The flame giant that Meltbone had transformed into looked down at the three figures, incandescent flames dancing in his eye sockets. “Three natives! You've finally come out!”
The ice-crystal phoenix spread its wings.
Blood Bone raised his left hand and made a gesture.
The firepower of the three Tier 3 Wizards locked onto the three figures at the exact same instant.
Fire, frost, and crimson—the three forces condensed in the sky into three thick pillars of light, aiming directly at the three Amons Tier 3 lifeforms above the Sacred City.
The Protector Priest's flight speed suddenly slowed down.
She looked up at the three colossal figures blotting out the sky, staring at the thirty thousand miles of fire, fifty thousand miles of frost, and one hundred thousand miles of crimson.
Her lips parted slightly, and the light at the tip of the staff in her hand began to flicker erratically.
Then, she made a move that no one expected.
She stopped.
Hovering in midair, she raised both hands above her head and held her staff horizontally in front of her. The crystal at the tip of the staff stopped glowing, and the emerald light membrane around her body dissolved on its own.
She just hovered above the Sacred City like that, hands raised high, staff held horizontally, head bowed, like a frozen statue.
The two Protector Envoys stopped as well.
They landed behind the Protector Priest, likewise raising their hands high as the dark green patterns on their scales completely dimmed.
Meltbone's flame giant froze in midair.
The incandescent flames were still burning, but his massive fiery fist was only half-condensed, hanging awkwardly in midair as he hesitated to strike.
“What the hell?” Meltbone's voice boomed from the flame giant's chest, laced with frustration.
The ice-crystal phoenix that Frostfall had transformed into also paused.
Its wings remained spread, ice-crystal feathers trembling slightly in the air. Icy blue cold flames flickered in its eyes, staring at the three figures below with their hands raised high.
Blood Bone's brow furrowed.
The one hundred thousand miles of crimson in the sky stalled slightly, and the three thick pillars of energy stopped less than a thousand meters above the Sacred City.
Energy continued to bleed from the edges of the pillars, leaving warped trails of light in the air, but they stopped descending.
“We surrender,” the Protector Priest's voice drifted up from below. Her voice was raspy, carrying an indescribable weariness. “We surrender.”
Meltbone's flame giant stared down at her. “What did you say?”
“We surrender,” the Protector Priest repeated. She raised her head, her cloudy eyes devoid of any will to fight. “The Sacred City's defenses are useless against you. The core barrier has been deactivated. The three of us cannot defeat the three of you. We surrender.”
Meltbone's fiery fist hung in the air, unable to strike or retreat.
He turned his head, his fiery features twisting into a confused expression. “Blood Bone, what do we do now?”
Blood Bone did not answer. He looked down at the three Amons Tier 3 lifeforms below, his dark red eyes showing no emotional fluctuations.
After several breaths, he finally spoke. “Are the three of you certain about surrendering?”
“We are,” the Protector Priest said calmly. “Everyone in the Sacred City, including myself and the two Protector Envoys, surrenders. We only ask that you do not destroy the World Tree.”
Meltbone's massive fiery body shifted slightly. “Weren't you guys acting all tough before? High Priest Orion blew himself up—aren't you three going to follow his lead?”
The Protector Priest fell silent for two breaths. “The High Priest was the High Priest, and we are ourselves. He chose death; we choose life.”
Meltbone wanted to say more, but Blood Bone raised his left hand to stop him.
Blood Bone tapped his right hand in the empty air, and a pale gold rune emerged and vanished near his ear.
“Command, this is Blood Bone.”
The other side of the Wizardry Tool fell silent for a moment before Wizard Thousand Eyes' voice came through. “Speak.”
“The three Tier 3 lifeforms of the Sacred City have surrendered.”
There was an even longer silence from the Wizardry Tool.
It lasted so long that Meltbone couldn't help but turn his head to check if the rune on Blood Bone's ear was still there.
Wizard Thousand Eyes' voice rang out again. His tone hadn't changed much, but his speaking speed was half a beat slower than usual. “Surrendered?”
“Surrendered. Three Tier 3 lifeforms, all of them.”
In the command center hall, Wizard Thousand Eyes stood before the circular console. The light screen in front of him displayed a real-time feed of the airspace above the Sacred City, clearly showing the three figures holding their hands high.
He raised his right hand and pinched the bridge of his nose.
The other white-robed wizards in the hall also halted their operations.
Wizard Azhan stared at the small light screen in front of him, his mouth opening and closing.
Wizard Geyang's fingers hovered over her light screen, her entire body frozen in place.
Wizard Wusha stood up from his corner, walked over behind Azhan, took a glance at the feed on the light screen, and then silently walked back to his seat.
“Wait, what's going on here?” a young white-robed wizard couldn't help but ask. “If the Sacred City's defenses were breached, surrendering would be one thing, but they surrendered before the fight even started? Three Tier 3 lifeforms, and they don't care about their dignity at all?”
“That's the core city of Amons,” another white-robed wizard added. “They just gave up like that?”
“Could it be a fake surrender?” Wizard Geyang suggested.
“How could they fake it?” Wizard Wusha chimed in. “The core barrier has already been deactivated. The Sacred City's defenses are down to just the runic wall and the faith barrier. The three of them know perfectly well that they simply can't win.”
Wizard Azhan swiped on his light screen, pulling up the energy scan data of the Sacred City. “The energy fluctuations are stable, with no signs of abnormal gathering. The three Tier 3 lifeforms have indeed stood down from combat status.”
Wizard Thousand Eyes fell silent for a few breaths before patching through to Blood Bone. “Blood Bone, this is Thousand Eyes.”
“Copy that. What's the matter?”
“Blood Bone, set up a temporary teleportation array. The War Fortress will reimburse all expenses.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes. But keep the expenses reasonable. If it's too much, it won't be easy to explain to Wizard Jade Blood.”
“Don't worry. You know what kind of person I am, Thousand Eyes.”
“It's precisely because I know that I'm specifically reminding you.”
“Tch. Fine, hanging up.”
Blood Bone cut the communication and glanced at Meltbone and Frostfall.
“Command approved. We're setting up a teleportation array, and the fortress will cover all expenses.”
A smile squeezed onto Meltbone's dark red face. “Reimburse? Since when is that old geezer Thousand Eyes so generous?”
“He said to keep the expenses reasonable, otherwise it'll be hard to explain to Lord Jade Shadow.”
“Heh, Thousand Eyes has known you for so long, his judgment of you is indeed spot-on.”
As soon as Meltbone said this, Frostfall turned her head, her pale blue eyes sweeping over him.
Her right hand, hanging at her side, quietly gave a thumbs-up.
The movement was so fast it was as if it had never happened.
By the time Blood Bone's gaze shifted over, Frostfall had already looked away, staring up at the sky as if the clouds plowed through by fire and frost had some fascinating patterns worth studying.
Blood Bone's lips twitched, and he rolled his eyes.
“Heh.”
Rate on N.U.
