Anna, now at Level 96, appeared atop the Thunder Eagle's back. Without a word, she raised her scepter and faced the storm conjured by the Storm King Serpent.
Wild magic surged toward her like a tide, coalescing around her body and forming a dual-layered magic circle of alternating light and dark before her.
Tier-Three Super Magic — Pillar of Light and Darkness!
In an instant, a towering pillar of light erupted from Anna's position, encompassing a radius of thirty yards. This was the inherited defensive magic she had only mastered after reaching Level 95.
The moment the Pillar of Light and Darkness took form, the terrifying storm hurtled toward them like a massive spear. The sheer destructive force was so overwhelming that even the surrounding space began to crack. Its speed was blinding, its range vast — even the Thunder Eagle had no way to dodge.
Qin Yin and the others aboard the Thunder Eagle couldn't help but go pale at the sight.
Previously, they had only watched the battle from a distance. They had known the Storm King Serpent's storms were powerful, but they'd never experienced them firsthand. Now, with the storm bearing down on them right before their very eyes, that apocalyptic aura slammed into them head-on, making it impossible to muster even a shred of will to resist.
It was only now that Qin Yin and the others truly understood what kind of terrifying creature the Storm King Serpent was.
Moreover, battles at this level were nothing like anything they had experienced before — they were practically a joke by comparison, with absolutely no frame of reference to draw upon.
Their previous fights had been against other people, or against wild beasts. This, on the other hand, felt like a clash between superhumans — a level beyond anything the realm of reality could imagine.
Tier-Two players were nothing more than ants before the Storm King Serpent. No amount of skill or technique mattered in the slightest.
BOOM!
The Storm Lance crashed into the Pillar of Light and Darkness like a missile detonating. The violent impact cratered the ocean surface and sent massive waves more than ten meters high surging outward on all sides.
"Courting death!" Lu Xingluo glanced toward the Thunder Eagle's position, a cold smirk curling the corner of his lips. "Did they really think stepping into the Storm King Serpent's battle would be that easy?"
A king-tier Storm King Serpent was every bit as formidable as a World Boss. In terms of raw destructive power alone, it actually surpassed those World Bosses. For players to take it on head-on was simply impossible.
Only war machines could barely hold their own against the Storm King Serpent.
Their own vessels had been reinforced multiple times and were equipped with shipboard defense shields, yet they could only barely withstand the Storm King Serpent's attacks. Even so, their ships' durability was draining at a frightening rate. Trying to match the Storm King Serpent with nothing but personal strength was the very definition of overestimating oneself.
"What good is flying fast? They still can't block it," Yu Ye muttered from aboard his sailing ship, feeling a small measure of satisfaction as he watched the Thunder Eagle get struck.
Flying mounts might be quick, but when it came to sea battles, ships were what truly mattered.
Just as the mist from the collision dissipated, the Thunder Eagle was still hovering in midair — and Shi Feng and the others aboard it were completely unharmed.
"How is that possible?" Lu Xingluo's face was a mask of disbelief.
The Storm King Serpent's attack had been a Tier-Four area-of-effect strike. Its power was comparable to a shot from a mid-tier magic cannon. Even a mid-tier defensive magic circle would have been pierced by that blow, yet Shi Feng and his group were completely untouched…
"No way! They actually blocked it!"
Quite a number of factions had been watching Shi Feng's group. The Thunder Eagle was simply too conspicuous up there in the sky — while everyone else was floating on the ocean, Shi Feng and his crew were the only ones airborne. It was impossible not to notice.
While everyone was still reeling from the Thunder Eagle's survival, Shi Feng immediately directed it to charge straight toward the Storm King Serpent, rapidly closing the distance between them.
The Storm King Serpent's attacks were devastating, but Anna was no ordinary Tier-Two companion. The defensive power of her Pillar of Light and Darkness was in no way inferior to a high-tier defensive magic circle. For a Tier-Four attack to break through it was simply impossible.
Of course, she couldn't maintain it indefinitely. Blocking that single strike alone had consumed nearly 6% of Anna's mana. Another dozen or so hits like that, and she would be completely drained. They needed to end this quickly.
He wasn't a warship that could launch attacks from over a thousand yards away. He had to get close enough to actually reach the Storm King Serpent.
The reason he needed to deal damage to the Storm King Serpent was simple — the rules of combat at sea differed slightly from those on land. If he didn't inflict any damage on the Storm King Serpent, he wouldn't even be able to touch the loot it dropped. He would have to wait for someone else to pick it up, and only by killing that person afterward could he obtain the drops.