As the aura of the God Tree radiated from Shinji, the dark clouds blanketing the sky churned violently, eventually forming a massive vortex!
The center of the vortex was deep and pitch-black, as if leading straight into the vast, silent universe.
Shinji stared up at the vortex, his expression growing significantly more solemn.
For a brief moment, he felt as if he had returned to T33, back to that second when he locked eyes with the Propagation Hegemon across space.
Shinji thought with secret concern: Can it really break the spatial barrier by force?
If a Hegemon truly possessed the ability to forcibly breach a spatial barrier, then how long a targeted world could hold out depended entirely on the Hegemon's whim.
Even if doing so forced the Hegemon to pay a price, for the targeted world, it meant the spatial barrier protecting them was far less reliable than imagined.
The scale of the vortex in the sky was still expanding.
Even the brilliant magic ring above the Knowledge Tower appeared utterly minuscule beneath the vortex that now engulfed the entire firmament.
...
Inside the Knowledge Tower.
The Storm Sorcerer Supreme, who had just barely shaken off the shock of that earlier roar, froze once again upon seeing the terrifying vortex in the sky.
"How... how is this possible!?"
The habitual composure derived from being a Sorcerer Supreme vanished from his face, replaced by a confusion and panic identical to that of the ordinary mages.
However, he quickly realized this was the greatest crisis in the history of the Sixth Ring World. While using magical transmission to notify the other five Sorcerer Supremes of the situation, he unleashed the power of the magic ring at full capacity, regardless of the drain on his mana.
The other five Sorcerer Supremes, including Lord Eveningstar, felt the aura of disaster descending even before the magical transmission reached them.
Once the message from the Storm Sorcerer Supreme arrived and they understood the situation facing the Knowledge Tower battlefield, all five unleashed their magic rings without reservation. They attempted to establish a unified magical barrier for the Sixth Ring World to keep the invading Hegemon out.
Whoosh...
In an instant, the already brilliant magic ring doubled in size. The radius of its radiant halo engulfed the entire battlefield. Against the glow of the magic ring, the massive vortex of dark clouds in the sky seemed slightly less terrifying than before.
With the eruption of the magic ring's power, the mages who had been stunned by the Propagation Hegemon's roar finally came to their senses.
"Look, it's the magic ring!"
"The Sorcerer Supremes have made their move!"
"We are saved!"
The crowd watched the clash between the magic ring and the vortex in the sky, overcome with excitement.
Unlike the mages whose morale was soaring, the Lampbearers in the temporary war fortress were much more somber.
They knew exactly what was trying to tear through the spatial barrier to crawl into the Sixth Ring World. Although they marveled at the Sorcerer Supremes' magic ring, the worry in their eyes did not diminish in the slightest.
At that moment, Alice looked at Shinji floating in the air and whispered, "What on earth is Akame trying to do?"
Arcane said, "He wants to lure the Hegemon in!"
Greedy Wolf Hengo curled his lip. "That guy is even crazier than I am! Lure a Hegemon in? Does he want to fight a Hegemon one-on-one?"
The old warrior shook his head. "If we must eventually confront a Hegemon head-on, I would also choose to do so while the spatial barrier is still relatively intact and while we have the six Sorcerer Supremes as allies. Otherwise, if we wait for things to get worse before choosing to fight, it might be too late!"
Hengo's expression froze. "He... he really wants to fight a Hegemon alone? Has he lost his mind?"
...
Arcane said, "Akame is the strongest Lampbearer I have ever seen. No, I should remove the 'Lampbearer' qualifier—he is the strongest person I have ever seen!"
Alice nodded in agreement. "We underestimated him before; he is also the strongest person I have ever seen! If he made this choice, he must have his reasons!"
At this point, the gaze of every Lampbearer focused on the sky—focused on Shinji!
If everything was as they guessed and the Propagation Hegemon could break the spatial barrier and invade the Sixth Ring World, perhaps they could use this opportunity to catch a glimpse of a Hegemon's true form.
For any Lampbearer, this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!
Crack!
Suddenly, a heart-stopping sound of fracturing echoed from within the vortex in the sky, as if something vital had shattered at that moment!
Splash...
Immediately after, before anyone could react, a massive amount of black liquid poured downward from the center of the vortex.
Along with the black liquid came a terrifying aura that made everyone tremble with unease!
"What is that?"
"My... my eyes!"
"What's happening? Why can't I see anything?"
The mages on the battlefield all screamed in panic.
Because the moment they looked at the black liquid pouring down from the center of the vortex, they were instantly struck blind!
...
Inside the temporary war fortress.
Within several glows of warm light, the Lampbearers all regained their vision.
Like the mages on the battlefield, the Lampbearers had been struck blind the moment they looked directly at the black liquid pouring from the vortex. However, as their respective Lamps dispelled the pollution, their sight slowly returned.
Alice cried out, "Don't look at the sky!"
The Lampbearers, having barely regained their sight, hurriedly lowered their heads and averted their gaze.
Hengo asked frantically, "Can someone tell me what that black ghostly stuff in the sky is?"
Alice replied, "It should be the power of the Hegemon! Fortunately, we have the protection of our Lamps; otherwise, we would have all been polluted by the Hegemon's power."
Arcane's face was pale.
He couldn't imagine it—despite the protection of the spatial barrier and the Sorcerer Supremes' magic ring, just a distant glance had almost cost them their eyes.
At that moment, the old warrior's cry of shock came from the side: "How... how can this be?!"
The group followed the sound and found that the surviving mages spread across the battlefield had all turned into monsters covered in sprouts and tumors. They were roaring and howling like wild beasts all over the field!
"!?"
the Lampbearers looked at each other in horror.
It turned out that losing their eyes was only the beginning. After being struck blind, these mages—despite their magical protection—had all undergone a mutation. In just a few breaths, they had turned into these monsters that were neither human nor ghost.
"No!"
Arcane looked on in despair; many of those mages were his close friends.
Alice seemed to think of something. Risking the danger, she looked up abruptly toward Shinji in the sky...