Defiance of the Fall

Dozens of strings of Mental Energy entered Zac's skill fractals as he forcibly ordered his domain to destroy as many floating fingers as possible. They were like living things, dodging and weaving among a storm of vines and blocking trees. Most were destroyed, but many still reached the soldiers fighting within [Apex Jungle].

The sudden and indefensible attack had taken Zac by surprise. Nothing remotely similar had happened to all the goliaths they'd destroyed until now, and neither his Danger Sense nor [Inborn Predator] had given him much warning. Only those with powerful treasures or skills that hid your presence and Killing Intent could accomplish something like that.

There were still many secrets surrounding the Seven Chapters of the Kan'Tanu, and they knew even less about the mysterious leader who had yet to appear. However, Zac was certain these methods weren't something the Chapter of Hallowed Flesh possessed. Most likely, this hidden attacker came from the Chapter of Tripartite Truth.

Despite being the chapter with the fewest core members, Tripartite Truth was possibly the most feared among Zecia's elite. After all, just like Vilari, they all possessed means that few on the frontiers could effectively block. Their ranks included Hexmasters, Array Masters, Mentalists, and a few neighboring classes. However, it would be a mistake to consider them mages.

The way they fought was a lot more like assassins. They occasionally appeared to wreak havoc on the battlefield with strange and unpredictable methods, but their focus was almost exclusively on taking out enemy leaders. This Hexmaster had embedded himself within a goliath, waiting for a leader to come close.

It was simply bad luck he'd encountered Zac. He had a Hidden Node custom-made to deal with these kinds of threats, yet Zac had to forcibly stop his body from twitching and his Cosmic Energy from going out of control. Most Hegemons present would have died or been grievously wounded by the ambush.

New severed fingers appeared among the trees, most of them targeting Zac. It looked like the Hexmaster was trying to take down Zac from the shadows, but Zac wasn't convinced. First of all, the fingers weren't fast enough to pose any real threat to Zac. If nothing else, they were physical skills, and [Empyrean Aegis] was still running.

More importantly, the first rule of an assassin was to never fight an enemy head-on, especially not if it was a one-on-one situation. If the attempt failed, you needed to flee without hesitation. Everything after the initial strike was a diversion.

Zac hadn't moved an inch after the initial exchange. He silently sensed the surroundings while directing his forest, searching for something that didn't belong. Finally, a clue. He stepped into a tree, appearing in a different section of his forest. Zac targeted empty air, unleashing a whirlwind of attacks that blanketed the whole region in violence.

It didn't take long before one of his Dao-infused blades shattered, exposing his target. The six-armed creature had somehow hidden within one of its severed fingers, and his whole body spilled out when it was destroyed. Zac was about to step forward and finish the job before the Hexmaster disappeared again, but a scream of danger ruined those plans.

He forcibly changed his trajectory, narrowly avoiding a translucent hand twice his size. It grabbed right where he stood, and Zac's mind spun from the sound of hundreds of knuckles crunching. The grab was both physical and spiritual, leveling dozens of trees while extinguishing the souls of the soldiers unfortunate enough to be within a hundred meters of the attack.

Zac was right next to the epicenter, and [Empyrean Aegis] didn't fail him this time. It blocked the physical aspect at the cost of half a pillar. He endured a bout of vertigo and unleashed a lightning-quick swing, but the Hexmaster's grotesque avatar dodged as he rushed for the forest edge. Zac pursued and was immediately met with another grab.

The source wasn't the Hexmaster himself but the three goliaths trapped inside his forest. They had frozen in place, and it looked like an invisible hand had remolded their flesh into enormous chalices.

A severed, pale hand with thin, unusually long fingers floated above each chalice. The hands were without blemish and could have been mistaken for marble sculptures if not for the bloody stumps. They were constantly forming seals that should be impossible if you had bones, and Zac could tell they were rapidly absorbing the cursed energies stored within the former giants.

