"Ah, what do we have here!? The White Lion and Black Sword Guilds have begun attacking the Breaker Guild's Leopard and Lava Squads!"

"They're traitors! They betrayed the Raon Alliance!"

"The Leopard and Lava Squads are surrounded in enemy territory!"

The network correspondents chatted enthusiastically.

"Steel Sword Squad, Tempest Charge!"

"Save the Lava Squad!"

The Steel Sword Squad primarily consisted of Knights, so they had incredible horseback riding skills.

Once they assumed formation and charged simultaneously, no one could dare stop them.

"This is the most critical point of this battle. Bring out the Steel Corps!" Arthand yelled.

It was time for Steel Heart to use its last remaining trump card.

"Yes, sir!" The white-haired man beside him bowed his head. "Let's go!"

Nine other players followed the white-haired man. Like auto mechanics, they wore blue overalls with various tools protruding from the pockets.

"Come out! Iron #1!"

"Go, Iron #3!"

They raised their hands into the air, and giant magic circles appeared on the ground. Soon enough, Steel Golems arose from the magic circles.

There were ten of them!

However, they looked and moved completely different from a normal golem.

They were about 10 meters tall, but they were thin, quick, and wielded a variety of weapons like a sword and a shield, a spear, etc.

These golems were the exact opposite of normal golems, which possessed tremendous defense, but moved sluggishly and lacked attack power.

The players that'd created them were all Mechanical Engineers, a hidden class.

Mechanical Engineers were capable of creating Steel Golems and 'tune' machines. These Steel Golems had been fully 'tuned' as weapons.

Though there were only 10 of them, they had power equivalent to a corps. That's why it was called the 'Steel' Corps.

Thud!

The Steel Golems stood before the Steel Sword Squad.

Tick!

Creak!

It sounded as though a spring was being wound up or joints were creaking.

"Nothing can stop us!"

Schaal and the Steel Sword Squad kept charging forward.

Whoosh!

Boom!

The Steel Golems swung their weapons, causing several of the men and their horses to fall.

"These guys are fast!"

"Be careful!"

"Look for their core!"

Befitting its title as one of the Breaker Guild's elite squads, Steel Sword quickly moved around the Steel Golems, looking for an opportune moment to strike.

However, that moment wouldn't come easily. The Steel Golems' defense was extraordinary, and their huge bodies and unbelievably swift movements made it that much more difficult.

"Mm." Schaal furrowed his brow.

Although they were surrounded in enemy territory, Magma and his squad were somehow managing to hold out. However, it would only be a matter of time before they died.

He'd sent Jairus to save the Leopard Squad, but they were encountering fierce resistance on the way. They, like the Lava Squad, would need help soon or they'd all die.

How could they turn things around!?

At that moment...

"Attack!"

"Uaaaahk!"

"Kill them all!"

Raon, who rode atop a giant rhinoceros, and the reserve troops, forcefully charged into battle.

At the same time...!

A shadow cast over his head.

"The Wyvern Squad!" Schaal raised his head, and his face brightened. A group of wyverns flew in the air like a squadron of fighter jets!

Gyaahk!

Kyaahk!

Roars that brought fear and terror to the hearts of their enemies rang out.

"Poison Breath!" Saladin, who led at the front, yelled.

"Poison Breath!"

"Poison Breath!"

The Wyvern Squad members yelled, and their wyverns responded in kind. They opened their mouths and unleashed green poisonous mist at their enemies.

Bam!

One hundred Poison Breaths were aimed at the enemy simultaneously!

It was like a green avalanche.

"Uhahk!"

"H-Holy!"

Members of the Hegang Alliance began dropping like flies. This included two of the Mechanical Engineers, who had been controlling the Steel Golems.

Creak!

Without their Mechanical Engineers, the two Steel Golems collapsed like puppets whose strings had been cut.

The poison mist didn't affect Schaal, the Steel Sword Squad, or any troops affiliated with the Raon Alliance.

"Kill them all!" Raon rampaged about like a mad beast.

"Now's our chance! Kill the ones controlling the golems!" Schaal yelled.

