Dust hung thick as fog, blotting out the sky and the weak moonlight. Only the exposed, glowing red rock where Giant's Peak had shattered provided any light, like monstrous blood vessels ripped from the earth, illuminating the terrifying shape that had broken free.
Seraphia coughed violently, the dust she inhaled burning like sulfur, scraping her throat and lungs. She struggled to lift her head. Crushing fear and utter exhaustion nearly overwhelmed her, but a stubborn sense of mission, deep in her soul, kept her neck straight, forcing her to look up.
The first thing she saw were his eyes.
It was no metaphor. In the swirling smoke, two points of intense, molten-gold light burned. The fury and wildness in them felt hot enough to ignite the air itself. Merely meeting that gaze would shatter the courage of the bravest warrior.
Then, the dust shifted, revealing more.
He was immensely tall, easily over three meters, but not clumsy. His form was primal power and perfect, agile strength. His skin was a deep bronze, covered in dark red, lava-like patterns that pulsed faintly with his breath. His black hair, short and sharp like steel needles, stood defiantly on end.
His face was rugged, all hard lines—a strong jaw, tight lips, a prominent nose. But it was all dominated by those burning gold eyes, which held too many years of imprisonment and now overflowed with pure, destructive rage.
He wore no shirt, only a roughly-tanned beast-hide loincloth. His powerful muscles were mapped with faint white scars, marks from ancient battles long healed.
And most striking was what he held.
A **metal staff**, nearly as tall as he was.
It was a dull, dark gold color, with darker red bands reinforcing its ends. The shaft wasn't perfectly smooth, covered in subtle, hard-to-make-out markings. It looked impossibly heavy. Just resting casually on the ground, its base made the rock beneath it crack and sink无声ly.
He just stood there. His mere presence seemed to warp the space around him, thick with suffocating pressure. The shattered mountain, the choking dust, the hellish red glow—it all served as a backdrop for him.
**Kaelan.**
The name surfaced in Seraphia's mind, accompanied by Old Hunter Bartow's fearful descriptions—"The Rage That Splits Stone," "The Unchained Spirit," "a walking disaster." Every word now had a terrifying, concrete form.
Kaelan drew a deep, greedy breath, as if trying to swallow a thousand years of free air all at once. His chest expanded with the movement, radiating a bestial power.
Then, he made a sound.
It wasn't speech. It was a long,压抑的, finally unleashed roar.
"ROOOOAAAAAARRRR—!!!!!!"
The roar was like a billion thunderstorms exploding from his chest, instantly drowning out all other sound. The shockwave became a physical force, shoving the clouds of dust outward in a clear, ring-shaped blast!
Seraphia felt her eardrums scream. Her head rang. The world went silent except for that roar of destruction and return echoing inside her skull. She felt the ground tremble anew under the sound, more rubble shaking loose from the surrounding cliffs.
The roar lasted a full ten seconds before fading, its echoes rumbling through the mountains, a declaration to the whole world.
Kaelan slowly lowered his head. Those molten gold eyes focused, for the first time, clearly and directly, on the small, almost insignificant white figure at his feet.
His gaze held no gratitude, no curiosity. Only an **extreme, profound indifference and annoyance**, like one would look at a pebble on the path or an ant scurrying underfoot.
*Was this the tiny thing that made all that annoying light and noise? The one who woke him?*
Seraphia's heart nearly stopped. Under that gaze, she felt smaller than dust, ready to be crushed by any casual movement. She tried to speak, to recite the prophecy, to explain her purpose, but the immense pressure and terror locked her throat. No sound came out.
Kaelan's brow furrowed, just slightly, as if her mere presence was an irritant. He didn't even bother with a real attack. He simply raised his empty left hand, as if to brush away a speck of dust, and flicked it casually in her direction.
He never touched her.
But an utterly irresistible,暴烈的 **invisible force** instantly materialized. It was like a tidal wave, a storm compressed and unleashed. It slammed into Seraphia.
"Ugh—!"
