2211. Encirclements
The sky was roaring in anger. Its whiteness intensified and tried to push back the dark area created by the landmass, but the balance remained firm.
However, nothing could stop the heavy aura shooting out the white layer. That pressure was violent and ruthless, but it lacked a proper target. It only came out of the sky and tried to fill every corner of the higher plane.
Tremors ran through the dark landmass and forced Noah to unleash his pride. Heaven and Earth's massive display of power was awakening the giant creature's instincts, but Noah managed to keep them quiet for now. Still, he knew that his influence couldn't suppress it forever.
Bright figures shone on the other side of the sky as they slowly advanced toward the higher plane. That massive mobilization of forces seemed to require Heaven and Earth's complete concentration, but the experts on the landmass eventually became able to gaze at their future opponents.
Mere numbers couldn't express what Heaven and Earth had decided to unleash. Countless crackling avatars came out of the sky and took a few steps forward until an immense encirclement took form.
Everyone on the dark landmass knew that Heaven and Earth had accumulated an unfathomable amount of power throughout the eras. Yet, looking at its army still gave birth to intense surprise and terror inside many minds.
The immense landmass had been Noah's organization's greatest creation, but even that incredible creature paled in front of what Heaven and Earth could unleash. The avatars had encircled the entirety of the higher plane, leaving no spot unprotected. They had basically created another white layer that expanded the rulers' whiteness among the darkness.
Most of the avatars were in the seventh rank, but the sheer number of rank 9 assets surpassed the thousands anyway. Moreover, Heaven and Earth had unleashed them according to battle formations that spread their power equally in every area.
Noah could see how the immense army was, in fact, an incredible number of different platoons working together to keep the encirclement as stable as possible. A few calculations happened in his mind as he inspected everything through his screens. He wasn't King Elbas, but he could confirm that the higher plane had never seen so much energy at the same time.
'These are only their disposable troops,' Noah thought when his inspection ended.
Noah had entered his training area to rest, but he found himself on the landmass' surface without realizing that he had shot upward. He didn't want to inspect the scene through screens. His senses had to experience everything to give him a clear idea of what he had to fight.
New
Noah tapped his foot on the ground, and a golden line lit up. A faint "yes" resounded out of it, which Noah followed with a question. "How long can we endure this assault?"
"An assault from these puppets?" Cursed Reality's voice came out of the golden line. "Their number is scary, but they remain puppets. They won't reach the landmass even if they attack at the same time."
"That's what I like to hear," Noah stated.
"You have yet to see the best part," Cursed Reality snickered before the golden line went dark.
Heaven and Earth weren't done revealing their forces. Many tall figures appeared on the sky's edges and began to seep past its white surface to take their position behind the massive encirclement.
Noah recognized the improved cultivators. They all radiated different worlds or laws as they created a second encirclement right behind the avatars. Heaven and Earth had also divided them into platoons, and they stopped moving after taking their position.
Counting the number of improved cultivators was pointless. There were too many of them, but they were fewer than the avatars. Still, Noah's gaze inevitably grew colder as he tried to assess their overall power.
A golden line lit up under Noah before he could do anything, and Cursed Reality's voice followed the event. "My defenses should take care of all of them too."
"They won't attack right away," Noah explained. "Also, there is a better way to deal with them. I'll show you once the battle reaches that point."
"I can't wait," Cursed Reality laughed as the golden line went dark.
The rumbling noise coming out of the sky slowly faded. Heaven and Earth suppressed the anger caused by their sudden awakening, but their heavy pressure remained stable. Actually, it slightly intensified now that the rulers focused on the landmass.
'They are studying us,' Noah thought. 'How does our last stand look like, Heaven and Earth?'
Heaven and Earth obviously couldn't hear Noah's thoughts, but they seemed to reply to them anyway. The light radiated by the avatars intensified as the crackling noises coming out of their figures grew louder. The first encirclement was preparing an attack, and Noah sensed panic spreading through the landmass.
"To all of you ruling over specific areas," Noah announced while activating different communication devices, "Make those weaklings shut up."
Different rank 9 auras shot out of the landmass and filled the various regions. Soon, the entirety of the dark higher plane found itself immersed in multiple heavy influences that had a sole purpose. They wanted to reassure the various underlings.
The event almost awakened the landmass, but the devices in place to prevent that event activated. Vast waves of energy stored in different areas flowed inside the massive creature and caused drowsiness to fill its mind.
'Oh, Heaven and Earth, you must send more than ants if you want to take us down,' Noah joked in his mind as the power radiated by the first encirclement stabilized and started to give birth attacks.
The avatars sent their energy toward the rank 9 puppets hovering at the center of each platoon. They used that power to generate massive crackling spheres that expanded until they occupied vast chunks of the higher plane.
Each of those spheres carried rank 9 power in the upper tier that slowly stabilized. Then, when all the platoons were ready, the crackling structures exploded outward to send their violent energy toward the landmass.
The dark area brightened as countless pillars of crackling light converged toward the landmass. The assault involved every inch of the higher plane. The first encirclement didn't leave any opening or escape path, but Noah remained still as he waited for the defenses to activate.
There didn't seem anything able to stop the pillars. They were too big, and there were too many of them. They threatened to destroy the fabric of space and send the whole higher plane inside the void, but they suddenly disappeared.
Noah and many other experts experienced pure surprise in front of that event. After all, Cursed Reality's methods were unique, and he had worked on them on his own. Yet, those who knew about the Cursed Labyrinth could understand what was going on.
Another wave of surprise filled most experts when waves of dark and gentle energy magically appeared on the landmass and began to flow toward its different environments. That new power enriched the experts' homes, and its source was unmistakable.
"Mere puppets can't pierce my realities," Cursed Reality conveyed through the golden line.. "They can attack as much as they want, but they'll only refill our reserves of energy."