Chapter 214: Chapter 208: Justice From Above

The Scorpion King’s terrifying compound eyes stared at the Steel Giant that had just descended from the sky.

It abandoned the prey within its grasp, let out a sharp screech, and smashed its two siege hammer-like pincers viciously toward the Freedom Gundam.

THUD!

Amid the dull thud of impact, an AT Field composed of a hexagonal lattice instantly deployed, completely blocking the immense force that could shatter steel.

"Not a bad reaction," Allen’s voice sounded. "Unfortunately for you, you have a new opponent."

Blue light flared in the Freedom Gundam’s eyes as it swung its Ship-Slicing Blade. Allen had already handed back control; when it came to fighting Scorpion Kings, the first time was for practice, the second time was for mastery.

BZZZZ—

The hum of high-frequency oscillation echoed across the battlefield as the blade’s edge precisely struck the joint of the Scorpion King’s right pincer.

CRACK!

The crystal shell armor, capable of withstanding second-tier Witchcraft, was cut with a deep gash by the High-Frequency Oscillation Blade, and ichor gushed out.

The Scorpion King, reeling in pain, swung its other pincer in a frenzied counterattack.

But the Freedom Gundam’s reaction speed was far beyond its imagination.

The mech tilted slightly to the side, deploying its AT Field again to deflect the attack. Immediately after, the five pairs of Dragon Cavalry wing-type Floating Cannons on its back spread out instantly.

PEW! PEW! PEW!

Ten eerie blue beams shot out from different angles, specifically targeting the Scorpion King’s joints, compound eyes, and the weak spots on its flanks.

"HISSS—!!"

The Scorpion King let out a pained screech. Its body was pierced in multiple places, and its movements visibly slowed.

The Freedom Gundam gave it no chance to breathe, pressing forward as its Ship-Slicing Blade slashed repeatedly, each strike accurately hitting the same spot—the base of the Scorpion King’s right pincer.

After three strikes... CRACK! The giant pincer finally gave way, breaking off at the joint and crashing heavily to the ground.

Meanwhile, the ground battle had descended into utter chaos.

Hundreds of Crystal Shell Giant Scorpions swarmed from the direction of the mine like a black tide, frantically assaulting the defensive line formed by thirty Spider Slayers.

PZHEW! PZHEW! PZHEW!

Their sniper modules unleashed a mad barrage of fire but were completely unable to pierce the giant scorpions’ carapaces. They could only aim for the compound eyes and mouthparts.

One Spider Slayer was approached by three giant scorpions at once and found itself surrounded while its Shadow Travel ability was on cooldown.

BOOM!

In the fiery explosion, the Golem was completely destroyed.

[Warning! Spider Slayer Unit 7 destroyed!]

[Warning! Spider Slayer Unit 12 destroyed!]

[Warning! Pacifist Unit 4 shield overload!]

Jarvis’s alerts sounded one after another.

Seven Pacifists stood at the forefront of the defensive line. Wielding spears modified from scorpion tails, they were like ancient heavy infantry, grimly holding back the first wave of the beast tide.

But there were simply too many giant scorpions.

An exceptionally large elite scorpion charged in front of a Pacifist PX-1, its massive pincer clamping down hard on the spear and giving it a sharp twist.

CRACK!

The spear snapped.

Immediately after, its other pincer smashed into the Golem’s chest armor.

BOOM!

The heavy Golem was knocked back several steps, a visible dent appearing on its chest plate.

High above, several of Allen’s mental threads were processing different information simultaneously. One of them noted that the ground defense was about to collapse.

’Activate Energy Regulation Formula.’

"Target: all ground combat units."

"Overload Mode, one hundred and twenty percent power output!"

An invisible wave of Magic Power surged from Allen, precisely infusing every Golem on the ground.

On all the fighting Golems, the Rune Circuits simultaneously lit up with a blinding blue light.

[Combat effectiveness increased: 30%!]

[Projected duration: 8 minutes!]

The eyes of the Pacifist that had just been knocked back instantly flared with light. It dug its legs in to steady itself, then threw a backhand punch that smashed into a giant scorpion’s head.

CRACK!

Under the force of the blow, the hard crystal shell armor shattered, and the scorpion’s head was blasted into a pile of mangled flesh.

The other Golems also seemed to have been injected with adrenaline.

The Spider Slayers’ movement speed skyrocketed, and they began leading the giant scorpions in circles.

But even so, the line was still collapsing.

There were simply too many giant scorpions.

「Ten minutes later.」

BOOM!

Pacifist No. 2 finally succumbed, swarmed by five giant scorpions. Their pincers, like hydraulic shears, tore its limbs apart with brute force.

Its heavy frame was torn to pieces.

[Pacifist units 2 and 4 destroyed!] 𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂

[Spider Slayer losses: 17 units!]

[Defensive line on the verge of collapse!]

Allen’s brow furrowed, but his voice remained calm. "Hold on. Two more minutes."

In the ruins of the workshop, Victor leaned against a broken wall, watching the blue and white giant battling in the sky and the Golems on the ground being destroyed one after another to protect him.

His face was ashen, his lips were chapped, and his eyes revealed an extremely complex mix of emotions.

There was the relief of having survived, but it was overshadowed by humiliation and resentment.

’Him, Victor Iron Flame, heir to the Tieyan Clan, being saved like this by his own rival?’

