Then, the battle surged to a new height.

The half-human, half-monster hybrids clashed head-on with Liam’s shadow summons, holding their ground. 

It was like a showdown between physical masters against spells users. 

The sky flashed in brilliant colours all around, and each time these powerful individuals struck each other, deafening boom thundered across the sky. 

From time to time, slight mistakes happened, and their attacks fell to the ground, causing disastrous casualties onto the still moving horde. 

However, their resistance wasn’t flashy, but it was enough.

Enough to let the horde underneath push through, slipping past the dome’s edge and charging straight into the sea of darkness that lay ahead.

They didn’t hesitate.

It was as if the territory itself had become a beacon to them, something burned into their souls, like a guidance. 

Kill whatever moves in this territory, perhaps that was the order. 

No eyes, no command needed. 

Just a single soul etched instinct, echoing from deep inside their essences. 

Destroy this place.

And so, they did, mindlessly, relentlessly.

To this approaching wave of horde. 

The first line of the shadow army shifted. 

Boom! 

Boom!

Boom!

Tier 2 shield shadow summons built up a shield wall in seconds. Stacked together into a tall wall, and through the tiny gaps, spears made out of darkness condensed, poking out. 

The perspective zoomed out, and the long line of towering shield walls stretched for kilometres in this line. 

Then, the wave approached. 

The ground trembling! 

"Poke!" 

One shadow knight grumbled, a rare occurrence from the mute being. 

Boom! 

The wave slammed, spears brandishes, and the first front line was to bear the brunt. 

Roar!!!

Roar!!!

Moments later, the two forces collided in full.

Boom!

Boom!

Boom!

Boom!

A dense wave of fireballs rained down from behind, arcing like meteors before smashing into the enemy’s ranks. 

The impact was brutal. 

Even the pattern of their descent felt dramatically too accurate, spread out like rainfall, shredding entire groups apart in one pass.

The frontier shield shadow summons were the first to face the brunt of the collision impact. 

And most of the time, they would be thrown away into the air due to the momentum. 

And not to be outdone, the tier 3 shadow knights surged forward from behind the line. 

With zero hesitation, they leapt over the shield wall, blades already raised, dropping into the heart of the horde.

Each swing of their swords cut monsters clean in half, limbs flying, blood spraying, some creatures were flung backward, some never rose again.

In return, equally huge monsters came rushing at the knights, clawing against them and colliding. 

This scene repeated over kilometers of battlefield. 

Everywhere she looked, chaos unfolded like a rehearsed play. 

Mize inhaled sharply at the sight, her breath catching.

And yet… she knew.

This was barely a glimpse. 

A small taste of what war looked like in the Warp. 

Compared to the terrifying armies outside this trial land, the real forces of the world, this skirmish was nothing.

Billions of casualties? Trillions?

That is, according to Liam's words.

She couldn’t even imagine what that looked like.

Then, something shifted within the battlefield. 

Roarrr!!

ROAR!!

A portion of the shield wall on the flank shattered.

Liam’s eyes narrowed, dissatisfied. “Cavalry?”

His voice cut through the wind. 

Mize snapped her attention toward the same spot, quickly spotting what he had seen.

From within the chaos, a cluster of strange beasts pushed forward, grouped and armoured. 

They were large, thick-bodied, but not quite house-sized. 

Their forms were wrapped in glimmering metallic scales that caught every bit of light, and when they ran, their sheer speed and weight tore clean through the defenses like they were paper.

“Cavalry? Monsters have cavalry now?” Mize muttered, suspicion blooming in her voice. “I thought they were mindless.”

"And the way they flanked the sides... "

"Liam, are these monsters truly mindless?"

"I sense no signs of intelligence from those tier 6s either, strange... "

And Liam felt it too, something wasn’t right.

Their worst fear began to unfold.

It started with a thunderous crash.

Boom!

Boom!

Boom!

Rocks the size of boulders rained down from above, slamming into the shadow summons formation.

 Just one barrage was enough to rip through several ranks, turning the ground into broken shards of shadowy limbs. 

Then came the real reveal.

A massive, elephant-like creature lumbered forward from the rear. 

A group of them, each trunk wrapping around a rock. 

At the forefront, stood a much bigger elephant compared to the rest. 

Its presence dwarfed everything around it, towering high and slow, but with weight that made the earth tremble.

And seated atop its back… was a figure cloaked in crimson.

His staff rested lazily in one hand, the folds of his robe draped over his oversized belly. The sight immediately drew Liam and Mize’s attention.

