CHAPTER 278: A DEVASTATING DISASTER

The crimson sky above the city had now turned black, as if the world itself had sunk into mourning.

The battlefield, once the heart of the city, had become an endless abyss of ash, rubble, and deep fissures. The unbreakable crystal walls of the Everlight Moon Guild, despite their protective magic, had shattered into scattered crystalline fragments.

The ground trembled beneath their feet, and the heavy air was saturated with dark, destructive energy.

A massive portion of the city was burning in flames, completely destroyed.

Kaelos activated the Apocalypse Ring. His eyes turned entirely black, like two bottomless pits staring into the abyss of death.

Dark veins crawled across his skin like living serpents, and a colossal, godlike phantom of the Darkness, surrounded by an aura of absolute darkness, manifested above him. The black sky trembled, the continent beneath his feet quaked, and a wave of apocalyptic energy split the earth as though the world itself was beginning to collapse.

Logan and Schneitz staggered back in terror. Logan’s eyes went wide with fear, his hands trembling uncontrollably. Schneitz, his voice unsteady, muttered, "This... this is devouring darkness power?!"

Kaelos’s voice boomed like thunder rising from the depths of hell as he said, "It’s time for you to die!" He attacked with [Apocalypse Shadow].

The phantom unleashed a wave of pure darkness that shredded the sky like torn fabric, turned the earth into a deep chasm, and hurled Logan and Schneitz tens of thousands of meters into the air.

Logan slammed into a distant mountain, his armor shattered, the bones in his chest breaking, golden blood raining down like a storm. Schneitz crashed into the ground, his broken arm bleeding profusely, a deep wound tearing open along his side as his silver blood stained the earth.

The power gap had become enormous — this was no longer something even they could handle.

Inside the private dimension, the guild members, Lana, and Daniel all held their breath as they watched, their faces filled with fear and anger.

At this rate, nothing would remain. So where the hell were the other national-rank Awakened?

And as if on cue...

The surge of energy from the Apocalypse Ring was so massive that five other national-rank Awakened across the country felt it and rushed toward the battlefield.

Five spatial rifts opened in the sky, and five figures emerged.

"Looks like we can’t sit this one out anymore," one of them said, glancing at their two nearly-dead comrades.

"Where the hell were you all this time?" Logan growled, coughing, his furious gaze fixed on them.

The five only shrugged, pretending not to understand, clearly unwilling to explain.

"There’s no point arguing now. We’ll talk after this problem is dealt with," Schneitz snapped, equally furious, but there was nothing else they could do for the moment.

They all nodded, their attention turning back to Kaelos.

Silas from the Goblin Guild entered with [Dragon’s Roar]. His soundwave shook the continent, cracks spiderwebbing beneath Kaelos’s feet.

Angelina from the White Stars Guild — one of the country’s top ten guilds — attacked with [Collapsing Stars], summoning meteorites that pierced the heavens. Kairen of the Red Storm Guild — one of the five strongest guilds — struck with [Thunder Tempest], lightning bolts tearing through the very fabric of space.

Soura from the country’s most powerful assassination and espionage organization, Shade Watch, launched [Phantom Shadows], while Ragnar, one of the government’s national-rank Awakened, fired [Infernal Eruption], a devastating torrent of molten lava.

But Kaelos, with a flick of his finger, unleashed [Apocalypse Shadow].

The phantom released a tidal wave of darkness that shook the continent, shattered the sky, and hurled all five national-rank Awakened into the air like ragdolls.

Silas was smashed into a mountain, his dragon armor splintering as blood gushed from his mouth. Another crashed into the earth, his magical cloak scorched, his star-filled eyes wide with terror.

Kairen was flung skyward, his storm armor shredded, a deep wound splitting his chest open. Soura became ensnared in her own shadows, while Ragnar burned within his own lava, his body covered in gruesome burns.

Schneitz and Logan were also hurled into several nearby structures, reducing them to nothing but ash and dust.

"This bastard is too strong!"

"Do we even stand a chance? Why the hell isn’t that damned Guardian Council doing anything?!"

"Our only chance is to burn everything!" Schneitz growled, ignoring their panic.

"You’re insane. If we do that, even if we win, we’ll be crippled!" Silas spat, outright rejecting the idea.

"Do we have another choice? If we don’t, we’re dead!"

Everyone went silent, the weight of reality sinking in, until finally, with heavy breaths, they all exhaled and nodded. There was no other option.

They all ignited their life essence and bloodline. Their power spiked to terrifying extremes.

Silas struck first with [Dragon Earth’s Wrath], splitting the land itself, but Kaelos countered with [Twin Destruction Ray].

The impact sent Silas flying back thousands of meters, his bones shattering as his blood painted the battlefield. Lina, Kairen, Soura, and Ragnar launched their own skills, but Kaelos swatted them aside effortlessly.

Every strike he delivered shook the continent, and the black sky shattered like brittle glass.

"You’re nothing but insects beneath my feet!" he laughed, his voice filled with scorn.

The national-rank Awakened, their bodies shattered and drenched in blood, lay strewn across the ground, sheer terror flooding their eyes. Those once regarded as the mightiest in the nation — and the world — were now crushed like bugs.

"Can this monster even be stopped? This isn’t even the true Devouring Darkness! If that creature appears, would anyone even be able to stop it?"

"The fact that an entire continent fell, proves no one can."

"How pathetic... we can’t even kill one of the Horsemen’s hounds... let alone the he himself."

They couldn’t even retreat anymore.

Even so, Logan and Schneitz, their bodies on the verge of collapse, made one last desperate attempt. Logan charged, igniting [Burned Life Essence].

His golden aura blazed like a burning sun, but his body began breaking apart under the strain.

Schneitz fired [Black Moon Collapse], unleashing a wave of pure annihilation, but Kaelos casually countered it.

An enormous explosion punctured the sky, the wave of darkness and light slamming Schneitz into the ground, severing his left arm, silver blood gushing like a fountain.

Kaelos closed in on Logan, his black eyes glowing like death’s abyss. With [Apocalypse Shadow], he lifted Logan into the air.

"Do you know how long I’ve waited for this moment? How badly I wanted to kill you with my own hands? Hahaha, I finally got my chance."

"Don’t think it’s going to be painless. I’ll make sure you experience the most excruciating death in this world."

The phantom of Devouring Darkness wrapped Logan in a shroud of shadows, crushing his body, shattering his bones, and snapping his golden veins like strings.

Logan’s agonized scream shook the continent before his body disintegrated into golden ash, scattering into the wind.

"Noooooo!"

Schneitz and the remaining national-rank Awakened watched in horror, their eyes filled with terror and helplessness, none of them daring to move.

Kaelos stood at the center of the sky, the phantom of Devouring Darkness blazing above him. The continent still trembled beneath his blows, the black sky riddled with massive cracks, and the ground had turned into a sea of ash and blood.

"Daniel! Come out, or I’ll turn your family and this entire country into ash!" His voice boomed like thunder across the entire continent.