Strange waves released from Derby's body, causing violent turbulence in the blood of everyone within range. It felt like a heavy hammer was pounding incessantly on their chests, causing persistent heart palpitations and intermittent pain.

Among them, Vasilina felt the impact most intensely. She uncontrollably fell to one knee, taking deep breaths to resist the influence, her eyes gradually filled with blood, and blood started to spill from the corner of her mouth.

"Vasilina!"

Palmer looked at Vasilina with concern, filled with panic.

"I'm... I'm okay," Vasilina pushed Palmer's hand away, "First, solve him! We can't let him get close to the Wind Cellar!"

Palmer glared at Derby with anger, triggered the release of the Wind Gun, and another Silver Sword shot rapidly forward.

Zefirin raised her fists, attempting to shield Derby from the attack. Another booming sound erupted as two Wind Guns launched forward, their paths crisscrossing and overlapping, and the two Silver Swords collided at high speed.

In an instant, the blades shattered into dense fragments, smashing toward Zefirin like pellets from a shotgun. Her fists could not block these fragments, making it difficult for her even to protect herself.

Zefirin could only shield her head and chest. The silver fragments cut open her body, leaving gray-black scars, while many fragments struck Derby, carving dense wounds on his body.

Unlike Zefirin's gray-black, hard-to-heal wounds, Derby to some extent ignored the suppression of Silverware on Blood of the Night Race; what flowed from his wounds wasn't blood but some kind of glowing liquid.

"Etherealization..."

Vasilina recognized the phenomenon occurring on Derby at the moment. Derby, with a grim face, further unleashed his Secret Energy.

A massive amount of Ether was released, and the Ether concentration in the environment soared sharply, manifesting as blood-colored ribbons dancing in the air.

The Condenser's path to ascension is like the gradual sublimation of mundane substances, akin to a pawn in chess charging forward, overcoming layers of obstacles, reaching the baseline, and completing an "Ascension."

After Condensers ascend from the First Stage, each Tier elevation brings a certain degree of qualitative change.

The Second Stage Prayer Believers develop derivative sub-disciplines, thereby complexifying their Secret Energy, rendering it more bizarre and deadly. The Third Stage Negative Power User, with flesh and blood constantly filled with Ether, gradually trends towards Etherealization.

As flesh begins to ascend and become etherealized, it weakens external physical damage while greatly enhancing affinity with Ether, even to the extent of shaking off mortal shackles to avoid the Scythe of Death God.

The longevity familiar to Condensers is just one effect among many of Etherealization. As the Tier continues to elevate, Etherealization continues.

This is vividly manifested in the elders within the Wind Cellar. A century's time flows upon them, with mundane flesh having aged significantly, yet with the support of Etherealization, they can still linger in high concentrations of Ether environments.

Derby's blood has etherealized into liquid Ether, pure energy.

Elite Bloodthirsters issued hoarse battle cries. Accompanied by the boiling of blood within them, their reinforcement reached the limit, their muscles had swelled, and their veins protruded like worms crawling over flesh.

Before the Elite Bloodthirsters' attack came, the Wind-Eroded Birds joined the battle first.

Bologue destroyed the building, sealed the road but enabled the Wind-Eroded Birds to charge at the few people, with sharp claws and Iron Feathers like the blade of hastening swords.

With a piercing sharp screech, the surrounding material shattered into debris, scattering everywhere.

As an Overlord, Derby's strength compared to other Overlords lies in his ability to control a terrifying number of Domination Objects.

Bologue turned his head, swinging an Iron Spear toward the advancing Wind-Eroded Birds, reminiscent of when he first came to Wind Source Highlands and fought against the flock of Wind-Eroded Birds. Deceitful Snake Scale Liquid spread and transformed into countless dense steel structures, followed by Red Mercury igniting, with successive explosions.

Amidst the heavy bursts of fire, pitch-black shadows progressively emerged. The explosive impact resolved only a small portion of Wind-Eroded Birds, with the swarming army of Wind-Eroded Birds overwhelming Bologue.

In the chaotic shadows, the blinding sparks flickered persistently. The Wind-Eroded Birds left indentations of varying depth on the Armor, some even cutting through the Armor and injuring Bologue's body, bringing a splash of blood.

"Ha... merely a Prayer Believer."

Derby panted heavily, having called almost all available Wind-Eroded Birds to this place.

Hundreds? Or thousands?

Derby couldn't calculate anymore; the vast Command and control left his will exhausted, feeling his consciousness had fragmented into numerous parts, making uniform movements.

Ether consumed rapidly, as if draining the body dry.

Amidst the sweeping flock of birds, some sparks erupted, and faint flames flickered in the fierce wind, but with the ignition of the flames, it became unstoppable.

Something was coming, as Derby could feel.

Even relying on instinct-action Alchemy Creatures, their instincts would warn them of those fearsome entities approaching.

