Chapter 878: Chapter 879: His Return Both sides were ready for the final battle, it was the last stretch. Personally speaking, Damon was more eager for the elixir of pseudo immortality, but he wasn’t the only one. A lot of people had their eyes on it even when they knew nothing about it. He could already hear people talking about it. Young nobles wanted to take it back to their families as a trophy. They would trade it with more powerful families for a chance to rise up in rank. Adventurers wanted a noble title and could easily gain one. Some zealots wanted to give it to the temple in hopes of earning their favor and of course their rewards. While some believed if they took it, they would live forever, becoming undying. There were many speculations. The goal of entering a world dungeon was to earn fame, rare resources, and of course rise in power. This nightmare offered all of it, the elixir, the fame of having overcome such an unprecedented trial, and finally the last reward, a boon set by the unknown god himself. Rising in rank to the fourth class advancement. This was power, actual power. Those in the fourth class were usually powerhouses and in wars contributed a lot as officers. It had gotten to the point where a foreign fourth rank would be monitored as a safety precaution. This was real power and all they had to do was survive to the end. Easier said than done. A volley of magical attacks shot towards them from the enemy’s defensive line. Xander raised his shield along with the thick formation of tanks in front, each of them reinforced with magic from the mages behind them. They carried tower shields and formed a thick barricade, with healers restoring them whenever they took damage. When their shields went down, the mages and archers would fire their own volley. This had been ongoing for the last three hours. Which was pointless, since both sides weren’t really doing any damage. It was in fact a battle of attrition, and Damon’s side would fall first. Xander glanced at him from behind a tower shield. "How long do we have to hold on for?" Damon raised his head, looking into the distance where Renata had concealed both herself and Lilith in the chaos and smoke. No one noticed them. "Any minute now..." he muttered. Then a violet light filled the world as Renata wore down the enemy barrier. As soon as she did, Lilith raised her hand and a burst of magic filled the air. [Void Scythe] A scythe appeared in her hand, made from the void, and without hesitation she threw it, the manifestation of the void crashing into the barrier. A massive sound like glass breaking erupted, and the front section of the barrier fell apart like shattered crystal. The chained knights were stunned. Damon nodded at Xander, who raised his spear. "Advance..." His roar roused everyone, and with a thick formation of shields in front they charged into the fray as bolts of arrows and blasts of magic struck their defenses. The chained knights realized their barrier was gone. It was no longer a siege but an open battle, so they switched tactics. The warden who was leading them raised his hand. "Restore the barrier. Advance squad forward." He gave the order, but before he could react, Damon teleported behind him and stabbed him in the chest. However, he was still fourth class and managed to twist aside, his chest bleeding as he punched toward Damon. Damon smiled and teleported away before the warden could react. A white arrow pierced his head as Sylvia snapped her bow in two, turning it into twin blades. He died indignant, a fourth class killed in such a disgraceful way, ambushed by two third class opponents because he let his guard down. While they may have taken down the barrier, they still didn’t have the advantage at all. The chained people were still better equipped and better trained for war. And so they began losing their advantage. Then from the rooftops, shadows of flying figures appeared. From above, the aerial squad unleashed a volley into the middle of the enemy lines. This was Abellona, leading those of them who had wings for an aerial assault. The chained knights had given up their arrows for melee combat and now had to deal with enemies from above. One of their commanders saw this and screamed out. "Mages assemble. Mages assemble." Mages scrambled to gather in the fast and chaotic battle. The air was tight, once you fell you would be trampled. Blood soaked the ground, swords and magic clashed as fast and thunderous as lightning in a stormy sky. Death from the sky, aerial tactical warfare. This kind of warfare is mostly used by demons and winged races like the fae, though the demons do it best. The reason for that is because most demon kin have wings, so flying is simply natural to them, while the goddess races only had some races with wings, not all of them could fly. However, this was just the start, and Damon was intent on pushing his advantage. This would have been a good time to use the Staff of Carnage, but he had already used it against Seraph Null. Still, he raised his hand and unleashed a torrent of black flames. Screams echoed as bodies turned to ash. The system’s familiar chime echoed out. [You have slain Tatin of the Chained] [You have slain ...] [You have slain...] ... Damon was about to advance toward the black tower when a group of hooded figures came out chanting praise in Seraph Null’s name. Then they did the unbelievable. They took out daggers and plunged them into their own hearts. "In the great god’s mercy, we call his angels." They collapsed into pools of their own blood, and when they did it was as if the battlefield went silent. The blood began to slowly flow in a circle. When Damon sensed it, his face paled. That was summoning magic. From the circle, figures began to appear, strange winged entities that reminded him of the mirror seraph. When they fully stepped out, each of them carried lances, and without hesitation they charged into battle. Some rose into the sky to face Abellona and the aerial assault group, the rest plunged into the already dire ground battle. When they joined, they brought death with wide area attacks that created arcs of destruction around them. Corpses fell from the sky where they fought, and the ground forces were getting overwhelmed. Damon gritted his teeth, then activated his brand. He was hoping he wouldn’t have to use them, but so be it. Then at the very edge of the battlefield, when things looked dire, Damon took a deep breath. Then— "Frost dominate." A cold and sinister voice echoed out, and with those words massive pillars of ice shot forward, impaling anyone in their path. When everyone heard that voice, a chill ran down their spine. He had risen from the grave once again. "Haahahhah..." the cold, sinister voice echoed. "Die." Someone froze in shock. "It... it’s Amon..." The chained knights did not know why they were reacting this way, but those of the goddess races knew to fear him. Amon the Unknown Ruler, the one suspected to be the return of Ashcroft. The demon kin in the air watched with awe as he rode atop a lesser demon, then waved his hand. With that, wyvern creatures appeared out of nowhere. Then silver knights marched out in the hundreds along with black armored knights. Amon had returned, and he came back as powerful as ever. The Unknown Ruler was back. Damon watched his shadow clone Amon standing in glory. It was a good thing he had risked creating another shadow clone combined with his Faceless skill. Damon had a plan B in case things didn’t go as planned. Now the battle was theirs to win. As for his army of shadow drones, he had never planned to have them associated with him anyway. If anyone found out how they worked, it would be troublesome, especially if the temple gained more reasons to find him suspicious. Besides, he had let his shadow clone play the villain. That was why he had made it. Still, Damon frowned. Now they had the advantage again, but he still had to get to the black tower. While he was thinking, his shadow clone scanned the battlefield from his high vantage point, and he noticed something odd. He didn’t see Lilith or Sylvia. "What are they planning now..." It was hard to spot them, but Amon hadn’t come alone. He had in fact come with Lyn and Sithara, who were helping him as his adjutants. They were the ones who built this shadow army with Lazarak, so they had more understanding of their specifications. Lyn glanced at him. "What, is something wrong?" Damon shook his head slowly. "No, it’s no big deal. You two stay close, I’ll protect you." Sithara didn’t seem to mind. She was too interested in the fighting power of the wyvern-like combat drones. Damon, down on the battlefield, didn’t have time to worry. He glanced at the sky, contacting Abellona. "I’m heading inside the tower." He didn’t receive a reply. But he was sure she heard him.