"These levels… How is that even possible?"
"They're all monsters, aren't they?"
For a moment, not only were Bao Sha and the others from Phantom Myth stunned—even Chen Mo Chi Xing and her group, who had been opening the teleportation gate, stood frozen in disbelief.
The top players across every major superpower in the Divine Realm currently hovered around level 113 at best, with the truly exceptional ones reaching level 114. Yet every single member of Zero Wing was at least level 117, a full several tiers above the elite powerhouses of those superpowers.
And it wasn't just a matter of being a few levels higher—they had crossed the level 115 watershed, meaning they could equip weapons and armor of that grade.
"Bao Sha, look—their Mana Bodies are fully unlocked, and their equipment isn't shabby either. Those melee classes especially. If we try to take them down, it's going to cost us serious time and resources. And if the Violet Sword side frees up their hands, we're in real trouble." A third-tier Berserker from Phantom Myth eyed the hundred-odd Zero Wing members with their Mana Bodies unlocked and couldn't help but voice his concerns to Bao Sha.
Among their own ranks, a few of the squad leaders had unlocked their Mana Bodies, but the rest hadn't. With the aid of their battle formations, they could edge out Zero Wing's people in raw stats—but the margin was slim. And every last person on the other side had their Mana Body unlocked.
If it came to a straight fight, even one-on-one their advantage would be negligible. Never mind that they numbered just over thirty while Zero Wing fielded over a hundred. They held no real superiority at all.
"Damn it! All of you, fall back!" Bao Sha's face darkened as he looked over the Zero Wing crowd. He turned to the female knight beside him. "Yu Bai, you squad leaders come with me. We charge in—take down as many as we can. Once Chen Mo Chi Xing and the others finish opening the gate, we pull out immediately!"
"Understood!" The female knight, Yu Bai, nodded without objection.
The five of them each wielded fourth-tier power, and with battle formations boosting them, their stats were in an entirely different league from Zero Wing's rank and file. Only Shi Feng could pose any real threat. With the five of them cutting through the enemy together, they could carve a bloody swath through the crowd. Besides, they had already burned through precious Anti-Magic Gems for this operation—if they came away empty-handed, punishment was guaranteed.
As soon as Bao Sha finished speaking, everyone in Phantom Myth except the five squad leaders turned and retreated without a moment's hesitation.
"Think you can just leave? Not so easy!"
A crisp voice rang through the crowd. Zhao Yueru had already finished her incantation—the magic circle at her feet expanded in an instant, forming a wall of fire that blanketed a radius of five hundred yards, sealing every member of Phantom Myth inside.
"You're asking for it!"
Bao Sha's fury erupted at the sight of the fire barrier. He lunged straight toward Zhao Yueru in the midst of the crowd, his speed so terrifying that even Fuguang and the others on the sidelines gasped.
Too fast!
He was more than double the speed of the lead assassin from before, moving like a specter. In the blink of an eye, he had crossed fifty or sixty yards.
"Everyone, be careful! He's fully merged his advanced footwork with his movement skills—don't engage him head-on!" Hell Roar watched Bao Sha's blinding speed, his gaze growing heavy with concern.
Of all combat techniques, footwork was the hardest to fuse—especially the merging of combat-style footwork with movement abilities. Even within the Violet Sword, those who could pull it off were few and far between.
And once such a fusion was achieved, one could move freely through armies of thousands as if they weren't there.
That Bao Sha also possessed fourth-tier stats on top of it all—speed combined with raw power—made him essentially unstoppable…
Bao Sha took only two or three seconds to slice cleanly through Zero Wing's ranks and materialize behind Zhao Yueru. His short sword gleamed like a crescent of white silver as it arced downward toward her back.
"Annoying pest—die!"
With a sharp grunt, the short sword in his hand condensed into a titanic blade of mana. The space in its path dissolved into utter darkness, threatening to swallow Zhao Yueru whole.
Just as the darkness was about to consume her, a graceful figure appeared at Zhao Yueru's side. A streak of sword light surged forward to meet the encroaching void.
BOOM!
A deafening explosion reverberated outward. The space at the point of impact was annihilated outright, and every player within a ten-yard radius was blasted backward by the shockwave.
"Blocked it? How is that possible?!"