Zac never took his eyes off the Hexmaster. That guy was too dangerous to be left alive, so the chalices could only wait. Zac unleashed a barrage of attacks while manually controlling the final lines of defense. The Hexmaster proved agile like a monkey despite his large frame, and he wasn't lacking in physical strength. A tree that moved to block the cultists' path was ripped apart with his bare hands, while others withered and were reduced to ash with simple gestures.

The jungle was slowing him down but failed to prevent his escape entirely. They were already approaching the forest's edge despite Zac furiously channeling Dao and Energy into [Apex Jungle] and [Primal Edict] to stop his prey. He launched one fractal blade after another, some aimed at the Hexmaster while others cut off his path.

Suddenly, a third pale hand appeared. Instead of targeting Zac, it opened a small path out of the forest, providing a glimpse of the situation outside. As expected, the Hexmaster wasn't the only Kan'Tanu to step onto the battlefield, and clashes between Hegemons raged all around them. The goliaths were strong but slow, unable to effectively counter the all-out offensive by the alliance's elite Hegemons.

The appearance of cultivators to coordinate with the goliaths drastically increased the pressure their army faced. The cultists held up their Hegemons and protected the giants, leaving them free to spawn more cursed tendrils. It was no wonder so many soldiers stayed at his forest's perimeters despite the Hexmaster's deadly skills.

Emily was furiously battling two Hegemons just a few hundred meters from [Apex Jungle]. Her axe array looked like the apocalypse, where some axes burned while others released lightning. The Kan'Tanu were like iron towers, forcibly resisting the unrelenting assault while trying to break the swirling array.

The Hexmaster was about to escape, so Zac knew he had no choice. He took out a mottled talisman from his Spatial Ring and flooded it with Cosmic Energy. He also used his other hand, temporarily relinquishing his hold of [Verun's Bite] to take out a pitch-black javelin. A line of scripts lit up across its haft just as he launched the weapon with all the force he could muster.

The throwing weapon shot forth like a cannon, aimed straight at the Hexmaster's back. The assassin realized the javelin was far deadlier than Zac's normal attacks and swiftly flashed to the side. The javelin punched through the air just a second too late and left the forest's perimeter with unstoppable momentum. A tunnel of incredibly turbulent air was left in its wake, rendering most movement skills unusable.

The cultist was unscathed, which was within Zac's expectations. The important thing was that the javelin throw prevented the Hexmaster's escape long enough for Zac's talisman to activate. A towering deity wrought from stone and steel appeared at the forest's edge, forming a final line of defense.

It pushed its arm forward in an unadorned manner. Nevertheless, grandeur hid within simplicity, and the movement held a conviction to move mountains and seas. The Hexmaster tried to flash past the strike using a movement skill, but the push was like an inviolable law of rejection. It formed an impassable shockwave that pushed the cultist right back into the jungle. Where Zac was waiting.

A ruthless strike descended with both power and precision. It dug into the avatar's head as he flew past, but Zac's vision twisted in a mysterious subversion of reality. The head was made anew, and [Verun's Bite] finished its trajectory without causing more damage. In return, two of the Hexmaster's six arms withered and fell to the ground.

The Hexmaster had used an unknown method to turn a deadly strike into a grievous wound. Zac knew such skills came at a cost, and losing two arms was likely the least of the Hexmaster's problems. However, Zac didn't get the chance to capitalize on the opportunity before a third arm exploded, creating a pulse of darkness that crashed into the golden barrier enclosing Zac.

[Empyrean Aegis] failed to fully block the strike, but the remaining force wasn't enough to harm him. The problem was that the strike wasn't solely physical. The darkness entered his body and transformed into a swarm of small pebbles inside his Soul Aperture. They were parasites drawn to the immense Mental Energies of his Soul Cores, only held back by swirling nebulae.

An intractable force slammed into Zac right after the exchange. The source was his own talisman rather than the Hexmaster sacrificing another arm. They were both pushed toward the forest's center until the wave stopped, forming a huge blockade resembling a City Defense Array. The Hexmaster had used his spiritual attack to slip away, but Zac was certain he hadn't managed to escape his domain.

