The Shining Star Above The Heaven-Chapter 461: Wounded

Boom!

Aldrian’s aura flared to its maximum as he drew the full power of his domain into his body. Golden energy radiated from him, instantly breaking the high-level curse that had burdened him with so much negativity.

When the golden energy merged with the full force of his domain, the curse shattered. At the same moment, the emblem in Prince Wilmar’s grasp cracked, startling him.

Though he had already retreated behind the city’s barrier, Wilmar couldn’t help but feel a shudder deep in his soul at Aldrian’s sudden transformation.

An overwhelming instinct surged within him, he wanted to prostrate himself before Aldrian. It was a reaction born not of thought, but from the depths of his very soul.

Cardinal Carsius, who was already close to Aldrian with his spear strike nearly upon him, faltered for a moment due to the sudden explosion of Aldrian’s aura. He staggered in the air, but continued charging toward Aldrian with incredible speed.

Yet, in the next instant, it felt as though Aldrian’s movements were beyond his perception. Suddenly, Aldrian’s hand that grasping his sword moved in a slashing motion toward him.

In that moment, it was as if Aldrian had stepped into a different time and space. He tried to use his time laws to move faster, even if it meant gaining only 0.01 seconds. But that sliver of time was enough for him to unleash the Slash of Vanguard.

This technique was a simpler version of Slash of the End and its power and complexity couldn’t compare to the Pillar of Heaven’s Judgment, let alone the Slash of the End. But that didn’t matter.

What he needed now was speed. He needed a quick, simple strike that he could unleash in an instant to intercept the incoming spear attack.

As for the lack of power, he could compensate for it with the power of his domain.

In that moment, a slash of energy infused with tremendous force hurled toward Cardinal Carsius—colliding with his spear mid-air.

Boom!

A massive surge of wind swept out from the impact, and the surrounding space collapsed once again, swallowing both Aldrian and Cardinal Carsius.

A spatial storm reappeared but this time, far more violent than the one before. The cracks in space were larger, as if reality itself was being consumed by the void. The sky vanished.

Yet behind the darkness of the void and the chaos of the spatial storm, a blinding light shone. It burst forth from the exact point where the two techniques had collided.

Zinng!

The sound of the impact echoed across the entire city. People shielded their eyes from the sudden flash of light.

After a few seconds, the light receded, and they were finally able to look up again.

The spatial storm continued to ravage the sky, making it impossible to see the figures of Cardinal Carsius and Aldrian. Both had been swallowed by the void and the chaotic storm.

But then, gasps echoed across the city as something shot out from the storm like a projectile, hurtling toward the ground at frightening speed.

Everyone was stunned when they realized who it was. The figure was Cardinal Carsius.

His body slammed into the ground with incredible force, creating a massive crater on impact. He didn’t move. For a moment, many thought he was dead.

However, the high-ranking cultivators could still sense a faint breath within him. He was alive, but unconscious.

His body was covered in wounds. His robe had been torn in multiple places, and blood stained his entire body. From the sheer impact alone, it was clear that he had suffered numerous broken bones.

Many turned their eyes upward once more, watching as the void began to mend itself. At first, the process was slow, but then the pace began to quicken, as if someone were controlling the process.

It was then that many among them realized that this was Aldrian’s doing. He was using his space laws to accelerate the healing of the cracked space.

Aldrian was still alive, somewhere behind the spatial storm and the void. Many people were truly amazed, even after everything that had happened, he had survived.

A few more seconds passed, and finally, Aldrian’s figure came into view. The cracks in space had fully mended, and the world around them returned to normal.

However, everyone was stunned when they saw Aldrian’s condition. His body still radiated golden energy so intensely that it stirred an instinctive urge to worship him.

But despite the golden glow, his upper attire was torn, revealing his well-proportioned, muscular frame. His body was marked with numerous scratches, and blood stained his skin. Even his face bore signs of blood at the corner of his lips and a few visible cuts.

However, many high-level cultivators watching from below noticed something strange. For a split second, Aldrian’s face seemed to change.

What they saw was not the familiar face of Aldrian, but a more striking one—more handsome, with long red hair.

Then, just as quickly, it returned to the face they recognized.

They couldn’t help but wonder—was it an illusion, or maybe...?

