Age of Adepts c1-1513

by Zhen De Lao Lang, 真的老狼

  That was the main reason why all Dark Witches were such recklessly ferocious fighters!

  The witches stood at the bow of the ship. It hadn't been long since the fire started, but sparks of flame had also begun appearing on the defensive spells around them. Their elementium shields crackled and sizzled from the fire.

  Of all the witches present, Uzzah was the strongest. As such, everyone else cast their gaze at her.

  "This isn't magic; this is divine magic. Dammit, how did we attract the attention of an elven spiritualist? Move. We can't think of the resources below anymore. Leave now. Otherwise, once the spiritualist arrives, we…"

  Before Uzzah's orders could be executed, a blinding beam of silver light shot out from the holy and bright moon in the sky. A massive portal had opened in the skies of Jintha'Alor.

  The next moment, a hundred or so silhouettes of various sizes emerged from the portal and appeared before the witches.

  The portal vanished.

  The moonlight faded.

  The place had returned to how it was before.

  However, a hundred furious elven powerhouses had appeared in the skies above Jintha'Alor.

  The leader was a beautiful female elf. She wore delicate elven armor, with scimitars at her waist and a longbow on her back. Her facial features were as delicate and elegant as a painting, while her ears were sharp and cute. However, a bright full-moon brand could be seen on her forehead.

  She stood in the air while the cascading moonlight behind her gathered into a mysterious cape that constantly let out beautiful, celestial radiance.

  She opened her pretty, starry eyes and swept them across the ruined Jintha'Alor. It was only then that she looked at the witches standing on the flying ship and furiously exclaimed, "Blasphemers. Today, this will be your final resting ground!"

  "In the name of the moon, I will punish you!"

  Chapter 643 Invading the Deck

  A Third Grade elven god messenger?

  Having overcome her initial panic, Uzzah finally regained her calm in the face of these new enemies. The unique arrogance and overbearing aura of a Third Grade dark witch finally started to show.

  Even though all elven god messengers were backed by a powerful deity, the display of their power was still entirely reliant on the skills of the messengers themselves as long as the god couldn't personally enter this plane. If the elven god messenger were well-trained, then the power that the deity could exert using their body would be that much stronger. However, if the god messenger had poor foundations, then there were strict limits on the power that the god could unleash, even if they were to descend as an avatar.

  On the other hand, the witches had never seen the combat professions of Faen as their equals.

  The essential power of the fighters of Faen was substantial. Many of them also possessed fairly powerful innate abilities. However, they were too inferior to the otherworldly witches when it came to battle will and means of murder.

  The witches of the World of Adepts were like veteran soldiers that had traversed hundreds of corpse mountains and oceans of blood, while the combat professions of Faen were so pure that they were like rookies that had just set foot on the battlefield. Their courage was commendable, and their spirits were high, but this was merely foolishness and ignorance in the eyes of the witches.

  The elven army before them seemed powerful and intimidating. However, upon close inspection, one would find that the only one in the army that could threaten Uzzah was that Third Grade elven god messenger. The other elves were either First Grade or Second Grade. This army could hardly be called an elite corps of the elven kingdom.

  With this understanding in mind, the previously concerned Uzzah immediately calmed down.

  The elves had just arrived here. They saw the wrecked battlefield beneath them and immediately let out deafening roars and battle cries. They then swarmed toward the flying ship.

  Greem and Alice, who were within the crowd, immediately exchanged looks. They stomped their feet, and the flying ship trembled slightly; a semi-translucent energy forcefield activated around the vessel. The forcefield blocked the first wave of attacks fired by the elves.

  The one hundred elves had also been stalled a hundred meters away from the flying ship by the sudden barrage that had engulfed them.

  Even though this energy forcefield was large and resilient, it still appeared to be somewhat frail under the attacks of so many elven powerhouses.

  Violent and ferocious elementium explosions continuously flashed upon the energy forcefield, causing the semi-translucent barrier to tremble and shudder violently. If one were to pay attention, they would hear the cracking sounds of the energy barrier at its limits from the immense pressure.

  "Everyone strike in unison. Stop these elves and buy time for the energy barrier to recover." Uzzah lifted her head and shouted. Dense smoke that was black as ink surged out from within her black robe and condensed into a massive red-eye crow beneath her feet.

  Ga! Ga! Ga!

  Uzzah was lifted into the skies by the red-eye crow as the bird cried. She charged out of the energy barrier like a flash of lightning.

  Three elven arrows flashing with magical light greeted her the moment she exited the barrier. Three nature magics of different colors followed closely behind the bolts. Even further away was an overwhelming wave of spells that was as ferocious as a storm of elementium.

  None of those who could follow the god messenger here to purge the heretics could be weaklings. Even the weakest one among the one hundred elves had the power of a First Grade. When they gathered together, they turned from frail strings into a firm rope. That ferocious momentum of their attacks upset even Uzzah, the Third Grade Dark Witch. She felt like her heart skipped a beat.

  Uzzah stomped her feat wickedly, and the humongous red-eye crow opened its sharp beak. A large slit opened in the bird's mouth as it released a terrifying soundwave that was visible to the naked eye into the world.

