The genius who counterattacked the mainland

After successfully destroying the Shadow Lord's dark magic circle, the Alliance members set out on their journey back to camp. The sky was still shrouded in dark clouds, hanging heavy over everyone's heads like the lingering shadow of darkness. The wind howled in their ears like a demon's roar, stirring up sand and rocks that lashed their faces painfully.

Xu Tiancai walked at the front of the team, his face solemn, his eyes revealing vigilance and worry. The power of the stars slowly flowed through his body, ready to deal with any possible danger. A Gang followed closely behind, the battle axe in his hand stained with blood, his body covered with wounds, but his steps were still firm and powerful, like a moving hill, exuding an aura of indomitable spirit. Lin was in the middle of the team, controlling the wind element to heal the injured team members. The wind element gently surrounded the wounded, accelerating the healing of the wounds. Her eyes were full of fatigue, but more of determination. The Ice Princess was directing the team's march from the rear. Her voice was calm and decisive, gradually restoring order to the chaotic team.

"Everyone, cheer up. Although we have temporarily disrupted the Shadow Lord's conspiracy, we can't be sure whether he will set an ambush along the way." Xu Tiancai reminded loudly, his voice still clearly audible in the strong wind.

The team struggled forward, everyone on edge. Suddenly, the ground began to tremble violently, as if a giant monster had awakened beneath the earth. Huge cracks appeared on the road ahead, and from these cracks spewed black smoke and a pungent odor.

"What's going on?" Agang asked vigilantly, with the battle axe across his chest, and the eternal fighting spirit surged again.

"I'm afraid this is the Shadow Demon Lord's backup plan, everyone be careful!" Xu Tiancai shouted, and the power of the stars instantly covered his whole body.

Before he could finish his words, a group of gigantic, dark ground beasts emerged from the ground. These beasts were covered in black carapaces that gleamed like metal. Their massive pincers were like razor-sharp sickles, and their eyes glowed blood-red. As soon as they appeared, they charged toward the alliance, their every step shaking the ground and raising clouds of dust.

"Kill!" Agang roared, charging at the dark ground beasts. Raising his battle axe high, he struck one of the ground beasts' heads with overwhelming force. The ground beast raised its pincers to block, but Agang's strength was too great. With one blow, the pincers were severed, and black blood gushed out.

Lin controlled the wind element, forming sharp wind blades and shooting them at the eyes of the ground beasts: "Attack their weaknesses!" The wind blades fell on the eyes of the ground beasts like raindrops. The ground beasts roared in pain and their movements became slow.

The Ice Princess cast an ice spell: "Ice Piercing!" Countless sharp ice spikes rose from the ground and pierced the ground beast's abdomen. The ice spikes penetrated the ground beast's shell, and the ground beast let out a series of screams.

The magicians formed a magic circle in the back and unleashed a powerful magical attack. Fire magic, lightning magic, and other magics intertwined together to form a brilliant sea of ​​magical fire, drowning the dark beast.

However, the dark beasts were numerous, and regardless of casualties, they madly rushed towards the alliance. The alliance gradually fell into a difficult battle, and the number of casualties continued to increase.

At that moment, a sharp whistling sound echoed from the sky. Everyone looked up and saw a flock of dark vultures flying toward them. These vultures were enormous, their wingspans more than ten meters wide, their claws as sharp as iron hooks, and their mouths spewed black flames.

"There are enemies in the air too, magicians, please be on guard!" shouted the Ice Princess.

The magicians divided their strength to form a magic shield above the team. The dark vultures continuously attacked the magic shield, and black flames burned on the shield, and the shield's light gradually dimmed.

Xu Tiancai knew this wasn't going to work, so he decided to take the initiative. He unleashed his "Starlight Shining Sun Sword," and the multicolored, flowing sword transformed into a blazing sun, soaring towards the Dark Demonic Vulture in the sky. The sword energy crisscrossed like sharp blades, slashing at the approaching Demonic Vultures one after another.

On the ground, Agang engaged in a desperate struggle with the dark ground beasts. He was wounded in many places, but he remained fearless. He unleashed a new fighting technique: "Armor-Breaking Combo!" With his axe, like a flash of lightning, he repeatedly struck the same part of the ground beasts, finally shattering the carapace of one and slaying it with a single blow.

Lin controlled the wind element to bring the injured team members to a safe place while continuing to attack the enemy. Her face became increasingly pale and her magic power gradually depleted, but she still gritted her teeth and persisted.

