Varian reappeared in the desert hills.
Numerous hills that previously stood tall were now leveled. The sparse vegetation was destroyed.
Deep craters ranging from tens of meters to even a hundred meter were formed all across the place.
Sarah was nowhere to be found.
All that was left were traces of blood and gore.
"I knew it." Varian removed the face mask and sighed.
"What happened, master?" Boo chirped in.
Varian clutched his forehead and played out the situation in his mind.
The Astor Clan members faced the battle field and entering the Abyssal's bases.
Or coordinate with the Abyssals frontal attack with their sneak attacks. Astor Clan members realized their only way of survival was Abyssal Victory.
If the Abyssals lose, every single one of them would be hunted down and wiped out.
They had no choice and started their attacks on the humans.
Since the cadets were specifically waiting for them, they were quickly spotted and fierce battles were staged.
"They pitched Astor members against us." Varian took a deep breath and observed his comm.
Boo played the videos of his teammates.
Sarah's current location.
After she ended the Level 6 Abyssals that sneaked into the border, Sarah wanted to join the battle.
Before she even started, she sensed the arrival of the Astor Clan. Her eyes turned cold and she sprinted back to the nearest Astor Clan members.
She had to face around thirty members, which even had three level 6s.
As he expected, after cursing them as "Traitor Scum", she went all out.
The cadets from the Military Faction all had a similar reaction.
"Traitors."
"Bitches."
"Abyss Lap Dogs."
Even Dhruv, who usually looked calm and collected hurled a rain of abuses as he took on forty members.
Since they were fleeing continuously, the condition of Astor Clan members was not optimal.
Yet they more than made up for it with their desperation. This was their only chance of survival.
All bets were off.
On the other side, Xander Faction grouped together and under the leadership of Charles, they clashed with the largest Astor Clan group.
Williamson guided others and they all went for a killing.
The other factions followed suit.
Regardless of their intentions, the end result was the same.
Every cadet was fighting the Astor Clan. Their priority wasn't the war. To them, it was one of the countless wars happening across the Solar System.
Their mission was to intercept the Astor Clan remnants. The performance of their faction would also be evaluated based on that criteria.
Things seemed normal until then but taking the female officer's words into account.
"This war is just a smoke screen. We are the true target." Varian said and looked up at the sky.
There were two orange spheres hanging in the sky. The two suns. With them, there was also a red crack. The Demon Abyss.
"I admire the one who thought of this plan. The Astor Clan is just a bait." Varian smiled and took off the face mask Boo gave him.
Unlike his fellow cadets, he did not actively seek the Astor Clan remnants.
Varian did nothing and simply waited.
After a few minutes, a couple of silhouettes appeared in the distance.
"Here he is!"
"Do you think we can't recognize you if you use a mask?"
"Where the fuck did you hide for so long, Varian?"
One after another, Abyssals appeared in the distance.
'So they had hacked the surveillance.' Varian wasn't too surprised.
Since all this was a bait, the Abyssals were prepared enough.
"Huh?" The leading Abyssal frowned. "Where are the Astor Clan members? Have you killed them all already?"
Even though he said that, there was no trace of fluctuation in his tone.
"Does it matter?" Varian yawned and asked.
The Abyssals were taken aback by Varian's lazy attitude. But they were in no hurry and laughed. "It's a pity to miss two humans fighting each other. Our original plan was to use those Astors to tire out you guys."
His grey skin darkened and his lips curled. "Then we can kill you like the dogs you are."
"Tsk. You even fooled our management." Varian snorted in annoyance.
"It seems you are trying to play it cool. Don't worry, even if you are not tired out by the Astors, taking you out is easy." The leading Abyssal pointed at Varian and used his thumb to swipe at his neck.
Varian gauged the strength of his enemies. Since they were the first to appear, they were the closest ones to him.
Fortunately, not the strongest.
One High level 5, Ten Mid Level 5s and Thirty Low Level 5s.
"Not even a Level 6." Varian muttered in disappointment.
"Don't think too highly of yourself." The leading Abyssal seemed to be provoked as he gritted his teeth and pointed at Varian.
"Originally, my boss, a level 6 was assigned for you. But your stupid seniors killed him and we came for you." He said and mocked. "Do you think you got lucky?"
Varian shrugged. He was completely treating them as air.
Veins popped on the Abyssal's head and he gritted his teeth. "You are unlucky. My boss will kill you with a slap. But I, I will peel your skin and break your bones. When you beg for death, I'll heal you. Only to torment you again and again."
Varian's nonchalant gaze cooled down. Instead of cursing, he just smiled. "I wanted to fight your boss to be honest."
But this was also good. For the current him, this was a perfect opportunity to not only test, but also increase his strength by a notch.
'Status'
[Body Path (Enhanced) Level 5: 300/2000 (+250)
Space Path Level 3: 400/400 (+260)
Lightning Path Level 4: 400/1000 (+340)
Morpher Path Level 3: 300/400 (+150)
Mind Path Level 3: 0/400 (+140: Advanced from Level 2)]
Even though he expected it, he was still surprised by the progress.
In the war, he used his Body and Lightning powers the most. He even fought a couple of injured high level 5s.
This resulted in the great progress in Body and Lightning Paths.
On the other hand, he fought multiple Space Awakeners. Even though they annoyed him most of the time, it was a blessing in disguise. He directly reached the peak of Level 3.
His injuries were the only thing that helped him in Morpher Path. But looking at his progress, they were plenty.
Finally, Mind Path. He was in the midst of the battle when he advanced.
Varian felt that if he wanted to, he could interfere with the Abyssal in front and halt his brain process.
It was like blocking space, but on mind. Of course, the higher the difference in strength, the lower the effect.
Conventionally, a Level 5 Abyssal needed a Level 5 Mind Awakener.
But he was anything but conventional.
Despite them being low level, Varian had three divine paths that could be used to interfere with his enemy.
Space Path. Using Space binding and solidifying the space around the enemy, thus restricting the enemy's movements.
Lighting Path. The after effect of a lightning attack would numb the enemy's body.
Mind Path. Direct interference with the enemy's brain. Slowing down or even halting the commands from brain.
'If I used the three of them, I wonder how far I can go?' Varian's eyes flickered. He snapped out of his thoughts as the air turned chaotic.
"You can try running. I want to see how far you can go." The leading Abyssal's aura rose and every abyssal behind him followed.
Varian chuckled. "I was thinking how far I can go as well. Just—"
'Boo, block off the surveillance and all signals.'
As his lips curled up to a terrifying smile, the thirty one Abyssal in front of him felt a chill down their spine.
"How far can I go because of your sacrifice."