Chapter 682: Earth-Shaking Roar
"Boom!"
Cassius flapped his wings and lowered his head. Countless dazzling specks of light erupted from the dragon crystal on his chest, while a terrifying energy built up in his throat, unleashed with a sonic crack.
Primordial Breath!
A massive pillar of fire tore the sky apart. The outer flames had turned into brilliant blue, while the inner core was an incandescent white—its temperature soaring to tens of thousands of degrees. If any ordinary being had been present, they would have been vaporized by the shockwave alone.
But as the incarnation of war, as a deity who had fought since the ancient days, Gruumsh had slain many dragons. He knew their breath weapons all too well—even if this one was unimaginably powerful.
"Wummm—"
A sharp clang rang out. Complex sigils lit up all over Gruumsh's scarred, black plate armor. Dozens of high-tier divine spells were layered on his form.
"You think—this pathetic breath can defeat a god?"
Gruumsh ascended with billowing black smoke, thrusting out his left hand to draw forth a giant divine shield bearing the insignia of the One-Eyed God, placing it before him.
Instantly, the blue-white flame column was blocked—and even reflected. The searing inferno turned into a roaring sea of fire before the shield, nearly burning a void into space.
Yet Gruumsh was unfazed. Divine power turned into blood-red light that coated his body and shield, his divine barrier indestructible.
His single eye gleamed with savagery, fixed unrelentingly on the Red Dragon. A blood-red flash flickered in that pupil, making even Cassius shudder—that was the Unblinking Eye!
"No!"
Cassius quickly turned his head to avoid eye contact, but the eye burst forth with overwhelming bloodlight, swallowing him whole.
In an instant, Cassius seemed to return to an ancient battlefield, facing mountains of corpses made of elves, dwarves, and orcs—not merely an illusion, but a divine reconstruction of the world tens of thousands of years ago!
And atop a mound of bodies sat Gruumsh's true form, gripping the Blood Spear, glaring down at him like thunder: "Blasphemer, be pierced through the heart by the sacred spear!"
In the Material Plane, Gruumsh's right hand gripped the Blood Spear. Veins bulged on his arm as he aimed the spear's tip straight at Cassius's heart.
The spear's tip, shrouded in black light and thin mist, radiated a murderous aura—that was Dragon-Slaying Power!
For any creature with the essence of "dragon"—even partially—this power inflicted tremendous damage. In ancient wars, Gruumsh had used it to kill several renowned Ancient Dragons.
And Cassius, as a bearer of Progenitor Dragon blood, was the very embodiment of "dragon."
Seizing the moment as the Red Dragon was dazed by the Unblinking Eye, Gruumsh launched his assault.
"Blasphemer, be pierced through the heart by the sacred spear!"
Gruumsh bellowed thunderously and hurled the spear with a savage grin. The Blood Spear, imbued with Dragon-Slaying Power, pierced the sky, aimed straight for the Red Dragon's heart.
Simultaneously, on the ancient battlefield, Gruumsh stood atop the corpse hill, roaring and throwing a spectral spear at Cassius.
In that moment, Cassius's body, spirit, and even soul were assaulted. The spear surged with power, threatening to erase him from existence.
"No! Danger! This is clearly an illusion!" Cassius roared inwardly.
In the next instant, flames surged in his golden vertical pupils. The ancient battlefield ignited, shattering like broken glass, and the Blood Spear dissolved.
The divine realm of the ancient battlefield collapsed in an instant!
Gruumsh blinked, then smirked: "You actually broke free... but it's too late now."
The real Blood Spear had already crossed the sky, a black streak nearing Cassius's heart.
Feeling the focused intensity of the Dragon-Slaying Power, Cassius's expression shifted sharply—this was bad.
"That move... truly worthy of a greater divine avatar!"
An instinctive dread, fear, and hatred washed over him. He could even hear his ancestors—the kilometer-long Progenitor Dragons—howling in sorrow.
Since becoming a quasi-Progenitor Dragon, he had never felt such terror. No matter how tough his scales or thick his hide, he couldn't resist an attack that struck at his very essence.
He had to dodge—even at any cost!
Cassius roared internally. His mind flooded with thousands of thoughts. Dozens of spells were instantly cast and layered upon himself.
Magic runes on his scales lit up; protective and enhancement spells interwove in a dazzling array. His body became a fortress of arcane defense, surrounded by flickering spell auras and chaotic spatial turbulence.
Cassius became a walking fortress. He beat his wings, preparing to become a crimson blur.
But Gruumsh's eye was filled with confidence and scorn. To him, mortal magic was like paper—utterly meaningless.
"Screeeech—"
The Blood Spear, still imbued with Dragon-Slaying Power, tore through space, relentlessly closing in on Cassius's heart.
"Crack."
A crisp sound echoed.
A golden pocket watch with intricate engravings appeared in the sky. Its hands stopped abruptly with a sharp click.
In an instant, a mighty force of time and space descended. Everything within dozens of miles fell still—flames, stones, and smoke all froze midair.
On the battlefield below at Blackstone Mountain, bullets and shells hung motionless. Muzzle flashes remained suspended.
Orcs charged amid gunfire, faces twisted in rage, axes mid-swing, saliva hanging in the air.
One orc had a bullet stopped right at his brow. Once time resumed, it would shatter his skull.
In a way, Cassius had just saved his life—though the frozen orc had no idea.
Cassius had activated the power of the [Temporal Pocket Watch]!
It granted a twelve-second time stop—but afterward, the watch's power would greatly diminish, or it might even break.
