Chapter 66: Purgatory
"20, 21, 22..."
Su Xiao was counting down. Even a single second off could cause Apollo to explode in his hand, or force him to throw it prematurely.
If this had been a few derivative worlds ago, Su Xiao would never have dared to use Apollo like this. The Apollos he made back then weren't as stable as the current ones. Now, as long as he set Apollo to explode in 30 seconds, it wouldn't be off by a single second.
"28."
When he reached 28, Su Xiao had already assumed a throwing posture. At the same time, the War Armor Spirit's gaze shifted toward the stone corridor, its focus landing precisely on Su Xiao's location.
The War Armor Spirit was puzzled. But in that instant of confusion, a red sphere flew out from the dark stone corridor, moving at incredible speed.
Boom!
Gravel flew from beneath the War Armor Spirit's feet as it charged straight toward Apollo. It had found the source of its sense of crisis.
The War Armor Spirit's arms were wrapped in energy. It fought entirely with its body, using its internal energy mainly to protect its arms and hands, making it fearless against enemies wielding sharp weapons.
The War Armor Spirit's sprint was so fast it left afterimages. In an instant, it was in front of Apollo, reaching out to grab it.
Apollo's volume swelled, expanding from the size of an apple to a diameter of five meters, like a small sun.
The War Armor Spirit abruptly halted. Its previously leaning body straightened, legs bent, as it leaped backward with all its might.
The circular clearing was a sealed environment. In such a space, Apollo's power would only be amplified.
Thump!
The fireball exploded. White light faintly appeared at the center of the orange-red flames. Almost instantly, solar fire filled the entire clearing.
The whole area became a world of flames. The longsword-wielders didn't even have time to grunt before being burned to ashes. Their armor and greatswords melted into molten iron mid-air, which vaporized from the solar fire's heat before hitting the ground.
The surrounding stone walls melted like wax meeting a hot iron, quickly turning into magma. Some rocks, due to the extreme temperature, were incinerated into white particles.
A curled-up figure crouched on the ground, surrounded by molten iron—the melted remains of over a dozen longsword-wielders' armor and greatswords.
Crouching there was the War Armor Spirit. It hadn't charged forward because the timing wasn't right. At the moment Apollo exploded, over a dozen longsword-wielders had pounced on the War Armor Spirit, pressing it down to reduce the impact and heat it endured.
In the high-temperature environment, the War Armor Spirit's vision began to blur. Its current state was terrible—dislocated organs, extensive burns across its body surface. Its health had dropped to 30%, and considering the War Armor Spirit's terrifyingly high health pool, that was severe.
The War Armor Spirit was strong, but Apollo was the pinnacle of alchemy. It was an alchemical bomb developed by countless alchemists, the masterpiece of alchemical bomb studies.
"Hoo..."
The War Armor Spirit exhaled a red mist—the blood evaporating from inside its body. Its gaze swept around, seeing nothing but blazing red and magma covering the ground.
There were two exits. No, there was only one. The passage leading to the lower level was inaccessible to the War Armor Spirit, just as it couldn't leave the Shia Temple.
That left only one exit from this world of flames: the stone corridor leading to the Shaking Heaven Hall.
The War Armor Spirit's legs gathered strength, green smoke rising from beneath its feet. Its feet were already numb.
With a bang, the War Armor Spirit shot out like a cannonball, charging into the stone corridor. At that moment, its health was only 23%. If it stayed in the flame zone any longer, it would die from the searing heat without Su Xiao even lifting a finger.
On the other side of the stone corridor, Su Xiao patted out the flames on his body. A few fragments of broken Counter Shield floated around him. Although he had retreated quickly, the solar fire had surged out just as fast, catching him in the blast.
Fortunately, Su Xiao wasn't at the explosion's epicenter, and the solar fire wasn't as terrifying once it entered the stone corridor—at least its speed had slowed.
Bubu Wang and Amu were already waiting there. Su Xiao had used his last remaining Apollo, but at least he had saved the [Elite Undead Summoning Token].
Given the [Elite Undead Summoning Token]'s rank, the undead it could summon would definitely be on par with the Longsword-Wielder: Void. Moreover, he could choose the type, which was invaluable. In a critical moment, Su Xiao could summon three elite boss-level undead.
[You have killed a Longsword-Wielder.]
[You have killed a Longsword-Wielder.]
...
A flood of notifications appeared. The longsword-wielders killed this time didn't have the "Void" suffix. If there had been thirty Longsword-Wielders: Void, the first floor of the Shia Temple would have been far too terrifying.
A charred figure charged from the other end of the stone corridor. Su Xiao tightened his grip on his longsword, ready to fight the War Armor Spirit.
With a thud, the completely blackened War Armor Spirit collapsed to the ground. Its armor had melted in large patches, the plates fused together. More importantly, green smoke rose from its eye sockets.
The War Armor Spirit's eyes opened. Cracks were faintly visible on its left eyeball. Whether it could still see was questionable.
"This guy... seems pretty messed up."
Su Xiao breathed a sigh of relief. Even at the third rank, Apollo was still incredibly powerful. It hadn't directly killed the War Armor Spirit, but the thing was clearly half-dead.
Facing a severely injured War Armor Spirit, Su Xiao had no fear. Even in a 1v1, he was confident he could win.
The War Armor Spirit stood up and looked at Su Xiao. Its right pupil slightly contracted, as if it had noticed something.
The War Armor Spirit raised its right arm. Embedded in the armor plates on the back of its hand was the [Annihilation Stone].
Seeing the War Armor Spirit raise its arm, Su Xiao frowned. The ancient undead race had a keen perception of Law Destroyers. Whenever they met, they could immediately identify his identity as a Law Destroyer, just like the few ancient undead he had encountered before.
The War Armor Spirit quickly retreated, moving back toward the flame zone. Even though the solar fire's temperature was rapidly dropping, that area was still lethal.
After a moment's hesitation, Su Xiao pressed forward. Bubu Wang stayed behind to cover the rear. With its thick fur, entering that flame zone would turn it into charcoal "husky." Amu followed Su Xiao, its ice attribute making it less susceptible to high temperatures.
Seeing Su Xiao follow, the War Armor Spirit's lips curled into a smirk. It turned and charged into the flame zone, quickly disappearing from Su Xiao's sight.
Su Xiao dared not move at full speed. Even with his Counter Shield active, the gradually rising ambient temperature was still troublesome.
A minute later, the War Armor Spirit retreated to the center of the flame zone. It probably knew it couldn't defeat Su Xiao, so it planned to throw the [Annihilation Stone] into a dangerous area. It could die, but it didn't want a Law Destroyer to obtain the [Annihilation Stone]. As for destroying it, that was too difficult for the War Armor Spirit.
Su Xiao also reached the center of the flame zone. The temperature had dropped significantly here—the solar fire was gone—but the ground was covered in magma, making it feel like a magma cave.
Drip, drip...
Magma dripped from the ceiling, sizzling as it landed on the Counter Shield.