Chapter 471: Web of Connection, Chaotic War Situation

A giant scythe and warhammer, forged from concentrated battle-aura, slammed into the surface of the Utopia tower from two different directions in near-perfect synchronization. Guided by the peerless strength of legendary knights, these blades of condensed aura forcibly breached the void-energy barrier that automatically distorted the material world to repel attacks, striking the target point with unerring precision.

"Boom-crack!"

The giant scythe detonated in a spectacular burst of energy upon impact, shattering into several smaller, agile blades of aura that danced through the air. They circled back, slashing down once more—a technique of latent echo-strikes and self-sustaining aura cycles that would unleash an endless barrage until the barrier was forcibly broken.

The knight wielding the warhammer unleashed his own latent potential without hesitation. His legendary hammer, defined by its extreme weight, became a blur of afterimages under the grip of his blood-engorged, vein-bulging arms, striking the tower’s surface again and again.

A continuous, thunderous roar of collisions echoed across the field, each strike growing louder, the vibrations intensifying until, at the critical threshold, the accumulated force of every blow was released upon a single point. A terrifying shockwave swept the area, churning the surrounding earth three times over—a latent point-blank detonation.

"Crack, snap..."

Under the brutal bombardment of the two knight orders led by legendary warriors, visible fissures began to spiderweb across the tower’s exterior, the faint sounds of fracturing lost in the cacophony of the battlefield.

"This tower... the void energy surges it released just now, they weren't aimed at us. Where did they go..."

Though their weapons continued to unleash devastating power, a shadow of doubt lingered in the minds of the two legendary knights. The moment the Utopia tower had fully manifested into the material world, a massive pulse of void energy had erupted, sweeping across the surroundings.

Yet, this force, which the knights assumed was meant to repel them, had simply bypassed their ranks and surged into the distance, posing no obstacle to their assault on the tower.

"That void energy... continue the attack! The knights' strikes are effective; provide them with support!"

In the distance, the legendary mages’ eyes flickered. They, too, had sensed the tide of void energy. Their legendary spells were primed and ready, but they had not expected the void fluctuations to merely brush past the allied legions without distorting reality to launch an attack.

The mages could not decipher the intent behind this power, but the window of opportunity created by the Utopia organization’s massive energy expenditure was too great to ignore.

To ensure the knights’ effective assault remained uninterrupted, the mages began to channel their power into their palms and staves, firing upon the tower while simultaneously intercepting the Utopia organization’s automated defenses.

Countless rays of varying colors, properties, and intensities lit up the pitch-black night, converging from all directions onto the target standing in the basin, much like spotlights trained on a star at center stage—only here, the "spotlight" was a lethal barrage.

Frost rays, magma chains, lightning lashes, auroral trajectories, earth-shattering torrents... the chaotic mix of spells lent a grotesque, magnificent beauty to the carnage.

"Zzz, hum!"

Avoiding the knights below, the rays converged on the upper half of the tower, forming a brilliant sphere of high-energy bombardment that erupted in a state of uncontrolled, turbulent flux, swallowing a third of the tower in a riot of destructive energy.

As the warhammer fell, the scythe struck again, and the rays hit home; the allied assault completely engulfed the Utopia tower, the shockwaves of the staggering power surging into the night sky, tearing the thick clouds obscuring the magical moon into tatters.

"Crack-crack-crack, snap..."

The sound of shattering became distinct. Fine cracks now covered the entire structure of the tower, and the masonry composing it began to fall away piece by piece. It was not yet tottering, but like a dam on the verge of collapse, if the fissures were left unchecked, the edifice would soon fall.

"The tower released an abnormal void energy fluctuation, but it caused no damage to the unit. Are other legions experiencing the same?"

"Seventeen seconds ago, the tower we are engaging released a void pulse!"

"Thirty-six seconds ago, same here."

"Five seconds ago!"

"One minute and twenty-seven seconds ago!"

"Not... currently detecting a sudden release of void energy tides!"

"..."

The inquiries from the Sky Mechanical City’s operator in the communication channel were met with responses from all the mages currently battling the Utopia organization.

The void energy surges, now highlighted by the observers at Sky Mechanical City, were finally recognized by all units. Something was wrong; this was not an isolated incident. The Utopia organization had no reason to release void energy tides that caused no harm to the allied legions.

The mage frowned, a look of gravity appearing in his eyes. In the last instant, he had sensed twenty consecutive void energy tides sweeping past his unit—perfectly synchronized, with almost no interval between them—all arriving here, at the Utopia tower they were currently destroying.

"Watch out!"

A heavy, solemn warning, followed by the rapid preparation of an eighth-ring spell—it was all the mage could do. Due to the technological gap, he could not know what these overlapping void energy tides would bring, only that he had to be ready for the coming onslaught.

