Inside the atrium, as the music released from the violin, the plainfolk almost fell dizzy, collapsing to the ground in sleepiness. The ones with low mana reserves began to feel drowsy.
Meanwhile, Vera blinked her eyes rapidly… "Umm… Uncle, I'm kinda feeling… sleepy…" She followed it up with a yawn.
Tianzhu stood straight, fighting off the resistance. Clenching his fists, he poured mana to his brain, shielding it from the incoming energy.
The drowsiness instantly vanished from Tianzhu. Meanwhile, Noa also seemed like she was unaffected.
"Is that your nephew?" She asked. "I can see the resemblance now."
With a steady breath, Tianzhu muttered in response. "Noa," he said quietly, "Can you hold her?"
Noa looked at him sharply, sensing the shift in his tone. She gave a small nod and gently pulled an unconscious Vera closer.
He then shifted his gaze to the monster, which looked like it was in a daze. He looked at the other hunters.
They all seemed to have fallen unconscious.
Of more than two thousand people who scrambled in the Atrium, there are fewer than 20 who have resistance to the melodic music of sleep apart from Theo himself, and only 9 were completely fine.
Of the seven, three seemed injured. Tianzhu and Noa were not fighting. The muscled hunter from Haze Guild charged forward nevertheless, taking advantage of its state and attacking it with his fists.
Tianzhu's eyes captured the remaining three. A man in a suit was seen tightly grabbing a boy, not paying much attention to the surroundings. The second one was a young man who had a deep frown on his face, but he was simply watching the scene and not doing anything else.
It was then the last remaining conscious nephew seen, checking in on his colleagues. As for his friend, he was still nowhere to be seen.
Tianzhu closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "It seems like there is only one choice left."
Tianzhu then charged forward. He didn't charge at the monster, which was in a disoriented state.
Instead, he approached his nephew.
Theo gave a proud smile to his Uncle, as if he was stating, Look, Uncle. I'm strong. He continued to play the violin.
Tianzhu didn't say anything to him and instead shifted his gaze toward the guy who was attacking the Red Ogre with his fists. He said. "Hello, mister, over here."
"Hmm?" As the guy halted and turned his head to look at Tianzhu. The latter then pointed at the giant axe on the floor. "You looked quite strong based on your physique. Can you pick up that weapon? It could inflict more damage on the Ogre." He said.
"Hmm?"
As the hunter tried to pick up the Ax belonging to the Red Ogre, his mana surged out. However, he couldn't pick it up.
Tianzhu couldn't help but click his tongue. "Tch, I guess this won't do it." He raised his hand and made a swift movement toward his nephew, grabbing the bow from him and snatching it away.
The music instantly stopped. Theo's face froze at once. "Uncle?"
Tianzhu looked colder. "You are not exactly helping, Theo. Look around you."
"Wh… what?" Theo's eyes wandered, looking at the unconscious people around. Then, his gaze fell on the Red Ogre. "But Uncle, I stopped the beast. You just need people to cover their ears with earbuds and attack it. It's going to wake up soon. Hurry. Give it back…"
"Theo, stop it." Tianzhu interrupted him and grabbed his hand, dragging him back.
"Uncle… Uncle…" Theo tried to struggle, but Tianzhu continued to drag him with him.
Meanwhile, others slowly got up. Those who were unconscious continued to sleep. Only those who were slightly too dizzy dozed off.
But before them, the Red Ogre managed to get out of the sleeping spell.
*Graaaa*
It roared and charged at Tianzhu and Theo.
"Careful…" Noa shouted.
Tianzhu raised his hand, pointing at the incoming monster. Vines grew up from the floor. They were about to capture him, but right then, a translucent beam of energy suddenly struck the monster, and the Red Ogre instantly experienced its effects: 4 times the gravitational force; its bones, muscles, and joints buckled under the pressure. Because of its insane skeletal density, the Red Orge instantly dropped to the ground.
Tianzhu's eyes shifted to the source. It was the same young man who was simply standing around.
Sungjun was seen with his arm pushed out, his palm pointing at the monster.
*Ding!
[40,000 mana particles have been consumed. Adjusting Gravity Suppression Strength. The 30-second time limit has started.]
Sungjun then murmured. "Flaming Sword."
While mana flowed out of his body and simply covered his legs, a sword made of pure orange flames materialized in his hand.
*Ding!
[Flaming Sword has been unleashed. 1% mana reserves consumption started.]
Sungjun moved forward, and in the next second, he crossed tens of meters and reached the monster.
Tianzhu frowned, his expression turning ugly, watching the man reach the Red Ogre and raise the sword.
"How dare you try to attack my nephew…" Sungjun murmured under his breath, gazing at it coldly as he swung it down at the kneeling monster.
With a slash, the monster's head was decapitated from its body, and Sungjun followed it up by stabbing the flaming sword into its chest. As he freed his hand, the Red Ogre fell to the ground with a thud before the flames from the sword burned it to cinders.
"Who… Who is this guy?" Noa mumbled, staring at him in a daze as she stepped forward in awe.
Vera, who barely stood on her feet, looked at Sungjun's face. She seemed to be awed, too. "So powerful…"
Theo, who was behind Tianzhu, also stared at him. "His overall mana reserve capacity seemed to be more or less the same as mine. Yet, could he kill it with one blow?" He wondered in his head.
Meanwhile, Tianzhu's face turned slightly ugly. "The Power of Gravity and the Fire? Neither element is compatible with the other. Only those freaks from the Shen Triad's Secret Research Facility have such powers. He is not here for me, right?" His heart raced, not in fear or panic but in fury, as it had already been 18 years since he left the organization.
Meanwhile, on the fourth floor, a pulse of light burst out, and a swirling vortex opened where the monsters had first come through. A powerful suction followed. The remaining orcs and lesser ogres, wounded or still hiding, were dragged toward it, screeching, panicking.
Within seconds, they were gone.
The portal pulsed once more and then vanished completely. Cheers followed it, and the Starlight guild hunters and freelancers high-fived in success.
Watching everyone cheering around, in the quiet corner of the atrium, the hooded man, who released the purple smoke and escaped to a corner, was irritated. "Tch… So much planning and still failed. If I can't assassinate her today, I will have no choice but to go into hiding. The High Council will punish me this time if I return with another failure."
RESULTS: 4 civilian casualties, 9 Hunter casualties. Survival Rate: 98.64%.
Monsters Killed: 78 Class-3 Orcs, 5 Class-2 Ogres, and 1 Class-2 Red Ogre.