Not long after, the anticipated sound of shifting wind echoed above him.
Riveria and the members of Ganesha Familia descended, arriving via the vertical shaft Dionysus' ascension had carved open.
Their landing was precise, synchronized. As the dust settled, Riveria stepped forward with swift grace.
"Leon, where do you need us?" She asked without hesitation.
Leon nodded. "Riveria, Tsubaki, Gareth, you three will take care of the final demi-spirit."
His gaze then shifted to Shakti. "As for you… the artificial labyrinth is still crawling with Evilus remnants. Take this opportunity to crush them completely."
The final demi-spirit was more than manageable with Riveria and her team, especially with Haruhime's support nearby.
Bringing the entire Ganesha Familia along would be inefficient. Their numbers were better used for something else.
After all, the mission wasn't just to eliminatethe threat of Gate of Heaven, it was also to wipe out Evilus.
Many in the Loki Familia, especially Finn, harbored deep hatred toward Evilus. For them, it wasn't enough to repel the threat, they wanted to root it out and burn it from existence.
Leon agreed. Evilus were like parasites. Always scheming, always lurking. Even when they didn't cause large-scale disasters, they poisoned Orario's peace little by little.
Originally, Leon had planned to clean them out after the demi-spirit crisis. But now that enough troops were deployed—
Why wait?
"I understand." Riveria said, and Gareth and Tsubaki nodded in unison.
Shakti, however, frowned slightly.
"Are you sure you won't need us?" She asked, her brows furrowed.
She wasn't questioning his judgment. Shakti had already received reports about how they had detected widespread movement through the labyrinth.
Her concern was directed toward the demi spirits. According to Fels, the Gate of Heaven could bring about Orario's annihilation.
Leon met her gaze calmly.
"Initially, yes, I needed you for that." He admitted. "But Freya Familia has already arrived. I assigned two of the demi spirits to them."
"With the last one left, Riveria's group is more than capable of handling it."
"You focus on wiping out Evilus in one clean sweep."
"…Freya Familia?" Shakti blinked in surprise. "They're here too?"
"They're already in the labyrinth." Leon confirmed.
"They arrived before you and descended through the same vertical passage. Their targets have been assigned."
Shakti was visibly taken aback. Freya Familia was known to act independently and rarely involved themselves in communal matters like these. During the Dark Age, they had lent support on a few rare occasions, but aside from that, they kept to themselves.
For them to take the initiative like this...
"…I understand." Shakti replied after a beat. "Send me the known locations."
Leon nodded and didn't waste time. He quickly relayed the deployment strategy, splitting up the targets between Riveria's team and Ganesha Familia. With that, everyone moved swiftly.
Ganesha Familia broke into two detachments—one to proceed toward their objective and eliminate Evilus strongholds, and one to guide the remaining adventurers scattered through the labyrinth.
Riveria and her team stood ready. Just before they began to act, Riveria turned back toward Leon.
"Leon." She called out. "Are you heading to the next level… to face Nidhogg?"
"Yeah." Leon gave a light nod in response.
"Understood. Be careful out there." Riveria replied with a soft smile. Then, without wasting time, she turned and led the main force away.
Leon stood in place for a few seconds, quietly watching them disappear into the distance. Once their silhouettes faded from view, he exhaled lightly and turned on his heel.
The six demi spirits were now in capable hands. It was time for him to head down to the eleventh floor—to confront the looming threat known as Nidhogg.
But this time… he wasn't going to follow the usual route.
Leon looked up at the massive hole in the ceiling—the one carved open by Dionysus's divine ascension. His expression twisted into one of faint amusement.
"…Why didn't I think of this earlier?"
With a quiet chuckle, he placed one hand firmly against the ground. In an instant, Hyper Dying Will Mode activated, and the terrain beneath him began to change.
BOOM!!!
The crimson dying will flame burst outward, roaring violently as it vaporized the floor and blasted open a massive hole that extended directly to the level below.
The fiery explosion rumbled through the air, and a glowing crater opened at Leon's feet.
"Hah… much easier than walking." Leon smirked as he gazed down at the newly created path. With a single leap, he dove into the smoke-filled hole and descended to the eleventh floor.
Earlier, he had been confined by conventional thinking—progressing layer by layer through narrow stairs and winding passages.
But this wasn't a traditional dungeon. The artificial labyrinth wasn't forged entirely from indestructible orichalcum. Aside from a few reinforced mechanical doors, the structure was largely stonework.
