Chapter 439: Chapter 439: The Fusion of Countless Worlds
In Sterl's perspective, the crystal wall membrane was changing little by little, and the Far North was not the core of the distortion; even Alpha 8 might only be on the edge of the distortion zone. This involved the upheaval of countless worlds!
Sterl recalled the massive continent he had seen within the crystal and felt a flicker of thought. If the distortion was vortex-shaped, the outer primary worlds would gradually draw closer to the core point. Ultimately… he suddenly realized something—countless shattered worlds would be rejoined as one!
Sterl was shaken to his core!
But soon, he regained his composure.
"At this rate, even if I wipe out all the nearby monsters, I still won't gather ten thousand fragments."
Sterl felt a bit frustrated, but he didn't stop his movements, quickly making his way toward the teleportation array. As for the countless worlds he had just discovered to be merging, he seemed to ignore it entirely.
Sterl was clear-minded; with his current strength, contemplating the grand trend of world fusion was pointless. So, he decided not to overthink it.
"Let's head to the teleportation array; there should be some bosses there."
"Perhaps the dropped crystal fragments will be more plentiful."
He murmured to himself but suddenly stopped in his tracks.
Accompanied by a fierce roar, Sterl saw the ground ahead suddenly cave in!
A vast ice lake appeared!
In the center of the ice lake was a colossal beast, entirely snow-white with long whiskers, its jagged teeth measuring over ten meters long, glaring at him menacingly!!
This was a beast resembling a sea lion!
"A demigod-level boss?"
"Wait, a perfect-grade demigod??"
"What's going on?"
Sterl was stunned!
Using Star Insight, he examined the detailed attributes of the boss ahead.
[Imperial Tooth]
[Category: Boss]
[Rank: Demigod (Perfect Grade)]
[Attributes: …]
[Skills: …]
[Description: A creature living in the Far North, catalyzed by the information body of the upper realms, forcibly completed its breakthrough at the cost of burning its life.]
"As expected, being infused with crystal involves a price to pay."
Sterl nodded, but this, in turn, reflected the extremely high value of the boundary crystals. According to the data from the Hall of Valor, the strongest bosses in the Far North were only perfect-grade demigods, and such outdoor bosses had long been defeated. The last time a perfect-grade demigod monster appeared in the Far North was over a hundred years ago.
Monsters and bosses progressed in strength much slower than ordinary players; theoretically, a new perfect-grade demigod shouldn't emerge within a century, let alone a perfect-grade demigod!
[Imperial Tooth] had evidently forcibly enhanced its power through the crystals, and the only price it paid was merely consuming some of its lifespan!
"Even if others don't have the Holy Spirit Bloodline and cannot see the true function of the boundary crystals, the competition pressure is still significant."
Sterl contemplated.
He realized that gathering the boundary skill pieces in the Far North was not an urgent matter, as the distortion of the Crystal Barrier Galaxy would eventually spread throughout Alpha 8. At that point, every map would have opportunities to obtain crystals. However, once the effects of crystal enhancement were revealed, everyone would flock to it.
Compared to becoming stronger, consuming a little lifespan was practically without cost.
"That's troublesome!"
Sterl sighed, watching the boss rush towards him, transforming mid-air into massive fangs made of frost, filled with an overwhelming killing intent as it slammed down toward the ground. He acted as if he hadn't seen it at all, until the frost-covered fangs were about to touch his skin.
He slightly raised his hand, pointing like a sword.
One Sword Opens the Sky!!
Sterl had grasped part of the divine authority's blade aura, transforming it into an extremely sharp illusion that sliced upward. It was as if boiling water had poured into a greasy drain. The sword energy surged through, unimpeded, dissolving all defensive forces in its path.
In the air, only splashes of ice and snow remained, along with the boss's entrails and blood raining down in a messy cascade. Sterl had just received the detailed attributes of [Imperial Tooth] but couldn't be bothered to glance at it; the power gap was too vast. One Sword Opens the Sky ignored everything!
Even if [Imperial Tooth] possessed life-saving abilities or could enhance its life force, it was all in vain.
It was a one-hit kill!
Sterl casually picked up the loot sphere dropped by the boss, feeling the sixteen crystals merge into his body. He nodded with satisfaction and walked toward the next monster's location.
What followed was a rather monotonous massacre.
With the combined effects of Starlight Spray and the cursed world, Sterl swiftly traversed the Far North. He remained silent, releasing skills in quietude.
In the glow of his abilities, countless lives vanished. Bosses and wild monsters fell before Sterl. It was a true extermination, leaving not a blade of grass behind!
Sterl spent five days, and his blood force broke through seventy points!
