Calm and Overwhelming

Bzzzz...

A low hum, as if the entire world were trembling, rang out without warning.

The Chaos Cult wizard's movements abruptly froze.

He looked up in astonishment, surveying his surroundings.

With the lava basin at its center, the light within a radius of ten kilometers began to warp strangely.

The sky blurred, the ground became illusory, and even the energy condensed in his palm began to fluctuate and dissipate beyond his control.

It was as though an invisible giant hand had gently lifted this region out of "reality" and then... kneaded it at will.

"What?!"

The Chaos Cult wizard's pupils constricted, and the smile vanished from his face for the first time.

In its place was an indescribable horror.

Because he sensed an aura.

An aura that was cold and calm, yet carried an absolute sense of "dominion," slowly descending from some distant direction.

That aura was not powerful—at least, judging by its energy intensity, it was at most Level 5, absolutely not Level 6.

Yet for some reason, the instant that aura locked onto him, every hair on his body stood on end, and frenzied warnings sounded from the depths of his soul:

Danger! Danger! Danger!!!

"Who?!!"

He abruptly turned toward the source of the aura and roared hoarsely.

At the same time, his body instinctively began to distort. He was preparing to cast a life-saving spatial leap spell and flee this area at once!

But it was too late.

At the very instant he turned, roared, and began casting...

A ray of light appeared.

Dark golden light.

Scorching, yet cold.

It quietly emerged from the far horizon. At first, it was merely a faint glimmer, like the first morning star in the darkest hour before dawn.

Then, like ordinary light—

It crossed a distance of at least hundreds