The Celestial Executioner raised its flaming sword, and for a moment, it felt like a second sun had descended upon New York City. The asphalt beneath Arthur's feet turned into a bubbling river of tar. People miles away were shielding their eyes from the blinding radiance.
"Mortal, you have played with forces beyond your comprehension," the Executioner's voice boomed, vibrating the very atoms of the air. "Now, witness the wrath of the True Heavens! Solar Flare: Extinction!"
A beam of pure, white-hot plasma erupted from the Executioner's chest, moving at the speed of light. It was an attack designed to wipe out an entire continent.
Arthur didn't flinch. He raised his left hand, and the dark gold aura around him intensified until it became a solid wall of absolute void.
"100x Multiplier... Void Consumption: Infinite Hunger!"
As the solar beam hit Arthur's shield, it didn't explode. Instead, it was sucked into a black hole that had appeared in front of Arthur's palm. The darkness didn't just stop the light; it began to 'eat' it.
[Ding!]
[Passive Skill '100x Multiplier' Activated!]
[Absorbed Divine Energy multiplied x100!]
[Host Strength and Mana are increasing exponentially!]
The Executioner's eyes, which were made of pure starlight, widened in shock. "What?! You are consuming the energy of a Star? No mortal vessel can hold that much mana!"
"I'm not a mortal anymore," Arthur said, his voice sounding like the collision of galaxies.
In a flash of dark gold lightning, Arthur appeared behind the Executioner. He didn't use his dagger. He reached out and grabbed one of the Executioner's twelve golden wings. With a roar of pure power, Arthur ripped the wing clean off.
The Executioner shrieked, a sound that shattered every glass window in Manhattan. Golden blood, glowing like liquid fire, rained down on the streets below.
"You talk about the Heavens as if they are superior," Arthur said, his eyes glowing with a violet fire. "But I have been to the bottom of the Abyss. I have seen the truth. Your light is just a mask for your greed."
Arthur thrust his Sovereign Dagger into the back of the Executioner's neck.
"100x Multiplier... Monarch's Final Sentence!"
BOOM!
The Executioner exploded in a supernova of white and black energy. The shockwave cleared the clouds over the entire East Coast of the United States. When the light faded, the golden god was gone. Only a single, glowing core remained floating in the air.
[Ding!]
[You have slain a 'Celestial Executioner' (Rank: Lesser Deity).]
[Base Experience: 500,000,000 EXP]
[Base Loot: Divine Spark x1, Sun God's Essence x1, 5,000,000 Platinum Coins.]
[100x Multiplier Activated!]
[Experience gained: 50,000,000,000 EXP!]
[Loot gained: Divine Spark x100, Sun God's Essence x100, 500,000,000 Platinum Coins!]
[Ding! LEVEL UP! LEVEL UP!...]
[Host has reached Level 500!]
[New Title Acquired: 'God-Slayer Monarch'.]
Arthur descended back to the melted streets of Times Square. The silence was absolute. Thousands of people, soldiers, and hunters were staring at him with a mix of terror and awe. He was no longer a man. He was the shield that had just saved the world from a god.