Summoning the Holy Sword

Chapter 1298: Each Their own Battlefield

"The underground has been invaded by Chaos. Miss Nell is trying to deal with it now."

Upon hearing Marlene's report, the young lady who sat tight in her chair didn't even raise an eyebrow. She, who looked exactly like Rhode, appeared to have a softer and more beautiful expression and wore an incredibly calm expression. Even after hearing such tense news, her expression didn't change much.

In a way, she really does look like Rhode…

While examining the young lady before her surreptitiously, Marlene thought to herself. Honestly, her feelings were somewhat complicated when she met this young lady. On the one hand, as one of the seven deity wardens, she was naturally thrilled and elated at the return of the original Creator Dragon. But when it came to the identity of being the woman by Rhode's side, her attitude toward the young lady became a bit conflicted. These days, due to Rhode's absence, it had been the young lady who was in charge of the entire territory. Marlene originally thought that something might more or less go wrong, but to her surprise, nothing had gone wrong.

On the surface, the siblings seemed to have completely different personalities. And in Marlene's opinion, Rhode was stronger and more aggressive. He always took the initiative and did things personally in order to avoid accidents and make sure that everything went according to plan.

But compared to her older brother, the younger sister had a calmer and gentler temperament. And if Rhode were one of those 'if the Earth doesn't turn, then I'll push it' type of person, the younger sister would be the 'if the mountain doesn't move, the water will still move, but it doesn't matter how the water does it' type of person. She rarely cared about the progress of everything like Rhode did, but was more like standing in the clouds, looking down and watching everything on the continent, and driving their behaviors through little changes. Rhode was good at 'change', while the younger sister was good at 'guidance'.

But soon, Marlene realized that she was simply wrong. Siblings would always be siblings. Perhaps both of them seemed a little different from their appearance… But, as a matter of fact, they were both really similar. For instance, it was hard to tell what was going through their heads from their facial expressions. Rhode had a deadpan expression all day long and would only show an unusually bright smile whenever he came up with some devious ideas. It was impossible to fathom his temperament on a normal day. And compared to Rhode, his younger sister, though always putting up a gentle smile on her face, didn't look like she was being perfunctory in the least. However, Marlene still couldn't figure out what she was really thinking. Like Rhode, it seemed like no matter what happened, the younger sister's expression wouldn't change much, as if those things couldn't affect their emotions at all.

What a pair of siblings…..

"How's it?"

"Huh…?"

Upon hearing the young lady's voice, Marlene couldn't help but feel astonished. The young girl, on the other hand, didn't seem to feel anything wrong at all as she gazed at Marlene with a soft and calm smile, as though it wasn't trouble that Marlene was reporting, but routine and trivial affairs instead.

"How's it? Miss Marlene, will Miss Nell's side be able to hold up?"

"Ah… For now, based on her reports, the Dark Region isn't having much of a problem, since it isn't where Chaos is ravaging, after all. But having to deal with devils gave her a bit of a headache, though it wouldn't be too much of a problem. Her Majesty Erin has already sent some of her men forward to provide assistance. Miss Angelina also went along with them."

Due to the void storm created by Rhode that separated the boundaries of Chaos and Order, the border areas of the Country of Darkness that were once the most dangerous had now become the safest places instead. And as the ruler of darkness, it went without saying that Erin wouldn't let go of her jurisdiction over the underworld. And now that she had the time and manpower, she certainly wouldn't make the same mistakes as her big brother. Of course, she wasn't planning to seize Rhode's control over the underworld, but being the Dark Dragon gave her an apparent and bigger advantage down there. Anyway, Rhode didn't care, and they were one big family now, after all.

However, the current situation of the Dragon Soul Continent wasn't looking great. Although things were good overall and the various forces that had prepared for Chaos's all-out aggression were still able to withstand their attack, if things continued to persist this way, no one could be certain how things would turn out in the end.

"With Miss Erin around, there shouldn't be too much of a problem over in the Dark Region then."

Upon hearing Marlene's reply, the young lady pondered for a moment and spoke.

"Inform Miss Nell to be more careful in terms of consumption. The number of underground creatures on her side isn't many to begin with, and she can't win by fighting recklessly. If she really can't stop them, she can simply block the tunnel completely. Chaos is most helpless to the presence of Order in the lands. It is still the same even if they have mutated Order. As long as we can determine the timing of the blockade, it should be enough to support us until we activate our defenses."

"Noted."

Marlene nodded and recorded her commands. No matter what, the younger sister was in charge of the main plane now, so Marlene only needed to follow orders. That was why the latter had no hesitation and recorded the younger sister's orders quickly, before flipping over the intelligence in her hands.

"As for Her Highness Lydia, everything is under control. But due to the constant warfare earlier, be it the Muun Kingdom or Country of Light, their fighting power has been weakened greatly. They are currently in the midst of regrouping, so perhaps it might be hard for them to send out anything useful against Chaos for now."

