Slaying Utgarda-Loki!

The intense pain and corrosive effects made it difficult for Utgarda-Loki to move. Although the wildfire still burning on his body was protecting him, Utgarda-Loki couldn't help but start having wild thoughts.

Utgarda-Loki roared and launched a fierce counterattack against Oligan's main body.

But almost every attack he launched was perfectly neutralized by Oligan, leaving him with deep, bone-revealing wounds instead.

Oligan remained calm throughout, and even in the midst of a life-or-death struggle, his face did not contort into a ferocious expression.

However, at this moment, he felt that time was starting to slow down.

His mind, which had been clouded and boiling with boundless rage, suddenly calmed down. It was as if all the noise in his ears had suddenly disappeared, and he became clear-headed.

Past experiences surfaced one by one in my mind.

—Utgarda-Loki's problem is actually similar to Oligan's.

They are both warriors, yet they cannot obtain the weapon they are best at.

That's why Utgarda-Loki respected this warrior—and because he respected him, he used all his strength to inflict a fatal wound.

If it weren't for the final blow, which triggered the Wildfire's automatic protection and knocked the opponent away, Utgarda-Loki would have carefully and meticulously mashed the opponent into a meat paste, roasted it, and eaten it, ensuring there was absolutely no possibility of resurrection or healing.

It's just a pity... he happened to receive healing from the elves.

Now that Utgarda-Loki has been dethroned by the Giant King, he can no longer wield his most proficient demonic sword, "Wounding Branch." Neither the giant axe nor hand-to-hand combat are Utgarda-Loki's most skilled weapons—his greatest strength lies in swordsmanship, specifically the swordsmanship that complements the demonic sword "Wounding Branch."

The "Wounding Branch" is the most advanced weapon of the giant race, and also a divine artifact given by the Supreme Heaven, imbued with His unparalleled divine power.

This weapon burns incessantly, its light brighter than the sun. It is the embodiment of the supreme will of the Supreme Heaven.

Simply by wielding this weapon, without even swinging it, countless "Following Swords" will spontaneously materialize on the battlefield. These swords will dance in the air according to the wielder's will, slaying enemies at will.

Each Following Swords is as if wielded by a warrior who possesses it.

With this weapon, any swarm tactics are meaningless against the giants. The strongest of the giant race, wielding this demonic sword, can essentially split themselves, creating countless clones to control the entire battlefield. And each clone, lacking a physical form, is invincible.

The weapon itself was forged by the Supreme Heaven himself, a god-slaying blade capable of severing the "giant tree" upon which the elves depended for survival.

That is why it is called "Wounding Branch". It was made from a broken branch of a giant tree and was forged by the Supreme Heaven into a rebellious demonic sword capable of slaying "its father".

Simply use this sword to sever the roots of the giant tree, and you can completely cut off its life force, burning and destroying that immortal, towering tree.

The giants were able to avoid interference and control from the elves precisely because of the deterrent power of this sword—although in terms of top-tier combat strength, the giants were indeed inferior to the Theocracy. But if you dare to interfere with the Giant Kingdom, then we'll just move on! After all, the giants don't need any special living environment. Whether it's a forest or a desert, an ice field or a seashore... as long as it's not a desert with scarce food and excessive heat, they can always survive. But the elves cannot accept the loss of the giant tree.

According to convention, this sword should belong to the Patriarch of the Supreme Heaven.

Because the Patriarch of the Supreme Heaven is generally also the most powerful person in the Giant Kingdom and the guardian of the kingdom.

However, this generation's Giant King was exceptionally arrogant and haughty.

Using the ridiculous pretext of Utgarda-Loki's disrespect for royalty, he seized the title of guardian of the Kingdom of Utgarda-Loki and proclaimed himself guardian, wielding this genuine divine weapon.

In terms of blood relations, the Giant King is closer to the Supreme Heaven. Therefore, even though the Supreme Heaven knew that the accusation was false, it ignored the fact that the giants had taken Utgarda-Loki's artifact.