His killing efficiency had improved significantly compared to before, but the Far North was not a battlefield; the density of monsters was much lower. This showcased the madness of Sterl's slaughter!
This land, filled with swirling snow and wind, had truly transformed into a colossal icy tomb!
During those five days, Sterl had catalyzed five guild materials.
Now…
He looked curiously at a mountain peak.
"What is that?"
Sterl observed ahead; all the monsters in the Far North had been wiped out by him. He had collected 1,263 crystals and was prepared to leave through the teleportation array.
But at that moment, the crystal wall membrane suddenly split open, creating a massive gash. A dazzling beam of light descended, landing atop the mountain peak. Sterl, being extremely cautious, approached slowly using Bionic Tear.
But he discovered…
The mountain had come to life!!
With a thunderous roar, the original mountain morphed into the shape of a giant, the snow and wind gradually dissipating to reveal a frenzied face. It resembled the Frost Giants of myth and legend.
As the giant stretched its body, the world shook! The space trembled!
Boom!
Boom!
The giant slowly lifted its foot, causing the ground to quake violently.
Sterl activated Star Insight…
[Unable to Detect!]
A particularly unusual prompt appeared before him?
Huh?
What's going on?
Sterl was stunned; usually, even with a significant disparity in divine power, the prompt should indicate a detection failure, not an inability to detect! What on earth was this Frost Giant??
Sterl immediately felt a surge of alarm in his heart. He had a faint sense that the golden creation descending from the Crystal Barrier Galaxy was likely connected to the upper realms!
After all, based on the memories conveyed by the crystals, above the countless primary worlds outside the Crystal Barrier Galaxy lay the upper realms. The upper realms and the sea of space beyond the crystal wall membrane were interconnected. Only the existence of the upper realms could give rise to such bizarre monsters.
As Sterl pondered this, the Frost Giant caught sight of him. Immediately, a glimmer of murderous intent and predatory desire flashed in its once-empty eyes, and the giant charged forward in a frenzy.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
The giant's footsteps pounded against the ground, creating a deafening sound. The Far North, originally a massive glacier, now crumbled beneath the weight of the giant's steps. Sterl frowned; this scene of destruction was somewhat intimidating.
He tentatively gathered the Flowing Water Blade and unleashed a Shattered Void. This attack was not executed with full strength; it was purely a test. He first activated the effect of freezing space.
Sure enough, the Frost Giant was completely unaffected, continuing its slow yet determined advance. What felt bizarre to Sterl was that the freezing effect did not seem to have been resisted by the Frost Giant; it was as if it hadn't been activated at all. The giant didn't even show the slightest delay!
This could only indicate two terrifying possibilities.
First, the Frost Giant might be immune to the power of space. If this were the case, the creature's strength would be exceedingly exaggerated!
Second, it might not be immune to the power of space but had somehow completed a breakthrough in an incredibly short time that Sterl couldn't even observe! This would mean that the Frost Giant's strength could far exceed what it would be under normal circumstances!
Though Sterl felt uneasy, he had seen his fair share of storms. Steadying himself, he struck with his blade! Countless blade auras surged forth! All the sword lights collided at high speed, annihilating each other in the process. They couldn't even locate an enemy! Only a few randomly released sword energies barely grazed the Frost Giant.
In front of Sterl, the words [block], [block], [block] popped up one after another.
"What the…??"
Sterl was a bit dazed. He often instant-killed opponents in battle, so damage indicators didn't usually appear. However, when facing bosses with high health, damage numbers still showed up. Sometimes, after a boss cast a defensive buff, he had seen [-0] characters, indicating that he hadn't broken through their defenses. But now… the Frost Giant was a completely different situation!
It had resisted his attack!!
Enjoy exclusive chapters from m-v l'e|m,p| y- r
It was immune to Sterl's damage!
Sterl's expression changed drastically. Despite his main body still hiding in a small world, it didn't prevent his vigilance from reaching its peak! He managed to stay calm and decided to throw out a few more skills.
Mark of the Heavens, Ignition Flame, Fission Power, a variety of Law Powers!
The sky transformed into a riot of colorful lights.
Yet all attacks failed to automatically lock onto the target with their essence; Sterl had to exert his divine power to actively guide them. Thus, countless beams of light rained down upon the giant.
Boom!
The deafening noise and the destructive reactions caused by the collision of various elemental forces surged forth. Especially the brilliant white light emitted by Fission Law, which momentarily illuminated the Far North by a third!
[block], [block], [block].
Sterl's prompt screen was flooded with notifications.
"Damn it!"
How was he supposed to fight this? All his methods were immune?!
At this moment, the Frost Giant continued its unhurried advance. After unleashing his skills, Sterl swiftly retreated, but…
As the Frost Giant slowly raised its massive palm…