From the center of the dust cloud, a jagged, terrifying laugh emerged.
Ethan lay in the dirt, his body a shattered wreck, but he was smiling from ear to ear. The final influx of energy from the last disciple had been the tipping point. The floodgates had burst. The embryonic core had solidified into a perfect, pulsing Amethyst sphere, and the remaining Void energy was pouring into his cells like molten starlight.
The atmosphere around Ethan began to warp. A pillar of violet light erupted from his chest, piercing the darkened clouds. The pressure he released was so immense that the nearby Crimson soldiers were forced to their knees, their armor cracking under the weight of his ascension.
Xuan Li's eyes widened, his face pale with disbelief. "A newly ascended Spiritual Core... is pressuring me? Impossible!"
He felt a cold spike of genuine terror. If this monster was this strong at the moment of breakthrough, he would be unstoppable once the process was complete.
