The golden light emanating from Long Haochen intensified with each chanted word, and the air began to resonate with abundant light elements. However, a hint of disappointment was evident on his face. As he had anticipated, the same incantation didn’t necessarily yield the same power, and luck wouldn’t always favor him.

Long Haochen was reciting the incantation for Divine Rain, but this time he failed to mobilize all the light elements and manifest the miracle. Instead, he only completed the Rain Technique.

A radiant golden pillar of light soared into the sky, illuminating a vast expanse. Immediately afterward, a fine golden rain descended from above. Although Rain Technique couldn’t compare to the near-super-forbidden spell Divine Rain, it was still an eighth-tier healing magic, covering an area of nearly a thousand square meters.

Within its reach, all the warriors and mages on the Southeastern Fortress received effective healing, while the attacking demons were shrouded in the golden rain, their bodies emitting plumes of green smoke, significantly diminishing their offensive.

However, Rain Technique was, after all, just Rain Technique. Its coverage, healing effect, and duration were far from comparable to the near-super-forbidden spell Divine Rain. Consequently, the demons’ attack was only slightly hampered. After a brief respite and healing, the Rain Technique ended, and the demon army surged forward like a tide once again.

Lin Xin retreated slightly at this moment. Continuous magical attacks had significantly depleted his spiritual power. Despite the augmentation from the Fire Dragon Wings, he needed time to recover.

Without the powerful magical attacks, the demons immediately stormed the city walls once more. Leading the charge were several Rook Clan Stalkers. While they couldn’t penetrate the solid walls, they relentlessly attacked with their spiky bodies.

Han Yu calmly dealt with these enemies, never overreaching. He gripped his shield tightly, spreading his senses around, perfectly protecting Long Haochen and Lin Xin behind him.

Holy Light Shield, Shield Bash, Divine Block, Shield Wall—he executed several major shield defense skills with superb skill, never moving his feet, yet preventing any demon from crossing the boundary within twenty meters.

Cai’er was like a light, a gray light, a light of death. Wherever she passed, even the mighty bodies of Bear Demons couldn’t stop her in the slightest. The sharpness of the Death Scythe could only be described as terrifying, and coupled with her superb speed, she easily filled any potential gaps in Han Yu’s defense on either side.

Long Haochen still didn’t participate in the attack, releasing one protective knight buff after another from his body.

Faith Aura, Guardian’s Grace, Strength Aura, Spirit Gathering Aura, Holy Aura.

Each aura effect he released far surpassed those of ordinary knights, covering an extremely wide area. He could even cast his auras in a pinpoint manner, projecting them to cover other positions on the city walls.

Under his continuous stream of light magic, nearly one-third of the warriors on the Southeastern Fortress city walls benefited from the auras. Although each aura’s buff wasn’t particularly significant, the benefit of receiving light magic not only greatly boosted morale but also improved the warriors’ combat and survival capabilities to a certain extent.

Among them, the most significant effect was the Holy Aura. This was also one of the most useful auras for knights in the war against the demons. Within the aura’s range, all warriors’ attacks would be infused with holy power, greatly increasing their damage against demons, while demons with dark attributes would have their strength immediately weakened if they entered the Holy Aura’s range.

Indeed, compared to defense and amplification, Long Haochen’s attacks were much more powerful. However, he wasn’t engaged in a one-on-one or one-on-many duel but rather in a war. The role of a Guardian Knight on the battlefield was far superior to that of a Retribution Knight.

The power of a Divinely Chosen One amplified the effect of each of Long Haochen’s skills by at least 30% compared to ordinary knights. He used these low-cost buff skills almost non-stop. For a time, one-third of the area on the Southeastern Fortress city walls was shrouded in a layer of golden radiance.

After a brief recovery, Lin Xin re-entered the war, outputting attacks like a cannon. Wherever the Heart Flame touched, the blue sea of fire severely restricted the demons’ attacks. When he was attacking at full strength, Han Yu and Cai’er would restrain themselves somewhat to recover their own spiritual power.

Their teamwork was deeply ingrained, and even after such a long separation, their renewed collaboration was still so harmonious.

This harmony stemmed from absolute trust, especially with Long Haochen present. With him, the soul of the team, present, the 64th grade-level Demon Hunt Squad possessed fearless and powerful motivation.

“Clang!” A metallic collision rang out to Long Haochen’s left, accompanied by an excited shout, “Cai’er, you just focus on the right side, leave the left to me.”

Long Haochen turned his head to see Wang Yuanyuan arriving at his side. The metallic collision was the sound of the Gigantic Divine Shield colliding with the Bloodstorm.

