"What's going on?" Han Shuo asked as Han Jin startled him.
Han Jin said nervously, "There are a lot of energy crystals hidden under Omphalos. I didn't notice them the last time I was here. They are used for energy cannons and are highly explosive."
"What does that mean..." Han Shuo began to think about the gravity of the situation.
"If they explode, the whole of Omphalos will be instantly vaporised! Oh heavens... If all those energy crystals go off, there's no telling whether we'll make it out alive or not! Big Brother is still in there. I'm afraid he'll be in danger if he stays!"
"Can this kind of explosion threaten an Overgod?" Han Shuo immediately wondered if this might be someone's plot against the Hegemons.
"I think even overgods will die from the explosion!" Han Jin exclaimed.
Han Shuo's expression immediately changed. He telepathically informed Han Hao and asked him to leave through the underground passage immediately.
"Han Jin, is there any way to stop the explosion?" Han Shou asked worriedly. Omphalos was not like Pandemonium; it was the hub of the Fringe, with all sorts of shops and many gods still there. It was important that it survived. He didn't want to see it reduced to rubble.
"There are not only energy crystals underground, but also caches of black crystal coins all around Omphalos. These crystals, given their high purity and energy density, will only intensify the explosion. All life in Omphalos will be instantly extinguished. Andrina added after a moment's thought. But the next moment something flashed across her eyes as she smiled.
"Bryan, don't you think we should just let the Godhunters evaporate in an instant? How wonderful it would be to kill them all right here and now!" She hated the Godhunters with a passion, thanks to her grudge. Besides, she didn't really care if Omphalos survived; it was a small price to pay for the death of all the Godhunters.
Of course, Han Shuo wouldn't choose that. Not only would the Omphalos play an important role in his future plans for the Fringe, but he also wanted to go after the Water, Fire and Life Hegemons for Han Shui, Han Huo and Han Mu. He would not allow their precious souls to be extinguished.
Not to mention that a considerable number of the Godhunters might end up serving Han Hao in the future. Killing them all would be tantamount to handicapping Han Hao after his eventual takeover of the Godhunter Alliance.
"There are methods," Han Jin said, looking at Andrina. "We can stop this if she agrees to help us."
Andrina was a unique life form with a special ability to control energy crystals. She could definitely come up with something, especially if she worked with Han Jin.
"Jin! Why are you not on my side?" she snapped.
Han Jin laughed nervously and rubbed his hands anxiously. After some hesitation, his eyes brightened. "There's a huge amount of energy crystals down there, you know. It is more than enough to raise your power to the next realm!"
Andrina seemed enchanted by the idea and giggled. "Hehe, Bryan, if you agree to let me have all the energy crystals, I'll agree to help."
"Deal. Take it all." He couldn't afford to hesitate now. Han Shuo's priorities lay elsewhere. While it didn't sit too well to give her all those crystals as a snack, he didn't have much of a choice, especially when the crystals would be as good as gone if they were detonated.
"Alright. Jin, let's isolate all the external energy waves," she said as she happily pulled Han Jin towards Omphalos.
...
Outside Omphalos, Tyre and Logue watched the whole thing eerily. Their preparations were complete.
"Logue, let us get closer! Hahaha, don't worry. One pulse of my soul is enough to flatten the whole of Omphalos. This place is still a bit far from Omphalos, so we should get moving for the best results," Tyre said. He couldn't help laughing with excitement at the thought of seeing the ruins of Omphalos. No matter how powerful he was, it couldn't stop him from letting his impending success get to his head.
Logue seemed even more excited than Tyre. "It's ready, right? Let's go! Omphalos will be ours!"
They left the barrier where they and their subordinates were hiding for Omphalos.
...
At the moment, Omphalos was in chaos. Apart from Dhaka, who had entered earlier, the other Hegemons also rushed in, killing everyone they saw as they spread out. The Sovereigns' shops became their main targets. Each of them went in search of their own shops to loot.
Most of the gods inside had fallen to the cruel godhunters without putting up a bit of resistance, most of them killed in their shops or hidden rooms where they had taken refuge.
Seeing that all the Hegemons had fallen for it, Dhaka waited in anticipation. No one paid any attention to what he was doing.
"All of you, spread out and leave Omphalos from different entrances. Hurry!" he said sternly.
"Why? Sir, we should loot as much as we can like the others. If we're slow, they'll take everything!" one of his men asked.
Dhaka snapped coldly, "It's no use if you're dead!" He swept his eyes over the others and said, "Order your men to leave Omphalos immediately, no questions asked!"
Seeing him snap with rage, they didn't dare say anything more and hurriedly left, following his orders. Even then, they didn't alert the others around them, who were too busy looting. They no longer cared what happened around them.
Back at the Celestial Pearl Pharmacy, Han Hao went underground as soon as he received Han Shuo's message. He didn't doubt the possibility of the explosion and left as quickly as he could.
He soon caught up with Polo and the others. Seeing how relaxed they were, he scolded, "Hurry up! As fast as you can!"
The others knew immediately that something was up and dragged the toxin brewers along as fast as they could without asking any questions.
Suddenly, something occurred to Han Hao. He quickly contacted Han Shuo. "This must be Tyre and Logue's doing! No one but the Sovereigns are capable of smuggling this amount of energy crystals underground so discreetly! Father, I've discovered where they are. It's..."
"I know where they are!" he interrupted as his senses detected a group of approaching people. His expanded senses allowed him to recognise Logue and Tyre's aura from a distance.
Meanwhile, Han Jin and Andrina were on their way to Omphalos. As unique life forms, they should be able to survive the explosion, especially considering that they were formed from crystalline structures like the energy crystals. In fact, they might even benefit from the energy explosion, so Han Shuo wasn't too worried.
He rushed towards the two approaching Sovereigns while continuing his conversation with Han Hao. "Jin and Andrina are approaching Omphalos to stop the explosion, but you still need to leave immediately. Go as far as you can. I don't know when they'll trigger the explosion."
"Father, those two are trying to take out the Hegemons. As soon as Andrina and Jin have taken care of the situation, send me a message. I will take my men to block the exits and make them pay for destroying Pandemonium!"
"Alright. I'll take care of Logue and Tyre." The next moment he reached where they were, but didn't show himself. He was afraid that his presence would cause them to blow up the crystals in a panic.
When he realised that Han Hao and the others had left and that Han Jin and Andrina had reached the depths of Omphalos, he appeared in front of Logue, Tyre and their men.