radicalducati Chapter 232: A New Rift Core Trial
Chapter 232: A New Rift Core Trial
The air seemed compressed into some kind of invisible liquid, with countless tiny specks of light floating in the surrounding darkness. These specks of light, though seemingly faint, evoked a sense of endless indifference and desolation. Deeper still, a dark red vortex was slowly rotating, like the beating of the cosmic heart.
The interior of the rift wasn't simply dark like the outside; it was a strange space existing between nothingness and order. The ground here seemed composed of shattered mirrors, each step producing a faint glow beneath one's feet. However, that glow wasn't warm; instead, it exuded a cold, deathly stillness. A massive, chaotic flow of energy floated overhead, occasionally punctuated by streaks of black lightning that tore through the space.
“This place…” Lessa looked around warily, gripping his spear tightly, his gaze fixed on the swirling dark red light in the distance, “is it one of the sources of the rift’s core?”
The observer nodded, his eyes slightly closed, using the Star Chart Scepter to sense the surrounding energy fluctuations: "Not just the source, these points of light... they are the remnants of the will of the Void Avatar's split entities."
The Arbiter snorted coldly, and crimson flames ignited on his twin blades, seemingly filled with disgust for these ethereal forces: "Whether it's their will or their power, since they stand in our way, we'll burn them all."
The observer ignored the adjudicator's provocation and continued to survey his surroundings. His brow furrowed slightly, and his voice was low: "Be careful. This space seems to be leading us deeper, but it's by no means a friendly invitation."
Sure enough, just as the observer finished speaking, the floating points of light suddenly began to rapidly gather, condensing into twisted figures. These figures seemed to have no fixed shape; some resembled faceless human figures, some resembled crawling monsters, and some were simply pure energy vortexes.
“The incarnation of the void fragments…” the observer murmured.
Without waiting, Lysa's spear gleamed with golden light as she leaped up and thrust it straight at one of the vortex avatars. The golden light of the spear pierced the darkness and struck the vortex heavily. But just when she thought she had succeeded, the vortex began to twist, transforming into countless slender tentacles that entangled her spear.
"They will devour energy, be careful!" The observer immediately raised the Star Chart Scepter, and a blue beam of light shot out, attempting to sever the extension of the tentacles.
The Arbiter roared, its twin blades burning with intense flames, and slashed forward, cleaving one of the ethereal avatars in two. But soon, the two halves began to reform, even growing larger.
"They cannot be easily destroyed!" the Arbiter said, somewhat annoyed, as his attacks seemed to have caused no real damage to these things.
"Attack their core of rules!" the Observer shouted, pointing his Star Chart Scepter and directing the light towards the chests of the avatars. "Their core is here. Destroying the core of rules will completely shatter them!"
Upon hearing the guidance, Lysa swiftly adjusted her stance, channeling all her energy into her spear, its tip gleaming with dazzling golden light. That light, like a blade of the sun, pierced directly through the core of a void avatar. Instantly, the avatar let out a piercing scream before rapidly collapsing, turning into a cloud of dissipating ashes.
The Arbiter adjusted his attack accordingly, unleashing a red flame wave from his crossed blades, which precisely struck the core of another avatar. The avatar's rule core cracked in the flames, exploding with a sound before vanishing.
As the avatars of nothingness were destroyed one by one, the entire rift began to tremble violently. The dark red vortex in the distance suddenly stopped spinning, then emitted a low hum.
The observer's face darkened: "This is its bait. The true power of the Void Incarnation lies hidden even deeper."
The adjudicator sneered: "It doesn't matter. No matter how well it's hidden, I'll dig it out and burn it to ashes."
Lysa frowned. "We can't be so reckless. The battle just now was only the beginning. Those things were clearly meant to weaken us."
The observer nodded, looking into the depths of the distant vortex: "Let's go. What we're about to face is even more difficult."
They continued onward, traversing the shattered mirror-like surfaces, until they reached the heart of the vortex. The scene here was even more bizarre; the entire space seemed to be constantly collapsing and reforming, with enormous, dark red energy crystals floating in the distance, entwined with countless ethereal tentacles.
“That’s one of the energy cores of the rift.” The observer’s gaze was fixed on the crystal, his tone grave. “It’s devouring the energy of the universe’s rules. If we don’t stop it, it will cause the rift to expand even faster.”
Without hesitation, Lysa raised her spear, ready to attack, but the Observer stopped her: "Wait! It's surrounded by barriers of reverse rules. Attacking rashly will only make it stronger."
The adjudicator scoffed, "So you mean to wait and watch it collapse on its own?"
The observer shook his head, his gaze wandering around the crystal before finally settling on a few nodes that were shimmering faintly: "We need to destroy these energy nodes to weaken the crystal's barrier."
Leisa and the Arbiter exchanged a glance, then quickly dispersed and launched attacks on the nodes separately.
However, as they approached the node, black barriers suddenly appeared in the surrounding void, from which new avatars of nothingness emerged. These avatars were much larger than before, their bodies covered with solid fragments of rules, rendering ordinary forces that attacked them almost ineffective.
Lysa quickly adjusted her tactics, repeatedly thrusting her spear at the defensive points of one of the avatars, finally piercing its core under the intense attack. At the same time, the Arbiter unleashed a massive burst of fire from her twin blades, shattering the other avatar.
The observer then manipulated energy with the Star Chart Scepter, precisely attacking the nodes. His attack, like a blue lightning bolt, struck its target directly, causing the node's light to dim rapidly.
With all the nodes destroyed, the barrier surrounding the crystal finally vanished. Lysa seized the opportunity, raising her spear and channeling all her energy into it. Her figure transformed into a golden meteor, hurtling towards the massive crystal. The crystal shattered under her attack, unleashing a deafening explosion before dissipating into countless fragments.
However, just when they thought they had won, a deep roar came from the depths of the rift, a sound that seemed to come from the abyss of nothingness, filled with endless anger and destruction.
The observer's expression grew even more grim: "It's warning us... we've touched its true nature."
Lysa wiped the sweat from his brow and sneered, "That's perfect, I can't wait."