At this moment.
Tai City's Forum exploded.
"Just now... what did I just see?"
"Explosions! I heard incredibly loud explosions, and then flames shot into the sky over there—flames reaching straight into the heavens!"
"Did you see it?! That sea of fire soaring into the sky! Those terrifying bats were all burned to ashes! It was like the Heavenly Fire of myth!"
"That blaze was like the first light tearing through dawn—so dazzling! It brought tears to my eyes!"
"The dark clouds hanging over Tai City have finally dispersed."
"Is it over? Have we finally been saved?"
Countless ordinary people who had survived the disaster poked their heads out from the wreckage. Their filthy faces were filled with delight. The terror brought by the bats still lingered, but it gradually faded amid the word spreading from person to person.
Looking out the windows, the blood on the ground and the shattered glass from the buildings were horrifying to behold.
But the thick fog in the city had vanished.
Everything gradually calmed down.
Before the Clock Tower in Central Plaza, roaring flames continued to burn as though they would never go out, crackling as they erased every trace.
The Special Operations Department was also filled with celebration.
"That's great!"
"We really did it! We stopped the King from hatching!"
"It feels like a dream! He actually sealed the King Cocoon! I thought the mission was going to fail. If it had, Tai City would have fallen, and none of us could have escaped blame!"
The agents of the Special Operations Department heaved sighs of relief and broke into relaxed smiles. They hugged, high-fived, and embraced one another.
Throughout the streets and alleys, numerous Pioneers slowly raised their heads and wiped the blood from their faces.
"Is it over?"
"It actually worked.