Chapter 1205: Hit

’He looks so weird,’ Atticus thought. He hadn’t taken a moment to properly examine his current appearance as an Eldorian, but now he made a mental note to.

The changes on his grandfather were clear. Magnus’s form had been altered with each core and Atticus could see traits of multiple races layered into his being.

Atticus sent a glance toward Avalon, who nodded seriously. He turned back to Magnus before raising his arm. Within seconds, the dwarven core formed and shot toward Magnus, merging with the cluster of cores at his center.

Magnus recoiled instantly, his entire body convulsing as thick brownish veins webbed across his skin.

His eyes ignited with blinding light. Pain surged through every fiber of his being, and light began pouring out of him like he’d become a vessel too full.

Gritting his teeth, Magnus clenched his fists, enduring the torrent as the light intensified, until suddenly, with a violent burst, a pillar of energy shot out of him and ripped through the roof of the training room, piercing straight into the sky.

Atticus smiled slightly. He had diverted the brunt of the force into the vertical blast, if he hadn’t, the entire hill would’ve been reduced to dust.

But the smile faded quickly.

’The world’s energy just dropped… and mine too.’

His gaze narrowed. His energy was tied to Eldoralth, and now, the both of them had taken a hit.

’It’s not recovering…’

He tried refilling his energy, but nothing changed. He thought for a moment, then it clicked.

’So this is the cost.’

He had been right from the beginning. The true fallback wasn’t during the previous stages, it was now, when Magnus was finally becoming an Eldorian.

The world’s energy level had dropped, and because his energy was in perfect sync with it, so had his own. No matter how much he tried, he couldn’t go past this ceiling, for now.

The blinding light slowly began to dim, revealing Magnus suspended just above the ground, legs still crossed.

’His appearance has completely changed.’

He looked younger now, his skin flawless and slightly pale with a whitish hue. His frame had grown broader, and even as he floated to his feet, Atticus could tell he had gotten taller.

’I’m still taller,’ Atticus reassured himself silently. Magnus was pushing 8 feet now, but hadn’t quite reached it.

His body brimmed with so much vitality that Atticus had no doubt, he would live for an incredibly long time.

’More than a thousand years.’

It was a staggering figure, especially considering the previous lifespans of even the strongest races. Human paragons topped out at 300 years. The others only marginally surpassed that. But the Eldorians had they were on another level entirely.

He could still remember how long Elderish had lived.

As Magnus opened his eyes, Atticus couldn’t help but smile.

’Just like Elderish.’

His eyes had turned abyssal black, speckled with endless white dots, like the night sky itself lived in them.

"How do you feel, Grandpa?" Atticus asked. Avalon had stepped closer, quietly observing his father with intrigued.

Magnus flexed his arms, opening and closing his fists slowly. The power flowing through him was immense,!more than anything he’d ever known.

He gave a single nod. "Good."

Atticus nearly laughed. Trust Magnus to downplay something so absurdly spectacular.

He and Avalon could feel the weight of the aura he now exuded. The pressure.

"Why don’t you fight with Dad?" Atticus suggested, smirking.

Avalon shot him a glare.

"I think you’d be more suited for that," he replied.

Atticus shrugged. "I’m a god. It wouldn’t be a fair fight."

"And fighting me would be?" Avalon motioned toward the vastness of Magnus’s aura with exaggerated movements.

"Hm…" Atticus hummed. "Are you scared?"

Avalon frowned, his eyes narrowing. He could feel both Atticus’s and Magnus’s gazes pressing on him.

He sighed. He was, but there was no way he’d admit that.

Without a word, he flickered to the other side of the training room, his gaze sharpening as he faced Magnus directly.

Atticus vanished into a corner, watching it all unfold with a calm, amused gaze.

The air grew heavy as Magnus and Avalon locked eyes.

’I can’t hold back,’ Avalon thought grimly, feeling the familiar weight of his gauntlets around his arms.

"Start when you’re ready."

Magnus’s words had barely left his lips before Avalon’s figure flickered. In the blink of an eye, he appeared in front of the still Magnus, fist wreathed in blazing inferno, tearing through the air toward his head.

But then Magnus’s eyes flashed brown as his lips parted. "Mana negation."

A pulse rippled from his body, and the moment it enveloped Avalon, his flames were snuffed out like candlelight.

Avalon’s eyes widened in shock, but before he could even process what had happened, a massive fist filled his vision.

He froze, unable to react. The fist stopped just inches from his face, the gust of air it generated blasting his snow white hair backward in a violent ripple.

Avalon gulped. "Did the punch have to be that close, Dad?"

"Yes," Magnus replied matter of factly, retracting his fist without fanfare.

Avalon could only clear his throat awkwardly.

Afterwards, Atticus approached the two, offering a nod of approval as he praised Magnus’s transformation. Then he turned to Avalon.

"Doing the same for you will take time," Atticus explained. "The world needs to recover first."

With that, Atticus turned and left the training room. Outside, his gaze shifted briefly toward the garden where Zoey was still healing.

’Not now.’

Now that he was a god, accelerating her recovery would’ve been easy. But with the world’s energy depleted to such levels, he wasn’t willing to risk it. Not yet.

The current reserve was already low, and if a threat emerged, he needed to be prepared.

Atticus pulled his gaze away in the next moment and made his way to his usual spot. There, he sat down cross legged and closed his eyes to meditate.

And just like that, time passed in a blink.