In the Mushroom King's Territory, the air was thick with a nauseatingly sweet and rotting smell.
Vast amounts of fungi grew densely on trees, the ground, and everywhere.
However, at this moment, the dead land that had been ruled by fungi for decades was forcibly torn apart by a completely different power.
A figure strolled through it leisurely, as if walking in his own courtyard.
Legendary Sword Saint, "Unfinished Sword," Kairos.
He hadn't even unsheathed his sword; it simply hung in the air a few feet off the ground as he walked with unhurried composure toward areas where the Fungal Carpet grew thicker and the colors more bizarre.
Around him swirled an invisible yet tangible Domain.
——Myriad Flower Sword Domain.
This was the name he had given his Domain, embodying the flow of sword light, as brilliant and deadly as a kaleidoscope.
Walking at the very front, the Sword Saint's body was covered by countless attacks.
Clouds of highly corrosive spores frantically spat out by fungal monsters, sharp spear-like active mycelium suddenly thrusting from underground, colorless and odorless yet lethal nerve gas permeating the air... there were many types.
But.
All these attacks were completely blocked before they could touch the Sword Saint's body, as if they had hit an invisible barrier.
Every attack seemed futile, only serving to highlight the Domain's indestructibility.
At the same time, with Kairos as the center, without any visible movement of drawing or swinging his sword, the fungal monsters lunging from all sides were instantly torn apart, as if cut by countless invisible blades simultaneously, turning into dust scattering in the air.
The thick Fungal Carpet beneath his feet was also plowed open layer by layer by invisible and sharp Sword Qi, revealing the soil that had been hidden for a long time.
As the Fungal Carpet shattered, countless microscopic fungal spores, as fine as dust, drifted toward the Sword Saint, attempting to attach and parasitize. However, like the other attacks, they were also blocked by the Domain, unable to touch even a fraction of his robes or skin.
Even though the surroundings were already a mess, with fungal corpses strewn about and the ground shattered.
But this human Legendary powerhouse remained spotless, his robes clean and his posture composed and elegant, a stark contrast to the surrounding filth and chaos.
"Follow up, clean it up, don't leave any hidden dangers!"
Kairos's voice reached the ears of the human legion behind him.
Upon receiving the order, the human legion immediately advanced rapidly along the safe passage opened by the Legendary Sword Saint.
Soldiers clad in heavy armor swung their blades, cutting down any fungal monsters that lunged afterward; Alchemy Golems with glowing nozzles marched with heavy steps, firing scorching flames that ignited patches of still-writhing Fungal Carpet into a roaring sea of fire.
A pungent burnt smell mixed with the strange fungal fragrance, forming an even more foul toxic gas.
Low-level warriors felt dizzy just by smelling it.
Fortunately, this toxic gas was quickly dispersed by magic constructed by the army's mages.
A war involving Legendary powerhouses was completely different from ordinary combat modes.
Lacking equivalent Legendary armaments or strategic magical devices, the role ordinary legions could play was often more auxiliary; they couldn't directly participate in Legendary-level confrontations. Their primary tasks were to consume some of the enemy's basic strength or handle tedious cleaning, occupation, and stabilization work.
Just like now.
The purpose of the legion under Kairos was to clean up the Fungal Carpet and any stragglers, and to immediately clean and take over the area after the battle ended.
Kairos's gaze swept across the depths of the territory, and he suddenly stopped.
Although the attacks from the fungal monsters posed no threat to him, they were indeed wasting his precious time.
Besides this Mushroom King hiding its head and showing its tail, there was also a so-called King of Molten Iron on the list that he needed to deal with.
Even that Mountain King, who had caused less damage to the kingdom's base and behaved relatively peacefully, was no exception and was also on the Theo Kingdom's purge list.
The kingdom would never show mercy to a monster just because it behaved itself.
Kairos didn't want to waste too much time in this disgusting fungal land.
After a brief contemplation, he decided to use tougher methods to force out the Mushroom King, who refused to show its true form.
The Legendary Sword Saint reached out and gripped his sword hilt.
In an instant, an even more piercing and majestic power rose from within him.
The Myriad Flower Sword Domain around him suddenly became bright, changing from invisible to visible to the naked eye.
It was a Domain composed of countless tiny, brilliant, and constantly shifting miniature sword glows, beautiful yet filled with killing intent.
"Hiding away, wasting time."
