Because of the Emerald Magic Stone, everyone’s injuries had mostly recovered. Yet the scales of victory had tipped toward Azure.

Azure had never possessed much Mana to begin with. As long as she had enough Magic Stones, her attacks could continue without end. Crimson and Night Frost, on the other hand, could have all the Mana in the world, but they would still reach their limits.

Night Frost carried Crimson on her back. If nothing unexpected happened, they were going to retreat.

Their plan had worked perfectly at first. They simply hadn’t expected their enemy to be more skilled—and far luckier—than they were.

Night Frost spread the dragon wings behind her and carried Crimson into the air. She landed beside the Zone Fifteen Guardian.

At that moment, the Zone Fifteen Guardian and the Fourth District Guardian were talking about something.

When the Fourth District Guardian saw Night Frost and Crimson leave the Formation, she waved at the Zone Fifteen Guardian and departed.

She didn’t want to get involved any further. Helping Azure and the others this much was already the height of kindness.

She only hoped they would keep their promise.

The Zone Fifteen Guardian cast a buff on Night Frost and Crimson. The two of them sprinted across the wilderness.

But the Guardian of the Seventh District reached them in a single flash-step. She raised the scissors in her hand and left a deep trench across their path.

“Where did all that confidence from earlier go?”

Night Frost was just about to turn around when Azure landed behind them as well.

They were surrounded.

There was one thing worth mentioning, however.

When Azure had shattered the Emerald Magic Stone earlier, she had used up her final Wand. Without a Wand, Azure was still someone Night Frost could fight.

Seeing Night Frost staring at her, Azure lifted the corners of her lips into a victor’s smile. She met Night Frost’s gaze and slowly parted her vermilion lips.

“You seem to think I’m easy to deal with?”

The moment Azure finished speaking, the quiet earth suddenly began to tremble violently.

A tremendous power was awakening.

The center of the quake was the towering Order Keeper spire in the Fourth District. Every stone and brick on the tower seemed to tremble slightly with the shaking, radiating a terrifying majesty.

Night Frost’s eyes darkened. Clearly, she hadn’t expected Azure to have another move prepared.

Azure, meanwhile, kept her victor’s smile. A trace of cunning and smugness flickered in her eyes, as if everything were already under her control.

As the trembling intensified, the air around the tower began to twist.

It was as though an invisible force were tearing space apart.

The tower split open from the center. Then a dazzling pillar of pitch-black light erupted from its summit and shot into the heavens.

Within that black pillar, a colossal figure slowly emerged.

It was like an ancient beast walking out of the Abyss.

Night Frost stared hard at the figure.

Her pupils shook violently.

Its enormous body was covered in smooth, fine scales, like an exquisitely crafted suit of armor. Every scale shimmered with a deep radiance, exuding a mysterious and imposing presence.

The beast was vast beyond measure, like a towering mountain that inspired instinctive fear.

Its four limbs were powerfully built. Every step seemed capable of making the earth tremble.

Two sharp horns pierced the sky from the top of its head, gleaming with cold light and displaying its overwhelming might.

Li Dogegg also froze for a moment.

Through the Familiar Space, using Night Frost’s eyes, it stared at the black shadow approaching everyone. A trace of anger ignited within its weary eyes.

That black shadow was…

A dragon.

“That’s my body!”

Li Dogegg actually leaped out of the Familiar Space on its own and roared furiously at Azure.

Li Dogegg had thought its body had long since been destroyed by those Magic Maidens, leaving behind only its heart.

It had never expected those people to turn its body into this.

The exterior still looked the same, but metal had been embedded into its internal structure. It was already completely different from what it had once been.

“Destroy… (Dragon tongue).”

The enormous body of the Black Dragon forced two words out through its throat.

Its lifeless gaze swept across everyone present before finally settling on Night Frost.

“Heart… (Dragon tongue).”

It lunged straight at Night Frost.

Night Frost was carrying Crimson, so she threw Crimson to the Zone Fifteen Guardian first. Then she pulled the Spear from the flames.

The Spear, wrapped in Black Flame, stabbed toward the Calamity Dragon’s scales.

But the Black Flame, which had always worked without fail, failed to ignite against those scales.

That was only natural.

The Black Flame had originated from the Black Dragon before them. If its own flames could hurt it, wouldn’t that be ridiculous?

Night Frost could only disperse the Black Flame. She gripped the Spear wreathed in CrimsonGoldFlame and engaged the Black Dragon in close combat.

The Guardian of the Seventh District seized the opportunity to pounce on Crimson.

She intended to strangle this variable in its cradle. Otherwise, Crimson would surely become an obstacle on her path to kingship in the future.

Crimson sprang up from the Zone Fifteen Guardian’s arms.

She was extremely weak now, but refusing to fight back would only turn her into a lamb awaiting slaughter.

She hurled her Wand with all her strength. Crimson ribbons wrapped around her body, and with their help, Crimson recovered part of her mobility.

“Your Domain is gone, and you’re so heavily wounded. What could you possibly use to fight me? The tables have turned!”

The Guardian of the Seventh District swung her scissors.

The Wand on her body was exactly the same as Crimson’s. The crimson ribbons collided with each other.

At this moment, the Guardian of the Seventh District had the upper hand.

