The Unicorn Rhino herd charged forward like living battering rams, their naturally armored hides transforming into devastating weapons. The lower-tier undead beasts stood no chance against their crushing momentum.
Moreover, the Unicorn Rhinos possessed innate Light Magic, making them natural nemeses of the undead!
"Charge, brothers! We are tanks! WE ARE TANKS!" Alaric roared at the top of his lungs.
Kael couldn't help but sweatdrop—this guy was really taking his instructions to heart.
As Alaric led the charge, Leif snapped out of his initial shock.
"Damn it all! Kill these damned rhinos!" Leif snarled, his fury boiling over. He had never expected these Unicorn Rhinos to ambush him mid-battle, and their sudden appearance posed a catastrophic threat!
Though Leif's undead legion numbered in the thousands, the hundred-plus eighth-level Unicorn Rhinos shattered their formations effortlessly, trampling through their ranks like paper.
Each Unicorn Rhino boasted at least eighth-level strength—a nightmare for the undead. Compounded by their innate Light Magic, the undead beasts instinctively recoiled in terror.
"Why are there so many Unicorn Rhinos here?! Damn it, we've been set up!" Heath's face turned ashen. A single Unicorn Rhino could tear him apart with ease.
This made no sense—it defied all logic!
They had no idea where these rhinos had come from. In Leif's original plan, confronting the Unicorn Rhinos—the apex predators of the ancient ruins—was supposed to be the final stage of his undead conquest.
Yet here they were, crashing into the battle prematurely!
"Alaric, lead your herd and keep all those undead beasts occupied!" Kael commanded.
"You got it!" Alaric nodded solemnly, his massive frame surging forward as radiant light erupted from his body. The sheer force of his presence alone annihilated countless undead in his vicinity.
"Damn it! Number One, Number Two—surround that rhino leader! Number Three, Number Four, join the fray! Tear these bastards to pieces!" Leif's voice was icy as he barked orders, his beady eyes scanning the battlefield.
Cloaked in black robes and unnaturally short in stature, Leif cut a grotesque figure. But it was the venom in his tone that sent chills down spines.
The four colossal undead beasts obeyed instantly, their gaping maws emitting bone-chilling cracks. These creatures had once been apex predators of the ancient ruins in life, and even now, they showed no fear toward the Unicorn Rhinos. They clashed violently, waves of necrotic energy spreading like a plague.
"Kekeke! Kill the rhinos! Turn them into undead too!" The semi-sentient undead beasts screeched. Thousands of them surged like a tidal wave, encircling the hundred-plus Unicorn Rhinos.
Though the rhinos followed Kael's orders, charging recklessly through the undead horde, they were like stones tossed into a raging river—overwhelmed by sheer numbers. For now, the battle reached a stalemate.
"Now's our chance—kill Leif!" Stellan of the Holy Temple narrowed his eyes, cold determination flashing within them.
Kill Leif!
With the four eighth-level undead beasts distracted and Kairo/Heath tied up by a Unicorn Rhino, the Holy Temple forces seized the opportunity to strike at Leif himself.
Kael's trio, however, held back. With a glance, he signaled Amelia and Ethan to retreat slightly, content to let tigers fight from the mountaintop.
In an instant, Stellan and Magnus lunged forward—their target unmistakable.
"Holy Temple brats… courting death!" Leif's rage boiled over. The rhino ambush had already cost him dearly—his undead legion, his life's work, would be crippled even if he won today.
And so, he channeled all that fury toward Stellan and Magnus.
"Holy Light!"
Stellan flicked his wrist and chanted softly, the incantation flowing like a melody. Silver divine runes shimmered along his staff as if responding to his call.
From the sky, feathers white as snow drifted down like a gentle snowfall, as though angels had descended. The air itself seemed to purify, bathed in a serene, radiant glow—tangible holy energy illuminating the space with an almost solid brilliance.
"Hand of the Divine!"
Magnus, on the other hand, coldly uttered a far more complex and esoteric spell. Suddenly, a flawless, jade-like hand materialized midair—pristine, unblemished, and radiating a soft luminescence.
Kael's brow furrowed. These two were no pushovers, especially Magnus. This Hand of the Divinespell was on an entirely different level compared to ordinary seventh-tier magic.
Behind Stellan and Magnus, two more Holy Temple mages unleashed their own light-based spells, their combined power converging upon Leif with overwhelming force.
Leif's expression darkened. As a Darkwing Mage, he loathed light magic more than anything.
Four seventh-tier spells surged toward him simultaneously, their mana fluctuations shaking the earth and distorting the very air. The sheer magnitude of the assault was staggering.
Four seventh-tier mages casting in unison—all targeting him.
A cold smirk curled Magnus' lips. In his mind, even if Leif was a peak seventh-tier mage, there was no way he could withstand four high-tier spells unscathed. At best, he'd be grievously wounded.
"Overestimating yourselves."
Leif's voice was calm as he uttered those four words.
Then—light erupted from his body.
In that instant, space itself trembled.
A tangible wave of mana surged forth—not like a tide, but a tsunami, violent and all-consuming, saturating every inch of the battlefield.
The sky vanished.
The ground vanished.
Only magic remained.
Domain.
This was the power of a Domain!
Kael, watching from a distance, felt a flicker of realization.
Around Leif, a bizarre world materialized—a perfect ten-meter sphere with him at its center. Within this space, reality itself seemed rewritten. The light spells cast by the two Holy Temple mages, Stellan's Holy Light, and even Magnus's prized Hand of the Divine froze abruptly upon entering the domain, defying all logic.
Every spell came to a standstill, as if stripped of its power.
"So this... is a Domain," Magnus muttered, his voice hoarse with dread. Despite being at the peak of seventh-tier, he had never comprehended such power—a capability reserved for Arcane Magisters.
"Correct. In this world, I am the sovereign!" Leif cackled, flicking his wrist. The spells Magnus and his allies had unleashed disintegrated into nothingness.
How could they fight this?
For the first time, doubt flickered in Magnus's eyes. Leif's strength far exceeded his expectations.
Even among Arcane Magisters, few could wield a Domain with such mastery—yet Leif...
"No wonder he's called the strongest seventh-tier mage. He must be suppressing his rank deliberately. With this power, he could've advanced to Arcane Magister long ago!" Kael analyzed, his expression grim.
"Damn it. He's even more monstrous than we thought," Ethan growled, clenching his fists. They had assumed Leif was the weak link, but the man was a true aberration—commanding an undead legion and wielding a Domain typically exclusive to Arcane Magisters. His combat prowess rivaled, if not surpassed, ordinary eighth-tier mages!
The moment Leif activated his Domain, Magnus's group was struck as if by an invisible hammer. All four coughed blood and hurtled backward.
Magnus and Stellan fared slightly better, sustaining only moderate injuries. The other two, however, collapsed unconscious, grievously wounded.
Leif had single-handedly crushed four opponents.
Kael took a deep breath and stepped forward.
"Kael, it's too dangerous! Let the Unicorn Rhinos handle Leif—" Amelia grabbed his shoulder in concern, only to jerk her hand back as violent purple lightning erupted across his body.
"Don't worry. I know my limits." Crackling electricity enveloped Kael as thunderous power surged forth...