CHAPTER 359: ANOTHER BASE, ANOTHER BATTLE

The battlefield was silent now.

Not one soldier bearing the Holt name or associating with them remained standing.

From the lowest mortal soldier to the highest-ranked Grandmaster, they had all fallen. Blood soaked the ground, blackened by ash and Essence.

The once-proud structures of the Holt base had been reduced to crumbling stone and twisted metal. Towers were flattened. Training halls turned into pits.

The very earth looked scorched, cracked in places as if a titan had just finished his angry dance on the earth.

Total destruction. No survivors.

Arkas stood with his arms behind his back, surveying the wreckage with a hardened expression. The wind tugged gently at his clothes, now torn near the edges.

"Edgar," he said calmly, not turning. "Send the signal to HQ. Let them know the this base is finished."

Edgar nodded. A small orb formed in his palm, pulsing with light. He whispered a few words, and the orb zipped into the sky, vanishing in a blink.

The remaining Grandmasters had gathered nearby, murmuring among themselves—strategies, movements, the next wave of assaults. But I had already stepped away from them.

I walked over the shattered ground, my boots crunching over fragments of armor and broken weapons, until I spotted Steve and North a few meters off, sitting on the remains of a fallen wall.

Steve’s sword rested across his lap, still faintly glowing with lightning. His face was smeared with blood. North leaned against him, her arms crossed, staring into the distance with tired eyes.

"How are you two holding up?" I asked as I reached them.

Steve looked up first.

"Alive. Which is better than most today."

North didn’t speak at first. Then she let out a slow breath.

"It was a massacre," she said quietly. "Having you was a disaster for them."

I sat down beside them, the silence heavy.

"How many masters did we lose?" I asked.

She replied in the same tone.

"We lost at least forty Masters. Maybe more. I haven’t seen everyone yet. Some were crushed during the first waves. Others... didn’t even get the chance to fight back."

Steve looked down at his sword.

"They were strong. But they weren’t ready to face thousands of enemies at once."

I nodded slowly, watching a piece of charred cloth drift across the cracked stone. The smell of blood, fire, and dust still lingered.

"Loss of life was expected. But we still did better than what HQ predicted. They also refused my offer, I told them I could protect them if they let me."

Steve shrugged and answered.

"Well, I’m sure those who survived will be stronger and more valuable in the next war."

I nodded and rose slowly into the air, letting the wind whip around me, wings spreading wide as I hovered above the ruined battlefield. The cratered land below was littered with wreckage, broken weapons, and scorched bodies. My voice echoed across the quiet field.

"Everyone, gather up!"

Heads turned. The ones still able to move dragged themselves into position—some limping, others helping wounded soldiers. All the masters started moving considering my designation as their commander.

I waited until they’d assembled as best they could, then spoke loud and clear.

"You did well," I said. "Every single one of you. Today, we crushed one of the Holt family’s most powerful strongholds. We didn’t run. We didn’t beg. We fought. And we won."

A few people clenched their fists. Others nodded silently.

"But don’t think it’s over," I continued. "This war is far from finished. This was one battle. One base. There are others still standing, still spilling blood. And we will keep going. Until they’re all gone."

I raised my hand and connected with the realm. A circular tear opened with a soft hum, revealing the familiar sight of Dante’s portal anchor back in the realm. The soft violet glow radiated from the inner runes, still stable, still active.

"This battlefield is done," I said. "Let’s move."

One by one, the soldiers and masters began stepping through. North gave me a short nod as she followed. Steve, wiping blood off his blade, stepped in after her. Edgar lingered near the back, watching quietly as the rest passed through.

I stayed last.

My eyes flicked toward the edges of the battlefield, where Arkas’s spatial barrier still shimmered faintly, holding firm. It would hold for a few more minutes, then dissolve like it was never there. A final seal on this massacre.

Finally, I turned to Lyrate, who floated silently beside me.

I let out a quiet breath.

