Awakening：The Infinite Evolution of My Talent as a Low-Level Awakener - Chapter 557

Chapter 557: The Time Has Come! Celestial Stars Descend!
Even with Eterna’s resolute mindset, his composure faltered. The situation had reached a breaking point—if this continued, their army’s strength would be eroded completely in less than two minutes.

Once the power imbalance reached a critical threshold, a single clash would be enough to obliterate their formation entirely.

Left with no other choice, Eterna issued the order to deploy several surplus divine-level combatants into the army’s battlefront. With the addition of these gods, the gap in strength between the two forces was finally narrowed, restoring a semblance of balance. At least for the time being, the threat of collapse had been averted.

However, the divine-level battlefield now entered a state of equilibrium as well, with neither side able to gain the upper hand in the short term.

Seeing this, Boris let out a long sigh of relief. The situation was finally stabilized. Both sides had now fully entered a prolonged battle of attrition. The stalemate not only prevented further chaos but also aligned perfectly with his master’s plans.

For now, the battle had reached a critical balance, and the tide could turn in any direction.

The battlefield had now split into three distinct zones. The first was the conflict between the Royal City’s defensive weaponry, backed by the swamp’s monstrous beast army, and Ashen’s millions of cannon fodder. The second was the direct clash between the two main armies. Lastly, above it all, the deities themselves were locked in a fierce struggle for dominance.

The entire battlefield had devolved into a prolonged war of attrition, with neither side holding a decisive advantage. Victory now hinged on endurance—who could hold out the longest, who could maintain their strength for just a bit more time. Any breakthrough in one of the three zones would inevitably cascade into a sweeping advantage across the entire battlefield.

Amid this chaos, Sterl observed the scene from the shadows, a smile of anticipation spreading across his face. His gaze lingered on Ashen’s countless troops below, his expression brimming with excitement.

These soldiers… they were all his prey, a vast supply of souls waiting to be refined into power.

“I’ve waited long enough. It’s finally time for me to act.”

By now, both sides had expended most of their trump cards. Sterl no longer had any concerns that Ashen might pull something unexpected that could threaten him. Moreover, with all three battle zones locked in a deadlock, no one had the capacity to stop him.

This was, in essence, a grand banquet prepared just for him. The vast army before him was nothing but a hunting ground, filled with prey to be slaughtered at his leisure.

“Let’s begin… It’s time to push this battle to its ultimate climax!”

Sterl knew exactly what was at stake. On the surface, it seemed as though the fate of the two great factions hinged entirely on this battle. But in truth, this was merely a facade.

Should one side suffer a catastrophic defeat or complete annihilation, the forces hidden in the upper realms would inevitably intervene, unleashing their full might without restraint.

After all, the true rulers of both factions were not minor Divine Power deities like Eterna and Boris, but the far more formidable Supreme Deities and the terrifying entities of High Divine Power!

Sterl’s current plan, aside from hunting souls, was to break the stalemate and lure out Ashen Temple’s most powerful figures. When that happened, Orichalcum would inevitably respond with their full might, leading to an unprecedented clash of divine forces—a war of gods that would go down in history.

As for Sterl, that would be the perfect moment to quietly vanish from the battlefield. He would bide his time until the final stages of the war, when both sides were battered and broken. Only then, amidst the wreckage of their conflict, would he make his move.

Based on the earlier display of the High Divine Power projection and the true descent of Ashen’s Supreme Deity into the lower realm, Sterl was confident. While their power was formidable, it wouldn’t surpass the Supreme Deity tier. For the legendary tale Sterl intended to craft, he was certain of his success.

Thinking of this, a spark of anticipation lit up within him. It wouldn’t be long now—soon, he could ascend to become a true god, no longer reliant on the unstable state of ascend to godhood for his power.

With that thought, he slowly emerged from the subspace, his form materializing in midair. In his ascend to godhood state, an overwhelming aura of terrifying power erupted from him like a tidal wave.

In that instant, everyone on the battlefield—whether it was Eterna, the Ashen gods, or the soldiers locked in their desperate struggle—froze. All eyes turned to the sky, staring in shock and disbelief at the newly appeared, awe-inspiring figure.

“Ha… Hades… isn’t dead?”

Eterna’s expression was blank for a moment before a dazzling light flashed in his eyes, followed by an uncontrollable surge of joy.

“Hahahaha! Hades, you’re alive! I knew it! This time, there’s no escape for them—they’ll all become stepping stones for the Royal City!”

Unable to contain himself, Eterna erupted into laughter, the crushing weight in his heart lifted in an instant. With the forces so evenly matched, the return of Hades, whom they had believed to be lost, tipped the scales decisively in Orichalcum’s favor. With Hades on their side, how could they possibly lose?

“Damn it! I knew it! Hades couldn’t possibly be dead!”

“Hahahaha! The heavens are watching over Orichalcum!”

“I said it! A few sneaky cowards could never take down Hades!”