The barrier wouldn't last forever, so Zac forcibly channeled [Apex Jungle] to regrow the destroyed section of his forest. He strained his senses to pinpoint his target's location, but his eyes were still on the battle outside. Or rather on the pitch-black javelin as it pierced into Emily's axe array, unerringly moving toward the strongest of the two Hegemons.

The spear was filled with his Dao and launched with over 400,000 effective Strength. It contained the force to shatter mountains. Nothing would remain if the javelin connected, even if the Hegemon belonged to the Chapter of Hallowed Flesh. The cultist unhesitantly chose to dodge upon discovering the incoming calamity, but Emily's tempest had obscured Zac's ambush until it was too late.

The body cultivator lost an arm and half his torso when the javelin flashed past, and Emily pounced on the opportunity. The whole array subtly shifted, and the fiery inferno gained a sense of decay. Two tomahawks flashed, leaving a swirl of red leaves in their wake. Two heads flew into the air, and the leaves ignited, consuming the corpses in a conflagration before the Heart Curses could emerge.

The last Zac saw of the battle outside was Emily emerging from the inferno unscathed, her face a calm mask as she inspected the surroundings for threats. Zac nodded in appreciation, gratified that the rambunctious kid had turned into a steady warrior who did not hesitate to punish mistakes.

Emily was done while Zac still had his own foe to deal with. He'd prevented the Hexmaster from escaping and destroyed half his arms, but they couldn't pay this game of cat and mouse forever. If nothing else, a cornered rat was bound to lash out, and there were still a lot of soldiers inside his forest.

Zac knew the assassin had more cards up his sleeve. The six-armed avatar was most likely a skill rather than his real body, and the flesh chalices still stood tall despite the best efforts of his two domain skills and hundreds of his men. The hands had stopped moving yet exuded tremendous waves of energy that formed a mysterious resonance. It hindered Zac's attempts to pinpoint the assassin's location, though that was likely a side-effect than the arrangement's true purpose.

[Immutability of Eoz] was growing increasingly agitated despite having already cleared out the initial curse. There was something else brewing like the whole forest had been hexed. He had no choice.

'Can you help me with this guy?'

There was no telling how long it would take to deal with this slippery eel. It wasn't a problem that could be solved with superior strength, and every second the Hexmaster wasted would leave the alliance in a worse position. He needed someone to break the stalemate and let him rejoin the battle outside, and Vilari was best suited to counter the Hexmaster.

A brief scene appeared in his mind's eye. Vilari was facing three Hegemons from the Chapter of Hallowed Flesh, singlehandedly preventing them from reaching the Acheron Company. None were Middle Hegemons, but all were far above the norm and demonstrably resistant to her methods.

Even Vilari was having trouble gaining an advantage, yet she didn't hesitate to offer her assistance. 'I'll come as soon as I can.'

'No, don't worry about me. I'll figure something out.'

Despite his reluctance, Zac still took out a blue feather and filled it with enormous amounts of Divine and Mental Energy. The reluctance wasn't because of the cost or rarity of the item. Months of campaigning, taking out World Lords and looting their treasuries, had let Zac accumulate an incredible stockpile of D-grade methods. Each was once a lifesaving treasure, unable to showcase its might before its owner was felled.

The problem was the huge energy expenditure of repeatedly activating D-grade treasures. Their incredible power came at a cost, and that cost was inefficiency. Each talisman used far more energy than equivalent skills, so using one was a last-ditch measure for most. Even Zac was feeling the burden, and he needed to save something in the tank for the war outside.

Zac felt like the world inverted, where the physical became spiritual and part of his Soul Aperture. The Hexmaster had perfectly concealed his breath and aura, but his soul lit up like a beacon in Zac's perception. He was already halfway out of the forest, but his escape was cut short with Zac moving to block his path.

