Child of Destiny

BOOM!!

The black mountain made of anomalies violently erupted.

A streak of black lightning tore across the battlefield as Shin forcefully broke through another defensive line.

The [Yamato] in his hands drew a beautiful crescent of Ancient Darkness across the air.

Shing!

The pitch-black blade carrying the authority of ’Abyssal Severance’ roared violently while it descended upon the grotesque wall of Elemental Anomalies.

SHRIEEEEK!!

Instead of retreating, the creatures surged forward.

The anomaly standing at the very front stretched its entire body outward, abandoning every thought of attacking as it desperately threw itself toward the descending blade.

Bang!

The empowered slash effortlessly split the monster into two.

Its body instantly dissolved into countless emerald particles before the purification could even finish.

However, its sacrifice had accomplished exactly what it intended to do. It had already weakened the force behind Shin’s swinging sword.

And before the sword could even complete its trajectory—

Boom!

Another anomaly slammed itself into the side of the [Yamato].

Its elongated claws shattered upon contact before quickly dissolving into motes of emerald light along with its body that had been severed immediately after.

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

Then came the third that replaced it, which was immediately followed by the fourth and fifth respectively.

Each one was willingly sacrificing itself. They were throwing their own body against the black blade of the inheritance sword from the Nephilim Race without the slightest hint of hesitation.

Not a single one expected to survive, but they had already served their purpose. It was simply to rob the sword of even the slightly bit of momentum.

Shin’s eyes immediately contracted when he saw this scene. He then immediately twisted his wrists, changing the angle of the slash before pushing his left foot deep into the ground.

Bang!

He then rotated his waist, which was immediately followed by his shoulders.

Finally, his elbow snapped forward with explosive force, trying to redirect the interrupted attack into another sweeping arc.

Unfortunately, he was already a bit too late.

Whoosh!

The moment of his sword had already lost its rhythm.

BOOM!

The battlefield immediately exploded along with the shadow tendrils bursting out from every direction.

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

At the same time, jagged spears erupted from beneath his feet while dozens of grotesque figures simultaneously lunged from the surrounding shadows.

Every attack was perfectly synchronized as though they had rehearsed this exact sequence countless times.

Boom! Boom!

”Tsk!” Shin could only click his tongue when he saw this, forcing him to pivot his foot backward while his knees compressed like springs.

Bang!

He then jumped backward while his left shoulder rolled inward, allowing the [Death’s Shadow] to unfurl behind him like an enormous black wing.

Boom!

The cloak expanded while the Ancient Darkness poured from the blessing it carried before colliding head-on against the overwhelming devouring authority crashing toward Shin from every direction.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

A successive expression immediately bombarded Shin and the shadow barrier, signifying the repeated collisions that the elemental anomalies were making.

Moreover, they were not just physical attacks augmented by their devouring authority. They were also hiding powerful spiritual attacks hiding beach collision that was constantly disturbing energies reinforcing his barrier.

Even if the devouring prowess of the authority of ’Mantle of Darkness’ could also fight against the opposing force, the multiple and successive attacks coming from different direction were a bit too much to handle.

Realizing that the situation was gradually shifting against his favor, Shin decisively abandoned the exchange before the Elemental Anomalies could completely surround him.

Swoosh!

His figure instantly vanished before reappearing several hundred meters away after swapping places with one of the phantoms he had deliberately left in a relatively safe location.

The moment his feet touched the ground, Shin immediately raised his head and looked toward the breach he had painstakingly carved through the blockade.

His expression instantly darkened.

The wall of Elemental Anomalies had already begun repairing itself.

The grotesque creatures surged toward the opening from every direction without the slightest hesitation, desperately throwing themselves into the gap left by their fallen brethren. Bodies continuously intertwined with one another before twisting into a brand-new defensive line, sealing the breach in mere moments as if it had never existed in the first place.

Even the emerald particles left behind by those he had purified had yet to completely disappear, but the defensive formation had already recovered.

Everything he had fought so hard to achieve had become meaningless once again.

”Tsk! D*mn it!” Shin clicked his tongue in frustration as his brows tightly furrowed beneath the mask. ”I have to start all over again...”

For a brief moment, he silently calculated the situation while his Heart Realm continuously monitored every movement across the battlefield.

The observers had already resumed their positions while frontline fighters had rebuilt the outer defenses.

The chasers were also beginning to spread out once more.

Meanwhile, the devourers quietly gathered farther behind the formation, patiently waiting for the next opportunity to suppress either [Yamato] or [Death’s Shadow].

It was as though the entire formation had reset itself.

”...”

Shin slowly exhaled before tightening his grip around [Yamato].

Complaining would not solve anything.

More importantly, he could clearly feel that time was no longer on his side.

