Like a silver lightning bolt in the darkness, the Starry Sky Apostle skillfully evaded the Shadow Abyss Sea Beasts, whose movements were slowed by the static force field but still exuded a terrifying aura.
The closer you get to the center of the island, the stronger the throbbing and oppressive feeling that comes from the depths of your soul becomes.
Weiss clung tightly to Lind's back, her small hands gripping the cold protrusions of the mech, her empty eye sockets staring fixedly ahead, constantly transmitting fragmented information to Lind through the mental link:
"Closer...closer...Father..."
“That 'cold' voice… is getting clearer… it’s 'eating'… eating those fragments…”
"So many... black 'lines'... from the sea... connecting to the center..."
Data streamed rapidly from Linde's purple eyes as the Star Apostle's sensors continuously magnified and analyzed the scene before him.
Finally, they broke through the last barrier formed by twisted tentacles and solidified shadows, and the scene at the center of the island suddenly unfolded before their eyes—
It was an enormous crater, as if it had been smashed out by some immense force, with eerily smooth edges.
At the bottom of the pit, there was not hard rock, but a dense, dark substance that pulsated and throbbed like a living thing. It was like a huge, not yet fully solidified black heart. With each beat, it caused the entire Shadow Abyss Sea to tremble and emit an even stronger gravitational pull.
Above this "dark heart" floats a figure.
A figure that Lind could never mistake!
The Silent Saintess, Esmeralda!
She was still wearing that tattered white holy robe, but the hem of the robe had been stained with an ominous, dark color that seemed to absorb all light.
The "absolute denial" force field around her that had once left Lind helpless had not disappeared, but instead became even more bizarre—it was no longer merely a repulsion and erasure, but rather like an incomparably greedy maw, actively and frantically devouring the fragments of Nocturnus's broken will and the pure Shadow Abyss energy that surged from the "Dark Heart" below and the surrounding void!
Countless jet-black energy streams, resembling blood vessels or nerve cords, emerged from the bottom of the pit, connecting to her back, limbs, and even piercing directly into her blurred face, pulsating violently and forcibly pouring immense void power into her body.
Her body trembled slightly, as if she were enduring immense pain, or perhaps undergoing some kind of extreme transformation.
Her aura, which was originally just "denying existence," has now been mixed with a completely new and terrifying characteristic of "devouring existence"!
She actually survived the corruption of the Shadow Abyss!
For some reason, her absolute characteristic of "denying existence" and Yingyuan's essence of "devouring existence" formed a strange, dynamic balance under certain extreme conditions, and even... began to slowly merge!
Her "denial" domain is now more like a highly efficient "filter" and "converter," filtering and purifying the violent and chaotic Shadow Abyss energy and fragments of divine will, and then taking it for herself!
The Shadow Abyss Beasts, surging in from all directions, were driven by their instincts to rush toward the most active point of power eruption of the Noctoos Remains, only to crash headlong into Esmeralda's mutated force field.
Their "existence" was instantly denied, decomposed, and devoured, turning into the purest nutrients, further accelerating Esmeralda's mutation process!
This is not a beast tide at all; it is a bloody and insane sacrificial ritual centered around the Silent Saintess! It is the aura she unconsciously emits, a mixture of negation and devouring properties, that attracts these moths to a flame of Shadow Abyss creatures!
"Sizzle—"
Esmeralda seemed to sense Lind's arrival, and she slowly and stiffly turned her head.
On her featureless face, some twisted and ever-changing dark patterns were now faintly emerging, as if countless struggling souls were forcibly branded onto it.
She "gazes" in the direction of the Starry Sky Apostle and raises a hand.
There was no sound, but a terrifying power, a mixture of absolute negation and ultimate devouring, surged across space like an invisible torrent of destruction, rushing toward the Starry Sky Apostle!
Wherever it passed, even the nothingness of Shadow Abyss itself seemed to be "denied" and "swallowed" again, leaving behind an even more thorough and despairing "emptiness"!
Linde's pupils suddenly contracted!
The Starry Sky Apostle instantly boosted its power to the limit, narrowly avoiding this terrifying attack.
