The crystallized warlocks present were seething with frustration.
In the past, a small organization like the Hand of Vengeance would have been cowering in dark sewers like rats, crushed the moment they showed their faces.
When had they started daring to provoke them openly?
"I'll go out there and finish them off!" another burly man immediately roared.
"Don't be rash!" Faisal stopped him.
"The joint defense magical array is already active — frequent entries and exits will only give them chances to observe how our array operates! Don't let rage cloud your judgment!"
It had to be said that Faisal did have some competence — at least he wasn't a fool and could spot an obvious plot.
But despite his words, watching his former enemies swagger about right in front of him, Faisal's chest was already burning with fury. He was merely holding it back through sheer willpower.
"Once this crisis is over, I will personally lead the Pursuit Division again and slaughter every last one of those rats!"
"Look!" At that moment, Furui pointed at the magical array outside, exclaiming in alarm.
"What?!"
Only then did the numerous warlocks notice that the massive magical array Luobo had deployed outside at some point had begun to slowly activate.
BOOM!
After a devastating tremor that felt like the earth splitting apart, vast quantities of swamp churned violently. Mud and filthy water surged up from deep underground, rapidly extinguishing the phosphorescent fires hovering above the marsh.
Once the phosphorescent fires vanished, massive amounts of water vapor were evaporated. The former swamp transformed into a stretch of muddy wasteland, the ground continuously compacting until it hardened into something resembling solid rock.
This transformation spread outward from the center of that massive magical array, radiating in all directions.
"They dare touch our foundation!" The warlocks' eyes immediately turned red with fury.
The reason the Ring of the Ouroboros had originally claimed this place was none other than the unique geography of the Phosphorescent Fire Swamp — an abundance of shadow-system energy particles and fire-system particles coexisting in perfect harmony, complementing the bloodline of the Komoin Giant Serpent flawlessly.
Warlocks stationed here could not only accelerate their growth but also receive environmental bonuses when casting spells.
And now, vast stretches of swamp had been converted to flatland. The once-abundant shadow particles and fire particles were gradually depleting, replaced by earth-element particles.
Though the affected area was limited to this city, the blow to these high-ranking warlocks was still devastating.
"Haha..." Outside, Luobo let out a hearty laugh.
"Did you think we never planned our revenge? Dead wrong! Even when we were being hunted across the entire continent, we never gave up on the idea of returning for vengeance! This time, we will uproot the Ring of the Ouroboros entirely!"
"We have no choice!"
Watching the barren wasteland gradually encircle the entire city, with the concentration of earth-element particles climbing steadily as they drove out the shadow particles and fire particles, Faisal's face alternated between green and white.
"Alchemical Corps, attack! Support the defensive array with coordinated action!"
He issued the command, a blush of shame still on his face. He now realized that his hasty decision to activate the entire defensive array had been far too impetuous.
The attack order felt even more like a slap to his own face.
"Hmph!" In response, Furui and the other warlocks merely gave a cold snort and didn't press the matter further, allowing Faisal to breathe a sigh of relief.
"At least some of them still have sense!" Luxi nodded quietly to himself, knowing they had truly reached the moment between life and death. All grudges and schemes had to be set aside.
Their shared warlock bloodline meant they would never receive the Wizards' mercy!
CRACK! The semi-transparent magical array enveloping the entire city split open with a massive tear, and a torrent of steel poured out.
THUD! THUD!
What appeared before Luobo was an enormous legion of steel puppets.
These alchemical puppets averaged over three meters tall, their bodies covered in intricate runes, with numerous barbs and hooks glinting with cold light.
Most strikingly, each puppet had a massive cannon barrel on either shoulder, sending a chill of dread through Luobo.
"Portable magical cannons! The warlocks of the Ring of the Ouroboros aren't just talented in bloodline experiments!"
The masked man watching from the sidelines smiled, immediately recording all the data.
At the same time, he barked orders at the observers behind him: "Did you mark all the operational fluctuations when the array opened?"
"Reporting, sir! Everything has been fully recorded — all energy nodes have been marked, and we're currently calculating weak points and the location of the array spirit!"
A girl who appeared to be only seven or eight years old, wearing an enormous red bow and oversized glasses, spoke with surprising seriousness.
"Excellent, keep recording! This miniaturized magical cannon technology is quite useful. Make sure to notify our people — recommend that we secure this technology in the post-battle asset allocation!"
The masked man waved his hand with great enthusiasm.
In his view, breaching the enemy headquarters was now merely a matter of time.
"Target locked! Commencing attack!" The steel puppets that had exited the city shot crimson targeting lights from their eyes, marking Luobo and all the other Hand of Vengeance wizards. A mechanical voice emanated from their bodies.
