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Chapter 290: The End of ‘Training’
The marquess-stage devils, who know just how strong Sylphia is, decide to end things quickly. Although they still worry about a sudden attack or change of mind from Aldrian, there is nothing they can do.
Sylphia also knows that to face them, she must give her all, and that is exactly what she intends to do. She uses her secret technique the Blessing of the Forest to boost her power and endurance. This technique is designed to enhance her abilities—or those of elves of the Evergreen imperial family’s bloodline—providing a significant power boost to help them face stronger opponents. The only noticeable side effect of this technique is extreme fatigue after its use.
After using it, her body became lighter, and her senses sharpened. Her aura become much stronger to the point where she seemed on the verge of a breakthrough to the Earl stage. Her presence grew stronger and more intimidating, yet it still exuded a refreshing feeling.
But then, her pupils suddenly contracted as she sensed something and dodged to the side. Behind her, an entire row of trees collapsed like dominos, leaving a trail of destruction. She rolled to the ground and quickly took a stance, her gaze locking onto the low Marquess-stage devil who had just unleashed his technique. His attack, a wind blade, had obliterated everything in its path.
Sylphia felt sweat roll down her forehead as she realized she hadn’t even seen the devil cast his technique. All she had noticed was him casually swinging his hand, as if it were a simple wave. She hadn’t expected such a tremendous power to come from just that swing! This was the difference between the Viscount stage and the Marquess stage. Even though Sylphia had used her technique to boost her power, she was still, in the end, a Viscount-stage cultivator. While she could defeat Earl-stage cultivators, facing a Marquess stage was an entirely different matter and a whole other level.
The devils looked at Sylphia in surprise, amazed that she had managed to dodge the attack of a Marquess-stage cultivator. They then saw Sylphia fire arrows at them, but with a swift motion, she also summoned a Wooden Dragon to attack. However, the low Marquess-stage devil casually swept his hand again, instantly scattering the arrows with the wind and slicing the roots into pieces.
Sylphia didn’t give up and used her movement technique to confuse her enemies. She maneuvered through her surroundings, weaving between trees and firing arrows imbued with her wind laws.
However, she was stunned when one of the devils suddenly disappeared. By the time she realized where he was, it was already too late.
"Don’t blame me." She heard a man’s voice behind her, and a feeling of defeat gripped her heart. But just as the man was about to deliver the fatal blow with his palm aimed at Sylphia’s spine, his attack struck something hard even before it reached her body. It felt as if he had hit metal, though it was invisible.
He didn’t know if it was a talisman or something else, but he tried to attack Sylphia again. Sylphia had only a split second to dodge and cast another technique. She saw the incoming attack, but she still couldn’t avoid the second strike, which he delivered with his elbow. The movement of the middle Marquess-stage cultivator was still too fast for her, so she braced herself. She tried to cast her defensive technique, but it was too late, as his elbow was about to strike her ribs.
However, just as the attack almost hit her, the same thing happened: his strike seemed to hit an invisible metal plate on her body. There was no sound, only the sensation that his hand had struck something invisible.
Sylphia was also stunned because she was sure her defensive talisman hadn’t activated when this man attacked her. From the strangeness of the situation, she concluded that it was Aldrian who had protected her, intervening when an attack reached her. She couldn’t sense his presence here, but she knew he was watching her and protecting her.
"So, that’s why he said not to worry about anything and just fight to my heart’s content."
She then distanced herself from the man using her movement technique. However, the other devils also moved toward her and cast their techniques. Unable to do much against them, Sylphia decided to use another trick up her sleeve. She clasped her hands, and the surrounding energy suddenly gathered in the sky.
It shaped into clouds and turned into rain. The devils, still attempting to attack Sylphia but unable to due to the invisible shield protecting her, stopped their assault and looked up at the sky. The rain appeared ordinary, but they felt a pricking sensation on their bodies when the raindrops touched them. They looked at their clothes, which seemed to be burned, with signs of melting.
"Acid?" one of the devils thought, glancing at the sky. He then looked around, surprised to see that the acid rain seemed to affect only him and his comrade. Despite the rain touching everything, there was no visible destruction in the surroundings.
"What incredible control over her technique... Wait, this technique— rain of acid by elves. Doesn’t that mean this woman is from the Evergreen imperial family?" the middle Marquess-stage devil thought.
The elves are famous for their mastery over woods, water, and all elements connected to the forest. However, there is one technique that the imperial family of the elves wields, a technique that seeks the destruction of vast areas. This technique is difficult to control because once it is cast and the caster cannot control it, it brings devastation to the surrounding environment, including the forests that the elves hold dear.
The Rain of Acid, even within the Evergreen imperial family, is not a technique that all members can comprehend or master. Although Sylphia’s Rain of Acid only covers a small part of the area, allowing the devils here to escape with just their movement techniques, her control is quite impressive, targeting only them without affecting the environment.
The strength of the acid is also quite troublesome, as it leaves burn marks on their skin. If this technique were cast and touched Earl-stage cultivators or lower, they would witness a killing ground, with many victims having their bodies melted. It is truly a vicious technique, unbecoming of the peaceful nature of the elves.
The devils set aside their amazement and continued attacking Sylphia. When their physical attacks proved ineffective, they switched to using their elemental techniques. However, these attacks met the same fate as their physical ones, as they seemed to have no effect on her. The invisible shield blocked all forms of attack, even when they used their full strength without resorting to their devil forms.
Sylphia also tried to dodge and counter their attacks with her own techniques, all while controlling the Rain of Acid. However, as the fight dragged on, signs of exhaustion began to appear. She became much paler, and her control over her technique grew weaker. If it weren’t for the invisible shield, she would have already died a thousand times.
The Marquess-stage devils were growing increasingly irritated, unable to defeat a mere Viscount-stage cultivator. Despite there being two of them, they couldn’t even scratch Sylphia’s body. The invisible shield was incredibly strong; after repeated attacks, they still couldn’t break it. This only meant one thing: the invisible shield was capable of blocking the power of Marquess-stage cultivators.
Because of that, they decided to turn the fight into a battle of attrition. There was no way Sylphia could hold on if she depleted her energy first. The rule from that young man was to either defeat her or wear her down until she could no longer fight, so the latter was more suitable for this situation.
Sylphia also seemed to know what was on the minds of these devils, but she couldn’t do anything about it. From the start, Marquess-stage cultivators were too much for her to face. There was no way she could even fight one, let alone two, at this moment. However, thanks to this battle, her experience and proficiency in fighting opponents stronger than her were increasing.
As everyone expected, after a few minutes of back-and-forth attacks, Sylphia was the first to collapse. The rain stopped, and she slumped to the ground, gasping for air as though she were out of breath. Her body was drenched in sweat, and her skin had turned pale. At this moment, she was in her most vulnerable state, and even cultivators much weaker than her could kill her with ease.
As for the devils, they were still in good condition, having held back and only sought to wear Sylphia down, though they had expended some of their energy. It seemed they hadn’t really put much effort into the fight, as they still appeared fresh and not tired.
Suddenly, Aldrian appeared beside Sylphia, instantly lifting her and letting her lean against his body. He injected his energy into her as he smiled at her. Exhausted beyond measure, Sylphia weakly smiled back. His presence brought her a sense of relief and safety.
Aldrian then looked at the devils, who were watching him warily. With a simple gesture of his hand, he motioned for them to leave, and they immediately used their movement techniques to dash away from the area.
Sylphia watched the devils disappear before turning her gaze back to Aldrian.
"Are you really going to let them go? This isn’t like you," she asked.
Aldrian smiled warmly at her.
"Let them go? Like I would do that."
