallen War Ancient Tree had formidable power, its massive size made it an ideal target. These humanoid trees, standing over thirty meters tall, were practically living targets that didn't require precise aiming.

Please... You... Collect... 6... 9... Books...

In an instant, six or seven columns of intense explosive smoke erupted from the five Fallen War Ancient Trees.

Many blood-soaked branches were blown apart, and even the thick trunks of two Fallen War Ancient Trees were blasted with a basin-sized dent, revealing the writhing red flesh within.

Perseus and Paxson, standing atop the ancient trees, were momentarily flustered, quickly casting a defensive spell on themselves.

It wasn't that they feared the cannons.

But even though the heavy cannons were weapons of mortals, if they were hit head-on without any defense, even they would suffer significant damage!

"Seeking death!"

Perseus glared at the Imperial airship that had suddenly appeared in the distance, feeling quite annoyed.

With a point of his finger, a blood-green energy arrow shot towards Olenna's airship, but it was intercepted by Reginald's earthy-yellow palm.

"Hmm?" Loza turned to look back.

"That's the mark of the Imperial Swordsmen."

He instantly recognized the pattern on the giant airbag of the airship behind them as the mark of the Imperial Swordsmen.

"Loza, take a few men to protect the airship."

Faced with the Mother Tree Cult's intentions, Loza naturally wouldn't let them have their way, especially with the heavy cannons of the airship providing support, which would give them an advantage in the battle.

At the same time, on the long-range airship, Bianca received a message from Claire.

"What!" Bianca's eyes widened in shock upon hearing Claire's report.

Whether it was Anna and the pure-blood elf being transformed into a green light ball and drawn to the Elven Mother Tree, or the Imperial Guardians' reinforcements being blocked outside the Ferdinand core area, all of it left Bianca in a state of bewilderment.

It was as if, in an instant, the level of the battle in the Ferdinand Forest had escalated to a point where even a Paragon like her couldn't intervene.

"Knock, knock, knock!"

"Captain, this is Bianca. There's an emergency regarding Miss Anna!"

"Enter."

Ren, who had just mastered the fourth-level spell 'Steel Thorn Grove', looked up as Bianca hurried into the cabin.

"Captain, Miss Anna has been transformed into a green light ball and is being blocked by the Imperial Guardians' support team."

Upon hearing this, Ren's heart skipped a beat, but he took a deep breath to calm himself down and said slowly:

"I understand. How long until we get there?"

"Five minutes. No, if we push it, we can make it in three!"

"Okay, get ready for battle!"

"Yes, Captain!"

After Bianca left the cabin, Ren also stood up and made his way to the lower deck of the airship.

"Ren, is it time for battle? Perfect, I've just finished the repairs!"

Moriah had just climbed down from the suspended Destroyer Golem.

"Patriarch, let me handle this."

Ren thought for a moment and said seriously to Moriah:

"You want to personally rescue Miss Anna? Alright! This is the Destroyer's control crystal. Just infuse it with your psychic energy." Moriah seemed to have realized something and laughed.

It was understandable for a young man to want to play the hero.

This kind of opportunity should naturally be given to the youth.

Moriah handed the Destroyer's control crystal to Ren without hesitation.

Taking the crystal, Ren understood what Moriah meant, but with time being of the essence, he didn't bother explaining further.

"Okay, Patriarch, I'll be careful."

At this moment, Moriah remembered something and gave him a reminder.

"But, Ren, be cautious. The psychic energy of the Peak Crystallization level will consume a lot when controlling the Destroyer. I suggest you try to end the battle within ten minutes."

"The back of the Destroyer has a hidden depression, just enough for a person to fit in."

"Great!"

Outside the core area of Ferdinand City.

The battle raged on!

Although the Imperial forces were not defeated, the problem was that they were being held back here.

If the golden giant tree above them were to complete the landing ceremony, the consequences would be unimaginable.

Just as Loza and Reginald were at a loss, a crisp female voice, amplified by sorcery, came from the Swordsmen's Airship: "Everyone, Captain Ren is almost here."

