Chapter 66 ( Part 18)
The golden spear tore through Extera's chest
and for a moment, the world froze between the collapsing violet light and Alok's blazing aura.
The Devourer screamed as his core chamber ruptured, the hollow cavity swirling with chaotic fragments of divine energy.
And then Alok saw it
something glimmering at the very center of that imploding storm.
A crystal.
No… Extera's Crystal Core.
Black-violet.
Beating like a corrupted heart.
Cracked, but still alive.
Without hesitation, Alok reached inside the vortex and pulled it free.
The moment his fingers touched it
the labyrinth shook.
---
The Pendant Reacts
Alok held the core tightly.
The pendant around his neck vibrated, glowing like a dying star awakening.
A second voice
one he had never heard before
echoed from it.
"Bring it to me."
The pendant burst open like a blooming flower of light, pulling the core from Alok's palm.
The two objects collided
and fused.
Violet veins wrapped around the golden metal.
Golden threads sank into the crystal.
Until both became one.
A new pendant floated in the air, its form shifting:
darker
heavier
engraved with a swirling sigil of two opposing forces
one gold
one violet
rotating endlessly like twin hearts.
Alok stared at it, breath frozen.
"My… pendant changed."
It felt denser.
Older.
Almost alive.
The voice inside it whispered:
"You now carry the Devourer's core.
Be warned, Alok…
power comes with hunger."
Extera's Body Begins to Fade
Alok clenched his fists, preparing to rush forward again
ready to fight until Extera's entire existence was erased.
But when he stepped forward, Extera didn't counter.
His body was dissolving slowly breaking into violet dust.
Yet the Devourer smiled.
Not with fear.
But with amusement.
"You think you've won, child?"
Alok frowned, lowering his stance slightly.
"I took your core.
You're finished."
Extera shook his head, pieces of his form drifting away like burning leaves.
"You don't know anything…
about this world…
or the realms beyond it."
Alok's eyes hardened.
"Your lies won't shake me.
My pendant guides me"
Extera laughed weak, distorted, but full of certainty.
"That pendant?
You don't even understand what it contains…
or who created it."
Alok's grip tightened around the new fused pendant.
"Say what you want.
I'm not afraid of you."
Extera's fading form leaned forward slightly, a final grin stretching across what remained of his face.
"Good.
You'll need that courage…
when we meet again."
Then he dissolved completely.
Not dead
but scattered across realms like smoke carried by cosmic winds.
The Aftermath
The chamber grew silent.
The light from the fused pendant pulsed once twice
then settled into a constant glow against Alok's chest.
He stood tall, chest heaving, aura crackling with leftover lightning.
The Devourer was gone.
But not defeated.
Not truly.
And Alok knew it.
His fingers brushed the transformed pendant.
"We'll meet again, huh…?"
For the first time, the pendant's voice hesitated
as if uneasy.
"epare yourself, Alok.
This is only the first step into the war of realms."
Alok looked ahead, determination blazing like a storm reborn.
"Then let the war begin."