Chapter 462: Determination
Lux walked for nearly an hour before the forest changed once again.
The towering trees gradually disappeared.
The dense vegetation gave way to an enormous valley.
At its center stood a lone mountain of black stone.
No...
It wasn’t a mountain.
It moved.
A pair of crimson eyes slowly opened.
The entire valley trembled.
Rocks rolled down the cliffs.
The surrounding trees bent as an immense wave of prana swept across the land.
Lux stopped.
His expression remained calm, but his silver eyes sharpened.
"...So you’re the guardian, this is going to be a tough fight, there’s no doubt about it."
The colossal creature rose to its full height.
It easily exceeded thirty meters.
Its body resembled a fusion of a giant and a beast, covered in layers of obsidian armor that looked as though they had been forged from cooled volcanic rock. Crimson veins pulsed beneath every plate, releasing waves of suffocating pressure.
Two enormous horns curved backward.
Its arms were absurdly long, each hand ending in claws the size of greatswords.
Behind it, a tail slowly swept across the valley, flattening everything in its path.
Then—
It took one step.
BOOM!
The mountain itself shook.
Lux’s wings unfolded.
He slowly floated into the air.
Neither moved.
Both quietly measured the other.
Then—
They disappeared simultaneously.
BOOM!
A deafening explosion erupted in the center of the valley.
Lux’s glowing staff collided against one of the monster’s claws.
A shockwave expanded for hundreds of meters.
Entire cliffs collapsed.
The ground fractured beneath them.
Lux was blasted backward.
The monster remained rooted.
"...Heavy."
It was on an entirely different level from everything he had fought so far.
The giant swung again.
The claw cut through the air like a falling fortress.
Lux accelerated.
His wings burst with radiant light.
Flash!
The attack barely missed him.
The mountain behind him didn’t.
The cliff exploded into countless fragments.
Lux immediately retaliated.
His hand rose.
Hundreds of arrows of light appeared behind him.
"Go."
The sky turned white.
Thousands of streaks descended simultaneously.
Twack!
Twack!
Twack!
The monster raised one arm.
Every arrow exploded against the obsidian armor.
Smoke swallowed the battlefield.
When it dispersed...
The creature hadn’t moved.
Only shallow scorch marks remained.
"..."
Lux’s eyes narrowed slightly.
Its defense surpassed anything he had encountered.
The giant roared.
The sound alone became a shockwave.
Boom!
The valley split apart.
Lux crossed his arms.
Layers of light gathered before him.
The roar smashed through the first barrier.
Then the second.
Then the third.
The fourth barely held.
Even after the sound faded, cracks spread across every defensive spell.
Lux slowly exhaled.
Without hesitation, he began weaving magic.
One circle.
Then another.
Then another.
Radiant formations bloomed beneath his feet.
"Acceleration."
Light wrapped around his body.
His movements became lighter.
"Fortification."
A second layer strengthened his muscles and bones.
"Divine Armor."
Brilliant armor of condensed light formed over his clothes.
"Prana Enhancement."
His aura erupted.
The valley glowed.
One spell after another settled upon him.
His already formidable presence rose dramatically.
The giant charged.
Each step resembled an earthquake.
Lux answered in kind.
Boom!
They collided again.
This time—
He wasn’t pushed back.
His glowing fist struck the monster’s chest.
Crack!
A section of obsidian armor shattered.
For the first time...
The giant staggered.
Lux pressed forward.
His staff danced through the air.
Every strike landed with pinpoint precision.
Shoulder.
Elbow.
Neck.
Ribs.
The giant retaliated with overwhelming force.
Each swing threatened to erase entire sections of the valley.
Lux weaved between them.
His movements resembled flowing water.
Calm.
Efficient.
Precise.
A claw grazed his shoulder.
The mountain behind him exploded.
Lux didn’t stop.
His staff spun.
A crescent blade of light shot forward.
Shing!
It carved across the monster’s chest.
