CHAPTER 330: DOMINATION

Without waiting for a response, Valerian’s movements blurred, the scythe spinning faster than eyes could track. It slashed in a massive, sweeping arc, one so vast and powerful that it seemed to momentarily cleave through reality itself.

Orion’s eyes widened in horror as he realized Valerian’s true intention. He moved too late.

The scythe’s dark blade effortlessly carved through ranks of soldiers, utterly indifferent to friend or foe.

A sea of Lionkin and Tigerkin fell simultaneously, bodies crumpling lifelessly, thousands instantly silenced. The battlefield fell into stunned stillness, disbelief and fear gripping every surviving warrior’s heart.

"Monster..." Arya whispered softly, her violet eyes wide with shock and grief.

Orion’s expression darkened, fury blazing fiercely within his draconic eyes. His grip tightened furiously around his dual swords, the pulsing auras of fire and thunder intensifying sharply.

"How dare you!" he roared, voice echoing with a powerful resonance, shaking the very air around them.

Valerian turned back leisurely, seemingly unmoved by the carnage he’d just wrought, his pale face carrying a gentle smile devoid of remorse. "Did that anger you? Good. Channel that rage and perhaps you’ll entertain me," he said calmly, beckoning mockingly with a gentle curl of his fingers.

Just as Orion prepared to launch forward, an immense tremor shook the very fabric of space around them. A deep, resonant hum filled the battlefield, vibrating in every warrior’s chest, forcing everyone to look skyward.

From above, space itself tore open violently, as if reality could no longer contain the strain of such powerful combatants.

Through the rift emerged a towering shape, incomprehensible in scale. It extended downward slowly, dark and ancient, etched with incomprehensible runes glowing softly with celestial light.

"What... is that?" Nyss murmured, her normally composed voice laced with awe and a touch of unease.

Orion’s eyes widened sharply as realization dawned, a chill running down his spine. "That’s... no tower. It’s a staff," he breathed, astonishment evident in his voice.

Indeed, the massive structure that had appeared was undeniably a staff, a celestial object of unimaginable scale, seemingly larger than mountains, descending gradually from a cosmic realm. However, the staff carried with itself some truly strong spatial storms, enough to destroy anyone who dared to come close.

Spatial storms were strong in the surrounding of the structure.

Its sheer size dwarfed entire cities, its appearance filling all who witnessed it with an instinctive sense of insignificance and reverence.

Valerian turned toward the enormous staff, his eyes alight with genuine excitement and fierce ambition. "Finally!" he whispered fervently, a rare passion bleeding through his composed facade.

"It’s starting to appear, just need to wait for the spatial storms to calm down. And this time... this time, no one will stop me from obtaining it!"

Sensing an opportunity, Orion immediately lunged forward, his massive wings propelling him toward Valerian with blazing speed, his blades roaring furiously with their dual elemental might.

"Don’t let him get that staff!" Orion commanded powerfully, prompting his companions to follow suit without hesitation.

Arya, Emilia, Sylvia, Nyss, Felira, Elias, and Kale charged forward together, united by their determination to stop Valerian.

However, at that critical juncture, the five warriors from the Thunderpeak Kingdom exchanged uneasy glances, their expressions filled with hesitation and realization. The female among them shook her head slowly, regret evident in her eyes.

"This battle... it’s beyond us now," she murmured softly, looking at her companions. "If we stay, we’ll only die meaningless deaths."

One of the men grimaced but nodded reluctantly. "Agreed. We must leave. We’re not their match."

Quietly, regretfully, the five warriors retreated swiftly, stepping into the shimmering portal that would return them safely to their homeland. Their departure left Orion’s group alone to face Valerian and his monstrous strength.

Valerian noticed their departure, amused contempt flickering momentarily across his expression. He raised his chained scythe effortlessly, spinning it lazily as Orion’s group swiftly approached.

"Cowards survive, heroes perish. I wonder which fate you’ve chosen," he mocked softly, eyes fixated on Orion.

Orion didn’t bother to respond to his taunt, instead roaring furiously as he swung both swords simultaneously, sending waves of fire and lightning hurtling toward Valerian.

But Valerian merely laughed softly, a sound filled with dark amusement.

He spun his chained scythe rapidly, effortlessly deflecting Orion’s attack, then flicked his wrist casually, the black chain whipping around with impossible precision, forcing the rest of Orion’s companions to scatter desperately to evade the lethal arc.

