Liu Shu was feeling a bit annoyed. It wasn't that she didn't have wide-range destructive spells. However, the reinforcements, while only being 150 starships, included over 30 of them that were mothership-class starships comparable to the World-Type Mothership. These ships were, if anything, sturdy.
So, the strength of this group was greater than that of the Vanguard she had previously fought against.
Now, Liu Shu should've been able to easily deal with them because she was not holding back like she was when fighting the Vanguard of Rhazor's army. However, her summons and Warlya were not with her.
The destructive power of her summons was far above her own, which caused that, even when using her
'If I had a little over three hours instead of one… If the space battlefield was not that big…'
Liu Shu lamented, feeling that it was a shame she would not manage to kill everyone on this side of the battlefield. Thankfully, when she checked the other two battlefields, things were going smoothly.
On the main battlefield, the ants and Golden Sap Empire had basically stopped losing people as they slaughtered the other party and took over their starships.
In Ceperet, the group of assassins proved to be much tougher than Liu Shu had expected. Regardless, their numbers had been too spread out and targeted by too many powerful creatures.
Not to mention, Skyflower, Azure Rose, and Celestial Lotus, the rest of the Life Trees and World Trees were basically out for blood. Moreover, Ignatia had left behind some of the Level 140 and below ants to keep the population in check while the main force was away.
It proved to be an extremely good choice because, when people learned that they were being attacked, some with more outer space knowledge began panicking. Explorers, who were usually not part of the government's army, wanted to take their starships and leave.
Sadly for them, Liu Shu's orders, to not cause accidents, were that no one was to leave the planet. Hence, these explorers were heavily warned and circled by tens of thousands of ants.
'While it has caused a large amount of dissatisfaction, it doesn't matter. I just had to strip away the buffs with my subconscious of anyone who used their skills during wartime outside the
Moreover, the fact that she had begun to divide her mental capacity to think about these things showed how much control she currently had over the situation.
As she was wondering how to stop the starships and army from leaving her domain to annihilate them all, one of her "feeler-like" roots she had placed for advanced spotting noticed something speeding in her direction.
'A starship? Where did it appear from?'
Looking over, the starship was a Level 180 phantom-type starship. It was only 300 meters long, which, compared to the battleships and motherships, could be taken as a personal ship.
Liu Shu heard an elegant and stern female voice come out from it. "World Tree, we are here to help you. Do not stop our advance."
This message made her somewhat confused. 'Help me?'
Pondering for a moment, Liu Shu decided to ask them. "May I ask who you are? Can you prove that you are the enemy of my enemy? I am currently in a delicate situation that doesn't allow me to make mistakes."
Liu Shu's voice was gentle and rich, sounding incredibly pleasant to the ears. It was as if a motherly goddess of nature was speaking with a smile in her voice.
However, after she spoke, Liu Shu received no answer, which made her caution flare up, and her gaze toward the starship grew incredibly cold. 'Were they just testing their luck? Since you are not a friend, I'll wait until you enter my domain and deal with you.'
This silence that caused the misunderstanding was because, when Liu Shu spoke, the two Sylvans inside the starship felt as if their hearts had suddenly been struck.
A pleasant chill went up both of their spines, and even Seraphina, who rarely made expressions other than her heroic and serious ones, opened her silvery eyes a touch wider. Meanwhile, Obsidianis had begun blushing.
'Holy branches… what kind of voice is this? A siren's voice? It's the most beautiful sound I've ever heard… The owner must be incredibly beautiful, right?'
Seraphina blinked, her heart thumping a touch quicker. 'Such melodious tone… It's as if she is nature itself. Such a being must be incredibly merciful… but even if she isn't, I should be a bit lenient, right?'
Two thoughts these two had never even fathomed bloomed in their heads as they were struck speechless. Suddenly, Obsidianis reacted, speaking anxiously. "Serpahina! Don't stay silent! Won't that beau— AHEM. Won't that gentle World Tree misunderstand us otherwise?"
Seraphina snapped out of the wonderful feeling that, for now, had only caressed her heart in the passing, and her eyes became panicky. If anyone were to see these two reacting like this, they would've probably believed they were stuck in some kind of illusion or drugged into a strange dream.
"L-Lady World Tree, we are from the Covenant! Our names are quite well-known over there, so if you speak of them, the covenant people in your domain should be able to tell you. We are named Seraphina and Obsidianis."
While they were currently quite displeased with the Covenant, they still hoped not to be on bad terms with it. After all, it was the place where they grew up.
Obsidianis suddenly recalled that her mother had been sent as an envoy to this place. 'She should've left already. However, if she had been here, my name might ring a bell in this World Tree's mind…' She blinked and felt a bit nervous. 'I hope mom didn't say anything strange to her.'