The combined force grazed the edge of the mecha, and Lind could even feel the crystalline alloy of the mecha's outer shell groaning under the strain, and the light vein runes on it dimmed by more than half in an instant!
What terrifying power!
At this moment, Esmeralda's strength has undergone a tremendous change compared to when she was in the Prime Material Plane!
She is no longer merely a passive "negation" domain, but has become a monster that can actively devour and combine the power of devouring with the power of negation!
An out-of-control monster is stealing the legacy of the Lord of the Shadow Abyss!
“Father! She…she’s become so terrifying!” Weiss’s voice was filled with unprecedented fear. “That ‘cold’ voice…it’s her! She’s…integrating the ‘fragments’! She wants…to become the new…the ‘core’!”
Linde's eyes were icy cold.
He instantly understood the situation.
Esmerald, a "lost creation" born from the power of the god of magic and destined to be eliminated, not only miraculously survived after being banished to the Shadow Abyss, but also underwent an unimaginable transformation in dire straits.
Her "negation" characteristic and Shadow Abyss's "devouring" characteristic were inadvertently balanced, making her a peculiar vessel that could directly absorb and transform the power of Noctoos's remains!
Now, driven by instinct, she is frantically devouring Noctoos's shattered will and power, attempting to... complete herself, and perhaps even... replace Noctoos as the new ruler of the Shadow Abyss!
This is absolutely intolerable to Lind!
Noctoos's remains and power are an indispensable part of his plan, the cornerstone he uses to fight against and even surpass the God of Magic. How could he allow an out-of-control creation to steal them!
“Aster!” Lind’s voice pierced through the magical network, chilling to the bone. “The ‘Surgical Operation’ plan has been changed. Target locked—the Silent Saintess Esmeral. Prioritize severing her energy connection with the divine remains! Annihilation Cannons, blast those energy conduits to pieces!”
"Command confirmed. Target relocked. Annihilation gun calibration in progress..."
At the same time, Linde, controlling the Star Apostle, once again took the initiative to charge towards Esmeralda.
Light gathered in her palm, and this time it was no longer pure light vein power—which would be suppressed in the depths of the Shadow Abyss. Instead, it combined the power of order of the [Bright Halo] with the devouring property of the [Shadow Abyss Halo] in an extremely ingenious way, forming a strange beam of gray light that seemed capable of annihilating all energy structures, and shot towards the energy blood vessels connected to Esmera's body!
We must stop her from absorbing any more!
Esmerald seemed to sense the threat and let out a silent shriek (which directly affected the soul level).
The mutated force field around her expanded once more, and at the same time, she stretched out her other hand and clenched it in the air!
The enormous "dark heart" below suddenly throbbed violently, and a surge of Shadow Abyss energy, far exceeding anything before and like a tsunami, mixed with countless chaotic fragments of will, rushed wildly into her body through the energy vessels!
Her power surged instantly!
She withstood Linde's mixed energy beam and even tried to absorb the power by using her devouring properties!
At the same time, she pushed forward with one hand, and an even larger torrent of destruction, mixed with negation and devouring, surged toward the Starry Sky Apostle like a black river bursting its banks!
This time, the scope and speed were so great that there was no way to avoid it!
A fierce glint flashed in Lin De's eyes.
The Starry Sky Apostle crossed his arms in front of his chest, and all the light vein runes on the surface of the mecha instantly shone to their fullest extent. The power of the [Bright Halo] was pushed to its peak, forming an incomparably solid shield of light!
At the same time, Weiss in his arms seemed to sense the extreme danger and let out a sharp screech. The aura of shadow around her surged, and she instinctively opened a small but exceptionally pure devouring force field, trying to help Lind share some of the pressure!
Boom!
A devastating torrent of energy slammed into the shield of the Starry Sky Apostle!
Light and darkness, order and nothingness, negation and devouring... a variety of diametrically opposed forces of law collided violently like never before!
Blinding light and absolute darkness erupted simultaneously, engulfing the entire center of the island!
The energy storm raged, instantly tearing the countless Shadow Abyss Sea Beasts that were surging in from all sides to shreds and vanishing into nothingness!
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