Chapter 206: Chapter 206 – Chaos in desert!!

The desert stretched endlessly before them, dunes rolling like frozen waves of gold beneath the blazing sun. Yet the air no longer carried only heat—it carried tension, weight, the faint stench of corruption that grew heavier with every step.

At the forefront of the marching host strode a golden-haired boy, his presence like a beacon amid the endless sands. Aiden’s eyes, clear and resolute, gleamed with golden light as his hand gripped the radiant blade at his side. Each step he took seemed to steady the wavering hearts behind him.

Beside him, Kyle walked with his spear resting easily across his shoulders, a sharp grin plastered across his face despite the oppressive atmosphere. Lilliane’s expression was tense but determined, her hands clenched around her staff. Selena’s gaze, cool and sharp, never strayed from the horizon, her violet eyes like shards of ice that cut through the haze of heat.

Hundreds of students followed, some astride their contracted beasts—fangs gleaming, wings slicing through the air—while others marched on foot, weapons gleaming under the sun, armor rattling in rhythm with their pounding steps. The sight itself was a declaration: they were not merely children. They were the pride of Arcadia Academy.

Kyle tilted his head toward Aiden, voice carrying over the crunch of boots on sand.

“Will the plan work?”

Aiden’s golden eyes flickered, his brow furrowing. His voice was steady, but a thread of honesty wove through it.

“I’m not sure… but we have to trust him.”

A beat of silence stretched, the desert wind hissing like a whispering specter. Aiden let out a quiet sigh, shoulders tightening.

“But don’t you think… it’s too risky? Too dangerous?”

The words hung heavy. No one immediately answered.

Then, Selena’s calm voice broke the silence, quiet yet cutting through the heat like a blade.

“I trust him.”

Lilliane glanced aside, her lips pressed tight before she blurted, almost desperately, “I—I do as well!” Her cheeks flushed, but her grip on her staff only tightened, her determination burning bright.

Kyle’s grin widened, laughter bursting out of him.

“Hah! That’s my brother-in-law for you!” He spun his spear with a flourish, the blade catching the light.

For the first time in hours, Aiden’s lips curved faintly into a smile. But as quickly as it came, his expression hardened, golden eyes narrowing at the horizon.

“Then we’ll have to do our best. Kill as many of them as possible.”

The air thickened. The sands ahead seemed darker, the light dimmed as if swallowed by a veil. An oppressive chill spread across the dunes, crawling down spines.

Kyle halted, his smirk fading. His knuckles whitened around the shaft of his spear.

“…It seems they’re here.”

From the horizon, the corruption came.

The earth trembled as thousands of cultists surged forward, a maddened tide of flesh and steel. Their howls split the desert air—inhuman, guttural, shrieking like beasts drunk on blood. Eyes gleamed with madness, weapons stained and ready, the stench of sulfur and death rolling before them like a storm.

Kyle spat to the side, lowering his stance.

“Everyone, get ready!”

His voice roared above the chaos, striking every heart behind him.

“Now’s the time to show them what it means to be students of Arcadia Academy! We may be fewer… but each one of us is worth ten of these lunatics!”

He slammed the butt of his spear into the sand, the sound like thunder. His voice bellowed again, fire burning in his words.

“Let’s show these brutes the pride of Arcadia!”

The students erupted.

Weapons rose high, voices roared as one, a tide of courage crashing against fear. The ground shook beneath their unified cry, the name of their academy a banner carried in their throats.

The battlefield was no longer quiet.

The desert shook as two tides of will and madness surged toward one another. Steel met steel, magic roared, and the clash exploded in a storm of blood and fire.

The desert roared with screams, steel, and fire. The golden-haired Aiden surged forward like a beacon of light amidst the darkness, his sword a radiant arc that carved through bodies with every swing. His golden eyes glimmered coldly as he cut down cultists by the dozens, golden energy exploding outward with each strike. Every step he took left behind a small crater of scorched sand, the sheer intensity of his sword aura sending shockwaves through the horde.

“Stay behind me!” he shouted, and with a sweeping slash, a wave of golden light burst forth, annihilating a line of fifty cultists in a single blow. Yet more rushed forward, screaming, maddened, undeterred. Aiden’s jaw clenched, sweat already glistening on his brow. Too many… there are far too many.