There was no need to follow the stairs. Just break through it all.
It was a realization that had struck Leon only after watching Dionysus' divine beam pierce the entire artificial labyrinth from top to bottom.
His boots hit the stone floor of the eleventh level. Without missing a beat, Leon extended his hand and cast a powerful detection magic, scanning the surrounding terrain in a wide radius. It didn't take long. Soon enough, he found it.
A flicker in the magic signal—massive, dense, and deeply ominous.
Nidhogg.
Leon vanished from his spot, flying through the passage like a shadow.
What greeted him was a space far larger than any room above—a grand altar chamber connected by multiple tunnels and caverns. It was an eerie place. At its center sat a monstrous abomination.
Three pairs of wings. Twisted, razor-sharp claws. A body wrapped in layers of blackened scales. The dragon's massive form was bound to the altar with thick vines of green, pulsing flesh that beat like living organs. From its chest, a sickly red light pulsed ominously.
And atop that very chest, like a parasite… stood a demi-spirit. Unlike the others, this one was different. Her face was a nightmare. Everything below her nose had been assimilated into the dragon's grotesque body. Only her mouth remained visible. The rest was an unrecognizable, eroded fusion of spirit and monster.
No longer was she riding the dragon. She had become one with it.
The grotesque amalgamation radiated an intense aura of malice, its appearance enough to send a chill through even the most hardened adventurer's spine.
"…So this is the one…" Leon muttered, narrowing his eyes. "The black dragon that shares a link with the One-Eyed Black Dragon?"
It was no ordinary creature. This was Nidhogg.
A failed imitation of the Dungeon's ultimate threat, dragged out from the deepest reaches of the lower floors by monsters and dark alchemies.
This was Dionysus' final trump card.
Once the six demi spirits were destroyed, the energy from them would converge here, turning Nidhogg into a world-ending beast capable of razing all of Orario.
But right now, it wasn't complete. It was just a dormant vessel, awaiting the magic power of destruction. Still, it had sensed Leon's presence.
As if instinctively recognizing him as a threat, Nidhogg let out a low, guttural growl.
In the next moment, its massive, twisted claws lunged at Leon, rending the air with the force of a hurricane.
But Leon didn't flinch. His hand rose lazily. A deep orange flame flickered across his fingertips, and in a blink—
FWOOSH!!!
The dying will flame surged from his palm, consuming the incoming claw and racing up its limb toward the main body.
Everywhere the flame touched, flesh turned to gray stone.
The demi-spirit, though blind, let out a blood-curdling screech as she sensed her body calcifying. She tried to sever herself from the dragon to survive.
Too late.
The flame spread too fast.
In a matter of seconds, the colossal beast that was Nidhogg had been turned into ten enormous stone statues, petrified mid-motion.
Leon exhaled quietly. His Sky Flame had evolved, it now possessed the power to petrify anything it consumed.
And with his current strength, Nidhogg stood no chance. Still, Leon wasn't careless. He raised his hand again, and with another wave of sky flame, the entire stone corpse exploded into rubble.
From the wreckage, a radiant glow emerged. A massive, shimmering multi-colored magic stone drifted down from above.
Unlike the two Bull-type demi-spirits he'd faced before, this one was much larger.
"…At least three times the size." Leon mused, catching it with a flick of his wrist.
It made sense. Nidhogg had been partially fused with the power of all the other demi spirits. The magic stone was proof of that.
Without hesitation, Leon stored the gem in his system space.
***
[New Book]
Marvel: The Devourer
Aaron transmigrates to the Marvel Universe and obtains the Primal Furnace. With it, he can acquire the unique qualities of all things by devouring them.
[Devour a cell phone]
[Acquire Super Brain, Super Perception, Lightning Control, Network Manipulation, Electromagnetic Control...]
[Devour Ant]
[Acquire Super Physique, Super Strength...]
[Devour Immortal Jellyfish]
[Acquire Immortality]
[Devour Deadpool's Blood]
[Acquire Super Regeneration, Pseudo-Fourth Wall...]
[Devour Thor's Blood]
[Thor's Divinity, Asgardian Body...]
[Devour Gungnir]
[Acquire Sure Hit, Energy Ray...]
Eternal Flame, Infinity Stones, Celestials, Black Technology...
Everything is in Aaron's eyes and none can escape his hands.