CHAPTER 265: 8 GONE, 7 LEFT, THE BIGGEST THREATS

"Is it done?" Lucien asked, his eyes burning with focus, his voice sharp and steady.

"If we manage to activate it, it will be an instant victory."

"Almost," Damon replied, his hands moving quickly across the glowing device in front of him.

"Just make sure to contain everything. Maeva, keep the barrier stable, and the others, get ready!"

Maeva continued her chant, her voice echoing through the square as runes began to spiral in the air around her.

The rest of the celestials shifted into position, energy radiating from their bodies as they braced themselves for what was coming.

"MANY OF YOU MAY PERISH!" Lucien shouted, his tone fierce, filled with conviction.

"BUT REMEMBER, IN THE END, IT WILL ALL BE FINE IF THE KING WINS!"

"YES!"

Their unified roar shook the air, and for a moment, even the ground seemed to tremble beneath their collective will.

Sam’s eyes narrowed.

’That King promised them something, didn’t he? That’s why they’re fighting so desperately.’

It didn’t matter.

As long as Sam won this battle, he could reach the [Soul] realm.

And once he did, he’d face that so-called King himself.

Everything else before that was just noise.

SLASH!

The [Primordial Clone] moved first, its blade slicing through the air toward Lucien.

But Lucien was ready.

He raised his lightning spear and blocked the hit, sparks bursting outward from the clash.

"Take this!"

Another celestial, a massive man with veins glowing crimson across his arms, roared as his muscles tensed.

He swung forward with all his might, his fist wrapped in destructive energy.

BOOM!

The impact sent the [Primordial Clone] flying backward through the air, the shockwave ripping through the plaza.

But even that monstrous blow only managed to chip away a single point of the barrier.

[Primordial Barrier: 98/100]

"Trash like you needs to know their place!" the burly celestial laughed, his voice filled with arrogance.

"I’ll punch you to death if needed!"

Sam’s expression hardened as he watched from above, wings folded, descending slowly but silently.

He didn’t want to reveal himself too soon.

If he waited for the right moment, he could strike before they even realized what had hit them.

Still, he had to admit, Lucien, Damon, Seris, Maeva, and that brute were all dangerous.

But the others, the remaining celestials, couldn’t be ignored either.

He didn’t know what they could do, and that made them just as unpredictable.

’No matter,’ Sam thought coldly. ’I’ll end them all in one move.’

A grin crept across his face.

His energy began to gather, thick and heavy, surging through him as he accelerated toward the battlefield.

Down below, the first few awakeners began to notice him.

"What the fuck... look at the sky!" someone screamed.

"Huh?" another voice followed, but it was already too late.

Lucien turned, his instincts screaming, and his eyes widened as realization struck him.

"This... there’s two of them!"

"Two primordials?!"

"No," Lucien growled, lightning crackling around him, "one’s the real one. The other’s a clone."

Sam didn’t even give them another second to react.

Fwish! BOOM!

Eclypse Slash!

The attack erupted from his blade, a massive crescent of crimson and black energy that split through the air.

It tore across the kingdom square, swallowing everything in its path.

The ground cracked.

Buildings shattered.

And the shockwave alone turned the air into a burning storm.

[You just aimed for even "innocent" awakeners.]

’Don’t care.’

[Oh, good =)]

Sam’s eyes glowed fiercely.

If killing everyone in the square meant destroying the [Eternal] group, and keeping Seraphine and Belle safe, then so be it.

They would have done the same to him without hesitation.

"W-WATCH OUT!" someone screamed.

The entire crowd of awakeners scattered.

Every single one of them understood that being caught by that attack meant instant death.

They threw up their defenses, activated their skills, and ran in every direction.

Lightning Form!

Lucien transformed into living lightning, his body splitting into arcs of energy as he dodged aside.

Underground Drill!

Damon disappeared beneath the ground, carving a path to safety.

The others followed with their own desperate techniques, each one trying to survive.

But it didn’t matter.

SLASH!

The [Eclypse Slash] ripped through the square with unstoppable force, slicing through buildings, bodies, and barriers alike.

Dozens of awakeners, from all races, were obliterated in an instant.

By the time the light faded, the plaza had become a crater of molten stone and shattered corpses.

Sam’s wings spread as he hovered above the destruction, his eyes scanning the field.

’Bingo,’ he muttered under his breath.