Yet Gruumsh remained unaffected. He moved freely in the frozen world, frowning slightly and muttering, "Roald's aura? That damned ancient Time Dragon..."
He raised his head, smirking. "But did you think a mere time stop could stop a greater divine being?"
"Swish—"
The Blood Spear pierced the frozen spacetime, still flying toward Cassius's heart—but slower now, no longer instantly fatal.
In this silent world, Cassius flapped his wings madly, skimming low and dodging the spear.
"Stop struggling—"
"Foolish Red Dragon! When time resumes, so will your death!"
Gruumsh's arrogant voice echoed through the stillness, making the frozen world tremble.
He teleported again and again, tailing Cassius from afar, eager to witness the fatal strike.
"You're celebrating too early!"
Cassius suddenly turned. The dragon crystal on his chest shone like a celestial body, flooding the world with light and heat.
At the final moment of the time stop, chaos flame, order fire, and solar divinity erupted. A torrential surge of energy burst from the Red Dragon's maw!
"Boom—"
The Blood Spear kept advancing, but now it moved like a boat against a storm, slowed by the tide of energy.
Its outer layer of Dragon-Slaying Power was corroded, neutralized, reduced to fading black mist.
At last, the divine spear disintegrated, turning into scattered light, devoured by Cassius's breath of plunder.
The pocket watch dimmed, cracks appearing on its dial. The [Time Stop] ended. Time flowed again. Smoke surged, winds howled, and gravel danced.
The time imbalance twisted space near the spell's edge, spawning turbulent flows.
On the ground, the frozen bullet resumed its flight and shattered the orc's skull—brain matter spraying.
"Boom!"
"For the Father God's glory!"
"For the Empire! Long live His Majesty Cassius!"
"Crush them!"
Smoke filled the battlefield as orcs charged and fell under the Empire's brutal firepower. The cruel, bloody world roared back to life.
Gruumsh's face darkened. He gnashed his teeth, fury twisting his features. A deep glow returned to his lone eye.
That Blood Spear had been a true divine artifact. With it devoured, Gruumsh felt even his real weapon lose one-thousandth of its power.
That wasn't a small amount—not after thousands of years of accumulation—and at the hands of a mere mortal!
Cassius had already sensed the sinister gleam in the Unblinking Eye and swiftly dodged, soaring northward on burning winds.
In most battles, he used [Calamity Dragon Eye] and other prophecy spells to anticipate his enemy's moves.
But Gruumsh's divine rank made him immune to all such magic: no mortal could glimpse him, no magic could affect him, no illusions deceive him. That was divine magic resistance.
In contrast, Gruumsh's omniscient perception let him predict mortals' and lesser gods' actions with precision.
Erezaghe's Supreme Laws suppressed divine power, allowing gods to descend only in avatar form—yet even one-thousandth of their power placed them at the top of the Material Realm.
"Red Dragon! You think you can escape?!" Gruumsh's furious roar echoed across the world.
He raised his right hand. Scarlet divine light surged forth, forming a heavy, ancient battleaxe, its blade stained with elf and dwarf blood.
—Legend says this axe once severed an elven god's head!
Gruumsh gripped the axe in both hands and leapt hundreds of meters high, diving at the Red Dragon's skull.
"Blasphemer! You will be judged!" Gruumsh roared, bringing his full might down on Cassius.
Divine energy surged from all sides, binding Cassius like chains, suffocating him.
"Boom—"
But Cassius raised his head and let out an earth-shaking roar. Progenitor power awakened fully. Lava flowed through his veins.
His face contorted. Wings flared. Muscles tensed. His mountain-sized form shattered the divine field.
Nearly sixty meters long and packed with brute force, Cassius's casual strikes now surpassed most spells. His body alone could level cities.
"Die!"
Gruumsh struck with the battleaxe. Cassius narrowly dodged—but the axe still caught his right arm.
A metallic clang rang out. Blood sprayed. The divine axe tore through scales, severing a massive chunk of flesh.
The wound was clean, but divine light clung to it, gnawing the flesh and widening the gash.
The axe hit the ground, blasting smoke skyward and carving a canyon hundreds of meters long and ten meters deep. Even the sky cracked.
Such was greater divine power—even an avatar could bring cataclysm!
"Roaaar—"
Cassius screamed from the searing pain as divine power corroded the wound. Rage burst from his golden eyes.
As Gruumsh retrieved the axe, Cassius swung his left arm with full force. His claw tore through the air, striking.
Gruumsh nimbly rolled aside. The claw hit the cliffs, causing a landslide.
Gruumsh got up and spun, swinging his axe at Cassius's exposed left neck, aiming to decapitate him.
Cassius noticed and dodged—just in time to protect his vital spots.
The glowing axe still slashed his torso. It cut through golden-red scales and thick skin, nearly gouging deep.
Cassius twisted violently, enduring the hit, and slammed his right claw into Gruumsh, hurling him back in a spray of divine blood.
But Gruumsh had carved a massive, gory wound into his side, nearly splitting him open.
Golden light poured down. [Dragon's Vitality] worked furiously to heal the wounds, aided by Progenitor power—but the divine energy still clung, festering like a curse.
"His avatar's not as strong as me, but this old green skin has fought for thousands of years. His experience, skill, and divine awareness are ridiculous."
Watching the grinning Gruumsh rise again, Cassius licked the blood from his lips, expression grim.
He was sure Gruumsh had predicted that blow, yet judged it worth the damage to land a strike.