Doomsday Pillars

Thundering sounds caused by the special bullets shot by the firearms Alex and Aria used travelled through the air, creating a strange yet harmonious dynamic in this battle. Every time they heard those deafening gunshots, the fighters, who were busy fighting their own battles, could see gargoyles fall from the sky, followed by a loud thud as their bodies hit the ground.

As far as one's eye could see, currently the number of fighters and the number of gargoyles who were still fighting against them began to change. The fighters were slowly but surely starting to get their momentum back. However, this situation didn't include the dozens of other gargoyles that were seen approaching from the distance toward their battlefield location.

As more and more gargoyles approached and attacked the group, the fighters, who were about to gain their momentum, were pushed back once again by the gargoyles coming their way.

One hour later, without realizing it, the fighters that were still fighting vigorously were already pressured by the huge number of gargoyles until the previously rhombus-shaped formation turned into a circle. At the moment, the gargoyles were surrounding and attacking the fighters from all sides, giving them no chance to take a breath.

From the sky one could see that the formation was divided into two: the inner circle, where the long-range fighters were positioned, and the outer circle, where the close combat fighters were battling. The long-range fighters continued to hurl their spells at the flying gargoyles, while the fighters who had abilities and weapons specialized in close combat and survivability fought with the fallen gargoyles.

In this precarious situation, where they were attacked from all directions, the fighters began to show their team capability as well as their individual abilities. Of course, among this crowd of fighters, it was the middle stage Sky realm Magus fighters who stood out more than the others.

All representative groups from each country obviously had their own unique and extraordinary fighters. However, the leaders of the representative groups wanted to rate Alex's chosen fighters, to perceive the prowess of the people chosen by the man, who was said to come from the future and was able to complete the Doomsday Pillar's challenge with the highest score.

On one side of the outer circle, a very prominent fighter with a giant silver colored claymore with a black handle was seen standing with the American fighters. The man was standing next to Winter, who wielded a sword and shield on his hand.

This man, who gripped the massive sword nearly three meters long with his two hands, was fighting fearlessly in the front line, cutting and killing every gargoyles he laid his eyes on. This man, who had an ability named [Ares Strength], an ability no less prominent than Winter's [Warrior Spirit], could be seen wrecking havoc among the gargoyle horde. And coupled with the new tier 3 sword made by Alex, the man's lethality shot through the roof.

[Silver Claymore - Tier 3 Weapon]

[Special Skill - Silver Layer]

Combined with his metal element spell [Silver Body], the strength and sharpness of the sword doubled, when the special skill [Silver Layer] activated at the same time. Every slash coming from the man was able to easily cut through the gargoyles' tenacious bodies, sending chills down the other fighters, who saw the spectacle. The man was Arief, the strongest fighter of Alex's group.

At the other side of the battle, a Russian man was seen fighting against the gargoyles. The man was Sergei who, although Russian, had always been part of Indonesian fighters from the very beginning. Sergei was currently swinging towards the incoming gargoyles as he used his favorite [Earth Crusher]. The gargoyles hit by the hammer immediately smashed into pieces, while the wind blasts created by the momentum of the hammer blew up the line of the gargoyles in front of him, injuring them in the process.

In the middle of the formation, Theo with his 5 flying swords also joined the attack, as the swords swiftly flew towards their target. Even though these swords were not enough to kill the gargoyles in one attack, Theo decided to order his 5 swords to target the wings of the gargoyles who had fallen to not let the gargoyles couldn't fly up again, making them easy targets for the other fighters.

Daisy and Tommy, who were both in the middle of the circle, also did not remain silent. They casted spells that could summon spirits. Daisy summoned an eagle spirit that shone brightly, while Tommy summoned a two meter tall darkness spirit. The eagle spirit immediately attacked and chased the flying gargoyles, while the darkness spirit advanced to the front line to help the struggling fighters. While their summons were busy fighting against the gargoyles, the two of them also started helping the others using the tier 3 short knife and a revolver Alex gave them each.

The most intense fighting took place around the blitzkrieg, which were divided into 4 groups for better mobility, each with a dozen fighters. These four blitzkrieg groups moved independently outside the circle to reinforce and help areas under too much pressure. They also acted like sharp knives that stabbed through the enemy ranks, creating chaos wherever they passed. When their speed buffs ended, they returned to the circle to regroup and rebuff before striking once again like deadly spears.

When Alex scanned the battlefield, while continuing to fire his two revolvers, he saw a group of gargoyles fighting a blitzkrieg group dominated by Egyptian fighters led by a man with a tattoo covering his face. The man, who was currently fighting using two machetes, was named Ardeth. Jerry who also saw the group immediately approach them with the aim of helping.

Ardeth, who saw Jerry attacking the gargoyles, nodded his head while continuing to swing his machetes. Thanks to their common element, the two men's fighting methods were very similar and could even complement and help each other.

The second blitzkrieg group that caught Alex's eyes was the one consisting mainly of fighters from Greece, where half of them were Lightning element Magi. In that group, Alex placed Makali, the shaman from Papua. The man effortlessly killed any gargoyles he came across thanks to his distinctive dance-like sword style that completely befuddled the gargoyle. The gargoyles could only stand there in confusion as Makali unleashed his swordplay and began to slash their body.

The third blitzkrieg group was filled by the fighters from China led by Christina. Alex could see a powerful blast of attacks in the distance exactly where the group was, creating a sea of flames and burning every gargoyles in their path. Next to Christina was another fierce man fighting with a Flaming spear. Rama the pencak silat fighters were able to closely catch up to the firebirds group.

The fourth group was dominated by fighters from France, with their leader being a fighter wearing full plate armor and a long sword like a medieval knight. This knight-like fighter was named Clement, a handsome brown haired man, who could have easily been imagined to seduce innocent young women in ancient Europe. Unexpectedly, this man was not a Sky realm Magus. However, he was lucky to have a battle art skill [Dash] which could increase his speed up to two times.

Together with him, a woman was seen fighting using an iron chain that emitted a shadowy glow. In this woman's hand, the chain skillfully and flexibly moved around the gargoyles, binding their legs and arms, while its sharp tip struck the gargoyles' weak spots such as the eyes and mouth. This iron chain was a tier 3 weapon artifact Alex created for this blonde woman.

[Darkness Chain - Tier 3 Weapon]

[Special Skill - Vile Curse]

A skill that weakened the creatures bound with it.

Watching the blond woman fight with such elegance, Clement couldn't help but say, "I've never seen a lady as fierce and beautiful as you."

The young woman giggled at the man's words. "Hehehe… Thank you, handsome. You're not too bad either," said the woman before adding, "Too bad you are French."

Throughout the battle, Clement always tried to show off his 'superior' strength in front of Cindy. Unfortunately for him, the man could only stand there dumbfounded as soon as Cindy used her transformation skill, showing a strength he couldn't match.

This battle went on for several hours until they finally managed to kill all the gargoyles that attacked them. The group then quickly dispatched the scouts to find a resting place. A few minutes later, one of the scouts found a large ice cave not far from their location and the group headed straight for it.

When they arrived at the location of the ice cave, Alex immediately instructed the fighters to rest for a while. While he watched the fighters resting, Alex's mind estimated the distance between their current location and the last gate of the Abyss. A smile appeared on his face when he finished estimating.

'We're almost there.'