She couldn't even cry out. Her body was flung backward like a stone from a catapult!
The world spun疯狂ly. Wind roared in her ears. Her body screamed in protest. She crashed into a pile of scattered rocks dozens of meters away with a sickening thud, then tumbled to the ground.
Agony erupted through her, as if every bone was misaligned, every muscle torn. The taste of iron flooded her mouth. She coughed, spattering drops of blood onto her pure white robes, a stark, violent contrast.
Consciousness began to fade, darkness swallowing the edges of her vision.
The last thing she saw before slipping away was the giant, demon-god-like figure. He didn't even grant her a second glance. He merely rolled his shoulders with a faint crack of bones, and took a step, seeming ready to leave the ruins of his eternal prison behind.
*Where was he going? To unleash his pent-up rage? To tear the sky and earth anew?*
*No… can't…*
*The mission… the world…*
A thought, faint yet incredibly tough, yanked her back from the edge of darkness.
It couldn't end like this.
With the last of her strength, her trembling, bloodied hand fumbled at her chest, finding the holy symbol—now completely dull, even cracked.
There was… one last way.
A final, desperate measure she'd prayed never to use, but had prepared nonetheless.
A shackle.
Her lips moved, a faint, almost silent breath mixing with blood, forcing out a few broken syllables.
It was a **True Name**, ancient and long forgotten.
As the syllables left her lips, a point of incredibly faint, yet pure white light ignited at the very core of the damaged symbol.
At the same moment, Kaelan, who had been about to stride away into the dust, froze mid-step.
He whirled around.
Kaelan whirled around!
His molten-gold pupils contracted sharply. The indifference was gone, replaced by a furious,近乎疯狂的暴虐 light—the rage of a primordial beast stung by a needle from a creature it considered dust!
It wasn't physical pain. It was something deeper, more infuriating: **Restraint**.
Those faint yet stubbornly persistent syllables of the True Name acted like intangible, incredibly tough threads, materializing to coil around the core of his soul, trying to forcibly bind him to that small, fragile, white figure he could crush with a wave of his hand!
"You—DARE!!!"
A true roar of fury finally exploded from Kaelan's throat. Not the宣泄 shout from before, but a咆哮 filled with clear, murderous intent! The sound wave was even more terrifying than before, making Seraphia's ears and nose bleed anew, cracking the ground beneath her!
BOOM!
He moved!
No longer a casual flick. This was a true, angry attack!
He didn't even use the terrifying metal staff. He simply threw a straightforward, punch through the air aimed at Seraphia!
THUMP!!!
The air itself exploded!
A visible ring of white shockwave erupted. A terrifying force of condensed power, enough to level a small hill, shot forward like a solid pillar of iron,粉碎一切碎石和烟尘 in its path, instantly arriving before Seraphia!
Fast! Impossibly fast! Merciless! Utterly without mercy!
This was the angry strike of the "Rage That Splits Stone"! He would erase this insect who dared touch what was forbidden, who tried to leash him, and everything around her, from the world!
Seraphia's eyes reflected the destructive force. The cold scent of death choked her. She couldn't even react.
But, in the instant before the destructive pressure could turn her to dust—
HUMmmm!!!
The cracked holy symbol in her embrace erupted with an unprecedented, blazing white light!
The light was no longer gentle. It solidified into an **indestructible holy barrier**, covered in countless ancient runes that flowed across its surface at blinding speed!
BOOM!!!
Kaelan's mountain-shattering punch landed square on the white light barrier!
The deafening blast threatened to rip eardrums apart! A狂暴 shockwave spread outward in a sphere, clearing and粉碎一切较大的碎石 for hundreds of meters!
Yet—
The seemingly fragile white barrier fluctuated violently, its surface rippling like water, emitting an ear-piercing screech like glass about to break, but it—**held**!
It had actually blocked Kaelan's furious blow!
"What?!" Kaelan's rage was momentarily mixed with disbelief.
