Chapter 1068 1068. Invasion
Noah didn't suffer any injury during the battle, but that didn't mean that he had the upper hand over his enemies.
First Prince had only lost an arm, and Second Princess could suppress her wounds with her mental energy. Instead, Noah had wasted a lot of power, which was a problem that didn't have an immediate solution.
Noah had fought against the defensive formations and the various experts wielding inscribed items. Then the two powerhouses appeared, and he had to resort to even more powerful abilities to win a few exchanges.
Using the movement technique, his spells, and his new slashes stressed his centers of power to no end, but his dantian was the organ that suffered the most from the pace of that battle.
His abilities consumed immense quantities of his darkness since his dantian was still in the fifth rank, and his organ had to endure that fast depletion while he continued to fight.
A dantian in the fifth rank would typically fall apart during a battle at that level. Noah's organ could endure the various shockwaves and fast depletion due to his body, but it became sore nonetheless after being put under such heavy pressure.
Noah could keep up for some more time, but he had no confidence in killing his opponents. The formations on the ground had almost completely reformed too, so he didn't see much hope.
'I need more time,' Noah thought as he stared at the two Royals immersed in the flames released by Second Princess.
The environment was full of primary energy, but his spells couldn't pierce their defensive items. Snore was out of feathers, and its attacks didn't meet the standards for a battle on that level.
Only his physical strength and slashes were adequate, but the Demonic Sword would reach its limits soon. His flames could only support him, and the Demonic Form was too easy to counter for his enemies.
Noah's expression didn't reveal anything, but he had accepted that his only option in that situation was to retreat.
'How much longer?' Noah wondered as he pretended to study his opponents. He knew that the Royals would wait for the formations to reform before resuming their offensive, but he didn't have anything else to launch at them.
June's last words began to resound in his mind. His unwillingness reached its peak as the idea of leaving became more intense inside him.
Every fiber of his existence raged at the thought of leaving her. Still, remaining there would lead to his death. The invasion would become a suicide mission if he allowed his enemies to corner him.
Minutes of silence passed, with the Royals and Noah staring at each other. Second Princess even tested his reactions by drinking a few potions that healed her skin, but Noah didn't react at that sight.
Doubt formed inside the Royals' mind. They believed that Noah had hidden intentions, but they couldn't figure them out.
They respected their opponent too much to think that he had invaded the Royal Academy unprepared. Yet, they couldn't explain why he was purposely giving them time to recover.
Still, the Royals didn't act for fear of an eventual trap. Their respect for Noah was too great for them to think that he was buying time.
The defensive formations eventually reformed, and the Royals exchanged a few glances before preparing massive spells. Both Second Princess and First Prince cut off long strands of their hair to give birth to six fiery snakes coiled around their figures.
Blood came out of their wrists, and a series of humanoid giants made of fire appeared in front of them. The duo even plucked some of their fingernails to create long spears that pointed their fiery tips at Noah.
The Royals had prepared their best offensive, and the defensive formations on the ground started to shine to announce their support to their owners. Noah saw an entire city and two powerhouses pointing all their firepower toward him.
Noah didn't even need to rely on his mind's enhanced capabilities to understand that he wouldn't be able to block the next attack. He would probably survive in a badly injured state, but his best option remained to retreat.
His instincts fought inside him. His unwillingness to leave June and his desire to survive struggled to win Noah's mind over, but he remained calm.
Nothing could touch him when he relied on his movement techniques, especially if he flew upward, outside of the Royal Academy's range. He could escape easily, so he had no reason to panic.
As the Royals showed signs of impatience, Noah felt forced to act. He broke the silence to ask questions that could buy him even more time. "How did you reach the sixth rank? You are a copy of King Elbas' individuality in the end."
June had told him that the restricted areas of the Academy worked differently from the structures on the surface. They answered to different defensive layouts, which were mostly automatic.
That gave her an advantage if her accomplice on the outside attracted enough attention. The forces of the Elbas family would take longer to notice her if Noah triggered every defense on the surface.
The reward from Shandal's separate dimension had taught her method to hide her presence in front of formations, but that was only a temporary measure. The defenses of the restricted areas would notice her during the second or third scan of the environment.
Noah felt confident that she was safe. His only problem was how long she needed to get her hands on her drug.
"Did you just realize how wrong your actions were?" First Prince shouted, and his laugh echoed in the battlefield.
Second Princess still had some doubts, but she joined her brother in his laugh when she saw that Noah continued to wait for an answer. She began to think that her opponent had overestimated himself after the events in the other world.
"King Elbas' ways are mysterious and profound," Second Princess said, and her tone expressed all the reverence that she had for her father. "You can't apply normal standards to him nor his family. You know only one aspect of the cultivation-."
Second Princess interrupted her phrase since she saw Noah losing focus on their conversation and looking at some point in the distance. She didn't understand what had changed until her inscribed notebook sent a mental message describing the other regions' situation.
Countless reports appeared in her mind and described how a full-scale invasion had started. The alliance was fighting on the borders of the Elbas family's domain, taking one peripheral region after another.
Then, First Prince whispered something in her ear. Something had disappeared from a restricted area, and the formations had noticed that only now.
Anger surged inside her when she understood that Noah had acted as a distraction, but she couldn't vent her feeling since she only saw a human-shaped crack when she glanced toward her opponent.