'Yeah…' Ignarok agreed. 'Their speed and explosiveness are beyond reason. However, their attacks won't be en— '
Before he could bring his words to an end, Ross, Julia, and Cassandra proved them wrong — again. Although the Enforcers saw them use Alexander's energy, they were still not familiar with how it worked.
Compared to the size of the void creatures, the attacks dealt to them could be considered as scratches at best. Despite this little detail, the energy employed had a purification characteristic that the creatures had no way of resisting.
SCREECH…!!!
Multiple cries echoed throughout the void as, under the surprised gazes of the Enforcers, the void creatures began breaking down at speeds visible to the naked eye.
The creatures struggled, wiggled and employed their power to fight back, but to no avail. Regardless of what they did, the energy clung to them like leeches, unwilling to be doused.
The smarter ones were quick to act after realising that they could not fight the essence, tearing off parts of their bodies that were infected. With their nigh-invincible regeneration, those self-inflicted injuries soon recovered.
'Once again, we stand corrected.' Calyndra scoffed, realising she should have been the first to put the pieces together. 'But I have to say… that essence of his is like a one-size-fits-all solution for everything.'
'Indeed…' Vornarax added, a bit envious of such power. 'Unlike void energy void creatures can also use, his essence is only his and his alone, capable of doing things that void energy can't. It's like his essence has a mind of its own.'
Unaware of how right their assessment was, the battle still raged on. Ross and Julia had not stopped moving after their first attack. They tore through the army of void creatures like hot knives through butter, while Cassandra provided support.
But the void creatures weren't dumb. Unlike the weaklings of their kind that moved purely on instincts, those from the Venerable stage and above had intelligence. They didn't stand around once they realised they could not resist the essence.
The void creatures began employing hit-and-run tactics, long-range attacks or suicide tackles. But Julia and Ross were as slippery as eels. They never spent more than a split second on one target before moving to the next.
They hit fast, heavy and ruthlessly, making sure their attacks hit locations the void creatures could not easily tear away before the essence reached their core. Moreover, the white glow in their eyes was not just for show.
'Imagine it and the energy will do the rest…' Julia recalled Alexander's words and revealed a small smile, tearing through her latest target with ruthless momentum. 'Fufufu, this is the power of my husband!'
The Knight princess and Ross had assumed a systemised vision where the biology of the void creatures was laid bare, allowing them to target their assaults in ways that would provide the shortest possible route towards the black cores of the void creatures, erasing them without question.
The duo resembled streaks of white light cutting through the army of void creatures, expertly avoiding attacks thrown their way. Even so, they were just two people with one supporter in the back.
Sooner or later, they would exhaust themselves fighting beyond their means, regardless of their unique energy. It would take quite a while to reduce the army of void creatures, and who knew if more were joining the ranks.
The catwoman provided as much support as she could, but the creatures were simply too many. Although fatigue was not something she would feel as a Veilwalker, Cassandra had her worries.
'The Enforcers don't seem too eager to help those two.' The catwoman thought derisively. 'But more than that…'
Her attention shifted to the void creatures who stayed behind, silently watching with their faceless expressions. More than once, she had picked up on their strange behaviour.
The creatures followed Ross and Julia's movement with a degree of calmness that made her uneasy. Nothing was stopping them from acting should the Enforcers choose not to, and that worried her greatly.
She was but a demigod utilising Alexander's Nexis Radiant. As versatile and unique as the energy was, she doubted if it would be enough to fight that many god tier void creatures.
The god tier might be the ultimate level there was, but like Veilwalkers who had fused with multiple universe cores, god tier void creatures came in different strength categories. The catwoman was willing to bet that the void creatures were in that higher category.
Contrary to Cassandra's worries, the void creatures remained in place for more than half an hour, silently watching as Ross and Julia tore through their minions with apparent ease.
The void creatures had stopped throwing themselves at Ross and Julia, as it was clear they could not touch them. Had it been up to their own discretion, the creatures would have abandoned their assault.
Meanwhile, the Chief Enforcers continued to watch the duo run circles around the void creatures. Of course, they never took their senses off the god- tier creatures. As much as the creatures were studying them, the Enforcers were doing the same.
