Chapter 420 Strange Movement
After verifying some of their conjectures, Jemin and his two companions quickly left the outpost camp.
On their way to the next location, the three of them continuously exchanged information through their mental link.
“The way the Scythe-Skull Clan, who were stored in their entirety and then immediately disappeared after being retrieved, triggered the paradox is clearly different from that of the old instruments that also disappeared,” Vivian calmly analyzed. “The instruments were stored in the fourth round, used in the fifth round, and only erased after the sixth round of time reversal began. As for the Scythe-Skull Clan, based on our verification just now, their existence was already deleted from the timeline at the very beginning of this cycle.”
Roland continued, “The differences may lie in two aspects. First, the source of the materials. The instruments are made by us wizards using ‘extraterrestrial’ materials from outside this plane, while the Scythe-Skull Clan is composed entirely of native elements from this plane. Second, the nature of their existence. The instruments are non-living entities, while the Scythe-Skull Clan are living entities with souls, memories, and complex causal relationships.”
"Even if someone is dead, there are still many other ways they can be marked..."
“Or perhaps both.” As he flew at high speed, Jemin quickly deduced in his mind, “We need to control the variables to verify. Fortunately, we stored enough samples in the last round.”
In the previous round, with the help of the logistics department research team, Jieming collected a lot of native mineral and soil samples from this plane.
Those samples were stored in the cave as a whole, and their origin was clearly identified.
“So next… we’ll go to this place.” Jemin shared a set of coordinates via mental link. It was a valley about 800 kilometers away from their current location, and records showed that it was rich in a stable type of “ash crystal ore.” He had collected more than 50 tons of the raw ore there.
Roland and Vivian had no objections.
However, shortly after they turned to their new destination, a moving "dark cloud" on the horizon ahead alerted Vivian.
“A massive army! Number…over a million! Dense energy reaction, five confirmed level seven fluctuations, and over a thousand level four and above!” She quickly issued a warning. “They are moving in our direction. The enemy seems to have discovered us as well. It must be a troop movement.”
"Should we go around it?" Roland looked at Jemin, seeking his opinion.
With their strength, we can certainly deal with them, but it might take up too much time.
Jemin quickly reviewed the recorded information.
Based on the information recorded in previous rounds, such a large-scale troop movement should not have occurred in this area at this time.
"Something's not right." He frowned. "There's no relevant intelligence in the report... Has their perception and response patterns regarding the overall battle situation changed again?"
Given the customs of the Sickle-Skull tribe, this is not impossible.
“Now that they’ve discovered us and we can’t completely avoid them, they might be tracked or our reconnaissance purpose might be exposed prematurely.” Jemin made a decision. “Clean them up quickly. Lady Vivian and Lady Roland, please hold back all creatures above level 5 and prevent them from interfering with me. Leave the rest to me.”
"Understood." The two level-six wizards didn't hesitate and instantly entered battle mode.
When the black swarm of insects entered a 20-kilometer radius, the battle broke out.
Roland took the initiative, raising his staff high, and five solidified "gravity chains" traversed space, precisely wrapping around the five most conspicuous level seven scythe-skull leaders in the insect swarm.
With their powerful binding and pulling force, the chains forcibly pulled the five enraged giants out of the legion's formation and dragged them to the high flanks far from the main battlefield.
At the same time, Vivian also faced the army ahead. Raising her palm, she teleported all creatures with energy levels of five or higher into the sky, causing space to warp.
Immediately afterwards, layers upon layers of defensive and confinement barriers unfolded around Roland, creating a temporary "arena" to trap those high-ranking enemies.
On the front, a million-strong army of the Scythe-Skull Clan surged towards Jemin, who was standing alone in the air, like a black torrent bursting its banks!
The roar of flapping wings, the friction of carapaces, and the murderous pheromones almost solidified into a tangible form.
Jemin remained calm, his right hand clenched loosely, the light of the Extinction Divine Light already gathered in his hand.
But he did not immediately become aroused.
With a thought, the entrance to the inner world quietly opened three gaps on his side.
Three identical, fully charged dark gold staffs slowly emerged and hovered beside him.
The tips of the three staffs simultaneously emitted a chilling dark golden light.
