The invading forces didn't expect to take the city at their first attack. The defending side always had the advantage during a war, and the three organizations were attacking the most powerful force in the world. There wasn't much that they could do before they analyzed the battlefield properly.
Yet, the only way to do so was to test the defenses of the Empire and create countermeasures.
Elder Julia and Elder Austin weren't injured. They barely looked tired at all. However, Danielle had a few cracks on her mantis body. As for Noah, his skin had many wounds, and his robe was torn and bloody. The bleeding though had already stopped due to his powerful healing properties and the innate resilience of his body.
Noah didn't feel tired as he stood proudly on the rocky terrain, staring at Peaceful Storm that was eyeing him with an annoyed look on his face. Those wounds weren't enough to force Noah to rest, but it wasn't the same for his opponent.
Peaceful Storm had come in contact with the black smoke multiple times, and that corrosive gas had even affected his internal organs. The humans were simply too frail, and Peaceful Storm was managing to keep on fighting because he was suppressing his injuries. Once he came back to his quarters, he would need to resort to powerful drugs to heal.
On the other hand, Noah only needed to eat. His skin and muscles weren't a problem, but his internal organs had suffered a bit during the outburst of the distorted space and needed some nutrients to heal quickly.
Yet, Noah wasn't worried about his state in the slightest. He only cared about his battle prowess, and he felt some satisfaction as he reviewed his first fight against a complete rank 5 cultivator.
Noah knew that he had never really gained the upper hand in the battle. He had only relied on his superior body to match Peaceful Storm's annoying defense. However, he couldn't help but approve the power that his darkness was able to produce when it fueled his abilities.
Peaceful Storm wasn't weak, and his experience in battles at that level far surpassed Noah's. Also, his centers of power were stronger than Noah's, even if they weren't on superior stages or tiers.
Nevertheless, Noah's attacks had managed to match his and even overcome them at times.
'I can fight the old monsters,' Noah thought as he moved forward to gather the hybrids that had survived the blue pillar. Most of them were scared and had fallen prey to their survival instincts, but Noah's roars calmed them down and forced them to regroup with the other troops.
They had lost a battle, but that was just the beginning of the war. The Shandal Empire had managed to fend them off that time, but it was still against three powerful forces. Its defenses could only delay the inevitable defeat.
The elders in the fourth rank shot worshipping gazes at Noah. They still wielded the living weapons that had given them an incredible advantage during the battle and had put them in a position where they could notice the arrival of the blue pillar before it was too late.
Having access to an almost limitless number of spells had made them overwhelm the enemy forces and even kill a few of them before the blue light arrived, and Noah was the one who had provided that power.
In their eyes, the Demon Prince wasn't only an amazing individual anymore. He appeared perfect, whether it was his battle prowess or ability in the inscription fields. He was an existence that they couldn't help but admire and revere.
Noah didn't mind their gazes. It would only benefit the Hive if his presence on the battlefield were to inspire the other heroic assets. After all, that was the purpose of a leader, and his title hinted that he would rule the Hive someday.
"How bad is it?" Elder Austin asked as he neared Noah to inspect his injuries.
The Elder hadn't revealed his living weapon in that battle since he knew that they were just testing the enemy forces with that first assault.
Noah didn't have time to answer that Danielle snorted and turned to leave before giving voice to a few words. "He isn't like you. Those wounds are nothing for our species."
Noah watched her set off to return to the territories of the Hive, but he couldn't understand how she felt after the battle. Even if she had been busy with her fight, she had been able to analyze Noah's combat style at times, but she didn't reveal her thoughts about it.
Her reaction though didn't faze Noah, who simply gestured at the Elder that he was fine before leading the hybrids back to the domain of the Hive. It was time to reorganize and set a meeting with the other forces to discuss the defensive methods of the Empire. After that, they would deploy an even stronger army and resume their attacks.
Noah created a small cave after he was done taking care of the hybrids. He didn't feel tired, so he had no reason not to train. He felt starving too, so it was a good time to make a thorough evaluation of his abilities now that he had used them in battle.
'The effects obtained with my darkness are amazing,' Noah thought as he munched the body parts of a magical beast in the lower tier of the fifth rank. 'It's a pity that some of my spells don't work with it.'
Noah had tried his best not to lose any of his abilities after he created his "Breath". However, some of his spells didn't work, no matter how many modifications he made to their diagrams.
The Demonic Form, his mental spells, and his runes had only benefitted from his darkness, which simply increased their power and made them express his individuality. Yet, some abilities didn't work before he made some changes to adapt them to his peculiar energy.
The Merging spell was supposed to use the darkness in the world to boost his speed, but Noah had to change the focus of that diagram to his destruction to put it to use. He would suddenly sharpen his aura to its limit to brute-force his way through the air and sprint at high speed.
It was more of a forced acceleration rather than a peaceful increase in speed after his modifications.
The Warp spell suffered from the same issue. The black flames could still transport his attacks, but they couldn't teleport him anymore. However, the spell would now empower the attacks that passed through them, which made Noah ignore the loss of some of its core features.
His Blood Companion seemed to have issues with his "Breath" too. Noah had to use the primary energy to make it work, even if he obtained weaker effects.
As for spells like the Dark Cover, the Dark Ray, and the Death Area, they simply wouldn't activate.