Len scanned the newly summoned shadow horde, a look of pure irritation washing over his face. The dark, shifting forms rose again and again like endless mosquitoes in a summer swamp.
"You guys are beyond annoying," Len growled, his voice echoing across the battlefield with dangerous, sharp annoyance.
Seeing the shadow army reform yet again, the giant winged monster standing beside Len finally tried to step up to assist its commander. Its leathery wings flared, mana crackling along its claws as it began chanting a high-tier spell.
But before it could even release a single spark—
BOOM—!
A fist moving at terrifying speed smashed clean into the monster's face with the sound of a cannon shot! Aryan, his physical stats heavily boosted from his recent level-ups, drove the giant creature straight down into the earth, cratering it deep into the dirt with raw, overwhelming force! The shockwave sent clouds of dust and shattered stone flying in every direction.
Len's cold gaze instantly snapped toward Aryan. Spotting a real physical threat capable of disrupting his vanguard, Len zipped across the battlefield like a streak of pure light, his bladed fist aiming straight for Aryan's exposed neck.
"Not on my watch!" Ayush shouted, his voice hoarse from overexertion.
Ayush desperately commanded his newly spawned legion to intercept, willing a massive wall of shadow bodies to surge forward and interpose themselves between Len and Aryan. But Len didn't slow down for a single second. His strikes were so impossibly sharp and precise that he practically erased every shadow construct in his path instantly, cutting through the dark magic like a hot blade through silk.
As Ayush pushed his mana pool to its absolute limits, forcing it to surge at 4x its normal capacity, the crimson veins in his arms bulged. Suddenly, a bright, golden system notification flashed directly in front of his vision, burning through the dim light of battle:
[NEW UNLOCKED SKILL: Shadow Knight]
Without a second thought, Ayush slammed his hands together and activated it.
FWOSH—!
A violent, swirling vortex of pitch-black energy coiled tightly around Ayush's arms and upper torso. The dark mana solidified, transforming his hands into razor-sharp, dark-steel armored gauntlets tipped with dangerous, shadow-infused talons. A terrifying spike in his physical strength, raw speed, and oppressive aura washed over the entire clearing, cracking the ground beneath his boots.
Aryan's eyes widened in sheer disbelief as he caught his breath. "Bro... since when can you do THAT?!"
Before the duel could escalate any further, the loud rustling of leaves and urgent shouting broke out at the edge of the forest clearing.
"Hold on! We're backing you up!"
Rei and her party burst out from the thick tree line! Seeing the total, chaotic destruction of the battlefield and the battered, bleeding state of Vikas, Rei's crew didn't hesitate for a single second. They immediately jumped straight into the fray, unleashing a barrage of ranged abilities, elemental slashes, and defensive barriers to draw Len's aggro away from the exhausted core trio.
Yet, even when pitted against a whole coordinated squad of high-tier hunters, along with Ayush's upgraded shadow army and Aryan's raw physical power, Len didn't sweat it. His expression remained utterly deadpan. He dodged, parried, and struck back with cold, effortless precision, handling the massive multi-front assault entirely on his own without taking a single step backward.
Realizing this skirmish was dragging on far longer than he had allotted, Len let out a bored sigh and slammed his heavy combat boot onto the earth.
"Domain Skill: Lava Floor."
RUMBLE—!
The vibrant green forest floor instantly fractured into a jagged grid of glowing red cracks. In less than a second, the solid earth dissolved into a roaring, turbulent sea of molten, bubbling lava! A terrifying wave of scorching heat blasted skyward, turning the ambient air into a suffocating oven and charring the surrounding trees to ash.
The intense, localized thermal burst engulfed the entire battlefield, completely incinerating Ayush's entire shadow legion in a single, devastating sweep of crimson fire!