On his right, Selena’s icy composure never wavered. Her hands wove intricate runes in the air, and from the desert’s very sand, massive frozen spires erupted, impaling enemies like skewers. She twirled her staff, and with a flick, a storm of ice shards rained from above, shredding cultists into crimson. Her violet eyes narrowed, her breathing sharp but steady as her mana flared brighter. A frost aura rolled outward from her body, freezing weapons mid-swing and locking arms in brittle ice before shattering them apart.

“Freeze, and shatter!” Selena’s voice was cold as her magic. A wall of ice rose to shield a cluster of students from a volley of cultist spells, then collapsed outward into a jagged avalanche, crushing their attackers. Her control was precise, merciless. Yet she bit her lip, her hands trembling faintly. She was burning through mana fast—too fast.

To the left, Kyle charged like a storm. His spear spun in a brutal dance, every thrust punching through armor, bone, and flesh. His grin was manic, his wild battle spirit burning bright even against thousands.

“Hyaaaah!” He roared, leaping high above the enemy. Spear-light exploded from his weapon, raining down like a shower of comets, tearing through hundreds of cultists at once. As his boots crashed back into the sand, he twirled the spear again, sending a sweeping crescent of energy forward that cleaved men in half, spraying blood across the battlefield. “Bring more! I’ll pierce every last one of you bastards!”

Close behind, Lilliane’s breaths came short, her grip tight on her staff. Her chest heaved, sweat rolling down her cheeks as she whispered chants faster than her lips could keep up. Blinding rays of multi-colored lights erupted from her staff, searing through dozens of cultists at once, burning their corrupted flesh to ash.

When a massive brute of a cultist lunged toward her with a jagged blade, her eyes widened in panic—but she raised her staff just in time. “Fire Burst!” A sphere of golden fire erupted around her, vaporizing the man and throwing back a circle of enemies. She stumbled, catching herself, her lips trembling. But still—she forced herself to raise her staff again.

“I… I will kill more than her…!” Her voice cracked, but her will hardened.

All across the battlefield, chaos reigned.

A pair of students fought back-to-back against a wave of cultists, only to be surrounded—until a eagle dove from the sky, its rider slashing the enemies apart before swooping them to safety.

A red-haired mage screamed an incantation, flames engulfing the desert and torching hundreds of foes, before collapsing from mana exhaustion—only to be caught and carried off by another student’s winged beast before blades could reach her.

A beast-tamer commanded his giant armored lizard, its tail swiping through a wall of enemies and crushing them like dolls.

Above, winged students rained arrows, bolts of lightning, and fire down from the sky, while below, swords, axes, and spears painted the sand red. Blood flowed like a river, bodies piled high, and still the cultists came. The students fought like heroes of legend—but the numbers were endless.

Then—

BOOOOOM!

The sky rippled. A suffocating pressure slammed into the battlefield. Students screamed as knees buckled, the weaker ones collapsing outright. Even beasts trembled, growling low in fear.

Aiden’s golden eyes darted upward, his face paling. Selena froze mid-cast, sweat dripping cold down her temple. Kyle’s grin faltered. Lilliane gasped, clutching her staff tight, her heart racing in her chest.

Two figures slowly descended from the crimson sky, their auras so heavy the sand itself sank beneath their presence.

The first was a towering man draped in crimson robes, his bare chest covered in jagged black tattoos that pulsed like living veins. His face was hidden behind a horned mask, but the heat radiating from his body warped the air itself, distorting vision. Every step he took left molten cracks in the sand.

The second was a slender figure cloaked in shadows, a man or woman whose face was a mix of both, only his sharp crimson eyes visible. Bones floated around his body, each glowing faintly as if infused with souls. His movements were silent, feminine, yet the aura he released was suffocating, like being drowned in black water.

Kyle’s voice broke through the silence, hoarse with dread.

“T-Two… Spatial Expansion Stage cultivators…!”

The students around them faltered, their expressions turning pale with terror.

The cultist army erupted in cheers.

***

Luca turned his head as he vomited , his face in disgust as he said, “Ahhh, just what did I see?”

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