2253 2253. Changes

The first woman's power didn't increase the cultivation level of her underlings, but it gave them the chance to explore the true depths of their power.

The privileged cultivator was basically forcing the various experts to get their hands on the true potential of their worlds and laws. She was sharing part of her energy and insights on the cultivation path, and the outcome of her technique ended up being beyond shocking.

A large chunk of Heaven and Earth's army had died during the second spent stunned, but the surviving assets saw their existences exploding with power.

That change didn't only affect the amount of energy that those experts could draw out of their worlds and laws. Their mindsets also improved and saw them gain new resolve.

The first woman had been clear. She didn't want to see beings belonging to Heaven and Earth's side in such a pitiful state, and their power was only part of the issue. Their weak minds and poor determination weren't worthy of the rulers, so she had to improve them.

The landmass' forces experienced losses due to qualitative differences for the first time since the beginning of the final battle. Their only advantage had always been their superior power, but the first woman had changed that.

The various experts from Heaven and Earth's army managed to fight back without relying on their numerical advantage. Each of their attacks also intensified the purple influence radiated by their figures. They transformed into humanoid cores of the privileged cultivator's technique, which improved its effects as they kept fighting.

As the first woman's influence intensified, the various underlings managed to gain access to deeper parts of their power. Their mindsets also continued to improve, which slowly brought them closer to their opponents in that field.

One of the greatest weaknesses of Heaven and Earth's army came from its lack of experience and dedication to the cause. The various cultivators didn't want to give up on their lives to achieve major victories, but that quickly changed.

Explosions and reckless attacks began to happen everywhere on the battlefield. Heaven and Earth's forces abandoned their defensive stance and stopped retreating to launch powerful techniques that often led to their death.

The landmass' side could only respond with a similar approach. The various forces in Noah's organization shot forward to unleash their best attacks, and many decided to sacrifice themselves to prevent losses too great to bear.

The changes in the battles among weak assets couldn't claim the leaders' attention, but the situation was different when it came to the stronger existences.

The two upper tier dragons, Divine Demon, Emperor, and other experts who were forcing many opponents to gang up on them saw the number of their enemies increase. The first woman was filling her side with bravery, which allowed her underlings to make decisions based purely on what could benefit Heaven and Earth.

<br/>The number of enemies around the most troublesome leaders from the landmass became so high that the battlefield finally achieved balance. Both sides became equally matched, and that situation benefitted Heaven and Earth's army.

"More, more," The first woman chuckled. "Show more of your power. Fight for Heaven and Earth. Win for Heaven and Earth. Die for Heaven and Earth."

The sky's army voiced battle cries that filled the entirety of the higher plane. The landmass' forces lost ground and ended up pushing back toward the center of the world.

The number of casualties on both sides was unfathomable. Death filled the higher plane as experts self-destructed or burnt the entirety of their cultivation level to achieve temporary bursts of power. The overall chaos intensified, and nothing seemed able to stop that trend.

"Finally," The first woman eventually exclaimed when a lump of dark light crashed before her. "I was getting bored of waiting."

"Can you stop this?" Steven asked as his body materialized in front of the privileged cultivator. "Our respective underlings should have the chance to prove themselves without getting influenced by beings at the peak of the cultivation journey."

"You should tell that to your companions," The first woman announced while glancing at Alexander and Noah. The two were still avoiding fighting the other leaders to spread chaos on the battlefield.

"Well, trying to reason with them is pointless," Steven exclaimed. "You should know that."

"Indeed," The first woman laughed. "They are a fun bunch. That's why I'm quite disappointed. Why did you decide to face me? You are the most boring expert in your army."

"Boredom isn't something that I take into consideration," Steven revealed as his figure shone with dark light. "I only want to annihilate Heaven and Earth and their assets."

"I know," The privileged cultivator answered. "You are still clinging to that petty revenge. Your previous organization and your companion died because they were too weak. Just deal with it."

"Robert was a monster far worthier than me," Steven declared. "As for my old organization, Heaven and Earth made it dirty. My underlings would have loved to join this battle."

"So, you took it upon yourself to fight for them," The first woman continued. "I must admit that I envy those feelings. My side barely cares about life and death. We only play along in Heaven and Earth's game."

"That's why we will win," Steven stated as his dark light expanded to take control of part of the void.

"I wasn't trying to praise you," The privileged cultivator explained. "You are fun. That's a fact. Still, you lack the power to achieve victory, especially in your case."

"We'll see about that," Steven exclaimed as he unleashed his power.

The dark aura that had taken control of the void revealed its effects and forced Heaven and Earth's influence to disappear. That power converged on the privileged cultivator and seeped into her figure to remove the improvements she had seized inside the sky. Still, nothing seemed to happen to the expert's cultivation level.

"What is it?" The first woman teased. "You can try again if you want."

"That would be pointless," Steven uttered. "You are shielding your power from my influence. I can't pierce it yet."

"That's wrong," The first woman laughed. "Did you ever consider that some of us are simply too strong for you? Take a look at the battlefield. You would have to burn yourself to counter my technique."

"I know," Steven agreed. "It seems that I have no other option."

A crack suddenly opened on Steven's forehead as his figure exploded with power. Dense waves of his dark aura shot in every direction and expanded past their natural limits.

Steven's cultivation level seemed to go through a qualitative change as it rose to reach the very peak of the liquid stage. Meanwhile, his dense aura continued to expand and used Heaven and Earth's influence to spread even further.

It didn't take long before the whole higher plane darkened, but Steven didn't stop there. He activated the effects of his aura and targeted the countless purple tendrils created by the privileged cultivator.

The first woman's technique lost power under the effects of Steven's actions. Her underlings snapped out of their improved mental state and experienced fear once again.

That change led to hesitation that their opponents exploited right away. The landmass' forces finally put an end to their losing trend and began to gain ground. Even the dragons and the leaders achieved some major victory during that event.

"Interesting," The privileged cultivator stated while inspecting the changes on the battlefield. "Your resolve is incredible. Yet, I can see your life vanishing. How long can you even keep this up?"

"As long as it takes," Steven declared as the crack on his forehead expanded, and an even darker aura left his figure.