Because the position of Patriarch should originally belong to royalty. Utgarda-Loki also has royal blood flowing through his veins, but his bloodline is not as pure as that of his predecessors.

Utgarda-Loki was able to rise to power purely because he was strong enough as a warrior.

No one deserves the title of "Wounding Branch" more than him.

Even the previous Giant King held Utgarda-Loki in high regard. The current Giant King had also learned martial arts from Utgarda-Loki in his youth, so Utgarda-Loki could be considered his teacher.

Now, Utgarda-Loki has been stripped of his guardian status by his own student without having committed any major wrongdoing.

This is a disgrace—

The Giant Kingdom has existed for thousands of years, and there has never been a precedent of a guardian being stripped of their power! Yet, when faced with external enemies, he could invoke the judgment of the Supreme Heaven. But when faced with the bullying of the Giant King, the Supreme Heaven chose to remain silent in the face of his pleas.

There is no justice in the Supreme Heaven.

And now...

"...Oh."

Utgarda-Loki stared at the outstanding Lizardman warrior and couldn't help but sneer.

He wasn't mocking the other person. He was mocking fate.

Utgarda-Loki had never seen a warrior of such exceptional talent. Even within the Giant Kingdom, there was no warrior stronger than him. It was only his Lizardman body that bound his talent... What good would it do for such a weak race, even if they reached the pinnacle?

If he were an elf, a giant, or a dragon—if he were born into one of these superior races, this Lizardman warrior, who is still in his prime, might one day be able to reach the position of Celestial Master on the Path of Strength!

But...

Such a powerful warrior, yet he obtained a weapon that could easily wound him.

That would be a calamity for the Giant Kingdom.

All of this is because of the trouble caused by the "King" taking the weapon from him.

—The age of giants may be coming to an end.

In Utgarda-Loki's eyes, time seemed to slow down countless times.

Oligan's body leaped high into the air, leaving a trail of afterimages, and then hovered there, motionless.

In that instant, his body seemed to grow two or three times larger through a transformation.

A phantom image, imbued with lightning, covered his body!

That was an invincible face, wielding a thunder halberd in both hands, with a majesty that was almost terrifying!

In a daze, Utgarda-Loki saw traces of the Supreme Heaven on that face.

As a fellow warrior, he could even read the name of every combat technique used by his opponent.

—Fervent Strength! —Weapon Resonance! —Giant Strike! —Thunder Strike! —Weakness Strike! —Unrivaled Slash!

—Kill!

The seven skills overlapped, unleashing unparalleled power.

That is precisely the number of power.

This is probably... fate.

The last thought that came to Utgarda-Loki's mind was this.

The next moment, time flowed on.

The giant halberd phantom, wrapped in countless golden blades, cleaved Utgarda-Loki's head in two! Then, a thick bolt of lightning engulfed both of them.

The twisting force shattered Utgarda-Loki's head!

Endless thunder, accompanied by a storm, surged outwards from the confluence point in all directions.

Then the surrounding ground was peeled away piece by piece, trees were blown up in the storm, and a violent black explosion came from Utgarda-Loki's body, turning his body into dust piece by piece.

Iver, riding his winged horse, was unable to dodge in mid-air and was caught in the blast.

His body was thrown backward, and with his last ounce of willpower, he could only desperately grip the reins to keep himself from separating from the Pegasus. Even so, he was eventually caught in the throes and thrown until he lost consciousness.

When Iver regained his senses, he saw the sun on the horizon turn to dusk.

The forest beneath them, which had been damaged by the aftershocks and appeared incomplete and dilapidated, had almost recovered, although traces of the earth and rivers that had been torn apart could still be seen.

"I told you I would come back."

A detached voice rang out.

Iver turned around and saw a familiar figure dressed in silver armor, intently feeding the Iver.

—It was Arthur!