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As Jin stepped into the barrier of flames, the eternal flame that had been closing in on his allies came to a halt.
The colossal storm that had engulfed the entire fleet seemed frozen in time, motionless.
The allies looked at the solid wall of flames and then at Jin with wide eyes.
In this era, the blue flames symbolized Jin Runcandel.
Therefore, the allies had been thinking that Jin must have encountered some problem since the eternal flame had been attacking them all this time.
They could only assume that Jin had already been captured or absorbed by the evil god, or that he had become a puppet of the evil god and was now attacking them.
It was natural for the storm of eternal flame to be directed at the evil god and not the allies, considering the circumstances.
But thoughts and feelings were different.
The temporary alliance believed and trusted without considering the situation.
Even if Jin had encountered a problem, they believed that he would ultimately resolve this situation.
That belief was now becoming a reality.
"The 12th flagbearer...!"
"The 12th flagbearer has arrived!"
Even the exhausted and fallen people mustered their remaining strength and shouted in joy.
Hedo and Bianca carried the injured companions from Jin's side.
Among them, Octavia showed signs of regeneration, receiving the energy of the Demon's God's Orb before the healers could even reach her.
[...Father!?]
And Tasha, who had been pushing back the eternal flame on the surface, unknowingly cried out and ran towards Alpen.
[Tasha... You also didn't yield to the evil god. Recover a bit and hold your position. I'll go back to fight soon.]
[Yes, Father!]
The medical team of the Holy Kingdom took care of Alpen.
Jin changed his sword and moved forward. The pale blade of Sigmund shimmered with a blue light in the darkness.
While the eternal flame had completely halted its progress, the chaos mixed within it were converging like a swarm of insects in one place.
On the opposite side of Jin was where the evil god was. The obscured evil god, hidden behind the eternal flame and chaos, seemed to reveal its dark and colossal form.
"Jin."
Valeria approached Jin's side. From her bosom, she took out a small red sphere shaped like a ruby and handed it to Jin.
"I finished the checkups when we were separated. I was concerned that the Evil god's Castle might disrupt its functionality, being a kind of subspace, but luckily it can still operate normally here."
Jin nodded as he received the sphere and Valeria said, "However, I couldn't confirm the stability issue. I can only hope that the spatial characteristics of this place won't cause any unexpected side effects. So if you feel that there might be a problem during its usage, come find me immediately."
Jin nodded.
"You've worked hard, Valeria. It was probably thanks to your efforts that our allies weren't affected by the eternal flame."
Just like Jin's side, the allies who were separated from him would have suffered immeasurable damage if it weren't for Valeria's record magic. They also experienced sudden falls and spatial teleportations multiple times, but fortunately, they avoided permanent damage.
Valeria's face looked pale. She had unleashed her record magic, even at the risk of her mana organs being destroyed, in order to save the temporary alliance. Luckily, she managed to avoid any permanent damage.
If it were the Valeria from before, or rather, the Valeria before she met Jin, she would never have risked her own life to save the temporary alliance. Especially if Zipfel were included in that alliance, it would have been even more unlikely.
But now, she had companions.
There were people she wanted to protect, even at the cost of her own life. People who gradually changed her life, who had been focused solely on duty as a Hister, and revenge.
"Thank you," Jin said, reading her inner thoughts. Valeria didn't mind that he could see into her heart.
"Don't get hurt," Valeria added.
"You too."
The allies were organizing their formation. The fleet had only about 60% of its original strength remaining, but the battleships, including Kozec and Grenil, were all unharmed.
"I will clear the path. Prepare for battle!"
Jin's thunderous voice echoed, and the once-stagnant eternal flame began to surge again.
But this time, instead of closing in on the allies, it moved towards the direction of the evil god hidden behind the chaos.
The fact that such a colossal flame moved solely based on one person's will was something none of them had ever witnessed before, not even those who had directly experienced Kelliark's power.
'Could it be true that he can control all these flames?'
'Perhaps even the evil god, despite its nature, cannot withstand all this fire. Considering the nature of the eternal flame power possessed by the 12th flagbearer... that would be impossible...!'
The onlookers were in awe.
Originally, Jin couldn't fully control an eternal flame of this size. It was impossible even to form an eternal flame on the scale that could envelop the fleet.
It had grown abnormally colossal due to the grudge and evil god's chaos.
But just as the evil god had forcibly multiplied eternal flames using Jin's grudge, now Jin's will to protect his companions, his determination to fight alongside them until the end, was moving the eternal flame.
Within the black curtains, the chaos burst out like a volcanic eruption, but the flames of eternal flame burned even fiercer.
The chaos and eternal flame collided, causing continuous explosions without respite.
