Cosmic Ruler - Chapter 433

Chapter 433: War VI

In the depths of the Spire, Rick and Dren finished planting the charges. The conduits pulsed with dark energy, their power almost overwhelming.

“Charges set,” Rick said, stepping back. “Let’s get out of here before this place blows.”

As they turned to leave, the tunnel began to quake violently. A monstrous roar echoed through the passage, and a massive creature emerged from the shadows—a twisted amalgamation of flesh and darkness, its many eyes glowing with malice.

“Guess it’s not going to be that easy,” Dren muttered, charging his fists with energy.

Above, Aiden was locked in a fierce battle with the General. The Everlight Core fragment pulsed against his chest, its protective energy shielding him from the worst of the General’s attacks. But the longer the fight dragged on, the more the Abyssal energy seeped into the battlefield.

“Aiden!” Rick’s voice crackled over the comms. “We’ve got a situation. Some kind of… abyssal beast showed up in the tunnels.”

“Can you handle it?” Aiden asked, dodging a devastating swing from the General’s halberd.

“We’ll manage,” Rick replied, though his tone suggested otherwise.

“Good,” Aiden said, his gaze fixed on the General. “Because I’ve got my hands full up here.”

The General laughed, his dark aura flaring. “Your team is doomed, boy. The Abyss devours all!”

Aiden gritted his teeth, his golden aura blazing brighter. “Not today.”

The battlefield erupted in chaos, the team’s fate hanging by a thread as they fought against impossible odds. But even in the heart of the Abyss, their hope burned like a beacon, unyielding and defiant.

The General’s laugh reverberated like a thunderstorm, his halberd spinning to carve through the air, releasing arcs of dark energy that ripped apart the ground. Aiden darted around the attacks, his radiant energy countering the oppressive force threatening to overwhelm him. His sword blazed with light, but every strike against the General’s armor felt like cutting into a mountain.

“You’re strong,” Aiden admitted, narrowing his eyes. “But strength alone won’t save you.”

“And courage alone won’t save you,” the General retorted, lunging forward. His halberd came down with the weight of a collapsing star, shattering the ground in a deafening explosion.

Aiden leapt into the air, avoiding the blast, but the General was faster than he expected. A massive wave of dark energy surged upward, slamming into him midair and throwing him back into the ground. He hit hard, the impact forcing the air from his lungs.

“Aiden!” Myne’s voice rang out as her shadows surged to shield him from the follow-up strike. The tendrils lashed out, wrapping around the General’s weapon to hold it in place, but he merely laughed and ripped them apart with brute force.

“Futile,” the General growled, advancing on Aiden.

Aiden staggered to his feet, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth. His aura flared again, brighter this time, and the Everlight Core fragment pulsed against his chest, sending waves of revitalizing energy through his body.

“Myne,” Aiden said, his voice steady despite the pain. “Distract him. I have an idea.”

Myne nodded without hesitation, her shadows weaving into a chaotic storm around the General. Tendrils struck from every direction, forcing him to defend against the relentless assault.

“Clever little rat,” the General sneered, swinging his halberd to dispel the shadows. “But this changes nothing.”

While Myne kept the General occupied, Aiden closed his eyes and reached inward, tapping into the Everlight Core’s full potential. The fragment’s energy surged through him, merging with his own power, and his sword began to change. The blade elongated and grew impossibly bright, its edges shimmering like molten gold.

The ground beneath Aiden cracked and splintered as the power radiating from him intensified. His aura became almost blinding, forcing even the General to pause.

“What… is this?” the General demanded, raising his halberd defensively.

Aiden opened his eyes, and they glowed with golden light. “Your end.”

He surged forward faster than the General could react. The radiant blade slashed through the air, leaving a trail of light that seared into the battlefield. The General roared and swung his halberd to counter, but the clash of their weapons sent a shockwave so powerful it flattened the surrounding terrain.

The force of the strike staggered the General, and Aiden didn’t let up. He unleashed a flurry of strikes, each one precise and devastating. The General’s armor began to crack, golden light spilling into the fractures.

“No!” the General bellowed, his dark energy flaring in desperation. “I will not fall to you!”

Aiden raised his sword, now fully engulfed in radiant energy. The light intensified, forming a pillar that shot into the sky, parting the swirling clouds above.

“This is for everyone you’ve taken from us,” Aiden said, his voice steady and resolute. “You won’t hurt anyone else.”

With a final, decisive strike, Aiden brought the blade down. The light exploded outward, consuming the General in a brilliant, blinding radiance. His roar of defiance was drowned out by the sound of shattering energy as the Abyssal forces around them began to dissolve into nothingness.

In the tunnels, Rick and Dren faced off against the monstrous abyssal beast. It towered over them, its grotesque form constantly shifting as if it were made of living shadow.

Rick unleashed a barrage of energy blasts, aiming for its glowing eyes, while Dren struck its limbs with concussive blows to keep it off balance. But the beast seemed to shrug off their attacks, its form regenerating almost as quickly as they could damage it.

“We’re not doing enough!” Rick shouted, dodging a swipe of the beast’s massive claws.

Dren gritted his teeth. “Then we hit it harder!”

Before they could act, the tunnel shook violently. A wave of golden light surged through the passage, and the beast let out a deafening screech as the radiant energy tore through its body.

“What the—?” Rick started, shielding his eyes from the brightness.

When the light faded, the beast was gone, reduced to ash.

“That… that was Aiden,” Dren said, his voice filled with awe.

Rick grinned. “Remind me to buy that guy a drink.”