The Evolution of a Goblin to the Peak

"Oh, damn! They're too fast! I can't even follow their movements!" Eztein exclaimed. His eyes darted wildly across the sky, desperately trying to keep track of the four figures. Every time he thought he had caught one of them, another explosion erupted somewhere else.

His expression gradually turned grim.

"Just what kind of monsters are they...?"

"They're on a completely different level..." Vashno muttered.

His fists clenched so tightly that his knuckles cracked. He could barely perceive their movements, let alone comprehend the power behind every collision.

Yet instead of fear, determination burned in his eyes.

Someday, he would reach that level too.

"Just what is the Gluttony Army planning this time?" Doranjan muttered, his eyes narrowing as he stared at the chaotic battlefield above.

Even he could feel the terrifying pressure radiating from the sky. Each collision made his instincts scream at him to retreat.

This wasn't a battle he could interfere with.

"Alex..." Yaniesvyl muttered.

Her eyes remained fixed on one of the four lights. Concern was clearly visible in her expression, and her hands unconsciously tightened.

She knew how powerful Alexander was.

But the other three were clearly no ordinary beings.

On the other side, Poisonous Vine, Teng Guan, and Green King's subordinates were also staring at the enormous structure of lights in the sky.

Their expressions were far less composed.

"Ice Death and Green King are taking this seriously...!" Teng Guan muttered in shock.

His eyes widened as another violent explosion shook the sky.

He hadn't expected those two to fight this seriously during the mission. Ice Death and Green King were supposed to be nothing more than insurance—powerful enough to force Erkigal to reveal what she knew before killing her.

But now, they were fighting two terrifying opponents at full strength.

"Is this really worth it?" Poisonous Vine muttered, her expression darkening. "This mission... If they succeed in the central region, then all of our efforts here will be wasted."

Her gaze remained fixed on the battlefield.

In her eyes, this was only a contingency plan. The main force in the central region was far stronger than the force dispatched here to track Erkigal.

There were three people there who were comparable to Green King and Ice Death.

If the central region succeeded, then everything happening here would become meaningless.

Poisonous Vine's eyes flickered.

"And yet we're risking Ice Death and Green King here..."

Even she found it difficult to understand.

On the other side of the city, Black Blader had also stopped fighting for a moment.

His eyes were locked onto the distant sky.

The enormous elemental structure reflected in his pupils, and for the first time, his expression became solemn.

"Ice Death and Green King..."

He could clearly feel the terrifying fluctuations from the battlefield.

His brows furrowed.

This development had completely exceeded his expectations.

He had never imagined that the mission to capture Erkigal would escalate to this level.

"What the hell is going on?"

His eyes narrowed.

For a moment, an absurd thought crossed his mind.

Could experts from the Holy Lands have arrived?

The thought made his expression turn even more serious.

It was quite ridiculous.

But after sensing the power erupting from that battlefield, he couldn't completely dismiss the possibility.

...

Outside the city, Eilan and the others looked up at the sky in shock.

The vast, complex structure of elemental lights clashed at an incredibly high speed, creating a magnificent spectacle.

It was beautiful.

But the terror it brought was something they definitely didn't want to face.

Even though the combatants were fighting high above them, the immense pressure they released made it difficult to breathe.

It was suffocating.

"Sister!!"

Eilan turned his eyes toward Yunze City.

He didn't know what was happening there right now. The only thing he knew was that after Erkigal woke up, she said that she was going to take Isabella back.

Aside from that, he knew nothing.

And there was nothing he could do.

Approaching the city would basically be suicide for him. The chances of him dying from the aftershocks of the battle were as high as eighty percent.

He wanted to help them.

He desperately wanted to rush into the city and fight alongside them.

But he knew that he was too weak.

His teeth clenched as frustration welled up in his chest. His hands trembled helplessly at his sides.

'Not enough strength again!'

'In the end, everything comes down to strength!'

His eyes trembled as an old memory surfaced in his mind.

Just like back then...

When Eilish died.

He had been powerless.

