Birth of the Demonic Sword

Securing the help of the rats marked the end of the preparations required before the war. The various organizations had everything they needed now. They only needed to approach the crack in space and take care of the last real opponent on the surface.

Heaven and Earth would have to rely on the troops contained in the cities in the sky at that point, but Noah believed that he would already be in the stormy regions by then. His growth could never slow down, and the areas past the Outer Lands were the only place that could provide suitable benefits.

Troops from the Legion's domain abandoned their task and grouped with the massive army to create an even more threatening force. The number of rank 8 experts amassed into that team was immense, and even space twisted when they moved toward their target.

It seemed that the Immortal Lands struggled to stand such a group of powerful existences. Cracks didn't appear, but it was clear that even the higher plane was reaching its limits.

The ground suffered far more due to the immense power carried by the group. Cracks opened on their own when the group went too close to the surface. The rats were also unable to fly, so their march worsened the situation on the surface.

The army created destruction whenever it passed. It embodied the apex of the human and hybrid organizations that opposed Heaven and Earth as it flew toward opponents that represented the very opposite meaning.

Noah and the various leaders went through various battle plans that involved the different abilities of each expert and species. They knew that they couldn't move the fight into a favorable environment, so they had to make sure that their attacks didn't end up weakening each other.

The army completely lacked harmony. They were nothing more than a group made of different organizations and experts that had ended up grouping against a common enemy.

They didn't have any experience in group fights, especially with those unfamiliar allies. Their different existences and innate abilities could end up weakening each other due to their unsuitable effects, so the group required thorough planning before facing the Crystal City.

Noah even wondered whether the Crystal City knew about their arrival by then. He had done his best to leave Heaven and Earth out of his mental inspection, but they could see the army moving across the various regions.

Noah didn't even know what consequences an eventual warning would cause. The Crystal City could decide to escape from the imminent threat, but it could also request Heaven and Earth's help.

There could be strange and dangerous traps inside that separate dimension. Noah didn't believe that the Crystal City would escape due to the lack of available lands on the higher plane, so he warned his group about the possible dangers that Heaven and Earth could provide.

Noah was an expert of Heaven and Earth by then. His knowledge covered even part of their d.e.s.i.r.es. His ambition had learnt how to destroy their light, so he had understood part of their mindset.

"They will probably use this chance to get rid of us once and for all," Noah explained as the army moved forward. "We'll have to fight inside the separate dimension until we force its edges to shatter. That will be our only weakness, so take care of that issue quickly."

"What if they close a few of you inside the separate dimension?" Dreaming Demon asked. "We should always leave someone who can open a passage outside of it."

Dreaming Demon and many of Noah's friends had decided to join the army and help in the incoming battle. They wouldn't miss the chance to gain battle experience against experts in the eighth rank.

"It won't be a problem as long as they try to isolate me," Noah announced. "Space has become easy to bend. It might even benefit all of us if they try to cage me."

"A tense wall will shatter once a crack appears on its surface," Sword Saint explained. "They will only help you if they try to reinforce the layers among the dimensions."

"Exactly," Noah continued. "They can't stop me anyway. Still, Elbas should always remain outside to make sure that everything moves well."

"What if they use another rank 9 punishment?" King Elbas asked.

"I'm quite certain that they will use it," Noah laughed while spreading his arms. "How can they even hope to oppose us otherwise?"

King Elbas inevitably glanced at the army under him. The sheer number of experts was threatening. They could even aim to clear the entire magical beasts' domain with that army.

"Are you confident in defeating that without me?" King Elbas asked.

"We'll just collapse the separate dimension if we need help," Noah promised. "They can't keep us caged anyway."

His gaze met Sword Saint's long eyebrows. Both of them were ready to create a mess, and the experts behind them even laughed when they heard those words.

Wilfred, Jordan, Divine Demon, and the others couldn't help but express their excitement about the imminent battle. Only Alexander, the Foolery, and a few rank 8 experts had remained in the Legion's domain. Most of the others were inside the army, ready to unleash destruction of the last hindrance on the surface.

The flight proceeded smoothly. No magical beast pack or human force tried to approach the group. No one dared to mess with them, even if their march led them through lands that didn't belong to their domain.

The Crystal City was in a remote region on the side of the magical beasts' domain. It had basically settled at the edges of the Outer Lands, in a plain surrounded by mountains.

The army eventually reached its target. Noah could recognize the plain seen in the stolen memories, but he found no trace of the portal. Even his senses failed to pinpoint the exact location of that passage.

'They are good,' Noah couldn't help but comment in his mind at that sight.

The portal used inscriptions that made him unable to sense its presence. His expertise with space should make that feat impossible, but the Crystal City didn't care about reason and common sense.

"They must have involved something from the sky," King Elbas exclaimed after his inscribed items failed to find anything. "Are you sure that this is the place?"

"Are you calling me a liar?" The rat king said with human words after coming out of the terrain.

"Shut up," Noah sighed. "This is the place. We only have to find a way in."

Wilfred cracked his knuckles, Sword Saint prepared his fingers, Divine Demon started to laugh while stepping forward, but Noah promptly covered them with dark matter.

"Can't you wait for one instant?" Noah asked while slowly dispersing the dark world.

The three experts seemed disappointed, but he didn't care. They didn't experience the power that a separate dimension could unleash. A wrong cut could open the door to a deadly trap and similar dangers, so they had to make sure to succeed on their first time.

"Look," Sword Saint announced after Noah and the rest of the experts remained silent for a while. "It's clear that you can't find a proper method to find the right entrance. The rats won't act as baits either, so let's just destroy everything."

"Piercing the entire separate dimension from side to side might be a good idea," Noah whispered.

"I can try to transform the nature of his attacks," King Elbas added. "I can give them features meant to affect dimensions."

"No one can tamper with my sharpness!" Sword Saint shouted.

"Then we do it with the rest of the army." King Elbas snorted. "Give me some time. I'll build something able to transform multiple attacks."

King Elbas began to tinker with a few materials while the rest of the massive army remained among the mountain chain. Noah felt almost certain that the Crystal City knew about his arrival, so he didn't mind making those fanatics wait. That would only intensify their anxiety.

"I'm done," King Elbas announced after a few days.

The expert suddenly threw a series of golden sticks forward. Those items lit up and created a massive rectangular portal that contained strange energy in its insides.

"Make your attacks pass through the portal," King Elbas explained. "My item will do the rest."

"Come on!" Noah roared. "Just like we planned. The first group must move forward and launch their joint offensive."

Human experts and a few hybrids promptly moved forward and prepared their techniques. Noah and the others retreated during the process, and a wave of multicolored light soon filled the sky.

All the techniques and spells converged inside King Elbas' portal, which modified their fabric and turned it slightly ethereal. The attacks then covered the plain, and tremors began to affect the sky as their might dispersed in the area.

Multiple oval and spherical structures began to take form above the region. Noah and the others could gain a vague understanding of the overall layout of the separate dimension and its traps, but the images were still too unclear.

"Second group!" Noah roared, and a second wave of experts shot forward to launch another threatening series of attacks.

The separate dimension became clear at that point. The army could see all the traps.

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Author's notes: I woke up with 39.5 and took meds all day. Still, fever keeps going up. I don't know if I have to hit the hospital. You'll know I'm there if you don't see chapters.