Chapter 407 Target

On the battlefield where artillery fire and energy beams intertwined, the command post area where Jemin was located fell into an eerie "silence".

This silence does not mean the complete absence of sound.

On the contrary, the area was filled with the muffled thuds of energy shields being hit, the deep roars of black giants, and the clicking sounds of scythe-skull carapaces rubbing together.

All of these things mixed together to form the background noise of death.

In Jemin's perception, this area appeared as if it had been precisely cut out.

No matter how fierce the fighting was on other battlefields around, this place was always a 15-to-1 encirclement and killing situation.

"Damn it!" Jemin gritted his teeth and activated the rune artifact on his back once more.

A "Great Radiant Image" composed of tens of thousands of runes unfolded behind him, with the circular array spinning rapidly and the three metal discs at the core shining brightly.

The next second, tens of thousands of energy projectiles poured out like a torrential rain, each one enough to flatten a small mountain.

However, the Scythe-Skull Clan on the other side was prepared.

Of the fifteen figures, three simultaneously raised their forelimbs.

No, it wasn't a limb, but some kind of sophisticated metal device.

Runes shimmered on the surface of the device, creating a semi-transparent force field.

The moment the energy blast hits the force field, it's like a drop of water falling into a sponge; the energy is rapidly dispersed, absorbed, and neutralized.

Anti-energy absorption jammer.

Moreover, it is a model specifically designed to counter the type of attack that is light projectiles released by talismanic artifacts.

The thought, "They know what I have," hit me like a bucket of ice water.

Sure enough, almost at the same time that Jemin stopped his first attack, four of the fifteen Scythe-Skull Clan members moved.

The patterns on their carapaces lit up, and four invisible waves instantly enveloped the area.

Space blockade.

The opponent had already released a round of spatial interference when they approached Jemin, and now it is clear that they want to expand their previous advantage in the field.

It is a truly "solidified space," and Jemin can even feel the "viscous" sensation of the surrounding space, as if he has been trapped in gel.

He only had time to throw out a space distortion attack a split second before the seal was completed.

Invisible distortions bloomed in the air, and violent spatial forces tore everything around them apart.

If it were an ordinary level 5 creature, this attack would be enough to tear it to pieces.

The Scythe-Skull Clan member, who could withstand the blow head-on, only experienced a slight deformation of the black armor on his body, emitting a piercing metallic scraping sound.

And then... that was it.

Anti-space stabilizing armor.

Specialized equipment designed specifically for spatial magic.

"Even this has a contingency plan?" Jemin felt an even greater chill.

The situation is even worse on the Black Giant's side.

The black giants, who were originally at the forefront of the battle line, were about to come to the rescue, but they were divided and surrounded by the remaining Scythe-Skull Clan with exquisite coordination.

They used a time-deceleration field generator to interfere with the Black Giant's time acceleration and an energy-extraction force field to weaken the absorption capacity of the black metal layer.

The level six black giant leader, Molten Mountain, roared as he tried to break through, but was held back by two Scythe-Skull Clan members.

The two sickle-headed tribesmen had clearly different equipment.

One wielded a high-frequency vibrating blade, each strike leaving deep marks on the black giant's hard surface; the other continuously released strange energy ripples, interfering with the lava mountain's time manipulation talent.

"The two of them held off the sixth-grade students..." Jemin forced himself to calm down.

By entrusting some of the talismanic artifacts to the Five Elements Rainbow Mirror for manipulation, Jemin's hands constantly changed hand gestures, and one small magic model after another was constructed and released in an instant: fireballs, ice spikes, lightning chains, acid sprays... all of them were basic magic spells, but the combination was incredibly tricky.

Even under such attacks, the Scythe-Skull Clan responded with precision. They didn't even try to withstand the attacks head-on, but instead used minimal movement to avoid their trajectory while maintaining the integrity of the encirclement.

It feels like... playing chess against yourself, where your opponent knows all your possible moves.

"What did I do in the last reincarnation to make these guys target me like this!" Jemin thought rapidly while fighting. "Did I use the Blazing Fire Annihilation Divine Light to clear the field? Or was the Black Giant's self-destruction tactic too conspicuous? Or...did I expose the special nature of my inner world?"

He needs a breakthrough.

In that instant, Jemin made his decision.

He loosely clenched his left hand, and the passage to his inner sanctum opened in his palm.

A dark gold staff was drawn.

Staff of Annihilation, charging progress: 63%.

Although the charging was not yet complete, almost at the same moment the staff appeared, the movements of the fifteen Scythe-Skull Clan members all paused.

The three outermost scythe-skull tribesmen simultaneously raised the new device.

There was no obvious light effect when the device was activated, but Jemin keenly sensed that the high-energy particles in the surrounding space suddenly became "slow".

It's like water turning into glue.

“Particle stasis field…” Jemin’s pupils contracted slightly.

A defensive measure specifically designed to counter high-energy beam attacks.

Although it can only last for a moment, theoretically, if he releases the Divine Light of Annihilation at this moment, the attack that should have reached the speed of light could indeed be delayed.

"They even know that?" Jemin felt a sense of certainty.

Intelligence confirmed that he must have used this staff in the previous cycle and achieved significant results.

