Chapter 274: Titanfall

"Boom! Rumble-rumble!"

A wall of fire, born from a chain of explosions, erupted within the elven capital of Liahaim. Wherever that crimson beam of light swept, everything was reduced to ash by its ultimate destructive power, and the residual energy within the beam cascaded upon the earth, transforming into this sky-piercing detonation.

"Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle..."

The ground was melted into a hideous scar, still glowing red and teeming with lava and crystallized matter.

Across the entire elven capital of Liahaim, a void of absolute destruction had been carved out—the result of a single strike from the Corrupted Calamity Spear held by the World Eater.

"If we can't find a way to counter it, we must retreat. This is no longer something we can handle; if we are caught by the attack of that elven holy spear, we will be instantly vaporized."

Wang Yu landed beside Avia, his gaze fixed intently on the World Eater, which had temporarily ceased its movements after unleashing the Corrupted Calamity Spear. He spoke with a grave tone.

"I understand. The phase gate is ready. This giant worm... is not something we can contend with. If the Professor were here, there might be some hope, but as it stands, retreat is the only rational choice."

Avia nodded gently. She was rational and had no intention of acting recklessly. Though she desperately wished to help the elves, the World Eater, now wielding the Corrupted Calamity Spear, was likely beyond the reach of any outsider present.

"The Professor... he went to the dwarven kingdom with Gwen. Does this mean the devils' schemes included the Professor as well? Seemingly diverting Elder Gwen, but in reality, to lure the Professor—a dragon—away from Liahaim, ensuring he could not interfere with the World Eater's plans?"

Wang Yu’s brows furrowed slightly. He recalled the elven elder mentioning Gwen’s departure from Liahaim.

Thinking back, perhaps the devils’ goal was never just to move Gwen, but to remove his closest friend, Zig—a dragon they deemed incredibly powerful—from the scene.

"That must be it. But even if the Professor were here, without the cover of the Mythic Lock, he cannot transform into a dragon. And even in dragon form, could Zig truly kill this giant worm with its infinite vitality?"

As one doubt was answered, a new one arose in Wang Yu’s mind. It seemed the devils were unaware of the curse Zig carried; otherwise, with their ability to disrupt the Mythic Lock, they would have no reason to fear him.

Yet, even in dragon form, Zig seemed incapable of threatening the World Eater. Zig’s strongest attack was the brilliant dragon breath gathered from the depths of his heart—a strike that actually surpassed the power of most standard dragon-tongue magic.

But even Zig’s most potent breath would appear feeble when faced with the World Eater’s terrifying regenerative abilities.

Assuming the devils didn't know Zig was a dragon with broken wings and believed him to be an ordinary dragon, what exactly were they afraid of that necessitated his removal?

There was no point in overthinking it. Wang Yu hoisted Avia onto his back and moved rapidly through the architecture of Liahaim. He needed

to observe the World Eater’s state a little longer; if the situation proved impossible, he would take the girl and flee.

"Click, click, click..."

After releasing that terrifyingly powerful attack, the World Eater had paused, clinging to the World Tree, one hand gripping the Corrupted Calamity Spear.

Even though the creature seemed momentarily frozen, no one dared to launch an attack, fearing a second strike from the giant worm. The power of the Corrupted Calamity Spear was simply too overwhelming; no one dared to face its edge.

At this moment, the temporarily stagnant World Eater began to secrete layers of thick, yellow, viscous substance from its entire body. These materials, representing corruption, possessed their own unique "life."

They crawled and writhed autonomously, falling from the World Eater’s body toward the Liahaim below and the World Tree it clung to.

"Gurgle, gurgle..."

The thick, yellow corruption burrowed into the ground. Gradually, the surrounding life began to be tainted. The giant trees that supported the elven structures, and the flowers and grasses beneath them, began to shift toward a state of "corruption."

The green of the leaves was replaced by a withered purple. The rough brown bark of the trunks fell away, replaced by a smooth, purple, leathery shell covered in flesh-like nodules.

A gray, sickly deep purple spread from the World Tree in all directions. The surrounding life was being polluted by this foul, rotting worm; it was converting the entire elven capital of Liahaim into a core of corruption.

It was breaking everything down, then using this place as a base to spread the power known as

Corruption to further, more distant places—like the dwarven kingdom...

"Creak, creak..."

The thick, yellow corruption was not only rotting the surrounding earth but also reshaping the World Tree, which offered no resistance. The moment they touched the tree's outer skin, the yellow liquid altered its fundamental state.

Purple-gray, flesh-like conduits, resembling human meridians and blood vessels, appeared on the World Tree, burrowing into the trunk. They were dense and tangled; the sensation of flesh fused with plant matter was profoundly chaotic and twisted.

