The light from Solar Butterfly Wing radiated across the battlefield, drawing long shadows under everything's feet, while those inside Mist Shroud Battlefield remained unaffected. The two spells were designed to complement one another, one offense and one defense. Shadowy spikes then appeared and attacked everything in the vicinity. No matter if it was living or unliving, nothing was spared. Immediately, trees, rocks, and even small animals were pierced by thin spikes. The penetrating power was unexpectedly great! Naturally, their enemies were besieged by the same attack; however, the danger it posed to Perception Realms was greatly diminished. Using their Martial Perceptions, the spell could barely graze their coattails… A spell produced by the most powerful Ten Dawn was actually useless! This was expected though, given the severity of her injuries. To cast anything at all was a miracle in and of itself, not to mention a spell of this scale. She smirked, despite the blood trickling down her mouth. Her spell had become an excellent distraction. Looking beside her, Ten Dawn Iris, Runenda, and Lorth were preparing their spells. Once Solar Butterfly Wing and Mist Shroud Battlefield ended, they would deliver a decisive blow!
It was good in theory. One spell kept them hidden, and another kept their enemies distracted. That way, the Ten Dawns could cast their spells without distraction, except… Sir Winstin frowned. The Ten Dawns seemed to be severely underestimating the power of a Perception Realm. For people at his level, or close to it, this level of deception was almost child's play. And as expected, Sentinel Kong and Sentinel Mao charged over, along with Lord Xu, Little Sword, the Tiuxan couple, the bald man, and the three assassins. The combined killing intent of these ten Perception Realms was enormous, thoroughly suppressing everyone! Although Mist Shroud Battlefield kept them hidden, a Martial Perception could pierce through the veil and see everything inside. Ten Dawn Yvonne's Solar Butterfly Wing was also equally ineffective in distracting people of their level. There was no way their enemies could miss the grand Magic Auras!
With a shout, Sentinel Kong ordered the soldiers to unleash their flying strikes. Dozens of strikes ensued, slamming into Ten Dawn Rosemary's spell. The woman gritted her teeth and poured even more Magic Energy into Mist Shroud Battlefield, and in response, thousands of plants, formed of water, began to 'catch' the attacks. As the two sides clashed, countless shockwaves were felt. It drew a beautiful, yet terrifying display of supernatural power! The Ten Dawn paled. With every attack, she could feel the Magic Energy in her Core dropping. It felt like a blade closing around her neck. The pressure was unfathomable! Cracks began to form, which allowed Sentinel Kong and the others to slip through.
Lord Xu wielded his famous Noble Grade daggers again. Despite frequently using them, he would always remember where they landed, so he could retrieve them. His diligence and dedication were some of his scariest traits. After all, it led to capturing General Christina, and almost hounding Benedict and Shirley to their graves! However, he was feeling quite angry. His martial technique, Three-Step Kill, was supposed to be his strongest technique, something to be used against Perception Realm Masters like Sir Winstin, except he failed to kill Benedict or Shirley, two mere bugs in his eyes. The humiliation made his face red-hot. He wanted to redeem himself here. Holding all seven of his daggers, he threw them all at Ten Dawn Rosemary. He would guarantee her death, no matter what!
Sensing the danger, the woman tried to stop the daggers with her spell, yet… she was clearly too injured and her Mist Shroud Battlefield suffered as a result. Furthermore, these were Noble Grade daggers. They were far superior to any ordinary weapon. Whoosh! They cut through her spell effortlessly! The two Royal Guards, Sir Alexander and Lady Ellie, immediately rushed up to protect her with their sword and shield. They dared not underestimate this attack. To have the protection of two Royal Guards was considered untouchable! At least, that was what they thought… Sir Winstin screamed something, but they could not hear it. Everything happened too fast. The daggers, which should have been stopped by Sir Alexander's shield, seemed to slip through like water. There was almost no resistance! The Royal Guards realized their mistake too late. Blood spurted, as twenty-one clean holes appeared. Sir Alexander, Lady Ellie, and Ten Dawn Rosemary died instantly!
Boom! Mist Shroud Battlefield violently collapsed following her death, revealing everyone's figure again. Ten Dawn Yvonne was then forced to dismantle her Solar Butterfly Wing to prevent any collateral damage. Sir Winstin clashed with Sentinel Kong, Lord Xu, and the Tiuxan couple a second time. He wanted to curse. The Royal Guards had seen how he had blocked one of the daggers earlier, so they thought they could do the same. They thought wrong. He did not actually 'block' the dagger. Rather, at the moment of impact, he realized that was impossible. It would pierce through his glaive and body, much like how it did with Sir Alexander's shield. It was unusually sharp. Therefore, he quickly angled his glaive to redirect the dagger up and away from his body. That was the sole way to survive! To not only recognize this, but also execute it, in the blink of an eye… It proved how superior he was compared to the other Royal Guards. He was truly a league above them! If he had both of his arms and retained his peak strength before the Battle of Liguang, things would be much more balanced. Alas…
The two Royal Guards and Ten Dawn Rosemary were the first to fall. As soon as Mist Shroud Battlefield collapsed and Solar Butterfly Wing ended, Sentinel Mao, Little Sword, the bald man, and the three assassins charged through. Although Freon panicked and poured more energy into his Three-Pointed Barrier, it was not enough. One slash and it shattered! It was never meant to last. Sentinel Mao and Little Sword crossed paths, as their sabre and sword light trailed behind them. Ten Dawn Iris screamed out of fear. She was young, and at the prime of her life. She could do so much more! She wanted to… Sadly, her thoughts were cut short when her head flew. Her opponents gave no mercy.
This brutal scene caused Ten Dawn Lorth to break down. He had always been a secret admirer of Ten Dawn Iris. He had been planning to confess his feelings after this war was over and envisioned all sorts of ways to do it. He could almost imagine their future together… that is until he saw her horror-stricken face fly through the air. His jaw dropped, his body froze, and his mind blanked out. He could not understand what just happened. No, he could not accept it. He refused to accept it! He unleashed a deep, visceral roar, as if to defy the world itself, and pointed his wand forward. Ten Dawn Yvonne and Runenda shouted since this spell should never be used at close range! He did not care though. The only thing he wanted was to see Sentinel Mao and Little Sword dead! Unleashing every bit of Magic Energy he could muster, the Magic Circles condensed and defined a column of space in front of him. Sentinel Mao and Little Sword sensed the danger and jumped. A split-second later, a grey beam of light shot forth and obliterated everything in its path. The beam barely missed them by a hair but annihilated Ten Dawn Iris's corpse. Blood and limbs were scattered, before incinerating and dispersing under the great power.
It moved as swift as lightning, and given how unexpected it was, a few people could not react in time. Three Grand Knights were maimed, losing their arms or torsos, killing them painfully. Lady Lanfeng of the Fragrant Orchard House was next to die, as was one of the Tiuxan couple. Two more enemy Perception Realms were also caught by the beam and killed. The beam then blasted a hole deep into the earth, shaking the entire mountain. Everyone had to stabilize their footing, as rocks began to tumble. They feared the beginning of a landslide! If that happened, then forget about fighting. Everyone would have to flee for their lives. Thankfully though, after a few tense seconds, nothing else seemed to happen. They somehow managed to avoid disaster. The battle then restarted.