Evolution Begins with Elemental Domination

A corner of the battlefield.

The Nightmare Soul Dog moved like a phantom. As black mist churned around it, four Phantom Clones split off from its body.

With its Shadow Summoning Rune effectively at Lv. 9, all of its skills had received a massive boost. The number of Phantom Clones alone had increased to four, and they all shared the Stealth Skill and Soul-Splitting Claw abilities.

SHING!

Its pairs of retractable Dark Gold Arc Blades sliced through the Ghouls’ rotting flesh as if it were cake—an unbelievably smooth cut.

A formation of skeleton archers was then ambushed by Xiaoye’s real body. It activated Phantom Fissure Assault, instantly splitting into seven phantoms. Each was wreathed in thick shadows, recklessly piercing through rifts in reality as they charged into the enemy’s ranks.

After a flurry of crisscrossing attacks, the numerous blades and thrusts made short work of them, completely annihilating the horde of skeleton archers that had been attacking the top of the wall.

”Killing these Dark Undead Monsters doesn’t generate any contribution points,” Yan Ruoruo reported to Su Chen on the front lines.

After personally killing two skeletal ghouls, she had returned to the mission hall to check, only to find that her contribution points hadn’t increased.

”It doesn’t matter.”

Su Chen stretched out his right hand, and an invisible force surged forth like a tide.

A hundred meters ahead, in a patch of scorched forest, runes began to float up from the strewn corpses and dried pools of blood.

Guided by his Telekinesis, which had split into dozens of strands, the runes converged like rivers flowing to the sea. They whistled through the air before disappearing into his backpack.

This move alone was a testament to his skill; it was far more than simple Lv. 8 Telekinesis. His high Spirit and Perception Attribute were providing a significant boost as well.

”The Rune Essence is tangible.”

As number one on the contribution leaderboard, he couldn’t care less about not getting any contribution points.

In other words, ’if that group on the other side, the ones who tore open the planar passage between reality and the Netherworld, fail to destroy this city, they’ll basically be handing out freebies to everyone here.’

Of course, this heaven-sent gift wasn’t going to be easy to unwrap.

For one, on a distant section of the wall, another Death Knight mounted on a Nightmare Warhorse was trying to break through.

This creature’s power was even more terrifying and tyrannical than a regional lord’s.

The last Death Knight had taken three of Su Chen’s full-power Divine Sword Radiances head-on before it was finally cut down.

And there wasn’t just one or two of these monsters.

Looking out, he could see at least five giant figures advancing on the city.

But thanks to the ever-increasing number of people arriving at the Rune Core, the situation had yet to collapse. Even the sections of the wall that had once been lost were now crowded with defenders.

’Here it comes.’

Su Chen glanced at the power building in the distance.

On a high platform on the eastern wall, a tactical squad—composed of ten top-tier Fire Element Warlocks and ten Wind Element Mages—began to unleash their power in unison.

WHOOSH!

A Lv. 7 Hurricane Skill and a Burning Skill erupted simultaneously.

The violent air currents instantly formed a massive whirlwind, and the crimson flames cast by the Warlocks were precisely channeled into the eye of the storm.

Under the effect of the magical resonance...

The wind fed the fire, and the fire rode the wind. The moment they merged, a firestorm of astonishing scale took shape. A Death Knight at the front bore the brunt of the attack; its shield instantly shattered, its armor melted, and it was incinerated into nothing but a charred skeleton.

The firestorm raged on, sweeping across several hundred meters. It incinerated all the dark monsters in its path and cleared a blazing, empty zone on the front line.

Such terrifying power not only drained the Rune Energy of the top-tier Wind and Fire Mages but also left many of them mentally exhausted, causing them to collapse to the ground.

”You just handed them another Soul Core. We can only pray that firestorm destroyed as many High-Level Runes as possible. Otherwise, do you all understand the consequences of failure?”

Far away, in Oran City, a group of Demon Warlocks and over a dozen superpowers were observing the battle.

”Is the pact you made with the Demons really reliable? You’re not going to be played for fools again, are you?” the Secret Art Bishop asked, his face a mask of displeasure.

The core executives of the various conglomerates didn’t dwell on the issue.

”In less than twenty minutes, we’ve already forced two of Dongfu City’s top magic squads to go all out. For the next three to four hours, they won’t be able to unleash that kind of astonishing destructive power again.”

A young man in a crisp suit said with an imposing air, ”If we actually lose this siege, then don’t blame us for calling you out on dragging your feet.”

His words were far from polite.

But those in the know understood that this youth, who looked to be eighteen, was effectively the head of the Lorentz Clan. Just six days ago, he had been a white-haired man of seventy; now, he had reversed his aging and regained his youth.

”To set an example, we will lead the main assault for the next hour. Of course, if the rest of you want to miss out on contribution points, you’re welcome to just wait on the sidelines,” Matel Lorenz said.

The four allied ruling powers each had their own agenda. Seeing that the enemy was a tough nut to crack, they all wanted to secretly preserve their strength.

Theoretically, losing this battle didn’t matter. There was no penalty for the Olan People; the other side would merely rebuild their crystal prism tower and unlock four rune buildings at once.

This was why they had been so eager to reach a peace agreement after accumulating a lead in contribution points on the first day.

But after their major defeat on the second day, the rankings of the top fifty on the contribution leaderboard had changed dramatically, forcing the superpowers to cooperate.

「And at that moment.」

A huge opportunity presented itself.

The Desert Beast Master, Wyatt, sent a message.

”The guy in first place has appeared at Dongfu City’s Rune Core. I smelled his scent from a mile away. Just as I thought, he’s helping defend the city.”

”If we kill him, first place will be ours again.”