"Even if they aren't useful, what we need now is time. The longer we delay in the early stages, the better it will be for us. Please tell Miss Lydia to make sure there are enough people to carry out the protection of the plane transmission beacons. At all costs."

"… Noted."

Upon hearing the younger sister's reply, Marlene was shook. She wasn't a fool, so it went without saying that she knew what her sister really meant by the phrase 'at all costs'. It meant that even if Marlene were to push civilians to their deaths on the battle line in order to delay Chaos' attack for just one more moment, it would still be beneficial and worth it. She had to admit that at such times, the younger sister showed as much determination as Rhode. And Marlene could imagine that if Rhode were to learn of this, perhaps he would also put on a wry smile and say: "It is also time for those people to contribute to the continent that gave birth to them and raised them. They don't have anything to lose. They still have their lives, don't they?"

However, Marlene didn't comment much. In fact, that was how cruel the truth was now. Without sufficient quantity, quality was meaningless. Even sacrificing more than half the lives of the entire continent was worth it to ensure the safety of the plane transmission beacons. After all, as long as life existed, they could reproduce again. But if they were completely defeated by Chaos, everyone would be heading down a road to ruin. And at that point, nothing could save them anymore.

"…"

And at that moment, Marlene noticed that the young lady's brows were knitting subtly. The face that had been displaying a calm, soft smile dwindled and became much more serious. The young lady stood up and looked up at the sky above.

"Did something happen?"

Looking at this scene, Marlene couldn't help but ask. After all, it had to be something with significant impact to be able to bring changes to the siblings' faces. When the young lady heard Marlene's question, she was taken aback. She shook her head slightly and when she turned around again, her heavy expression disappeared from view. The soft, calm smile once again appeared on that stunningly beautiful face.

"It's not a big deal, Miss Marlene… But even if it is, we can't offer any help… A few moments ago, I felt the elemental plane being ambushed."

"The elemental plane?!"

Upon hearing her remarks, Marlene was stunned. She wasn't a fool. It was self-evident how important the elemental planes were to the Dragon Soul Continent. And now that even the elemental planes were under attack, things could be said to have reached a really dangerous point! Marlene became agitated. She looked at the young lady and said.

"Madam, I think we should… Ugh…"

Marlene said and came to a realization that it was just as the young lady said; even if they wanted to, they couldn't offer any help. How could she send troops to the elemental plane when even the main plane was now stretched to its limit? Moreover, the elemental plane was a unique environment where only formidable beings could enter. In that case, ordinary people were completely useless. And now that manpower was limited, where was Marlene going to find and send a group of powerful beings to send to the elemental planes as reinforcements? The only thing they could do now, perhaps was to observe the situation and pray that the elemental planes would be able to withstand the attack.

"… Don't worry too much, Miss Marlene. Big Brother and the rest are on the water elemental plane now. The other three elemental planes aren't in bad shape either. And with the nature of the elemental planes, it isn't easy for Chaos to actually contaminate them, so there isn't much danger. All we need to do is to focus on our duties."

The young lady said and withdrew her gaze.

"We have our own battlefield. This is not just for the sake of big brother, but also for the rest of us. It is a war that we can't lose."

It is a war that we can't lose.

***

It was the same for Rhode as well.

"All those who disengaged from the battle, gather up and follow me. The rest of you keep up your defenses and beat those damn octopuses back to where they came from!"

While the giant octopus bound itself around the ice crystal barrier tightly, Rhode had drawn his sword and dashed toward it. At that moment, dozens of players who promptly pulled back from the battlefield also followed suit, rushing toward the huge creature along with Anne, Bell, and the rest.

"Such a huge octopus; I really wonder how it tastes roasted."

The first to make a move was Gillian. She had been following Rhode for a long time. When Rhode gave his command, she naturally knew her role. She stretched out her arm and soon, along with this action, a burst of scorching flames appeared out of thin air, whistling through the air and striking the enormous body of the octopus.

In an instant, flames spread in all directions, while streams of white steam rose from the octopus's body. Upon feeling the burning sensation and damage of the fire element, the Tentacle Orbis let out roaring shrieks. No matter what, it was a water elemental creature, and Gillian was a fire elemental lord, whose flames were far more terrifying and powerful than ordinary. Under her attack, the Tentacle Orbis trembled uncontrollably, while several of its tentacles that were binding the ice crystal barrier lifted instinctively and flourished at Gillian and the rest. It was obvious that the Tentacle Orbis was going to eliminate this fox-eared young lady who was causing its suffering, before going on with its business.

But Rhode obviously wouldn't let it have its way.

"Anne, block it!"

"Got it, Leader!"

