BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The shockwaves from Damien's fight beginning ran rampant, but Iris and the Marionette Lord hadn't moved yet.
It seemed the Marionette Lord was still of the mind to toy with her food. They were waiting for Iris to act first so they could thoroughly crush her will.
As for Iris, she naturally needed to understand her opponent before doing anything rash.
The Marionette Lord was one thing.
They were strong because of the four Demigod Puppets they controlled, but their individual strength was said to be close to nothing.
The Insect Lord was also a problem, but not a huge one.
They likely brought him along for the sole purpose of annoying her.
The Insect Lord had great power over a large crowd of weak enemies. He could also enhance the abilities of others, as his bugs could carry friendly mana over greater distances and be used as chargeable grenades.
But since the Marionette Lord wasn't someone who could benefit from those abilities and Iris wasn't someone who'd be affected by them, his presence was practically worthless.
Though, the fact that he was here meant the opponents were six. Since that six included some of the strongest in the Inhuman Emperor's forces, it wasn't simple even for Iris.
'I need to test their power first.'
She had to gauge the Demigod Puppets to form any real plan, so despite knowing what her opponent was waiting for, she didn't have a choice but to move according to their predictions.
She raised her hand in the air gracefully and emitted fluctuations of rainbow mana, which transmuted into several metallic constructs that swept through the air.
Xiu! Xiu! Xiu! Xiu!
The Marionette Lord grinned happily and flicked their wrist. A chair made of Divine Energy appeared behind them, and as they sat down, the Demigod Puppets moved.
The four of them were split evenly with two men and two women. Instead of Nox, they seemed to be traitors from the Grand Heavens Boundary side.
While it was surely infuriating to see, it also wasn't. For one, this kind of fate was worthy of traitors, and made them even more pathetic than they already were.
And secondly, because they were from the universe, Iris knew much more about them than Nox Demigods.
'These four…those two are from Blood Asura Holy Land, she's from Fallen Star Holy Land, and the last is from the Looming Shadow Cult.'
Their names were Jerome, Acian, Helen, and Treya.
They didn't have particularly noteworthy titles, which was probably half the reason for their betrayal, but Iris didn't need much time to analyze their abilities watching how they dodged her attacks.
'The Blood Asura guys are mid and long-ranged combatants, the Fallen Star woman uses lightning for close-range attacks, and the last is an assassin.'
It was an efficient combo on paper, but if these people ever tried to work together, they'd just get in the way of each other's skills.
However, in this case, such a situation wouldn't happen.
Jerome, the mid-ranged Blood Asura Demigod, was good at controlling the direction of incoming attacks and helping Acian, his ranged brother, gain opportunities to block them.
Meanwhile, Helen and Treya were acting independently from each other, but their movements seemed to connect in ways Iris couldn't quite see.
'Difficult.'
That was her first impression.
Since they were being controlled by the Marionette Lord, their movements would never overlap, and they'd show synergy above anyone else.
Moreover, without consciousness, the minor mistakes they'd usually make in battle were mitigated, leaving Iris with barely any openings.
'But it's possible.'
She turned her eyes to the Insect Lord just briefly.
He hadn't acted yet, but if she could get him to interfere in the battle, she could find a chance to take the four of them down without a problem.
'After all, unlike the rest, I know that guy very well.'
Was it six thousand years ago?
When Iris was still a fledgling in universal terms, she'd seen this man in combat against the superiors of her sect.
After that, due to the strangeness of his Demonic Providence, he became one of several Nox Demigods whom Prismatic Sun Holy Land studied.
She probably knew more about his abilities than even he did.
'This should be enough.'
For preliminary information, she had enough. She couldn't stay passive and give the Marionette Lord any opportunities to exploit, so instead of remaining in this probing phase, she preferred directly engaging in combat.
She didn't like how she was being looked at.
Like a weakling, like an object that only existed for their entertainment.
It reminded her of the way the Ancient Sovereign looked down on her.
It reminded her of her flaws.
So, while she didn't want to get emotional, she couldn't help it.
She had to show them why she was considered one of the universe's strongest.
BOOOOOOOOM!
The explosion rang out late as if it couldn't trace the location where it was supposed to take place at.
Without warning, thousands of spikes rose from the earth and turned into golems that exploded on the Demigod Puppets, the same strategy she used on the Plague Lord.
However, it was only meant to be a distraction.
Iris flew forward, rising up above the Demigod Puppets and bringing her arm down.
'Forces of Wind.'
Through Universal Law, there were several abilities she'd realized. But, she later learned that abilities were superfluous.
For something like Universal Law, using it directly was better.
Forces of Wind did exactly that. It gave the wind an order and allowed the wind to accomplish it however it pleased.
The current order?
Decimation.
VOOOOOOOM!
The air suddenly became several times heavier. Like pressure from the heavens themselves, it bore down on the Demigod Puppets and inhibited their movements.
'Forces of Earth.'
Iris instantly followed with another attack. The earth golems she created suddenly turned into mud, which collected into a massive mountain that spawned in the midst of the battlefield.
Was that it?
Of course not!
The mountain was just an exterior shell.
Forces of Earth had a different purpose than the Forces of Wind.
It wasn't meant to be used yet, so this was the best form for it to take.
Until then…
'Forces of Metal.'
'Forces of Fire.'
She used them together, creating structures on the mountain's surface that turned it into a heavy-duty fortress.
In a single instant, massive cannons and ranged weapons formed on the mountain, and by her command…
"Fire."
…they let loose their fury.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
XIU! XIU! XIU! XIU!
Explosive clouds filled the air. The Demigod Puppets were wrapped inside of them and assaulted on all sides by chaotic Divine Energy.
The current scene was one of mayhem and destruction, and with Iris as its creator, it seemed like she held the upper hand.
But both she and her enemies were very clear on the truth.
She didn't have the upper hand at all.
In fact, the situation could be called barely balanced.
Because despite all the force let off by her attacks, enough to cripple the three Demigods Damien was fighting…
The Demigod Puppets had yet to take a single point of damage.