Kairos whispered to himself.
The next moment, his beloved sword hanging at his waist, a magic weapon named Sun-Chaser, emitted a clear hum on its own, its blade vibrating slightly as it unsheathed itself by three inches.
Legendary equipment was rare and expensive; even Kairos, who had recently ascended to Legendary, did not yet possess a true Legendary-grade weapon.
However, his Sun-Chaser Sword was already the top-tier equipment below the Legendary level.
Enhanced and amplified by his own Legendary Domain, its power was not to be underestimated.
With just three inches of the blade exposed, an indescribable sharp aura soared into the sky.
Even the dark clouds in the sky were sliced apart and dissipated.
Dust-Cleansing Sword Rain!
With a clear hum, countless sword glows as fine as dust and as brilliant as stars suddenly surged and boiled, like a hundred rivers returning to the sea, attaching themselves to the unsheathed Sun-Chaser blade.
The light condensed on the blade was so dazzling it was impossible to look at directly.
Suddenly, countless strands of Sword Qi, as solid as substance and as fine as ox hair yet incomparably sharp, erupted from the blade.
They didn't fly randomly but, as if possessed of life, turned into a rainstorm sweeping in all directions, indiscriminately covering all Fungal Carpets, fungal monsters, and even the twisted earth and forests within sight.
Chiii chiii chiii—!!!
The sound was as dense as rain hitting plantain leaves, yet as sharp as ten thousand blades scraping together.
Wherever the sword glows passed, it was beautiful and terrifying.
The originally thick, tough, and writhing Fungal Carpet was like being thrown into a meat grinder, instantly cut and crushed into flying dust.
Those fungal monsters lurking in the Fungal Carpet or hanging on dead trees didn't even have time to scream before they fell apart under the wash of countless Sword Qi.
Whether it was hard fungal shells or flexible mycelium, they were as fragile as paper.
Further away, patches of twisted trees parasitized by fungi were also shaved into bare trunks by the sword rain, and then the trunks themselves became covered in sword marks and collapsed with a bang.
A large area centered around Kairos seemed to be instantly purified.
All fungal creations, whether living monsters or static Fungal Carpets and forests, were swept away, leaving only the riddled earth covered in crisscrossing sword marks and fallen, broken wood.
The nauseating smell in the air also seemed to be diluted and dispersed by the all-cleansing sharpness.
The human legion advancing from behind couldn't help but stop, watching this scene in shock.
Even though they already knew that Legendary powerhouses possessed unparalleled power, every time they witnessed it firsthand, it was still difficult to remain calm, leaving only deep awe.
Kairos's wrist moved slightly.
The Sun-Chaser Sword emitted a satisfied soft hum and slid back into its scabbard, as if what had just happened was a trivial matter he had done with ease.
His robes remained as clean as new, untainted by dust.
The Sword Saint floated in mid-air, his cold and sharp gaze sweeping over the instantly cleared area and the core zone further in, which was still covered by dense fungi.
"Still refusing to show yourself?"
"If you continue to hide, I will use sword after sword to completely wipe your nest and all your disgusting creations from this land. By then, you will lose all your barriers and reliance, and even the last trace of a possibility for resistance will no longer exist."
He said calmly.
Meanwhile.
As if enraged by his arrogance and destruction, a dull roar like a drumbeat came from the depths of the swamp.
Immediately after, the Fungal Carpet in front exploded, and a massive figure drilled out.
Its height was nearly five meters, its body structure exhibiting a thick and heavy build similar to a troll, but its skin was a grayish-white like necrotic tissue, densely covered with strange mushrooms that constantly opened and closed, spitting out spores of various colors like breathing.
Its head was like a deformed mushroom full of wrinkles, ridges, and deep holes, with a gap in the center that constantly opened and closed, emitting a hoarse and inhuman roar.
Its limbs were thick, with tentacles like fungal roots extending from its fingertips, bringing a foul-smelling gale as it flailed.
The moment this 'Spore Troll' appeared, all the surrounding fungal monsters seemed encouraged and became even more frenzied.
The remaining Fungal Carpet lit up with streaks of light, flowing toward its feet, which looked like both roots and paws.
Its aura grew again, reaching a very strong level below the Legendary rank, exceeding that of a typical level 20 creature.
"Is this the so-called Mushroom King? Truly hideous and nauseating."
