The battle progress against the Abyssal Human was steady. The more they fought, the five Immortal Big Dipper Battle Formation groups, consisting of defensive melee, offensive melee, offensive physical range, offensive elemental range, and support, moved like five large entities attacking a singular sturdy monster.
Being a former Seventh Realm powerhouse, the vitality of the Abyssal Human could only be described as semi-endless. No matter how deteriorated the Abyssal Human was, its former strength still affected it. After all, it had yet to degrade to an Abyssal Nightmare.
But, thanks to the three-layered formation that utilized the concepts of Severance, Heavenly Priority, and Soul Verdict, their efforts were causing the Abyssal Human's vitality to weaken over time.
Yasenia blocked a tentacle with her shield, her legs unable to bear the weight as she was pushed back several steps. A frown appeared between her brows. 'Its strength is increasing.'
While the overall vitality was being reduced, Yasenia noticed perfectly well that the Abyssal Human's strength was slowly returning. Even without feeding on anything, a former Seventh Realm powerhouse was not something to take lightly.
Tatyana flashed nearby, the energy from the Immortal Big Dipper Battle Formation coursing through her blade. "[Abyssal Strike Barrage]."
Flashes of black light covered Tatyana's front, the Abyssal Human screeching in pain.
Following Tatyana's lead, Yasenia and the other defensive maids stepped forward and covered for the offensive melee group to retreat. 'Good. We are coordinated.'
They had practiced, and over that, Yasenia, her girls, and the maids had an innate coordination forged through having lived together for most of their lives. The maids, trained by Tatyana to follow Yasenia, had naturally studied Yasenia's battle style and her skills to a degree of knowing them almost better than Yasenia herself.
The girls, having spent a lot of time with the maids and Yasenia, also had everything engraved in their minds.
With Yasenia as the central pillar, everyone fought perfectly without much effort.
Effortless as it was, injuries and damage were impossible to avoid. The Abyssal Human's fierce offensive, both in terms of soul and physical attack, was brutally chipping away at them.
Those with weaker souls had already been substituted by the maids waiting outside and were recuperating. Once they regained their strength, they would enter the fray and be changed for other worn-down maids or the girls, creating a cycle of rest.
While everything moved, the battle frantic and full of flashy lights, Tatyana's nerves were not relaxed in the slightest. 'Something's going to happen.'
There was certainty in her thoughts. Having gone through countless tragedies, Tatyana had developed something like a sixth sense for when things were about to go wrong. This was a defense mechanism born from both experience and her Fate mastery.
Instead of using Fate actively and twisting the Karma of those involved, the best way to use Fate was to give vague hints of a possible future. Things like, "I feel uneasy down this path," or "That treasure looks suspicious," or "Doesn't that room feel like it would have something nice?"
Those types of feelings didn't really affect karma. Tatyana called this skill [Whispers Of Fate].
Right now, those whispers were telling her one thing: "Something bad is going to happen."
With her experience, Tatyana could predict things perfectly. So, her Spiritual Sense was not focused on the Abyssal Human but on its surroundings.
Her blood flowed calmly, her face turning expressionless as she moved mechanically like a precise machine. Her voice disappeared from the battlefield, but her attacks didn't change in intensity in the slightest.
It was then, when the Abyssal Human scattered once more through a combination of Tatyana's attack and Yasenia's empowered [Dying Sun], that her scattered senses picked up a faint energy trace.
It was so minuscule that, unless Tatyana was actively searching for it, she would've missed it.
Once she picked up that signal, Tatyana's emotionless red eyes sharpened, her pupils shrinking to dots as she zeroed in on the origin of the energy fluctuation. "Substitute."
Her words came out of the blue, but one of the recuperated maids outside didn't even hesitate to follow her orders. If Tatyana asked to be substituted, she would be substituted without asking questions.
As the maid took Tatyana's place in the formation, the Death Empress used her Void Shattering Phantom Steps and covered an extreme distance in a fraction of a second.
At that same instant, space in front of Tatyana twisted, and sixteen figures appeared. Tatyana took out her formation pen and quickly scribbled a circle with intricate patterns.
"[Abyssal Annihilation Dharma Formation, Fourth Layer: Abyssal Burial]."
***
Just a few moments ago, the eight guardians saw their chance to interrupt. They had waited for the girls to scatter the Abyssal Human's flesh once more, and when they did, they acted.
Han Zhaoyun, acting as the leader of the group, spoke up. "Use your Guardian Marks straight away and summon the Guardian Phantom as we enter inside. Once you do, attack those chunks!"
They all activated the Guardian Marks, and the echoes of the first eight Guardians manifested around them. Less than an instant later, the sixteen figures appeared in the white seal room, preparing to attack.