"Not good! Take cover—" Luobo's words had not even fully left his mouth before they were drowned by a blinding barrage of white laser fire.
Hiss! Hiss!
White lasers swept across the battlefield. Anything their beams so much as grazed was instantly reduced to ash, and even the ground was carved with deep trenches.
"Ah!" "Sir!" Sharp, desperate screams rang out.
The wizards from the smaller organizations were obliterated before they could even finish speaking, reduced to ash in an instant.
Even someone like Luobo — a third-level crystallized wizard — was left in a wretched state. After a single round of lasers, his clothes were completely destroyed, and even his wooden prosthetic leg had been blown away without a trace.
"Initiate annihilation protocol!" The cold voice rang out once more as all the steel puppets roared in unison and launched their assault on the remaining wizards.
In an instant, the battlefield erupted into chaos. Flashes of light erupted everywhere, and the Hand of Vengeance suffered catastrophic casualties.
The massive magical array that had still been operating was immediately destroyed, and the transformation of the ground stabilized.
"Hmph! Nothing but small fry from insignificant organizations, and they dare challenge the dignity of our Ring of the Ouroboros!"
Faisal laughed with vindication.
"The real enemy hasn't even made their move yet — you've only dealt with some cannon fodder. Is that really worth celebrating?" Furui rolled her eyes beside him, immediately dousing him with a bucket of cold water.
For the Ring of the Ouroboros, the Hand of Vengeance and the other small organizations had always been rat-like nuisances. Deploying a handful of high-ranking warlocks could chase them to the ends of the earth, leaving them with no escape — hardly something worth boasting about.
What truly concerned the warlocks was that the real enemy forces had simply watched coldly as the Hand of Vengeance members were slaughtered to the last. Even Luobo had been reduced to a pathetic state, and yet not the slightest effort had been made to rescue them — dashing any hopes of luring the enemy into their array's range.
"Sir! Why..." Luobo had been gravely wounded but was eventually rescued. The remaining Hand of Vengeance members had not been so fortunate — nearly all of them had fallen at the hands of the steel puppets. His eyes bloodshot and his voice hoarse, he roared his question.
"Rest assured! The lords will remember your sacrifice! Now, let us take revenge on your behalf!"
The green-haired wizard's expression was cold, his body radiating an aura of iron-blooded ruthlessness, and he offered his words of comfort without a shred of sincerity.
In secret, however, he sneered: "Once you've served your purpose, naturally we'll need to whittle down your strength and numbers. Otherwise, would we really hand over that much profit to you after the battle? In your dreams!"
Before Luobo could clench his fists and say another word, the green-haired wizard waved his hand: "Plant Legion, move out!"
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Countless vines and massive man-eating flowers wrenched themselves from the soil, advancing to meet the steel puppet legion.
"Target locked! Second wave, commence!" At the front of the steel army stood a black steel giant standing over five meters tall. The three red dots in its mechanical eye locked onto a target, and the cannons on its shoulders immediately roared to life.
Hiss! Hiss! Under the sweep of the white lasers, numerous man-eating flowers were snapped and toppled, thick pus seeping from their wounds.
"Even the Blue Rain Knights would struggle to withstand this kind of laser attack, but unfortunately for my Plant Legion..."
Watching the scene unfold, the green-haired wizard's face broke into a mocking smile.
Vast quantities of spores were launched from the man-eating flowers, burrowing into the soil. The ground rapidly bulged upward before bursting open, revealing a fresh man-eating flower. The remaining severed limbs and torsos writhed together, fusing into a colossal mutated man-eating flower dozens of meters tall, which then swallowed the giant puppet whole.
BOOM!!!
Green and black, nature and mechanical — two terrifying torrents collided head-on. White lasers swept everywhere while green corrosive fluid sprayed across the battlefield.
Watching the scene outside, Luxi sighed.
"I'm afraid their earlier probing already gave them a complete read on our defensive array's trump card. They've deliberately kept the battle line at a thousand meters out — exactly at the limit of our attack range!"
Faisal's face darkened. Though no one said it outright, everyone knew this was a rebuke for his premature activation of the array's defenses.
"Look!" At that moment, another crystallized noble exclaimed.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
All the crystallized warlocks raised their heads in unison just in time to see an enormous shadow of sails blotting out the sky and sun, casting a massive darkness over the entire region.
"Second battle zone, area bombardment — begin!"
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Like a meteor shower, the enormous bow cannons of the warships thundered, sweeping across the area where the puppet army had been tangled with the Plant Legion.
Under this devastating assault, the once-mighty puppet army was instantly reduced to a heap of scrap metal.