Drakmor had seen more than enough of Alexander's Nexis Radiant to understand just how unique it was. Energy was the expression of will, and will was the expression of energy. But that energy was not theirs.
The energy they used came from being chosen by their respective universes, if not the multiverse heart itself. It was not possible to make void energy their own.
'But he is different…' The dragon thought in both bitterness and awe. 'His energy is his will… It's his very nature. He is the energy, and the energy is him. He might not be physically present, but wherever his energy is, he is present.
'Hah… If only such a feat could be replicated with ease.' Drakmor thought back to his human apprentice and inwardly shook his head. The boy had given up as Alexander advised and was now one of the many subordinates under his command.
The dragon and his colleagues' attention once again shifted to the faceless creatures when they noticed a shift in their motionless formation. The monsters had turned their attention to them, communicating amongst themselves.
'I've seen this enough times to know they're ready to make their move…' Velmyra the phoenix, stated matter-of-factly. 'They've waited long enough for the radiance to die down. The bastards should be pretty sure the master of that essence is not around.'
The Enforcers agreed with the assessment, raising their guard to the absolute limit. Drakmor was already prepared to move as soon as those creatures made an attempt at Ross and Julia. The kids may be fast for their level, but they were no match for gods.
Moreover, the two were getting fatigued. Under normal circumstances, they should have pulled back by now, but the redhead and princess showed no intention of backing down.
'I think you two have had enough fun.' Cassandra's voice echoed through their connection. 'You should pull back before those monsters make their move.'
During her supporting role, there had been more than a few occasions when some of the creatures ignored Ross and Julia, charging at her with the intent to disrupt her role. Unfortunately for the poor creatures, they were not her match, especially when they were at the same level as her or lower.
'Agreed…'
Ross replied, executing an area-of-effect strike that hurled a tornado of white flames at the lunging void creatures. The white flames expanded outward, devouring the creatures and reducing them to nothing but light particles that drifted in the void.
With that moment of respite created with his technique, Ross momentarily looked in the direction of the true monsters, still feeling the lingering effects of their oppressive aura on his shoulders. 'It's strange they haven't made a single move up to this point…'
He looked in Julia's direction, watching as Julia executed a swift lunge at a void creature's open maw, striking through it from head to tail. The attack was vicious as it was bloody, but Julia came out on the other side without so much as a shred of black blood on her person.
'Julia.'
Ross called to her through their connection. The Knight princess, already knowing what Ross wanted to say, swung her sword one last time and bolted towards her allies in the back, the redhead not far behind.
The two had to deal with a few more creatures to break the partial encirclement the void creatures had made around them. It was only a matter of a few swings of their swords, and they would be back with Cassandra.
But things rarely worked as intended, especially when the true monsters had pretty much confirmed that the master of the strange essence was not around. The god tier void creatures were more than three times the Enforcers' number, and they capitalised on that advantage.
More than half of that number abruptly disappeared, moving at speeds that were not different to instant teleportation. They reappeared around the Enforcers and Cassandra, letting out predatory clicks as they lunged at them with their long-clawed hands.
The rest surrounded Ross and Julia, their appearance shocking them out of their wits. Although on guard, they were not accustomed to dealing with gods of such calibre; their speed was outrageously insane.
'Ah…'
Julia's heart skipped a beat, very quickly forgetting the kind of power at her disposal. She and Ross were too shocked to react, and even if they could, they would have been too slow.
Drakmor and his colleagues were swift in reacting, but Drakmor cursed at his shortsightedness. He had had his senses honed in on the void creatures, but still failed to predict when they made their move.
There was not enough time to block the lunge of the void creatures and shift to Ross and Julia's side to defend them. He had even pleaded for Calyndra to protect the catwomen if things escalated. Too bad the void creatures acted faster than he had anticipated.
BOOM…!!!
"Ah…!"
Concurrent but absurdly powerful explosions of energy erupted with unequalled force, shaking the void for trillions of kilometres in all directions.
The resulting energy shockwaves disintegrated the army of void creatures in the distance, extinguishing their essence with the same ease as blowing out a candle flame.