Chapter 319: Avalon’s Defense

Far away from the mountain where Steve's aura was beginning to shake the heavens, five divine figures crossed the skies of Thyrandel with impossible speed. Mountains, oceans, kingdoms, and entire forests passed beneath them in the blink of an eye while their divine auras remained perfectly concealed from every mortal living below. 

None of them noticed the faint fluctuations caused by Steve's breakthrough attempt. Their attention was focused entirely upon the image Lunette had created only minutes earlier. According to the threads of fate, Augustus' closest blood relative remained somewhere ahead. 

If they captured her, capturing the rogue Demigod himself would only become a matter of time. Several more minutes passed before the scenery beneath them gradually changed. The familiar medieval architecture of Thyrandel disappeared, replaced by something none of the five gods had ever witnessed before. 

Wide paved streets stretched through an enormous island city laid out with astonishing precision. Elegant buildings of steel, glass, and unfamiliar materials reflected the morning sunlight while strange vehicles moved along broad roads without the assistance of horses or magical beasts. 

Countless formations were subtly hidden throughout the city, yet instead of the ancient architectural style common throughout Thyrandel, everything here possessed a clean, refined appearance that looked completely alien. 

Even the gardens appeared deliberately planned, blending natural beauty with geometric symmetry in ways that no kingdom on the continent had ever attempted. The leading god unconsciously slowed his flight while narrowing his eyes. "What... is this place?" he muttered softly. 

The remaining four gods also looked around with varying degrees of surprise. Ignis, the deity with crimson hair that constantly flickered like living flames, frowned while observing the distant city. "I've never seen architecture like this before." 

Another god quietly added, "Neither have I. It's almost as though this city wasn't built by anyone from this world." 

The leading god remained silent. The information provided by the Church had mentioned a new kingdom settling here but hadn't mentioned anything resembling the city currently standing before them. In fact, according to every map preserved within the Divine Realm, this entire region should have been an uninhabited island surrounded by dangerous seas. Though it was bound to change as many millennia had passed when it was recorded, the alien structures before then were something out of this world. 

Yet before them stood a civilization that appeared decades, perhaps centuries ahead of the rest of Thyrandel. An uncomfortable feeling quietly settled within his heart, though he quickly suppressed it. Regardless of how unusual the place appeared, they were gods. There were very few things within the mortal world capable of threatening them.

His attention shifted toward the image Lunette had previously created. The woman they sought had indeed been standing somewhere inside this island. Folding his hands behind his back, he calmly looked toward Lord Ignis. "Go and retrieve her." 

Ignis smiled confidently, almost looking insulted that such a trivial task had been assigned to him. "Leave it to me." Without waiting another moment, his figure erupted forward in a streak of orange light. 

The distance separating him from the island disappeared almost instantly. To every mortal observer, he would have appeared no different from a falling star. As he approached the island's outer perimeter, Ignis extended one hand, already preparing to tear apart whatever insignificant defensive formation the mortals had erected around their settlement. "Let's see what secrets this place is hiding..." he muttered. 

BANG! 

An invisible force slammed directly into him. The impact was so sudden that Ignis never had time to react. His forehead collided violently against something completely transparent before his entire body rebounded backward through the air. 

"Argggh!" he exclaimed instinctively while rubbing his forehead. "What in the..." Ripples spread through empty space before him. Slowly, an enormous hemispherical barrier revealed itself, extending over the entire island like a transparent dome. 

Countless runes flickered briefly across its surface before vanishing once more beneath the illusion concealing it. Ignis frowned deeply. "Whats with this barrier?" he muttered in disbelief. He had approached without sensing even the slightest fluctuation beforehand. Such concealment alone was already impressive. 

Behind him, the remaining four gods had also halted after witnessing the unexpected collision. The leading god's expression became noticeably more serious. "Interesting..." he whispered. "It actually blocked a Minor God." Ignis snorted before rolling his shoulders. "Nothing more than a decent barrier. I'll simply break…"

He never got to finish the sentence when an overwhelming sense of danger exploded throughout his instincts. Every hair upon his body stood upright as the barrier surrounding Avalon suddenly blazed with countless arcs of golden lightning. 

Before Ignis could even retreat, dozens of enormous magic circles materialized throughout the sky around him. Each formation stretched for several kilometers while containing layers upon layers of impossibly complex runic structures. Fire mana gathered with terrifying speed before merging perfectly with violent lightning. 

The surrounding atmosphere instantly transformed into a sea of destructive energy. Ignis' confident expression disappeared completely. "What…!" 

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!! 

A pillar of fire and lightning thicker than a mountain descended from the heavens, swallowing the god entirely and the explosion illuminated the entire sky. Before the first attack even finished, another magic circle activated, then another and another. One devastating beam after another rained continuously upon the same location without the slightest pause between attacks. 

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! 

