Episode 1072
Chapter 253: Gathering at Laprarosa Once More (3)
Jin and his group stepped into the Hall of the War Gods.
Ban was seated cross-legged right in the center of the hall, eyes closed in meditation. Of course, she had sensed their arrival the moment the warship Sarah appeared over Laprarosa’s skies.
“So, you brought Bligiet, Brother Jin.”
“Yes. I thought she might help us find Beltian. Any progress?”
“None at all. This Hall of the War Gods is where I’ve spent more time than anywhere else in my life. Yet, I’ve never once felt the presence of the Sun God’s essence here. Seems that bastard is as skilled at hiding as Yona.”
Ban opened her eyes and glanced at Bligiet, who looked visibly uncomfortable under her gaze.
[Hmph. I came to help, so don’t stare like that…]
“Then find him quickly. That Beltian is really getting on my nerves.”
Ban’s anger was understandable. A monster like that had been lurking in their home, and they hadn’t even noticed.
[Don’t be so frustrated that you couldn’t find him, Ban. Even for a Changsung, seeking out one of us who has ‘paused existence’ is impossible.]
“Paused existence?”
[Yes. To put it simply for you, it’s like an animal’s hibernation. Creating a pocket dimension to rest in, waiting for the right time, or to forget the pain.]
To forget the pain.
Just as Bligiet couldn’t endure the ‘yearning of the origin,’ every Sun God’s essence carried its own realm of suffering.
[In Beltian’s case, he was probably agonizing over the world’s delayed destruction. Malugia has been silent for far too long. Anyway, it’s about to begin. Prepare for battle. Once Beltian awakens, the fight will start immediately.]
“How long will it take?”
[Five minutes, tops.]
Jin immediately issued orders through the comms to the entire fleet. The golden ships moved in perfect formation, encircling the skies above.
It looked like they were about to attack Laprarosa—and in a way, they were right. Fighting a being like the Sun God’s essence would inevitably turn this place into a battlefield once more.
For the Pluto tribe, it was a bitter moment. They had finally emerged from the outside world and were rebuilding the city, only to face destruction again.
“I feel sorry for Luce. He was decorating our hometown so beautifully.”
On the surface, Bligiet did nothing special—just standing quietly.
But the Changsung sensed an invisible energy radiating from him, like dragons calling to one another in a language humans couldn’t hear.
Crackling sounds filled the hall.
Suddenly, the Hall of the War Gods began to tremble.
It wasn’t just the ground or the building shaking. Those standing near Bligiet soon found the surrounding space ripple strangely, and their vision tinted yellow as solar energy poured down everywhere they looked.
Beltian was awakening.
“Faster than expected. Let’s see what kind of face this bastard has.”
Though the essence of destruction was stirring, no one showed fear. They all sensed that soon, Beltian would share Bligiet’s fate.
Even Bligiet himself had that premonition.
“Unless it’s Malugia, Beltian… especially one who just paused his existence, won’t be able to handle the mortals here.”
Like an animal vulnerable just after waking from hibernation, Beltian was not yet at full strength.
“Both he and I are in a bad spot.”
The tremors subsided. Instead, the solar energy bathing Laprarosa grew even brighter, and a voice echoed through the hall.
[Bli…giet… You… woke me…]
[Beltian.]
[Something’s wrong… huh? Why are you still restrained?]
[I, like you, woke in a weakened state and couldn’t face these mortals. Try to hold them off.]
[You idiot!]
Boom!
Without warning, a massive explosion rocked the hall—like Keliak’s spatial blast, with no warning.
But the Changsung immediately raised shields and, with incredible strength, even protected Bligiet, who was still bound.
“You handled that well without tricks. No need for a chat.”
[Thank you…]
“Lucy, return to the ship with Bligiet. Close combat is best left to Ban, me, and the kid.”
“Murakan’s right. Brothers, form ranks on the fleet.”
Crash! Crackle!
The pillars supporting the hall’s ceiling began to collapse. Watching it from the ships, the Pluto tribe felt their hearts crumble along with the ruins.
Veins bulged on Ban’s forehead.