This punch, though not his full strength, was not something any ordinary creature or so-called "hero" could withstand! What was that piece of junk on this woman who looked like she could be blown over by a breath?!
The recoil shook Seraphia, making her spit blood again, but hope flared in her eyes—the prophecy was true! The Saint's safeguard *could* restrain this human-shaped disaster!
"In... in the name of the Dawn..." she gasped, enduring excruciating pain in both soul and body, wringing out the last dregs of her spirit and life force. She chanted the binding True Name more clearly, more firmly!
"Decree—**Bind**!"
As the final syllable left her lips, the light from the symbol changed. It shifted from defense into countless chains of blinding white light, etched with runes! They clanked through the air, instantly crossing the space to coil around Kaelan!
These chains were not physical, acting directly on his soul and the source of his power!
"GET OFF ME!!!"
Kaelan exploded with pure rage. He roared, the dark red patterns on his body blazing to life.狂暴 power surged from him like a volcano, trying to blast apart, to break free from these annoying chains of light!
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Terrifying energy eruptions exploded out from him. The ground shattered and sank in layers. The shockwaves were horrifying.
The white chains shook疯狂ly, flickering, groaning with a metallic shriek, seeming on the verge of snapping!
But they were incredibly tough. And as if alive, the more they were struck, the tighter they coiled. More runes manifested from the air, reinforcing the chains constantly.
Simultaneously, a powerful **compulsion** was carved into the core of Kaelan's awareness—**Cannot harm her! Must protect her!**
"GRAAAAAAH!!!" Kaelan howled in utter agony and fury. Not physical pain, but the extreme humiliation and rage of a supremely proud soul that cherished absolute freedom being forcibly shackled!
He swung his fists, even hefted the dark gold staff, smashing at the chains of light and the empty air around him!
BOOOOM!!!
The earth shook疯狂ly, more violently than when he broke free. More cliffs cracked and collapsed. It seemed the entire Giant's Peak would disintegrate under his wrath!
Yet, no matter how he raged, no matter how he attacked, the chains of light only twisted and flickered, showing no signs of breaking. They were rooted in an ancient covenant and Seraphia's pure faith, temporarily but forcibly bound to his very essence. They couldn't be broken by brute force alone.
Crucially, every time he tried to direct his attack toward Seraphia, even just the *thought*, an intense, nearly soul-rending pain would sear through him, forcing his power to veer away and dissipate!
He, the **Rage That Splits Stone**, Kaelan, had truly been subdued by a mortal he could crush with a casual hand, using the method he despised most—**contract and restraint**!
The疯狂 destruction lasted a full fifteen minutes. The basin was practically leveled anew.
Finally, Kaelan's movements slowly stilled.
He stood there, breathing heavily not from exhaustion, but from pure,无处发泄 rage. The terrifying energy around him gradually calmed, but his molten gold eyes were like solidified volcanic rock, churning with a fury and killing intent hot enough to burn the world.
The white chains also faded into the air, but their presence was etched clearly into the soul connection between them.
The covenant was established.
Seraphia lay limp amidst the rubble, barely clinging to life, without the strength to lift a finger. But looking at the figure restrained by overwhelming fury, the corner of her pale mouth twitched upwards with immense effort.
Success...
Kaelan slowly lifted his head. His gaze, sharp as the finest blades, pinned Seraphia to the spot. The ferocity and anger in it could have flayed her alive.
He walked towards her, each step making the earth tremble slightly, like a heartbeat.
He crouched down, his immense shadow completely engulfing her. An overwhelming pressure, smelling of sulfur and storm, washed over her, making it hard to breathe.
He stared at her for a long, long time. His voice was low, hoarse, filled with压抑到极致的 rage and a disgust so thick it was almost physical, each word forced through gritted teeth:
"You. Damnable. Woman."
"What. Do. You. Want?"
Seraphia met his gaze, which could make gods tremble. Using the last of her strength, her voice was faint but clear:
"West... The Spine of the World... The Primordial Scripture..."
"Take me... Find it..."