Chen Rui stared at the crown in his hand, and even he was taken aback.
When the hooded man had unleashed the Crown of Thorns earlier, Chen Rui's mind had sensed something, as though he had felt the call of some power. Not long after, the Crown of Thorns had inexplicably flown into his hand on its own.
The crown falling into his hand of its own accord gave him the feeling of a missile whose switch had been pressed—it needed the most suitable launch rack, or carrier, before it could be fired. The hooded man from before could not withstand the power of that "launch," so when the crown sensed Chen Rui's presence, it unhesitatingly abandoned its "old love" and chose him instead.
Then, an incomparably powerful light-element force flowed from the crown and merged into Chen Rui's body, producing a catalytic effect. Chen Rui felt the Star Power within him, which had already been refined nearly to its limit, undergo a new kind of reorganization and tempering. It gave off purer, stronger energy, which in turn flowed back into the Crown of Thorns. The crown began to radiate an unprecedented brilliance.
Even the Poison Dragon at the side could not look directly at that dazzling light, instinctively summoning the power of his Kingdom to resist it. The Shapeshifter, whose pair of Truly Handsome eyes had nearly been blinded, transformed into a suction cup and clung tightly to its master's shoulder to avoid falling off.
The light extended all the way to the distant sea. Wherever it passed, the blood mist gave off sizzling sounds, like the shrieks of some living creature, and rolled back before collapsing and scattering.
The Church of Light followers felt the speed of their recovery suddenly multiply severalfold, and all of them were astonished.