A normal cultivator, even one in the third rank, would have only that many spells at its disposal.

That was something that varied according to the cultivator's origin and status but it was generally rare for any cultivator to have more than four spells that matched its level.

The man in the liquid stage that had just died had used three different spells which covered offense, movement, and defense, it could be said that his set of abilities was good for someone without any lofty status.

Yet, Noah had completely overwhelmed him using his many methods and a bit of recklessness.

Five different spells, two rank 4 martial arts and a little help from the Divine deduction technique allowed him to force a flaw in the man's defense, which he then exploited sacrificing his body.

Noah would gladly suffer a few wounds if that allowed him to inflict a fatal blow to his enemies, he had chosen the Yin body as a body-nourishing method in the past for that reason too, it matched his combat style too well.

'He didn't use a martial art either, I wonder why so many cultivators think that they can overpower me with their spells.'

Noah thought as he turned his gaze on the battlefield below him.

The cultivators with whom he had fought lately didn't resort to martial arts during the battle, they only relied on their spells to fight.

Noah guessed that they used their most powerful methods to deal with him since he was a troublesome opponent but he still thought that there was something else.

'Maybe it's related to their level, spells are simply stronger than martial arts, wasting "Breath" in the latter might appear useless when they are rank 3 mages.'

There was also another possibility.

Noah had never given up on his martial arts because his darkness element made them a bit stronger than the others and because his abilities paired perfectly with them.

The Elemental forging method allowed him to create extremely threatening weapons and the partial Demonic form empowered all his attacks, using a martial art allowed Noah to have a relentless offensive that didn't deplete much energy.

For someone with a darkness aptitude, finding ways to preserve "Breath" and mental energy was a must.

The battlefield was chaotic, the troops of the Empire were weakened by Kate's formation but they were more than the cultivators of the Hive, they managed to hold their ground even in that unfavorable situation.

Casualties mounted on both sides, it was clear that the archipelago would be greatly weakened after that first battle.

Noah decided to resume his slaughter of rank 2 cultivators, he only needed to use the First Form and Heilong to deal with them, he could keep fighting them even if he had just killed a cultivator in the liquid stage.

As soon as Noah dove back into the battlefield, some pressure was relieved from the rank 2 cultivators on his side.

That allowed them to help those in the third rank, they might be far weaker but they could still force the rank 3 soldiers in a passive position if they joined their forces.

A mosquito was clearly weaker than a dragon but a million of them might be able to pierce its scales.

The same could be applied to cultivators, no rank 2 cultivator was able to defeat someone in the third rank but hundreds of them could force the soldiers in the third rank to focus on defense.

Little by little, the soldiers of the Empire began to be pushed back as more and more rank 2 cultivators could freely focus them.

Noah continued his solitary slaughter, the soldiers in the second rank did their best to escape but casualties were inevitable against someone in the third rank.

The losses of the Empire increased, the number of soldiers slowly matched the cultivators of the Hive until they became even less than them.

"Retreat!"

An order was shouted from the group of rank 3 soldiers.

"Retreat!"

"Retreat!"

Other soldiers echoed that order, the troops of the Empire quickly left the battlefield to return to their safe position on the inscribed sh.i.p.s.

The cultivators of the Hive did their best to kill as many retreating soldiers as possible and managed to further diminish their numbers before they reached the sh.i.p.s, the battle on that island ended with a victory for the forces of the underground organizations.

The cultivators didn't dare to chase the soldiers on the sh.i.p.s, the territorial advantage was what led them to victory, they wouldn't risk assaulting the sh.i.p.s and give that advantage to their enemies.

"Regroup, help the wounded, restore the traps! There is nothing to celebrate, this is just one battle! Bring me a report with the situation of the other islands!"

Noah's orders resounded on the shore, suppressing the victorious cries of the cultivators around him.

The battle had been harsh and they had suffered many losses, there was no point on celebrating since the invaders were still docked on their shores.

'We forced them to retreat on the first battle, we might be able to make them return to the continent in the second or third one. We won't be able to survive another wave of reinforcements.'

Noah was expressionless as he inspected the losses on his side.

He knew that, with the territorial advantage, the Hive might be able to defend against that first wave of reinforcements.

However, it would come out of the war extremely weakened, it wouldn't have any chance against another attack from the continent.

The joint power of the underground organizations could match the Royals or the Council in the past but the trials of the Inheritance ground and the conquest of the peripheral islands had almost halved their forces, putting them far below the central powers of those countries.

A report was quickly delivered in Noah's hands, it described the outcome of that battle and the situation on the other islands.

'More than one hundred rank 2 cultivators and about twenty-five in the third rank died on this island while the enemy has lost far more than us.'

Noah read through the contents of the sheets in his hands before sending mental messages through his notebook, there were still ongoing battles on some of the other islands, Noah was going to send reinforcements to seal the outcome of those fights.

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