Chapter 724: Max taking Action

The sound vibrated with raw power, reverberating through the bones of everyone present and momentarily silencing even the crackling thunder overhead.

Out from a curtain of sizzling lightning and drifting ash stepped a beast far larger than any of the lightning wolves they’d faced so far. Its massive form seemed to glide forward, each step scorching the blackened ground beneath its paws.

The creature was a monstrous wolf, towering as high as a small building, its entire body sheathed in thick, jagged scales that shimmered like polished obsidian. Bright purple lightning pulsed constantly through the cracks between those scales, casting eerie reflections over its glistening fangs and the vicious glow in its savage eyes.

The electric arcs leaping off its body were thick as tree branches, striking the ground and splitting boulders into molten fragments.

"King of the lightning wolf is here," Arlen said grimly, his voice low and tight with tension as he stared at the towering beast. His hands clenched tighter around his gauntlets, sparks crackling between his knuckles.

Even without measuring its aura, he could feel the crushing force emanating from it—an overwhelming, predatory pressure that hung in the air like the scent of blood.

He knew instantly that all the lightning wolves they had cut down moments ago—despite their ferocity—were mere pups in comparison to this monstrous king.

Max’s eyes sharpened, his Three Dimensional Body flaring to life as he traced every flicker of lightning running through the beast’s scaled hide.

’Its very strong. Should I interfere?’ His expression turned thoughtful, recognizing the power coiling within this creature. It was far beyond the average lightning beasts they’d faced until now.

Arlen took a steadying breath, eyes never leaving the massive wolf. "Its strength has reached the 5th level of Champion Rank," he said gravely. "While the previous lightning wolves were only at the 3rd level. And listen carefully—here in the Berserk Lightning Region, with lightning flooding the air, its power could spike even higher... up to the 6th or even the 7th level of Champion Rank."

His gaze swept over his teammates, determination burning behind his eyes. "Everyone, surround the king wolf. Don’t give it a moment to breathe, and definitely don’t let it gather lightning from the storm. If it manages to draw in the surrounding energy, we’ll be facing a creature whose power can rival someone two full levels higher than its base strength. We can’t allow that."

But just as the others tensed, poised to lunge into the fray against the colossal lightning wolf, the storm-ravaged sky above them seemed to split open with a sound like the tearing of the heavens themselves.

A blinding light spilled through the thunderclouds, golden and fierce, bathing the entire battlefield in its brilliant glow. Time seemed to hold its breath as, high above, a humongous sword forged entirely of golden radiance appeared in the sky.

The sword was massive beyond measure, its length stretching hundreds of meters.

Before Arlen, Lena, Varek, Sana, or Kael could so much as process what was happening, the colossal golden sword descended with unstoppable force, plunging from the heavens like divine judgment from a wrathful god.

The instant it struck the king lightning wolf, there was no explosion or struggle—only a single, blinding flash, a silence so deep it swallowed the sound of thunder, and then the monstrous wolf’s body shattered into countless fragments of flickering light.

The scales, the blazing eyes, even the arcs of purple lightning vanished, scattered into motes that dissolved into the storm around them as though the creature had never existed.

For a heartbeat, none of them could move or speak, their weapons half-raised, breath frozen in their lungs, eyes wide as the lingering glow of the sword faded from the storm-churned sky.

Into that awestruck silence, Max’s voice broke the stillness, cool and utterly calm, as if he’d merely swatted a fly instead of obliterating a creature of immense power. "It’s done," he said with a faint, satisfied smile curving his lips, his tone almost casual.

One by one, the others slowly turned to stare at him, disbelief and shock blazing in their eyes. The realization dawned simultaneously on all of them: that sword—there could be no doubt—it had been Max’s doing.

Only he had stood perfectly still while the rest of them had prepared to fight, and only he seemed entirely unfazed by what had just happened. It wasn’t merely the fact that he’d slain the lightning wolf—it was that he’d done it with a single strike, and so effortlessly that the monstrous beast hadn’t even had a chance to roar in defiance before its existence was snuffed out.

A creature whose strength reached the 5th level of Champion Rank—possibly higher in this lightning-charged domain—had fallen in an instant before a man standing merely at the 1st level of Master Rank.

Arlen was the first to find his voice, though it came out as a dry, wry laugh. "Leader Lyra was not exaggerating things," he said, shaking his head slowly, a mix of admiration and disbelief in his eyes. "When she spoke of your strength, we all thought she was biased... we thought she was simply blinded because she favored you."

He glanced at the others, whose faces were equally stunned. "But now... I see she was absolutely right."

A quiet, breathless silence stretched out among them as they continued to stare at Max, who only gave them that calm, faintly amused smile, his eyes glinting with hidden power.

Max was a complete monster—and now they knew it beyond any shadow of doubt.

"Let’s go ahead," Max said calmly, his voice carrying an unspoken authority that made the others fall silent, their weapons still faintly gleaming from the remnants of the last battle.

Without waiting for any response, he stepped forward, pushing through the swirl of storm-lit mist as violet lightning flickered high above, illuminating the scorched earth in eerie pulses.

This time, he took the lead without hesitation. From the moment he moved, there was a subtle shift in the group’s dynamic—as if the center of gravity itself had changed—and the others instinctively fell in line behind him, silent and watchful.