Lu Caiyi gazed deeply into Lin Xunâs eyesâit was clear she understood his intent.
As Talros began casting his ability again, not only did she refuse to back down, but she charged forward, fists swinging.
She would use her own body to take the brunt of the enemyâs attackâto buy Lin Xun the precious seconds he needed to unleash his trump card!
The soul talent Endless Strength surged through her. The massive lion-headed gauntlets on her hands compressed the air itself, their impact howling with wind and thunder.
Boom!
Her iron fist landed squarely on the enemy, blasting him backward.
But what followed was an overwhelming tide of explosive flames.
Lu Caiyi took the full brunt of Talrosâs powerful ability. The blast nearly tore her apart, leaving her with devastating injuries.
She could no longer maintain her manifested shellâher warrior body faded away, and the collapsed figure reverted back to the frail girl in white.
âAs an Apostle of the Armed Division⊠maybe death in battle is my true fate.
I just⊠couldnât protect himâŠâ
Lin Xun saw her recklessly throw herself into danger to shield him, saw her punch the enemy through sheer willpower.
Talros, knocked away by the blow, staggered to his feet. No longer calm and composedâhe limped and wobbled, glaring at Lin Xun with fury.
There was no time to hesitate. Lin Xun gritted his teeth, summoning a sticky, half-solid, half-liquid mass of crimson bloodâboiling, bubbling, and emanating a terrifying aura.
Within that blood, it was as though a dreadful beastâs soul had been sealed.
Just looking at it made his ears ring with the echoes of a furious dragonâs roar.
[Boiling Subspecies Dragon Blood Essence (Item): The subspecies dragon blood bubbles and churns, containing the core of draconic breath. Using this item will unleash a devastating crimson dragon breath at the cost of your Shellâs death.]
[If a game Shell âdiesâ as in real life, the cost to reshape it temporarily increases by 1 soul strength point (can be paid in installments), and it becomes unusable for 24 hours.]
Lin Xun took a deep breath.
[You have manifested the Shell: Blood Sun Paladin of Discipline.]
The Engineer shell vanishedâŠ
In its place appeared a towering, grotesque figure nearly two and a half meters tall. Its flesh squirmed with pulsating tumors, its body bulging with swollen muscles.
Veins twisted like black cords across its arms, overflowing with explosive power.
It was a fallen knight corrupted by the Corrupted Blood Sunâa terrifying monster bound to depraved laws.
Lin Xun threw his head back and chugged the bubbling dragon blood.
In that instant, it felt like drinking molten lava.
The essence seared through his mouth and throat, blazing a trail down to his gut.
Scorching crimson fumes billowed from the corners of his mouth.
Lin Xun inhaled sharplyâhis already massive chest expanded grotesquely, like a furnace primed to explode.
Within his maw, crimson light began to condenseâa force of annihilation primed to erupt.
Talros, limping toward him, froze.
His eyes widened in disbelief.
The Engineer had changed Shells?!
How was that possible?!
That abominable body couldnât possibly belong to any ordinary Apostle!
He wasnât the EngineerâŠ
Talros watched in horror as the monster raised its arm and summoned a sphere of red lightâits aura smothering and terrifying.
A power of this level would cost the user dearlyâŠ
And destroy everything in its path.
âGRAAHHH!â Talros shrieked and turned to flee.
But behind him, the roar of a colossal beast split the heavensâa sound unmistakably belonging to a dragon!
Talros saw the last light of his life.
A torrent of crimson dragon breath filled his entire vision.
â
Four off-road vehicles had already arrived near the battlefieldâbut were blocked by a squad of black-robed defenders.
After a fierce fight, the joint forces of the Armed and Intelligence Divisions finally eliminated the enemies.
As the convoy neared the compound, Team Leader Wang Zong peered through the windshield.
The once-familiar bungalow was now rubble. Flames blazed among shattered bricks and tiles.
His precious girl, Lu Caiyi, lay collapsed nearby. She looked drained but alive.
âDamn it, that pretty boy⊠Why didnât he just give them the Source? If anything happened to Yiyiâjust watch me beat him senseless!â
Despite his grumbling, Wang Zong exhaled in relief.
By the ruins, a burning figure staggered to a haltâas if paralyzed by some nameless fear. He shrieked and turned to run.
Behind him stood a towering humanoid form.
With a dragonâs roar that shook the skies, it unleashed a crimson blaze capable of incinerating the world.
Above the city, the night sky turned a vivid, demonic red.
Li Xingyue watched in stunned silence.
To her, all things lost colorâsave for the overwhelming brilliance of that crimson dragon breath.
Time passed.
The red light finally faded, revealing a massive chasm stretching for miles.
Within the rift, red heat still boiled like magma. Even distant hills had failed to stop the dragonâs fury.
Everything touched by the breath had been reduced to smoldering ash.
At the very origin of the blastâŠ
A devastatingly handsome man in a T-shirt and jeans lay slumped on the ground.
Wang Zong stared in disbelief, rubbing his eyes.
âThat guy⊠didnât he look just like that pretty boy?â
âNo⊠No way someone this strong could be just a pretty boy!â
âHe must be⊠must be Yiyiâs man!â
âYes! He must be the Armed Divisionâs future son-in-law!â