The mana wave didn’t subside but instead expanded.
Like an endless wave that had risen from the depths of the earth, it spread throughout the entire space of the Everlight Moon Guild and enveloped every particle of air. The ground groaned under this pressure, the half-destroyed walls shook, and even the light... dimmed for a moment.
In the void, where the battle between Daniel and the two S-ranks continued, space twisted in an unnatural way.
Daniel was the first to sense the change. He felt as if the mana had gained a will and was now obeying and following these two S-ranks and the Awakened of the Goblin Guild.
"All these arrays... it’s clear they’ve been preparing for this war for a long time," he sighed.
His guess was confirmed once again. This array that had just activated had no resemblance to any array he had seen before. On the contrary, it looked extremely powerful.
He felt that all his senses had been weakened, mana was escaping from him and flowing toward the Awakened of the Goblin Guild, and he even felt a heavy pressure in his body.
Such an array had once again completely reversed the situation of the battlefield, in a way that turned the entire Everlight Moon Guild region into the enemy’s home.
Both this array and all the arrays that the Goblin Guild had used so far showed that they had been preparing for this war for a very long time.
If it weren’t for him, the Guild might have fallen much earlier.
His movements became heavier and breathing became harder. At that moment Karin smiled.
"Finally... it started."
"This place is ours from now on," Kyle murmured calmly while his broken body was healing at an unnatural speed.
And then they moved. Now it was their turn to completely dominate the enemy.
Karin raised his hand and mana around him twisted like a living shadow.
[Yin Collapse: Devouring Field]
This time it wasn’t just one point. Several areas of space collapsed at the same time, as if reality itself was being devoured.
Anything that entered that range was not only compressed but disintegrated from within.
Daniel leaped backward, but at that moment Kyle appeared from the other side.
[Yang Severance: Radiant Surge]
Cuts of light, not linear but in waves, shot out in several directions at once. This attack didn’t just cut... it disintegrated anything it touched into particles of energy.
Daniel raised his sword. The aura of his sword flared, lightning coiled along the blade, and he struck, but this time the force of the collision sent him backward.
His eyes narrowed. This was different, and they didn’t stop.
Now that they had gained complete superiority, they didn’t even want to pause for a moment. They had to kill this bastard as soon as possible and go help the other commanders.
As for Jason? He was probably fine, and anyway they would find him after winning this war.
Karin and Kyle, without even looking at each other, started the attack again.
[Polarity Inversion]
Karin reversed the space around Daniel. Up and down... switched places. The direction of forces changed. Even Daniel’s sense of balance disappeared for a moment.
And at the same moment
[Yang Burst: Solar Rupture]
Kyle, gathering light energy, released an explosion of mana at point-blank range. An explosion that didn’t just destroy but forcibly expelled all the energy around it.
Daniel drove his sword into the ground, focused his aura, and stood firm with the pressure of his raw physical power.
But the ground beneath his feet split open.
"He’s still standing?" Karin was genuinely surprised this time.
Even after all these attacks, this bastard had still managed to resist and endure. They really had to admit that this kid had surprised them.
Maybe they had underestimated him too much and hadn’t given him enough credit?
Daniel breathed. His body was still burning. The serum continued to weaken, but at a very slow speed—so slow that it wasn’t even worth mentioning.
There was no way he could win this battle unless he used his trump cards.
But maybe there was another way. His eyes lowered, not toward the enemy but toward the flow of mana. He activated his spiritual senses and stared beyond this void.
It seemed like he was looking for something. Unfortunately, because his senses had weakened, finding what he was looking for wasn’t easy.
But following the flow of mana made it a little easier.
In the moment Kyle was preparing for the next attack, Daniel suddenly moved, but not toward them, toward the ground.
Space broke, and he left the void.
In the real world, the ground was still shaking. The array... was fully activated.
Mana lines pulsed like veins in the heart of the earth. Dark and bright lights were intertwined, and a massive structure was feeding the entire battlefield.
Daniel took a step forward, but a moment later he stopped. The mana in front of him reacted like a living being and seemed unwilling to let him go any further.
Suddenly, glowing lines burst out from the ground and attacked him.
[Array Defense: Reactive Barrier Grid]
A network of mana barriers that responded to any threat. Every closer step was met with several automatic attacks.
Daniel raised his sword and struck a few times, but new lines immediately replaced them.
This wasn’t just a source. This... was a living fortress.
"Damn them, how did they build something like this?" He felt frustrated and realized he couldn’t destroy this array by force.
He had never seen an array that had a defensive system before, let alone one so powerful that it could actually stop him.
How was it even possible to build something like this? How much of an expert in arrays did a person have to be to create something like this? He doubted that anyone except the best array master in the world could build something like this.
Suddenly his eyes flashed. Could this itself be a clue to finding the identity of the hidden supporter of the Goblin Guild?
His mind worked quickly to find another way to enter or destroy the array, but nothing came to mind. He could also feel the auras of the two S-ranks approaching.
He only had a few seconds to think and act.
"...Is it time?" His gaze deepened for a moment.
His trump cards, the things he hadn’t used yet, seemed like the only way.
But at that moment the air grew heavier, and the two presences appeared behind him again.
"So you figured it out..." Karin’s voice was calm but cold.
"But it’s too late now."
Daniel turned around and prepared to face them again.
Both of them, at the same time, raised their hands.
Space trembled.
[Domain of Yin: Abyssal Silence]
The space around Karin darkened. Sounds faded. Movements slowed. Anything that entered this range seemed to sink into an endless void where energies were devoured.
[Domain of Yang: Radiant Dominion]
On Kyle’s side, light erupted. The space filled with energy. Every movement he made was strengthened, every attack gained several times the power, and even time... seemed to flow faster for him.
Daniel frowned and found himself trapped in their domains.
"This could be troublesome."