Thanks to everyone's efforts, the attacks of the Dark Magic Vulture and Dark Earth Beast were finally repelled. However, the alliance also paid a heavy price, with many members injured or even killed, and everyone's magic power and fighting spirit were largely depleted.

"We can't stay here too long, we must leave as soon as possible." Xu Tiancai said, with a hint of helplessness and sadness in his voice.

The team continued onward, but their pace slowed noticeably. Injured members needed care, and everyone was exhausted. Just then, they reached a wide river. Once crystal clear, the river was now tainted by a dark force. The water was black and stagnant, with dead fish and debris floating on its surface.

"There's something wrong with the river water. We can't cross it directly," said a magician.

"But we don't have time to take a detour. The Shadow Lord may still be chasing us." A Gang said anxiously.

After thinking for a moment, Xu Tiancai said, "I'll go explore first to see if there's a safe way to cross the river."

With that, he summoned the power of the stars and soared above the river. Suddenly, a massive column of black water surged from the river, and within it emerged a gigantic, dark water monster. This monster resembled an octopus, its body covered in giant suckers and sharp tentacles. Its eyes were like two giant lanterns, emitting an evil light.

"Be careful!" Xu Tiancai shouted, unleashing his "Star Sword Technique" to attack the dark water monster. The sword energy slashed through the monster's tentacles, sending up a black splash of water, but the monster's tentacles didn't sustain much damage.

The dark water monster swung its tentacles, wrapping around Xu Tiancai. Xu Tiancai quickly dodged, but the tentacles were incredibly fast, and he was nearly entangled. Just then, Ah Gang arrived, piloting a giant flying bird. He had tamed this bird along the way, and it possessed powerful flight abilities.

"Xu Tiancai, I'm here to help you!" A Gang shouted, and swung his battle axe towards the dark water monster's head.

The dark water monster detached several tentacles to resist A Gang's attack. Xu Tiancai seized the opportunity to unleash some of the power of the "Star Devil Breaking Formation," enveloping himself and A Gang in a starlight shield. Then, he and A Gang joined forces to attack the dark water monster. After a hard fight, they finally repelled it.

"It seems there are other dangers in the river. We must be careful." Xu Tiancai said.

He returned to the group and, after discussing it with them, decided that the magicians would cast a spell to freeze part of the river, allowing them to cross the river on the ice. The magicians began to cast their spells, their faces solemn, muttering to themselves. As they cast their spells, a layer of ice gradually formed on the river's surface.

The Alliance members cautiously stepped onto the ice and headed towards the other side. But just as they reached the middle of the river, the ice suddenly began to crack. It turned out that the Shadow Lord had secretly cast dark magic, destroying the ice.

"Oh no!" Everyone cried out in shock, falling into the icy river. The water was bone-chillingly cold, and it also contained a dark force that constantly corroded everyone's bodies.

Xu Tiancai quickly unleashed his star power to lift his teammates out of the water. Agang, with his immense strength, also struggled to his feet, his battle axe piercing the ice to support himself. Lin manipulated the wind element, forming wind platforms on the water's surface, allowing the injured team members to temporarily stand on them.

"Don't panic, swim to the other side!" Xu Tiancai shouted.

They swam hard in the icy river, the dark forces constantly attacking their bodies and wills, but they supported and encouraged each other and finally swam to the other side.

After reaching the shore, everyone was shivering with cold, and the injured team members were in a critical condition. Lin and the magicians quickly cast magic to warm and heal the injured, but due to the excessive consumption of magic power, the effect was not ideal.

"We must find a place to rest and recover our strength and magic power," said the Ice Princess.

So, they found a cave nearby. It was dark and damp, but at least it could shelter them from the wind and rain. They rested in the cave while the magicians set up some simple magic traps to prevent the enemy's sneak attacks.

Xu Tiancai sat in the cave, his heart filled with worry. His experiences on this journey home had made him realize that the Shadow Lord's power was far more formidable than they had imagined, and they also faced the potential threat of the Dark Pope. The Alliance must rapidly strengthen itself and find an effective way to deal with the forces of darkness, or the world would be plunged into endless darkness.

"Everyone, take a good rest first. Once your strength and magic power are restored, we will continue on our journey." Xu Tiancai said.

Everyone nodded, closed their eyes, and began to adjust their state. But they all knew that in this dangerous world, even if they were resting, they could face danger at any time.