Chapter 120 — The Sky Ridge of Zephyrus.
Chapter 120 — The Sky Ridge of Zephyrus.
The stifling, white-hot solar heat, bubbling magma rivers, and exploding volcanic ridges of Floor 23 dissolved into shimmering crimson embers as the spatial rift behind Surtr’s erased furnace collapsed into complete non-existence.
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[WORLD SYSTEM ANNOUNCEMENT!]
FACTION ’SOVEREIGN’ HAS ASCENDED TO FLOOR 24!
ZONE ENTERED: The Celestial Stratosphere of Zephyrus — The Aether Ridge
HAZARD RATING: TIER-SS+ (Low-Oxygen Vacuum & Hurricane Shear Curse)
SPECIAL RULE: Sky Shear — Non-Sovereign Entities Suffer 12% Movement Speed & Physical Balance Loss Every 30 Seconds!
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When Kaelen stepped out of the spatial gateway, the environment shifted into a dizzying, breathtaking realm suspended fifty thousand meters above a sea of endless white clouds.
They stood upon a colossal floating causeway crafted from translucent white sky-marble and polished silver metal, stretching across suspended islands that drifted through a pale azure atmosphere.
Towering spires carved from solid compressed wind-crystals jutted into a crystal-clear sky, glowing with brilliant cyan light. Gale-force hurricanes and supersonic wind-blades swept between the floating islands, capable of slicing dragon-scale shields into ribbons and pulling unanchored warriors into the endless abyss below.
The air pressure was razor-thin, cold, and saturated with volatile wind mana.
"From boiling in a volcanic furnace straight into a hurricane in the sky," Ignis grunted with a wide, feral grin, resting his heavy claymore on his shoulder. His fiery hair billowed wildly in the gale as black dragon flames flared along the dark steel blade, creating a warm, heavy thermal aura around his boots that anchored him firmly to the marble tiles. "I have to admit, the breeze is nice, but these wind gusts are just itching to get scorched!"
"The atmospheric density and pressure levels here are extraordinarily low," Ren reported calmly through the squad’s comms link, her suit’s thrusters humming quietly while her gauntlet projected cyan holographic wind-vector diagrams. "My tactical sensors indicate Floor 24 is an ancient sky realm governed by aeromancers, storm archons, and high-tier wind elemental lords."
She recalibrated her scanning arrays, evaluating the environmental conditions. "Standard earth and water magic suffer an 80% range and impact penalty due to the lack of solid ground and high wind speeds. However, High-Tier Fire, Lightning, Divine Light, and Spatial Void attributes maintain 100% operational efficiency."
"A realm built upon the open winds,"
Tsubaki whispered, emerging effortlessly from the faint shadow cast by a floating marble pillar. His crimson eyes scanned the roaring cyan sky. "My shadow scouts report that Floor 24 is under the absolute rule of The Wind Monarch Zephyrus, who commands the realm from the central Sky Sanctum."
Lyra stood beside Kaelen, her soft, slender hand comfortably wrapped in his dark-gloved grip.
The completed Key of the Holy Grail within Kaelen’s chest core emitted a soft, pristine golden aura, expanding a thirty-meter golden domain around their entire squad. The domain completely repelled the supersonic hurricane gusts, provided a steady oxygen supply, and rendered the [Sky Shear] curse entirely useless.
"The highest skies hold no height above your majesty, Kaelen," Lyra whispered softly, her bright blue eyes shining with quiet, absolute devotion as she leaned gently against his arm. "The howling winds of this realm will fall quiet before your presence."
"Wind is merely air rushing into space, my light," Kaelen purred smoothly, his low velvet voice breaking effortlessly through the roaring supersonic gales.
He gently caressed her hand, his dark violet eyes gleaming with cold, golden-ringed authority. "Zephyrus can pretend to rule the skies... until he learns the Void erases air, storm, and sky alike."
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[SYSTEM NOTIFICATION!]
THE KEY OF THE HOLY GRAIL IS ACTIVATED!
EFFECT: Sovereign Aero Shield Active! All Squad Members Gain 100% Immunity to Low-Oxygen Vacuum & Hurricane Shear!
RESONANCE: Floor 24 Waystone Location Identified!
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Suddenly, the swirling cyan clouds surrounding the floating marble causeway churned violently!
ROAAAAAAAR!
The sky causeway shuddered as thousands of armored bird-warriors clad in silver wind-plate armor, wielding light-speed rapiers dripping with cyan gale energy and riding giant golden storm-griffins, erupted directly from the cloud banks below!
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[AMBUSH INITIATED!]
HOSTILE ENTITIES: 2,800x Aether Gale Vanguard (Level 187 Elite)
COMMANDER: General Wind-Breaker — The Hurricane Lord (Level 188 Tier-EX)
OBJECTIVE: Shred the Intruders into Wind-Dust!
