Second World
chapter-1863

The underworld forces that headed to Aurebor hit the defensive fronts on the second day after the battle in Hydrurond started.

It was Aurebor's Southern defense line that was hit first. The situation was the same as in Hydrurond. The defenders faced the underworld's vanguard army first.

Unlike the battles in Hydrurond, the divine factions didn't come during the middle of the battle. They were present before the battle started. They joined the defenders around the same time the Council of Elpo and the Council of Virtus arrived on Hydrurond's battlefields. Most likely these divine factions moved at the same time after the first contact between the upperworld and underworld forces.

At the Southern defense line, the Verremor army was bolstered by Pride's faction, the Council of Hybris. The members of this divine faction wore white robes that covered most of their bodies, including their faces. When they moved, glistening black armor was spotted under their robes.

The Council of Hybris was second only to the Council of Elpo, so most members had high levels and grades. This faction had two leaders, who were the only members of this faction with their faces revealed. One was an elf by the name of Petunia. The other was an orc called Balrd. Both were level 95 eternal grades.

Following the Council of Hybris was a gargantuan bird with long iridescent tail feathers. This was the faction's guardian, the Radiant Peafowl. While the tail feathers showed various colors that were constantly changing, its body, wings, and head were blanketed by shining white luminance. This luminance made the peafowl seem as if it was made of light. Its face was unperceivable behind this luminance.

The radiant peafowl was a level 97 eternal grade.

With the aid from the divine faction from the get-go, Verremor's army didn't encounter much trouble from the underworld's vanguard army. Things only got rough when the main underworld forces arrived. The demon army attacking this side was led by Asmodeus.

The devil's chimerical body advanced without giving the defensive walls any mind. One of its three heads, which had a man's face, showed a condescending expression while the demons ahead fought ferociously against the defenders.

Spell formations formed one after another on each of his three heads. His spells mostly had AOE, and they all packed a punch. He continued to walk forward slowly while casting spells non-stop. This brought him close to the defensive walls.

His human head cast a defensive spell that conjured an illusory wall that blocked the ranged attacks coming at him. But since he was close to the wall, he was within reach of the melee players as well. Most of the strongest combatants from the Council of Hybris came at him. His human face smirked when it saw these incoming opponents.

Balrd was among those who rushed to Asmodeus. He carried with him a spiked club that swirled with golden light. While the other faction members took most of Asmodeus' attention, he slipped to the devil's side. But when he swung his spiked club, he found that his target was gone.

Balrd at first thought Asmodeus had cast Teleportation, but then he saw the devil was not that far away. Asmodeus only made a jump to dodge the attack. When he was about to lunge over, he saw Asmodeus' bird forelegs kicked at the ground. The devil shot back at him with incredible speed. Asmodeus' dragon hindlegs kicked him before he had the chance to assume a defensive posture.

He was sent crashing to the ground a great distance away.

Asmodeus' bird forelegs then swung at high speed, hitting Baldr's faction members. All the while, his three heads never stopped casting spells. His serpent tail didn't stay idle. It spewed out lightning bolts. These lightning bolts were not spells. They were standard attacks. They didn't have a cooldown.

Asmodeus aimed these lightning bolts at Petunia, who had been attacking him from a distance. Petunia used a mini-gunbow in one hand while her other hand held a magic wand. Asmodeus' lightning bolts caused her difficulties in casting spells. She could only retaliate using her gunbow, which shot dark-infused bolts.

The combatants of the Council of Hybris were dumbstruck by Asmodeus' prowess. They thought at first the devil was a typical spellcaster. Yes, he could cast many spells at the same time, but they thought that was his only forte. They thought if they could swarm him, they could disrupt his spellcasting like any other spellcasters. They didn't expect Asmodeus to be that fast. The devil had been moving at a slow pace all this time. It turned out he was as formidable as a typical melee combatant.