The "vessels" pulsed, linking the World Eater to the World Tree, pumping more corruption into the tree's body. It was accelerating the pollution and transformation of this massive giant.

No one knew what kind of existence would be created once the World Eater—or rather, the devils—succeeded in polluting this tree, but it would certainly be something far worse than the World Eater itself.

Wang Yu’s eyes lingered on the World Eater’s body, his expression complex. He saw many elves charging with ferocious expressions into the areas already tainted by the World Eater.

They used no supernatural powers, as if that part of them remained suppressed. They simply hammered at the World Eater’s body with their fists. It had no effect, yet not a single elf stopped.

"Boom..."

Seemingly noticing these small insects beating against its body, the World Eater didn't even use the Corrupted Calamity Spear. It merely shifted its body slightly, and the elves below were crushed into a mass of meat paste, absorbed and swallowed by the corrupted earth.

"Damn it... these

filthy, garbage devils, they are truly, damnably cursed."

Wang Yu couldn't help but curse. For these elves, it was as if a thug was brutally harming their mother, yet they were completely helpless—and the reason for their helplessness was that this villain had twisted their mother’s very will.

"Boom!"

A violent explosion bloomed once more upon the World Eater’s body, the sky-piercing fire obscuring the scene.

Wang Yu glanced at the source of the attack: it was the black cat, Anne. Its tail stood erect as it stared intently at the World Eater, seemingly attempting to stop the corruption of the World Tree by destroying the worm's body.

"So that's it. For Anne, with her immense spatial abilities, avoiding the World Eater’s attacks shouldn't be too difficult. It might be feasible—at least enough to buy some time."

Wang Yu muttered. The strategy of this unfathomably powerful black cat seemed to have some merit. Given the World Eater’s physical durability, it was susceptible to being damaged by powerful attacks. Even if it couldn't be stopped entirely, it might be enough to delay the inevitable.

However, everything seemed to be heading in an even worse direction. As the fire faded, a semi-transparent giant tree, emitting a purple-gray light, appeared upon the World Eater’s shell.

The Corrupted Calamity Spear connected thousands of fine threads to this abruptly manifested phantom tree, providing the power needed for its existence, while the World Eater poured endless vitality into the spear, continuously squandering the holy weapon's immense power.

The torrent of attacks projected by the black cat was completely blocked by the holy spear. With the Corrupted Calamity Spear, the World Eater’s defensive capabilities had leaped to a new level. It was now beyond the reach of the other races to stop.

"Wang Yu, there’s no way. The protection created by that corrupted holy spear, once it has received enough vitality, has reached the legendary level. We can't do anything."

The girl’s words reached Wang Yu as he carried her. The data fed back by the Perfect Fractal Lens made the kind-hearted girl clearly realize the disparity. Even though she wanted to do something more than Wang Yu, her rationality forced her to calm down.

"Understood. Let's go. Once the corruption is complete, it will be too late."

Without hesitation, Wang Yu immediately moved rapidly in the direction away from the World Tree.

The girl’s gaze remained fixed on the World Eater, the Perfect Fractal Lens still constantly collecting various information about it. Even if she could do nothing, she at least hoped to gain some intelligence on the creature.

"Wait, what is this? Extremely powerful void fluctuations, and signs of space being torn! Could it be..."

The girl suddenly froze. The Perfect Fractal Lens had transmitted a massive stream of chaotic information. After a rapid analysis, she concluded that a massive spatial rift was about to appear above the World Eater.

A possibility flashed through the girl’s mind.

...

Atop the World Tree, the elven elder knelt before the control core of the Mythic Lock, tears streaming down his face, his body trembling. His arms reached desperately toward the control unit to activate the lock, but no matter what, he could not force his

body to complete the final step.

"Why, why...!"

A hoarse, guttural roar of extreme grief and pain erupted from his throat, a heart-wrenching sensation coursing through his entire being.

This stemmed not only from the despair of helplessness but also from the tangible pain transmitted through the connection to the World Tree—the agony the tree felt from the corruption and erosion.

"Sizzle..."

Just then, a spatial rift appeared abruptly beside him. A figure stepped out, holding a small vial in their hand.

The elven elder cast a startled gaze toward them. Who could come to this "Eden Plain" courtyard at the summit of the World Tree at such a time?

His eyes widened. The identity of the person surprised him: it was Moira, the elderly apothecary, the human who had informed them of the World Eater’s arrival. Why had she come here?

Glancing once at the elven elder collapsed upon the ground, Moira did not linger, but instead pressed onward into the deepening gloom.

"I must be indebted to your elven kin, for this 'Wish Coin' elixir, freshly brewed, is already being spent to salvage your lives; I am truly a fool for such charity."