Then the Magic Armor of the woman before her changed again.

Space split apart, and sharp scissors pierced through the void.

Crimson spun around and seized the scissors formed from Mana. Then she gathered her strength and kicked backward.

The Guardian of the Seventh District staggered back two steps.

She hadn’t expected Crimson to still possess such strength.

A starving camel is still bigger than a horse. The saying was indeed true.

The Zone Fifteen Guardian circled beside Crimson, ready to support her.

She knew she couldn’t contribute much, but keeping the enemy occupied for even a moment was better than nothing.

“Boom!”

Night Frost was sent flying backward and crashed into the barren ground between the Guardian of the Seventh District and Crimson.

She hadn’t expected the Black Dragon’s mouth to contain a device resembling Azure’s Wand. This device was even more domineering than the original Wand.

Azure was riding atop the Black Dragon’s head.

One of her hands pierced through the dragon’s scales and sank into its skull.

At the same time, several cannon barrels protruded from the Black Dragon’s mouth. The constant sound of Magic Stones shattering came from within them.

“This device simulates the Calamity Dragon’s fire breath.”

Azure paused.

“Well, I added a little of my own technology, too. All right… Calamity Dragon, tear our enemies apart.”

A heart-stopping surge of Mana and Abyssal Aura rose into the air.

Twelve sounds rang out from the depths of the Calamity Dragon’s throat.

If the Calamity Dragon’s body was used as the firing mechanism, Azure could easily achieve the theoretical optimum—

“The Twelvefold Chanting Melody of Calamity…”

Deep, dark Mana erupted from the depths of the Calamity Dragon’s throat like a raging flood. It swept across the entire sky.

Its aura carried the endless flavor of the Abyss, as though it intended to swallow the whole world into eternal darkness.

As the Mana surged, twelve melodious chants rang out from the Calamity Dragon’s throat.

The sound seemed to cross the boundaries of time and space, carrying an ancient and mysterious power that echoed into every corner.

Each chant was as beautiful as a heavenly song, yet each contained the power of destruction. It made the heart tremble with fear.

As the chanting continued, the Mana condensed into a dazzling radiance that shot into the heavens.

The light grew brighter and more dazzling, as if it meant to tear the entire sky apart.

Finally, at that moment, the radiance reached its theoretical optimum.

It was like a brilliant star descending toward the earth.

Everything touched by its light turned to nothingness.

Night Frost was mercilessly swept up by an intense wave of Black Flame.

The heat wave was like a savage beast, trampling over her body and burning her skin beyond recognition.

Wherever the pillar of light passed, the air itself seemed to ignite with a sizzling hiss.

Night Frost’s Magic Armor turned to ash in an instant.

Her exposed skin was scorched black beneath the combined assault of the heat and light.

The flesh across her chest burned away into ash. Her heart, exposed within, beat furiously as it repaired her wounds.

Pain spread through every inch of her body.

Crimson suffered the same fate nearby.

The ribbons around her body caught fire and burned away in moments.

The Guardian of the Seventh District was also caught in the blast. If she hadn’t torn open space in time, she would have ended up like Night Frost and the others.

The Zone Fifteen Guardian had it even worse.

She had run the fastest, yet the pillar of light still swept across her body, leaving behind nothing but charred bones.

Still, she was undoubtedly lucky.

She had run fast enough. If she had been even one step slower, she would have died on the spot.

Though she looked like this now, she still had a breath left in her.

“Something… blocked it just now.”

Crimson sensed that the Magic Cannon before them had stalled for a moment.

If not for that brief pause, she wouldn’t have had time to raise a shield.

Without that shield, Night Frost and Crimson might still have survived. But the Zone Fifteen Guardian would probably have been reduced to ash.

“That Mana wasn’t especially strong, but the power itself was real.”

A weak force had stopped everything in its tracks.

Other than the power of Order…

Night Frost thought for a moment before remembering someone.

That person’s realm wasn’t particularly high, but her ability was absolutely genuine.

“Illusory Glass!”

Other than her, Night Frost couldn’t think of anyone who possessed such power.

The power to make time itself stand still.

A girl covered in black-and-white grids stepped out from the depths of a spatial rift.

She held a heavy tome in her arms, and her face was clearly pale.

Behind her, Moon Owl slowly emerged in a black cloak.

“That last one really packed a punch.”

The Magic Cannon had drained all the Mana from her body in less than a second.

If Moon Owl hadn’t transferred some Mana to her, she would have passed out.

“How long have you been watching from here?”

The flesh on Night Frost’s body had scabbed over as she looked toward Illusory Glass and Moon Owl approaching them.

“She’s been watching for quite a while.”

Moon Owl’s eyes flashed with helplessness.

“As for me, I just arrived. I spotted this little one at the edge of the battlefield.”

After sending everyone away, Moon Owl had asked Blade where Illusory Glass had gone. Blade didn’t know either.

Moon Owl guessed that Illusory Glass might have listened to the memories, then slipped into the jeep and traveled with them to the Fourth District.

As expected, Moon Owl had caught her.

Illusory Glass stuck out her tongue. She was just about to step forward when Moon Owl grabbed her and pulled her back.

“You’re only at Cantata Two. Get back here!”

“Waaah…”