Stripping Divine Power

As the blackness was successfully stripped away, the vortex of energy turned a faint silver, swirling as it entered Lian’s chest.

Just as Starlight thought they had succeeded, Lian’s body jolted violently, and a trace of blood leaked from the corner of her mouth.

Immediately after, a piercing pain traveled from Lian’s shoulder into Starlight’s body.

This sudden sting made Starlight dazed for a moment, nearly causing him to forget to continue stripping the dark elements. Fortunately, Noah’s reminder in his mind allowed him to react quickly, and he forcibly concentrated his attention.

No matter how weak this energy was, it was still the power of a god. In terms of its nature, it was far superior to their own.

Seeing both of them suddenly tremble as fine beads of sweat appeared on their faces, Moen hurriedly channeled her Power of Nature, hoping to alleviate their physical suffering.

To her surprise, the Power of Nature she released was immediately and ruthlessly repelled upon contact with their bodies. No matter how much effort she put in, she could not get the green light to settle on them.

Seeing that things were going wrong, Po Kong and Xia Duo immediately stepped to the edge of the magic formation, ready to rescue the two at any moment. However, Starlight gritted his teeth and shook his head at them, indicating that it wasn't time yet.

This was because Lian had told him through their mental link that the current pain was still within her tolerance. Moreover, they had already made a good start; as long as they could hold on for a while longer, the plan would be a complete success.

As the seconds ticked by, a large amount of sweat soaked their clothes.

As the assistant, Starlight was actually faring better. Aside from the increasing amount of dark elements condensed in his hands, he had gradually grown accustomed to the pain.

However, Lian’s body was clearly not in a good state. Under the intrusion of the divine power, an unusual flush appeared beneath her pale blue skin, and fine blood vessels had all surfaced, looking as if they might burst at any moment.

Yet, she endured the pain in silence, not even letting out a single groan.

Finally, through their tireless efforts, a piece of the black energy on the stone slab was successfully stripped away.

In the next second, a dazzling golden light, almost material in its intensity, erupted from that small gap, as if a tiny sun had risen within this eerie space.

The moment this golden light appeared, the first to undergo a change was Po Kong.

He could clearly feel that this power shared the same source as the War God Battle Qi within him, though it was worlds apart in both intensity and scale.

With the appearance of the golden light, the War God Battle Qi that had been suppressed within him also erupted violently and uncontrollably at this moment.

Under the explosion of battle qi, Po Kong’s entire being turned a brilliant gold. Even his eyes and mouth were constantly spewing forth light.

Although Po Kong didn’t understand why such powerful strength had suddenly erupted from his body, he was pleasantly surprised to find that this outburst didn't place any burden on him at all. Instead, it brought a sense of incredible comfort.

Amidst this pleasure that almost threatened to swallow him, he couldn't help but roar out loud.

“ARGH!!!”

A surging shockwave dispersed with his roar, actually shaving another layer off the large pit they were in. Countless bits of sand and silt were blown directly into the air, only being stopped by the black barrier at the edge of the space.

After letting out that roar, Po Kong felt refreshed, but the others around him suffered greatly.

Not only were Xia Duo and Moen dazed by his thunderous roar, but even Starlight’s body was pushed back several meters by the shockwave he released, causing his movements to strip the dark elements to stop.

The uncontrollable golden battle qi lapped against their bodies like a tide, making them feel a stinging pain as if they were being burned by fire.

“What the hell are you doing, Po Kong?! Oh no... Lian!”

Before Starlight could even finish scolding Po Kong, he realized something was wrong and turned his gaze toward Lian, who was still in place absorbing the Night God’s power.

Without Starlight’s assistance, the power descending upon Lian immediately more than doubled. He could already see traces of blood seeping from beneath her skin, staining her gauze clothing red.

“Damn it! Hold on!”

With a roar of anger, Starlight rushed toward Lian and yanked her out of the vortex of divine power, exposing his own body completely to the dissipating divine energy.

Having just escaped the erosion, Lian coughed up a mouthful of blood that shone with a silver light. After glancing at Starlight, she went limp and collapsed.

Moen was quick to react, reaching out to catch Lian’s slender body and quickly scanning her interior with her own mana.

She found that although Lian was covered in blood and looked terrifying, there was a powerful force protecting her internal organs.

So, while her current appearance was grisly, her actual condition was much better than expected.

Starlight, who was also bathed in the Night God’s power, finally understood how terrifying divine power truly was. Although he was physically much stronger than Lian, he still felt a pain like his body was being torn apart when facing this power that completely transcended common logic.

“Po Kong! Get the thing inside out quickly! I... I can't hold on much longer...!” he growled, looking at Po Kong through gritted teeth.

Due to the gap that had appeared in the black stone slab, the overflowing divine power began to become chaotic.

Starlight could feel that the entire space was becoming increasingly unstable under the influence of these changes. If they didn't finish quickly, the entire space might collapse in a chain reaction.

Coming to his senses, Po Kong dashed to the front of the stone slab, raising his glowing golden fist and smashing it down toward the gap.

As his fists fell like raindrops, the crumbling gap began to grow larger and larger. The golden light inside surged out like ocean waves, enveloping Po Kong’s figure.

Under the radiance of this golden light, Po Kong’s body at the center could only be seen as a faint, blurry shadow.

At the same time, under his fierce assault, the vortex formed by the Night God’s power could no longer maintain its original frequency and crumbled bit by bit in mid-air.

Having broken free from it, Starlight felt a wave of numbness throughout his body and instinctively began to fall backward.

He thought he would hit the ground hard, but instead, he fell into a soft embrace.

Smelling the familiar floral scent coming from behind him, he knew that Moen had caught him. However, at this moment, he had no time to enjoy the pleasant sensation and instead used all his strength to warn them.

“Moen... Xia Duo, watch your backs!”

The two girls snapped their heads around. They saw that the sturdy stone sphere, which had lost its supply of Starlight’s mana, had at some point turned into a pile of fragments on the ground. The Aberrant trapped within had already straightened its tall body once more.

“This is bad! We actually forgot about this guy!”

Xia Duo cursed inwardly. Amidst this series of commotions, she had actually failed to notice the Aberrant’s escape, which was a serious dereliction of duty for a ranger like her.

However, she did not stop her movements. With a graceful turn, she drew the weapon slung across her back, and her Emerald Plume fired three arrows in an instant.