What was most crucial now was that Jiu Bai hadn't the slightest clue what these people were after.
Were they here for plunder and murder, or simply to destroy the imperial palace? Or perhaps to extinguish the lives of them, the ascetics? It was entirely unknown.
Therefore, they had no way to defend themselves.
And judging by the attitude of their opponents, these people not only knew many secrets about the palace, but had also made thorough preparations to deal with any eventuality.
An ambush of the prepared against the unprepared—this had already put them at a severe disadvantage from the outset!
However…
Darkness pierced through!
Fueled by the power within his body, Jiu Bai instantly transformed into a shadowy entity. In mere seconds, it was as if he had traversed time and space, bypassing the defense matrix and reconstructing his physical form within.
With his SSS-rank talent, "Decay World Tree," he once again exceeded Tanaka Kenho and the others' expectations, stirring up vines within the defense matrix.
This sudden development startled Tanaka Kenho, who hurriedly commanded all ships in the fleet to activate their defensive barriers, providing a second layer of protection against Jiu Bai's assault.
But Jiu Bai seemed to have anticipated this turn of events, as none of his vines were directed towards the ships.
Thus, the ready defensive barriers were rendered useless.
"Not good! Jiu Bai's true target is our Awakeners and Priests! Hurry and have them retreat to their ships!"
Tanaka Kenho finally realized the truth, but by then, it was already somewhat too late.
Jiu Bai's black vines, with the speed of lightning, had pierced through the bodies of dozens of Awakeners and Priests, growing barbs and draining them into desiccated husks.
The energy siphoned from them then became nourishment for Jiu Bai.
What a heaven-defying technique!
Seeing Jiu Bai capable of wreaking such havoc amidst his fleet, Tanaka Kenho felt like gnashing his molars.
Fortunately, no matter how heaven-defying Jiu Bai was, he was still just one person and could not attend to everything simultaneously.
Therefore, the remaining Awakeners and Priests managed to retreat to their ships.
After all, to ensure the element of surprise during their initial infiltration, Jiu Bai had targeted those who were already wounded and weakened, those who had let their guard down while recovering.
It was naturally not as easy to deal with those who were less injured, or even completely unharmed.
Coupled with the complexities of energy deployment and retraction, Jiu Bai could only watch them retreat.
However, with the complete withdrawal of the defensive personnel, the entire defense matrix was left exposed to the air, and was readily dismantled by the ascetics outside.
This caused the defense matrix's initially favorable situation to take a sharp downturn, collapsing even before the palace's own defensive barrier.
The resulting butterfly effect meant that the ships' magnetic and nuclear cannons could no longer unleash their full fury without restraint. Some hadn't even completed their charging sequences before being intercepted by the ascetics.
"The current attack efficiency… is so low."
"If you don't introduce some change soon, I'm afraid your entire fleet will be dismantled by the ascetics."
"By then, the palace's final barrier will likely still be intact."
Chizuru Ginparo glanced at the ascetics outside, who were launching a furious assault, and then at Tanaka Kenho, clearly seeking a solution.
Tanaka Kenho, however, appeared unhurried.
"Don't panic, let them smash away… the more enthusiastically they smash, the better…"
"It's no big deal even if our fleet's ships and their defensive barriers are all dismantled piece by piece."
"Our objective isn't to tangle with these ascetics anyway. We have only one goal!"
Chizuru Ginparo looked at the ships that were beginning to sustain damage and then at Tanaka Kenho.
"You mean Kannai Guji, right? I know that."
"But the fall of every single ship means the death of your Awakeners and my Priests…"
"The lives of such high-caliber personnel cannot be measured by ordinary value."
"And speaking of which, if we can't break through the barrier's blockade first, how are we supposed to kill Kannai Guji who is hiding inside?"
Tanaka Kenho smiled.
"Their sacrifice will be meaningful…"
"As for how to break through the barrier… here, just watch!"
With that, Tanaka Kenho suddenly slammed his hand onto a projection on one of the leading ships.
The next instant, the Awakeners and Priests who had been stationed on other ships were transferred to his and Chizuru Ginparo's flagship.
"Come, let's enjoy this magnificent meteor shower together!"
Tanaka Kenho burst into laughter.
Amidst his utterly perverse laughter, the ships, now devoid of personnel, disintegrated into swirling, violent energy particles, plummeting towards the imperial palace below.
This guy was actually using his entire fleet of ships as bait and an attack method!
Chizuru Ginparo looked at Tanaka Kenho with surprise, marveling at his immense wealth and outlandish idea.
However, this attack, personally orchestrated by Tanaka Kenho, indeed yielded remarkably good results.
The defensive barrier, already at its last gasp, could no longer withstand the onslaught of these violent particles. In mere moments, it completely disintegrated and dissolved.
Along with it, countless buildings below were reduced to desolate ruins.
The ascetics, realizing the gravity of the situation and rushing to intervene, were too late.
The ships decomposed so quickly and suddenly, and coupled with the prior loss of a few vessels, they had naturally assumed these were no different from ordinary ships.
This sudden turn of events naturally caught them off guard.
Seeing the painstaking efforts of hundreds of years instantly pulverized by the steel behemoths before them, Jiu Bai was filled with such rage that his face was contorted.
Just as he was preparing to unleash his full power and fight the flagship to the death, he suddenly felt a strong premonition of death from behind him.
He hadn't experienced this suffocating sensation, as if kissed by the Grim Reaper, for many years.
The suddenness of this feeling today sent a jolt through him, and he quickly adopted a defensive posture shrouded in dense black mist.
Meanwhile, Tanaka Kenho, who had been extremely arrogant and boasting about going down to collect Kannai Guji's corpse, also heard a death warning from the ship's AI intelligence at the prow of the flagship.
"Detecting the invasion of the Annihilating Wind ahead. Please evade immediately…"
"Annihilating Wind Intensity: Infinite; Probability of Survival Upon Encounter: Zero!"