"Hold on a little longer."

Hmm?

Even in the midst of battle, Loza and Reginald couldn't help but show a hint of surprise!

What nonsense was this little girl spouting?

Her captain?

The captain of the Swordsmen?

Even if it were a Paragon Swordsman captain, what use would they be in this situation?

Every Imperial legend beside them could easily be a Paragon Swordsman captain.

However, Luther, who was in the midst of battle, heard the name Ren and excitedly shouted, "That's fantastic!"

As for the two High Theologians of the Mother Tree Cult, they naturally heard Claire's voice through the sorcery amplification, but neither of them took her words seriously. Instead, they smirked.

Unless another Imperial Guardian had arrived, a single legendary warrior?

They must be joking!

Time ticked by, second by second.

Suddenly, a sleek long-range airship towing a massive metal golem appeared on the horizon.

Acquired from Bostaf, the long-range airship had heavy cannons installed on both sides of its hull, and their caliber was even larger and more powerful than those on Lady Olenna's Swordsmen's Airship.

So, as soon as the people on the ground spotted the airship, they saw it quickly maneuver and aim one of its heavy cannons at the center of the battlefield. Immediately after, the cannons roared, spewing fire!

However, what caught everyone's attention even more was the sudden descent of an ultra-large metal golem from dozens of meters in the air!

"Boom! Boom!"

The dozens of meters tall, hideous golem plummeted to the ground, slightly lowering its body to cushion the fall, and then charged towards the center of the battlefield. Each step it took was accompanied by cracks, tremors, and moans from the ground!

Moreover, as it fell and charged, the controller seemed to become more familiar with its movements, and the golem's speed increased!

Seeing this, Perseus and Paxson's eyelids twitched uncontrollably!

Their minds were filled with questions!

Was this the Swordsman captain that the girl had just mentioned?

Without the need for detailed perception, they could tell from the golem's size, which was even more colossal than the War Tree, and its overwhelming momentum as it charged, that it was undoubtedly an epic power, an extremely formidable force!

"Quick, each of us will summon a War Tree to block him!" Perseus said, exchanging a glance with Paxson.

"Yeah! Damn! I've never heard of the Empire having a golem with such power!"

Paxson nodded, cursing at this sudden turn of events.

They had almost sealed the fate of the Empire's reinforcements.

All they needed to do was stall them, and they could wait for the great Void Mother Tree to descend and sweep away all resistance. But now...

Two War Trees released a group entanglement spell, and during the brief pause, they took large strides, rushing towards the Destroyer golem controlled by Ren.

The three colossal beings, moving towards each other at high speed, were soon within arm's reach.

Facing the pincer attack of the two War Trees, Ren narrowed his eyes, and the Destroyer golem accelerated once more, its body slightly lowering, and its left and right arms shot out like lightning.

"Iron Fist Combo!"

As Ren muttered, the auxiliary and main turbines roared to life!

The arms, each the size of a carriage, flashed like lightning, creating afterimages as they punched rapidly, generating gales comparable to an 18th-level typhoon!

The commotion was so great that both sides of the battle involuntarily paused.

Even the two Imperial Guardians, Loza and Reginald, couldn't help but exchange a glance after disengaging from the fight, seeing surprise and confusion in each other's eyes.

"When did the Swordsmen acquire such a terrifyingly powerful ultra-large golem?"

"And is this the strength a Swordsman captain should have?"

Luther, who considered himself familiar with Ren's abilities, was even more dumbfounded as he watched, muttering to himself, "This is a bit..."

Before he could finish his sentence!

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

The ground trembled, and the rumbling continued endlessly, like a series of thunderclaps. Circular shockwaves rippled out like a tsunami, and two mushroom clouds suddenly erupted, shooting into the sky!

When the dust settled, the entire scene revealed two enormous crater-like depressions, and the ground had been compacted to the point of resembling metal. The two Fallen War Trees had been snapped in half!

At this moment, Luther finally managed to finish his sentence, "Too exaggerated!"

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end