Another crack appeared.
The giant roared in anger.
Crimson energy erupted from every vein.
Its speed doubled.
Boom!
Lux barely blocked the next punch.
The impact launched him through three hills before he regained control.
Dust filled the air.
"..."
He wiped a thin trail of blood from the corner of his mouth.
"A little stronger."
White radiance expanded beneath him.
His Domain unfolded.
The valley transformed.
Pure white light spread endlessly.
Inside it...
The giant’s vitality immediately began fading.
The cracks in its armor refused to heal.
Lux’s own injuries gradually recovered.
The monster sensed the change.
It roared again.
Dark crimson energy erupted from its body like volcanic flames.
The Domain trembled.
The pressure became unbearable.
Lux ignored it.
His silver eyes remained completely emotionless.
"Judgment."
Countless pillars of light descended.
One.
Ten.
One hundred.
They bombarded the giant relentlessly.
Explosions swallowed its massive body.
The valley shook without end.
Lux seized the opening.
His wings burst with dazzling brilliance.
Flash!
He appeared directly before the giant’s face.
His staff transformed.
The brilliant weapon lengthened into a radiant spear.
He thrust.
Boom!
The spear pierced through the cracked armor and sank into the creature’s shoulder.
Light exploded inside its body.
The giant bellowed in pain.
Then—
Its free hand grabbed Lux.
"...!"
The massive fingers closed around him.
The pressure was overwhelming.
Crack.
Crack.
Crack.
His protective spells shattered one after another.
Lux raised both hands.
Radiant blades erupted outward.
Boom!
The giant released him.
Lux shot into the sky.
Breathing slightly heavier now.
His Domain continued draining the creature.
Yet...
It wasn’t enough.
The giant’s aura suddenly expanded.
The crimson veins covering its body blazed like molten lava.
Its damaged armor regenerated by sacrificing enormous quantities of prana.
The Domain slowed it...
But couldn’t stop it completely.
The giant bent its legs.
Then leaped.
The mountain itself launched into the sky.
Lux’s eyes widened ever so slightly.
"...Fast."
The claw descended.
He crossed his spear.
BOOM!!
The collision split the clouds.
Lux was driven straight into the earth.
A crater hundreds of meters wide formed instantly.
Before he could stand—
Another punch.
Boom!
Then another.
Boom!
Then another.
The entire valley became a sea of collapsing earth.
Lux forced himself upright.
His wings were damaged.
Blood dripped from several wounds.
His breathing finally became uneven.
Even so...
He stood.
The giant descended once more.
Lux gathered every remaining ounce of prana.
The Domain contracted.
Every particle of light converged into his spear.
The weapon radiated like a newborn sun.
"This... is everything."
His wings flared.
The giant roared.
Both charged.
The distance vanished instantly.
Spear and claw met.
For a single heartbeat...
Time itself seemed to stop.
Then—
BOOOOOOM!!
A pillar of light pierced the heavens.
The entire pocket world shook violently.
The collision consumed everything within sight.
When the radiance finally faded...
Lux was still standing.
Barely.
His spear had shattered.
His armor spell had disappeared.
His Domain collapsed into countless fragments of light.
Across from him...
The giant remained standing.
Its chest bore a deep wound.
But it still lived.
Its enormous hand slowly rose.
Lux smiled faintly.
"So..."
"...I still have this far to go."
The giant’s fist descended.
Before the attack could land—
A gentle force enveloped Lux’s body.
The training pocket world recognized that he had reached his limit.
His figure dissolved into countless particles of light.
The giant’s punch struck empty ground.
Boom!
Outside the pocket world, Lux’s eyes slowly opened as he was forcibly ejected from the training realm.
His breathing was ragged.
Sweat soaked his clothes.
Every muscle ached.
Yet despite the defeat...
His silver eyes held no frustration.
Only quiet resolve.
He had found a wall.
And walls...
Were meant to be surpassed.