The wave of Destruction, like a black ocean, seemed intent on devouring every living thing.
Inside Shrek Academy, the teachers who had been left behind, in extreme terror, instinctively activated the large, combined defensive Soul Tool array buried beneath the academy.
A huge, thick, seven-colored energy shield struggled to rise, attempting one last stand.
However, the shield, which represented the pinnacle of Shrek Academy's Soul Tool achievements, was as fragile as a soap bubble before the destructive halo that contained the will of a Lord of Destruction.
The instant the two met, the shield didn't even manage to raise a ripple before it emitted a sound of collapse, instantly shattering into countless tiny light particles and vanishing without a trace.
"Shrek Academy... it's over!"
Wang Yan, a teacher who dedicated his life to Martial Soul theory and was left behind due to his lack of combat proficiency, bitterly pushed up his signature black-rimmed glasses. Staring at the surging wave of destruction, a flicker of instinctive fear was present, but it was overshadowed by a deep unwillingness and immense regret at not being able to continue exploring the mysteries of Martial Souls.
He was obsessed with that vast ocean of knowledge; too many unsolved mysteries awaited discovery. To end here was profoundly heartbreaking.
"No!!! Hold the line!!!"
Beside him, the fierce and volatile Zhou Yi let out a hysterical scream. Like a madwoman, she desperately poured all her soul power into the nearby Soul Tool foundation.
Not just her, but every teacher remaining was struggling in a final, desperate, and futile manner, like fish trapped in a drying pond.
Their intense survival instinct twisted their faces, a combination of extreme fear and collapsing despair etched upon them.
However, the process of Destruction never changes due to the struggles of mere ants.
The purplish-black halo of Destruction swept over smoothly and irresistibly.
Whether it was the rational Wang Yan, the frantically struggling Zhou Yi, or everyone else, their movements, expressions, and even signs of life froze instantly.
The next moment, their bodies, along with the buildings they occupied and the ground beneath their feet, disintegrated silently, like sand sculptures blown away by the wind, turning into an illusion of black particles that utterly vanished into the air.
The wave of Destruction ruthlessly consumed the core area of Shrek Academy.
And this was far from the end.
After devouring and annihilating Seagod Island and Shrek Academy, the purplish-black halo of Destruction showed no sign of stopping. It continued to expand steadily outwards from the Golden Tree, as if intent on completely erasing Shrek City, this ancient, formidable metropolis, from the map of the continent.
Whether it was the sturdy city walls, the towering buildings, the prosperous streets, or the citizens and Soul Masters who hadn't evacuated in time due due to their blind faith in Shrek Academy, their fate was the same before this light representing absolute finality.
Their existence, along with their fears and hopes, turned into nothingness the moment they touched the halo.
In just a few breaths, more than two-thirds of Shrek City had been swallowed and flattened by the absolute, deathly purplish-black wave, leaving behind only an empty, absolutely blank area that emitted faint black smoke, as if the continent's foremost academy had never existed here.
"No, this isn't real...!"
Yan Shaoshe, Cai Mei'er, Elder Lin, Shi Xing... all the remaining Shrek high-level officials and powerful experts stared blankly, as if their souls had been sucked out, at the former academy grounds now turned into a sea of deathly purplish-black destruction.
Reflected in their eyes was the utter despair and heart-wrenching pain of their home being completely erased.
The sacred land they had dedicated their lives to and sworn to protect was now nothing but endless void, and the towering Ancient Golden Tree, which had been thoroughly stained an ominous pitch-black and exuded monstrous evil energy.
Then, the black giant tree suddenly erupted with a terrifying black light that devoured all other light.
Amidst a heart-stopping surge of powerful energy, its massive form began to violently twist, contract, and deform.
The thick trunk and branches writhed and reformed like living creatures. Finally, amidst the overflowing destructive aura, they condensed into a tall, seductive, female figure radiating a cold, deadly stillness.
She slowly opened her eyes, which flickered with icy, ruthless purplish-black flames, as if capable of freezing all life in the world.
"This shell will suffice."
Phantylia's voice rang out. It was no longer a pure mental fluctuation but had a true physical carrier in the material world. The sound held a sinister quality that made the soul tremble.
"Then, this boring farce must end."
A lazy yet cruel smile appeared on her enchanting face. She looked down at the city ruins below, which had become a living hell yet still echoed with scattered, desperate resistance and wailing, as if appreciating a canvas not yet fully stained with blood.
"The persistent defiance of ants can sometimes be quite irritating."
She murmured softly, her voice clearly echoing in the dead air.
She slowly raised her arm, which was gigantic relative to a human and composed of the Golden Tree's pure life energy, pointing it towards the distant starlight beyond the heavens.
