Time Battlefield

"What?"

Chen Chong's hurried movements faltered in surprise. He felt the air in the entire area distort and heat up. He quickly picked up his pace, disbelief coloring his voice, "The Dread Demons are all dead, what the hell are we blocking?"

Cheng Shi yelled an explanation, "Maybe the Isle of Hope doesn't know the Dread Demon army is dead. That's why I wondered why the trial's engagement was so fast this time. This should be the real Song of Blood and Fire! Survive 24 hours amidst the Dread Demon army's rampage and the Meteor Fire Rain's bombardment! We encountered the Dread Demons early, which led us to misunderstand the trial!"

Cao Sansui's face was a mask of shock, unable to believe it. "How is that possible..." Then, as if struck by an idea, his shock deepened. "You mean the Bone Legion found out about the Isle of Hope's blocking plan, so they attacked early to avoid the bombardment?"

"Exactly!" Cheng Shi gritted his teeth in frustration. "And we just happened to run into them! The fall of the Isle of Hope might not be due to a defeat in war; something went wrong internally!"

"Damn it, stop talking, heal me, I'm running out of mental energy!" Cheng Shi quickly cut himself off, casually unleashing a powerful Healing Art onto Chen Chong's stomach. As for why it was his stomach, don't ask. Just know it was conveniently within reach, and definitely not some sick joke. In a life-or-death situation, any sick jokes had to take a backseat. This time, he wasn't lucky. The healing art hit its mark, causing Chen Chong's stomach to bulge slightly, but thankfully, his speed increased by another third.

"There's no time. The meteor strikes have too wide a range. Chen Chong, how many hits can the Holy Light Great Wall take?"

Chen Chong blurted out, "Three hits. I'm missing an A-class defense talent. The fourth hit will definitely break it!"

Cheng Shi frowned, calculating. Cao Sansui beside him immediately shouted, "That's enough! Based on the meteor's descent speed, it's not too fast at the beginning. It'll be enough for me to activate the Time Battlefield!"

Time Battlefield!? Right! He forgot about that! Cheng Shi's face broke into a look of realization and exaggerated joy. It seemed they would need to find a true path to survival within the time loop from now on.

"Everyone! Get to me!" Chen Chong roared, dropping the two people he was holding. He pulled out his greatshield, veins bulging on his arms, and forcefully drove the tip of the shield into the soil. Looking up at the rain of fiery meteors falling from the sky, he roared, "Order Endures!"

The radiance of Order erupted once more, forming a wall that enveloped the six of them. Outside the bright yellow barrier, the air temperature continued to rise, space distorting from the heat, and the ground cracking from the scorching. They all looked up, witnessing the giant sun blazing with fire, meteors whistling down, their blackened trails like carving knives, tearing through the sky like thin paper. It was a sight as shocking as the end of the world. If they hadn't been beneath the meteors, but outside the impact zone, this might have been an unforgettable beautiful scene.

"Chen Chong, hold steady! 1 minute and 12 seconds left!" Chen Chong gripped the shield tightly, gritting his teeth and shouting, "Watch out, it's coming!"

As soon as he finished speaking!

"Boom—"

They all felt their vision go black as a massive meteor fireball exploded against the barrier. Immediately after, intense light flooded their eyes. The exploding flames surged like molten lava, instantly engulfing the Holy Light Great Wall. Even the barrier that had withstood countless Dread Demon assaults now swayed violently from the sheer force. Chen Chong trembled, his skin beginning to turn red. It was too hot!

"Priest, heal!" Nangong didn't say a word and began casting minor Healing Arts and Cooling Arts. Cao Sansui clutched his pocket watch, his face etched with anxiety. "Hold on! 48 seconds!"

"Here it comes again! Two of them! Watch out for the high temperature!"

"Boom—"

"Boom—"

The two meteors arrived one after another this time. Fortunately, one didn't directly hit the Holy Light Great Wall but landed next to the light barrier. However, the splashing flames still made the barrier precarious.

"No, I can't hold on. There's another one coming! Cheng Shi, do something!"

Cheng Shi's expression darkened. Just as he was about to act, he saw Song Yawen next to him quickly take out a piece of pure black cloth from his personal space.

"What is this...?" Nangong asked, a little surprised.

A look of pain flashed across Song Yawen's face, but he said firmly, "I'll do it this time!"

Cheng Shi raised an eyebrow, recognizing the item.

It was an Assassin's A-rank occupational item, the Gate of All Realms' Shadows.

This was no ordinary item; it could only be obtained from the Ladder rewards at the 1600-point bracket and had an extremely low drop rate.

