Chapter 88: The Ancient Creature Appeared on the Surface
Chapter 88: The Ancient Creature Appeared on the Surface
The monstrous eagle descended like a falling mountain, casting an immense shadow across the fortress below. Its enormous wings stretched from one horizon to the other, blotting out the sunlight as violent winds spiraled around its body.
Every beat of its wings generated countless razor sharp wind blades that rained toward the fortress like a divine punishment. The invisible slashes carved enormous trenches through the earth before they had even reached the defensive walls, leaving the battlefield scarred by hundreds of deep wounds.
The defenders stood frozen upon the walls.
Some instinctively raised their weapons despite knowing they were powerless. Others slowly lowered their heads and closed their eyes, accepting the inevitable.
"So this is the end..."
Before despair could consume them, a brilliant silver spear streaked across the heavens like a bolt of judgment.
A deafening explosion echoed across the battlefield as the spear collided with the storm of wind blades. Every attack shattered instantly, dissolving into harmless streams of air that scattered across the sky.
The monstrous eagle let out an enraged screech that shook the clouds.
Standing upon the highest section of the city wall was the Fourth Sage, Leon. His silver armor reflected the fading sunlight while his spear crackled with violent arcs of lightning.
His calm eyes never left the monster.
"You picked the wrong battlefield."
The eagle folded its wings before diving once more.
Its gigantic claws tore through the clouds, carrying enough force to split mountains apart. The pressure alone caused the fortress walls to tremble beneath its approach.
Leon remained completely still until the monster entered striking distance.
Then he thrust his spear forward.
A blinding pillar of lightning erupted from the weapon and pierced directly through the eagle’s chest before it could react. The S Rank monster exploded into a violent storm of blood and shattered flesh. Its lifeless body continued flying for several kilometers before crashing into the distant plains with enough force to shake the earth.
The soldiers erupted into thunderous cheers.
Leon did not even glance behind him. His expression remained cold as he continued watching the distant horizon.
"Stay inside the walls. More are coming."
Far to the east, endless monsters poured from the forests.
Thousands quickly became hundreds of thousands before growing into countless millions. The ground itself disappeared beneath an endless sea of claws, fangs, scales, and towering bodies that stretched farther than the eye could see.
Three colossal battle machines descended from the sky together.
Their gigantic metallic feet slammed into the battlefield with earth shaking force, crushing hundreds of monsters beneath them before they had fully landed.
"Formation Alpha."
The lead pilot raised both mechanical arms.
Massive sections of armor unfolded across the machine’s shoulders as dozens of heavy energy cannons emerged from within the frame.
"Fire."
Hundreds of brilliant blue beams erupted across the battlefield.
Entire sections of the advancing beast tide disappeared beneath the relentless barrage. The concentrated energy vaporized everything in its path, leaving only scorched earth behind.
Another battle machine activated two enormous plasma blades that extended from its forearms.
The towering machine charged directly into the heart of the monster army without slowing down. Every swing of the blazing weapons split gigantic beasts apart, reducing bodies that could survive artillery bombardments into burning fragments.
The third machine remained behind the front line.
Its massive back opened as thousands of miniature missile launchers emerged from hidden compartments.
Within seconds, the sky disappeared beneath an endless swarm of missiles.
The explosions merged into one continuous roar as the entire forest vanished beneath relentless bombardment. Fire covered the land for kilometers, yet even that overwhelming display of destruction failed to halt the incoming tide.
The monsters continued advancing.
"There are too many."
"We hold until the sages finish their sectors."
"There will be no retreat."
Elsewhere, Arthur descended into another battlefield where an enormous ape nearly two hundred meters tall raised both fists high into the air.
The colossal monster slammed them downward with overwhelming force.
Arthur vanished before the attack landed.
The gigantic fists struck nothing except the earth, creating a crater that stretched for hundreds of meters.
Before the ape realized what had happened, Arthur appeared directly above its head.
His golden sword flashed once.
The enormous body separated cleanly from head to waist before collapsing like a falling mountain. Dust and blood exploded across the battlefield as the giant crashed into countless smaller monsters.
Arthur never paused.
He charged directly into another massive swarm, moving faster than the eye could follow. Every swing of his sword erased hundreds of monsters from existence, leaving behind nothing except shattered corpses.
Slowly, the battlefield transformed into an endless sea of blood and broken bodies.
Far to the north, another sage stood alone inside a frozen valley.
Ancient ice dragons surrounded him from every direction. Their icy breaths froze mountains while their roars echoed across the snow covered landscape.
The elderly sage calmly raised one finger toward the darkening heavens.
"I have not used this technique for decades."
The clouds immediately turned black.
Thousands of crimson meteors descended from the heavens like divine punishment. Every impact erased entire groups of dragons while mountains shattered beneath the relentless bombardment.
