As the dragon continued to fly forward.
Ying Ping suddenly narrowed his eyes.
His Eagle Eye skill allowed him to clearly see abnormal situations on the ground from a thousand meters up.
"Artemis, urgent situation!"
Ying Ping pointed in a direction on the ground, "There are monsters attacking humans over there!"
Artemis immediately became alert and looked in the direction Ying Ping pointed.
On the ground, a large group of dog-sized scorpion monsters with black carapaces and red eyes were swarming across the field like a tide, about to catch up to a fleeing carriage.
"Quick, lower the altitude, we'll go down together!"
Artemis immediately commanded.
Ying Ping handed her the reins and said in a low, firm voice, "Don't worry, just leave this kind of thing to me."
After speaking, to Artemis's shock, Ying Ping actually leaped directly from a height of several hundred meters!
"Orion!"
Artemis cried out in alarm, her heart practically leaping out of her chest.
Jumping from such a height, even an LV5 or LV6 adventurer would be severely injured if not killed!
However, that didn't happen.
Ying Ping fell like a superhero making an entrance, and at the moment he was about to hit the ground, Hestia's Sword suddenly unsheathed!
"Bang!!!"
The moment the sword's edge touched the ground, a massive crater was formed, and a violent shockwave exploded outwards from him!
"Boom!!!"
Dozens of scorpion monsters were instantly blasted away or killed on the spot.
The sound of carapaces shattering was incessant, and then they all turned into dust, dropping 300 magic stones.
[Killed Ontrailles Larva X15]
[Awarded 1500 experience points]
Ying Ping slowly straightened up, purple-blue electric arcs coiling around him and his longsword.
"Oh, oh my god!"
Artemis watched this scene, dumbfounded.
"Die, Blade Storm!"
Ying Ping on the ground was like a war god descended, each sword strike bringing forth large swathes of lightning sword energy, and monsters in his path turned into ashes.
The immense power of the LV18 Shadow Monarch was finally displayed to its fullest at this moment.
In the DanMachi world, there was no adventurer who could rival him anymore.
"So, so strong! Is this Orion's true strength?"
Artemis murmured to herself.
But she wouldn't just stand by and watch. She immediately controlled the dragon to descend, while also taking the silver bow from her back to support Ying Ping from the air.
"Whoosh whoosh whoosh!!!"
Arrows accurately pierced the monsters' vital points one after another.
In the center of the battlefield, Ying Ping sometimes moved through the monster horde like a phantom, and at other times struck the ground like thunder.
Each attack was devastating, wildly reaping the lives of countless monsters.
At some point, Artemis also came to his side, fighting back-to-back with him.
Her arrows seemed to have eyes, each one piercing the monsters' weaknesses from incredible angles.
"As expected of Lady Artemis."
"Your posture in battle is simply too beautiful; I can't take my eyes off you."
Ying Ping smiled slightly at her during a lull in the fighting.
Artemis's cheeks flushed slightly from his compliment: "Focus on the battle!"
"Yes!"
Ying Ping acknowledged, his figure instantly sweeping past like an afterimage, directly harvesting a large group of monsters.
In the sky, the other dragons also landed one after another.
Hestia was the first to jump down: "Ying Ping-kun! Artemis! We're here to help too!"
Chisato and Takina immediately took the high ground, and a barrage of arrows rained down on the monsters.
"Fireball!"
Ilena waved her staff, and a series of fireballs exploded among the scorpion horde.
"Holy Light, please protect us!"
Kokoro, meanwhile, cast protective magic on everyone.
Hermes was the last to land.
He stood at the edge of the battlefield, his eyes gleaming as he observed Ying Ping's fighting stance: "This astonishing strength... it's comparable to LV6, no, even far beyond that!"
"Could it be LV7!?"
In just a few minutes, hundreds of Ontrailles larvae were annihilated.
The rescued coachman slumped to the ground, looking in disbelief at the saviors who had descended from the sky: "Th-thank you, noble sirs, for saving our lives..."
Ying Ping put away his longsword and walked towards the carriage: "Are you alright? Where did these monsters come from?"
The coachman trembled as he pointed towards the Great Tree Sea: "They... they swarmed out from the south... Their numbers have been increasing lately... My village has already been destroyed..."
Artemis's expression grew even more solemn upon hearing this: "It seems the situation is worse than we imagined..."
Ying Ping nodded, his gaze sweeping over the vaguely visible Great Tree Sea in the distance.
The sky there was an ominous dark red, seemingly foretelling an even greater danger on the horizon.
Hestia ran over and hugged Ying Ping's arm, "Ying Ping-kun! Were you okay just now? I saw you jump from such a high place, it really scared me to death…"
Ying Ping ruffled her hair, "Don't worry, I never do anything I'm not confident about."
He turned to the others and asked with concern, "Is everyone unharmed?"
After receiving affirmative replies, Ying Ping looked at Artemis, "How much further are we from our destination?"
Artemis pointed in a direction on the horizon, "It's not far from there… Everyone should be there."
Her voice carried an unprecedented urgency, "We must leave immediately."
Everyone re-mounted their dragons and advanced at full speed towards the Great Tree Sea.
The forests along the way were no longer lush and green, but withered and decayed.
Ying Ping noticed that Artemis's hands were constantly trembling slightly, and her eyes were more tense and melancholic than before.
"Artemis…"
He called out softly.
Artemis turned her head and forced a smile, "I'm fine, it's just…"
She couldn't finish her sentence, because a white pillar of light suddenly rose from the Great Tree Sea in the distance, shooting straight into the sky!
"No… no…!"
Artemis's face instantly turned pale, "Has it… already begun…?"
Ying Ping narrowed his eyes and suddenly felt a pang in his heart.
He abruptly looked up at the sky, his pupils contracting sharply—
"Kokkoro! Holy Light Barrier for everyone! Now!"
Ying Ping shouted, and Kokkoro, who was on alert in the distance, moved at his command, instantly raising her staff-spear above her head, "Divine Protection!"
A brilliant emerald barrier enveloped everyone just in the nick of time.
The next second, countless white rays of light suddenly descended from the sky, densely striking the barrier!
"Clang, clang, clang—"
Piercing impact sounds were incessant, and dazzling sparks erupted where the light rays met the barrier.
At first, the barrier held.
But the light rays seemed to have a sense of perception, gradually increasing in intensity with the barrier's defensive strength!
"Oh, no!"
Kokkoro gritted her teeth, her staff trembling slightly, her LV10 magic power fully unleashed barely holding back this wave of attacks.
"This aura, this… isn't this a divine power attack belonging to us gods?!"
Hestia exclaimed, her small face pale.
The light rays suddenly intensified again, like a deluge of celestial light.
Kokkoro's forehead was covered in fine sweat, and her hands holding the staff-spear bent slightly, "I-I'm sorry! Master! I might not be able to hold on much longer…"
Ying Ping made a decisive decision, "Everyone descend! Find cover in the forest!"
He leaped over, jumped to Kokkoro's side and hugged her, shouting to everyone, "Hurry down! In the air, we're sitting ducks!"
Everyone steered their dragons into a rapid dive, narrowly plunging into the dense tree canopy under the pursuit of the light rays.
Numerous thick branches were broken, but they finally landed successfully.
Indeed, once they entered the cover of the forest, the terrifying light rays abruptly ceased.