Chapter 4325: Straightaway |
At that very moment, no one noticed it, but Kentucky was not with the twins’ group. Instead, he flew alone above the devastated area where the explosive arrays had detonated moments ago, his sharp eyes sweeping through the sea of smoke, flames, and scattered remains left behind by the terrifying chain explosions.
Even now, some smaller detonations still echoed from below as unstable fragments of the arrays continued to burst apart. The scorching heat distorted the air around him while the lingering Godly Pressure of countless dead creatures mixed together chaotically.
Yet, despite all of that interference, Kentucky was clearly searching for something very specific. After circling the area several times, his eyes suddenly narrowed. Without hesitation, he descended rapidly and landed amidst the ruined battlefield.
’So it really did get caught, uh...’ Kentucky pondered for a moment as he stared at the scorched ground beneath him.
Back on the twins’ and Celis’s side, the three immediately received Kentucky’s message through their Soul Connection. ’There is no doubt. It was hit by the explosions.’
Roan nodded slightly after hearing that report. ’Very well. Come back before Sudo starts questioning where you went.’
The thing Kentucky had gone to look for was actually the Three-Eyed Raven itself. After the explosions ended, the Raven had disappeared almost immediately from the battlefield. That alone already felt strange.
The fourth defensive lines were still active, and there were still many Godly Creatures unaffected by the explosions because they were too close to the lines. Considering the chaos caused by the Raven’s ability, it could easily have remained there longer to continue disrupting the fourth line and increasing the casualties of the defending cultivators.
What Kentucky found, however, was a scorched pool of blood mixed together with dark feathers and tiny pieces of burnt flesh. Everything had been heavily charred by the explosions, making it difficult for ordinary cultivators to identify where those remains came from. Yet, to Kentucky, the answer was obvious almost instantly. The pressure emitted from those remains was completely different from the Godly Pressure of ordinary Godly Creatures.
It was similar to the feeling Roan experienced when he sensed the Remnant Godly Pressure left behind by the dead Carcatira Alligators in the past. The quality of the pressure simply existed on an entirely different level. And because the twins’ group, including Kentucky, could directly manipulate Godly Energy to create Godly Pressure themselves, their sensitivity toward those traces far surpassed ordinary experts. That was precisely why Kentucky managed to locate the remains while nobody else noticed anything unusual in that gigantic battlefield.
’That’s weird. Would a Godly Horror really get caught by explosions like those?’ Rean couldn’t help but ask through their Soul Connection.
Roan, however, did not appear nearly as surprised. ’The Celestial Senses of Aura Gods are already limited in range, let alone Anchor Gods. For the Raven’s innate ability to have the greatest effect possible, it has to fly low enough for those Celestial Senses to come into contact with its third eye. Otherwise, its interference becomes much less effective.’
Roan paused briefly before continuing his explanation. ’When the explosions were triggered, the Raven was most likely flying at the perfect altitude to maximize its ability. In other words, it placed itself directly within the blast radius.’
’Besides, I don’t think the Raven is the type of Godly Creature specialized in defense. Its innate ability alone is already absurd enough. If it also possessed monstrous defensive abilities on top of that, then defeating it would become practically impossible.’
After finishing his analysis, Roan immediately gave another order. ’Kentucky, collect the blood and bring everything back for Sudo. He will definitely want confirmation that the Raven was likely injured.’
Kentucky naturally complied. Since the next waves of Godly Creatures had not arrived yet, this was the perfect opportunity to deal with such matters before the battlefield descended into chaos again.
Because Kentucky could fly normally without any restrictions, it only took him a few minutes to return to the area where Sudo and the elite forces had gathered. At that moment, Sudo was still discussing the current situation with Danfan and several other commanders. That was why he did not expect Kentucky to suddenly approach him.
"Hm? What is it?" Sudo asked before casually adding, "Did you perhaps see the Raven?"
To his surprise, Kentucky immediately nodded. "Actually... I think I did."
Sudo froze for a brief second. He had only asked that question casually without expecting any meaningful answer. Even the countless drones sent to investigate the battlefield after the explosions failed to locate any trace of the Raven. "Wait! Really?! Where is it?!"
Kentucky waved one of his wings, causing the burnt blood, flesh fragments, and black feathers he collected to fall onto the ground before everyone present. "I don’t know where it is right now, but I’m pretty sure these came from the Raven itself."
Kentucky then calmly explained the situation. "When the explosions went off, I thought I briefly saw the Raven’s Dark Cloud passing directly over the explosion area. It only lasted for an instant, so I couldn’t be completely certain at the time. Naturally, I wasn’t stupid enough to rush into the middle of those explosions to verify it either."
"Once the explosions finally stopped, I flew over to inspect the location where I believed I saw it. I didn’t find the Raven itself, but I found this instead." Kentucky pointed at the remains on the ground. "I spent the entire battle fighting the Flying Godly Creatures above the battlefield. I can guarantee that these feathers do not belong to any of the flying creatures assaulting our defensive lines."