He couldn't protect her.

And now, once again, he could only stand outside and watch while the people he cared about faced danger.

His chest tightened.

He hated this feeling.

He hated being unable to do anything.

He hated his own weakness.

He hated that he was once again too weak to protect the people important to him.

...

In the sky above Yunze City, four figures exchanged blows fiercely.

Bang!

The aftershocks from their attacks blew the clouds away, filling the sky with violent elemental fluctuations. Lightning, flames, ice, and countless other forces flashed across the battlefield, appearing and disappearing in less than a second.

Each of them had found their own opponent.

Alexander stood in front of Ice Death while Gerxuzs faced Green King.

"Just who are you?" Ice Death asked, briefly glancing at Gerxuzs. "I've at least heard of that creature before. But you... Who are you? I'm sure there's no one among the prodigies of the Holy Lands who possesses seven elements."

The Gluttony Army had compiled information on the most powerful prodigies from the Holy Lands and the large countries. From what Ice Death remembered, none of them possessed seven elements.

Five was already considered the limit among those prodigies.

Even Ice Death himself only possessed one element.

It was commonly known that mastering multiple elements was extremely difficult. Possessing too many could even become detrimental to one's cultivation, as their elemental stages would often lag behind due to having to divide their time between different powers.

But this man was different.

Alexander hovered calmly in the air, his overwhelming aura spreading across the battlefield.

Seven different elemental forces revolved around him, perfectly controlled and showing no signs of conflict.

He had mastered all seven to the Fourth Stage.

Ice Death's eyes narrowed.

"Since you're the one with seven elements..."

A faint smile appeared on his face.

"I'm just going to call you Seven."

He raised his hand, and the temperature around him plummeted.

"Well then, shall we start?"

He walked forward until he was only a meter away from Alexander.

Their energies collided, sending sparks flying between them. The air vibrated violently under the pressure of their auras.

The vibration suddenly stopped.

The two of them disappeared from their positions.

BOOM!!

They reappeared a kilometer away, their fists colliding head-on.

"Show me your true power!!"

Ice Death shouted with a huge grin on his face.

He poured more force into his fist.

BOOM!!

The impact erupted like a thunderclap, blasting Alexander several kilometers away.

"It's been a while since I've fought someone who could match me in battle!"

His voice reverberated across the sky.

The next moment, countless ice shards materialized out of thin air.

Their numbers were staggering.

One hundred thousand.

Five hundred thousand.

A million.

The ice shards continued to multiply until they covered a massive portion of the sky, each one carrying enough power to threaten even a powerful Ninth Shackle Realm expert.

Ice Death's grin widened.

[Rain of Ice]!!

He waved his hand.

The entire sky seemed to collapse.

Over a million ice shards shot toward Alexander at once, turning into a terrifying torrent that tore through the air.

Whooosh!!

Alexander raised his head, staring at the countless shards raining down toward him.

"A Forbidden Spell...?"

He clenched his hand and opened his palm. A magic circle appeared, glowing brightly as the space around him folded inward, creating several layers of spatial barriers.

Swooosh!!

The ice shards reached the space around Alexander.

The ice shards glowed brightly before it exploded.

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!!

More than a million explosions erupted within a single second. The spatial structure shattered under the relentless bombardment as violent waves of energy flashed nonstop.

The entire sky and ground trembled.

The explosions engulfed several kilometers of space. The sheer concentration of destructive force made it seem as though nothing could possibly survive within the storm.

Yet in the middle of the devastation, Alexander remained calm.

He continuously grabbed the space around him and folded it into multiple layers, only for hundreds of explosions to shatter those layers moments later.

Again.

And again.

'He's strong... I haven't met someone like him in a long time.'

Alexander's eyes narrowed slightly.

'Hmm?'

Suddenly, he turned his head.

The fabric of space had become noticeably harder to manipulate.

He looked toward the surrounding area, and his expression changed.

The smoke was frozen in place.

The dust was frozen.

Even the air itself had stopped moving.

The entire space around him had begun to freeze.