The gods of Orichalcum burst into jubilation, their excitement so uncontainable that many couldn’t resist swearing. All their previous worries vanished, replaced by an unshakable confidence. They could already see the dawn of victory.

Below, the struggling soldiers of Orichalcum felt the gloom lifted from their hearts. Battle spirits surged, and their exhaustion evaporated. Even the pain from their injuries seemed to disappear as they were overcome with elation and renewed vigor.

The joy radiating from Orichalcum’s forces was matched only by the despair consuming the gods and soldiers of Ashen. The emergence of this deity, Hades, left their faces ashen with dread. The scales of battle, which had been delicately balanced, could perhaps endure a small disruption without shifting the tide. But now, Orichalcum had thrown an enormous weight onto their side—catapulting them to dominance.

How could they possibly fight this? How could they hope to win now?

Below, among the legendary legion and the cannon fodder fighting for their lives, most didn’t recognize Sterl’s assumed identity. But they weren’t fools.

If Hades warranted Ashen Temple dispatching a team of five deities for an assassination attempt, it spoke volumes about his importance. And what was most terrifying—despite the overwhelming power of that ambush strike—it hadn’t been enough to kill him. Judging by his current state, he hadn’t even sustained significant injuries.

Sterl, however, paid no mind to the shifting attitudes and emotions of those around him. He was well aware that Ashen Temple ranked him as a significant threat. His sudden appearance now would likely draw the attention of Ashen Temple’s most powerful backers. It wouldn’t be long before they intervened directly to deal with him.

He needed to act quickly. Very quickly.

Sterl’s primary objective was to use the Soul Devourer Sphere to hunt down as many souls as possible. This step was critical to his broader plans and could determine their ultimate success. After witnessing the destructive potential of mass formations and swarm tactics on the battlefield, he valued these souls even more.

This realization was the reason he chose to infiltrate Orichalcum and carefully orchestrate his plans. Otherwise, he could have implemented his scheme without exposing himself, avoiding unnecessary risks altogether.

His gaze fell upon the battlefield teeming with cannon fodder. While the souls of legendary warriors, demigods, or even deities yielded far greater Soul’s Power, they were far fewer in number and significantly harder to hunt efficiently.

So…

Sterl drew a deep breath. Bathed in the Light of the Stars, he activated every amplification technique at his disposal. Then, he used the Blood of the Holy Spirit to enhance Celestial Stars, elevating the golden-tier ability to a platinum-tier skill.

As the power coursed through him, Sterl’s aura grew exponentially more terrifying. Slowly, he extended his hand, pointing toward the chaotic battlefield below. His voice, steady and resonant, echoed across the land:

“Celestial Stars! Celestial Stars! Celestial Stars! Celestial Stars!”

With each utterance, the heavens seemed to respond, and a cataclysmic force began to gather, ready to rain destruction upon the battlefield.

In an instant, Sterl’s energy began to drain at an alarming rate. Simultaneously, he activated Silent Domain, enveloping the entire battlefield in a stifling silence. The once-bright sky abruptly turned dark and ominous.

Countless pairs of eyes lifted toward the heavens, where massive meteors, engulfed in raging flames and trailing long fiery tails, began their descent.

With the amplification of Blood of the Holy Spirit and Starry Battle Armor, coupled with Sterl’s already enhanced base attributes, his power had surged by a staggering 70% compared to before. The might of Celestial Stars had reached an unprecedented and terrifying level.

The air was scorched and torn apart. The very fabric of space seemed to tremble. One meteor… two meteors… three meteors… Sterl unleashed Celestial Stars ten times in succession. Ten colossal meteors hurtled toward the battlefield like instruments of divine wrath, as if the heavens themselves roared and raged in fury.

Under the despairing, horrified, and terrified gazes of all who witnessed, the ten meteors struck the battlefield with devastating precision.

Boom!

The ground quaked violently, as if the world itself were being torn apart. The Royal City trembled from the sheer force of the impact. Within the blast radius of Celestial Stars, the second- and third-class cannon fodder soldiers were obliterated instantly, their lives snuffed out before they could even scream.

Flames surged like an unstoppable tidal wave, spreading outward in all directions. The overwhelming destructive power activated the Starlight Spray effect to its fullest extent. In mere moments, the once-treacherous swamp was transformed into an endless sea of fire. The soldiers trapped within had no chance of survival. With Sterl in his ascend to godhood state, resistance was utterly futile.

The firestorm continued to expand, driven further by Starlight Spray, consuming everything in its path.

The sight left everyone in stunned silence. Gazing at the apocalyptic destruction, where the world seemed to crumble beneath the meteors’ wrath, even breathing became a struggle for those who survived.

From a distance, the soldiers fortunate enough to have escaped the direct impact of the ten meteors were paralyzed with terror. Their battle spirit and morale disintegrated completely. Helmets and weapons were cast aside as they fled in a frenzy, their faces pale with fear.

None dared to face Sterl—this terrifying god of slaughter who had single-handedly turned the battlefield into a living nightmare.

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