"I'll handle the Tide of Chaos."
Merlin glanced at the Old Man of the Mountain and Amber. These two were the main combatants for this battle, so if they could avoid wasting magical energy, they shouldn't waste a single drop.
The vortex in the sky continuously devoured the Tide of Chaos, but it couldn't erase it, merely preventing it from expanding further. Seeing this, Merlin directly used his magecraft, transforming the entire Tide of Chaos into harmless flowers.
Witnessing this, Amber also dispelled Sword Heart. Tiamat crashed to the ground once more, and the black tide surged forth again immediately.
Merlin, his expression composed, continued to cast his magecraft upon the Tide of Chaos, turning it all into blossoms.
The magecraft required to completely alter the nature of the Tide of Chaos was no simple feat.
If they were short on combat strength, he certainly wouldn't squander magical energy so extravagantly, only ensuring the tide's dispersal wasn't too severe.
But right now, with two premier damage-dealers standing before him, output wasn't something he needed to worry about.
All he had to do was focus on his support role.
Seeing the Tide of Chaos being dealt with, the Old Man of the Mountain gave a slight nod. Then, he leaped, landing behind Tiamat.
The sword in his hand swept down fiercely: "The Evening Bell has tolled thy name. By the decree of Heaven, I shall sever thy wings."
A conceptual power far exceeding the limits of a normal Saint Graph, incomprehensible in its nature, was unleashed completely within this single strike by the Old Man of the Mountain.
A blue-white radiance blazed upon his blade. In the next instant, massive cracks spiderwebbed across those wings, far sturdier than her horns.
BONG—!
CRACK—!
A bell toll, its origin unknown, resonated in the ears of all present, followed immediately by the sound of something immensely hard shattering. Even a divine body was severed by this blow.
"What is this!?"
Roman stared incredulously at the screen. "An anomaly in Tiamat's Saint Graph! How can this be? Not only did he cut off Mother Tiamat's wings, but he also imposed the concept of death upon her!?"
His voice quickly surged with excitement. "Without a doubt, although Tiamat's Saint Graph remains massive, it has now entered the pattern of a normal Servant's Saint Graph!"
In other words, the being standing there was no longer a god, but a Servant.
Consequently, the mystery resistance granted by her divine body would be drastically reduced. The same Tiamat, who previously couldn't be harmed even by Noble Phantasms, could now be affected by attacks possessing even a trace of divinity.
Of course, divinity wasn't an absolute requirement. Any attack with sufficiently high 'mystery' would suffice. But divinity was the simplest key, a key that nearly every Servant present possessed.
"The time to act is now, Phoenix Celestial."
Merlin looked towards Amber, who had long been ready and waiting. "Unfortunately, her Spirit Core and the Holy Grail are both located in her throat. My magecraft cannot bypass Tiamat's body to affect her interior. So, I am powerless against the Tide of Chaos inside her."
"Just a moment ago, control over the Underworld returned to me."
Ereshkigal also walked to Amber's side. "I'll make an exception this time. I will grant you the full amplification of the Underworld."
"Leave it to me."
With the trust of everyone placed squarely in her hands, Amber felt as if a mountain were pressing down on her shoulders—the weight was immense, the pressure enormous.
She could have Navigation help her transfer to another world at any time, but she couldn't run away. Not just because of her own sense of responsibility, but also because of Fu Hua's trust in her.
"Aaaaaa—!"
Tiamat, too, knew her current situation was dire. She gathered her magical energy with all her might, then opened her massive maw.
From the Tide of Chaos within her mouth, over a dozen Lahmu, completely different in appearance from before, flew towards the group.
"What are these!? Be careful! Each one of them possesses strength rivaling a Demon God Pillar!"
Roman immediately warned.
"We'll handle these guys! Fu Hua! You go all out and defeat Tiamat without any hesitation!"
Ishtar, who had recovered some magical energy during this time, shouted seriously towards Amber.
Amber hesitated no longer. Using the technique of Shukuchi, she instantly arrived at Tiamat's feet. Compared to that colossal frame, Amber was smaller than even a tenth of one of her nails.
"Divine Embodiment!"
Intending to go all out, she held nothing back. She struck Tiamat's front ankle, and upon this fist, she layered Divine Embodiment—the pinnacle of sword intent, maximizing physical damage.
A golden brilliance swelled greatly in her hand, was driven deep into Tiamat's interior, and then violently exploded.
"Aaaaa!"
The intense pain in her ankle made Tiamat cry out in agony. Her entire body staggered uncontrollably. But Amber had no intention of stopping.
Right now, if Tiamat wanted to reach the surface, her only way was to climb out of the Underworld using her limbs. In this situation, breaking those limbs first was undoubtedly the most effective way to restrict her.
A black-red energy erupted from Tiamat's mouth—an attack carrying the Tide of Chaos. Amber couldn't possibly take it head-on. While she lacked the advantage of size, being small and fast was its own advantage.
If you're attacking here, then I'll just go attack the other foot. Even without much combat experience, just having played games taught you that much.
But Tiamat was no clumsy video game boss. The moment Amber got close, she immediately swiped her claw at Amber's body.
Unfortunately, Amber was also far more agile than a character with no knees in a game. As the saying goes, one technique to break ten thousand. Facing the oncoming claw, the young girl effortlessly flipped onto it and unleashed another Sword God strike.
With the infusion of Sword God, both of Tiamat's forelimbs were rendered useless. With no support, her body collapsed heavily onto the ground.
"Perfect opportunity!"
Merlin, watching the battle closely, brightened up. Amber naturally wouldn't miss it either. Evading the colossal body as it crashed down, Amber's figure already reappeared at Tiamat's head. Gold-red flames ignited in her hands and upon her forehead.
"The Divine, the ultimate of change, wondrous unto all things as a concept, cannot be defined by form—!"
Just like the Herrscher of Sentience, Amber at this moment was straining her limits to draw in the surrounding energy.
As Sword God was pushed to its absolute limit, the girl's true aspect—the image of a golden qilin—unfurled behind her.
According to what the Herrscher of Sentience had said, Tiamat was gradually adapting to Sword God. Therefore, Amber had to go all out from the very first move.
She didn't need this attack to achieve a massive effect; she only needed it to help her get inside Tiamat.
An invisible golden sword instantly split Tiamat's mouth open. Peering into the dark depths where a golden glimmer flickered, Amber flew into Tiamat's maw without a moment's hesitation.
Yet, the moment she entered, she saw the situation inside Tiamat's body.
This body lacked any conventional organs. Its interior was composed entirely of a shell of unknown material and the endlessly flowing Tide of Chaos. The Holy Grail simply lay submerged within this tide, only able to emit a faint gleam to attest to its presence.
In other words, retrieving the Holy Grail would inevitably mean coming into contact with the black mud capable of assimilating a person.
As if sensing the danger, the Holy Grail's light visibly dimmed. It went without saying—Tiamat was relocating the Grail. Possessing an EX-rank Self-Modification skill, Tiamat could not only move the Holy Grail within her body, but even her Spirit Core could be shifted at will.
Though she had just used a full-power Sword God and hadn't even caught her breath, Amber unleashed Sword God once more.
The massive golden sword plunged into the sea, momentarily parting the Tide of Chaos, only for it to flood back together the next second.
Now Amber could hesitate no longer. Gritting her teeth, she instantly plunged into the Tide of Chaos.
--+--
T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
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