Meanwhile, Liu Shu paused. 'Obsidianis? Wasn't this Veyra's child's name? Also, Seraphina… I think Elyne mentioned her in the past one or twice as an incredibly talented Sylvan.'
"Obsidianis… Are you Veyra's child?"
Obsidianis's abyss-like eyes lit up, making them gleam like black pearls. She approached the voice transmitter and spoke with a stutter she didn't notice. "T-That's right! We are allies! I promise we are here to help you! Moreover, we are quite strong, both of us being over Level 200!"
Liu Shu's heart shook. 'Over Level 200?' Her face became incredibly conflicted. 'I already had tons of trouble dealing with Rhazor, now another two have appeared? What if they are enemies?'
Still, for some reason, Liu Shu didn't have a bad opinion of these two. Hearing their voice, she felt as if these were trustworthy to an extent. 'What a strange feeling…'
She admitted that this feeling of inexplicable trust was too odd. Still, she didn't linger on it much.
What she didn't know was that, the moment she became aware of the existence of Obsidianis and Seraphina and heard their voices, the
Suddenly, Liu Shu thought of a very good method to prove if they were on her side. She measured her tone and spoke with them.
"Currently, I am chasing down the reinforcements from the Nexus. They are going to escape my domain in about ten minutes. Since you say that you've come to help, can you help me deal with those that manage to slip past my net? I'll guide you to the location."
When Seraphina and Obsidianis heard about these reinforcements, a feeling of utter disgust and anger bloomed within their hearts. 'How dare these lowlifes attack this incredibly beautiful and gentle World Tree!?'
Seraphina spoke without a single shred of hesitation. "Of course. Guide us, and we'll deal with them."
Obsidianis added coldly, her eyes swirling like two abyssal whirlpools. "We'll leave none alive."
The answers somewhat surprised Liu Shu. Still, she accepted them and guided them outside her domain, but on the path of escape. 'While I strangely feel that I can trust them, I must be careful. They might have some charm-type skill or something… although it's very unlikely.'
Liu Shu blinked, curious. 'Why am I so reluctant to feel that they are deceiving me?'
Her mind was not as simple as when she first met Harmonixia, Tempestria, Cinderielle, and Verdantia. So, these unknown feelings that seemed to come from the deepest part of her being felt… strange.
BOOM!
Liu Shu refocused and saw that one of her thickest roots had been blown apart by the cannons of two motherships. The large army had been greatly reduced, yet those remaining were the strongest and most resilient.
Of all the starships, only 14 motherships and 4 battleships remained. The numbers that previously reached over 1.5 million had been sliced down to around 400,000.
"
In the battlefield, one of the generals felt the Aether mana churn violently, and he shouted with bloodshot eyes. "DEFENSE UP! WE ARE ALMOST OUT!"
WHOOSH!
A white fire engulfed the world, several debuffs attaching onto them like a plague as everything burned and froze at the same time. The massive roots that broke from the deep dimension as the army advanced swung down like world pillars.
The remaining 14 motherships carrying the leaders trembled, their shields almost depleted. Suddenly, one of the only four remaining battleships moved in the way of a mothership to protect it.
BANG!
The root tore through the shield and struck the hull, denting it inward like a tin can being stepped on. Then, a root lance manifested from the void, speeding with blurring acceleration until it impaled the whole ship.
BOOM!
The warship exploded, countless messages of death dinging in Liu Shu's system as Experience Points flowed into her.
The battle continued, and finally, the ships managed to escape Liu Shu's domain.
Seeing the massive roots weave behind them, wanting to reach out but unable to, the army fell into a tense silence. They wanted to be 100% sure that they had survived this.
After four minutes without being attacked, all of them cheered and began crying in relief. They hugged each other and fell back onto their seats.
"I—I thought I wouldn't make it… Hic."
"That was terrifying. How could a single being have such strength without reaching the
"We escaped. We escaped. We escaped…"
One of the leaders, feeling his tense nerves relax, felt a surge of anger and shame. "That annoying World Tree! I won't forgive it! Ever! Even if I have to exhaust my connections, I'll make sure it disappears!"
As he spoke, two lights bloomed in their path.
One was like the light of dawn. A white, gentle light that enveloped the world like the mantle of a pure goddess.
The other was the opposite, darkness deeper than even the void itself. It was like a maw ready to swallow the stars of the cosmos.
Then, from these two opposite, yet inexplicably complementary lights, countless creatures manifested.
Two massive armies of tens of thousands, formed by beast-like, dark plant monsters, and knight-like, light plant humanoids, barred their way.
At the very front of these two armies, two Sylvans with horrifying energies swirling around them like world storms stood near each other, their faces terrifyingly cold.
Seraphina spoke, her voice booming in the void. "Today, you'll be judged. Your sin: attacking a World Tree. Your sentence…"
Obsidianis grinned maliciously. "...It's Death."