234: Falling to the ground

The fighting on the Kalazange Great Plain had long since lost its initial explosive power, evolving into a suffocating war of attrition.

The roar of energy persisted, but it no longer possessed the earth-shattering intensity of the battle's beginning; it was more like two dying behemoths tearing at each other, each collision accompanied by heavy gasps and a crumbling weakness.

The lava luster on Saras's body had dimmed significantly. Every swipe of his giant claw no longer brought forth a torrent that incinerated everything in its path, but rather resembled the dying embers of a spent force—still scorching hot, but lacking that peerless, overwhelming might.

His heavy breathing sounded like an old bellows, each inhalation accompanied by a hissing noise that scorched the air; clearly, he was suffering from immense exhaustion.

Kuta's situation was slightly better; it remained hovering, but the energy beams shot from the ends of its limbs were far less frequent and powerful than before.

Deep within its cold compound eyes, a rare, faint trace of fatigue flickered. Maintaining such large-scale, high-intensity precision sniping was an equally heavy burden for it.

The situation on the "Weak Alliance" side was even more dismal.

Many High-ranking Officials were wounded, their energy fluctuations chaotic and unbearable. The previously organized joint front had become loose and disorganized, held together only by a sense of unwillingness and an obsession with the token of pioneering.

The warriors under their command were falling in droves, and the survivors were mostly wounded, their eyes filled with exhaustion and despair.

The operations to pursue those "Wanderers" had also become increasingly perfunctory.

The forces sent out grew weaker each time, and the pursuit distances became shorter and shorter.

Anyone could see that both "The Strong Ones" and the "Weak Alliance" had reached the brink of exhaustion.

"Bastards... these damn flies!" Saras once again futilely blasted away a wave of harassment from the "Weak Alliance," unable to stop himself from letting out a low, angry roar.

This chaotic battle had turned into a quagmire with no winners.

Logically speaking, this was the perfect moment for those "Wanderers," who had been hovering at the edge of the battlefield and waiting in ease, to come out and clean up the mess.

Whether it was Saras, Kuta, or the remnants of the "Weak Alliance," they were now like fish on a chopping block, utterly fragile.

Yet, strangely, those few High-ranking Officials who had been keeping their distance, after easily shaking off another token pursuit, simply stayed far away at the edge of the plain, watching coldly from the sidelines.

They were like a flock of experienced vultures, patiently waiting for the prey to take its last breath; they would not strike early, even if the prey had no power to resist.

This eerie stillness made those High-ranking Officials who were still struggling on the battlefield feel a strong sense of unease.

But at this moment, they had no energy left to think too much.

Finally, the straw that broke the camel's back appeared.

Among the "Weak Alliance," one High-ranking Official was the first to fall from the sky due to excessive consumption of energy and spirit.

Thud!

A muffled sound broke the brief stalemate on the battlefield.

This High-ranking Official of the "Weak Alliance," who had fallen first, slammed heavily into the cracked earth, kicking up a cloud of dust.

His limbs twitched a few times before falling still, leaving only chaotic energy flickering on his body like the faint light of a dying candle.

This seemed to be a signal.

Immediately following, with only a few breaths of interval.

Boom!

On the other side, a High-ranking Official belonging to the camp of The Strong Ones saw the lightning surrounding his massive body suddenly extinguish. Without energy support, his huge body plummeted uncontrollably, crushing a small patch of jagged rocks and likewise falling into a limp state.

One... then another...

Whether from the camp of The Strong Ones or the "Weak Alliance," those High-ranking Officials who had previously been so formidable fell from the sky one after another like dumplings, due to the double exhaustion of energy and spirit. Some crashed into the ground, others collapsed amidst the rubble; though not dead, they had all lost the ability to fight again, and even maintaining flight was a luxury.

"Lord!" "Protect the Lord!"

Almost the moment their respective leaders fell, the personal guard units belonging to the different High-ranking Officials, who had previously been fighting against warriors of other factions, unanimously abandoned their current enemies.

Like a tide, they rapidly retreated, rushing to their respective Lords at top speed and spontaneously forming airtight defensive circles. With their own bodies and remaining energy, they vigilantly guarded the entities in the center who had temporarily lost their combat ability.

For a moment, the sounds of slaughter on the Kalazange Great Plain suddenly subsided significantly.

In their place were countless gazes filled with vigilance and exhaustion.

Those High-ranking Officials who had collapsed to the ground, struggling even to move, now had livid faces, their eyes burning with raging fury.

"Bastards... those damn... vultures!" The ice-crystal High-ranking Official who had fallen first struggled to lift half of his head, directing a hoarse, bellows-like curse at the few figures still hovering and watching from the edge of the plain, "Just... just know how to hide in the back... cowards who pick up scraps!"

"Cough... cough..." Another High-ranking Official collapsed in a pile of rubble coughed violently, spitting out bodily fluids mixed with energy debris. He glared venomously into the distance, "Wait... when I recover... I'll be the first... to slaughter you opportunistic scum!"

"Despicable... shameless..."

"Cowards who only know how to take advantage of others!"

The angry curses rose and fell, filled with unwillingness and resentment. They had fought with their lives, fought until they were completely exhausted, only to seemingly end up doing the work for someone else's benefit.

And those "Wanderers" who had remained on the periphery, almost completely unscathed, were now a hundred times more hateful in their eyes than their mortal enemies!

Yet, facing this impotent rage from the center of the battlefield, those few figures at the edge of the plain remained indifferent.

They maintained a safe distance, watching everything coldly, as if enjoying a farce.