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"GROUND-DWELLING MORTALS!" General Wind-Breaker roared from the front of the storm-griffin formation. He stood thirty-six feet tall, forged from silver sky-steel and compressed cyan wind, holding a colossal lance surging with vacuum-cutting shockwaves. "YOU DARE SET FOOT UPON THE SACRED STRATOSPHERE OF HIS MAJESTY ZEPHYRUS?! BE SHREDDED BY THE CELESTIAL GALES AND CAST INTO THE ABYSS!"
Two thousand eight hundred Aether Gale Vanguard warriors raised their gale rapiers in unison, unleashing a colossal wave of razor-sharp wind blades and supersonic tornados surging directly toward Kaelen’s position!
BOOOOOOM!
"Let me burn these bird-riders right out of the sky!" Ignis roared with a wild laugh, leaping fifty feet into the open air as his claymore flared into a colossal pillar of superheated black dragon fire!
"Dragon Fire Art: Sky-Burning Inferno!"
Ignis swung his blade in a massive sweeping arc! A three-hundred-fifty-meter wave of black dragon fire swept across the open stratosphere, flash-overpowering one thousand four hundred Aether Gale Vanguard warriors and their storm-griffins instantly, turning their silver armor into molten drops mid-air!
"Shadow Style: Gale-Severing Flash!" Tsubaki flickered between the floating marble pillars like an aerial phantom, his dark katana leaving behind black spatial cuts that severed the wind cores of nine hundred sky warriors before they could even complete a thrust!
"System Hack: Aero Disruptor Pulse!" Ren deployed twenty high-frequency acoustic pylons into the sky-marble causeway. The resulting shockwaves destabilized the flight stabilization matrix of the remaining five hundred warriors, causing their wings to collapse and sending them plummeting into the cloud abyss!
General Wind-Breaker watched his army eradicated in under two minutes, his glowing cyan optics flaring with absolute rage and shock.
"IMPOSSIBLE! GROUND CREATURES CANNOT MATCH THE SPEED OF THE STRATOSPHERE!" Wind-Breaker shouted, raising his giant hurricane lance and diving from his griffin like a cyan meteor, aiming straight for Kaelen’s head!
"Aero Secret Art: Grand Stratosphere Shatter!"
Kaelen didn’t even shift his footing.
He took one calm step forward, his dark coat billowing gracefully in the intense wind drafts generated by the falling general.
His slender dark-gloved fingers wrapped around the hilt of the Void Blade.
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[PASSIVE EFFECT: Void Sovereign’s Eye]
TARGET WEAKNESS DETECTED: Wind Core at Upper Chest Node!
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Kaelen purred softly, a cold, dark smile touching his lips as he drew his dark blade by half an inch.
SHING!
A razor-thin line of pitch-black spatial deletion flared through the pale azure air.
"Void Art: Spatial Deletion — Stratosphere Sever!"
SKRRRRRRRAASH!
The half-inch draw of dark steel made no sound through the roaring winds, but the spatial line expanded eight hundred meters across the floating marble causeway!
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[CRITICAL HIT!]
TARGET: General Wind-Breaker & 500x Aether Gale Vanguard
DAMAGE DEALT: 290,000,000 (Pure Spatial Eradication)
DEFENSE NEGATED: 100%!
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[FORCE OBLITERATED!]
CASUALTIES: General Wind-Breaker & Aether Gale Vanguard (Eradicated!)
EXP RECEIVED: 58,000,000 Points!
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"AAAAAAARGH!" General Wind-Breaker let out an agonizing metallic shriek as his thirty-six-foot wind-steel body, his lance, and his remaining troops were sliced horizontally in half mid-air!
The pitch-black spatial cut erased their aerial forms and gale cores instantly into glowing cyan experience particles!
Kaelen smoothly clicked the Void Blade back into its sheath.
CLICK!
The roaring hurricane pressure that had filled the ridge vanished instantly, replaced once again by the quiet, golden warmth of the squad’s domain.
"Flawless execution, My Lord," Tsubaki said, landing softly behind Kaelen with a deep bow.
"These sky-riders thought altitude and speed could protect them," Ignis chuckled, resting his heavy claymore on his shoulder while black dragon fire continued to hum along the steel. "They forgot our Sovereign commands space itself."
Ren checked her holographic displays, scanning the colossal floating temple carved from white sky-marble standing at the highest peak of the realm—The Sky Sanctum.
"My Lord, the elimination of General Wind-Breaker has alerted the wind monarch," Ren reported. "The Wind Monarch Zephyrus is powering up his central gale core inside the Sky Sanctum."
"Let him power up every breeze he possesses," Kaelen purred smoothly, turning back to Lyra and taking her soft hand into his once more. Her bright blue eyes shone with warmth as she held his hand tight. "It simply ensures his eventual erasure will be absolute."
Lyra smiled sweetly, leaning close against his side as they began walking across the floating marble bridge leading toward the Sky Sanctum. "Lead the way, Kaelen. The stratosphere bows to you."
Kaelen purred softly, his dark violet eyes gleaming with absolute, god-like authority as he led the Sovereign Faction deeper into the skies of Floor 24.