An indescribable, terrifying gravitational force, originating from the very law of Destruction, erupted fiercely from her palm.
This was not a physical attraction but a compulsory pull targeting the very essence of existence.
Crack—Buzz—!!!
Tens of thousands of meters above the clouds, space shrieked under the unbearable, teeth-grinding sound of tearing.
A gigantic meteorite fragment, nearly a thousand meters in diameter, which had been quietly drifting in the shadow zone at the edge of the Douluo Star—a remnant of a shattered asteroid—was forcibly ripped out of the spatial void by this barbaric, overwhelming destructive might.
The space debris was uniformly dark as iron, its surface covered with impact craters and solidified lava traces.
From Phantylia's palm, a torrent of purplish-black destructive energy surged out, instantly crossing the spatial distance and wrapping around the massive space debris.
The energy did not merely wrap around it but frantically permeated, corroded, and assimilated it.
The surface of the debris visibly turned pitch-black. Its material structure was forcefully compressed and reshaped by the law of Destruction, becoming incredibly hard and dense. Hot, dark-red destructive patterns began to flow across its surface, as if a furnace of destruction had been ignited within.
Simultaneously, countless smaller spatial fragments, cosmic dust, and even other meteorites captured by the gravity were drawn to this core debris like rivers flowing to the sea, causing its volume to expand even more maniacally. It ultimately transformed into a colossal, irregularly shaped Star of Destruction, well over a kilometer in diameter, burning with dark red and pitch-black flames.
Wherever it passed, space automatically warped and collapsed, forming a blurred, void-like trail behind it, continuously emitting a low roar powerful enough to crack the soul.
This Star of Destruction, carrying the purest malice and the will of finality, descended from tens of thousands of meters up in an unstoppable plunge toward the already half-destroyed Shrek City.
Its enormous size completely obscured the last light from the sky, casting an ever-expanding, suffocating shadow of death over the entire city ruin.
"What... what is that?!"
The surviving city defense soldiers looked up, their Soul Tools falling limply from their hands, the color drained from their faces, leaving only the pure fear one faces when encountering a natural disaster.
"Is that... divine punishment?!?"
Someone completely broke down, collapsing to the ground, losing control of their bladder without realizing it.
All survivors, whether human or the Soul Beasts who failed to escape, clearly felt the soul-freezing will of Destruction locking onto the entire area, as well as the hot, putrid scent of destruction rushing toward them.
"Why is this happening? What... what did my Shrek Academy do wrong...?"
Looking at the world-ending star descending from the heavens, wreathed in a rain of meteoric fire, Yan Shaoshe let out a bitter laugh, his eyes left with nothing but absolute despair.
Against the Beast Tide, they still had the courage to fight to the death, but against Phantylia, this incarnate disaster, this world-ending demon who completely transcended understanding, all they could do was seemingly close their eyes and await death.
As destruction approached, whether it was Yan Shaoshe and the other Titled Douluo, the remaining city defense soldiers, or the young disciples of the inner and outer academy forced onto the battlefield, all could only stare blankly and hopelessly at the expanding, apocalyptic sight above their heads.
"Shi Xing—!!!"
But in that absolute stillness and despair, all fear and confusion suddenly vanished from Yan Shaoshe's eyes, replaced by the resolution of a cornered man.
He violently turned his head, letting out a heart-wrenching roar filled with final hope and entrustment to the Time Douluo, Shi Xing, who was similarly stunned and desperate beside him.
The next moment, under the shocked gaze of everyone, Yan Shaoshe burst forth with his final Holy Flame of Light. He resolutely transformed into a brilliant Phoenix of Light, flapping his wings without regard for the destructive shockwave, charging headlong toward the sky-covering Star of Destruction like a moth to a flame.
"Shaoshe!! No!!!"
Cai Mei'er let out a shriek of extreme grief, tears instantly blurring her vision.
Elder Lin, Elder Zhuang, Gong Changlong, and others abruptly awoke, watching the golden streak rush without hesitation toward the world-ending catastrophe, their eyes filled with endless sorrow and powerlessness.
"Hmm?"
Yan Shaoshe's unexpected action not only woke his desperate companions but also drew a moment of attention from Phantylia, who was perched high in the void.
She watched the tiny golden light charge toward her creation with amused interest, a look of playful mockery curling her lips.
She had seen too many such people. In the countless civilizations she had destroyed, there were always so-called heroes embodying courage and self-sacrifice.
They always foolishly attempted to reverse the end with faith and bravery, but before the power of a Lord of Destruction, before the Antimatter Legion, all struggle was illusionary; only destruction was the eternal destination.
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