The hidden Hexmaster was immediately drowned in a storm of axelights and Zac's furious assault. The Hexmaster was ready for his appearance, and innumerable fingers formed a protective cocoon that blocked out most attacks. The Middle D-grade defensive skill was incredibly tough, blocking blocked the peppering of axelights. Thankfully, Zac still had [Evolutionary Edge].

Each attack held the essence of his path and unbelievable sharpness, allowing it to pierce right through the macabre shield. The beleaguered avatar within had other layers of defense, but grisly wounds rapidly appeared across his body. The cultist's repeated attempts to get away were quashed thanks to the lingering effect of the blue feather. It gave Zac an additional sense to predict his opponent's actions, allowing him to preemptively ruin those plans with his Evolutionary Stance.

He'd become a pack of wolves methodically ripping their prey apart, leaving no path of survival. Of course, Zac would have preferred to take his opponent out in one go, but he couldn't find an opening to land a decisive strike. Even if he did, it might be subverted again, so he approached the Hexmaster like he did the giants—cutting them apart piece by piece until there was no chance to get back up.

Unfortunately, every moment in battle came with the risk of unforeseen variables. A scream of danger warned of impending doom as large cracks appeared across the hands floating atop the chalices. The feather's spiritual domain shattered the next second, but Zac saw three knives emerge through the vision provided by [Apex Jungle].

The knives were covered in dried blood that released such a sinister aura Zac's hair stood on end. They were tools of torture rather than tools of war, and years of practicing the evil trade had left a patina of deep-rooted resentment on their edge.

The weapons didn't move fast, but any attempt to bar their path failed. Worse, their deadly payload could be delivered even at a distance, and Zac's Soul Aperture and pathways were already under assault by thousands of invisible cuts. It was a spiritual attack of incredible potency that only grew worse as the knives drew closer.

Even then, escape was never on Zac's mind. Any skill would lose most of its potency so long as its controller died. Zac chose to go all out, and a large amount of Cosmic Energy surged from his core toward [Arcadian Crusade]. However, what was supposed to be a power-up left him with a damaged Skill Fractal and a crack in his pathways.

The soul-rending pain made Zac keel over, which led to another discovery. The cascade of spiritual attacks relented when Zac froze up and stopped channeling Dao and energy. Now, the assault had already resumed as Zac continued to channel energy into his skills. It was obviously not the Hexmaster acting gentlemanly.

The knives had a similar effect to [Empyrean Aegis], where his use of Cosmic and Mental Energy caused a powerful backlash. It was still bearable for low-energy and ongoing skills, but his berserking method worked by overloading his body with energy. Activating it was like asking for trouble.

Zac's woes only mounted when his predatorial nose for danger warned of another threat bearing down at him from above. He endured the agony of activating [Skystriker], instantly taking him twenty meters away.

It looked like the sky had split in two when a line of demonic red dug into Zac's domain. It carried monstrous force, carving a huge hole in his jungle. It passed right by where Zac stood moments before, and Zac's eyes widened with fear when small dimensional fractures appeared.

No deadly ripple formed from the fracture, but Zac knew he was in trouble. The newcomer was already bearing down on his position through the hole in the jungle. It was a blade master wielding a large saber, the air around him crackling with barely contained power—another Middle Hegemon, one possibly stronger than the Hexmaster himself.

His brutal aura carried a trace of familiarity with Zac's own. The man possessed a Branch of conflict and had made significant inroads with some form of body tempering.

The sudden appearance wasn't bad luck. The strike had almost perfect timing, and the Hexmaster hadn't used the brief respite to escape. Instead, he'd taken control of the three knives, prompting their speed and aura to more than double.

Death approached from every direction, and space was falling apart. This was a true calamity, and Zac knew he could no longer fight hobbled by his self-imposed restrictions to protect his secrets. The floodgates opened, and the spiritual attacks were suffocated by the touch of the Void.

The Void Emperor had stepped onto the stage.

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