Chapter 426: The Final Blow

Finally, after an earth-shattering collision, the already crumbling Ruins of Elsos could no longer hold.

Rumble—!

The massive dome began to collapse, sending countless tons of rock and soil pouring down. Aiden and Antares surged upward through the billowing dust and debris, smashing straight through the surface. The forest floor was violently torn open as the two figures erupted from the earth, landing heavily in the clearing. Moonlight washed over the man and the beast like water.

Aiden, fully transformed into his Godification State: "Lord Ravager", burned with platinum-white flames, looking every bit like a descended deity. Opposite him, Antares's grotesque carapace gleamed with a cold, purple sheen in the moonlight, radiating a sickening aura of pure evil. The two faced off beneath the moon, locked in a tense standoff.

Moments later, Robin, Tifa, and the others climbed out of the massive crater. Seeing the standoff, they understood this was no longer a battle they could intervene in.

"Let's clear out the surrounding monsters," Robin decided instantly. "Nothing can be allowed to interrupt Aiden's fight."

The group nodded in unison, turning to face the endless tide of monsters drawn by the colossal commotion. The only thing they could do was secure the battlefield for their Captain.

Beneath the moonlight, the platinum-white flames and the purple-black monster clashed. Antares's offensive remained ferocious, but no matter how massive an energy storm it kicked up, it couldn't touch the burning figure. Meanwhile, although Aiden's slashes could easily shatter its defenses, they were ultimately rendered futile by the monster's terrifying, divine regeneration.

At this rate, there was no way to kill it before his Lord Ravager state expired.

Aiden's eyes narrowed. He made his decision.

He dismissed the Godslayer: Surtr and reached over his shoulder, drawing the pitch-black divine weapon he had been carrying on his back—the Arrow of Orion.

[Knight of Owner]

The moment the skill activated, an endless torrent of knowledge, technique, and experience regarding spearmanship flooded into his mind like a bursting dam. Gripping, thrusting, sweeping, parrying... he had never systematically studied how to wield a spear, yet in this very instant, he became a grandmaster who had steeped himself in the art for centuries.

The rhythm of the battle completely shifted.

Faced with Antares's sweeping, massive claw, Aiden no longer dodged. He ducked low, the pitch-black spear in his hands thrusting forward like a streak of dark lightning, striking the joint of the claw with absolute precision.

Shckk—!

The carapace that had previously resisted even his divine sword was now as fragile as paper before this god-slaying spear. The purple divine light wreathing the shell instantly dispersed and extinguished upon contact with the spear tip, as if meeting its natural bane.

The spear effortlessly pierced the joint. With a flick of his wrist, Aiden forcefully dislocated and severed the massive claw, sending it crashing to the ground with a heavy thud.

Antares let out an agonizing screech as its other pincer and tail stinger struck simultaneously. Aiden left a mere afterimage in his wake, his spear tracing beautiful, deadly arcs through the air. Every swing left bone-deep gashes on Antares's body, cleanly severing its limbs.

Purple blood erupted like a geyser, but that horrifying regeneration was still at work.

His eyes cold, Aiden took a deep breath and channeled the power of his flames and sonic waves into the Arrow of Orion, holding nothing back. Platinum-white fire and golden rings of sound intertwined around the pitch-black shaft. Then, he thrust the fully charged spear forward, unleashing a catastrophic blow that perfectly combined the mechanics of a piercing strike and an artillery cannon.

Antares's massive frame was instantly perforated, a gaping hole appearing squarely in its torso. The devastating residual force didn't stop there; it tore straight through the forest behind the beast, carving a terrifying, bottomless trench over a thousand meters long.

Yet, even after suffering such a cataclysmic strike, Antares refused to die.

Within that gaping cavity, purple flesh frantically writhed and began to slowly stitch itself back together. It was only then that Aiden finally confirmed his suspicion with absolute certainty—unless he first killed Artemis's original body housed inside the beast, Antares could never be destroyed.

"Aiden, there's no time left!"

Hermes's frantic shout echoed from the distant ruins. He pointed at the sky, his voice thick with urgency. "The strongest arrow of Heaven... it's about to fall! If this continues, the entire lower world is doomed!"

Aiden snapped his head up. In the night sky, the moon formed by the magic circle was radiating a blinding, absolute brilliance. The long arrow, forged entirely from condensed moonlight, was fully drawn and ready to fire.

He didn't hesitate for another second.

Propelled by platinum flames, he turned into a streak of light and charged at Antares once more.

Sensing its impending doom, Antares opened its maw and frantically fired off a barrage of devastating purple lasers. Aiden navigated the intersecting beams at blinding speeds, the lasers exploding exactly where he had just been. Neither the billowing dust nor the shockwaves could slow his advance.

In a fraction of a second, he appeared right in front of Antares.

"Roar—!"

Antares bellowed. It didn't try to attack with its remaining claws; instead, it funneled all of its remaining divine power into the blue crystal embedded in its chest, desperately attempting to manifest a bow and arrow made of pure Arcanum for one final defense.

But Aiden was faster.

Instead of closing into melee range, he halted at the end of his charge and hurled the god-slaying spear with every ounce of his strength.

The pitch-black spear streaked like a meteor tearing through the night, colliding head-on with the newly formed bow and arrow of divine power.

Crack!

The divine construct shattered upon impact. And in that exact fraction of a second, the Arrow of Orion finally unleashed its true might. The unassuming, pitch-black outer shell flaked away inch by inch, revealing the hidden artifact in all its glory—a massive, spear-like arrow forged entirely of gold, magnificent and awe-inspiring.

BOOM—!!!

The golden god-slaying arrow smashed into Antares's final divine barrier. An indescribable shockwave ravaged a radius of several hundred meters. Crimson-gold lightning danced wildly as the earth was violently peeled back and pulverized. The forest, the rocks, everything was reduced to primordial dust beneath the sheer force.

At the epicenter of the impact, Antares let out a shrill, agonizing shriek filled with indignant rage.

Ultimately, amidst a deafening clash of metal, the golden arrow pierced the final defense. It pierced the azure crystal, and it pierced straight through the chest of the slumbering goddess sealed within.

Time, it seemed, stopped in that very moment.

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