At a depth of 100 miles, Ery and Klea found the Supre Magus, Lord Quatukan—the Sea Sovereign—waiting for them. His imposing figure radiated authority, but what drew Ery's attention was the formidable force that accompanied him.
Three dozen rn and rmaids, all clad in gleaming combat armor and ard with spears, ford a disciplined formation around him. Their expressions were focused, their bodies poised for battle.
As the Supre Magus smiled, Ery quickly grasped the situation. The past 10 days had been the lesson, and this was the test.
Without a word, the aquatic warriors began to close in, their numbers forming a tightening circle around Ery and Klea. Ery instinctively prepared himself, ready to fight, but before he could act, Klea stepped forward, her voice calm yet confident.
Her words carried a weight of assurance, and Ery chose to trust her. He stood still, watching as Klea commanded the water around them with ease. The surrounding liquid, once still and unthreatening, began to stir at her will.
Several rn darted forward, their spears cutting through the water aid directly at Klea, and in an instant, she turned the water into powerful waves that surged outward, eting the incoming spear attacks head-on. The force of her manipulation created a barrier, pushing back the onslaught with masterful control.
More rn joined the fray, surrounding Klea from all sides. Torrents of water spewed from their spears, spiraling through the depths like underwater storms. But Klea was ready. With a focused gesture, she transford the water surrounding her into ice, slowing the attacks as they reached her. Ery watched in awe as Klea moved with fluid grace, countering each strike with elegant, calculated defense. Ice ford at her fingertips, spreading outward like crystalline vines, freezing the water torrents mid-flight and neutralizing the attacks of their aquatic adversaries. As the battle intensified, more rn joined the fray, transforming the skirmish into a full-scale assault. Thirty-two magus-level warriors, each moving with distinct precision and speed, rged their attacks in perfect synchrony.
The water around them erupted into chaos, forming a massive vortex of power, swirling with devastating force. Ery quickly realized the strategy behind their attacks. The formation mirrored the secrets of the Infinity Seamount, harnessing the sa principles of endless movent and synergy he had encountered within the currents. It was more than just a brute-force onslaught—it was a relentless, seamless cycle designed to overwhelm its target through continuous pressure.
Ery watched as Klea fought against this tidal wave of aggression. Despite her earlier display of mastery, even she now appeared to struggle. These were not ordinary rn but seasoned, magus-level hybrid warriors, their aquatic abilities honed to perfection. Their attacks were unrelenting, and the pressure mounted with each passing second. Still, Ery chose to stand by. Even if Klea faltered, he believed that the struggle would lead her to a deeper insight.
For ten long minutes, Klea held her ground, wave after wave of attacks slamd into her defenses, and for a while, she seed to be holding her own, but the unyielding nature of the attack began to take its toll. Her movents beca strained, and her ice shields started to falter under the barrage. Seeing her on the verge of being overwheld, Ery knew it was ti to act.
With a sharp burst of energy, he leaped into the fray and engaged the rn alongside her. The two of them moved in perfect unison, and covered each other's weaknesses, fending off the magus-level warriors from all angles.
As the battle raged, Klea's sharp mind continued to analyze the situation, and soon enough, she spotted the flaw in their opponents' otherwise perfect formation.
She pointed out the precise spot where the flow of the vortex was weakest and Ery seized the mont. He delivered a powerful, decisive strike right at the weak point. His attack sliced through the water, disrupting the flow and causing the entire formation to unravel. The synchronized attacks faltered, and within monts, the vortex dissipated, leaving the rn disoriented and scattered.
The battle was over.
As soon as the formation broke, the rn swiftly retreated, swimming back to their positions behind the Supre Magus. Lord Quatukan, the Sea Sovereign, watched them with a calm, discerning gaze. A small smile tugged at the corners of his lips as he addressed them.
Ery remained on high alert, knowing that this wasn't the end of the test. His instincts sharpened, and just as he anticipated sothing more, he felt an imnse presence looming from the abyss below. A dark shadow grew beneath the water, rising steadily toward them.
"What is it?" Ery muttered.
From the dark, a monstrous form surfaced.