Not only was Asmodeus a fearsome spellcaster and melee combatant, but his serpent tail also made him a ranged attacker. This made him a hybrid of spellcaster, melee, and ranged combatant. An all-around jack-of-all-trades. His fighting style was as chimerical as his body.

While the divine faction members were in a quandary about how to deal with Asmodeus, a torrent of different elemental powers washed over the devil from above. From the damage numbers popping up above Asmodeus, they learned that this devil was also a durable tank.

Asmodeus' sheep head looked up and identified his attacker. It was the Radiant Peafowl. Its iridescent tail feathers could release destructive energy of the five elements. Lightning, fire, ice, wind, and earth. It was one of the few beings of this world that possessed more than three elements. Another similar being was Fear's Primordial Hydra.

Furthermore, the Radiant Peafowl outshone the Primordial Hydra in terms of element quantity. This was because while its tails possessed five elements, melee attacks dished out by its main body contained the light element. With such varied elements, few opponents could resist its attacks. However, Asmodeus was no normal opponent. The devil had innate resistance against all elements.

Asmodeus cast a spell that gave him lightning wings. The wings spread and crackled as they flapped. Those who happened to touch them were electrocuted. His huge body shot up at high speed.

The radiant peafowl didn't expect Asmodeus' long-distance traveling speed to also be that fast. Asmodeus was before it already while its feather tails were glowing and preparing another attack.

Asmodeus made a forward roll once he arrived. His draconic hindlegs kicked the radiant peafowl so hard it shot straight down to the ground. The ground the radiant peafowl slammed into formed into a crater. He then cast three spells of devastating power at the peafowl. One of the spells inflicted chaos-element damage. After he was done, he remained floating up there with a mocking grin on his human face. Even though the Radiant Peafowl was the same grade and level as him, he never saw it as a worthy opponent.

All the members of the Council of Hybris felt great rage welling up from inside them. They all had great pride. To be looked down on like this was something they couldn't take. Even when the opponent was superior to them, they fought to the best of their abilities. Their pride demanded that. Even so, they couldn't do anything to give Asmodeus a sense of threat.

After a hard struggle for three days, the defenders were forced to retreat. Most of their battle structures were in ruin. Their siege weapons were destroyed. Insisting to defend this place would be folly.

The radiant peafowl possessed two other trump cards which it used during this three-day battle. The first was when its HP fell below 50%. The white luminance that covered its body turned pitch black. The element of its melee engagements changed to the dark element. In this manner, the radiant peafowl could be said to possess all the elements except for soul and chaos.

At the same time, its ultimate attack also became available. This ultimate attack was called Compound Element Rupture. It discharged the destructive energies of the seven elements into a small localized area. With the aid of Balrd and Petunia, the radiant peafowl managed to land this attack on Asmodeus.

Anything within the struck area underwent tremendous pressure. Even Asmodeus had trouble escaping. But still, the damage he suffered wasn't as severe as the defenders hoped. Asmodeus' tanking ability was more formidable than they first thought.

Quetzalcoatl, who was fighting on another side, came to assist them in battling Asmodeus. Like Eoranth and Syndrillis, he came to this battlefield on his own. Not from summon, so he had no time limit here. But even with his help, they still couldn't threaten Asmodeus.

Balrd, Petunia, and the radiant peafowl survived the three-day battle, but they still lost a considerable number of their faction members. The members of the Council of Hybris had a similar trait to the Council of Virtus. They preferred to fight alone and were unwilling to retreat. Their haughtiness was even worse. This caused them unnecessary deaths even when they had many strong members.

The defender's retreat plan was the same as the one used by the defenders in Hydrurond. Everything was prepared beforehand. Thanks to their pride, the Council of Hybris retreated the last. This let many of the defenders survive.

After the underworld forces were stopped by the hidden traps, Asmodeus didn't charge ahead to pursue the retreating enemies. He just stood and watched. His human face displayed a condescending expression toward the retreating army. The same expression he displayed when he arrived three days earlier.