The Plague Crows released greenish mist that clung itself to the surface of the rope; not even the howling wind could get rid of it.
As for the Dreadtox Alraune? Their appearance alone screamed of sinister toxins... They had bodies that looked grown from toxic mushrooms. Although their species was part of the Fungi Kingdom, they couldn't absorb sunlight as their skins were as dark as the abyss beneath them... thick vein-like lines mapped their bodies, filled with purplish poisonous sap.
The hair appeared as hanging vines and tangled roots. They had mushroom caps grown on their shoulders, back, and hips... they leaked liquid toxic venom mixed with tiny seeds on the rope's surface.
The toxic liquid immediately stuck to the surface, allowing the seeds to embed themselves deep within its crevices.
In an instant, the watchers were taken aback to see a garden of giant purplish mushrooms sprouting around the nightcrawlers... yet, the Dreadtox nightcrawlers refused to halt their operation, pumping more seeds and expanding their Fungi Kingdom!
"The Conquerors have come with a plan!" Gamemaster Envy commentated, "They are allowing the Raiders to farm the horns freely for the sake of terraforming the rope to a toxic environment!"
Levi and the rest of the Daywalkers realized this as well... but most of them didn't look surprised. Their research made them recognize that the Conqueror's Faction had chosen nests with the highest compatibility.
In this instance, it was Poison Aspect.
Plague Crows, Dreadtox Alraune, Abyssal Basilisk, and Chemira Undead... these four nightcrawler species shared either access to Poison Aspect or at least had a high poison resistance.
'As expected, they are focusing on poisoning the entire rope, putting us in a difficult position during battles. We can't have them expand their poisonous reach freely.'
The moment Levi found out that three nests shared access to Poison Aspect, he imagined the Conqueror's faction giving up on the Horns in the first rounds... then, when most of their teammates got on the rope, they could utilize the toxic environment to their advantage, making it nearly impossible for them to fight peacefully.
'Shia, mess with their plans.'
'Blake, collect as many horns as you can in their territory, but don't overstay your welcome.'
'Nadal... fight alongside Shia, but don't get in her way... you know how she gets when excited.'
'Micheal... support them from the back.'
'Don't worry about falling... I have you covered.'
Levi fired a series of orders calmly... Shia's group responded with head nods. After spending ten days under Levi's leadership, no one had any intentions of questioning his moves. He had proved himself more than worthy to be their captain.
"Mantra Blood Arts: Gorrathi's Predator Form." Shia murmured under her breath coldly.
Her heartbeat slowed, then grew heavy and rhythmic... the maroon tint on her skin darkened as her muscles tightened, becoming much denser.
Her eyes turned into predatory weapons... the pupils narrowed into vertical slits drowned in a sea of blood, masking their existence.
She no longer saw the nightcrawlers' true appearance... only their blood circulation, heartbeats, and their murderous intent highlighted in a world of white and black.
With no hesitation, Shia pointed her glaive in the direction of the nightcrawlers and poured out a two-meter path of blood continuously... then, she surfed on top of it rapidly, her speed tripled at least.
She was moving against the rope's spinning motion, ensuring that she always stayed on top regardless of its position during its cycle!
Meanwhile, Nadal used the same technique to keep up... he released chilling air from his sword in front of him, creating a frozen path to slide across.
The viewers assumed that either of them would fall at any moment, considering that the spinning rope's momentum was strong enough to blow them off it if they failed to hold on... yet, those praying for their downfall were left puzzled to see them maintaining the same speed, unaffected by the wind or the rope's ever-changing position.
-How?! Their speed isn't high enough to resist gravity or the brutal wind's force!-
-Are they relying on hidden artifacts that keep them grounded?-
-Gamemaster Envy, we need you!-
Gamemaster Envy remained silent for a moment as he glanced in Levi's direction... although Levi stood with crossed arms and an unreadable expression like he had no involvement with the game, the Gamemaster saw the truth right away.
In his line of sight, three invisible faint aetheric strings were attached to Shia and the others besides Blake... the strings connected to a skin-tight aetheric aura containing them.
Each time they moved across the rope, the faint aetheric aura linked up with emerging aetheric energy from the surface of the rope!
It appeared like an aetheric road was being created along their journey.
'This kid... his spiritual prowess isn't just high enough to assist his teammates from a great distance; he is exerting aetheric energy from the rope to enrich the aetheric auras containing his teammates, helping them maintain their balance.' Gamemaster Envy raised a brow in intrigue.