"We're going again!"

"Ooh!" The Steel Sword Squad cheered, and began slicing through their enemies once more like a well forged blade.

"Now!"

"Leopard Squad!"

Motivated by the appearance of both the reserve troops and the Wyvern Squad, Magma's Lava Squad and Snow Flower's Leopard Squad began fighting even harder.

"As expected of Breaker. To think they had something like this up their sleeve. Let's go too!" Jairus raised his sword into the sky.

"We're going again!" Saladin yelled. The wyverns turned back around, and unleashed another Poison Breath onto the ground.

"Arrows or magic! Use whatever you got!"

"Do whatever you can!"

"Cannons! Shoot the cannons!"

The Hegang Alliance couldn't recover.

"Iron #4!"

"#6!"

The Mechanical Engineers tried to stop the wyverns with their Steel Golems. However, it was a fruitless endeavor; it was like catching a dragonfly with their bare hands.

The Wyvern Squad comfortably flew through the sky, as if it were their very own home. No one could stop them.

* * *

"Aah, wyverns!"

"Wyvern Riders have appeared!"

"That must be the Breaker Guild's trump card!"

The various network correspondents went crazy over the Wyvern Squad.

Wyverns were considered top-tier flying monsters! The sight of Wyvern Riders flying above the battlefield was truly striking.

Moreover, they had assumed formation and were spewing Poison Breath onto the enemy forces! Look at that incredible power!

"Aah, the Hegang Alliance is being rendered helpless!"

"The Steel Golems are like steel cans. They can't do anything against the wyverns!"

"The Hegang Alliance is retaliating with their cannons, arrows, and magic, but none of them can reach the wyverns! Wyverns are too skilled in the air!"

The tides had turned in the Raon Alliance's favor. So much so that it seemed like there was no way for the Hegang Alliance to recover.

However...!

At that moment, the Hegang Alliance was planning their counteroffensive.

Hercules' leader, Shion, raised a giant egg into the air, which radiated heat.

The Hercules Guild's best mages surrounded him. They used Mana Link on him, allowing him to use their MP and Magic.

"...Within time everlasting, you transform into a handful of ash, and are then borne anew as the eternal, legendary bird!" Shion raised the giant egg into the air. He pushed every ounce of power and MP he received from his mages into it.

Crack!

Roar!

The egg cracked, and intense flames leaked out of it.

Split!

The egg completely cracked, and powerful embers popped out. The embers devoured every ounce of energy Shion sent its way, and quickly grew like a forest fire.

A short while later...

A bird entirely coated in flames appeared.

A Phoenix!

In the past, Kang Oh and the Warriors of the Great Forest had hunted the Winged Snake Queen, Cassio, who had consumed a phoenix's egg. One of the items it had dropped was a Phoenix Egg.

The Great Forest's bravest tribe, the Nedav Tribe, kept it in storage. However, the Hercules Guild had caught word of this, and had secretly stolen the egg from them just a little bit ago.

By infusing a ton of mana into it, the Hercules Guild had forcibly awakened the Phoenix.

Of course, using this method would cause the Phoenix to return to being an egg after a certain amount of time. After all, they had forced an unstable resurrection!

"Hueup, your mind and mine are one!" Shion cast a mind control spell over the unstable Phoenix.

The Phoenix's eyes turned black.

Normally, mind controlling a Phoenix was impossible. After all, a Phoenix was a mythical creature.

However, he managed to succeed. First, because the mana he'd used to awaken it was his own, and second, because the Phoenix was in an unstable state.

"Burn my enemies to cinders! Focus on those lizards first!" Shion pointed his staff at the Wyvern Squad.

Roar!

The Phoenix forcefully flapped its wings, and unleashed flames everywhere.

"Uhaahk!"

"Ugh."

Its flames were in a league of its own. The Raon Alliance was unable to cope with them, and began burning.

Roar!

The Phoenix kept flapping its wings, and flew towards the Wyvern Squad.

"A Phoenix! Wyvern Squad, we'll take care of it!" Saladin yelled. He, riding his black wyvern, flew towards it first.