  Ga!

  This fearsome soundwave spread out rapidly in the air, like ripples in the water. It instantly engulfed most of the space within a distance of a hundred meters in front of it. The front half of the elven army couldn't help but clasp their ears when this sharp and ear-piercing cry reached them. Purple-black blood streaked down their eyes, ears, mouths, and noses.

  The attacks shooting toward Uzzah also mysteriously dissolved, like boiling water thrown at snow!

  Pupupu!

  Much like dumplings dropped into a pot, almost three dozen of the high-spirited elves immediately fell out of the skies, temporarily robbed of their combat ability.

  "Third Grade witch."

  "Careful, she's a Third Grade witch."

  "Everyone avoid her."

  For a moment, the elven army ran about in a panic, completely devoid of their initial momentum and recklessness.

  "What's there to panic over? Leave this Third Grade witch to me; you people, deal with the rest of them." The Third Grade Elven God Messenger Xenia stood firmly behind her troops and roared furiously. She stepped upon the empty air and strode toward the scary-looking Third Grade witch.

  Almost as if they knew the colossal effects of the aftershocks of their battle upon the battlefield, the two Third Grades rapidly increased their altitude as they closed in on one another.

  Soon, the two powerhouses had vanished in the skies above. The only indicator of the danger and intensity of their battle was through the constant vibrations of elementium and energy from the air above.

  The remaining elves looked at each other and let out a battle cry, gathering together and once again charging at the flying ship.

  There were one hundred and twelve elves, eleven of which were Second Grades, and one hundred and one who were First Grade.

  In a mere three seconds, Greem had obtained the numbers of the enemy with the Chip's scans. In the face of such a powerful elven army, the witches would probably be utterly crushed without the flying fortress that was the flying ship.


  However, even with the flying ship, the enemy forces and their combined power would not need more than two to three minutes to break through that thin energy forcefield. As such, the flying ship had to retreat quickly into the distance when placed in such a dangerous situation. As it withdrew, the cabin doors opened. All the Archers were thrown onto the deck such that they could use their firepower to force away any enemy that tried to get close.

  Of course, the flying ship's most effective weapons were still those terrifying magic energy cannons.

  However, as this flying ship still utilized a conventional space furnace as its core energy source, its energy output was limited. If energy were drawn and invested into the magic energy cannons, then the mobility and energy defenses of the ship would be significantly reduced.

  Given the dangerous situation they were in, the flying ship's energy forcefield would probably be breached by the elves before the magic energy cannons could complete charging. That was why the only thing that the flying ship could do was send all the magical machines to the deck and have them stall the enemy's attacks with their hail of bullets.

  The witches weren't idling while the ship was being pushed to its limits. They gathered in small temporary groups of two or three and took up various corners in the deck, using their cruel and wicked spells to attack the pursuing elves.

  Dragonborn Zacha might have been badly wounded during the battle of Jintha'Alor, but he couldn't continue treating his wounds when things were so dire. He endured the pain and rushed onto the deck.

  "You stay and protect Alice!" Greem immediately gave Zacha this slightly easier order.

  Zacha might be unquestionably loyal, but he was far too brave and honest in battle.

  He hadn't needed to try so hard during the battle in Jintha'Alor. All he needed to do was stall the two young unicorns, and his companions would naturally have come and reinforced him once the other fights had resolved. Yet, he had very honestly given it his all and relied on his power alone to beat the two unicorns within an inch of their lives.

  In exchange, he ended up terribly wounded and on the edge of death as well!

  If it wasn't for the stockpile of rare magical herbs and potions that Greem owned, his wounds might have been challenging to treat.

  It was precisely because of how straightforward and honest Zacha was that Greem didn't dare to let him out any longer for this fight. He could only have him stay by Alice's side. This way, he could ensure Alice's safety while also making sure that Zacha didn't get injured any further due to his straightforward nature!

  Having given his orders to Zacha, Greem looked around the deck. He silently used his authority to send the magical machines closer to the Crimson adepts and the Fate Witches. It was only once he had arranged everything that he roared and transformed into a towering and wicked Flame Fiend. The Flame Fiend of Terror also appeared by his side at the same time.

  The two five-meter tall Flame Fiends emerged simultaneously upon the deck, instantly drawing the attention of the elves chasing behind the flying ship.

  The two flame humanoids walked toward the stern with heavy steps under the horrified gazes of the elves. They raised their arms upon stopping and worked together to cast a fearsome Flame Pillar that engulfed the entire area.

  A thick pillar of fire that connected the heaven and earth appeared, with the flying ship at its very center. Frightening flame shockwaves then blasted outward in every direction.

  These flame shockwaves had reached a basic attack power of one hundred and ninety points.

  TIt was already severe damage beyond the limitations of most First Grade elves!

  The pitiful cries and painful grunts of the elves rang out in the skies.

  Some of the weaker elves even caught fire.

  "Dammit, we can't let these two flame beings continue their reckless attacks." A few Second Grade elves in the elven army mumbled and quickly responded.