"I wish you could speak," I said. "I’ve seen you fight in so many wars... and I’ve never really understood why you enjoy it so much."

She turned her head, meeting my gaze.

Even without words, I could feel it—her excitement, her eagerness for the next battle.

I gave a small chuckle.

"I’ll wait for your answer... when the day comes that you can."

I sent her back to the core and stepped through the portal.

It snapped shut behind me with a soft hum.

We were back in the realm, near the central platform where Dante had created the portals. The others waited, breathing easier now. The energy in the air was calmer here, cleaner.

Arkas turned to face us.

"Grandmasters. Masters. If you’re still able to fight, follow me," he said. "Another base is under assault in the western continent. Our allies there need support."

Eighty Masters stepped forward. No hesitation. Steve and North joined them. I nodded and walked with them.

We stepped on another teleportation circle and Arkas powered it instantly.

Within a moment we vanished from the realm.

The moment we arrived, I felt the tension.

Explosions echoed in the distance. Two of the Empire’s Grandmasters were already holding a perimeter around the central portal site, locked in fierce battle with multiple enemies.

They turned at our arrival. One of them, covered in blood, smirked.

"You’re a little late," he said.

Violet Essence surged from my body, and the teleportation circles behind us shattered instantly. The two Grandmasters fighting ahead sensed it and visibly relaxed.

"No one’s escaping this one either," I said calmly.

My perception extended outward covering the entire base.

This base was smaller, only three-fourth the size of the Holt stronghold we’d just flattened but it had already been torn apart.

Craters pockmarked the ground, buildings lay in heaps of rubble, and the scent of smoke and burnt Essence filled the air. Blood stained the stone paths, and bodies were scattered across the ruined courtyard.

The spatial barrier had already been activated here. A dull shimmer lined the sky above, marking the sealed perimeter of this pocket space. The enemy hadn’t broken through but they were trying.

Above us, six Grandmasters clashed in the air, streaks of elemental light arcing and colliding.

Pressure bursts rang out like thunder as attacks collided. Of the six, four belonged to the Empire. The other two were Holts, and they pressed hard, not giving a moment’s rest. Below, two more Grandmasters from the Empire had been guarding the teleportation portals before we arrived. They looked tired, robes torn and Essence flickering.

Arkas didn’t wait.

With Edgar and the rest of the Grandmasters that had followed us, he shot into the sky like a thunderbolt, joining the battle with a deafening crack of lightning. The sky exploded with new collisions as they entered the fray, turning the tide immediately.

I stayed on the ground, just for a breath.

Then I lifted my hand.

"Come."

A bloom of crimson mist gathered beside me and Lyrate stepped out, calm as ever. Her blade gleamed, and her red eyes scanned the battlefield.

"Go," I said.

She blinked once and her body dispersed into crimson mist as she rushed into the army of Masters ahead of us.. Seconds later, screams echoed from the enemy lines as roots exploded from the cracked earth, piercing and binding Holt soldiers. Crimson fog followed behind her like a plague, slicing and decapitating any coming near.

Beside me, Steve drew his blade and surged into motion.

His body blurred as sword force spun around him like a cyclone, and in a flash, he was already deep into the enemy ranks. North followed, her twin blades flashing silver as she dove straight toward a group of Holt Masters organizing an attack formation.

I took a slow breath and raised my hand.

I let my Essence connect with the battlefield itself. I reached through space, felt every ripple, every pull and twist of the world around me. Every attack being launched by the enemy Masters lit up like threads in my perception.

And then I willed them out of sync.

Space fluctuated.

Enemy attacks curved away from their paths, some striking allies, others vanishing into warped air. A barrage of fireballs turned at the last second and exploded midair. Arrows fell harmlessly to the ground. One Master’s earth wall crumbled before it formed, the particles disturbed at their source.

Panic spread across their lines.

I walked forward slowly, hand still raised, continuing to unravel their control, bit by bit.

Their attacks no longer finished the way they wanted.