A flash of undisguised disdain crossed Kairos's eyes.
Opposite him, the Spore Troll spoke heavily through the crack in the center of its mushroom head, spitting out human language in a twisted but clear manner: "Human... invading my territory... die!"
The Spore Troll took heavy steps, making the ground tremble.
It swung a fist covered in a thick fungal shell, carrying a dense cloud of spores capable of corroding refined steel armor in an instant, and smashed it hard toward Kairos.
Kairos still neither dodged nor avoided it, and did not even adopt any defensive posture.
When the fist entered a three-meter range around him, its speed suddenly plummeted, and that violent spore cloud dissipated instantly as if it had hit an invisible meat grinder wall.
The Spore Troll's massive fist seemed to have struck the world's hardest barrier, unable to advance even an inch.
Furthermore, at the point where the peak of the fist contacted the Domain, countless hair-thin cutting marks appeared instantly, and a grayish-white fungal fluid seeped out.
"Only to this extent? Truly disappointing."
Kairos shook his head slightly, a hint of a dull sigh in his tone.
The moment the words left his mouth.
Keng!
Another incredibly clear sword cry suddenly rang out, its sound drowning out all the noise and roars.
The sword light flashed and vanished!
Fast! Extremely fast!
No one could see how he drew his sword; no one could even capture the trajectory of the blade. It was as if only a very fine, very bright silver line—one that seemed capable of splitting light itself in two—flashed through the air and then immediately disappeared.
The Spore Troll, which was raising its other fist to launch a second attack, suddenly froze its massive body.
Its movements came to a screeching halt.
In the next second, starting from the exact center of its massive mushroom head, a straight and smooth silver line rapidly spread downward, passing through its broad chest and thick waist and abdomen, all the way to its crotch!
However, this was not the end.
There was no blood at the incision on the Spore Troll; only writhing mycelium extended frantically, merging back into one in the blink of an eye.
It suddenly leaped up, and its right arm, covered in mycelium, abruptly deformed and stretched, spinning rapidly to form a fungal spear with an incredibly sharp tip. With a piercing sound of breaking air, it lunged fiercely at Kairos once more.
The result was exactly the same as before.
The Myriad Flower Sword Domain was indestructible; the fungal spear was shredded by invisible sword light the moment it touched the Domain.
At the same time, Kairos simply raised his hand casually.
Sword light swept across the Spore Troll's body again.
This time, it was no longer just a single silver line.
One silver line appeared on its body, then ten, then a hundred... countless crisscrossing sword lights seemed to erupt at the same instant, completely enveloping the Spore Troll's body.
The Spore Troll's massive body suddenly disintegrated into fragments of varying sizes, scattering across the ground with a clatter.
But it still had not died.
The scattered pieces writhed frantically on the ground, and more mycelium surged out from the fragments, seeking, connecting, and entwining with each other as if they possessed a life of their own. Simultaneously, the surrounding remaining Fungal Carpet seemed to be summoned, converging here like waves. Those fragments absorbed the energy transmitted from the Fungal Carpet and expanded rapidly.
In the blink of an eye.
Three Spore Trolls with equally powerful auras, reaching the Level 20 tier, stood on the spot.
They surrounded the Sword Saint in a triangular formation.
Their bodies deformed into various types of weapons.
Their attacks covered all angles.
Located at the center of the storm, the Sword Saint merely curled his lips and gave a light smile.
The Myriad Flower Sword Domain flowed with brilliance, steadily blocking all the violent attacks from all directions, without even a single ripple expanding.
"Let me see how many times you can split."
Following his indifferent words, sword light was sketched in the air again like a brush of death.
The bodies of the three Spore Trolls were once again covered in crisscrossing sword marks almost simultaneously, and then, amidst an unwilling roar, they collapsed and shattered at the same time.
But just an instant before their bodies were about to completely collapse and disintegrate.
The remaining consciousness of these three Spore Trolls seemed to reach a consensus; they simultaneously let out deafening roars and slammed into each other.
Their bodies, covered in sword marks and on the verge of shattering, fused during the impact.
Countless mycelia intertwined, compressed, and underwent a qualitative change frantically.
An aura far more powerful than any before, almost reaching the peak below Legendary, erupted from the fused entity.
"Die!!!"
The Spore Troll, whose size had expanded again after Fusion and whose form was twisted and hideous, let out a final roar.