"Perfect, let's test the efficiency of saturation coverage," Jemin muttered to himself.
With mental power combined with the Five Elements Rainbow Mirror, the optimal attack parameters were calculated at an alarming speed—coverage range, energy density, duration, and subsequent environmental impact…
The power is built up in an instant.
The next moment...
Buzz!
Four dark golden beams of light, like four giant swords wielded by celestial beings, shot out from the three staffs in front of and beside Jemin!
Under Jemin's control, the beam of light spread out instantly like a blooming lotus flower the moment it was launched!
The dark golden light curtain, originating from Jemin, swept forward in a fan shape, covering the sky and the earth.
Wherever the light curtain passed, the space groaned under its strain, the light distorted, and the temperature soared wildly at a rate that defied the laws of physics.
Jemin precisely controlled the range and intensity of the light curtain.
Instead of pursuing maximum coverage distance, he concentrated his main power in an area about 100 kilometers wide and 10 kilometers deep in front—which was the densest core impact formation of the million-strong Scythe Skull Clan army.
The speed of light is unavoidable.
The moment the dark gold light touched the vanguard of the black insect swarm, time seemed to freeze for a moment.
Then came the most complete annihilation.
Whether it's a sturdy shell, a resilient soul, or boiling energy, all are like ice and snow under the sun in the face of the decomposing properties of the Divine Light of Extinction.
Upon contact with the light barrier, regardless of their level, the Scythe-Skull Clan members instantly became transparent and blurred, then decomposed into the most basic energy particles and material dust, without even a wisp of smoke rising.
As the light curtain advances, annihilation follows closely behind.
Like an eraser wiping away pencil marks, the black tide rapidly "evaporated" under the blazing dark gold. Five kilometers, ten kilometers... In the blink of an eye, the dark gold light screen swept across the entire designated area, then slowly dissipated.
The sky brightened again, but the land below had turned into a smooth, mirror-like, desolate, glassy plain.
The million-strong army of the Scythe-Skull Clan was completely wiped out, except for the lucky few who were held back by Roland and Vivian.
There were no wreckage, no bloodstains, only the distorted air filled with lingering high temperatures and the strange luster emanating from the earth as it was instantly vitrified.
"The power is really good." Jemin put away the three staffs with satisfaction.
Although all indications suggest that he may have unleashed a triple staff attack before, this seems to be the first time he's done it this way.
The results were better than expected, which explains why he was later closely monitored by the Scythe-Skull Clan.
On the other side, this miraculous strike even caused Roland and the five level-seven Scythe Skull Clan leaders, who were engaged in fierce combat high in the sky on the flank, to pause for a moment.
For the first time, a near-fear flickered in the compound eyes of the Scythe-Skull Clan leader, while Roland, in his shock, once again elevated his evaluation of this "advisor" to an unbelievable level.
Jemin was slightly out of breath, as controlling four wide-range, high-powered attacks at the same time was a considerable burden on his mental and spiritual power.
But he was more concerned about the data from this actual battle.
"Rapid coverage, efficiency in clearing dense low-level legions... close to 100%. Energy utilization is 8% higher than expected, possibly related to the concentration of environmental elements. The decomposition effect interferes with the residual time..." He quickly recorded while looking at the scorched earth, his heart not much rippled.
That's how war is, especially when the enemy is someone who must be eliminated.
The battle in the sky also ended quickly.
Without the support of the legion's cover and morale, the high-ranking Scythe-Skull Clan members could not hold out for long under the combined attack of Roland and Vivian, who had freed up her forces, and were killed one after another.
After the battle, the three of them continued their journey toward the Ash Crystal Mine Valley without stopping.
But Jemin had some concerns.
The frequency and scope of the Scythe-Skull Clan's tactical adjustments are increasing. They no longer rely entirely on the old path of "trial and error," but have begun to engage in more proactive and risky strategic explorations.
Behind this, is it because they sensed the deadly threat posed by the wizard's research, or is it because the "manipulator" hidden deep within the cycle of reincarnation has issued new instructions?
Thinking this through, he sealed the information about the unusually large enemy force he encountered, along with its coordinates and approximate troop composition, into an information crystal and stored it away.
Then the same set of information was sent back to the main camp through the magic network terminal.
(End of this chapter)
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