"And if you examine them carefully, you should notice the Godly Pressure within these remains is far more concentrated than anything emitted by the other Godly Creatures so far."
Sudo immediately stepped forward and inspected the blood and feathers personally. Sure enough, although the Godly Pressure within them had weakened considerably, its quality was unquestionably superior to anything else present on the battlefield. Having fought numerous Godly Predators in the past, Sudo instantly realized this pressure was different even from theirs.
"It must be!" Sudo exclaimed.
He then turned toward Kentucky with obvious excitement in his expression. "Great job!"
Without wasting another second, Sudo immediately sent his consciousness into his RC, contacting the supreme commander of the battlefield, Huriu.
Huriu, who had been continuously wondering where the Raven disappeared after the explosions, was instantly shocked by Sudo’s report.
-Are you certain?! You can’t afford to make a mistake with something like this!-
’I am certain,’ Sudo answered firmly. ’I don’t know how severe the Raven’s injuries are, but this blood, flesh, and these feathers definitely belong to it. From the looks of it, the Raven was flying too low during the explosions. Coincidence or not, it got caught in the blasts.’
Huriu took a deep breath after hearing that. ’Do you have any clue where it fled afterward?’
He had to ask. If the Raven truly suffered significant injuries, this might become an opportunity they absolutely could not afford to miss. Everyone had already prepared themselves for several more days of catastrophic losses because of that creature. Their original plan was to wait until the Raven advanced deep enough into the Sacred Relic’s area of influence before attempting to deal with it. Yet now, there was suddenly a possibility of ending this nightmare much earlier than expected.
Sudo glanced toward Kentucky, who simply shook his head.
"We don’t know where it fled," Kentucky answered aloud. "Still, since it was injured, perhaps it left behind blood traces somewhere."
Sudo immediately relayed Kentucky’s words to Huriu.
-Alright. You all stay there and prepare for the arrival of the Godly Predators. They should begin appearing very soon. I’ll make some calls.-
Inside the main command center, Huriu inhaled deeply before contacting two very specific individuals.
’Senior Arcis. Senior Tobao. I have important news.’
Arcis and Tobao were the only two Law Gods within the Besgol Region. At the moment, both of them were positioned near the Godly Subjugation Guild branches of Terno Dore and Lesgez Country, the other two nations currently suffering simultaneous assaults from the Godly Creature Hordes.
The two Law Gods had deliberately avoided the Turanzo battlefield up until now because there was little point in them being there. Since the Three-Eyed Raven was confirmed to be operating in Turanzo Country, they already knew they could do practically nothing against it in a direct confrontation.
Besides, whenever the Raven appeared, no other Godly Horror accompanied it, so they knew the Raven would be the only one.
And because even Law Gods were essentially helpless against the Raven’s terrifying innate ability under normal circumstances, Arcis and Tobao chose instead to remain in Lesgez and Terno Dore. Their purpose there was to wait for the possible emergence of other Godly Horrors while leaving the Raven situation to be handled through large-scale battlefield tactics.
However, the moment they heard Huriu’s report, both of their expressions changed drastically.
-Are you absolutely certain the blood belongs to the Raven?- Arcis asked immediately.
’Yes,’ Huriu answered without hesitation. ’What we don’t know is the extent of its injuries. However, based on the amount of blood, burnt flesh, and feathers recovered from the explosion area, it should be far more serious than a superficial wound.’
Arcis and Tobao both fell silent for several seconds.
A Three-Eyed Raven in peak condition was not something either of them could handle. Against that terrifying innate ability, even Law Gods would be forced to retreat 10 out of 10 times. But an injured Raven... that was a completely different matter altogether.
-Arcis, do you think it is worth investigating?- Tobao asked the demon beast through Divine Sense communication.
-We are currently being attacked on three separate fronts. Even so, it should still take some time before the Godly Horrors of Terno Dore and Lesgez reveal themselves. The Godly Predators haven’t even appeared yet. We probably have enough time to investigate the situation in Turanzo. And if things turn out to be impossible, retreating should not be difficult.-
Arcis paused briefly before continuing.
-The Raven was never known for possessing overwhelming offensive power. Its true terror comes entirely from that cursed innate ability. That is the only reason defeating it has always been nearly impossible.-
Tobao had to admit Arcis made perfect sense.
-Very well. Huriu, excellent work with the report. We are heading there immediately. Make the necessary arrangements.-
Huriu was just about to acknowledge the order when another message suddenly arrived through his RC.
His expression immediately changed, becoming strange... perhaps even skeptical. It was obvious that even he found it difficult to believe what he had just heard.
Nonetheless, he still spoke a moment later.
’Seniors... there is something else...’