He wasn't surprised that someone had attempted to assist their teammates on top of the rope while still being on the ground... the rules banned them from ascending the rope or getting close to it before getting chosen, but they said nothing about blocking external assistance.
After all, this was a faction vs faction war... not a tag-based event. Whether everyone was on the rope or the ground, the battle was on at the start of the game.
Anyone capable of pulling something like Levi was free to do so... but no one did. The rope's immense length and spinning speed ensured that any external assistance besides spiritual would be deemed useless.
If they fired projectiles, it would be extremely difficult to hit moving targets while the rope was moving continuously as well... better save energy.
Gamemaster Envy exposed the aetheric strings to the viewers and the self-created aetheric road, leaving the majority confused... but not the Bishops and the rest of the high-end Daywalkers.
"How can his affinity to aether energy be this damn high..." Bishop Na'thir narrowed his eyes deeply, "I know his spiritual talents are immense, but still... to extract external aetheric energy from so far away through pure will isn't something ordinary."
"How marvelous... this boy is truly full of surprises."
Even Bishop Va'ren's expression turned intrigued as he gazed at Levi's silent stance... as Tier 8 nightcrawlers, they knew that aether energy responded to affinity exclusively.
If one had a shred of affinity for it or an Aspect unlocked, he was allowed to command it through will or spiritual energy... however, the level of control and freedom depended on the level of one's affinity.
If it was low... Aspect or not... they wouldn't be able to command aetheric energy from a great distance, even with decades or centuries of training.
Meanwhile, Levi was doing exactly this, and pulling it off naturally like he was born to command aether energy.
Unbeknownst to them... it was all thanks to Soulleech Maw's mutation!
'Aether energy worships the Soulleech Monarch and anything related to her...'
Levi murmured inwardly, his spiritual vision showing glimpses of the Aether Realm layered over the environment around him... he didn't enter the Aether Realm like the first time, but he found that he could view a little of it with his spiritual vision if he focused hard enough.
This wasn't all... his aether energy affinity increased explosively after his soul got linked with the Soulleech Maw. Although it was still a baby, aether energy didn't recognize the difference that much.
The instant his soul integrated with the Soulleech Maw, aether energy saw him as its ruler!
A young ruler, but still... a ruler!
With him keeping their balance, Shia and Nadal didn't hesitate to go all out the moment they reached the borders of their expanding toxic kingdom.
"I will handle the left side!" Nadal shouted while slashing his sword in direction of the misty plague garden of mushrooms.
An arc of chilling mist released, freezing anything on its path... the poisonous mushroom turned into ice sculptures while the misty plague froze without much of a resistence. Poison or not... it was stil in a misty state, standing no chance against the Chill Aspect.
"Bastard, you will pay dearly for this!"
Deyss'Vael cursed coldly as she rushed in their direction, refusing to watch their hard work ruined by them... the rope was already on its third spin and they were tasked to contaminate 20% before the next round start. If they suceeded in their mission, they would earn a higher percentage of the reward.
"Dread Toxin Arts: Fungal Devastation!"
The moment she spoke, her mushroom cap expanded rapidly until it resembled a bloated balloon... then, she aimed the top in Nadal's direction and unleashed a wave of toxic purple spores!
Nadal gazed at the incoming wave of toxic spores with a stern expression... he sunk the tip of his sword into the ground, shielding himself with a chilling, misty barrier.
The storm of chill froze the spores the moment contact was made... however, they weren't fighting on an unmoving ground. The wind affected both the spores and the chilling barrier, creating unnecessary openings.
A few tiny spores slipped through the chilling barrier and his armor underneath the uniform... they were smaller than pores, which made them able to sneak through with ease. As for Levi's aetheric containment, it wasn't a concentrated barrier to help him shield against them, allowing them to slip through it as well.
In no time, Nadal felt his blood slowing down and his movements becoming a little sluggish... even his vision was affected negatively.
He knew at once that he was poisoned... without hesitation, he called for help, 'Captain Levi! I need a cleansing lick!'
Author Notice: Apologies for the delay and the one chapter for today... I had a control appointment with the doctor concerning my blood pressure to see if it went down and remained stable... unfortunately, my cortisol levels are still quite high, and he prescribed me some additional medications to help in reducing them. I do wish this situation wouldn't turn into a chronic illness... I have enough on my mind already. D: