Chapter 68 Illusions of Myth

On this planet called Jarilo-VI, there were once green trees, a blue ocean, and a clear sky where you could see the stars and the moon."

In Belobog's underground shelter, Pela's emotional voice echoed in the hearts of every citizen, thanks to Orion's ability.

"What is this? I want to see Orion defeat the stelleron!"

"Don't block my view! Why are we listening to this nonsense?"

At first, people didn't care about what Pela was saying, treating it as background noise. Only a few people with proper education understood her words.

She was talking about history—something that seemed ordinary but was deeply connected to all of them.

"At first, no one paid attention to the temperature drop. It felt distant, like something that couldn't affect us."

"But the cities that thought that way have now disappeared, frozen under ice and snow, turned into ice sculptures in the endless snowfields."

By now, some people had stopped making noise and started listening to Pella more seriously.

"Lady Cocolia has shared the truth about the cold wave, but many think it's just another lie from the city builders."

"What's the real truth? It's not for me to tell you—you all need to see it for yourselves."

As Pela spoke, the stellaron's attacks became fiercer. Blue flames bloomed in the sky. Normally, fire needs fuel, ignition, and oxygen, but the stellaron's blue flames ignored those rules, blowing wildly in the wind and burning anything they touched, like a ghost chasing people.

"Even though these flames are large, you might recognize them from our folklore as the will-o'-the-wisps floating in the wild."

"The essence of will-o'-the-wisps is actually a low-temperature flame created by miasma in the frozen ground. According to research on flammable materials, when dealing with something that ignites easily, like this, we shouldn't use cold objects to put it out. Instead, we should use something hotter to disrupt the flammable material and make it go out."

Under Pela's explanation, Orion, in the eyes of Belobog's citizens, actually did what Pela said. White flames ignited on his fists and he shot straight towards the stellaron's attack. Normally, when two flames meet, people would expect a big explosion, like thunder from the sky and fire from the ground.

But something amazing happened. Just as Pela said, when the white flame from Orion's hand touched the blue flame, it was like water hitting fire—the blue flame slowly disappeared.

"What! It really went out?"

"So that's what will-o'-the-wisps are?"

"I get it now; thank you, Teacher Pela!"

For a moment, the stellaron fell silent. Orion's attack wasn't as powerful as his previous ones, and it didn't contain much energy. Yet, this simple blow made the stellaron unable to use any abilities related to the "blue flame."

The spell was broken.

Once the people of Belobog fully understood the science behind the legend, the idea that "nothing is incombustible" was completely shattered.

If the stellaron tried to use a similar attack again, it would cost him a lot more energy—he would need twice the strength to pull off something like that again."

With Pela's interpretations over and over again, the stellaron's "mythical power" no longer seemed so mysterious. The power he used came from everyday things like plants and trees that we see all the time. It didn't seem like a big deal anymore.

"So what?" the stellaron growled. Since complex concepts weren't working, he simply used raw power to fuel an attack that could destroy everything.

Water—just a drop of water can't destroy anything, but when he made a huge wave, it became different.

Behind the stellaron, waves appeared—something not seen on this planet for thousands of years. The sheer mass of it could sweep everything away. Then came strong winds, fire, and lightning. This was a move Orion Astra recognized.

But now, these elements weren't attached to any concepts—they were just "wind, fire, water, and electricity." Yet, their simplicity put real pressure on Orion for the first time.

In the center of these natural disasters, a small white ball formed in the stellaron's hands. Up close, you could feel that all the molecules and atoms around the white ball became eerily still.

"Absolute zero."

Even though it was simple, the stellaron's use of power forced Orion to show his true abilities.

"Well, this..." Pela couldn't offer any explanation for Stelle's attack and fell silent.

"Thank you for your help, Pela. You did well," Orion's voice echoed in Pela's ears at this critical moment.

"Let me say the final word." Under everyone's gaze, Orion slowly landed on the ground beneath the stellaron, raising one hand to the sky above the earth that symbolized humanity.

In the sky, the stellaron's attack was fully charged, covering everything and casting a massive shadow on the earth. Compared to it, Orion's figure looked so small.

"The power of nature... Even if you understand it, all you can do is admire it!"

The voice of the stellaron echoed across the entire planet, so powerful it was suffocating. The cold wave that swept through Jarilo-VI over the past seven hundred years reappeared, brought by the stellaron. The white ice turned into black, a black that wiped out all life. This was the most powerful and destructive blow yet.

Orion knew this was the final strike.

At some point, everyone on the Astral Express appeared behind him. Each of them carried an unbreakable fighting spirit and a willingness to face death.

"Can I count on you?" Orion asked without looking back, only his white hair blowing slightly in the wind—he knew more than one person stood behind him.

"Yes! Yes! Yes!"

The shout came from the crew of the Astral Express, the Silvermane Guard, those hiding in the Underworld, and every human in Belobog.

In response, two flaming handguns appeared in Orion Astra's hands and merged together.

The two weapons stretched and twisted into a sword hilt as molten gold-like flames shot into the sky, forming the blade. The flames didn't spread but stayed perfectly concentrated on the sword.

Orion Astra lightly touched the ground with his feet, shooting up like a bird towards the stellaron.

"Cleaver of Shamash, Unleash!"