Air Slash!

His sharp, crescent moon shaped blast flew through the air.

However, it didn't do much against the Phoenix. On the contrary, the Phoenix's flames became even stronger.

The rest of Saladin's squad had arrived.

"Scatter and attack it!"

As if surrounding it, 100 wyverns flew around the Phoenix and unleashed their Poison Breath.

However, the Phoenix was made of fire! Before the poison even hit it, the Phoenix's flames would burn it into a black smoke.

The Wyvern Squad shot arrows, hooks, powerful aura attacks, and other ranged attacks.

Foot that Pierces Through Steel!

Aura of Courage!

Piercing Sword!

Whip of Pain!

As Wyvern Riders, all the players in the Wyvern Squad were proficient in long-ranged combat.

However, the Phoenix was a mythical creature, one on the same level as Wukong! Though it wasn't in prime condition and had been forcefully awakened, thus not allowing it to use its full strength, it was still strong.

The Phoenix rose into the air, spread its wings, and spun.

Sun Wing!

It unleashed feather-shaped flames everywhere.

"Dodge!" Saladin yelled, and the Wyvern Squad showed their proficiency in the air.

The Phoenix didn't stop there.

Burning Tsunami!

Eternal Flame!

Firebolt!

It seemed like its flames could burn the sky itself.

Kyaahk!

"Ugh."

Anyone caught in its flames would be burnt to cinders. The Phoenix's flames were akin to a calamity.

However, this was only the beginning.

The Phoenix's flames began to consume both the Wyvern Squad and the wyverns they'd put so much effort into raising.

"Lead it outside of the battlefield!" Saladin yelled.

Attacking it head-on was an act of suicide. At the same time, they couldn't back down either. If they did, the Phoenix would burn their allies on the ground.

Thus, Saladin ordered a tactical retreat. They would lead the Phoenix outside of the battlefield, buying as much time as possible.

"Yes, sir!"

The Wyvern Squad assumed formation, and backed away from the Phoenix. The Phoenix obviously tried to chase them.

But Shion knew what they were planning.

"Ignore the lizards, and burn my enemies on the ground!" he whispered. It was a mere whisper, but to the brainwashed Phoenix, it came out loud and clear.

The Phoenix spun around, and then flew low to the ground. Anything it passed by burnt to cinders. Only the Hegang Alliance was spared from its flames!

"Hegang Alliance, now is the time! It's time to grab victory!" Arthand raised his hammer and yelled passionately.

"Iron #1!"

"Iron #10, go!"

Once the Phoenix flew across the battlefield, the Steel Golems were able to show their true strength.

Whenever they swung their mighty weapons, several members of the Raon Alliance would die.

They were monsters with strength, speed, and toughness! This was the power of the Steel Corps' Steel Golems.

Bam! Bam! Bam!

The eight remaining cannons continuously fired cannonballs. They'd come with several cannon balls, so they wouldn't run out of ammunition.

"Don't save your scroll!" Black Lion, Raon, assessed the battle, and yelled.

The Steel Sword Squad's leader, Schaal, ripped his magic scroll.

Crackle! Crackle! Crackle!

A sphere of lightning appeared in the air, which continuously unleashed lightning at their enemies.

Magma, Snow Flower, and the Raon Alliance's other leaders all ripped their magic scrolls too. Powerful fire, lightning, ice, wind, etc. swept through the heart of the battlefield.

"We're attacking the Phoenix again!"

Once his plan to lead the Phoenix away failed, Saladin and his Wyvern Squad turned back around and attacked the Phoenix.

"Don't lose!"

"Do or die. Kill as many as you can before you go!"

"Uheok."

"Just die already!"

The Raon Alliance and the Hegang Alliance's players, countless rankers, the Phoenix and the Wyvern Squad, the Steel Golems and the cannons, the great magic, the Steel Sword Squad, Zeus's Spear, the elite Engineer Squad, rank 10 Shion, and rank 3 Raon!

The players intermingled and fought brutally with no end in sight. It truly was the war's climax.