’And his rival had even quoted a price—five thousand Magic Stones per kill?’

Although he knew it was a joke, he couldn’t hold on any longer. His vision went black, and he fainted.

Just then, Jarvis’s voice sounded in Allen’s ear like a heavenly chorus.

[Commander, the First Legion has reached the designated combat coordinates.]

A cold smirk touched the corner of Allen’s mouth.

"Excellent."

"Let’s send our friends a little welcoming gift."

"Purgatory Launch Platform, full salvo. Target: the main scorpion swarm from the direction of the mine."

In an instant, the sky was shrouded in the shadow of death.

Two hundred and forty Red Lotus Type I Magic Missiles tore across the sky, crashing down like a meteor shower onto the main scorpion swarm surging from the mine.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The ceaseless explosions instantly transformed the earth into a molten purgatory.

A terrifying shockwave swept through, and hundreds of giant scorpions were roasted alive in the sea of fire.

Temperatures reaching thousands of degrees melted the ground to lava, completely clearing the entire outer area.

Immediately after, six Storm Falcons came screaming in from the direction of the volcano, locking onto several exceptionally large elite individuals.

WHOOSH—

Aerial bombs detached from their pylons, striking their targets with precision.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

Faced with this absolute deluge of firepower, the elite giant scorpions, which could contend with Official Wizards, had no chance to resist. Their internal organs were blasted right out of their bodies.

Then, the ground began to tremble.

"WAHAHAHAHA..." The maniacal laughter of Inferno Fiend No. 2 rang out.

A fifteen-meter-tall giant strode in from the direction of the volcano, each step leaving a deep footprint in the ground.

Behind it was a steel tide composed of one hundred Spider Slayers and Golems.

[The First Legion has entered the field.]

"Objective: divide and encircle the remaining enemy forces."

Allen’s command was cold and decisive.

The steel tide plunged into the battlefield like a sharp dagger.

Inferno Fiend No. 2 shattered a giant scorpion’s carapace with a single punch, the follow-through so powerful it blasted a large crater in the ground.

Five PX-1s advanced side-by-side, while the Spider Slayers went all-out, continuously sniping the exposed organs of the Crystal Shell Giant Scorpions.

The battle was instantly reversed.

In the center of the battlefield, the Scorpion King, which had lost a pincer, seemed to realize the situation was hopeless.

It let out a defiant roar as its entire body began to swell.

[Warning! Target is burning its life essence! Magic Power readings are rising sharply!]

’Trying to self-destruct?’ Allen’s eyes grew cold. "Too late."

The Dragon Cavalry on the Freedom Gundam’s back instantly returned to their positions, and the output of its singularity engine surged to its absolute limit.

The mech became a streak of blue and white light, closing the distance in the momentary gap before the Scorpion King’s energy could erupt.

The Ship-Slicing Blade came down from above, cleaving downwards with unstoppable force.

BZZZZ—

The high-frequency oscillation reached its peak.

CRACK!

The Scorpion King’s massive head was split right down the middle!

The energy that was about to explode lost control, rampaging within the Scorpion King’s headless corpse before finally erupting from the stump of its neck as a pillar of green light that shot toward the heavens.

The pillar of light lasted for three seconds before extinguishing.

The Scorpion King’s corpse crashed to the ground.

[Target: Crystal Shell Scorpion King. Life signs have disappeared. Kill confirmed.]

On the battlefield, the remaining giant scorpions were swiftly wiped out by the First Legion.

Ten minutes later, the sporadic fighting ended as the last Crystal Shell Giant Scorpion was torn to shreds by the Inferno Fiend.

"Demon Eye, scan the battlefield. Search for any trace of the Black Wizard."

[Scanning... No abnormal Magic Power fluctuations detected.]

However, Allen’s gaze did not relax. He scanned his surroundings—the air, the ground—but found no sign of the Black Wizard.

"He didn’t show up?"

A hint of gravity entered Allen’s voice.

From beginning to end, the Black Wizard hidden in the shadows never revealed himself.

They hid behind the scenes, leaving only this ravaged battlefield.

"First Legion, retreat to Zone 18 immediately!"

"Abandon the spoils, retrieve Victor, and return to the workshop at full speed!"

"Storm Falcon squadron, cover our withdrawal!"

He didn’t hesitate for a second.

’His mentor had made it very clear: this was a rescue mission, not a direct confrontation with the Black Wizard.’

’Since his opponent hadn’t shown himself, he was obviously waiting for an opportunity.’

’And right now, his Golem Legion had just been through a major battle and was at its weakest.’

’If the enemy was truly a minion of the Son of the Abyss, then they would be extremely difficult to deal with.’

’Retreat!’

’We have to retreat!’

A massive transport ship descended rapidly. Alchemy Servants rushed into the ruins and carried the unconscious Victor aboard.

The First Legion began an orderly retreat, with Inferno Fiend No. 2 bringing up the rear.

"Odyssey, return to base."

The Floating Ship slowly ascended, with the Freedom Gundam and the Storm Falcon squadron following close behind.

On the ground, the First Legion quickly assembled and receded like the tide.

The entire process was clean and efficient, with no hesitation.

Not long after the fleet departed, a figure slowly emerged from the shadows of the workshop ruins.

It was a man in a black Wizard Robe, his face hidden behind a white mask, his expression unreadable.

He watched the departing fleet and chuckled softly.

"Interesting..."