BOOOOM!

A thunderous explosion ripped through the sky and earth. The runes flickered once—then went completely dark. Two massive boulders shattered into dust, and the entire rune-etched Ritual Array trembled violently, on the verge of collapse.

Ethan, still in his Blood Rite state, was an unstoppable force of destruction. His power was overwhelming—nothing could withstand it.

"Looks like its consciousness isn't here..." Ethan muttered, eyes blazing. Without missing a beat, he swung his fist back and smashed another boulder into rubble.

The Ritual Array buckled even more, over half of it already in ruins.

With the binding force weakening, Ethan tore through the remaining stones like a rampaging beast. His movements were so fast they blurred from sight, each strike unleashing waves of raw, annihilating energy. The very air trembled around him, as if the heavens themselves were about to collapse.

The scene was nothing short of apocalyptic.

The mutant beast horde watching from a distance was frozen in fear. That figure in the battlefield—he wasn't something they could ever hope to fight. He wasn't even something they could understand.

And they could feel it—deep within the pile of shattered stone, something was afraid.

Even a god was trembling.

"H-He's that strong?!"

"The Deathless Sovereign of Necroterra... he really lives up to the legend."

"Wait... is the god actually going to lose?"

"..."

Despair swept through the Xenobeasts like a plague. Their faith—once unshakable—crumbled just like the stones before them.

On the battlefield, the air was thick with the scent of destruction. Ethan was down to the last few boulders, each one cracking under his fists.

The [Sigil Lockdown] had completely failed, leaving behind only faint traces of energy.

Ethan raised his arm again, ready to finish the job—but then, something changed.

One of the remaining boulders began to ripple. The runes etched into it squirmed like living things, and a glowing mass of energy peeled away from the stone, floating free.

It darted back, away from Ethan, toward the mutant beast horde—clearly terrified.

"Huh?" Ethan's eyes narrowed.

The energy was golden, flickering like a flame, dancing erratically in the air. It was alive.

That's it, he realized. That's the Mountain God's true consciousness.

The massive stone body? Just a puppet.

"What the hell is that?" Ethan muttered.

He wasn't the only one stunned. The Xenobeasts stared in disbelief as the golden flame floated toward them.

"That's the Mountain God's real form?"

"No way... it's so tiny!"

"This is seriously weird..."

The golden flame was barely the size of a basketball—laughably small compared to the towering stone colossus it had once inhabited.

Far off in the distance, Bloodveil narrowed her eyes, watching intently.

So that's the big bad? What a runt.

Aboard the Dreadnought-class Starcruiser, Big Ears and the others craned their necks, squinting at the battlefield.

"What's going on?"

"Boss just beat the crap outta that stone dude—literally!"

"..."

The chaos on the battlefield began to settle. The golden flame hovered in midair, flickering with frustration and embarrassment. Now exposed, its true form on full display, it was like a human caught naked in public—awkward and furious.

"What the hell are you all staring at?" the Mountain God snapped. Its voice no longer boomed like thunder—instead, it sounded... young. Almost childlike.

The Xenobeasts blinked in shock.

"You... you're really the Mountain God?"

"No shit! Who else would I be?" the golden flame barked, voice sharp and defensive—definitely the same attitude as before.

Seeing it reduced to this form, the Xenobeasts were shaken. And worried. Could it still fight the Deathless Sovereign like this?

"Great One... does this mean you've lost?"

"Watch your mouth!" the golden flame hissed, its tone turning cold. "I haven't lost. I just lost the puppet. I haven't even used my trump card yet. The real fight is just getting started."

"Just starting?"

"You serious?"

The Xenobeasts exchanged uncertain glances—but a flicker of hope returned to their eyes. If this wasn't even the Mountain God's full power yet, maybe—just maybe—they still had a chance.

Across the field, the Zombie King in the white shirt—Ethan—looked like he'd already pushed himself to the limit. No backup. No tricks left.

If that was true... maybe the god could still win this.

Ethan didn't go in for another strike. He just stood there, calm and still, watching the golden flame float in the air. Whatever threat it once posed—it was gone. He couldn't feel even a flicker of danger from it anymore.

And more importantly, the thing wasn't even a solid being. Just a clump of energy. No crystal core.

So then... how the hell had it powered the rune array?

And also... could he eat it?

The golden energy hovered in front of the mutant beast horde. A gust of wind swept past, and its glow pulsed brighter, like it was charging up for something.

The Xenobeasts watched nervously, holding their breath. Maybe this was it—the god's final move.

Then, the golden flame began to ripple. Energy surged outward, spreading across the ground beneath it. More runes lit up, sketching themselves into existence, writhing like they were alive.

The space around them began to tremble, warping and twisting like it was about to tear itself apart.

Ethan narrowed his eyes. Something about this felt... familiar. A second later, it clicked.

"Wait... is this a teleportation array?"

Sure enough, the golden flame suddenly shouted, voice shrill and panicked:

"What the hell are you all standing around for?! RUN!"

"???" The Xenobeasts blinked, stunned.

Run?

Before they could even process it, the runes flared to full power. A blinding burst of golden light erupted, space twisted violently—and a streak of white light swallowed the golden flame whole.

In the blink of an eye, it vanished—just like the Direwolf King had before.

"You think you can run? Where exactly do you think you're going?" Ethan's voice was low and cold. In a flash, he disappeared too, chasing after it without hesitation.

The mutant beast horde finally snapped out of their daze.

There was no trump card. No final stand.

The Mountain God's last move... was to run.

"Fall back! NOW!"

A chorus of panicked roars erupted as the beasts scattered, stampeding into the jungle like a tidal wave breaking loose, desperate to escape.

"Let's hunt!"

Back on the Dreadnought-class Starcruiser, the other Zombie Kings lit up. No way they were letting this opportunity slip by. This was their favorite part.

Because once they caught up to the Xenobeasts... it was feeding time.

Big Ears pulled out his Crystal Core Hand-Cannon, eyes gleaming.

"Looks like my gun's got juice again. Time to blow some heads off!"

Meanwhile, Ricky hoisted Aria over his shoulder and sprinted toward the Command Cruiser. He jumped in, fired up the engines, and blasted off in the same direction Ethan had gone.

"Hey! Stop! Where the hell are you taking me?!" Aria shouted, struggling on the floor of the ship.

"Obviously, I'm following my master," Ricky said, cranking the power to max. The Command Cruiser surged forward, way faster than the lumbering Dreadnought-class behind them.

Aria's brow furrowed.

They were heading straight into the heart of Xenorift. That place was a deathtrap—full of Forbidden Zones. Even SSS-rank human Awakeners had gone in there and never come back.

"You wanna chase your master, fine. But can you not drag me along for the ride?"

"Nope," Ricky said, glancing back at her. "You're not thinking of escaping, are you?"

"..." Aria's face darkened. She sighed, exasperated. "Fine. Then at least take these damn chains off me."

"Also nope," Ricky replied without missing a beat.

"..."

And so, the Zombie Horde surged forward, deeper into the Xenorift continent, cutting down every Xenobeast in their path.

The jungle erupted into chaos—screams, snarls, and the sound of tearing flesh filled the air. The beasts tried to flee, but most of them didn't get far.

The Zombie Horde tore through Xenorift like a plague, leaving nothing but blood and ruin in their wake...

...

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