In the distant sky, lightning flashed while black mist swirled around, radiating a dark glow.
Terrifying blasts boomed across the battlefield, and the suffocating pressure rolled forward, sweeping everything in its path.
Rayden, who excelled at aerial combat, suddenly didn't dare to fly too high.
Even staying close to the ground felt dangerous. Hovering over his own army in low airspace, Thunderhawk Rayden assisted Lilith and Lysinthia in taking down enemies who had broken into the inner circle.
His eagle-like screeches seemed so thin against the endless clamor of battle.
"Prophet, don't break formation!"
Lilith used her mind-voice to pull Onyx, Thundar, and the others out of their slaughter-fueled trance.
Riding powerful mounts, they had far more mobility and attack power than most—already drifting away from their defensive line.
Why? Because everyone on the battlefield had gone berserk.
Worse, some night elf spellcasters were casting illusions, dragging countless warriors into a killing frenzy where they lost themselves.
Onyx and Thundar halted in time. Gazing at the front lines, where the fighting had turned into a grisly meat grinder, their hearts couldn't help but quake.
"Thanks..."
"…"
All the Stoneheart Horde fighters regrouped and returned to their defensive positions, re-forming their ranks carefully.
"Slagor, Lysinthia, protect the succubi!"
"All succubi, chant the Illusion-Breaking Spell with me! We've gotta stave off their illusions!"
Following Lilith's command, Slagor and Lysinthia led a squad to her side, shielding Lilith and her succubus bloodline warriors.
At the same time, a blood-red chain shot out from Earthshaker's body, linking every Alpha-level champion of the Stoneheart Horde together. It was Blood Sharing, an ability Earthshaker had inherited from the Heroic Altar!
As he grew more familiar with Blood Sharing, he'd gone from being able to link only one person to linking up to ten.
"This place is crawling with deadly threats—everyone, stay sharp!"
Even as he rejoined the team, Onyx still felt his heart pounding.
He'd thought his mind was tough enough, but he was shocked to see how the bloodlust of this battlefield had almost gotten to him.
"The prophet's right—this place is weird. Too many races, and all kinds of bizarre powers. If we let our guard down for even a second, we'll get duped. Keep your eyes peeled."
Thundar completely agreed. Moments earlier, he and Onyx had charged too far ahead, fueled by confidence in their mounts. They never expected these Godforsaken Land enemies to pack such a punch.
"Stick together and watch each other's backs. Yes, they're mostly allies all around us, but some abilities don't distinguish friend from foe!"
Slagor chimed in. He was one of the few who stayed levelheaded, mostly because he'd lingered near Lilith.
He figured Orion must've left some will projection on Lilith, along with a few life-saving tricks. So, being eager to survive, Slagor stayed close, hoping to both seek shelter and earn Orion's favor by saving the day if needed.
Swish, swish, swish…
All of a sudden, another wave of corrupted humans and goblins charged in, and the atmosphere tensed before fresh shouts and battle cries filled the air.
Up in the sky, the fight among the lords was actually going fairly smoothly—at least, that was Orion's take on things.
Crack!
In Titan Form, Orion effortlessly impaled a human Corruptor with his trident. With a vigorous twist of his right hand, he ripped and destroyed the human lord's heart.
The human Corruptor, already heavily wounded by Rumbold's death ripple, was absolutely no match for Orion's fierce assault and died on the spot.
Orion casually tossed the corrupted Lord's Stone to Rumbold, who caught it without hesitation.
Back in the eastern sector, Orion had picked up three Lord's Stones with Rumbold's help. This was just friends sharing loot, that's all.
"Don't pause here—let's split up and help the other allied lords!"
"We've gotta finish off the remaining lords fast. If we drag this out, the troops we brought won't last much longer!"
Orion felt a jolt. He'd gotten too carried away killing enemies and hadn't been paying attention to the larger battle.
Sensing the flow of combat again, he was stunned.
The three arch lords of Godforsaken Land had joined forces, bringing not only all the warriors under their command but also hordes of corrupted beasts and strange creatures native to Godforsaken Land.
Leonidas, Arthas, and Orion had around two million troops altogether, but under the relentless attacks of goblins, corrupted human fighters, and night elves, their defensive circle was shrinking fast.
"I'll head down and back them up. You go summon more undead!"
Rumbold shook his head at Orion's suggestion.
"Once I start summoning, they'll all swarm me. The summoning array will get interrupted, and I'll be done for." Continue your adventure with
"Even worse, the fight would shift toward our defensive perimeter, which would spell trouble for our ordinary soldiers."
"If we knock out these remaining lords fast, the entire crisis ends."
Orion nodded. After killing that one lord, he and Rumbold parted ways to assist the other nearby allies.
Crack!
Lightning crackled as Orion's trident tore through the air, skewering a night elf right through the chest.
Roar!
Originally, that night elf had been fighting a lion with both water and fire attributes—a member of Leonidas's kin. Opening its jaws wide, the water-fire lion spewed a jet of flame, blasting through the wounded night elf again.
Seizing the moment, Orion unleashed his Eightfold Spear Barrage. Countless blood-red spears rained down on the night elf lord for three full minutes before finally putting the enemy down for good.
At last, a Lord's Stone fell into Orion's hand.
"Thanks for the assist!"
The water-fire lion didn't even glance at the Lord's Stone in Orion's hand; it just tore off to help its own race.
Orion tucked the Lord's Stone away. He was about to help other allies when he noticed that all the Godforsaken Land lords were being swarmed already.
He took one look at the broader fight and decided not to join another dogpile, transforming into lightning instead and sweeping across the battlefield.
Wherever he streaked by in lightning form, countless goblins, corrupted humans, and night elves crumbled into dust.
Even some Alpha-level chieftans went down in a single blow from him.
Once Titan Form was active, Orion was basically a nightmare for all regular troops—no one came close to matching him.
Not long after that, Orion noticed the bodies of the fallen warriors and beasts slowly standing up, lurching toward the Godforsaken Land side. His eyes drifted toward the rear of the defensive circle.
There, he spotted Rumbold and another undead casting spells together.
They'd already begun summoning the walking dead.