In the airspace not far from the Floating Fortress.
Inside the command center of the airship.
Third Prince Elvin Red Maple stared through the specialized reinforced crystal porthole, his face ashen as he looked at the Demon Army that blotted out the sky.
He saw the dark portal, which resembled the gaping maw of an abyss, continuously vomiting forth demon soldiers.
He was scared out of his wits.
The last shred of pride and dignity belonging to the Royal Family had long since been crushed into powder by boundless terror.
“Quick! Quick! Start all engines! Retreat from this airspace at maximum speed! I command you!”
His shrill, hysterical screams echoed throughout the narrow cabin, filled with unquestionable panic.
The captain of the Royal Guard, a middle-aged knight who had survived countless battles, knew that fleeing now would deal a devastating blow to the morale of the fortress defenders still fighting a bloody battle below.
However, under the prince’s near-mad orders and the consideration of his own safety, he could only grit his teeth and helplessly execute the command.
Prioritizing the prince’s life was his primary duty.
“All units, attention! Protect His Highness and retreat at full speed!”
On the edges of the Floating Fortress’s deck, several officers were fighting bloody battles, trying to buy more time for the nobles to evacuate.
They witnessed the airship—the symbol of the Royal Family’s glory—abandon them without hesitation and flee in a panic.
In an instant, an indescribable sense of despair and desolation flashed through their eyes.
Hope had been snuffed out by the very Royal Family they served.
Prince Elvin’s flight would undoubtedly shatter the will to resist for the remaining defenders.
***
On the deck of the Floating Fortress.
The light at Su Nian’s fingertips never ceased.
The air was thick with the pungent scent of sulfur mixed with charred remains.
The savage roars of demon warriors and the dying wails of human soldiers intertwined into a symphony of despair.
The deck beneath her feet shook violently from continuous explosions, as if the entire city in the sky could fall apart at any moment.
One Illusive Flamewater Barrier after another left her hands.
A torrent of energy, weaving together scorching heat and extreme cold, exploded within the Demon Army, creating ripple after ripple of destruction.
Shattered bone armor and charred limbs splashed everywhere along with foul-smelling demon blood.
However, every time she cleared an area with an attack, it was filled back up almost instantly by even more demons surging from the portal.
It was futile.
Powerless.
This feeling, like a cold tide, slowly submerged her heart.
She no longer had any spare Magic to cast Healing Magic.
Furthermore, the soldiers who fell within the demonic wave were instantly overwhelmed by countless hideous figures, torn to shreds by claws and warblades.
Even if she exhausted her Magic to heal them, she could not pull them out of that swamp of death.
‘This won’t work. There are too many demon soldiers. It’s impossible to kill them all.’
Her gaze swept past the endless demonic tide in front of her and locked onto the sky.
The continuously expanding dark portal hung across the cold night like a hideous wound oozing pus and blood.
The demons emerging later from the gate possessed increasingly powerful auras and even more terrifying forms.
The situation was worse than she had imagined.
Su Nian sank her consciousness into the System and took another look at the crimson quest notification.
[Mission Objective: Survive the Demon Army’s offensive and find a way to close the portal.]
‘Close the portal…’ Su Nian’s pupils suddenly constricted, ‘So that’s the key.’
The goal of the System mission was not for her to kill every demon here.
It was to close that portal.
As long as the portal existed, the Demon Army would be endless.
No matter how strong she and that Horned Demon Bastard were, there would come a moment when their Magic was exhausted.
When that time came, the only ending awaiting them was to be swallowed by the demonic tide.
‘It must be closed!’
This thought was like a bolt of lightning, clearing all the confusion and anxiety in her heart.
Having found a direction, Su Nian’s mind reached a state of high concentration instantly.
A second later.
The Magic at her fingertips gushed out at an unprecedented speed.
She fired three consecutive shots of Illusive Flamewater Barrier in a triangular formation.
The energy projectiles precisely cleared out dozens of flying demons circling in the airspace directly below the portal.
She had temporarily cleared an open area.
Now was the time!
“Lingyuan Flame Barrier!”
The Saint Level Magic within Su Nian’s body erupted.
An elemental goddess phantom, dozens of meters high with a core of blazing fire and a flowing surface of azure water, suddenly took shape above the Floating Fortress.
That grand and holy posture caused all the humans fighting bloody battles on the deck to subconsciously look up with shock and hope.
Under Su Nian’s control, this god-like Divine Statue slowly raised its giant arms composed of water and fire.
An Illusive Flamewater Barrier—larger and purer than any before—rapidly condensed in the palm of the “goddess.”
The two opposing elements of water and fire, forcibly merged by Saint Level Magic, let out a piercing hum.
Finally, they transformed into a pillar of pure, destructive energy over 3 meters in diameter.
The air around the pillar distorted violently.
“Go!” With Su Nian’s sharp cry, the elemental goddess violently hurled the pillar of energy.
This lethal strike carried the power to destroy heaven and earth.
The mere aftershocks instantly tore apart several demons blocking the path as it shot accurately toward the ominous dark gate in the night sky.
Everyone held their breath.
However, what happened next made everyone feel as if they had been plunged into an ice cellar.
The terrifying pillar of energy, which was enough to instantly vaporize a small mountain, hit the spatial portal without making a sound or creating a single ripple.
It simply passed through the portal as if passing through a hollow projection, disappearing into the deeper darkness behind the gate…
As a flash of light appeared in the distance, it signified that the world-shaking strike had failed to hit the portal.
‘Magic attacks… are ineffective?’
Su Nian froze completely.
‘How could this be…’
Her strongest offensive method was actually useless against that portal.
After a brief silence, a heaven-shaking, mocking roar erupted from the Demon Army.
‘What should I do?’ Su Nian’s heart sank to the bottom.
She saw that even that Horned Demon Bastard was frowning slightly; clearly, the situation was not optimistic.
Just then, a raspy and crazed voice pierced through the chaotic battlefield and reached her ears clearly.
It was the Demon Race language.
“It’s that human female!”
It was the demon overseer with a single horn on its head.
“Her magic is the strongest! Kill her! Master shall grant us glory!”
‘That unpleasant title again. These damned horned demons.’
Fire and chill intertwined in Su Nian’s ice-blue eyes.
She snapped her head around, her gaze piercing the commanding demon overseer like a sharp sword.
‘Now isn’t the time to deal with you.’
Su Nian forced herself to calm down and re-examined the bizarre portal.
At the same time, the girl maintained her combat state while thinking rapidly.
‘A spatial portal… It can’t be hit; attacks pass right through it.’
‘Space…’
‘It seems only space-related abilities can deal with this portal.’
Just then, Little Violet’s slightly anxious, childish voice suddenly rang out in Su Nian’s mind.
‘Master! Master, can you hear me? It’s Little Violet!’
This voice was like a ray of light piercing through the fog of despair, making Su Nian’s spirit surge.
‘That’s right! Space abilities—isn’t that exactly what Little Violet has?’