"What in the world is that!?"
On the deck of the Freya, Kiana raised her head, her face filled with confusion. Beside her, a girl who looked nine-tenths like her stopped bandaging, also staring intently at the sky.
These students were put on the front line for practical experience, positioned at the rear of the battle line. Kiana had returned to catch her breath after several sorties, urging her sister Bianca to hurry up, when the battlefield underwent a drastic change.
In the blink of an eye, the sea of monsters was cleared, leaving Kiana's mind utterly blank.
Huh? I was just about to show off and get everyone to praise me. Why did the enemy vanish instantly?
The fire control computers couldn't find a target. The continuously firing array cannons fell silent. The powerful warriors fighting on the front line were also bewildered, completely unable to understand the current situation.
Thousands of Abyss Beasts were instantly ground to dust. Many raised their hands, rubbing the particles, still feeling the colossal energy contained in each one.
"I don't know what happened, but it looks like I don't have to tie you up anymore," Bianca blinked.
"So, what happened?"
"How would I know? It seems a powerful being cleared the battlefield instantly. Uh, if we had a trump card like this, there wouldn't have been any need to train us, would there?"
The white-haired girl subconsciously looked toward the distance, where two figures—a man and a woman—stood with their backs to them. Siegfried and his wife looked at each other, seeing confusion in each other's eyes.
They were high-level personnel who had been to the Sea of Quanta, yet they had no idea the Fire Moth-Chaser possessed this move.
Everyone thought this was a difficult test. Many had prepared to sacrifice themselves, but the moment the test paper was handed out, the answers were already written all over it.
Amidst their confusion, the couple simultaneously sighed in relief. This was for the best. No one yearned for sacrifice. If we had known this, we would have just let Bianca and Kiana attend a normal school. At least their culture class grades would be better.
Father and Mother don't know either?That's right. Such a terrifying trump card must be top secret.
Bianca quickly found a reason, but then noticed her younger sister standing up. She quickly pressed down on her shoulder. "The battle is over. Those particles contain terrifying energy. You're not allowed to run around."
"I'm not a child, and Mei and the others are back. Why would I run around?" Kiana pouted slightly, pointing into the distance. "Sister, look over there. I think it has something to do with him."
Including Raiden Mei and Bronya, who had landed on the deck, they followed Kiana's pointing finger and indeed saw two people holding hands at the rear of the front line.
"What? Dating on the battlefield??"
"No, that pink hair and fox ears—that's the 'Setsuna' Flame-Chaser!?" Bianca clearly knew more and looked astonished.
Raiden Mei and Bronya didn't recognize her, but hearing the name 'Flame-Chaser,' they all gasped.
A couple. One is a Flame-Chaser, so the other must be one as well. Who is this deity?
Flame-Chaser?A very familiar term.
Kiana was full of questions, but before she could ask, she saw the man raise his hand. There was no light, no sense of oppression, yet it made people instinctively avert their gaze, afraid to look directly.
"Who is that man? So terrifying. Like the books say... what did the books say again?"
"Not books. It's the Teachings of the Era Cult," Raiden Mei muttered, covering her eyes. "Do those fanatic scriptures actually hold truth?"
"Mei, it also says 'do not speak lightly of a god.' Look quickly."
At the prompt from the absolute materialist, Bronya, they quickly shifted their gaze, seeing the particles scattered throughout the cosmos quickly reorganize. Like clay being molded by a giant, they transformed into a very familiar shape within a few breaths.
"This is..."
"A long spear."
"No, there's no spear that big! It would pierce the Earth right through if he threw it!"
Kiana simply couldn't believe it. The spear was floating above their heads like a giant ship. The battleships beneath it looked like ants by comparison. It filled the entire field of view.
It was indescribably huge, imbued with energy even more unimaginable. It made people wonder who it was aimed at. From a visual standpoint, a gentle poke could puncture the Earth.
"It's... it's moving!" Mei heard the tremor in her own voice. She summoned all her courage to keep from turning and running.
The giant spear was indeed moving, subtly shifting backward, as if being gripped by someone. Kiana finally believed it, having long abandoned fear to stare directly at the figure in the distance.
He raised his right hand, leaning back in a throwing posture.
"Worthy of the Kiana the Great Sage. The only existence who dares to look directly at me at this moment."
Ryan also felt that gaze, his mood instantly becoming complex. This act should have been performed by her years later, but then he thought about it.
Growth comes with pain. How much time Kiana spent, how many farewells she endured to reach that point. In a trance, all those costs were paid by him.
I intended to lean on your thigh, but now you're here to observe me.
"Then watch closely. This strike that transcends all limits."
Ryan gathered all his strength, causing ripples to surge across the Star Sea. It was the resonance of space. And then—
Step, lean, throw.
Annihilation Spear!
An azure vortex appeared in the cosmos. It was so massive that it seemed larger than the Moon.
There was no sound, no dazzling light. The giant spear merely shifted forward slightly. With an irresistible, boundless force, it vanished into the center of the vortex.
The starry sky returned to silence in an instant, yet everyone's gaze was caught by that streak of light. It was as if their consciousness was attached to it, witnessing things beyond their visual range.
The spear turned into a star, plunging into the boundless Sea of Quanta, flying forward at an incalculable speed, sweeping past countless World Bubbles.
In that instant, countless worlds saw strange phenomena in their skies, countless creatures prayed, countless warriors on standby dropped their weapons, and countless specially built steel fortresses tracked its trajectory.
Unpredictable and unstoppable, it swept through the Sea of Quanta, heading toward its depths.
Sa finally shifted His gaze from the man 'before Him.' He looked up, seeing the anomaly coming from the 'sky.'
It was a string of fleeting fireballs, looking like a beautiful pearl necklace. Yet, the Artificial Intelligence brought from Venus was telling Him:
Each fireball is a shattered World Bubble. Each World Bubble took Him tens of thousands of years to craft, yet they are popping like bubbles in the sea, vanishing in a flash.
This is...
Sa's super-computing ability, comparable to the Cocoon of End, completely froze. He could not analyze the scene before Him. He couldn't even hide in the deep sea. Only after a fraction of a second did endless light descend from the heavens, completely illuminating Him, causing everyone who was watching the spear to close their eyes, a single thought flashing through their minds:
Annihilation. If hit, any known existence would only face annihilation. There would be no second possibility.
In that instant, only Sa could conjure one more thought.
This is the existence I feared. This is the prey I craved. This is the one who transcended End?
He lowered His gaze. Amidst the blinding light, a man in white clothing raised his right hand to his chest, giving a slight curtsy.
"A farewell gift. Please sign for your package."