“Yuanyuan, you…” Long Haochen said in surprise.

Bathed in the auras released by Long Haochen, Wang Yuanyuan was enveloped in a layer of golden light.

“Leader, how could I be absent? Do you know? I’ve been waiting far too long to fight alongside everyone again!”

Healed by the Embrace of the Archangel, Wang Yuanyuan’s strength had recovered somewhat. More importantly, her emotions had changed at this moment.

The arrival of Long Haochen and the others had undoubtedly relaxed the taut string in her heart, but it had also ignited the boundless fighting spirit within her. Being able to fight alongside her most familiar companions was a true joy for her now!

Seeing Long Haochen and the others coordinating so smoothly in front of her, how could Wang Yuanyuan rest easy? After regaining some mental strength, she immediately came to Long Haochen’s side.

Long Haochen didn’t stop Wang Yuanyuan; he knew he couldn’t stop her at all. “Alright, then let’s fight side by side. Yuanyuan, activate your Soul Chains.”

“Yes, Captain.” Wang Yuanyuan replied loudly.

When they separated, everyone in the 64th grade-level Demon Hunt Squad consciously severed their Soul Chains, because they didn’t know what they would encounter during their time apart, and no one wanted to implicate their companions. After their reunion, the Soul Chains were reconnected one by one, signifying that they were reforming as a whole. The reformed 64th grade-level Demon Hunt Squad was much stronger than before. The experience of life and death had made them cherish the team more, and their experience and strength had undergone qualitative leaps.

With five of the seven members reunited, the team’s power had recovered significantly. With Wang Yuanyuan guarding the left, and with the powerful might of her Gigantic Divine Shield and Bloodstorm, Long Haochen could focus on the center and wholeheartedly unleash his buff spells.

The high-ranking members of the Warrior Temple had already noticed the changes here. The sudden arrival of the four from the sky had surprised them. However, the strong light attributes emanating from Long Haochen and Han Yu prevented them from intervening. When they saw Long Haochen’s Adamantine Foundation Armor, they couldn’t help but be shocked.

Adamantine Foundation Knights were the backbone of the Knight Temple and rarely left the Jade Dragon Pass except to perform missions. How could an Adamantine Foundation Knight suddenly come to the Southeastern Fortress with several people?

Qiu Yonghao, the Temple Head of the Warrior Temple, was leading the God of War and War Emperor-level experts in confronting the eight Demon Gods on the other side. When he saw Long Haochen releasing one buff spell after another, he couldn’t help but admire him secretly.

This is what a Guardian Knight is! A dual cultivator of magic and martial arts. On the battlefield, the role of a Guardian Knight is truly immense. They can defend, support, attack, and even heal. A powerful and comprehensive Guardian Knight can hold up a sky.

Qiu Yonghao and the experts from the Warrior Temple were suspended in the air, looking down to see the situation clearly. Since Long Haochen and his companions arrived, starting with the Rain Technique, the pressure on the Southeastern Fortress had noticeably decreased. The demons’ offensive had also been effectively suppressed. Just a few people had made a huge difference to the war. As the Temple Head of the Warrior Temple, Qiu Yonghao felt this the most deeply.

Knight, Mage, Assassin, Knight, Warrior. Wait, Wang Yuanyuan and they are actually cooperating so well together. Could it be that these people are from the same Demon Hunt Squad as her?

Thinking of this, Qiu Yonghao couldn’t help but be shocked. In his mind, he immediately remembered the young man who had once struck out a sword in the Warrior Temple, leaving behind the essence of sword intent for the Warrior Temple.

Could it be that the Adamantine Foundation Knight who is constantly casting buff spells is him? In less than two years, he has grown to such an extent? Recalling the important meeting of the Temple Alliance less than two years ago, Qiu Yonghao’s mood couldn’t help but become more complicated.

“What is the role of a Guardian Knight on the battlefield? It’s not defense, it’s not healing, and it’s not even offense. It’s to allow your comrades to survive as many as possible. Only by understanding this and doing this are you a truly qualified Guardian Knight.”

His grandfather’s words echoed in Long Haochen’s heart. He released the auras more and more skillfully, and the coordination of the auras became more and more harmonious. With the restoration of the Adamantine Foundation Armor and his own recovery, spiritual power almost continuously supplied him with the power to cast these aura-type spells that were generally below the fifth rank. In terms of casting speed, he couldn’t compare to the pure mage Lin Xin, but in terms of casting distance and the effect of same-tier magic, Lin Xin was far behind.

(To be continued)