“I didn’t sense him earlier. Shielding skill?” Mize whispered, clearly caught off guard.

"And I never thought a human would take part in warp's event?"

Liam’s expression darkened, his voice low. “A goblin? No… a high goblin.”

He frowned, tense now, visibly disturbed by the sudden changes in the battlefield.

Because according to past experiences and those books he had read, there were zero mentioning of other races participation in the killing event. 

Then.

The goblin noticed them immediately. 

His gaze lifted toward the sky, and he smiled. Wide. Toothy. However, the way his appearance presented itself to the two eyes caused Mize to frown, clearly disgusted. 

He was nearly two meters tall, his robe barely covering what needed to be covered, scratching his back with one hand as he leaned forward slightly. 

And then, his voice rolled out, not shouted, but projected, somehow clear even from afar into their ears. 

“Greetings, human lord! I’m Bakazu! A Goblin Lord! I hope you don’t mind me barging into your territory like this.”

"Hehe... "

After all, we both share the same goals but in the opposite direction"

He laughed.

And both Liam and Mize felt their expressions stiffen. 

Liam's especially. 

His hand clenched against the armrest beside him, his knuckles white, a cold edge settling in his eyes.

It wasn’t just the goblin’s sudden appearance that angered him, it was the way the creature looked at Mize.

Like she was something to claim.

And this caused him to frown, an extreme frown as someone dared to brazenly look at what's his. 

“A Goblin Lord? A lord from another race… here?” Mize muttered, her voice tight with disbelief. She looked visibly unsettled by the revelation.

And then, the goblin lord spoke again.

“How about the two of you surrender? I’ll even let you be my generals, human lord.”

His words were sickly sweet, playful even.

Mize didn’t flinch.

“Hmph. Why should we surrender?” she snapped. “Why don’t you leave before I crush you?”

She wasn't here to uncover the truth, that can be done at later times. For now, resolve the issue.

As she spoke, her divine mind surged, an invisible force slamming toward the goblin’s thoughts with overwhelming pressure.

Since her strength depends on the amount she exerted, for now, she used barely around tier 7 mental strength to slam against the goblin position. 

But something strange happened.

It hit… nothing.

Like it was blocked by a wall that wasn’t there. A barrier she hadn’t sensed until that very moment.

The goblin’s attention shifted instantly, locking onto her with renewed interest as he sensed the strangeness. 

And then, with a lazy grin and voice oozing filth, he spoke again.

“As for you…” his eyes lingered, slowly tracing the shape of her body. “I’ve got better plans. A thousand years of breeding my children from my seed… should be enough.”

He laughed, slow, deliberate, foul. 

His tongue darted across his lips as he leered at her openly, sending an unmistakable wave of revulsion through her chest.

Mize’s stomach turned.

And Liam’s gaze grew colder than ice.

Before Liam could get a word out, Mize moved first.

Her expression shifted fast, lips tight, brows drawn low, and her gaze sharpened with pure disgust. 

Without hesitation, she raised her fingers.

This time, she used a little bit more strength, easily consuming several mental tanks into this attack. 

"Die"

“Huh? What’s that?” the goblin lord squinted, noticing a flicker of light taking form near them.

And then, in an instant, it was there.

He didn’t even have time to flinch.

His face went pale.

“What—?”

A luminous orb surged toward him. 

In the slowed-down frame of that moment, it hovered a second from impact, then came the sound.

Boom!

The blast echoed across the battlefield like thunder cracking through the heavens.

The explosion tore through everything.

Several kilometers flattened instantly, the earth swallowed in light and fire. 

A colossal mushroom cloud surged skyward. Both the enemy horde and Liam’s summons, everything caught in the radius, vanished without a trace.

“That’ll teach that revolting thing a lesson,” Mize muttered under her breath, letting out a satisfied hum as she looked over the devastation.

Liam, meanwhile, exhaled slowly and pinched the bridge of his nose. 

His gaze swept over the battlefield, noting the shadow casualties among the wreckage.

Still… remembering the way that goblin had looked at Mize, he couldn’t bring himself to be too upset.

But just as quickly, he shook his head and placed a hand gently on hers, patting it once.

“He’s not dead.”

“What?” Mize flinched, eyes snapping wide in disbelief.

"Remember those monsters just now? It seems he too possessed high immunity against energy attack"

"It seems lucky isn't on your side"

As if summoned by his words, a sharp gust of wind burst outward from the center of the impact. 

The dense cloud of smoke and debris was swept away like it had been pushed by a giant hand, revealing what stood inside.

Mize’s breath caught.

