The chosen location of the battle was actually relatively far from Darknorth. With the clash of so many forces with a much greater average power level than the ones from previous battles, it was obvious that the collateral damage would be far greater.
Feng Qing'er didn't want to take any risks. Even though she was aware of the barrier that protected Darknorth and the rest of the cities, she didn't want to put her trust into something she couldn't control.
That's why she had the geniuses travel away from the city to meet the incoming army halfway.
Of course, Damien had already left for the Sanctuary by the time the procession began, but for some reason, he had landed in the midst of the crowd of geniuses when he arrived back in the Primordial Undying Realm.
He was confused by the fact, sure, but judging by the current situation, he didn't have any time to dwell on it. Battle was already on the verge of erupting.
At this close proximity, the difference in scale between the two sides became even more obvious. In front of the thousand-strong army, the coalition of geniuses looked like nothing more than an ant in front of an elephant.
But the clash of auras was entirely different. Although the geniuses were still on the losing side, the difference wasn't as drastic as the sheer numbers difference made it seem.
If Damien released his full aura in addition to the tide of aura that was already being supported by Feng Qing'er and Qing Tan's massive presences, he didn't think they'd be losing out by much.
This scene made Damien a bit more hopeful for the soon-to-start battle.
"Wasn't there supposed to be three of you at the head? That handsome man I saw on the record crystal, where did he go? Don't tell me he ran away after seeing our numbers?"
"Hmph, what do you know? Why would anyone run away from this army of ants? Did you never stop to consider the fact that he simply doesn't think you're worthy enough for him to show up all punctual?"
Damien raised his brow at her words. This Feng Qing'er who always tried her best to pick a fight with him was actually making him seem so lofty in front of the enemy? He thought he might have to change his opinion of her.
Judging that it'd be a fun time to pour fuel on the fire, Damien began to push his way through the crowd.
"Ah, excuse me, excuse me, coming through! Hey, which one of you assholes is touching my ass? I don't swing that way!"
A small commotion erupted as he roughly made his way towards the front of the crowd. He intentionally roughed his hair up a bit to make himself look sleazier than he usually did.
When he reached the front, he ignored the stares of the Demon army and the Commanders and made his way into the air next to Feng Qing'er.
"Yo! Something interesting happening?"
Feng Qing'er smirked when she realized what he was doing. "No, nothing much. Just an ugly bitch and her entourage trying to act high and mighty. Anyway, where have you been?"
"Eh? I just woke up from a nap. The accommodations in Darknorth are actually really nice. The ambiance is lovely as well." Damien spoke while yawning and stretching his body.
"Oho? I'll have to go check it out after we clean up here. Because of a certain pest, I wasn't able to even get a good look at the city."
Swoosh!
Both of them suddenly moved their bodies to the side slightly as a black bullet shot past them.
"You dare ignore me?!" The female Demon Commander growled with annoyance plastered on her face.
"Who's this?"
"Didn't I tell you just now? She's an ugly bitch."
Damien fondled his chin with the face of a wise sage as he scanned the Demon Commander from head to toe.
"Face, 3. Body, a solid 5. Her personality seems to be a 1 though. Overall, a hard pass."
"Pfft!"
Even the geniuses behind him almost failed to hold back their laughter. She wasn't that bad, was she? Even though she's an enemy, did you really have to stomp her dignity like that?
The Demon Commander was truly on the average side when compared to beauties like Feng Qing'er and Qing Tan, but if she was put in the middle of a crowd of normal women, she still had looks that were bound to stand out.
The female Demon Commander's face quickly became cold when she heard his words. Truth be told, her appearance had always been a sore spot for her.
Due to the continuous infusion of mana as they leveled up, cultivators would become more and more beautiful. Natural-born beauties like Ruyue would become heaven toppling with time, to the point where even Gods would fawn over them.
But Kroa, the Demon Commander, wasn't blessed with natural beauty. Even after becoming so powerful and leveling up to such a point, she was only slightly above average. Seeing beautiful women like Elitra always made her feel inferior, regardless of her status among demons.
"Enough talk. It's better if we get our job done and head back."
Kroa didn't continue with her arrogant show. Funnily enough, instead of targeting Damien; who had touched her sore spot, her attention was focused on Feng Qing'er herself. Intense envy and murderous intent filled her gaze.
Suddenly, two new figures appeared at her side.
"Sigh, this is why it's a bad thing to provoke Kroa. Don't they know that touching her reverse scale leads to a fate worse than death?"
"And how were they supposed to know that? Well, they were fated to die anyway, it's just a shame that their deaths won't be quick any longer."
The two men casually chatted as they sized up Damien and Qing Tan respectively.
"Which one do you want?"
"Does that matter? You take left and I take right."
"Sure, sure."
The man who headed left was the one named Winthrop, his gaze lecherously scanning Qing Tan's body. As for the man named Polius, he casually stood before Damien.
Throughout the whole interaction, the geniuses behind them kept silent. Even while laughing at Damien's jokes, they were already aware of the gravity of the situation.
Some of them even thought to turn back and flee at that moment, but it was already too late. If they fled now, their deaths would only be hastened.
Even Damien, Feng Qing'er, and Qing Tan were aware that they were fighting an uphill battle. But this fact only served to heighten their fighting intent.
After all, they had all already experienced the might of the Generals. It had given them a certain amount of confidence when facing the Commanders.
The three leaders of each side stood in the air facing each other, and the lower forces were doing the same on the ground.
In such a situation, one would expect a certain trigger to be the start of the fierce battle. Perhaps it'd be one side falling to provocation, or some other situation that slowly caused things to escalate.
But none of that was present.
The second the booming sound of rapid movement filled the sky, the troops on the ground moved as well.
The atmosphere soon became filled with the sound of clashing blades.