Sylvia surged forward from the side, wind swirling furiously around her blade. "Die!" she shouted defiantly, slicing sharply with Intermediate Grade Sword Intent.

Yet, Valerian moved smoothly, blocking effortlessly with a small smirk of amusement.

Nyss attacked simultaneously from the shadows, her scythe infused heavily with thunderous energy. But Valerian sidestepped gracefully, smoothly dodging the strike, casually kicking Nyss backward, sending her crashing painfully into the rubble.

Elias summoned crushing gravity around Valerian, Felira reinforcing him with numerous vines attempting to entangle him.

Yet Valerian barely appeared bothered, easily breaking free from their bindings, ignoring the oppressive gravitational force altogether.

Emilia’s spear crackled violently as she thrust forward alongside Kale’s wind-imbued longsword, yet their coordinated assault ended abruptly as Valerian simply flicked his scythe, deflecting their blows with barely a hint of effort.

Arya desperately chanted, powerful bolts of thunder and holy light surging toward Valerian. But he waved his hand dismissively, shattering Arya’s spells effortlessly with a bored expression.

Orion growled furiously, pushing himself to the limit. His body strained under the immense pressure of dual Intermediate Sword Auras, yet Valerian appeared entirely unfazed, easily matching Orion’s immense strength with his own terrifyingly casual counterattacks.

"Impressive," Valerian said calmly, his elegant voice carrying clearly above the chaotic battle. "For mortals, you display remarkable talent. However, talent alone cannot close the gap between ants and gods."

Orion gritted his teeth, breathing heavily, every muscle burning fiercely with exhaustion. Despite giving everything, he had yet to leave even a scratch on Valerian’s calm, perfect visage.

The chaotic battlefield was drowned in the echoes of explosions, desperate cries, and the clashing of steel against steel, yet all eyes inevitably returned to the figure of Valerian.

Standing confidently amidst the carnage, his dark scythe spinning effortlessly, the vampire lord wore a faint, mocking smile, utterly unbothered by the desperate assaults of Orion and his companions.

Orion surged forward again, roaring defiantly as he launched twin elemental sword waves, one blazing with intense fire, the other surging violently with thunder.

But Valerian merely sidestepped with elegant ease, the destructive energy waves dissipating harmlessly into the distance behind him.

Orion gritted his teeth in frustration, chest heaving heavily with exhaustion, each strike draining him further. He refused to show weakness, but a grim realization began to gnaw at the edge of his consciousness.

’Is he truly unbeatable?’ he wondered silently, his dragon blood boiling furiously, angrily urging him to fight on.

Every muscle burned, yet Orion stood resolutely, swords glowing fiercely as he prepared another strike.

Arya’s staff glowed brightly, light and thunder swirling around her as she channeled her most powerful spells, unleashing relentless barrages of lightning bolts toward Valerian.

Each devastating strike, capable of obliterating dozens of warriors at once, was calmly deflected by the vampire’s scythe, an infuriatingly gentle flick all it took to nullify Arya’s desperate attacks.

"Keep attacking!" Arya shouted bravely, despite exhaustion clearly evident in her trembling voice. Her determination sparked courage among her friends.

Emilia, Sylvia, and Kale rushed in close formation, coordinating their strikes from multiple directions simultaneously.

Spear, swords, wind, and thunder weaved intricately, a beautiful but deadly combo, yet Valerian merely chuckled lightly, effortlessly stepping between their attacks, gracefully avoiding blows that missed him by mere millimeters.

His scythe spun casually in his grasp, occasionally lashing out to repel their furious charges.

Elias and Felira combined their abilities desperately, gravity pressing down to slow Valerian’s movements, while countless vines burst from the ground, attempting to bind and immobilize him.

Yet every attempt ended the same; Valerian casually shattered their spells, the tremendous effort they put forth seeming like nothing more than an amusing diversion to him.

Nyss materialized from shadows, her scythe poised to strike from behind. "Die!" she hissed sharply, eyes cold with killing intent.

Yet Valerian simply smiled softly, his dark eyes meeting hers as he pivoted, effortlessly catching her blade with his chained scythe, spinning her weapon aside, sending her sprawling back to the group.

The vampire lord, calm and untouchable, regarded Orion’s exhausted party with faint curiosity. "Such fierce tenacity," Valerian remarked softly, his elegant voice cutting through the battlefield’s noise. "It’s truly admirable. Yet... pointless."