Chapter 626: Chapter 359, Chaotic Vanguard_2
Then, in a split second, one died.
The new recruit clearly saw the sword that slashed towards him, extremely fast and precise. He struggled to keep up, trying to block sword with sword. Suddenly, he felt an overwhelming force, stronger than the Battle Group Leader’s, a force he had only experienced during training.
He staggered backward from the slash, but saw that his opponent was unshaken and immediately followed up with another sword strike.
He lifted his chainsaw sword, clenched his teeth, and summoned all his strength, prepared to fight desperately, hoping his two fellow warriors would catch up and relieve some of the pressure. But in the next moment, the enemy suddenly changed tactics, causing his strike to miss entirely.
As his strike missed, the Phoenix Warrior had only one thought in his heart: “Damn it.”
It was also the last thought in his life.
…
He had put all his effort into using his bulkiest shoulder guard, which often served as a shield in tactical maneuvers, to block the sword. But the blade was even faster than he imagined, slipping through the gap where the shoulder guard met his upper arm, piercing his shoulder, severing his scapula, and cutting through his neck vertebra.
His body quickly went limp, and apart from blinking, he could do nothing else as his consciousness rapidly dissipated.
The last scene he witnessed was his two brothers-in-arms, roaring as they fought the Chaotic Vanguard head-on.
And these two, their resistance lasted just a bit longer than the brother who was taken down in seconds by the previous moves.
They arrived together, at least able to cover for each other.
But the key point was that the movements of the Chaotic Vanguard had become somewhat sluggish, and it occasionally experienced ‘lag’.
That was Henrik Larson, the only think tank member of the Phoenix Battle Group currently on the field.
He had unleashed his awakened Spiritual Energy power onto the body of the Chaotic Vanguard.
It was not enough to harm it, but Larson was well aware of his own abilities. He was far from the great power The Emperor could wield. In terms of Spiritual Energy intensity alone, he was on par with the commander of the Storm Mage Corps, Dress—a B-grade Spiritual Energy user was his limit.
But like willpower, Spiritual Energy could be fully utilized to great effect.
He was very pragmatic, not seeking to deal damage but to obstruct.
And it was indeed his Spiritual Energy power that inflicted the first actual damage on the Chaotic Vanguard—and quite a serious one at that.
The two Phoenix warriors encircling it finally fell one by one as the Chaotic Vanguard, despite the Spiritual Energy interference, dealt with them. But, at that moment, a sudden surge of Spiritual Energy power stopped it for an instant.
A Titan’s heavy punch came crashing down.
It had broken free from the Spiritual Energy control, but could not dodge the fist, taking a solid punch squarely.
Then, getting up from the ground, it leapt up and climbed onto the Titan, severing its fist as well.
At the same time, Matins and Rizzo finally arrived.
Another strong burst of Spiritual Energy control ensued, but the prepared Chaotic Vanguard was not frozen in place this time; it was merely slowed down. Its rust-streaked greatsword clashed solidly against Matins in the Terminator Power Armor, wielding a power sword.
Neither gained the upper hand.
Looking at the monster that was only slightly shorter than the Terminator, Matins could hardly imagine why it contained such immense strength within its body.
He could barely match its strength, but the loss of agility in the Terminator Power Armor was a disadvantage.
But he was not a greenhorn of the Phoenix; his exceptional swordsmanship and vast combat experience taught him how to cope with the current situation.
Moreover, Priest Rizzo was assisting by his side.
And with Larson stealthily using his Spiritual Energy to tamper with the monster now and then from a distance, the battle between the two parties was at a stalemate for the moment.
Meanwhile, inspired by the rallying call of the Chaotic Vanguard, the Demons regrouped, some opening fire, some charging.
But on the human side, the main force wasn’t compromised. Although one Titan was half-disabled, the other two were still active, pouring out intense firepower. Nine Knight Mechas also held their ground on the front line.
But because of the presence of the Chaotic Vanguard, the power that weakened the laws of the physical universe was expanding. The Demons charging ahead were not quite like it, almost immune to gunfire and shelling, but they, too, received significant damage reduction.
Although most of the monsters fell on the charge, many valiant carriers of plague, the Forsaken, and Chaos Spawn made it to close quarters.
The Phoenix, Battle Nuns, and the Fangs engaged these beasts in hand-to-hand combat. Overall, humanity held the advantage.
And the nine Mecha Knights of the alliance started to “shine.”
Each was armed with a massive chainsaw sword to match their size, and with firm and reliable ground control, they could freely exhibit knightly swordsmanship. Large-creature intruders, such as the rotting flesh beasts, were chopped into pieces after a few cuts by two or three Mecha Knights; for regular-sized enemies, a sweep of the huge chainsaw swords often obliterated a swath of the enemy.
Many Demons were destroyed beneath the blades of mankind.
The three types of elite warriors in Powered Armor were equally adept with their chainsaw swords and combat blades, their killing efficiency not slower than bullets.
However, although they were still efficiently slaughtering the enemies of The Emperor, their formation could no longer advance.
The Chaotic Vanguard was merely held back, tying up the two strongest forces on their side, and the entire team was blocked at the front by the huge demon army it had inspired.
In the brutal close-quarters combat, no matter how strong the human warriors were, casualties were inevitable.
If this battle turned into one of attrition here, the elite but numerically inferior human forces would undoubtedly face defeat.
But Matins had never intended it to be so.
He was waiting for something else.
And that something happened soon.
Not far away, at the location of the Demon Engine they seemed unlikely to break through, a violent explosion took place.
The explosion originated from within, and an internal blast even ripped apart the flesh wall on the outside.
The multitude of monsters trying to squeeze out of the flesh wall also vanished in smoke.
Then, a group of about thirty Battle Nuns clad in green and white charged in from the enemy’s rear.
Against common Demons, these fierce women were cutting them down one stroke at a time.
Among them, the most dazzling was their leader, Georgette.
This Battle Group Leader, wielding a holy golden halberd, moved swiftly, cutting down every creature daring to block her way. At the same time, a pair of faint, unobtrusive but genuinely visible golden wings spread out behind her.
Although she could not yet fly, her speed in the melee was incredibly fast.
Several Mecha Knights and a Titan opened fierce fire, welcoming the arrival of the battle sisters.
Without the continuous replenishment of their numbers, the ranks of the Demon army thinned and were eventually breached.
Upon Georgette’s arrival, she joined the siege against the Chaotic Vanguard without a word, wielding her holy golden halberd.
With this strong reinforcement, Matins and Rizzo both felt much relief.
In contrast, the Chaotic Vanguard now seemed clumsy and ineffectual.
Not only was it disrupted by Larson’s distant Spiritual Energy but also, with Georgette’s arrival and the illumination of the holy golden light, the evil power that supported its strength was suppressed, leading to a decline in its power and agility.
And the one to deliver the final, finishing blow was Prince Eureka.
This Mecha Knight pilot, after ending the battle in front of him, came to support. He leaped high into the air, and with the force of his descent, aimed the massive chainsaw sword at the powerful Demon, which Matins had chopped one leg off with a powered sword but was still resisting stubbornly.
Under this sword strike, the Demon, unable to dodge, was torn to pieces by the six-meter-long giant sword.