Chapter 581 - 535: The Fall of the Sovereign
"My vanquished foe?"
"Brat! I wasn’t using my full power last time. Today is the day your fate is sealed!"
Speaking of which, fate is indeed unfair at times.
But at this moment, it was still somewhat balanced.
At least for now, both Shi Ming and Ron were in a state of subtle, adrenaline-fueled ecstasy! The two were like cheetahs starved for days that had finally found their prey!
They didn’t waste time with pointless words.
They were already mortal enemies; nothing more needed to be said.
In a single instant, Ron played his trump card.
The twelve treasures behind him activated simultaneously, tracing the vast, interconnected River of Destiny behind his six-armed body. These twelve artifacts were originally a single set. Shi Ming had taken two of them before—the most important ones, the Ten Thousand Flowers Jade and the Shears of Destiny. Later, Ron paid a great price to find replacements, barely managing to restore eighty percent of its former power.
River’s End!
And a hidden trap: Insatiable Karma.
By unleashing his ultimate move from the outset, his goal was to catch Shi Ming off guard. This Pillar Stone-level expert had learned from his previous defeat. He hid a karmic trap within River’s End. If Shi Ming dared to repeat his old tactic of absorbing and reflecting the attack, he would be instantly tainted by the negative karma of Insatiable Karma, never to be rid of it.
He had learned his lesson.
Ron had long since prepared countermeasures for the abilities Shi Ming had revealed before.
The twelve treasures of destiny linked into a line, then tangled together into the shape of the Wheel of Destiny, emitting a dazzling light. The black karmic stain was hidden on its reverse side, like a venomous snake with its tongue flickering, waiting to land a fatal strike.
Shi Ming just stood there,
Seemingly admiring the unique scenery within the Eternal Well.
’Arrogant.’
Ron roared in his heart, furious at Shi Ming’s carelessness, yet also secretly relieved. But in the next moment, he saw an eight-petaled lotus reappear in Shi Ming’s hand. It was the very same "Zero" that had erased 1024 seconds of Ron’s life last time!
Of course, Ron was on guard.
His six-armed body quickly split, with six independent Rons scattering in different directions. From their last clash, he already knew that while this skill was domineering, it could only lock onto a single target at a time.
Unfortunately, the "Zero" he had seen last time was merely one-eighth of its full power.
This time, "Zero" did not erase life.
It erased "destiny"!
The eight-petaled lotus swiftly withered, signifying the completion from eight to zero. The halo of light from River’s End was already closing in, but the moment it touched "Zero," the quicksilver halo dimmed, losing all its color. It faded from silver to gray, and the twelve treasures within it simultaneously lost their luster and ceased to function, becoming like scrap metal!
Under Zero, all destiny was erased!
The twelve levitating treasures plummeted.
Ron’s master stroke was neutralized before it could even take form. Though he was enraged, he was also a battle-hardened veteran. He reacted in an instant, a suction force surging from his sleeve. Relying on his connection to the twelve treasures, he immediately retrieved them!
Last time, Shi Ming had used this very trick to take two of his most precious treasures.
This time, Ron’s reaction was lightning-fast.
"Quick to snatch those up, aren’t you!"
"Did you think I was after your little treasures?"
The [Heir of the Gods] title above Shi Ming’s head rapidly switched, changing to [Hero in the Stone].
A seemingly ordinary Rock Greatsword materialized in Shi Ming’s grasp. The two-meter-tall Shi Ming looked almost comical holding the greatsword, but a formidable Spiritual Power erupted from within it. In an instant, the Stone Sword bared its fangs, revealing terrifying energy and power!
Sword in the Stone!
Activating the Sword in the Stone this time consumed fifty percent of his Spiritual Power!
If the power of destiny had not been erased, Ron would surely have felt a frantic warning from the River of Destiny!
His instincts also made his heart pound violently; every cell in his body screamed at him to flee!
But unfortunately,
Because he had wasted time retrieving his treasures, it was too late by the time Ron was truly alerted to the danger.
Power sufficient to slay a demigod erupted within the narrow well shaft.
It wasn’t just destiny; the very essence of existence was shredded by the rampant Spiritual Power. The Eternal Well itself had been forged by a god and had endured 120,000 years of the Silent Corrosion, yet it remained. But now, a power capable of annihilating even a "trapped demigod" was crammed into this well shaft, overwhelming the divine creation!
BOOM!
The interior of the well shaft began to melt.
Then, cracks began to appear. The spiral passage abruptly burst apart, shattering in an instant like a bombed-out suspension bridge. With a deafening roar, it exploded outward with Ron at the epicenter. The irrepressible energy then gushed out of the well like a fountain.
Ugh...
Just a single move.
Ron’s body was mercilessly torn apart.
He could never have imagined that Shi Ming’s power would have soared to such heights in just a few months. He was utterly unable to withstand the power of a single sword strike. His body was shredded to pieces by minuscule blades of Spiritual Power. His consciousness, anchored to destiny, did not dissipate instantly, but its eventual dispersal was now inevitable.
All of his trump cards were now useless.
’Even if I could use them, how could I possibly defend against a deathblow like that?’
’Am I going to die?’
Ron watched helplessly as the essences of "Predestination" and "Hollow Shell" separated from his body, drifting away as if in a dream.
Yes.
’I’m going to die.’
It wasn’t just him. The Eternal Well, one of the Ten Great Wonders, had been destroyed by a single sword strike. Along with it, the crystalline blue supergiant star had been carved open, leaving an exaggerated abyss. What was even more terrifying was that this supernova, once frozen by a god’s spatio-temporal field, had been ignited in the area where the Sword in the Stone had landed. White-hot flames spread rapidly, like a lit fuse.
This was the prelude to its explosion!
After more than a hundred thousand years, the suppressed destiny of this supernova—to explode—had been reignited!
At this point, Ron could no longer think about anything else. There was only one question left in his consciousness—
’Why didn’t the "Predestination" I enacted come to pass?’
On the path of destiny, a numbered "Nirvana Skill" had never before appeared. Even for the Time Giant, Candela, his numbered skill was merely "Time," symbolizing time itself! This meant that "Predestination" was already one of the most powerful skills at the apex of destiny. It could even create something from nothing, forcing a future into existence.
It might fail upon casting, but once successfully cast, a destiny that has been set to be inevitable cannot possibly fail to come true!
’So why did it fail this time?’
This was his final question.
In his final moments, he saw Shi Ming smile at him. His eyes were impossibly clear, holding an invitation that could not be refused. He saw a Kun, which had been lurking in the depths of his consciousness, leap from the surface of his Sea of Spirit. It let out a roar, a long, high, and distant cry.
Ron seemed to realize something.
’Distortion? Usurpation?’