The muscles of the four dwarven patriarchs bulged, their veins winding across their arms like coiled dragons. The two Mithril chains groaned under the immense strain as they were pulled from multiple directions.
Under the restraint of four Saint Rank experts renowned for their strength, even an ordinary dragon would have been dragged to the ground.
However, the Stone Troll Emperor, strengthened by that gem, only retreated two steps before stubbornly withstanding the massive force.
“How is this possible?!” The Silver-Beard Patriarch gritted his teeth and shouted, the webbing of his hands splitting as blood dripped down the chains.
The Stone Troll Emperor slowly turned its head, its rose-red pupils filled with mockery.
The chain around its neck was being covered by rapidly growing crystal clusters, and the runes—each representing the pinnacle of modern dwarven craftsmanship—were quickly dimming.
“It’s... assimilating the Anti-Magic Chains!”
The Gold-Palm Patriarch cursed inwardly. To prevent what had happened before, he had specifically retrieved two Anti-Magic Chains on the way here. He never expected that even their combined strength would be unable to budge the opponent.
“Girl, you all need to leave! We can't hold this monster for long!” the Copperboot Patriarch shouted at the top of his lungs.
“No! Everyone will be in danger if this continues!” A flash of determination crossed Stark’s eyes. He suddenly broke free from Starlight’s grip, lunged back to the master console, and began sliding his fingers frantically across the crystal ball’s surface.
“I saw it during the startup... where was it?”
“Extermination Protocol... Extermination Protocol...”
“What are you doing, you bookworm? Come on!” Maela was frantic with worry, but Stark had once again entered that state of selfless focus.
In the next second, that mechanical voice rang out in everyone’s ears once more.
【Extermination Protocol search complete】
【Confirm activation?】
“Confirm!”
Stark took a deep breath and slammed his palm down hard on the master console.
【Extermination Protocol confirmed, ▇▇▇▇】
...
【In the name of Ignis, ▇▇▇▇ beginning】
Accompanied by the cold notification tone, the Fire God statue suddenly shuddered. Two beams of white light, more dazzling than the sun, erupted from its eyes.
These two beams of pure, ultimate Power of Destruction crossed as they shot out, instantly swallowing the Stone Troll Emperor’s figure.
“Awoooo—!!!”
For the first time, the Stone Troll Emperor let out a tragic howl. Its body, which had been nearly impossible to damage just moments ago, rapidly vaporized under this light. However, the rose-red light bursting from its chest continued to repair its body, momentarily reaching a stalemate with the destructive power.
“Go! Now!” Starlight grabbed Stark with one hand and Maela with the other, quickly merging into space. In the instant they departed, they saw the four patriarchs supporting each other as they charged toward the temple exit.
“Rumble—”
Under the devastation of these two beams of Power of Destruction, the entire temple’s defenses were as fragile as thin paper. In less than two seconds, it began to collapse.
Starlight and the other two appeared at a tunnel entrance a hundred meters away, bumping right into the arriving four patriarchs.
“Get out of here! The temple is lost!” the Silver-Beard Patriarch shouted hoarsely, carrying the injured Iron-Heart Patriarch on his back.
Everyone fled desperately along the corridor, the thunderous sound of cracking rock echoing behind them. Just as they burst out of the temple entrance, a pillar of fire that reached between heaven and earth erupted from the ground, swallowing the entire temple in ghastly white flames...
The terrifying Flame of Destruction burned a massive hole directly into the mountain where the temple was located, continuing its sweep into the distance. Everything caught in its path was reduced to its most basic molecules under the incomparable heat.
Starlight stared blankly at the white inferno raging in the distance, only then realizing how amateurish his own fire magic truly was.
Perhaps only power truly wielded by a god could reach such a level.
“This is the Purification Protocol left to us by our ancestors. Under this level of power, that guy should be dead for sure, right?” Stark, the one who had triggered it, also stared ahead in stunned silence as he spoke in a low voice.
