Chapter 141: Before Absolute Power, All Petty Tricks Are Illusions

The hellhounds’ ambush was both a success and a failure; they successfully breached the front line, killing an elven archer and an elven mage in a very short time, before the quick-thinking Little Weir directly slammed down two giant treants to block them.

The Demon-masked Youth didn’t miss this opportunity, immediately launching a continuous, overwhelming wave of attacks. The thirty paths were instantly filled with skeletons and zombies. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to deploy more powerful forces; it was just that the Skeleton Knights and Zombie Kings already possessed considerable intelligence and were unwilling to act as cannon fodder, especially after witnessing those strange attack methods.

“Select Beast Phantasm, type: Demonic Serpent Swarm, quantity: fifteen, deploy!” This time, the Beast Phantasm failed to penetrate the enemy’s defenses, eventually running out of energy and disappearing halfway.

The Demon-masked Youth’s eyes lit up. So that’s it! This function wasn’t a law-based attack, but an energy attack, with a limited overall attack strength.

“Deploy more zombies, concentrated on the leftmost and rightmost bottom lines.” The Demon-masked Youth gathered the zombies together, with skeleton archers interspersed among the waves of zombies.

“Select Beast Phantasm, type: Demonic Serpent Swarm, quantity: eleven, deploy!”

“Select Beast Phantasm, type: Demonic Ox Charge, quantity: four, deploy!”

“Witchcraft Bomb, select Witchcraft: Swamp Spell, quantity: twenty-eight, deploy!”

“Witchcraft Bomb, select Witchcraft: Exploding Fireball, quantity: twenty-eight, deploy!”

Little Weir felt like he was playing Whac-A-Mole, except these “moles” were a bit scary. As he used them more, Little Weir became more familiar with the defense of these skeletons and zombies, and the power of these “props.” Beast Phantasms could only move in a straight line, making them good for clearing a path, but whether they could clear a path depended on the type of beast and the number and type of enemies on that path. The most fragile were the skeleton archers, followed by the shield skeletons, and the toughest were the zombies, which were thick-skinned and durable. Witchcraft Bombs were excellent for targeted area attacks, but their types were limited, including both restrictive and offensive spells, but none for defense.

“Witchcraft Bomb, select Witchcraft: Thorn Thicket, quantity: fifteen, deploy!”

“Witchcraft Bomb, select Witchcraft: Swamp Spell, quantity: thirty, deploy!”

“Witchcraft Bomb, select Witchcraft: Undying Netherflame, quantity: thirty, deploy!”

Little Weir discovered that while there were no purely defensive witchcraft spells, there were trap-type ones, and also witchcraft spells that persisted as long as they weren’t consumed. As long as these good things were lined up, there was no way to get around them. This wasn’t a real game, after all; skeletons and zombies basically had no intelligence, but the person commanding them did. So, after setting traps, Little Weir continuously checked for gaps and filled in any trampled witchcraft traps, occasionally launching a Beast Phantasm to clear the field.

Soon, a strange balance formed on the battlefield. Monsters appeared one after another, each wave following a specific pattern, with clear boundaries between subsequent waves, no longer swarming densely all at once. Moreover, the battlefield always formed small, relatively dense areas, yet they weren’t truly dense. The intensity of the attacking enemies exceeded what the elven archers and mages could handle, but not by too much. Using Witchcraft Bombs in areas that weren’t relatively dense felt a bit wasteful, and Beast Phantasms always had energy left over.

This attrition warfare continued for a while. As Little Weir eliminated more enemies, he gained over a dozen more character slots. Elven mages and giant treants were placed alternately, one-to-one, significantly enhancing his attack and defense capabilities. Little Weir also discovered an incredible thing: the ground on the battlefield was indestructible. Although Witchcraft Bombs could temporarily change the terrain, it would instantly revert once the energy was depleted. Was this a bug?

The two hellhounds had long been eliminated. Although a few elven archers and mages were lost, Little Weir quickly replenished them. The slow-moving skeletons and zombies no longer posed much of a threat. The second row of character slots was almost full. Little Weir shamelessly set up a witchcraft trap about a third of the way into the battlefield, near the bell tower. It was impossible to pass without breaking through the thorn thicket. This battlefield also had an anti-air effect, and nothing could enter below ground level.

