By the time the Mirror Holder finished speaking, his voice was almost gone, leaving only faint breaths escaping his mouth, but Aemdo still heard everything clearly.
He stood where he was, golden long hair and silver armor gleaming with a soft radiance. Even though he had just killed a living being, some indescribable aura made him look noble and sacred.
Aemdo slowly raised his head. At last, a trace of recollection appeared in his eyes. As if murmuring to himself, he let out a low mutter,
"Burning Star Omen, Falcorez... what a distant memory... Ten Amber Eras ago, that name was still among the most prominent bounties in the company's listings."
"It's been so long since I joined the Mirror Holders... Why was I put on the company's bounty list again?"
Long-forgotten memories began to awaken in Aemdo's mind. For a moment, it felt as if he had returned to that battlefield... no, it would be more accurate to call it a slaughterhouse.
That planet had almost no oceans or rivers. Everywhere were silver-gray mountains and strange rocks. Human settlements had little greenery. Underfoot was dry, yellow, cracked earth.
Before entering the mountain ranges where those bizarre edible plants, shaped like massive stones, grew, a glance around would reveal hazy yellow smoke everywhere.
Furious flames burst from the ground, igniting the entire planet. Within the raging inferno, a terrifying beast clad in armor, like living holy fire, walked out.
Aemdo remembered that at the time, what filled his ears were heart-rending screams and endless groans, along with countless explosions.
Those soldiers from the Interstellar Peace Company, clad in high-tech black armor, were almost all burned to ashes by the flames.
The countless black warships surrounding the planet exploded one after another like firecrackers under the surging blaze.
———
Inside the cloud-shrouded Ambrosial Arbour, countless root-like tendrils grew wildly, forming eerie shadows deep in the distance.
At the center, guarded by those monstrous shapes, the Starfire Essence formed by Phantylia emitted a faint green glow.
She slowly descended, seated upon a lotus platform. In an instant, she drew upon the abundant power of Ambrosial Arbour and used it to shape for herself an unprecedented divine body.
A massive form gradually emerged, like a phantom stepping out of mist. The lotus platform transformed into an ornament upon its forehead.
As the figure solidified, Phantylia let out a soft sigh. Her enormous body carried a pale, sickly hue. She opened a pair of enchanting eyes and casually clenched her hand, forming a fan within her grasp.
Her body seemed to stand within the cavern heaven, connecting earth below and sky above. The platform where Nero and Jing Yuan stood was nothing more than a table to her.
Phantylia leaned forward slightly, supporting herself with one hand, then rested her body in a posture that looked almost leisurely.
After gaining control of the power of Abundance, this Lord Ravager became extremely confident.
Controlling this flawless new body, feeling the overflowing Abundance and Destruction within her, she looked quite pleased with herself.
Clearly, she didn't take Jing Yuan or the Astral Express crew seriously. When her gaze swept over them, she looked like someone about to toy with a cat.
Her enchanting voice echoed through the empty space,
"Everyone, do you see this beautiful body...? A miracle of Abundance, just as the name suggests. Now let me see what I can use it for..."
Under everyone's serious and cautious gaze, Phantylia lightly waved her hand. The Ambrosial Arbour roots on both sides immediately began to grow wildly, then bloomed into two lotus flowers before her.
Perhaps because this body was shaped by the power of Abundance, Phantylia was now quite proficient in using it.
The surging power made her feel extremely satisfied. She laughed softly.
"Very good. Then I'll use the power that granted the Xianzhou immortality... to bring you destruction!"
She extended her hand forward and flicked her finger. A heavy boom followed by howling winds erupted.
Given the sheer size of her body, even a single finger was like a towering building to those present. When that finger came down, it was like a collapsing structure.
Suddenly, lightning burst forth. Jing Yuan leapt forward, swinging his formation blade, forcibly blocking the attack.
No one was surprised.
After all, how could someone who became a general be weak in combat? It was just that compared to his martial strength, his talent in strategy was even more outstanding.
After blocking Phantylia's strike, Jing Yuan immediately said to the others, "Everyone, do your best to eliminate these illusion flowers. I'll break her physical body."
With his request, the others quickly sprang into action, attacking the flowers Phantylia had summoned.
Jing Yuan flicked his blade, golden lightning erupting from his body. He prepared to engage her again.
Phantylia paid no mind to his arrangements. It didn't matter who she fought. With the powers of two Paths merging within her, she felt stronger than ever.
Besides, she hadn't even used her full strength yet.
Seeing thunder surrounding Jing Yuan, she smiled smugly, slowly raising her hand, preparing to deliver a heavy blow.
But just as she lifted her hand, she caught a figure rushing toward her from the corner of her eye. Her soul jolted. It felt as if something had locked onto her.
She immediately looked up and saw Nero, full of openings, holding Black Cutter with both hands, leaping down in a direct overhead strike.
In a hurry, Phantylia raised both hands to block.
In that instant, an almost soul-tearing pain exploded.
The dignified Lord Ravager clenched her teeth, refusing to cry out. But Nero's attack wasn't over.
Though it was just an ordinary jump strike, full of flaws, the kid's strength was monstrous.
Even with such a massive body, Phantylia felt she hadn't gained the upper hand. She could clearly tell that her power was being suppressed.
After hastily blocking at first, she had already exerted her full strength, yet she couldn't push upward even a fraction.
The black greatsword had already embedded itself into her body, cutting through flesh and bone.
BOOM!
Nero landed on the ground. The blade of Black Cutter slammed into the floor, making the entire cavern tremble.