The creature was enormous, easily dwarfing the rn who had just attacked. Its crystalline blue shell shimred with an ethereal glow, reflecting the light of the deep sea. Two massive pincers, sharp and jagged, snapped threateningly, radiating raw power that made the water around it tremble. Each movent of the beast sent ripples through the surrounding currents as if the ocean itself bent to its will.
VIA quickly analyzed the creature, feeding Ery crucial information.
[Celestice King Mudler]
It was a Godly-level beast, on par with Grand Magus figures—a foe not to be taken lightly. The sheer size and power of the beast exuded a dangerous aura that imdiately signaled the imnse challenge ahead.
Klea sensed the magnitude of the threat instantly. She knew this battle wasn't hers to fight. Without a word, she gracefully stepped back, giving Ery the space to confront the beast alone.
Without hesitation, Ery unleashed both of his [Twilight] forms and Khaos' power. His body surged with newfound strength, but even that felt barely enough.
As the massive crab charged, its hulking body barreling through the water like an unstoppable juggernaut, Ery t it head-on. The first clash was like being hit by a tidal wave.
BAMMM!!!
His arms vibrated from the impact as he tried to hold back the creature's massive pincers. The force was overwhelming, each strike pushing him further back despite his enhanced strength.
Realizing he couldn't win in a direct contest of power, Ery swiftly shifted tactics. He activated his wings and darted into the water with astonishing speed. With his newly learned movents, he darted through the water, around the colossal form, aiming for its vulnerable joints. His strikes were precise, each one landing with bursts of energy as he tried to find a weakness.
But then, the creature revealed its killer moves. Ery's eyes widened in surprise as he saw the Celestice King Mudler's eight crystalline legs stomp onto the water's surface as though it were solid ground. With each stomp, ripples expanded outwards, but they were no ordinary ripples. Ery imdiately felt the space around him begin to warp, the very water trembling under an unseen force. Before he could react, his body locked up.
"What technique is this?!" Ery's voice was strained as he struggled against the invisible bindings. It was as though the beast had manipulated the space around them, turning the water into chains that held him in place.
He roared, activating [Immortal Gate] to its ninth stage. His muscles bulged, veins popping under the strain as he forced his way free, shattering the bindings just in ti to see the beast's gigantic pincer swinging toward him. Ery barely had ti to react before it slamd into him with the force of a mountain.
BAMMM!!
The impact sent him hurtling backward. Before he could recover, the colossal creature was already upon him again. Its glowing shell lood overhead, and the eight legs stomped once more. The sa binding seized Ery, freezing him in place as the massive pincer ca crashing down again.
This ti, Ery desperately tried to use his spatial magic to escape. He cast [Spatial Bending], warping the space around him in an attempt to slip free, but the beast's power was too great. BAMMM!!!
The pincer slamd into him with devastating force. His bones creaked under the pressure, and a sharp pain exploded through his ribs as he was thrown back again. But the creature was relentless. The third ti it attacked, then the fourth, and the fifth, each ti binding him with the sa unbreakable spatial distortions. Ery did not give up; instead, he grew excited. Each attack brought him closer to an understanding. The sa spatial distortion he had sensed earlier in the Infinity Seamount was at play here. Every binding, every ripple in the water, was part of a larger pattern. Ery could feel it like a puzzle slowly clicking into place.
The sixth attack ca, then the seventh. By now, his body was battered, and his strength was waning. But in the depths of his mind, the breakthrough was almost there. He could sense the flow of energy, the precise mont when the bindings took hold.
When the eighth attack ca, Ery was ready. As the beast's massive legs stomped down, creating the familiar ripples that bound the space around him, he didn't resist the binding like before. Instead, he moved with it, flowing along the rhythm of the spatial distortion. He could feel the energy shift at just the right mont, and with a sudden twist of his body, he slipped through the invisible chains, darting out of the way of the incoming pincer.
For the first ti in the battle, he had successfully evaded the attack.
The beast halted, its glowing eyes fixated on him. Ery stood panting, his body battered, bruised, and barely holding together, but his heart swelled with triumph. From a distance, Lord Quatukan, the Sea Sovereign, raised his hand in acknowledgnt.
"Good... Very good... Let us head back and talk."
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