When unfurled, it could send any item into the shadow plane, regardless of size, location, or time, and without any control.

Furthermore, it was a single-use item and incredibly valuable.

This was the item most suited for an Assassin's Shadow Shuttle. Song Yawen's willingness to take it out now clearly showed he was desperate.

"Not bad, Comrade Xiao Song. It's not easy to get this thing at 1636."

Song Yawen smiled with pride, thinking he had finally gotten to show off.

"I snatched it."

After saying that, he leaped high, his hands and feet sticking to the inner side of the light barrier like a spider hanging upside down. He counted the seconds in his head and, before the fourth meteor landed, skillfully threw out the "Gate of All Realms' Shadows."

This was a meticulous operation. Because the Holy Light Great Wall blocked everything, he had to risk his life to use the shadows created by the smoke to shuttle outside the light barrier, unfurl the black cloth, open the shadow gate, and then shuttle back instantly.

A mere millisecond's delay in any step could have melted him on the spot.

Fortunately, Song Yawen was a qualified Assassin.

In the blink of an eye, he had completed everything, sending the meteor that was about to shatter the light barrier into the shadow plane.

The "Gate of All Realms' Shadows" then dissipated.

But being qualified was just that, and they were still more than halfway from reaching 100 points.

"Quick! Healer, save me, my butt is on fire!!!"

Song Yawen wailed as he lay on the ground, his entire back, including his buttocks and thighs, having a layer of flesh melted away. He propped up his red, scalded buttocks and kept nudging closer to the healer, desperately seeking treatment.

Even in his injured state, he was looking towards Nangong, not Cheng Shi.

Nangong raised her hand, dumbfounded, and cast a Healing Art on his backside.

Cheng Shi's smile vanished, feeling thoroughly humiliated.

What, my healing isn't good enough, huh?

"Careful! There's another one coming! Mage, how much longer!"

The Holy Light Great Wall had only held for about a minute, and the entire plain had already turned into a sea of fire. The rumbling and shaking were incessant, and the surrounding temperature continued to rise.

Seeing the terrifying meteors falling one after another, Chen Chong truly couldn't hold on any longer.

"10 seconds! Everyone, get ready! At the 1 o'clock direction, the meteor impact is less frequent. When the time is up, we'll break through!"

"Don't spread out too much, or we won't be able to confirm casualties when the Time Battlefield ends. I repeat, don't spread out too much!"

"I hope we can all make it out alive!"

Cao Sansui clutched his pocket watch, sweating slightly, and raised his other hand high, ready to start the Time Battlefield at any moment.

This would be their only way to escape, provided they didn't have to repeat the cycle too many times.

"3!"

"2! Everyone! Get ready!"

"1! Run!"

Chen Chong shouted in response and withdrew the Holy Light Great Wall. In a flash, he put his Shieldsword into his space, roared, and, like a madman, grabbed Nangong and Cao Sansui, charging towards the 1 o'clock direction.

Xia Wan followed closely behind, carrying the young and weak Cheng Shi on her back.

As for Song Yawen, with smoke billowing around and flames everywhere, he could shuttle anywhere. He had already disappeared and was running ahead of the group.

However, good luck doesn't last forever.

Although they had seen fewer meteors in the direction of 1 o'clock from within the light barrier, after charging out for a distance, they realized the sky was filled with so many meteors that they couldn't dodge them at all.

A massive fireball struck in front of Chen Chong. He braked sharply, stopped, pulled out his Shieldsword, transformed it into a greatsword, and swung it with divine power.

The meteor exploded upon impact, but before he could advance again, another one struck above their heads.

"Damn it!"

Cao Sansui's face contorted in alarm. He precisely timed it and shouted:

"Time, Rewind!"

The entire world suddenly froze, then rapidly rewound like a movie playing in reverse.

Flames retracted, meteors ascended, figures retreated, and the light barrier reappeared.

Everything returned to the moment the Time Battlefield began.

"One! Run!"

The instant the light screen shattered, everyone exerted all their strength and bolted, heading towards the three o'clock direction.

Only Cao Sansui, gasping in Chen Chong's arms, yelled frantically:

"Chen Chong! Xia Wan! Change, three o'clock direction! Quickly!"

Followers of [Time] were not affected by the Time Battlefield's rewind and retained their memories. The current Cao Sansui was their eyes.

Upon hearing this, the two immediately changed direction without the slightest hesitation.

Cheng Shi held Xia Wan's neck tightly, continuously casting Healing Art on her, and frowned in thought:

"This is the second time."

As he thought this, he reached out and flipped the die in his arms.

Two dots faced up.