The rivers of slaughter energy flowing toward the gigantic gate had grown noticeably denser than before, while the pressure radiating from beyond the chained entrance became increasingly suffocating with every passing second.

Whatever was happening behind that gate, it was steadily progressing.

”I can’t drag this battle out any longer.” His fingers tightened around the hilt until faint creaking sounds echoed from the leather wrapping.

The authorities of Abyssal Severance and Mantle of Darkness surged simultaneously.

Ancient Darkness erupted from [Yamato], coating its pitch-black blade with countless strands of abyssal light, while [Death’s Shadow] unfurled behind him like the wings of an ancient sovereign, releasing waves of darkness that steadily enveloped his surroundings.

This time, Shin had no intention of breaking through little by little.

He would shatter their entire defensive formation in one decisive charge.

…

BOOM!

The two Ancient Authorities erupted simultaneously.

The Authority of Abyssal Severance surged through the [Yamato], coating the legendary katana in an endless layer of abyssal darkness, while the Mantle of Darkness spread from [Death’s Shadow], swallowing every trace of light within dozens of meters.

The two authorities resonated with one another, creating a violent storm of Ancient Darkness that spiraled around Shin’s body before rapidly expanding across the battlefield.

The surrounding mana seemed to flee before that overwhelming pressure.

Swoosh!

Without any hesitation, Shin summoned the [Nephilim’s Wings].

The four magnificent wings immediately unfolded behind his back before instinctively resonating with the possessed [Death’s Shadow].

The moment the two came into contact—

BOOM!!

A violent wave of darkness exploded outward.

The originally distinct angelic and demonic wings completely dissolved into countless strands of black energy before merging with the cloak made of Psychic Shadows.

The four wings disappeared.

In their place, an enormous mantle of darkness unfurled behind Shin.

It resembled an endless blanket of night that had been torn apart through its center, each half extending toward either side of his body like the wings of an ancient sovereign descending upon the world.

The darkness no longer looked like mere shadows.

It had become a tangible existence. One that seemed capable of swallowing the heavens themselves.

Boom!

Almost at the same time, Shin activated both of his Berserk Skills without the slightest hesitation.

His already overwhelming aura skyrocketed once again.

The muscles throughout his body instantly tensed as unimaginable power coursed through every vein.

His heartbeat thundered like war drums.

Mana violently circulated through every meridian before erupting from his body in waves powerful enough to distort the surrounding space.

BOOM!!

The mountain beneath his feet could no longer withstand the pressure.

The ground collapsed, even leaving gigantic cracks that rapidly spread across the battlefield.

Entire sections of rocky cliffs crumbled as countless boulders were crushed into dust before they even reached the ground.

The very atmosphere trembled beneath his presence.

SHRIEEEKKK!!!

The Elemental Anomalies immediately sensed the terrifying threat standing before them.

Every crimson eye simultaneously focused upon Shin.

There was no hesitation, nor confusion—only instinct!

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

The countless anomalies immediately abandoned their previous positions.

Instead of surrounding him once again, they rushed toward a single location before the chained gate.

Bodies collided, melted, merged, and twisted.

One after another, they sacrificed their individual forms, fusing together into an incomprehensible mass of corruption.

The very concept of shape seemed to lose its meaning.

Hundreds of limbs continuously emerged before disappearing once again while countless mouths opened across its body, only to be swallowed by another layer of flesh moments later.

Eyes blinked into existence across its surface before sinking back into the endless darkness.

It possessed no fixed appearance, no stable anatomy, no understandable structure.

It was a true Elemental Anomaly!

An existence that defied the laws governing living beings.

SHRIEEEEEEEKKK!!!

Its deafening cry shook the mountain.

At that very instant—

BOOM!!

Shin kicked off the collapsing ground beneath him.

The earth exploded while his figure instantly transformed into a streak of absolute darkness as he shot straight toward the colossal anomaly.

The surrounding storm followed in his wake.

Shing!

The possessed [Yamato] slowly descended.

A single slash...

Simple and direct.

But the moment the blade moved, a beautiful crescent of darkness silently expanded across the heavens.

Behind Shin, the endless mantle created by the fusion of the [Nephilim’s Wings] and [Death’s Shadow] spread even farther.

It covered the sky, swallowed the wind, and even devoured the light itself.

The expanding sea of darkness gradually fused into the descending blade.

Sword...

Darkness...

Authority...

Everything converged into a single strike.

’Myriad Transformation Swordsmanship: Final Eclipse—The Sword of the Wandering Dusk’

Shing!

Before the attack could descend, the colossal Elemental Anomaly slowly opened what could only be described as its mouth.

Thousands... Then tens of thousands... of grotesque arms stretched toward the incoming nightfall.

Not to escape, nor to counterattack, but to stop the descending nightfall at any cost.

BOOOOOOM!!!

.....