Eventually, the sight of the chaos being pushed back began to unfold.
A hole was pierced. As the eternal flame fiercely plunged into that gap, the curtain was torn apart at a rapid speed.
Aaaa..!
The sound of the evil god's scream echoed along with a shockwave.
The shockwave was powerful enough to push even the eternal flame surrounding the curtains.
Jin flinched momentarily and stopped in his tracks.
Behind him, the protective shields of his allies shattered, and fragments scattered.
Over 80% of the shield that covered the entire fleet had been shattered by a single scream of agony from the evil god.
The allies felt a chill down their spines as they realized the severity of the situation and quickly deployed new shields.
With every scream from the evil god, the shields shattered.
In an instant, most of the power sources of the battleships became scorching hot, as if they were about to explode, and the mages attached to the power sources worked tirelessly.
They continued to replace the fallen companions without even having a moment to tend to them. The moment the power sources lost their mana, the entire battleship would suffer fatal damage.
The dragons and knights on ground faced a similar situation. It meant that the evil god had the power to kill them all with just its screams.
On the other hand, it also meant that the eternal flame was definitely dealing significant blows to the evil god.
That's why the allies were desperately hoping for the eternal flame to finish off the evil god, for this relentless battle to come to an end, and for them to see beyond the torn curtains the sight of the evil god disintegrating without a trace, consumed by agony.
However, the evil god wouldn't end like that.
Jin endured the shockwaves and continued to move forward.
He was convinced that to end the fight, he had to stab his sword into the evil god's neck.
Paaaah...!
After about ten seconds, the barrier of chaos finally tore apart completely. Like a door opening, the barrier split into two, and within it, the eternal flame surged like a tidal wave.
Finally, Jin could face the hidden entity known as the Evil god.
'This... is the evil god?'
The evil god had a completely different appearance from Jin's memories.
It wasn't the form it had as a human, nor the demonic form it took on after being tainted by chaos. It resembled a massive ghost, hovering in the air.
The lower half of its body was composed of black smoke made of chaos, instead of legs, while its upper body had a human-like shape.
It wielded hundreds of arms, each holding a different kind of sword found in this world, and its eye sockets, where eyes should have been, were hollow and empty.
"That... is it the King of Black Sea, Glyek!?"
"That appearance resembles the King of Black Sea...!"
The allies were terrified.
Their faces turned pale as they recalled the nightmare of that day.
It felt as if the monster that could have brought about the destruction of the entire world had reappeared under the name of the evil god.
The evil god resisted the eternal flame that enveloped its colossal body. Even though its entire body was engulfed in flames, the evil god no longer screamed.
[I'm curious.]
The evil god's hollow gaze fell upon Jin.
[Is the fire you possess truly unquenchable? Is it something that can't be stopped by anything?]
Jin's pupils dilated.
The eternal flame surrounding the evil god was gradually diminishing.
[Unfortunately, that is not the case. It is a wonderful sword but it is not enough to kill your mother.]
Jin stared at the evil god.
[However, you should be praised. You killed the ghosts of the mausoleum, witnessed the complete loss of my last trace of humanity, and burned everything that bore my name as a knight... In the end, you have come to confront me.]
"It wasn't just ghosts that were present. You failed to subdue three of our ancestors who were there. Moreover, such ancestors probably still remain. Don't you understand yet? Evil god, your power is not absolute.]
Fwizzz...!
Jin's illuminating heart filled with lightning energy.
As Rosa felt that power, her lips curled into a sinister smile.
With a grotesque shape, it was a smile unrecognizable to anyone.
[Youngest one, now it's time for you to die here... It's your turn to become the myth of this black land that I will govern in the future.]
"I won't be the one to die, it'll be you. And you will be remembered as a nightmare in the world."
I will send you to where young Rosa Runcandel is waiting.
With those words, Jin crushed the red sphere he had clenched in his fist.
Suddenly, the energy gathering in his illuminating heart surged and began to tremble as if on the verge of explosion.
From the moment the sphere shattered, Jin could sense the presence of a being who had reached the pinnacle of martial arts.
He could become that existence.
Plutonian tribe's battle god, Vahn. The Battle god fusion was unfolding, connecting Jin and her inner self.
(... Brother Jin? What's happening? Suddenly, your thoughts are reaching me. Is this another coincidence like before?)
'It's not a coincidence, sister battle god. I'm sorry for borrowing your power without warning. But I thought the connection would be with Lingling first, luckily it was you who connected first.'
Vahn instantly understood the situation as she read Jin's inner thoughts, and responded.
(Hahaha, I've been anticipating this day. Brother Jin, let us fight together.)
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