"No matter, for I have never been able to stomach the atrocities of those demons, and after dwelling in Liaheim for so many years, one develops an attachment, however much I might deny it."

Moira spoke as she walked, finally coming to a halt before a ley-line circle, an elven construct for long-distance teleportation, capable of bridging some two to three hundred kilometers at its limit.

"A direct wish cannot annihilate that wretched, gargantuan worm, yet it has indirectly provided a method. To summon Gawain back—what could he possibly achieve? Ah, the crux must lie in what accompanies him, for surely, teleporting him alone would not exhaust the entire supply of my draughts."

Staring at the array, Moira did not hesitate to cast her wish upon the elixir, commanding it to bring back Gawain and the reinforcements at his side—the ones the 'Wish Coin' elixir whispered might yet halt the World Eater's rampage.

"Is it merely a 'might'? No matter; the chasm between 'might' and 'certainty' is vast, yet I lack the gall to beg my two apprentices for their own shares."

Lost in thought, Moira shook her head to cast aside her distractions, focusing her intent upon the connection the 'Wish Coin' had forged across the vast expanse.

At this moment, Gawain crouched upon a scaffold within the subterranean chamber of the Iron King, Borgul, gasping in agony; his bond with the World Tree made him a vessel for every torment it endured.

The sheer magnitude of that suffering filled him with profound dread and unease. What was befalling the World Tree, befalling Liaheim? Had the World Eater truly shattered every defense the elves had mustered?

Zieg and Toby the dwarf knelt beside him, their expressions grave as they observed Gawain’s distress; they understood the bond between the elf and the Tree, and knew well the gravity of the crisis.

"Wang Yu and Avia should be safe; I trust in their capabilities. Noel has come here with me, but how could the elven realm fall so easily..."

Zieg set aside his anxieties for Wang Yu and Avia, pondering how the elves had been driven to such a desperate pass.

"You poor soul, you look wretched. If we could reach your lands, our dwarven kin would surely drive the Iron King to your aid, but even at full speed, we would never arrive in time..."

Toby the dwarf lamented, his words blunt yet sincere, revealing the frantic concern of an ally for the beleaguered elves.

"No, no, how could this be? What has happened? Let me return, even if I can do nothing... at least..."

Gawain cried out in collapse; it was not the physical pain that broke him, but the agonizing helplessness of sensing the catastrophe while remaining unable to intervene.

"Can you hear me, Gawain? You should have powerful allies at your side. That great worm is ravaging the World Tree and consuming Liaheim. I shall open a portal; you would do well to bring your reinforcements back with you, or all shall be lost beyond repair."

Moira’s voice echoed in Gawain’s ears. He looked up in disbelief, bewildered by the sudden intrusion and stunned by the content of her message.

Before he could react, a vertical rift unfolded before the dwarf, the dragon-kin, and the elf. Gawain recognized the portal—it was the long-distance array from the World Tree, yet magnified, expanded to a scale that would allow even the Iron King, Borgul, to pass through.

Struggling to his feet, Gawain prostrated himself before Toby, his voice trembling with desperate sincerity, "I beg of you, help us!"

"Yes, yes, of course! Do not do this; as allies, we shall certainly assist. Is this the portal? Everyone, rouse the Iron King! We depart to aid our elven allies!"

Toby quickly hoisted the long-eared elf to his feet, bellowing for the other dwarves to set the Iron King in motion.

"Clang!"

The supports holding the Iron King released, dropping the colossal armored titan to the floor, the impact shuddering through the entire subterranean expanse.

The reactor in its chest emitted a deafening hum, a searing orange light piercing the heavy plating, the intense heat warping the surrounding air.

Within the obsidian slits of the iron helm, two points of oppressive red light ignited like waking eyes; the Iron King, Borgul, had awakened.

"Boom, boom!"

With heavy, rhythmic strides, the Iron King stepped into the massive portal and vanished amidst the spatial distortion, while Zieg, Gawain, and Toby stood upon its shoulders, disappearing along with it.

In the elven capital of Liaheim, accompanied by a violent surge of void tides and the silent shriek of tearing space, a gargantuan rift tore open above the World Eater.

The 'Wish Coin' elixir had harnessed the power of the void to warp the distance between Liaheim and Ironforge, stretching the limits of the teleportation array to allow the reinforcements to arrive at this critical hour.

"Rumble-rumble-rumble."

The thunderous clash of metal sounded like the war-cry of a god, with lightning and flame singing a hymn of battle.

The titanic construct of metal, fuel, and arcane circuits—the miracle of dwarven and gnome engineering, the Iron King Borgul—descended from the spatial rift, plummeting toward the World Eater with irresistible force.

The Titan descends!