When the final explosion faded, only silence remained.
Across the continent, every battlefield had become equally terrifying.
The remaining battle machines divided themselves among countless regions where humanity continued fighting for survival.
One machine stood before a besieged city while endlessly firing devastating rail cannons into the advancing beast tide.
Another battled a colossal mammoth whose ivory tusks were larger than entire skyscrapers.
Metal fists collided against gigantic tusks with explosive force.
Every impact released powerful shockwaves that flattened forests for kilometers.
The mammoth roared in fury before attempting another charge.
The machine answered by unleashing a point blank energy cannon directly into its face.
The gigantic head disappeared instantly.
Inside the cockpit, the exhausted pilot wiped sweat from his forehead before taking a slow breath.
"Next target."
Within another empire, two sages fought side by side.
One commanded violent storms while the other manipulated gravity itself.
Millions of flying monsters darkened the heavens above them.
Relentless lightning continuously descended from the clouds while invisible gravitational force crushed entire flocks toward the earth.
Their perfect cooperation left no opening.
Every passing second claimed thousands more monsters.
High above the burning continent, Diana flew silently through the smoke filled sky.
Her emotionless black eyes overlooked countless battlefields where cities burned and monsters continued pouring across the land.
"So many."
Her voice carried no emotion.
She disappeared without warning.
One moment she had been standing within the sky.
The next moment she stood inside the center of an enormous monster army.
Nothing appeared to happen.
Several long seconds passed in complete silence.
Then every monster within several kilometers suddenly split apart.
Bodies collapsed simultaneously as rivers of blood flooded the battlefield.
Diana continued walking without changing her expression.
A gigantic serpent burst upward from beneath the earth.
Before the creature could even open its mouth, Diana grabbed its upper jaw with one hand.
She pulled calmly.
The serpent’s enormous body tore completely into two separate halves.
Another monster resembling a colossal rhinoceros charged toward her with unstoppable momentum.
Diana threw a single punch.
The gigantic beast exploded into countless pieces.
There had been no technique.
There had been no visible energy.
There had only been overwhelming physical strength that completely surpassed reason.
Nearby, one battle machine was slowly being overwhelmed.
Several gigantic insect monsters had wrapped themselves around its body, preventing every movement.
Warning alarms continuously echoed throughout the cockpit.
"Armor integrity is dropping."
"We cannot move."
Suddenly every insect exploded apart. The machine became free once again.
The pilot immediately looked outside.
Diana had already disappeared. She had not even looked in their direction.
The pilot swallowed heavily.
"She killed all of them... with one movement."
Hours gradually became an entire day.
The endless beast tide never stopped.
Every forest appeared capable of producing another infinite wave of monsters.
Cities continued trembling beneath relentless assaults while even the oceans themselves became increasingly restless.
Arthur eventually regrouped with several sages upon a ruined battlefield.
Everyone was covered in blood. Some belonged to monsters. Some belonged to themselves.
"The southern front has stabilized."
"The western kingdoms are still fighting."
"The eastern forests are nearly cleared."
Arthur slowly nodded.
"If this continues, we should finish everything within three days."
The others silently agreed.
The battle machines still possessed sufficient energy reserves, while the sages had suffered injuries that were serious but not fatal.
For the first time since the beast tide had begun, victory seemed possible.
Then everything changed.
A single roar echoed across the entire planet.
It was not simply loud. The sound shook reality itself. Every human stopped moving.
Every monster became completely still. Every battle machine fell silent.
The oceans suddenly exploded upward.
Arthur slowly turned toward the distant sea.
"What..."
The horizon had disappeared.
An endless wall of water rose toward the heavens as though the ocean itself had been split apart. Millions upon millions of tons of seawater were violently pushed aside by something unimaginably enormous rising from the abyss below.
Every remaining battle machine immediately turned toward the coastline.
Every weapon locked onto the disturbance.
Emergency alarms screamed throughout every cockpit.
"Unknown lifeform detected."
"Threat level unable to calculate."
Cold sweat slowly ran down the faces of every sage.
Even Diana stopped moving.
For the first time since the battle had begun, the slightest change appeared upon her expression.
From the endless darkness beneath the sea, an enormous head slowly emerged.
Four crimson horns reflected the sunlight.
Two gigantic black wings unfolded across the sky.
Each wing stretched farther than entire mountain ranges.
Its scales were darker than the deepest night itself.
Its calm eyes slowly observed the world. There was no rage. There was no excitement.There was only complete indifference.
The surrounding seawater evaporated merely from the dragon’s presence.
Every remaining monster immediately lowered itself toward the ground.
One after another, they bowed before the ancient creature.
Arthur’s breathing became heavy as he stared toward the impossible existence.
"What... is that?"