Out of the fifteen celestials who had gathered, eight were dead.

Their bodies, or what remained of them, were all cut in half.

They had tried to run, to hide, to defend themselves, but none of it mattered against his power.

The survivors were few: Lucien, Damon, Seris, Maeva, the burly celestial, another with an eye-shaped necklace around his neck, and a female celestial with radiant rainbow wings.

Seven in total. The last ones standing.

The burly celestial fell to one knee, blood pouring from his mouth.

"T-Tanking that was n-no joke..." he gasped, clutching his chest. "Damn it... eight of us died just like that."

"Only a few more seconds," Damon said quietly, still focused on the device in his hand.

"Do not falter," Lucien ordered coldly, glaring up at the sky.

He pointed his spear directly at Sam.

"This is the real one."

The rest of the awakeners, those who had survived by pure luck, had already fled.

The square now belonged only to them.

Seven celestials. One Primordial.

[8 gone. 7 left.]

’Right,’ Sam thought.

The [Primordial Clone] was still alive, floating nearby with its ever-present smile, waiting for Sam’s command.

The moment Sam landed, both would strike together and crush the remaining enemies in a single coordinated attack.

It should have been over.

But then...

"Alright," Lucien said suddenly, his tone eerily calm.

He glanced at Damon.

"It’s ready. We won."

Damon lifted the strange device he’d been holding all along, a compact, metallic object that now glowed with a brilliant blue light.

Sam’s eyes narrowed as he finally saw it clearly.

It looked like... a camera?

Damon raised it toward the sky, aligning it directly with Sam’s descending figure.

Click—

Snap!

A flash of light burst from the device.

For a moment, everything went silent.

Then, all seven surviving celestials smiled.

Not the forced, desperate smiles of soldiers about to die.

These were wide, triumphant grins, full of certainty.

They had lost more than half their comrades.

They were staring down a being who could end them at any second.

And yet, they looked... relieved.

Sam frowned.

’What the hell is going on?’

Then it hit him.

BAM!

An explosion of agony shot through his entire being.

His wings faltered. His soul screamed.

It felt like something invisible had wrapped around him, chains of pure energy locking his very existence in place.

"Do not fret," Lucien called out, his voice echoing through the square, "Your death shall come quick! The King shall reward us for our efforts!"

Damon grinned, his expression wild with satisfaction as the device in his hands faded into nothingness.

The metal shell crumbled, disappearing into sparks of light.

It was a one-time-use artifact. And they had just used it.

"D-Did we win?" Seris asked shakily, still trembling, her aura unstable, "I-I’m ready to fight if needed!"

"No need to be scared," Maeva said, a cruel smile spreading across her lips, "He can’t do anything anymore."

"I can actually beat him to a pulse now!" Grok, the burly celestial, laughed hoarsely, wiping blood from his mouth, "GOOD!"

"..." the celestial with the eye-shaped necklace didn’t speak.

And finally—

"The heavens have forsaken him," said Olivia, the woman with rainbow wings, folding her hands in prayer, "It is truly... his end."

Their voices filled the air, confident, mocking, final.

Sam stopped mid-descent, suspended above them, his entire body trembling as the pain spread deeper.

His vision flickered.

[We’re fucked.]

[It’s over.]

[Good attempt, heh?]

[Better luck next time...]

Dozens of crimson panels appeared around him, one after another, taunting him as his power faltered.

He didn’t understand. He knew he was much stronger than them.

He had slaughtered the forsaken lords, torn through monarchs, survived impossible odds, and yet, some strange artifact was chaining him down like a helpless fool.

His breath came out ragged.

Rage surged through his veins.

His eyes burned bright crimson as he tried to move, to attack, to destroy them all, but his limbs refused to obey.

And then—

Ding!

[You have been hit by the "Primordial Blocker."]

[All of your abilities and skills will now be fully nullified.]

[This is the punishment a Primordial will receive, for they are the most evil beings there is.]

"Huh?"

Sam didn’t actually have the time to realize what that meant, that his soul pained him once more.

And at that moment...

Ding!

["Primordial Wings" have been nullified.]

"...?"

Sam turned back to see his wings disintegrate, meaning he didn’t have anything else to support his flight.

Fwish!

And so, he began crashing toward the ground at high speed, under the triumphant gazes of the celestials.

’What... the fuck... is happening?!’