Yet, their wishes didn't become true.
In front of them, a woman wearing a red royal dress had just finished creating a circle with her formation pen. Her voice, covered with phantasmal frost, reached their ears. "You lot are truly pathetic. Even when I made sure you couldn't move, you actually managed to come here. Uninvited."
Han Zhaoyun and the rest were startled when the very space and reality around them seemed to collapse inward, dragging them to a foreign space that could only be described as limbo.
The eight Guardian Marks frowned, and Han Luan spoke to Tatyana. "Child, what is the meaning of this? We need to fight the weakened Abyssal Human quickly before it devours one victim and starts regaining its strength."
Tatyana spoke frostily to them from beyond the endless darkness surrounding them. "Look first. Your pathetic descendants not only messed up your prophecy, they even tried to ruin those who came to clean up that mess."
A screen opened in front of them, showing the brutal fight against the Abyssal Human. Seeing that figure, the eight Original Guardians were confused and startled.
"...Why has it not degenerated to an Abyssal Nightmare?"
"We even calculated it with a lot of leeway…"
Han Luan glanced back and forth, and in the end, she didn't act. It was not that she lacked the strength to break free from this confinement. She, who had been a monstrous formation master in the past, could see through the vulnerabilities. If she put her mind to it, breaking free was not impossible.
Still, she didn't. "Child, explain everything."
Those words caused Tatyana's tense heart to settle for a moment. She didn't lower her guard, though. So, with the intent of making sure that they didn't intervene and let them do their own thing, Tatyana used mental communication to share information.
More than a conversation, Tatyana bundled the information in the form of energy and shared it with them. She had prepared it before to inform these ancient guardians, just in case they appeared when not called.
After absorbing the information, the faces of all eight Original Guardians paled a notch. Han Luan looked at the confused Han Zhaoyun and the others, and her hand swung powerfully.
SMACK!
"What were you thinking!?"
Han Luan's voice was full of anger and frustration. Clearly, the other side was slowly but surely dealing with the non-weakened Abyssal Human, but out of pure ego and unwillingness, they decided to intervene, almost causing a tragedy!
Han Zhaoyun asked, confused. "L-Lady Han, what's wrong? It is our duty to deal with the Abyssal Human and summon your forms!"
"FOOL!" Han Luan almost struck him again. "Even if you summoned us, we would've become food for that thing! That's not the Abyssal Nightmare we were meant to deal with; it is still an Abyssal Human!"
If they were at their peak, the current Abyssal Human was a slap away from death. However, these eight used themselves as materials for the two seals. So, their strength deteriorated together with the Abyssal Human's. The perfect moment to strike was when the Abyssal Human degenerated into an Abyssal Nightmare.
If that happened, all the tools, golems, and other items they left behind would be more than enough to deal with it.
Tatyana spoke up. "I don't have time to deal with your family matters. So, stay put here. We will deal with that thing."
Tatyana had not been looking at their antics. Her formation pen had not stopped for a second since they were trapped. "Mirrory!"
The red-haired, green-eyed, voluptuous beauty flew over from the center of the battlefield. She was the only individual not attached to a Battle Formation and able to move freely.
"What's wrong?"
Tatyana pointed with her chin. "Help me complete this. I need your Truth."
"Got it." Mirrory didn't ask why. Her energy bloomed out beautifully, causing the eight Original Guardians to stop their scolding and look over with wide eyes.
Han Luan muttered, baffled. "...What kind of energy control is this?"
Supreme didn't do it justice. Mirrory's ability to control energy looked nothing less than pure art.
"[Divine Truth: Seal]."
Tatyana's formation and Mirrory's energy intertwined, and a second later, the loose walls that created the temporary limbo solidified. Han Luan's expression quickly changed. '...I can't break this now.'
If they gave her time and she used the remaining energy within her, there was a chance of breaking through. However, using the energy supposed to be used to fight the Abyssal Human to break this formation was nothing but stupidity in itself.
Tatyana glanced at the seal formation created from the fourth layer, Abyssal Burial, and nodded, a touch of relief flashing in her eyes. "Good. Now I can tell if they are trying to do anything strange and react. Let's return."
Ignoring them, Tatyana shouted once more. "Substitute!"
Mirrory gave them one last glance. "You eight are the very core of this formation, so stay put where you are and do not move. Your role will be fulfilled as long as you just act as seal batteries."
After saying her piece, Mirrory turned around and rejoined the battle.
Meanwhile, the eight Original Guardians couldn't help but blink and smile wryly. Then, they sighed and shook their heads. 'Whatever, as long as that abomination can be killed, we will gladly act as your batteries.'