"Hum!"

As the twenty void energy tides reached the Utopia tower, it emitted a deafening hum. From its heavily damaged frame, several massive tentacles of void energy manifested out of thin air, traversing space to link with distant targets.

Transcendental void energy surged in the moment the connection was established. The breaches opened by the allied legions began to repair themselves at a steady pace, bathed in a deep purple light emanating from the cracks.

The repair speed was not fast enough to render the allies' previous attacks void, but it was accompanied by void energy bombardments far exceeding the previous intensity.

Reflected in the mage's pupils was something only those who could glimpse the void could see: a web of interconnected points. The void energy tides that had swept out were not meant for attack, but to link the twenty-one towers that had appeared in the material world, forming a chessboard that covered the entire battlefield.

From the base of the towers, the deep purple of the void invaded the earth, spreading rapidly in all directions. Everything it touched had its internal structure distorted, shattered, and disintegrated, falling into the void. The knight orders were the first to face this encroaching tide.

"Boom!"

"Assist the withdrawal!"

The knights did not hesitate. Facing this suddenly massive and violent convergence of void energy, the risks of continuing the assault at such close range were too great. A temporary retreat was the only logical choice. With a surge of battle-aura, they struck the earth, and the entire order leaped into the air in unison.

As they ascended, a spatial rift, prepared in advance by the mages, opened above them—a tacit coordination to teleport the knight order back to the main force.

But the power of the Utopia tower, now connected to the void web, far exceeded its previous state. It would not sit idly by. In the void corresponding to the material location of the spatial rift, void energy erupted, pouring directly into the channel.

The spatial rift flickered with garbled, glitch-like flashes before the stable passage was replaced by the esophagus of a deep-purple, unknown void creature, covered in rotting flesh and sharp fangs. The knights leaping toward the passage were like food delivered into a monster's maw.

More void rifts appeared in the sky. Massive, pitch-black centipedes, their bodies stitched together from countless distorted materials and covered in grotesque, spindly human claws, surged out, waving terrifying limbs as they attacked the allied mage teams below.

"Boom!"

A giant black cube descended from the sky, slamming into the body of a giant centipede and pinning it down. A strange attraction and inverted gravity kept the cube pressing down, preventing the creature from breaking free.

The legendary mage had acted. Eighth-ring spell: Integrated Construction. The cube was merely one manifestation of this spell; its true essence was to "complete what the mage desires."

There was more than one legendary mage. Pitch-black spears tore through the air, carrying long chains that pinned the space above the two knight orders. As the knights reached that point, countless tiny chains extended, wrapping around their waists. After etherealizing their bodies, the spell ignored all obstacles, forcibly dragging them back—seventh-ring spell: Void Return.

"Bang!"

The giant cube slammed the centipede into the earth with a thunderous roar, but the creature quickly burrowed through the ground, escaping the suppression to charge at the allied legions. Simultaneously, a large number of figures began to pour out from the distorted spatial rifts.

Their forms varied, but one thing was certain: they were not the chaotic, disordered void creatures. They possessed material bodies and rational consciousness, identical to the strange orcs the Utopia organization had previously deployed in the Bloodfang Empire.

Mana and battle-aura surged and boiled among these beings. This omnipotent legion of the Utopia organization immediately launched an attack on the allied forces, spells and blades of aura tearing through the sky of the battlefield.

Spells crossed, aura formed shields, and sorcery rained down upon the massive centipedes; the allied legions began to trade blow for blow.

High above, the giant "Shadow of the God" of the Utopia organization manifested, crushing the consciousness-stream of its collective mind toward the allied legions.

Against this mental attack, which ignored standard spiritual defenses, the allied legions were prepared. A team of clerics, led by the God of Light and supported by other righteous deities, showered the legions with divine protection, shielding their souls so that none were assimilated by the tide of consciousness.

The battlefield became chaotic. Both sides poured their most destructive means into the fray without pause. The sky was completely obscured by turbulent energy and dazzling flashes. Casualties began to mount on both sides, with attacks occasionally breaking through the front lines to inflict damage.

In this way, the disadvantage of the allied legions became apparent. Backed by the void, even with slow repairs, the towers were gradually mending their damage, while all other entities were merely derivatives of the towers; even if destroyed, they could not fundamentally harm the Utopia organization.

Conversely, for the allied legions, every injury and death brought an irreparable weakening of combat power, which in turn led to more unstoppable attacks, gradually trapping the allies in an unavoidable decline.

However, this trend was soon broken by a bizarre piece of news.

"The tower near the elven capital of Liahim has just been destroyed."