Within Crystal Valley, the White Giant God and the crystalline, dark-blue giant spider clashed and grappled in a brutal struggle.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
Explosions rang out one after another. The fully crystallized trees were ground to powder by the fierce winds whipped up by the Ether tides, and even the earth reinforced by ORT's authority split apart.
Rumble...
Magma buried beneath the plates was forced up through cracks in the crust and erupted one after another.
Yet before that scorching magma could fully burst forth, it crystallized instantly under ORT's authority, becoming clusters of fire trees and silver flowers in full bloom, a strangely beautiful sight.
But immediately after, the countless spears of light descending from the sky plowed over the surface seven or eight times in the blink of an eye, tearing apart the ground that had only just begun to mend.
Caught at the center of it all, ORT let out a shrill roar beneath the spreading smoke and dust.
As the crystal dust scattered, its hard carapace, made of no substance found on Earth, was pierced full of spears of light. It looked like a miserable hedgehog, blue-green blood like burning crystal seeping from its wounds.
Eight pairs of compound eyes glared furiously at the blazing white figure in the sky, a deep fear reflected in the depths of those pupils.
The monster that had suddenly barged in was like a porcupine crashing into a spider, breaking through layer after layer of its reinforced barriers with ease.
The positions of hunter and prey had never been equal to begin with.
But as a lifeform standing at the top of the food chain, ORT's pride would not allow it to retreat. Instead, the repeated heavy injuries stirred the ferocity buried in its genes.
In an instant, a vicious light flashed through the giant spider's eight pairs of compound eyes. The blue-green blood flowing from its wounds suddenly burned violently, melting away the spears of light embedded in its back in one sweep.
"Roar!"
A high-pitched roar burst from ORT's abdomen, and the world, already solidified like crystal, instantly cracked into countless shards of every size.
Buzz!!!
The sound waves traveled into those crystal fragments, triggering a chain of resonance and humming. A strange crystal tremor spread outward, causing the entire space to ripple like water.
Wherever it passed, all matter was reduced to dust.
"Hmph! You overestimate yourself!"
The provoked White Giant God snorted coldly. The flames of light around him leaped violently as he crossed his arms and swung them down. Magecraft arrays appeared around him one after another, forming structures like arm rings.
Hiss! Hiss! Hiss! Hiss!
The next moment, a pair of fists wrapped in blazing white fire struck out with lightning speed, unleashing hundreds upon thousands of punches in an instant. The rippling space around him immediately collapsed inward and exploded violently, cancelling out the force of the crystal tremor.
But just as crystal dust filled the air, a transparent, crystal-like figure abruptly appeared at the White Giant God's side. Three pairs of hind legs remained in the posture of having launched it forward, while one pair of vicious forelimbs stabbed fiercely toward the White Giant God's waist and abdomen.
Splurt!
That invisibility, like optical camouflage, had actually blocked the White Giant God's perception. Even though Marduk dodged instinctively, he still could not avoid having two savage gashes carved across his waist by those great forelimbs.
"Get lost!"
His perfect, sacred body wounded once again, Marduk was furious. He clasped his hands together, made a hammering fist, and smashed the giant spider deep into the ground.
BOOM!
In an instant, a roar like an asteroid impact resounded through the entire Crystal Valley. The giant spider sank into a crater hundreds of kilometers wide, its back deeply caved in and its crystalline carapace shattered, looking utterly wretched.
Yet just as insects possess stubborn vitality, ORT, as a Star Spirit, possessed astonishing defense and regenerative authority. It quickly absorbed the transformed crystal dust around it, repaired its wounds, and sprang back to life once more.
Immediately afterward, the two giant gods, their savagery fully roused, began an even more brutal battle.
Even with Crystal Valley, a world-class domain of alien space, sealing them in, the aftershocks of their battle still inevitably spread beyond the barrier, causing the chaotic sky above the Sea of Nothingness to swell and shrink while the four great elements of earth, fire, wind, and water surged without end.
Bang!
After blasting ORT into the strata once again, Marduk, now covered in dozens of bite and tear marks, watched time pass second by second. Seeing that the monster before him still seemed ready to keep fighting, his eyes flickered, and his expression turned vicious.
"Fool, you brought this on yourself!"
"Roar..."
ORT seemed to sense some intense danger. Its hind legs scraped the ground, crystal walls gathering in front of it as it lowered its head and growled.
"This was originally a weapon prepared to burn the World Tree to ash. Since you blocked this King's path, then you can take its place!"
The White Giant God's voice was cold and grim. He raised his hand and clenched it in the air, his frigid voice rumbling like thunder.
"Infinite Light begins at the Crown and ends in the Kingdom! Wisdom, Understanding, Mercy, Severity, Beauty, Victory, Glory, Foundation. All are me! All are light!
Burn with fire, judge with the sword!
I shall accomplish every act of good and annihilate every act of evil. Infinite power overflows from here. [Path of the Flaming Sword]!"
As the chant echoed in every direction, the power gathering in the White Giant God's hand grew stronger and stronger. A beam of flame compressed to the limit burned fiercely, becoming a sword of fire that set the heavens ablaze, dimming the sun, moon, and stars.
At the same time, above the Sea of Nothingness, a beam of fire shot out from the tip of the Tree of Kabbalah. In an instant, it passed through the branches and ignited the entire realm. The Ten Heavens shook together, and the angels still lingering within them suddenly broke apart.
"Father! Arise! Descend!"
Even as their bodies twisted and shattered in the flames, those angels continued to sing with their final voices until they became kindling, making the fire that burned the Tree of Kabbalah blaze ever higher.
The flames condensed to the extreme, becoming a burning blade that descended from the sky and slashed straight toward the crystal spatial node, which had been swelling and shrinking.
BOOM!
The next moment, a deafening roar erupted. The sky split open like a mirror, and countless shattered crystals shot out in every direction.
Bang!
Then a disk-shaped object, its broken limbs curled against its abdomen and its head buried inside its damaged carapace, fell smoking into the Sea of Nothingness, showing no sign of life.
And amid the brilliant light patterns refracted by the crystal, that terrifying White Giant God once again stood proudly upon the Sea of Nothingness, appearing before the gods and humanity.
That was incomparable despair.
So even ORT lost?
Samael's brows twisted tightly together, and his heart clenched. His final shred of luck was crushed by cruel reality.
Honestly, he had truly hoped the Great Spider would be the one to laugh last. At least that thing was lazy. Though it was also a ticking time bomb, it did not casually destroy heaven and earth at the slightest provocation.
But if even Gaia had lost, how could ORT, fighting away from its home field, possibly defeat the wandering star that had destroyed who knew how many civilizations?
What Samael had not expected was that the end would come so quickly.
So quickly that the thing he had ordered the fairies to prepare still was not finished.
The situation was not looking good.