The island trembled beneath the relentless bombardment. Every strike possessed enough destructive force to erase entire mountain ranges from existence. The combined attacks illuminated the surrounding ocean brighter than daylight while shockwaves spread across hundreds of kilometers. 

Within the inferno, Ignis desperately attempted to erect divine barriers, yet each defensive layer survived only moments before being shattered by the next barrage. His divine flames rose instinctively to counter the attack, but the fire raining upon him wasn't ordinary elemental flame. 

It carried a terrifying level of purity reinforced by overwhelming lightning, continuously overwhelming his defenses. His body rapidly disintegrated beneath the endless assault. "Impossible...!" Ignis roared, but his voice was drowned beneath another catastrophic explosion. A few seconds later... his aura disappeared completely.

Silence followed, the bombardment gradually ceased as the enormous magic circles slowly faded from existence, leaving behind nothing except violently distorted space where Ignis had once stood. Far away, the remaining four gods stared in complete disbelief. None of them spoke for several long moments. 

Eventually one of the gods swallowed nervously before whispering, "How..." Another stared toward the now peaceful barrier surrounding Avalon, unable to hide the astonishment in his voice. "How does a magic formation of this level still exist in the mortal world?" 

Even Lunette's usually calm expression showed visible shock. She had expected resistance but she never expected one of their own to be annihilated before even touching the island. The leading god narrowed his eyes while carefully sensing the surrounding space. After several seconds he quietly exhaled. "His life force has vanished." 

Seeing the panic gradually appearing on the others' faces, he spoke calmly to reassure them. "Do not panic. His divine soul remains anchored within the Divine Realm, he will resurrect there after several days." 

Although his tone remained composed, inwardly he felt no less shaken than the others. A formation capable of killing a Minor God outright should not exist within a lower world. His gaze slowly drifted toward Avalon once more. "It appears..." he murmured thoughtfully, "...we have underestimated how far this world has progressed during our absence." 

A trace of displeasure entered his expression. "Or perhaps..." His voice became noticeably colder. "...the Popes truly are as incompetent as they have always been." For generations, the Church had continuously reported that Thyrandel remained primitive and fully dependent upon divine guidance. 

Yet hidden upon an island stood a city unlike anything recorded within the Divine Realm, protected by a barrier capable of killing gods. The contradiction irritated him greatly. Turning toward Lunette, he asked, "Can you identify any weaknesses within that magic circle?" 

The Goddess of Divination had already closed her eyes, countless silver threads of fate weaving around her body as her divine senses spread toward the barrier. Several minutes passed in complete silence. Eventually she slowly opened her eyes before shaking her head. "No." 

The single word caused everyone's expressions to darken. "I cannot identify a weakness. The magic circle is astonishingly complete. I am not sure we should call it a magic circle anymore, it is more like a formation of magic circles." She paused before continuing thoughtfully. "However... I discovered something else." 

The leading god immediately focused on her. "Speak." Lunette looked toward Avalon once more, genuine confusion visible upon her usually composed face. "This formation..." she said slowly, "...was constructed only a few days ago." 

The leading god's eyes widened slightly. "...What?" 

Lunette nodded. "The residual traces surrounding the arrays are extremely fresh. Whoever created this barrier completed it no more than several days ago." She hesitated briefly before adding the part that disturbed her even more. "And..." Her voice lowered. "...I cannot sense its creator anywhere within this world."

The implication struck everyone simultaneously. The leading god remained silent for several long moments while countless possibilities raced through his mind. If the creator wasn't present within Thyrandel despite building the formation only days ago, then only two explanations existed. 

Either that individual had died... or they possessed the ability to freely leave one world and enter another. The second possibility made even a god feel a chill run through his spine. Summoning a soul from another world already required several Major Gods working together while expending unimaginable quantities of divine resources. 

Yet freely traveling between worlds was an entirely different matter. The energy requirements alone bordered upon absurdity. The mastery over space necessary to accomplish such a feat surpassed even many gods. Such an existence... should not exist. He instinctively wanted to reject the conclusion, instead considering another explanation. 

Perhaps one of the powerful demons had crossed into Thyrandel through the World Fissure before constructing this formation. Yet almost immediately he dismissed the idea himself. There wasn't the slightest trace of demonic energy anywhere upon the barrier. Instead, it radiated an almost perfectly neutral aura, as though its creator had intentionally erased every identifying characteristic. 

The leading god slowly clenched his fist behind his back. For the first time since entering Thyrandel, genuine unease settled within his heart. Fortunately... whoever had built this terrifying formation no longer appeared to be present. Otherwise, the situation could have become far more troublesome. 

After several moments he finally looked toward Lunette once more. "Continue to scry the girl." His voice had regained its usual composure. "If we cannot enter the island directly... then locate someone connected to the girl who currently remains outside the barrier." 

Lunette nodded silently before once again closing her eyes. Silver light gathered around her fingertips as countless threads of fate slowly spread outward across the continent, searching for another path that might ultimately lead them to Augustus. 

***

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