Chapter 719: Chapter 361: Sixfold Spiral Palace, Golden Armor and Black Meteor, Battle with the Commander
Jason stood in front of the cave, his bald head shining as he continuously glanced into the dark cave.
He hesitated whether to go in and take a look but was worried about disturbing Ronan inside. Considering Ronan’s usual calm demeanor, anything that could make him this “uncharacteristic” must be of great importance.
Suddenly, a terrifying pressure emerged from within the cave, the ensuing gale forcing Jason’s eyes wide open and involuntarily caused him to take two steps back.
Jason felt a flicker of unease in his heart, staring steadily at the cave before him. At that moment, the depths of darkness seemed to conceal an ancient, terrifying creature that was slowly awakening, breathing, breaking through a cocoon…
“Clip-clop—clip-clop—”
A faint sound of hooves, like the distant tolling of a bell tower at night, echoed from afar.
A chill touched the back of Jason’s head, making him feel as if cold water had been splashed on his face; he turned abruptly.
A tall, muscular, black warhorse, reeking of decay, hovered above his head, its four hooves burning with enduring blue flames. Frosty breath sprayed from its muzzle, constantly striking Jason’s face.
Those eyes, like ghostly flames, hollow and cold, occasionally emitted a screech that sounded like the wailing of countless lost souls.
Jason’s heart sank quickly; his face tightened as he slowly moved his gaze upwards… until he met a pair of calm eyes hidden behind a Gula Bronze Helmet.
That ancient riding spear, gleaming with somber metallic luster, lifted slightly, its tip aimed at Jason’s forehead. A calm and mellow voice sounded.
“Where is the kid who is with you?”
Jason bit his lower lip tightly, not saying a word.
Suddenly, the rapid chanting of spells burst from his mouth. His right hand, as if grasping something tight beneath his magic robe, abruptly raised it towards the position of the Black Nightmare Warhorse and Knight.
On the desolate gray-white expanse, a small, twisted black sun suddenly rose.
But before this spell’s light fully burst forth, it was immediately suppressed by an indescribable terrifying force.
“Boom!”
A muffled sound echoed as Jason’s spiritual field of Level 4 Dawn shattered to pieces, and he was struck by an invisible force, flying across the ground like a ragdoll.
He pushed up an fairly tall sand dune with his body from the soft earth, somewhat disheveled as he emerged from the large crater.
“Are you his lackey?”
The Bronze Armor Knight looked down at him calmly, his body utterly still.
Jason’s eyes were bloodshot, a beast-like roar coming from deep in his throat as he fiercely slapped his palms downwards, sending a wave of magic rapidly spreading outwards.
The wave swept across the ground, sending dirt and stones flying, quickly transforming into sticky blackness, surging towards the person and horse in the sky like a rising tide.
However, the latter didn’t even glance at the spell, simply raising the long spear in his hand smoothly.
The spear, engraved with old, complex patterns, quietly emitted a section of deep blue luminescence, writhing in the void, slowly yet steadily shooting towards Jason.
The black sand waves surging from the ground collapsed one after another, crushed and torn apart by the oppressive force and energy field accompanying the luminescence, as enormous cracks spread out in the void like a shattered mirror.
Jason’s forehead dented, his body and soul overwhelmed by a splitting sensation as if about to fragment.
His entire body trembled, the veins on his forehead and neck bulging, struggling to break free from the terrifying force weighing him down, yet unable to move an inch, forced to watch as that luminescence moved closer.
Just as Jason was on the verge of being pierced by the luminescence, the void between the two of them rippled with a thick, watery wave.
A figure engulfed in blazing pure white flames stepped out from behind Jason at an incredible speed.
From the flames, a slender, alabaster hand, akin to luminescent porcelain, emerged—five fingers spread wide, gently clasping that trace of blue luminescence.
“Crack—”
With a crisp cracking sound, the terrifying gleam shattered in the figure’s grasp, scattering into countless specks of light.
The formidable pressure receded like a tide, and Jason was suddenly released from the restrained state, collapsing onto the ground in a feeble slump with a gasp.
His eyes remained fixed on the figure wreathed in pure white flames, as though unable to confirm something, whispering inaudibly: “Da.. Damien?”
Streams of pure white flames, emanating waves of strange life energy, flowed into the figure’s body, revealing Ronan’s silhouette under the contracting halo.
Now, Ronan’s azure white long hair flowed freely, his magic robe vanished, exposing his slender, well-proportioned upper body.
He appeared to be in an indescribably wondrous state, exuding an intensely overwhelming sense of dissonance.
Above the two, the Black Nightmare Warhorse let out a bizarre neigh, the Bronze Armor Knight atop it seemed to chuckle, redirecting the spear’s tip naturally back towards Ronan.
Ronan calmly watched him, took a deep breath, and then….
“Crack—crack—crack—”
His body, filled with the beauty of fragmentation, began to elevate segment by segment, with tearing flesh, reassembling, and the sound of bones grinding, composing a bizarre symphony of life.
Circles of white halo spread out from his body.
Going from transparent and thin to dense, the diffusion speed slowed down, with color deepening rapidly.
