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"{Primordial Dragon King Soul Unification Arts}: {Immortal Heavenly Dragon King Celestial Spirit Avatar}!"
"N-No...! AAAHHH! YOU CANâT!!!"
HĂ©luna screamed, descending into madness. Root, within the giant spirit, gazed down at her with pity. He had tried to reach her, to change her path, but he already knew it was far too late.
He was hundreds of thousands of years too late, and she was far too gone.
It was better to let her rest in peace. A mortal should never have lived this long, he thought.
Dragons and Titans possessed minds built to withstand the endless passage of time. Mortals who ascended to godhood rarely fared so well. Most went mad after mere hundreds of thousands of years, and even Venerables were no exception.
"{Venerable Dominion}: {Endless Starlight Galaxy}!"
FLAAASH!
In a final, desperate effort, HĂ©luna unleashed her strongest Dominion despite her grievous wounds. It clashed against Drakeâs colossal Spirit Avatar, the unified will and soul of every dragon.
The world around them transformed into outer space. A galaxy of countless stars and moons materialized around her. HĂ©luna smiled maniacally, commanding billions of celestial bodies to rain down upon Drake and his allies.
"P-PERISH! DIE! DIE ALREADY, ALL OF YOU! DONâT YOU SEE HOW MUCH SUFFERING YOUâRE CAUSING US?! OUR DREAM CANNOT BE DESTROYED!!!"
"Dream, you say?" Drake asked calmly. "If your dream requires destroying an entire world and slaughtering billions, then itâs not a dream. Itâs madness."
"Y-YOU DONâT UNDERSTAND! NO ONE DOES! ALL OF THIS IS MEANINGLESS! THIS FANTASY MUST END!"
The dragon avatar surged forward, shrugging off the onslaught with ease. Exploding planetoids, moons, and stars barely scratched it. The sheer power warped HĂ©lunaâs own Venerable Dominion, causing it to tremble and fracture.
"A-Ahhh!"
HĂ©luna screamed in terror as the titanic figure reached herâimposing, stoic, unscathed, undefeated.
"Fantasy, you call it?" Drake continued. "To me, this is the only reality. This is our world. This is our home. We wonât let anyone threaten it anymore. We will fight for it!"
"YOUâRE ALL FOOLS!!!"
HĂ©luna fought to the very end. She clashed against the draconic titan, her galaxy swirling around her. She grew to match its size, becoming a colossal giantess formed of stars, satellites, and planetoids.
She charged, leaving a trail of stardust and nebulae behind. Her fists slammed into the dragon spirit avatar with all her might, each impact unleashing explosions of cosmic light.
"YOU KNOW NOTHING ABOUT US!"
BOOM!
"ABOUT OUR DREAM!"
BOOM!
"YOU KNOW NOTHING! NOTHING!!!"
BOOM!
The dragon avatar retaliated instantly. Claws raked across her body. A devastating punch to her face sent her flying.
Yet HĂ©luna surged back, kicking the giant dragon and hurling it into a nearby nebula. Explosions of starlight erupted everywhere.
"We know enough to see itâs a terrible idea, HĂ©luna," Drake said one last time. "Is there really no talking you out of this?"
"I will die for my lord! Even if I can only delay you for another second, I will fight until the bitter end! This fake world, this meaningless fantasy, the mistakes of humanity, the Quantum Gateâthey will all be unraveled! Yggdrasil must be destroyed so the universe can finally achieve complete unification!"
"What are you even talking about?!" Drake demanded angrily. "Canât you explain anything?!"
"I WILL NOT EXPLAIN FURTHER! YOUR MINDS ARE TOO LOWLY TO COMPREHEND OUR GRAND PLAN!!! HE SEEKS NOT JUST ETERNAL LIFE, BUT MATURITY FOR THIS UNIVERSE! ETERNAL HARMONY!"
"HĂ©luna..."
Root sighed, closing his eyes and nodding. He had given up.
Drake glanced at him, then turned back to his opponent.
"Alright, everyone. Letâs finish this!"
RUMBLE!
The Dragon Spirit Avatar charged. Both titans collidedâcosmic hands against glowing dragon claws. Explosions of blinding light erupted. The Dominion began to shatter, cracks revealing glimpses of the Heavenly Realm beyond.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
"Nnghh...! Gaaaahhhh! RAAAAAHHHH!"
The Venerable screamed. Her Ascendancy Law Rings began to fracture as she pushed herself beyond all limits.
And yet...
The Dragon King and his Champions were simply stronger.
DragonsâAncient Guardians once dismissed by Venerables after the great catastropheâwere now fighting back. They were proving who the true protectors of this world were.
Thanks to Drakeâs efforts, they would no longer be looked down upon.
They would be admired by the good-hearted.
And feared by the wicked.
"Drake, take this power! End her now!"
Alma held Knife and channeled his strength into Drakeâs Avatar, having leaped inside at the last moment.
"This is...! Incredible! Thank you, AlmaâI owe you one!"
Drake smiled. He summoned Muramasa and Celestia through the avatar and fused them into a single long katana of golden and pink light.
It resembled the now-slumbering Knife.
"SOUL... PUNISHER!!!"
SLAAAASH!
"A-Aaahh...!"
HĂ©luna screamed one final time. The blade pierced her left shoulder, carved down her chest, and plunged deep into her soul, cleaving it in two.
"AAAAAHHHHHH!"
Both halves ignited, exploding endlessly as the power of Soul Punisherâher own technique once used to torture anyone who dared oppose her and Oberonânow consumed her soul.
"Oberon... I leave the rest... to you..."
HĂ©luna vanished in a cataclysmic blast. Her enormously powerful soul shattered into countless fragments of glistening purple and pink light, drifting away on the cosmic wind. Her Ascendancy Law Rings crumbled. Drake managed to seize a few dozen shards, but most were lostâdestroyed by her own doing.
BOOOMMM!!!
HĂ©luna was gone. Her Dominion collapsed inward, compressing into a massive black holeâher final gift, a last attempt to crush them beneath its gravity.
"Ugh, she really was a bitch until the very end, huh?" Alma muttered. "But hell yeah! Sheâs finally gone! Oh my god, I canât believe it! Everyone, we did it! We canâAack! The black hole! Shit! Itâs pulling us in!"
"Donât worry," Drake said calmly, waving his hand. Space warped, and the black hole sealed shut instantly. "A failed attempt to kill us, but a successful one to delay us. We must hurry! Charlotte, everyoneâletâs go!"
Drake swiftly led his family, Charlotte, and Fuyuâs crew onward. They soared through the skies, using Logiâs portals to cross vast distances, drawing ever closer to Oberonâs location.
With nearly all obstacles removed, only one thing remained: confront Uroboros and retrieve Helena before Oberon could complete the revival.
"Wait for me, Helena. Your uncle wonât give up on youânot even in another world."
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