Upon hearing Rhode's command, Anne, who was eager to jump into battle, shouted. Her hands were already itchy as she watched the battle from the rear. But it was a pity that Rhode didn't let her join the fight. And now, after hearing his order, she had no intention to continue watching the show anymore. She reached out and picked up the heavy shield beside her. In a click, razor-sharp blades like claws of wild beasts sprang out of the gap in the shield. Anne yelled and hurled the heavy shield into the air.

With the addition of the wind element making Anne's heavy shield attack more threatening than before, her attack cut through the sky with an arc-shaped wind blade that resembled a huge scythe. The wind blade struck from above, deflecting the tentacles that headed for Gillian.

At the same time, the players also joined the battle. Shortly after, spells with the flame attribute burst into the sky, enveloping the giant octopus along with Gillian's flames.

"Form a smaller team to enter the ice crystal barrier and deal with the toxin! The rest of you stay out here and keep the attack going. Watch out for your safety! I'll take the lead. Follow me, Bell, Snow!"

Rhode gave his order quickly and before they responded, he already held his sword and zoomed into the ice crystal barrier in a flash. He was well aware that the trouble with this Tentacle Orbis wasn't simply its size, but the toxin it injected—it would not only erode the ice crystal barrier, but would also create disgusting toxic creatures. Not only were physical attacks useless against them, but their attacks were also toxic, where one bad move could leave one poisoned. The toxin was also difficult to disperse and couldn't simply be dealt with by ordinary people.

As expected, the moment Rhode entered the ice crystal barrier, he saw deep purple liquid flowing out of the opening and coalescing on the ground to form jelly-like creatures. Those were exactly the toxic creatures!

"You guys know how to deal with them. Snow, use your blizzard! Bell, on my command, after Snow freezes those creatures into ice, you must strike and shatter them right away. Then, return immediately and don't stop moving, understand? Now, follow me!"

"…!"

Bell didn't respond to Rhode's command, but nodded silently instead. But judging from the way she gripped her daggers, it was apparent that she felt really nervous as well. Meanwhile, the little mermaid obeyed his command and raised her hands high. Shortly after, an ice-cold, whirling blizzard spurted out from her hands, enveloping all the toxic creatures before her. Soon, the ground was covered with a layer of white frost. The toxic creatures became much slower in their movements and eventually, they froze into ice sculptures one after another under the roar of the blizzard.

"Now's the chance. Go!"

Looking at this scene, Rhode gave his order immediately and dashed ahead. The sword in his hand erupted in a series of dazzling lights, forming a huge net of blade rays that enfolded the dozens of toxic creatures along with strong, whistling, and razor-sharp gales. At the next moment, as blade rays flashed, the frozen toxic creatures shattered and crumbled onto the ground.

Meanwhile, Bell wasn't idle either. Although she was still young and wasn't able to match up to Rhode in terms of combat skills, since Rhode brought her here, he was naturally confident in her fighting abilities. While glaring blade rays erupted from his blade, the young lady disappeared in a flash, leaving only fluttering snowflakes to prove her existence. At that moment, Bell launched her attack.

In the blink of an eye, the young lady's petite figure appeared on the other side of the toxic creatures, slashing down the two daggers in her hands like the salivating mouths of ferocious beasts. In a series of swishes, several cold trails of light flashed around her, and the toxic creatures cracked and collapsed to the ground.

"Come back now!"

Just as Bell decided to continue her assault, she heard Rhode's ringing voice. Upon hearing his command, the young lady turned around without hesitation, leaping across the battlefield before returning to his side once again. It was only then when Bell was surprised to find that the frozen toxic creatures began to move again. They seemed to have broken through the restraints of the cold and intended to launch their attacks again. Not only that, but what also astonished Bell was that the fragments of the toxic creatures that fell to the ground started moving on their own to merge and fuse with their main bodies again!

"Okay, time to wrap things up."

On the other hand, Rhode wasn't as surprised as Bell. After all, he knew that these creatures were so disgusting… But despite that, he still had ways to deal with them. The moment he witnessed the sliced toxic creatures 'resisting stubbornly', he didn't say a word, but gestured to the side instead. The mage who was ready by the side raised his staff and at the next moment, whirling flames erupted from the tip of his staff and enfolded the toxic creatures. In seconds, their fragments evaporated into a green smoke that disappeared without a trace.

All is well…

After witnessing the toxic creatures being eliminated, Rhode heaved a sigh of relief. He scanned his surroundings and realized that the situation inside the Ice Throne wasn't too bad—at the very least, it wasn't under pressure. However, it would be a problem if this continued. Besides, Rhode had warned the Queen of Ice not to use her power unless absolutely necessary. Because Chaos might just be waiting for her.

So then, all that's left is that huge freak right there.

At this thought, Rhode turned to the huge and ugly mouth of that giant octopus and revealed a vibrant smile.

Be prepared to die.