Chapter 216 Kate, Leader of the Knights of Valor

Max stood amidst the tense silence, his smirk unwavering as his gaze swept over Norton Blade, Kheonne Evernight, James, and the other leaders.

Their faces were etched with fear, disbelief, and anger.

They knew what was coming.

But—

They were too late.

Max's fingers released.

The 33-petal World Destruction Flaming Lotus began its silent descent.

Toward the green force field sphere.

Inside—

The three trapped Monarch geniuses stared up in horror.

"NO!"

Norton's roar of desperation tore through the air.

His sword flashed—

A white glowing streak of light, slicing forward in a final, frantic attempt to shatter the sphere and free them.

"What did you do?!"

Kheonne's voice shook with terror, her eyes locked onto the lotus as it fell.

Her breath turned unsteady.

She never expected Max to casually dropped the lotus to the three geniuses from the Monarch.

Just beside her James stood in solemn silence.

He didn't react outwardly—but his expression was grim.

'The East is over.'

There was no undoing this.

A distance away…

Aurelia watched in silence, standing at the outskirts of the Villa.

Her eyes remained fixed on Max—

Observing his every movement.

Every flicker of his expression.

Every pulse of power radiating from him.

Then—

She closed her eyes.

'Chaos it is, then.'

A slow sigh escaped her lips, the weight of understanding settling on her shoulders.

She had known from the very start.

From when Max decided to take revenge on Killian Blade.

She realized.

Max wasn't someone who could be swayed.

If he made a decision—

He would see it through.

No hesitation. No regrets.

And now—this moment proved it.

There was no in-between with him.

No diplomacy.

No backing down.

No middle ground.

Only absolute resolve.

Her fingers tightened slightly at her side.

'I guess I have to increase the pace of my plans a little bit now.'

Then—

Her eyes opened again.

Sharp.

Unreadable.

The air thickened with finality as the black flaming lotus descended.

The crowd watched in horror—

Their faces pale.

Their breaths held.

They had lost all hope.

This was it.

The end.

For the three Monarch geniuses.

No one could stop it.

No one should be able to stop it.

But then—

A flicker of light.

A spark amidst despair.

And then—

Kate moved.

The leader of the Knights of Valor extended her hand—

And in that moment—

Everything changed.

BOOM!

The space around Max froze.

His body locked in place—hovering midair—

His expression frozen in a smirk.

The black flaming lotus—

The unstoppable force of destruction—

Halted.

It floated motionlessly—

Just inches above the three trapped geniuses.

Its flames burned eerily, its power coiled and ready—

But its detonation was suspended.

The surrounding around Max stood still.

For a moment—

It was as if time itself had stopped.

And the moment realization dawned—

Shock rippled through the battlefield.

Norton Blade—

Took a sharp step back, his eyes wide with disbelief.

Kheonne Evernight—

Inhaled sharply, her body stiff, unable to process what she had just seen.

Even Ralph and Garrison—

Stood there, frozen in awe.

Not just them.

Every single person present.

Geniuses.

Guild leaders.

Guests from the East Region.

All stood motionless.

Some of them understood.

Others were completely baffled.

Because what just happened—

Should have been impossible.

From a distance, Aurelia watched.

Her golden eyes remained calm, analyzing the unfolding situation with absolute clarity.

'She's about to reach Level 2 of the Concept of Space.'

Her observation was precise. Unwavering.

Unlike the others—

She wasn't surprised.

Not even a little.

Kate's mastery over space had already been formidable.

But this?

This confirmed it.

She had touched the threshold—

The point where space was no longer just controlled—

But rewritten.

The others gasped in shock.

Some in awe.

Some in fear.

Yet, amidst the chaos, Aurelia's curiosity stirred.

What now?

On the surface, Max was powerless.

Frozen in space. Helpless. Trapped.

With someone who wielded such mastery, it should have been over.

Right?

Or—

Was it?

'Damn… just how high is her comprehension of space?'

Max's eyes chilled, his mind racing.

Before him—

Kate walked forward.

Slow. Deliberate.

Like a executioner approaching a prisoner in chains.

But she wasn't coming for him.

She was heading for the sphere.

Toward the three trapped Monarch geniuses.

Max clenched his jaw.

'She froze space too strongly—I can't even detonate the lotus.'

The realization hit hard.

This wasn't just a simple Space Freeze technique.

This was absolute suppression.

His entire being was locked. Restrained.

Even the 33-petal World Destruction Flaming Lotus—

Suspended in her dominion.

And if he failed now—

He knew the truth.

He'd never get another chance.

This was it.

All or nothing.

"You shouldn't struggle."

Kate's voice rang out—calm, composed, yet unshakable.

She barely glanced at Max, her focus instead locked onto the suspended lotus.

"I may not be the strongest in the East, but my control over space? It is absolute. Number one. In the entire Valora Continent."

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Her words dug into Max like needles.

Not because they were arrogant.

But because she was right.

Her control over space was on another level.

The air around him remained locked, his body frozen, not a single muscle responding.

The lotus hung motionless, an unstoppable force trapped in an immovable cage.

It should have erased everything in its path.

Yet—

It was suspended in time.

Max's mind raced.

'What a worse moment to flaunt your power…'

He cursed inwardly, forcing himself to analyze the situation.

What did he need?

Not movement.

Not strength.

Just one thing—

Detonation.

If he could ignite the lotus, the sheer scale of destruction would override any spatial freeze.

A 33-petal World Destruction Flaming Lotus…

Max had absolute confidence in one fact—

No amount of space control could survive that explosion.

Not even hers.

Now—

He just needed a way.

But the question was how?

Max's mind raced, calculations firing in rapid succession.

Kate would reach him in seconds.

He didn't have much time.

'What should I do?'

His Three-Dimensional Body physique was one of the most adaptable for space-related techniques—

But right now?

It wasn't enough.

It couldn't help him control the black flames, nor could it break Kate's space suppression directly.

But then—

An idea formed.

'I'll detonate it remotely.'

Yes.

That was the only way.

If he could just reconnect with the black flames on the lotus, he could ignite it without touching it.

But—

There was a problem.

He had lost that connection.

The moment he dropped the lotus, the flames had become severed from his control.

And now—

Because of Space Freeze, he couldn't even extend his aura to reach them again.

Which meant—

He needed a way to bypass the suppression.

To reassert control.

'But how?'

Max's frown deepened, his eyes narrowing as Kate moved closer.

Her expression was steady.

Her presence—unshakable.

Each step she took was a countdown.

Ten feet away.

Nine.

Eight.

Max's jaw clenched.

The worst part wasn't just that he had lost control over the flames.

It was that Kate's mastery of space had severed his very connection to them.

If he wanted to ignite the lotus, he needed a way to break through.

To reach his flames again.

But how?

Seeing Kate closing in, a flicker of anxiety crept into Max's mind.

'What should I do?'