Unable to Select a Target

“They’re above us!”

Rein, the leader of the hero squad, roared, swinging his sword to unleash several blades of energy that shattered the arrows in mid-air.

“With me! Crush them!”

A furious fire ignited in Galen’s eyes.

The Blade of Radiance in his hand erupted with a blinding silver light as he took the lead, charging fiercely toward the direction the crossbow bolts had come from!

Rein followed close behind, his sword flashing like lightning!

However, just as they broke away from the main force and were about to enter the narrow passages of the rock pillar cluster—

BZZZZ—!

A massive, dark purple magic circle, visible to the naked eye, suddenly lit up like a spiderweb on the ground beneath their feet and on several surrounding rock pillars!

A cold, viscous wave of mana, carrying a powerful binding force, instantly spread out!

At the same time, darkness descended, instantly enveloping the vanguard of the crusading army!

“Shadow Super-Gravity Binding Circle! It’s a trap!” the elf twins’ mage, Mira, shrieked as a warning.

The tip of her staff flared with light as she tried to disrupt the magic circle beneath her with a surge of her own mana—but it was too late!

Galen, Rein, and several elite knights at the forefront felt their bodies sink heavily, as if a thousand-pound boulder had been dropped on their backs!

Their movements became incredibly sluggish, and even swinging their swords became abnormally difficult!

The warhorses beneath the knights whinnied in pain and buckled at the knees!

The entire vanguard was caught as if in an invisible mire!

“Kill!”

The next moment, hundreds of elite demon warriors charged out from both sides.

Like a sharp dagger, they plunged viciously into the vanguard, which was now trapped by the gravity field!

“Welcome, ‘Heroes’ of humanity!”

Then, a calm voice, devoid of any emotional fluctuation, sounded from atop the rock pillars.

Following that, dozens of figures in deep purple cloaks appeared like phantoms on the tops of the pillars.

Ominous magical light glowed in their hands.

The one in the lead was tall and slender.

Beneath the shadow of her hood, only a pale, delicate chin and a pair of red lips curved into a cruel arc were visible—

It was none other than the Demon Lord of Evernight, Vivian!

Her old guard was not without mages.

During the previous harassment raids, she had sent out many of them to provide magical support and sow chaos.

And now, right here, on the battlefield she had personally chosen for the crusading army, Vivian had set up a magic circle powerful enough to influence the entire battle!

Yes, if the current Vivian were to face Galen head-on with her full strength, the odds of victory would probably be four to six, or even three to seven, against her.

But she was not alone.

Galen had his twenty thousand crusaders, and Vivian had her own five thousand old guards!

“Focus fire on that mage girl!”

Vivian’s cold finger pointed precisely at Mira, who was trapped at the edge of the gravity circle, struggling to maintain her magic shields!

“Protect Mira!”

“Don’t you dare touch my sister!”

Rein’s eyes were practically splitting with rage.

He unleashed an astonishing burst of strength, fighting against the terrifying gravity binding as he tried to move toward the elf mage.

The elf twins’ archer, Serra, also let out a furious shout, raising her hand to shoot a volley of countless arrows!

But the demons’ attack was faster, fiercer, and more concentrated!

“Hmph.”

With a cold snort from Vivian, she pointed her slender finger forward.

Instantly, several thick shadow arrows tore through the air!

At the same time, searing explosive fireballs carrying an aura of destruction crashed down!

An invisible psychic shockwave slammed into Mira’s magical defenses like a heavy hammer!

Serra’s attacks were also destroyed in mid-air along with it!

BANG! CRACK!

Under the focused fire of multiple spells, the magic shield in front of Mira lasted for less than two seconds before shattering like fragile glass!

The immense impact sent her small body flying backward like a kite with a broken string, the staff flying from her hand!

“Mira—!!!”

Watching Mira’s body fly away like a broken doll, the roars and screams of the others were filled with despair.

Just as Mira was about to hit the ground hard, a deep purple figure appeared beside her as if teleporting—a slender hand in a black lace glove, fast as lightning, precisely clasped Alice’s fair, fragile neck!

Powerful mana surged in instantly, sealing all her ability to resist!

“Ugh—”

Mira only felt an ice-cold, bone-chilling touch and a suffocating pressure on her neck.

After letting out a pained cry, her vision went black, and her consciousness instantly blurred and faded into silence.

“Got her.”

Vivian’s cold voice carried a hint of pleasure.

Without even glancing at the enraged but immobile Rein and Galen, she took the unconscious Mira and, her figure melting into the shadows, disappeared with a few flickers into the depths of the intricate rock pillar cluster.

“Mira—!!!”

“Mira!”

The anguished cries of the other members of the hero squad echoed behind Vivian, but they could only watch helplessly as the elf mage’s figure was completely swallowed by the darkness.

The other two members of the hero squad, who had been positioned at the rear flanks, only arrived now, too late.

“Damn it!”

Galen’s eyes were splitting with rage.

The light from his Blade of Radiance flickered wildly, but it could not dispel the gravity binding that clung to him like a festering maggot.

He had watched helplessly as the Demon Lord snatched away one of the new generation of heroes, one of the hopes for the future, right under his nose!

The immense sense of failure and the fury of being thoroughly toyed with almost destroyed his sanity!

He had fallen into a trap!

How could this be!

And then, the ambushing demons, as mysteriously as they had appeared, swiftly retreated and vanished into the darkness created by their magic after a single, deadly charge and a volley of lethal spells and arrows.

The light of the gravity circle gradually dimmed and disappeared, leaving only a scene of utter devastation.

The bubbling acid and mangled corpses in the pit, the soldiers who had fallen to poison, and the scorched craters blasted by powerful magic.

The air was thick with the stench of blood, scorched flesh, corrosive acid, and despair.

The rock pillars of Graystone Fort stood silent, like giant tombstones, mocking this “Holy” crusading army that had just ignited the fires of destruction in Black Thorn Village, only to be met with a head-on blow here and pay a惨痛 price.

“Damn it! Damn it!”

Rein and Serra fell to their knees where Mira’s staff had dropped, their shoulders trembling violently, their faces filled with disbelief as they desperately suppressed their sobs.

Galen stood in the swirling dust, his Blade of Radiance in hand, his armor stained with the blood of his men and his own, staring in the direction the Demon Lord had disappeared.

He felt a profound sense of wrongness.

The crusading army’s heavy blow had landed as if on a cloud of cotton, having no effect whatsoever on the Evernight demons.

Instead, he felt as if he were being repeatedly bitten by a nest of vipers lurking in the darkness.

Although he was loath to admit it, Galen felt that this crusade of his… had been lost.

In terms of strategy, the two sides were not even in the same league.

It was as if a giant was trying to crush a swarm of tiny ants, completely unable to lock onto a target