Black.
Black textures extended from his limbs, and hair tips like flames, like vines, spreading and growing towards the center.
Ronan’s limbs curled slightly as if striving to crawl out from a cocoon of bygone days, the aura he exuded becoming increasingly grand and substantial.
“[Spiral Palace]!”
First layer…
Second layer…
Triple…
When his body rose to a certain height, Ronan’s body stopped.
A half breath later, his entire body suddenly stretched outward!
“Crack crack crack—boom!”
Quadruple!
Quintuple!
Sixfold!
Inside, the Blue Snail Rune representing the Screw Palace rapidly grew at an inconceivable speed, quickly surging to the sixth level before completely halting after the entire triple activation was finished.
“Boom—”
Like a blazing star core rolling, an unbelievably thick aura expanded, stirring up a ring of visible white waves that spread far and wide.
Finally, Ronan, having completed the transformation of the Ancient Demon Body, stood at the center of this blazing magnificence.
At this moment, his body had grown to a full three meters tall, surrounded by a black aura as thick as water. His entire form was nearly perfect, a demonic body covered densely with intricate and beautiful tattoos resembling both vines and flames.
His pitch-black hair cascaded down to his ankles, void of stray scattered lightning or wandering arcs, only a heavy aura as unyielding as solid rock, grinding in circles as it moved.
Ronan slightly raised his head, his pitch-black pupils seemingly containing an ancient Dead Sea within them.
The water-like aura gently caressed his body, rolling mysterious and profound scarlet wisps amid the pure black, emitting sounds reminiscent of tides crashing upon reefs and countless sea snails lamenting.
Ronan slowly raised his hand, and the aura surrounding him flowed on its own, rapidly condensing into a long-handled battleaxe of ancient design, almost tangible in his hand.
The axe’s handle and head were engraved with countless ancient and complex patterns that echoed the totem-like black tattoos on Ronan’s body.
“Titanium…”
He softly uttered, his voice dark and low.
Golden Titanium surged from his back, transforming in the blink of an eye into a magnificent golden armor that adorned his body.
“Swoosh—”
Sixteen pairs of Golden Eagle Wings abruptly unfolded behind Ronan, emitting a crisp sound like a sword being drawn from its sheath.
Ronan stepped into the sky, and at the instant of his leap, the ground below noiselessly collapsed in large swathes.
His speed was not particularly fast, visible to the naked eye, yet it evoked a sense of awe and grandeur as if a black meteor was ascending.
The void within a radius of several dozen miles was irradiated by an invisible Life Force Field, presenting a visual effect of heat waves churning and dense distortion.
Underneath the gloriously ornate golden armor lay the savage and domineering demon body, two extremes intertwined, displaying a breathtakingly unique beauty.
Ronan wielded the axe with both hands, the ancient fierce weapon formed by the black aura transmitted a cold, tangible sensation of a melee weapon from his palm. The patterns on the axe handle, each one so real, were like… faintly throbbing pulses!
[Ancient Power], at Perfect Control Level!
“Swoosh—”
Ronan lifted the axe and cleaved down, an inky black light wheel radiating from the axe blade like a full moon.
The spiritual and energy field of the Level 5 Late Stage before him silently tore open, extending rapidly in a straight line.
“Clang—”
The battle axe and rider spear collided without flourish, “whoosh—” as the Black Nightmare Warhorse snorted a thick sulfuric black smoke from its nostrils and lunged back a distance.
Beneath the bronze face mask, those gentle eyes rippled with surprise. Before he could react further, a second wave of axe light descended upon him.
“Clang! Clang—”
On the gray-white wilderness, clad in golden armor, black hair wildly whipping, the figure wielding a long-handled battleaxe continually clashed with the Knight astride a warhorse.
Black axe blade light wheels repeatedly collided with the dark blue mysterious arcs of the rider spear.
Ancient dark meteor, enigmatic and unfathomable flames, devoid of showy spells, only the most primitive melee combat skills and the pure contest of energy.
Wave after wave of terrifying energy ripples spread out, raising wave after wave of white swells and sand tides on the gray-white wilderness in the clashing sounds of cold weapons.
“Huff—huff—”
Ronan breathed evenly.
He felt a scorching flame burning inside him, the power of the Evolution Holy Shrine not yet fully fused.
With every confrontation with the Wizard Commander Tangista, a force exceeding his current endurance limits transmitted within him, causing the Evolution Power to scatter slightly, then seep into his limbs and bones thread by thread.
He could feel the rapid transformation and growth of every cell in his body, and those incomplete Storm Runes engraved within his blood, flesh, and bones seemed to be continuously completed under this evolutionary force.
On the character panel, the Proficiency of Ascetic Body Refinement had long since reached “Master (1600/1600).”
But just like the breakthrough from “Expert” to “Master” before,
Although complete, there was still something lacking, so he couldn’t directly advance to “Grandmaster Level.”
“Splash—”
Ronan casually swung out an inky black light wheel, but his consciousness flickered into a momentary daze.
He seemed to hear the sound of still water being stirred, and before him, a boundless, lifeless black sea faintly appeared…