At that moment, the black flame mark on Starlight's wrist completely vanished, and the remaining power within the Elemental Mark erupted in full. Like a massive black hammer, it slammed directly into the barrier within his mind.
“It’s over!”
This thought flashed through Starlight’s mind as he felt his entire consciousness being swallowed by an endless darkness.
But just as the black hammer was about to shatter the Saint Rank barrier, the remaining blue lines on Starlight’s wrist suddenly lit up.
Those blue lines, which originally existed only at his wrist, flashed suddenly and rapidly climbed up his arm, covering his entire body in an instant.
The black hammer in his mind was also wrapped in countless blue lines at that moment, stopping in its tracks by a mere hair's breadth. The black and blue lights intertwined, forming a strange balance.
In the next moment, the blue lines all over Starlight’s body twisted rapidly, turning into strange square characters before disappearing under his skin in the blink of an eye, gradually calming the violent energy within him.
At the end of the boundless darkness in Starlight’s consciousness, a blue point of light appeared.
Though it was as faint as a firefly, it miraculously illuminated the entire world. The black portion receded at an astonishing speed, like snow under a blazing sun.
The Saint Rank barrier, which had been on the verge of shattering, miraculously began to repair itself under the blue light.
The cracks upon it gradually healed, and the barrier became stable once more, as if it had never been struck.
“That strange power again!” Starlight naturally felt the changes within him, and his heart jolted.
After the blue light appeared, he gradually regained control over his body. The piercing pain miraculously vanished, replaced by a warm sensation, as if a gentle force were nourishing his body and soul.
In the eyes of Po Kong and the others, Starlight’s aura suddenly broke through to the Saint Rank intensity. A powerful surge of energy erupted from his body, and the impact even caused the medicinal liquid in the pool to tremble slightly, sending out ripples.
However, that aura appeared only for a fleeting moment before falling back and becoming stable once more.
Starlight’s body also slowly returned to a state of calm, as if the outburst just now had been nothing but an illusion.
“This... what happened?” Po Kong’s eyes widened as he looked at Xia Duo in surprise. “Little Star’s aura clearly broke through to the Saint Rank just now. Why did it suddenly drop back down?”
Xia Duo also frowned, her tone carrying a hint of confusion. “Did he fail? But... that power clearly reached the Saint Rank intensity.”
Moen stared intently at Starlight, a flash of worry in her beautiful eyes. “Starlight... is he okay?”
Yserazor stood to the side, his gaze deep as he watched Starlight. He said in a low voice, “No, he didn't fail. On the contrary, he did something none of us could have imagined.”
“What do you mean?” Po Kong turned to look at Yserazor, his face full of confusion.
Yserazor pondered for a moment before explaining slowly, “The boy did indeed touch the threshold of the Saint Rank just now, but he did not choose to break through. Instead, he forcibly suppressed that power. That is far more difficult than breaking through to the Saint Rank itself.”
“He suppressed it?” Po Kong was stunned for a moment, his expression turning to one of disbelief. “You mean, he clearly could have broken through to the Saint Rank, but he chose to give it up?”
Yserazor nodded, his tone filled with heavy praise. “Exactly. If I’m not mistaken, the aura from that Night Elf girl must have influenced Starlight, causing his power to rise in an instant.”
He paused before continuing, “Ordinary power would have been fine, but this brat actually managed to comprehend an Ultimate Power at such a critical moment. This made it impossible for him to suppress the breakthrough power on his own, which led to that state he was in just now...”
Then, a flash of confusion crossed Yserazor’s eyes, and he murmured softly, “But what I don’t understand is, he was clearly at his limit, so where did that burst of Power of Fate come from at the end? Ordinary living beings cannot possibly master such power...”
“Power of Fate? You mean the blue light that flashed just now?” Moen looked up at Yserazor.
They had seen a similar scene once before in Night Lotus Valley, but at the time, no one could explain what had happened.
“The Power of Fate is an existence that transcends conventional power and is completely different from the power systems we are familiar with. Only certain individuals with special talents can master even a sliver of it.” Yserazor shook his head. “Heh, Ultimate Darkness, the Radiant Elemental Body, and now the Power of Fate... just how many things are hidden in this boy that we don't know about?”
Moen and Xia Duo were also shocked. Moen asked in a low voice, “Then will Starlight... be in any danger?”
“From what I can see, this power is beneficial to him. It not only helped him suppress the breakthrough power but also repaired the damage within him. However, he likely doesn't even know the source or nature of this power himself, or he wouldn't have waited until the final moment to use it.”
As Yserazor spoke, Starlight slowly opened his eyes in the pool.
His gaze was clear and deep, and in the depths of his black pupils, a faint blue light flashed briefly.
“Starlight!” Moen was the first to jump into the pool, her eyes full of concern. “Are you okay?”
Starlight looked back at her and gave a gentle smile. “I’m fine. In fact, I feel better than ever.”
He was not lying. At this moment, both his body and mind felt an unprecedented sense of comfort and ease.
The disappearance of the Elemental Mark allowed him to breathe a massive sigh of relief. He had been worried about whether Taros’s power would bring him any negative effects, but now those worries had completely vanished.
His greatest gain, however, was mastering the power of the Shadow of Annihilation. Although his strength remained at the Archmage level, it had undergone a qualitative leap compared to before.
The Ultimate Power of the dark attribute was undoubtedly one of the strongest energy properties in the world, provided he did not use the Power of Destruction.
This power was not only strong but also had no threshold for use and lacked the terrifying side effects of the Power of Destruction. The only downside was that since he had not reached the Saint Rank, he could not condense too much of it at once.
But for the current Starlight, this was enough.
Starlight attributed the reappearance of the Power of Fate to Master Carlos’s spell. After all, only Carlos possessed the means to seal fate, so it was not impossible for him to use some Power of Fate.
“Are you really okay?” Moen was still a bit uneasy, reaching out to gently touch Starlight’s forehead as if to confirm his condition.
Starlight shook his head with a smile and looked tenderly at Moen’s face. Their eyes met in the water, the light reflecting on their faces, making the scene appear warm and sweet.
Moen’s cheeks turned slightly red, and a hint of shyness flashed in her eyes, yet she did not look away from Starlight’s gaze.
But just then, a slight movement came from Starlight’s wrist. He looked down and found that Lian’s fingers were still resting on his wrist, trembling slightly.
“Mm... where...?” Lian’s weak voice suddenly drifted over, carrying a hint of confusion and daze.
Starlight and Moen turned their heads at the same time to look at Lian. Her eyes were slowly opening, and her silver pupils flickered with a weak light, as if she had just awakened from a long dream.
“I... I... you... Brother Starlight!? Waaah!!” The moment she saw Starlight clearly, Lian’s eyes instantly filled with tears, her voice choked with sobs before she burst into a loud cry.
“You... you really came to save me! I thought... I thought it was just a hallucination before I died!” Lian’s voice trembled, filled with endless grievance and relief.
Pearl-like tears slid down her cheeks and dripped into the pool, sending out small ripples.
Rate on N.U.