Derby could clearly sense that the Wind-Eroded Birds were afraid, the flock was afraid.

Each Wind-Eroded Bird transmitted the emotion of fear back to Derby. This fear accumulated and compounded, transforming into a tidal wave of despair that engulfed Derby's will.

Derby felt his blood turn cold, his heart fell into a brief stasis, accompanied by a blankness in his mind.

This blankness didn't last long; within the flock of Wind-Eroded Birds came the metallic tearing sound of flesh, a noise that made one's teeth ache, crawling along Derby's nerves like notes, composing the prelude of despair.

He's coming.

A creation forged from cold iron was striding forward in the storm, with every swing cutting down countless flying birds.

Scorching blood spewed over the cold armor, smeared on the metal surface filled with dents, infiltrating the cracks and seeping into its depths, transforming it into a blood-colored knight from the inside out.

Secret Energy·Boiling Blood!

Derby wielded his own power; the blood scattered within the flock of Wind-Eroded Birds began to boil and evaporate under the catalyst of Ether, releasing enormous heat and blinding flames roaring ceaselessly.

In the tornado of flames, there was a brief silence, after which the heart of the war drum resumed its beat.

"Zefirin! Stop him!"

Derby shouted while the remaining elite Bloodthirsters also sprang into action. Some raised heavy giant shields, swiftly moving toward Derby, transforming themselves into obstacles to block the upcoming attacks for Derby.

Other elite Bloodthirsters revealed their sharp teeth and claws, waiting for the enemy to storm out of the storm. Zefirin readied her fists, the Soul Breaker brimming with Ether, the Soul-Breaking Poison wafting around.

Zefirin wasn't suited for the front lines; her Soul-Breaking Poison, at best, could hardly affect the enemy when preparation was made. She too wished to act as an assassin, but to assassinate an Undead? It seemed too laughable no matter how you think about it, forced into desperation, she could only stand under the glow of Ether.

Suddenly, the flock of Wind-Eroded Birds let out a coarse wail, the fiery armor broke through their encirclement, the armor pitted and riddled with cracks, even though the Deceitful Snake Scale Liquid proliferated defense as much as it could, it still couldn't withstand the constant onslaught from the Wind-Eroded Birds.

Yet he still broke through the storm, unstoppable.

Derby was waiting for this moment; the elite Bloodthirsters advanced toward the armor, their sharp claws easily puncturing the dilapidated armor, and before they could rip it into pieces, Zefirin leaped up, relying on the power of the Soul Breaker to pound the metal surface with heavy fists.

Ether was disturbed, the constrained built power began to crumble, and in an instant, the heavy armor shattered into fragments scattered all over, but behind this crumbling wreckage, she didn't see Bologue's figure.

"No…"

Zefirin realized she'd been tricked, everyone had been tricked.

"Careful! Derby!"

Zefirin turned to warn Derby, but it was already too late. A Wind-Eroded Bird detached from the flock; in this chaotic battlefield, its action didn't attract attention, but as it swooped down, Bologue appeared on the back of the Wind-Eroded Bird.

Deceitful Snake Scale Liquid pierced through the bird's body, metal clinging to its bones, controlling the bird's actions in this brutal manner. Worse still, Derby had too many Domination Objects under his command to even notice this anomaly.

By the time Derby realized Bologue's arrival, it was too late; the Wind-Eroded Bird let out a wail, exploding into a fiery ball under Derby's command, but then a Silver-Plated Greatsword cleaved through the flames.

The elite Bloodthirsters raised their giant shields, blocking Bologue like high walls. The sword and shields collided, sparking fire.

"Mortal materials cannot block me…"

Bologue spoke, though his words were meaningless.

The Flame of the Cauldron spread and consumed the heavy giant shield; it was not an Alchemy Armament, merely a massive thing constructed of mortal substances.

The giant shield shattered in an instant, adhering to Bologue's command, causing itself to continue disintegrating. The twisted and winding metal then coated Bologue, forging a new scale armor.

Zefirin roared and charged toward Bologue, when suddenly, wind guns zipped through the air, though they didn't hit Zefirin, they did hinder her advancement. As she dodged the falling rain of swords, the armored monster had ripped through the obstructing elite Bloodthirsters.

In the wounds gouged out like a giant axe swung down, Bologue saw the hiding Derby underneath, the two locked eyes with each other, Derby snapped his fingers, Blood Boiling exploded.

In a flash, Bologue along with the dying elite Bloodthirsters transformed into burning torches, the flames reaching their zenith under the empowerment of the Negative Power User's Ether.

The iron was burning, burning bright red.

Amidst the crackling fires, a scorched iron hand broke through the flames and clutched Derby's throat.

Derby stared into that dazzling glare, the high temperature warping the air and interfering with the path of light. The blazing red iron armor under chaotic vision was grotesquely menacing, terrifying.

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