But he still stood his ground, steady as ever. Only, both feet had already sunk into the earth, and under that relentless backward pull, they plowed two deep trenches across the ground, spraying gravel everywhere. He clenched his teeth, his body leaning slightly forward, using nothing but raw strength to resist the force that was trying to drag him into endless nothingness—buying precious time and a relatively stable environment for the teammates behind him.
At the same time, Doctor Strange directed everything with calm precision. Iron Man used his armor to deliver magical materials with pinpoint accuracy; Captain America and Spider-Man, following instructions, rapidly placed rune stones and traced out array lines; the other heroes who could help also gave it everything they had. Soon, a massive magic circle—intricate in structure and covering a wide area—took shape across the ground, formed from countless glowing runes and strange mystical tools. It radiated an increasingly intense arcane glow, standing in stark contrast to the dark breach.
After a stretch of suffocatingly tense preparation, the large-scale magic transfer array was finally complete. Doctor Strange, Stephen Strange, planted himself at the core position of the formation. He raised both hands high, his fingers dancing along an abstruse trajectory as he chanted an ancient, obscure Vishanti incantation.
As he chanted, the entire magic circle flared to life. Countless runes, as if infused with vitality, began cycling in layered flows, their light surging brighter and brighter. A gentle yet unbreakable golden pillar of light rose from the array's center, starting to establish a connection with the dark breach and carefully guiding its violent energy flow toward the formation's preset containment structure.
However, the dark breach seemed to possess some primal instinct of vigilance. The moment it sensed its energy being diverted and siphoned away, it reacted violently. The crackling darkness stopped being mere suction—condensing instead into twisted, leaping bolts of black lightning. Like rabid venomous snakes, they lashed down toward everyone operating the magic circle below!
"Watch out!" Spider-Man shouted, reacting instantly. His wrists flicked repeatedly, firing strands of webbing—not to block the lightning head-on, but to latch onto nearby ruins and broken walls. He yanked hard, changing their fall angles, cleverly disrupting and blocking part of the lightning's descent paths.
Iron Man shot up into the air, palm repulsors and shoulder micro-missile pods firing at once. Blazing white energy beams and explosions intercepted another portion of the lightning, detonating into bursts of pitch-black "fireworks" across the sky.
Captain America held the line at the edge of the formation, whirling his vibranium shield so tightly it became a seamless wall. He charged into the stray bolts that slipped through, knocking them aside or absorbing the impact—protecting Doctor Strange and the support crew, who couldn't move freely while maintaining the array.
Seeing this, Saitama knew the critical moment had arrived. The instant the breach diverted part of its power into attacking—and its suction scattered for a split second—he launched an even more ferocious assault! His punches became faster, heavier, and more frantic as he hammered the breach to create greater chaos and draw its focus. He forced it to put even more "attention" back on him, buying the array those crucial final seconds.
With Saitama's life-or-death restraint and everyone's desperate protection, the array's energy-guidance process accelerated. The golden pillar grew thicker and thicker, siphoning more and more dark energy. The breach's rotation noticeably slowed, and its size seemed to shrink—if only slightly.
Just when success seemed within reach, a sudden twist struck!
The dark breach seemed utterly enraged. Its center abruptly collapsed inward—then, a black energy torrent so condensed it defied description, like a pillar of annihilation, surged straight up into the sky.
(End of Chapter)
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