A pair of arms, their form already difficult to distinguish, fused together and transformed into a massive fungal blade. Gathering all its current strength, it hacked down fiercely toward the Sword Saint Kairos from above.
Dang—!!!
This time, it was no longer silent.
With a crisp yet heavy sound of impact, the Sword Saint's Myriad Flower Sword Domain finally rippled like water for the first time! Although the Domain remained stable and was not broken, Kairos's previously indifferent gaze instantly became serious and sharp, overflowing with killing intent.
He took a step forward.
His Sun-Chaser Sword completed two crosses in front of him in an instant, carving out a perfect 'cross' shape.
Simultaneously, a 'cross' shaped sword mark appeared out of thin air on the Spore Troll's massive body.
Immediately following, its body split neatly into four large chunks along that cross sword mark and collapsed with a crash.
At the severed edges, countless mycelia were still growing frantically, attempting to reconnect.
However, this time, a layer of concentrated and unyielding destructive sword light lingered on them, firmly suppressing its regeneration.
Kairos would not give his opponent any more chances.
With a thought, the Myriad Flower Sword Domain expanded abruptly, completely enveloping all the remains of the Spore Troll.
At the same time, his wrist flicked, and the Sun-Chaser Sword swung out once more.
In an instant, incredibly hot flames rose from within his Domain, turning into countless crimson sword lights that swept across all the remains of the Spore Troll. The Spore Troll's remains were further cut and pulverized by the sword lights and simultaneously ignited by that terrifying flame, letting out crackling pops as they rapidly turned into charcoal and finally became a pile of ash.
The Spore Troll, which had briefly fought a fierce battle with the Legendary Sword Saint, truly died at this moment.
Almost at the exact same instant it completely turned to ash.
All the writhing Fungal Carpets lost their vitality, their color turning dull, and they became shriveled at a speed visible to the naked eye.
The remaining fungal monsters, whether they were pouncing on soldiers or crawling out of the Fungal Carpet, also stopped their movements simultaneously. Then, as if their souls had been sucked out, they collapsed limply, turning into ordinary corpses and withered fungal bodies.
An officer stepped forward to inspect the remains of the Spore Troll Lord and said respectfully to Kairos: "My Lord, all the monsters have lost their vitality! It seems this troll monster was the main body or core of the 'Mushroom King'! You have slain it!"
Kairos nodded slightly and then sheathed his sword.
"It seems so."
"Clear the battlefield, collect all valuable samples, especially the remains of that troll, and then send word back to the royal capital to inform the Department of Foreign Strategy that the 'Mushroom King' in the southern area of the Serel Wilderness has been purged."
His tone was flat, as if he had just done a trivial little thing.
The legion soldiers erupted in cheers and began to efficiently clean up the aftermath, burning the remaining fungal corpses, while Kairos leisurely returned to the legion's camp.
He only cared about killing, not burying.
Tedious matters like battlefield cleanup, sample collection, and subsequent defensive arrangements were naturally handled by the legion under his command; there was no need for a Legendary powerhouse like him to worry about them.
"Next is the central, northwest, and northeast... the so-called King of Molten Iron and that Mountain King."
Inside the main tent, Kairos stood before a large military map of the Serel Wilderness, his finger moving slowly across the map, finally resting lightly on the Central Region.
"Then, for the next target to be purged, let's choose this 'King of Molten Iron'."
The reason he made this choice was simple.
The King of Molten Iron's territory was closest to his current location, making it the most convenient to clear and allowing him to save the maximum amount of time.
The Mushroom King was dealt with first for the same reason.
At the same time.
Shortly after Kairos left, in an extremely hidden and inconspicuous corner.
A dull-colored mushroom only the size of a fingernail, looking like any ordinary mushroom found everywhere, silently poked its head out a little from the scorched earth. It shook its cap slightly as if confirming something, and then quickly retracted back underground, disappearing without a trace, attracting no one's attention.
Clearly, the Spore Troll that had died earlier was just a Puppet.
The Mushroom King had made a prompt decision to abandon its territory and escape by cutting its tail.
On the other side.
In the northwestern part of the Serel Wilderness, the territory under the jurisdiction of the Phoenix Angia.
Garros arrived here and received the oddly named 'Armor of the Sole Supreme Dragon Emperor' from the front claws of the Golden Dragon Natasha.
He was already prepared.