“Don’t think you’ll get away with wrecking the hall like this, Beltian…”
Creak!
The ceiling cracked open. As iron and stone fell, Beltian’s true form hidden above was revealed.
A massive eyeball, covered in thousands of grotesque arms.
Each arm gripped a spear. Beltian looked down through the broken ceiling as if peering into a cave.
[What a nasty-looking thing.]
[Strange. Did you make Bligiet like that? But you couldn’t have attacked him, right? And I also, hmm!]
Ban leapt forward, stabbing straight into the center of Beltian’s eye. Though a shield sprang up like with Bligiet, Ban was no stranger to fighting the Sun God’s essence now.
She had prepared for the shield from the start, and her blade, charged with lightning energy, tore through the layered defenses and plunged deep into the eye.
Thrust. Slash!
[Arghhh!]
Jin and Murakan jumped up almost simultaneously. Jin unleashed Eternal Flower to bind Beltian’s arms, while Murakan used Black Chain to block the eye’s retreat.
As the three ascended above the hall, they realized Beltian’s body wasn’t just the giant eye—it was spread throughout Laprarosa.
The shimmering solar energy covering the entire city was all part of Beltian’s true form.
Those watching from the fleet had known this from the start. The entire fleet was already locked on, waiting only for Ban’s signal.
“Open fire. We can rebuild the land and the buildings. Ending this bastard even a minute sooner benefits the world.”
Just like the day they stormed the Tower of Stories, the golden fleet’s bombardment and Ban’s sword strikes resonated in unison.
The flames of the sky, linked with the ship Sarah, rained down in an instant. With Murakan’s Dark Arrival added, Beltian’s golden aura was swallowed by darkness.
The essence of destruction, Beltian.
He was panicked the moment he awoke.
‘Bligiet, who woke me, is bound by power, and these mortals…’
Solar energy dripped like thick blood from the torn eye. Ban had only stabbed the eye, but Beltian’s vast body poured out solar energy everywhere.
‘This is dangerous.’
Beltian faced a crisis unlike any before. And the Balmur Alliance had no intention of showing mercy.
[You shall be erased with this world!]
Beltian roared, detonating solar energy.
But it was no threat. Even at full power, Beltian wouldn’t have stood a chance now.
[Seems you don’t understand the situation. Too bad, there’s no escape for you. But you have two choices: be annihilated, or become the power source for our fleet.]
[A lizard like you dares speak such words?]
[Ah, but you don’t get to choose. We’ve already decided on the latter.]
Leading the Dark Arrival, Murakan’s claw slashed across Beltian’s eye. Even before the strike, the eye was far from whole.
Jin and Ban darted around the eye, their blades cutting relentlessly. Their speed outpaced Beltian’s regeneration, carving fresh wounds faster than he could heal.
To the Changsung and the alliance watching from the fleet, this was no battle.
It was overwhelmingly one-sided. The thousands of arms attached to the eye were severed before they could even throw their spears. The massive body that once covered the sky was now obscured by Pluto’s sword, the bombardment, the flames, and Murakan’s darkness—barely visible to the naked eye.
Only the giant eye still shone, relentlessly torn apart by two blades and Murakan’s claws.
They dominated from the start and had seized complete control.
Yet the alliance remained cautious. To guard against any last-ditch self-destruction or explosion, they didn’t tighten the encirclement prematurely. They maintained dense shields and prepared for short-range spatial jumps at a moment’s notice.
In other words, there were no surprises left. Beltian alone couldn’t turn the tide.
“…They’re handling this much more smoothly than they did with Bligiet. The only thing Beltian has to look forward to now are enemies who might throw a wrench in the works.”
Ameris spoke from the bridge of the ship Sarah, watching the battle unfold beyond.
Ziphl and Ganesto—they’ll definitely realize Beltian has awakened and come looking.
But the Tower of Stories had just suffered a crushing defeat against the Alliance a few days ago and was now focused solely on retreat. Meanwhile, Ganesto’s leader had recklessly overused his powers.
“From where I stand, Beltian would do better to drop his hopes and face reality. Don’t you agree, Bligiet?”
Bligiet could only nod, utterly deflated.