Ahead, Phantylia's arms had been cleanly severed.
Nero glanced at Black Cutter in his hand, puzzled, "Did you get sharper?"
'Yeah, I feel ridiculously strong right now!' Black Cutter replied.
Jing Yuan, who had watched everything, felt waves crashing in his heart.
'This kid... was basically a young General.'
"Jing Yuan, let me borrow it!"
Nero's voice snapped Jing Yuan out of his brief daze. He then noticed that besides Black Cutter, Nero somehow had another blade in hand.
'When did he take that?'
Even someone as sharp as Jing Yuan couldn't help but blank out for a moment.
He knew he hadn't made a mistake. The blade had been firmly in his hand. Yet somehow, in the next instant, it was gone, appearing in Nero's hand without him even seeing him pass by.
It was as if the weapon had developed its own will and flown over on its own.
But neither Jing Yuan's confusion nor Phantylia's pain slowed Nero.
Holding the blade, Nero swung both hands. Instantly, multiple sword energies surged forward like a whale devouring the sea.
Each one was terrifyingly sharp. Wherever they struck Phantylia, they tore open massive, canyon-like wounds, with energy gushing out like blood.
Yet Ambrosial Arbour truly lived up to being a miracle of Abundance. Even after being cut, her body quickly regenerated under the surging vitality.
After recovering, Phantylia gritted her teeth.
"As expected of a body formed by Ambrosial Arbour... not so easily destroyed."
But soon her gaze turned serious.
Watching Nero constantly shifting positions and unleashing sword energy, she found him impossible to catch. She knew she couldn't let this continue.
It might seem like his attacks couldn't kill her, but the pain was very real.
She now realized Nero was far stronger than she had imagined. In terms of combat power, she would have to place him at the level of an Emanator.
And more than that, there was something strange about him.
Even though she had formed a physical body, her essence was still a heliobus. She shouldn't be able to feel such real pain. Yet every hit from Nero caused something she had never experienced before.
Putting everything together, she realized he must have some method of directly attacking intangible beings like the Starfire Essence.
On the surface, it looked like a stalemate. But in reality, if she kept relying on this body and dragged it into a war of attrition, she would lose.
Her soul already felt like it was breaking apart from the sword wounds, yet Nero showed no sign of exhaustion.
It was as if he could keep swinging all day.
That was terrifying.
If this continued for twenty-four system hours, she might die from the pain before that even passed.
Damn it. Fighting him made this body feel like more of a burden than an advantage.
If she had stayed in her original form, she wouldn't have been hit so easily. Now, this huge body was just a target.
But without it, she had no confidence facing two Emanator-level opponents.
'What is the Mirror Holder doing?'
'Where are they?'
'Why haven't they acted yet?'
Phantylia had no idea. She couldn't possibly know they had already been judged by Aemdo.
But she knew she couldn't wait any longer.
The next moment, the power of Destruction erupted from her massive body.
A shockwave spread, disrupting everyone's rhythm. Welt and March were on the flanks dealing with illusion flowers, while Jing Yuan and Dan Heng frowned.
They looked up as Phantylia raised her hand. Power surged into the sky.
The dome of the cavern began to spin like a deep sea abyss, gathering terrifying energy.
Then, the power of Destruction expanded. The entire space transformed into a silent starry sky.
A golden-red star ignited like molten lava and fell from the heavens.
Phantylia had condensed a star, a mature yellow dwarf, and sent it crashing down to annihilate them all.
Nero looked up, eyes widening slightly.
Compared to Cocolia, this was on a completely different level.
But he was no longer the same as before.
As the blazing star descended, divine light rose, thunder roared, and golden brilliance shone.
Jing Yuan floated into the air. A massive figure appeared behind him, wrapped in endless lightning.
The Divine General raised his golden blade.
Slash!
Lightning flashed, golden light split the heavens.
The falling star was cut in half like a watermelon, then completely destroyed by the aftershock.
At that moment, the battle between Emanators truly began.
But... Jing Yuan's side had more people.
As he summoned the Divine General, Dan Heng also attacked.
Guiding the power of the Dragon Lord, he rose into the air. A massive azure dragon surged upward, bringing a pure domain into the dead starry sky.
The dragon roared, summoning endless water. Waves flooded the sky, crashing down toward Phantylia.
Countless water dragons surged forward, tearing into her.
"Immortal dragonkin?"
Phantylia spoke, then unleashed even greater power.
Using both Paths at once was a heavy burden, but her body could endure it.
Facing just Jing Yuan and Dan Heng, she wasn't afraid.
But then...
"Wind Sword Formation, open!", Nero's voice rang out again.
Phantylia's heart jumped. She immediately searched for him.
She found him standing on Black Cutter, fingers forming a sword seal. A storm rose across the sky.
Countless green swords appeared.
Hundreds. Thousands. Tens of thousands.
They all pointed at her.
If they fell, she would be pierced beyond recognition.
The thought alone made her shudder.
She couldn't accept dying like that.
Not like this.
Fear and urgency drove her to attack.
"Profound Root Manifestation!"
Countless root-spears surged toward Nero.
BOOM!
They stopped three meters in front of him, unable to advance.
The flames flickered, then vanished. The roots withered and receded.
"Abundance power?", Phantylia froze.
The others were just as shocked.
But Nero remained expressionless.
Then, he raised his fingers.
Sword rain fell endlessly... Like an execution that would never stop.
He still had to fight Aemdo after this.
He was reaching his limit.
'I have to end it quickly.'
Phantylia curled up, enduring the storm of blades, completely unable to understand what Nero was thinking.