Gradually, skeletons and zombies stopped entering the field. Instead, they set up a defensive line outside the battlefield, no longer attempting to quickly defeat and kill Little Weir. Instead, they implemented a strategy of surrounding without attacking. Since they wouldn’t enter the battlefield, Little Weir could only watch. Slowly, Little Weir noticed something was amiss. These skeletons and zombies were actually still building defenses; they used wood and stone to construct a simple defensive line. These things weren’t very effective, but they could block out light during the day, allowing them to remain in their preferred darkness, leaving only a two to three-meter-wide passage.

Looking around, skeletons and zombies also occupied all buildings within a few miles in the other directions, their numbers simply too immense. Little Weir wondered if all the skeletons and zombies in the entire city had been summoned here? In fact, he was overthinking it. In just ten days, the Demon-masked Youth hadn’t had time to gather more troops, thinking that what he had was sufficient. Although he had a large surplus, he hadn’t anticipated such a turn of events.

However, the battle once again fell into a stalemate, and both sides entered a brief period of rest. Little Weir also understood his opponent’s plan and couldn’t help but curse his cunning inwardly. Skeletons and zombies were undead creatures that didn’t need to eat. With their vast numbers, trapping him here was no problem at all; they just had to wait for him to run out of supplies, and the victory would naturally be decided. But the Demon Youth, being free, could freely seek supplies and, as the one commanding these monsters, would undoubtedly cut off his supplies. This battle was dangerous for him.

The sound of “clip-clop, clip-clop” rang out. From a distance, Skeleton Knights led the way, accompanied by Zombie Kings on either side, and the Demon Youth, similar in build to himself, walked step by step towards the bell tower, finally stopping outside the battlefield. The fifth floor of the bell tower was wide open, and Little Weir and the Demon Youth made direct eye contact, both carrying a sense of determination and unyielding spirit.

“In a fair duel, you are no match. Even if you resort to some petty tricks, I will not lose!” The Demon Youth’s voice carried from afar. Although they were over two hundred meters apart, his voice clearly reached Little Weir’s ears. The Soul Battlefield’s restriction was to prohibit extraordinary powers, yet this Demon Youth managed to transmit his voice clearly from two hundred meters away without using extraordinary power. Little Weir had vastly underestimated this demon’s strength.

“This is my territory, and I call the shots. When you came uninvited, you should have realized this couldn’t be a fair duel.” Little Weir didn’t waver in the slightest because of his advantage, but rather felt doubly secure because of his powerful backing.

“Yes, I should have realized this couldn’t be a fair duel long ago.” The Demon-masked Youth cursed inwardly. When had he ever been treated like this? He was known for manipulating souls, and this was the first time he had been forced to fight on the defensive in a soul battlefield. In the past, when invading others’ souls, he always held the initiative; in other words, he was still in charge even on someone else’s turf. Who would have thought his luck would be so terrible this time, encountering a lucky kid protected by a true powerhouse, not only fighting on the defensive but also having to endure various biased calls and cheats.

“So, how confident are you of winning? In the face of absolute power, all petty tricks are illusory.” The Demon-masked Youth pointed casually, and five Skeleton Knights lined up, with two Zombie Kings also stepping forward, each letting out a roar that echoed far and wide. Countless skeletons and zombies then emerged, dense and innumerable.

“While I don’t know how you did it, as long as I don’t leave here, I’m absolutely safe.” Little Weir shrugged indifferently, “As you said, in the face of absolute power, all petty tricks are illusory. I don’t have an absolute advantage against you, but against certain great figures, you are also just an ant. If you have the guts, come and attack. I’m waiting for you!”

A dignified demon, on the verge of advancing to a High-ranking Demon, being called an ant? Could he tolerate this? Even if he was just a sliver of a soul, it still represented the demon’s honor!

“I’ll give you a fair and absolute chance: a sword duel, you and I!” The Demon-masked Youth swung his runic longsword, pointing it directly at Little Weir.