Otherwise, the other side wouldn't have prepared such highly targeted equipment.

However, this also means that the other party's understanding of him is still at the level of the "previous round".

"Let's see how I'm different this time."

Instead of activating the staff, Jemin shoved it back behind his back.

This action caused a momentary lapse in the Sickle Skull Clan's formation, creating a moment of confusion.

And Jemin seized this opportunity.

Instead of retreating, he took a step forward.

The moment he took that step, he activated the Body Tempering Technique at full power, concentrating all his strength in his legs.

The ground exploded.

Jemin became a blur, moving so fast that he created a sonic boom cloud in the air.

Instead of attacking any of the Scythe-Skull Clan members, they went straight for the weakest link in the encirclement.

The Scythe-Skull Clan members in that direction reacted extremely quickly, immediately raising the energy blades on their forelimbs.

But its movements seemed too slow to Jemin.

With the blessing of his Nascent Soul realm cultivation, Jemin's thought speed was several times faster than that of other wizards of the same level.

He could see the order in which the runes lit up when the energy blade was activated, the trajectory of the opponent's muscle exertion, and the minute weaknesses between the gaps in the carapace.

One punch.

It is a punch delivered at more than ten times the speed of sound from a body that has been tempered and refined through countless physical training methods.

Bang!

A dull thud resounded, and the carapace on the chest of the sickle-headed creature caved in, green fluid spurting out from the gaps between its mouthparts and carapace.

Its body flew backward, smashing through three pieces of rubble before coming to a stop.

The encirclement has been broken.

The other Scythe-Skull Clan members immediately adjusted, but Jemin was faster.

He moved through the formation like a ghost, each strike precisely hitting the joints of the armor, the interfaces of the energy devices, and the weak points of the joints.

The body-strengthening method not only gave him defensive capabilities, but also perfect control over every inch of his muscles.

The tide of battle immediately turned.

But just as Jemin's attention was completely focused on what was ahead, something unexpected happened.

A figure emerged from the shadows of the ruins to the side and behind—it seemed to have always been there, blending perfectly into the background.

Only at this moment did they seize the instant when Jemin's old strength was exhausted and his new strength had not yet been generated, and launched a fatal attack.

That was a unique member of the Scythe-Skull Clan.

It is smaller in size, with an almost pure black carapace, and its most striking feature is one of its forelimbs.

Those were spikes covered with thick, black metal, the surface of which reflected no light at all, as if it could devour all light.

The moment the spikes pierced through, the three layers of energy shields surrounding Jemin were pierced as easily as paper.

There were no obstacles, no delays.

The spike possesses a kind of "magic-dispelling" property, specifically designed to break down energy defenses.

A glimmer of anticipation flashed in the compound eyes of all the Scythe-Skull Clan members.

Then--

clang!

The collision of metal and flesh produces a sound like metal striking stone.

The black spikes stopped at Jemin's chest, piercing his outer robe, but could not go any further.

To the astonishment of the Scythe-Skull Clan, cracks began to appear on the surface of the spikes, and then... with a "crack," they broke in two.

Jemin slowly turned his head and looked at the attacker expressionlessly.

The sickle-skull creature seemed to want to retreat, but it was too late.

With a casual wave of his hand, Jemin sent the scythe-skull creature crashing down as if struck by an invisible giant hammer. Its entire body instantly exploded into a cloud of blood mist, scattering metal fragments and shell debris.

"An anti-magic weapon?" Jemin looked down at his chest. His outer robe had a hole in it, revealing the metallic skin beneath, without even a white mark. "It's okay against pure energy defense magic. But against my body, which has been tempered a thousand times... it's far from enough."

But there was no relief in his heart when he said this.

This means that in the next cycle, the opponent will definitely prepare more targeted measures against physical defenses.

The battle continues, but the scales have tipped completely.

Although the Scythe-Skull Clan had an intelligence advantage, the wizards' raw strength was still superior.

As Jemin created the opening, the other wizards around him also finished off their respective opponents and began to provide support.

Led by Lava Mountain, the Black Giant finally broke through the restraints, and its black figures surged in like a tide.

A dozen minutes later, the last Scythe-Skull Clan member fell to the ground under the combined attack of four wizards.

Jemin stood there, slightly out of breath.

He looked around; the battlefield was basically under control.

The cannon fodder units suffered heavy losses, and the ground was covered with the remains of bio-beasts and alchemical constructs. Fortunately, the wizard himself suffered very few casualties.

In the distance, Frost was directing the clearing out of the remaining resistance.

This level seven wizard was targeted even more than Jemin, but he still managed to overwhelm all of the opponent's high-level forces single-handedly.

"Captain Jemin." A voice came from the side.

It was the adjutant; he had a deep, bone-revealing wound on his arm, which he was healing with sorcery: "The statistics are complete. Our squad lost 42 percent of its cannon fodder units, seven wizards were lightly wounded, and there were no casualties."

"Understood." Jemin nodded, but his gaze was fixed on the distance.

On the horizon, the main force of the Scythe-Skull Clan is retreating.

They retreated in an orderly fashion, without the slightest sign of panic or defeat.

The landing operation was a success.

But this is just the beginning.

(End of this chapter)