“Probably... This power has far exceeded the Saint Rank. If that stone troll can still survive this, nothing in all of Cinder City will be able to stop it.” Maela collapsed to the ground, shaking her head slightly.
After an unknown amount of time, the white pillar of fire gradually dissipated. Everyone cautiously approached the edge of the massive crater and looked down through the scorching air.
A single point of rose-red light was flickering tenaciously at the bottom of the pit, dispelling the surrounding residual flames.
The light grew brighter and brighter, eventually condensing into a humanoid silhouette that began to float slowly upward.
Everyone froze in place as if under a paralysis spell, their throats bobbing as they found themselves unable to make a sound.
With every step the rose-red humanoid light took closer, the surrounding air grew more viscous, as if the entire world were resisting its existence.
Maela instinctively took half a step back, only for her back to hit an air wall that had appeared out of nowhere. To her horror, she discovered that even her fingertips were starting to glow with a strange rose-red hue.
She wanted to move, but it felt as if an invisible hand were deathly gripping her wrist.
She wasn't the only one; the four patriarchs weren't faring any better. Even as Saint Rank experts, they weren't exempt from this bizarre control.
In the entire space, only Starlight and Stark retained the ability to move normally, but every movement required several times the usual effort.
“Starlight... what kind of monster did we provoke?!”
Stark’s voice sounded as if it were coming from far away. Starlight turned his head with great difficulty and saw that the lenses of Stark's wind goggles were already covered in tiny crystal clusters, reflecting a strange light.
Before Starlight could answer, the shimmering rose-red figure arrived before them.
He looked through the light and saw that the Stone Troll Emperor’s original body had completely disappeared under the attack of the Extermination Protocol. Not only the hard crystal shell but even its internal flesh had been wiped away, leaving behind almost nothing but a skeleton.
However, the rose-red gem the Stone Troll Emperor had swallowed remained brilliant within its chest cavity. The light it emitted was almost physical, buoying the skeleton as it arrived before their eyes.
Under the radiance of that light, threads of meridians actually began to appear on the ghastly white skeleton. Then, using those meridians as a framework, strands of flesh began to regenerate.
Such a bizarre sight would be completely irrational for any living creature. Even a Saint Rank or even a Half-God expert shouldn't possess such vitality.
“Swish!”
The figure suddenly extended its skeletal claws, seizing Starlight and Stark by their necks with lightning speed.
The two struggled desperately, only to find that the seemingly decayed white bones contained a terrifying strength comparable to that of the Dragon Race.
“Let... go... of... me...” Stark’s nails scraped harshly against the skeleton, but he couldn't even leave a white mark.
Starlight condensed the Sword of Destruction once more and hacked down at the monster’s arm.
The white blade stopped an inch away from the skeletal claw again, the blade vibrating violently but unable to advance a single millimeter.
However, this time he finally saw it clearly: a force emitted from within the red gem had blocked his attack.
“What kind of power is this?” Starlight’s pupils shrank.
He understood the nature of the Power of Destruction better than anyone; this power, originating from the world's source, could dismantle most energy structures. Even Po Kong’s nearly invincible War God Battle Qi couldn't withstand it for long.
Even if his current Power of Destruction wasn't perfect, it still belonged to the realm of Transcendent Power. Ordinary energy simply couldn't compete with it.
“Weak... mine...”
By now, the Stone Troll Emperor’s physical body had been partially repaired. A broken voice squeezed out of its mangled throat, sounding incredibly haunting.
Under the fearful gazes of everyone, the semi-skeletal Stone Troll Emperor lifted Starlight and Stark, slowly flying into the air.
The massive force from the skeletal claws turned their faces purple. Starlight struggled to look toward Stark and saw that his friend, lacking the strength to resist, had his limbs hanging limp. He had clearly fainted.
“This is bad...”
Rate on N.U.
