Chapter 2098: Assault
'A tree?' Noah wondered. He had destroyed something similar with King Elbas, but he didn't know whether the two shared some connection.
"We have to get the rest of our pack first," The time dragons stated, and its companions gathered around it.
The space dragon and the time dragon released their auras and locked the environment into a technique that teleported everyone away. The scenery in Noah's vision changed in less than a second. A grey spectacle unfolded in his eyes, and a series of roars quickly reached his ears.
The area featured a series of tunnels and caves dug directly into the weak sky. Still, the fabric of the environment had gone through a transformation that had forced Heaven and Earth's influence out. The dragons that filled the lair had tainted their surroundings with a power that canceled the rulers' aura.
The time dragon roared, and the dragons in the caves came out to gather in front of their leaders. Hundreds of specimens in the divine ranks destroyed their own lair to create enough room for their assembly. It didn't take long before an army took form and waited for the upper tier creatures' orders.
The space dragons made a speech through roars that June couldn't understand. Its cries didn't carry any human meaning. They expressed battle intent and a deep desire to fight against Heaven and Earth.
The other dragons echoed those roars once the speech was over, and the space-time array in the area froze as the two upper tier specimens activated their joint ability. The scenery transformed again, and Noah could soon see the real sky expanding in his view.
The area was devoid of the weak sky, but Noah could quickly find the reason behind that strange feature. Giant roots came out of the real sky and absorbed the energy from the environment. The base of a grey trunk was also vaguely visible on the other side of the white layer.
'No wonder the dragons thought that this magical plant went against Heaven and Earth,' Noah commented in his mind as he studied the tree. 'This thing is piercing the sky to grow.'
The tree was immense, but most of its body was inside the sky. Only its roots spread inside the higher plane, and the faint silhouette of its giant trunk vanished inside the whiteness. As for its crown, Noah couldn't even search for it from his position.
His hunger intensified on its own in front of that scene. Noah could sense the immense amount of energy contained inside the tree. Multiple pulling forces came out from each root and threatened to shatter the fabric of space as they slowly stretched deeper into the higher plain. The plant was still growing, and the world was suffering due to its aggressive search for nutrients.
"How long did it take to make you go crazy?" Noah asked while turning toward the death dragon.
"I ate a whole root," The death dragon explained through roars, "But I bet that a single bite has enough power to infect you."
"We destroy the tree then," Noah stated.
"Of course," The death dragon grinned. "Yet, we'll take it out first."
"Do you plan on digging the sky?" Noah asked while showing his palm and releasing a special dark matter that resembled the dark metal.
The death dragon scoffed before turning toward its companions. The space and time dragons had already closed their eyes, and their auras were expanding in the environment. Their influence stopped right before the sky, but it still enveloped all the roots inside the higher plane.
Then, something suddenly changed. The roots disappeared, revealing a giant hole inside the very fabric of the sky. A proper tunnel had taken form after the tree vanished, but a threatening aura quickly spread in the area and claimed everyone's attention.
Noah, June, and the dragons glanced under them. The tree had reappeared far away, at the empty area's edges, and its roots had already stretched toward the weak sky. However, its grey leaves darkened while covering the entire plant with a deadly aura that managed to alert everyone's survival instincts.
The tree was a magical plant in the upper tier. Its power was immense, and its might seemed to be on par with the leaders of the dragon species. Noah even believed that it surpassed their pressure at times.
Noah promptly wielded his swords, and similar scenes appeared among the army. Everyone prepared for the imminent clash, but they waited for the space dragon to give the order.
The tree's crown expanded as the plant stretched its branches in the area. The grey leaves also grew and began to release a dark aura. The entity appeared as a natural enemy of Heaven and Earth, but something in its influence made Noah angry. He couldn't find the exact reason behind that reaction, but he could sense that his feelings came from his hatred of the rulers.
Each leaf began to radiate a pulling force that fused with the similar abilities expressed by the branches and roots. The fabric of space began to shatter as the tree started to absorb energy from its surroundings. The weak sky didn't last long, and the same went for the whiteness around it.
"The rank 7 specimens must remain behind," Noah ordered through a growl. "The same goes for those under the upper tier of the eighth rank."
The four leaders didn't mind that Noah had taken the liberty of giving orders, and the same went for their underlings. The weaker dragons accepted his authority and retreated as flames gathered in their mouths. They wouldn't shoot forward, but they would still support their companions from a distance.
The pulling forces were too strong for the weaker dragons. The tree would drain them alive in a matter of seconds, and even Noah didn't feel safe advancing without adding a layer of protection around his figure. His fiendish armor appeared, and his gaze soon fell on June.
"Do you want the armor?" Noah asked.
"Don't insult me," June grinned. "I want to see if it can absorb everything I have."
Noah laughed and turned back toward the tree. His ambition started to empower everything he had as the unstable substance filled his insides. He reached his peak in an instant, and the same went for his companions.
Then, the time dragon voiced a loud roar, and the assault team shot forward. The dragons that had decided to remain behind launched pillars of flames that fused into a multicolored attack. The environment took fire as the many innate abilities slammed on the multiple pulling forces and tried to make their way toward the tree.
The flames never managed to touch the tree. Even the leaves escaped that fiery sea due to the many pulling forces around the plant. The attacks transformed into rivers that flowed left and right as different powers tried to absorb them.
The space dragon roared when the main group was about to reach the fiery rivers. The pulling forces suddenly vanished and let the flames slam on the tree. Noah and the others could also approach the giant magical plant without crossing their allies' attacks, and a series of techniques quickly came out of their figures.
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Author's notes: My mind has been in a bad spot in the past days. I'm better now. Thank you for your patience.
I will write another chapter for Demonic Sword before moving to Chaos and starting the schedule again.