From the heart of the crater, the goblin lord stepped out. 

His grin stretched wide across his face, body completely intact.

Not even a scratch marred his skin.

“Hahahah! Jackpot! It’s a jackpot! A divine attribute! You’ve actually awakened a divine path!”

"Hahahah, don't you know that almost all races now possessed a thing or two against your type of proffesion?"

He slapped his bulging stomach several times, wheezing with laughter. 

His gaze scanned the crater briefly before turning back toward her, teeth flashing in delight.

“Now I’m even more eager to take this place for myself, and to turn you, little doll, into my personal plaything.”

“Having a wife with a divine path… it’s a dream for races across the warp. I can’t let this one slip away!”

“He… he’s alive?” Mize’s voice was faint, stunned. 

She blinked several times, as if the sight might vanish if she just stared long enough.

Had she used the wrong spell? Misfired the attack?

But no. 

The truth was right in front of her.

Liam's words just now echoed inside her mind, and after overlooking her means of attack, most of them are energy based! 

Now, she began to panic.

The land was caved in,nnothing but a massive crater remained where once there had been a solid frontline. 

Entire portions of the enemy horde had been obliterated, swept clean in a single strike.

And yet, the goblin, the one at the very center, remained untouched.

Then, he said something else. Something that made the unease crawl under her skin.

"I hope you wouldn't mind getting pinned down by me. I know that the human race despised the goblin race a bit too much... "

"But don't worry, I will make sure to take care of you, sweetheart"

To this.

Liam rose slowly, stepping forward. 

He carefully set Mize aside before walking into the air, his cloak fluttering in the heated breeze.

The goblin noticed immediately.

“You must be surprised, huh? Human lord?” he said, smug.

“I am,” Liam answered flatly, still walking through the sky as the battle raged on beneath them, distant and fading from focus.

Seeing this, the goblin chuckled and followed suit, casually levitating upward with each step, matching Liam’s ascent.

“Don’t be so shocked,” he continued. “Sometimes the warp likes throwing little twists like this, lords from different races, clashing in the same sandbox. Or even through different worlds for events"

“And I’m definitely not complaining,” he added, shooting another glance toward Mize. “Especially when there’s a little angel here, perfectly suited to be my bed warmer.”

He rubbed his beard, floating closer, his voice still carrying to both of them.

Liam gave Mize a quick glance over his shoulder and flashed her a calm, quiet smile. “I’m afraid,” he said, tone dry, “I’ll have to kill you now. She’s mine. And she’ll stay mine.”

“Hah! Don’t get too cocky, human,” the goblin laughed, stopping a few meters away. His belly jiggled slightly as he grinned. 

“You’re rare, sure. But so am I. I’m one of the gifted too. A chosen of my kind.”

He raised a hand and gestured toward himself proudly.

“Luck. Talent. Destiny. I’m the same as you, one of the sons of fate.”

"I was the same as you too before... Cocky, brave, almost too brave. But in the warp, please do throw your arrogance aside... It's either you die or I die"

Liam’s brow lowered, his eyes narrowing slightly, but he nodded all the same. “I see… looks like I underestimated you.”

“Hahaha, that’s alright. I still admire your abilities,” the goblin said, glancing down toward the smoldering battlefield. “That profession of yours… it’s interesting. Almost rivals my horde summoning. You’re valuable.”

He paused and tilted his head.

“And value… means you shouldn’t die. Not yet, anyway. Join me. Be my general.”

His offer lingered in the air.

Liam shook his head once.

The goblin didn’t press it. “Tch. A pity.”

“Indeed,” Liam replied, a faint smile pulling at the edge of his lips. “Today’s been full of surprises.”

“I was just like you, y’know,” the goblin said, his tone suddenly a bit quieter, almost reflective. “I thought I was top of the pack. Best of my kind. At least among the batch of newborn lords.”

He laughed to himself, shaking his head.

“Then I walked out of the newbie trial. And everything changed. Lords everywhere. Stronger. Smarter. Just like me and you, possessing something special, no? And there's more.”

“I thought I was untouchable,” he muttered. “Turns out I was just one of many.”

He glanced back at Mize. 

She stiffened, wrapping her arms protectively over her chest, retreating half a step instinctively.

“But I will be taking her. Whether you like it or not.”

Liam’s smile didn’t fade. His golden eyes glinted faintly, shifting as he tilted his head ever so slightly.

“I hope you won’t mind,” he said softly.

The goblin arched a brow. “Oh?”

“Because I’ve just decided to tear you apart, piece by piece.”