Chapter 2052 Joining Forces (Part 2) The Hyperion took control of every single fragment with earth magic and reformed the shield before the next volley arrived. 'Now!' The moment the elders unleashed the Annihilation, Lith activated Ruin. The blackness of the storm was painted red by the hail of energy blades that moved in every direction, attacking all the nearest seven-man units belonging to Thrud's army at the same time. The Demons of the Darkness jumped out of Lith's shadows and legs, using Domination to take control of Ruin's shards and imbue them in their weapons. This way, the Demons would not only harness a fraction of the power of the Blade Spell, but they would also ride it to reach their respective marks with a speed exceeding that of any flight spell. Ruin generated countless energy blades that Lith had to control by splitting his willpower, but aside from the main blast that still required his focus, each blade had now a wielder that could use it on their own. By coupling the Blade Tier Spell with his Demons, Lith had exploited its huge area of effect to strike at multiple enemies at the same time without the need to control Ruin once it was cast. He focused solely on the Quetzalcoatl and on not missing the timing when the two Silverwing's spells would clash. The Bastion supported by the barriers had no problem withstanding the enemy's Annihilation, but once Ruin joined the onslaught, the emerald surface cracked. The single fissure quickly spread to the rest of the construct faster than it could be repaired. Both Thrud's and the Council's Awakened were taken by surprise when the defensive barriers suddenly collapsed. Yet while the Quetzalcoatl and the members of his unit took what was left of the two offensive spells square on, the elders used the moment of respite to use Invigoration and weave new spells. Lith pressed his advantage, breathing a full burst of Void Flames from his mouth and another of Blight Flames from his feathered wings against Ophius. The former engulfed his head while the latter struck his tail and both burned at him from inside out. The two Cursed Flames quickly covered their respective half of the Quetzalcoatl's colossal body, drawn to each other like magnets of opposite charge. Yet while the Chaos spent part of its energy to cancel Life Maelstrom's effects, the Decay gobbled it up and used it to amplify its strength. The Void and the Blight met in the middle, turning the Cursed elements back into their natural state. Light and darkness mixed quickly and violently, causing an explosion that ripped off many of the sky-blue scales covering Ophius' midline. At the same time, the Demons of the Darkness wielding the shards of Ruin attacked the nearby seven-men units belonging to Thrud's army. Each one of them was nothing much compared to a violet-cored Awakened, let alone seven of them working together. Yet there were over a thousand Demons focusing their full might on just five units. On top of that, they all wielded at least one shard of the Blade Spell and hurled a burst of Void Flames at the same time. Thrud's Awakened were caught by surprise, but they still managed to raise Silverwing's Bastion before the hail of living dark-red energy turned them into mincemeat. The Flames and the shards helplessly crashed against the barrier, dealing no damage. Just like Lith had planned. Thrud's Awakened had been forced to focus their attention to the sudden threat, losing control of the fight and creating an opportunity that the Council's elders didn't miss. They used Life Vision to study the barriers and unleashed their respective Annihilation against its weakest spot. The attack of the Demons had forced Thrud's Awakened to focus their energy in a single point, leaving the Bastion exposed to side attacks. The Annihilations shattered the mystical barriers on impact and still had enough strength to deal quite some damage before fading away. The elders exploited the ensuing moments of chaos and confusion to gain the upper hand, breaking the standstill. 'Well done!' Solus said via their mind link. 'Our strength isn't enough to win this battle on our own, but by tipping the scales in multiple points, we should trigger a domino effect. 'With each unit of Thrud's Awakened that falls, the remaining Council members can join their forces to take down the enemies faster. In this situation, even outnumbering the enemy of a single seven-men unit can make a difference and with this attack, we have created the opportunity to wipe out six of them!' 'Don't count our chickens before they hatch.' Between the Cursed Flames and the Blade Tier Spell, Lith was so tired that he panted even in his mind. 'The Quetzalcoatl is still standing and even with the advantage I've given them, the elders will have a tough time fighting the rest of the Emperor Beasts still infused with Life Maelstrom. 'To get rid of the Doom Tide that controls the snowstorm, wounding him isn't enough. We must kill him.' 'Way ahead of you.' Solus replied while the runes engraved on the Sage Staff flew in the air and surrounded Ophius' group. The three Evil Eyes and the elemental crystals shone in unison as she used the power of the staff to make up for her blue core and conjure the tier four Gravity spell, Collapsed Star. It increased the gravity surrounding the seven Emperor Beasts by one hundred folds, making it impossible for any flight spell to support their weight. The Quetzalcoatl and his allies plunged down, crashing against the ground before they could even understand what was happening. Their bodies twisted and broke, their very own bones piercing through their flesh and organs impaling them from the inside. 'Excellent work, kid.' One of the elders, a man who looked in his late forties with blonde hair and blue eyes said via a quick mind link while chasing the prey. 'A little forewarning would have allowed us to kill them all in a fell swoop though.' 'It would have also alerted the enemy, and by the time you'd readied your spell, I would have missed my opening.' Lith replied. 'Fair enough. Dragonspeed, Verhen.' Ophius managed to use Doom Tide to conjure a Warp Array and escape from the effects of Collapsed Star before it killed them all, but it was too late. The fact that the Council elders were already on their tail before they could take a single breath of Invigoration would probably spell their death but it wasn't that worrying Ophius. Solus knew that killing a Divine Beast in a single shot was impossible so she had conjured Shattered Star to remove the Quetzalcoatl from the battle. The purpose of her spell had been to drive one of the Doom Tide users away from the array field, not to defeat them. Without Ophius keeping the formation stable, the snowstorm's advance slowed down and the clouds started to drift away from Belius. 'Excellent work, Solus. When did you learn Gravity magic?' Lith asked while drawing in world energy with Demon Grasp to restore his strength while Solus did the same with Sky Blessing. 'It's a side project I've been dabbling in with Friya ever since we crafted the Sage Staff.' She replied.