In Aldrian’s hand, the Heaven’s Judgment Spear was already firmly in his grasp. It trembled briefly, then fell completely still after it felt his golden energy.

This legacy artifact had almost been lost to the void if Aldrian hadn’t pulled it back to him immediately after the clash between the two techniques.

Because of how powerful and devastating the clash between the two techniques was, someone unable to withstand it would be instantly thrown back.

In this case, Cardinal Carsius was overwhelmed by Aldrian’s technique. He managed to endure the Slash of Vanguard for only a few seconds before he was completely overpowered. In that moment, he lost his grip on the spear, and it was flung into the void.

His body was struck by the slash’s energy, though, fortunately for him, much of its force had already been spent in the initial impact. Even so, it hurled him to the ground.

Aldrian instantly pulled the spear toward himself using his gravity laws while simultaneously shielding his body from the spatial storm. He had already activated his golden energy and conjured a spatial shield to protect himself, but the storm was incredibly powerful and relentless.

Spatial winds howled around him, and the constant distortions in space continued to batter his body.

Even with all his defenses, he was still taking damage.

However at that moment, he was not sure if it was just his imagination, but he felt that the storm’s power weakened slightly, although only by a small margin, whenever it came into contact with his golden energy.

Still, the might of the spatial storm was nothing to underestimate. Even a peak Emperor-stage cultivator could be annihilated here. Their body would be torn apart by the chaos of space itself.

He also tried to steady himself so he would not be pulled deeper into the void by the spatial storm. Fortunately, he was able to quickly mend the space around him, allowing him to escape, even though his body was covered in wounds.

It was truly extraordinary. The last time he had suffered injuries was during his heavenly tribulation, when his body had been directly struck by heavenly lightning.

Aldrian looked down at the spear in his hand and read on its information.

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Heaven’s Punishment Spear

Description: One of the legacy artifacts of the Heavenly Direction Church. It was created by the first king of the Forgeheart Kingdom, along with other dwarves, in collaboration with the first pope and the early cardinals of the church.

This spear received a direct blessing from the heavens and contains an immense amount of holy energy. If the wielder possesses holy energy, the spear can amplify the power of their techniques by at least 25%, depending on the complexity of the technique.

When used in conjunction with the holy territory created by the Heavenly Sovereign Sanctuary Staff, the effect becomes even greater. In such a case, the amplification may reach up to 50% of the original strength.

Level: High Divine Grade

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Aldrian sighed to himself. The effect of this artifact was truly absurd. When combined with the Heavenly Sovereign Sanctuary Staff and wielded by someone like Cardinal Carsius, who was at the peak of the Emperor stage, it could boost an already powerful attack by him as much as fifty percent.

This battle had been a truly valuable lesson for him. It was the first time he had fought someone at the peak of the Emperor stage and wielded a legacy artifact. He was thankful to be alive, and he knew it was only because he had acted quickly and without hesitation.

If he had faltered, even for a moment, and failed to use the full power of his domain, he would have died. frёewebnoѵel.ƈo๓

The curse that had been cast on him was quite dangerous, as it disrupted his focus and interfered with the flow of his energy. He had forcefully broken it using his golden energy, which carried the full power of his domain, before unleashing the Slash of Vanguard toward Cardinal Carsius.

It had been a close call—one of the moments where he had come closest to death.

He suddenly received the intent of the heavens and simply nodded in understanding once it had passed.

"Well, it’s alright, if I have to be protected by you, I will never grow," Aldrian replied.

Basically, the heavens conveyed their deep regret that they could not directly intervene to help Aldrian, such as by striking Cardinal Carsius or anyone else with heavenly lightning. They were bound by the rules of the universe.

At most, they could offer Aldrian some leniency in certain matters and communicate through intent, as they usually did.

The heavens also urged Aldrian to continue growing stronger and to keep expanding his domain. Only by reaching a level where he could influence the rules of the universe himself would the heavens be able to offer him greater support in the future.

Aldrian simply smiled at the heavens, which seemed desperate for his growth.

After the brief exchange, he looked down to see the people below, all staring up at him with a mixture of emotions.

For the first time in a hundred thousand years, a battle of this scale had taken place. It would be recorded in the history of the continent as the clash that decided the fate of the Atria Empire and shaped its future.