Ian brought the crew from Super Seminary down to Zaun, heading straight for Vander's bar.
Inside the bar, Vander, Vi, and Powder were sitting together when suddenly, a group of people burst in. Seeing Ian at the head, his eyes shining with dazzling light, Vander and the others felt an invisible pressure bearing down on them.
Ian ignored everyone else and walked straight up to Ekko, his eyes blazing as he began to examine Ekko's Timeline.
After a moment, the light in Ian's eyes flickered, and he found the Timeline from before Ekko's crossing.
"Are you ready, Ekko?" Ian's voice sounded in Ekko's ear.
"Huh?" Ekko snapped back to attention, his face filled with shock and anxiety. "Go now? But I... I haven't prepared the Power to deal with Viktor yet!"
Ian grinned: "Don't worry, you have me."
The moment Ian finished speaking, a powerful surge of the Power of Faith erupted from him, instantly engulfing Ekko and the Super Seminary crew.
Ian took out the Watch of Flowing Time, infused it with the Power of Faith, and lightly flicked the dial.
With a "click," a blinding light flashed, and the group instantly vanished from the spot, leaving behind the original Little Man Ekko, who stood there in a daze.
It took a while for Little Man Ekko to react. Rubbing his drowsy eyes, he looked around groggily: "Huh? How did I get here? Wasn't I sleeping at home?"
"Now I am invincible!"
As Ian and his party arrived, they heard Viktor's arrogant proclamation.
"What a load of bull!" Zhao Xin hated arrogant show-offs the most and immediately became displeased.
Everyone looked up and saw a figure floating in the air, surrounded by Runes, like a God.
Below, countless pale figures were suspended, like controlled puppets, facing the sky with golden threads extending from their mouths and connecting to the figure.
That figure was Viktor. At this moment, a person was kneeling at his feet—Jayce.
"Hey, Ajie, look!" Ge nudged Ajie with his elbow. "The one kneeling over there looks just like you! That must be your Otherworld Counterpart!"
Ajie looked and exclaimed, "Holy cow! That bastard really does look like me!"
He looked at Ian: "My God, should we make a move? That guy in the sky is too arrogant; I don't like it!"
Ge jumped in first: "Brother Jie, don't call him 'My God' anymore. Boss said to call him Boss directly from now on!"
Ajie paused, then realized: "Oh, right, Boss! So, when should we make a move?"
"Yeah, Boss!" Zhao Xin was also flexing his muscles, eager for action. "That guy is too much of a poser. I want to go up and punch him twice!"
The rest of the Super Seminary crew were also excited, itching to rush up and fight Viktor.
Ian looked at the eager group and nodded slightly.
Ian gave a small nod, and the Super Seminary members, who could no longer hold back, immediately charged towards Viktor.
Viktor was still looking down at the kneeling Ajie from the air, his voice full of cold detachment.
"Progress requires sacrifice. This is the price we must pay. But if our sacrifice can bring about a better future, then everything is worthwhile."
"I know what I must do, and I will achieve it at any cost. Even if it means standing against the whole world."
"Perfection is not unattainable; it just requires more effort and sacrifice."
"Jayce, join the Glorious Evolution. I will lead everyone..." Viktor spread his arms, intending to pull Jayce into the Evolution as well.
"Silence!" A furious roar interrupted Viktor's casting.
Ge was in the lead, pointing at Viktor's nose and yelling, "You talk too much!"
At the same time, the Energy inside Viktor suddenly lost control, and the Power of the Wild Runes instantly disconnected from him.
Then, Viktor fell from the sky.
"What... what happened?" Viktor looked bewildered.
"Holy shit, Xiaolun's Ability is really useful! A single word made this guy fall down!" Liu laughed heartily, giving Ge a thumbs-up.
Viktor, having regained his balance, turned around, his gaze sweeping over the uninvited guests.
Ge, Liu, and Zhao Xin, each wore an unpleasant smile. What surprised him even more was that there was a guy who looked exactly like Jayce in the crowd.
"Reinforcements from a Parallel Universe?" Viktor guessed. He originally only wanted to save the world through Glorious Evolution and eliminate suffering and strife. Why was everyone trying to stop him?
"I have no intention of being your enemy," Viktor's voice was low. "Everything I do is to create a better future. Why must you relentlessly pursue me and prevent me from achieving this noble ideal?"
"Noble? I think you've been kicked in the head by a donkey!" Liu brandished his massive axe, pointing it at Viktor's nose and cursing, "You turn people into mindless puppets and call it 'Evolution'?"
"Exactly!" Ge followed up. "And 'Glorious Evolution' at that!"
Zhao Xin was even more direct, pointing his spear at Viktor's throat: "Enough nonsense! We're here to save the world!"
"Save the world? With you? You fundamentally don't understand how great the Glorious Evolution is, so how can you understand my painstaking efforts?"
"Stop wasting words with him! Let's get him!" Leona couldn't stand their endless talking and directly threw a Fireball up.
"Silence!" Ge immediately followed up when he saw Leona make a move.
Viktor's Energy was interrupted again. He didn't understand why it still didn't work even though he had changed the way he operated his Energy.
Just as Viktor was about to adjust again, Ge's Greatsword slapped heavily onto his head.
Before he could recover, Liu's axe, Zhao Xin's spear, and a hammer thrown by who-knows-who, all showered down on him at once. Viktor was instantly beaten without any chance to fight back.
However, the more times Viktor was interrupted, the faster his Energy Circuit recovered.
Finally, he found an opening against Ge and detonated all the Energy in his body.
"Boom!"
A powerful Energy Fluctuation spread outward from Viktor's center. Everyone was caught off guard and was shaken back several steps.
Viktor finally broke free from the group's beatdown. Before he could even catch his breath, a dazzling white light descended from the sky, hitting Viktor squarely.
This was Leona's Solar Flare. Poor Viktor's arcane-modified body was instantly blasted into pieces.
"Oops, I hit a little too hard. Did I just vaporize him?" Leona scratched her head sheepishly.
"Don't worry, he won't die," Ian said calmly. He knew that Viktor's Soul was connected to the Wild Runes and could transfer to other puppets at any time.
Viktor's figure reappeared on a puppet not far away, only to be blasted apart by Leona again immediately after.
Just as Viktor was preparing to try the same trick again, transferring through the Wild Runes, a hand suddenly appeared out of thin air and pinched the Rune that was emitting an eerie glow.
It was Ian.
Viktor only felt a powerful suction force, as if his Soul was being forcibly pulled out of his body. He struggled desperately but to no avail.
The Power of Faith surged into the Wild Rune like a tide, completely stripping Viktor's Soul from the Rune.