The heat radiating from the destabilized Core Crystal was not merely hot; it was an existential force. It stripped the moisture from the air, turning the wind into a blast furnace.

Alvian dove straight into it.

[System Warning: Extreme Thermal Radiation.]

[Passive [Terra-Form]: Stress Critical.]

[Passive [Thermal Nullification]: Active.]

His [Vestments of the Void Monarch] glowed white-hot, the [Molten Star] essence woven into the fabric drinking the heat greedily. It was the only thing keeping him from turning into ash.

He landed on the maintenance platform attached to the Core. The metal was soft, almost liquid under his boots.

The Core itself—a crystal the size of a mountain peak—was screaming. cracks ran along its surface, leaking geysers of raw, unstable mana. It pulsed red, faster and faster.

"It's going to blow in sixty seconds," Alvian estimated.

If it blew, the explosion would wipe out the falling island and the evacuation fleet hovering above.

"I need to cool it down," Alvian muttered.

He placed his hands on the crystal. His gloves sizzled.

"System. Dump everything. Every drop of mana."

"[Frost Descent +2]: Absolute Zero Continuous Stream."

He unleashed the blizzard directly into the Core.

"HSSSSS!"

Steam exploded, blinding him. The red light fought the blue.

Alvian's mana bar drained.

[Mana: 40,000... 30,000... 20,000...]

Even with his infinite regen, the output required to cool a sun-sized crystal was staggering. He was burning mana faster than he could make it.

"More!" Alvian roared. "Cool down, you damn rock!"

The red light dimmed slightly. Frost began to creep over the cracks.

But it wasn't enough. The reaction was self-sustaining. The chaotic energy left by the Shadow Dragon was fighting back.

"I need a heat sink," Alvian realized. "I need something to absorb the excess energy."

He looked at his own chest. The [Tear of the Infinite].

It was a mana reactor. Could it work in reverse?

"Risky," Alvian thought. "If I absorb this much chaotic mana, I might explode."

[Probability of Survival: 12%.]

"Better than zero."

Alvian closed his eyes. He reversed the flow of his mana channels. Instead of pushing ice out, he pulled the fire in.

"Absorb."

"WHOOSH!"

The red energy from the Core surged into him.

"ARGHHH!"

Alvian screamed. It felt like swallowing lava. His veins turned black, then red. His skin cracked.

[System Alert! Body Integrity Failing!]

[Mana Overload!]

"Hold it!" Alvian gritted his teeth. "Hold it!"

He channeled the chaotic energy into the [Tear]. The artifact spun wildly, processing the raw power.

The Core began to turn blue again. The red pulse slowed.

[Core Stabilized.]

[Energy Level: 120% (Overcharged).]

"It's stable," Alvian gasped, falling to one knee. "But it's full. I need to release the pressure."

He looked down. The ground was rushing up. He could see the forests of the surface world.

"Retro-thrusters," Alvian whispered.

He crawled to the manual override lever. It was fused by the heat.

"Dammit."

He stood up. He grabbed the lever with both hands.

"Strength: 270."

He pulled.

"CREAK... SNAP!"

The lever broke.

"No!"

The thrusters didn't engage. The island was still falling at terminal velocity. Impact in 30 seconds.

Alvian looked at the Core. It was a loaded gun with no trigger.

"Fine," Alvian said. "I'll be the trigger."

He climbed onto the crystal itself. He aimed his [Lance of the Void Winter] down, toward the bottom of the crystal where the mana exhaust port was.

"If the lever won't work, I'll punch a hole."

He activated [Genesis Mode] again.

[Warning! Soul Damage Critical!]

"Do it!"

He exploded with light. He drove the lance into the base of the crystal.

"RELEASE!"

"KRA-KOOM!"

He shattered the bottom of the Core.

A beam of pure blue mana, thick as a river, shot out of the bottom of the island.

The force was immense.

The falling island shuddered. The descent slowed.

It wasn't a gentle stop. It was a violent deceleration.

Alvian was pinned against the crystal by the G-force. His bones creaked.

"Hold..." Alvian wheezed. "Just a little longer..."

The ground was seconds away.

But then, from the cracks in the Core, a shadow emerged.

It wasn't mana. It was a shape.

A remnant of the Shadow Dragon. A final curse left behind.

[Boss: Shadow Vestige]

[Level: 45]

[Status: Parasitic]

It formed a clawed hand, reaching for Alvian's throat.

"DIE... ANOMALY..."

Alvian couldn't move. He was holding the beam open. If he let go, the island would crash.

The claw closed around his neck.

"Choke," the Vestige hissed.

Alvian's vision blurred.

"Is this it?" Alvian thought. "Saved the world, died to a ghost?"

"NO!"

A flash of silver light.

A dagger flew through the air, embedding itself in the Shadow's eye.

Seraphina.

She dropped from the maintenance hatch above, daggers drawn.

"Get your hands off him!"

She landed on the Shadow, stabbing wildly.

"Seraphina!" Alvian choked out. "Get back! The crash!"

"Shut up and drive!" Seraphina shouted, kicking the shadow in the face.

The distraction was enough. Alvian gathered his last ounce of strength.

He channeled the Void energy into his skin.

"[Runic Aegis]: Explosion."

He detonated his armor's mana field.

"BOOM!"

The Shadow Vestige was blown away, dissolving into the mana beam.

Alvian looked down. The trees were right there.

"BRACE FOR IMPACT!" Alvian screamed.

The beam hit the ground. The island followed.

The world turned white.

---

The crash was not a single event. It was a series of geological catastrophes compressed into ten seconds.

The mana beam Alvian released acted as a cushion, vaporizing the forest below and creating a crater of compressed air. But the island was still millions of tons of rock.

"CRASH!"

The floating island slammed into the earth.

The shockwave flattened trees for fifty miles. The sound was heard in the capital city three kingdoms away.

Inside the Core Chamber, gravity went sideways. Alvian and Seraphina were thrown around like dolls in a dryer.

Alvian grabbed Seraphina, pulling her into his chest.

"Shield!"

He wrapped his wings...his [Avatar State] wings...around them, hardening them into a cocoon of ice.

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