  Three elven deadshots stood tall upon the back of their hippogryphs. Their bodies were as still as a mountain while they drew the elven longbows in their hands into a full moon. They uttered low grunts as a tide of arrows spilled out from the fingertips of these three elven deadshots. These arrows shot toward the energy forcefield like flashes of lightning.

  Even though there were only three elven deadshots, they had used their terrifying attack speed to replicate the might of a hundred-men archer squad forcibly.

  The dense explosion of enchanted arrows concentrated incredible force in a small arrow of no more than one meter. It instantly shattered the thin energy forcefield.

  The next second, the elves that had been lying in wait braved the impact of the energy storm and charged up onto the deck of the flying ship!

  Chapter 644 Melee on the Deck

  A melee.

  Yet another unprecedentedly terrifying fight.

  The initially wide and spacious flying deck became frighteningly chaotic the moment it turned into a battlefield of slaughter. Over two hundred individuals were simultaneously bathing in blood and fighting upon the bridge.

  The only conclusion to so many fighters of two opposing factions was a bloody massacre.

  The moment the elven army charged through the energy forcefield, runes of every color, shape, and size shone everywhere across the deck. Yellow, red, blue, green, faint golden, faint silver; a large patch of colorful lights filled every corner of the deck, brilliant and blinding.

  The most eye-catching individuals on the deck were still the magical machines scattered around the sides of the ship and the entrance to the cabins.

  They were all each four to five meters tall, and their towering bodies gleamed with a cold and chilling metallic light. Their thick torsos let out the grinding sound of gears unique to metallic constructs every time they turned. Their appearances were not uniform, but they were very clearly split into two different types of machines– ranged and melee fighters.

  Groups of ten magical machines would be found guarding the sides of the ship with a distance of twenty to thirty steps between each group, and the ratio of ranged golems to melee golems was 8 to 2. That meant that every magical machine squad was composed of eight Archers and two Shield Swordsmen.

  They each took up a corner and attacked the elves that approached them with a dense barrage of bullets. If any elf were not sufficiently quick on their feet, they would be trapped by the combined firepower of two to three magical machine squads.

  The magical machines had turned themselves into affixed cannons under Greem's command, restricting and tearing apart the formation of the elven army to the best of their abilities. The elves had no choice but to scatter before these dispersed yet organized magical machines. They formed small groups of two to three and attempted to charge and dispose of these magical machines.

  At this moment, the witches were completely spared any attention and were free to attack as they wished.

  They gathered up in small groups and freely moved about the decks.

  The moment they faced any difficult opponents among the elven ranks, they would instantly hide within the closest magical machine squad. In doing so, they neutralized the ferocious attacks from the enemy. On the other hand, any elves or summoned beasts that were isolated from their companions were beaten down by the witches the moment they were caught.

  It was this tactic that allowed the severely outnumbered witches to fight off the savage attack of an enemy five times their number. They had finally started stabilizing the battle situation.

  If there were anyone who could casually stroll upon the flying deck, they would be very honored to experience all sorts of attacks and mysterious spells personally.

  In such a battlefield, even a dragon would have to hide, and even a tiger would have to crouch. If your ego got the better of you while you had yet to attain true invulnerability, then tragedy might greet you at the very next moment.

  Take for example the powerful bird druid that was at First Grade peak level. He suddenly transformed into a terr
ifying Socrates Condor and wrapped himself in a layer of semi-translucent wind vortex. The druid then used his astounding speed and sharp wind blades to move through the air above the deck, almost as if there was nothing to stop his advance. He would occasionally toss a fearsome tornado down into the battlefield and flee after throwing the enemies there into chaos.

  It was his arrogance and recklessness that drew the attention of many magical machine squads and witches.

  When he once again flared his wings and dove down from above to drive away a Fate Witch with a sharp wind blade, something happened. His life froze at this very moment.

  Three Spears of Darkness shot out from different angles, shooting straight for his massive eagle form.

  This bird druid was indeed an elite-level druid. He flapped his wings rapidly in succession and just barely avoided the combined attacks of the dark witches. However, when he flew past a magical machine squad, a grey halo that seemed to have predicted his trajectory landed upon him.

  Hold Monster!

  If he was still in his human form, he would never have been affected by this oddly niche spell. Yet, he was the one who made himself a magical beast at this moment. The weak effects of Hold Monster caused his gliding body to stall for a brief instant.

  This instant was no more than one-third of a second. It was only enough time for an ordinary person to blink. However, this was more than enough time for enemies that had been lying in wait.

  The three closest magical machine squads turned their guns at the same time. The concentrated firepower shattered the wind vortex shields around the druid in that short time he was stunned. The very next second, the bird druid let out a cry of agony. Plenty of red spots spurted from his frail body just as he intended to move away from his current position.

  When he finally struggled out of the ambush area, his blood-soaked body was hit by Poison Hag Endor's Poison Cloud and Icelady Snowlotus' Ice Blast.

  This Socrates Condor with a wingspan of seven meters wobbled and crashed to the ground before it could fly much further. Soon, the area upon which he crashed rang out with the rumbling footsteps of razor boars, berserk apes, and Shield Swordsmen magical machines.