Chapter 645: Chapter 578: Willing to Take the Bait Chapter 645: Chapter 578: Willing to Take the Bait The Black Gate was originally a fortress stationed between two mountain ranges, completely sealing off the entire gorge.
At the time Sauron built it, he even utilized the power of The One Ring.
But now, this once magnificent structure that blocked the entire gorge was shattered.
It had collapsed over halfway from the center outwards.
The debris from the walls piled up on both sides like small hills in disorder.
The remaining parts were full of cracks, many of them several meters wide, running to the ends and exuding a sense of tragic severity.
At the very center of the blast, there was a liquified area about ten meters in diameter, where the walls seemed to still have magma flowing; outside this was an area of nearly fifty meters where the rocks had been completely pulverized into dust.
From this point, a huge crater was formed.
Further out, massive cracks appeared densely on the solid rock layers, reshaping the nearby terrain.
Only scattered remnants of the walls could be found beyond a hundred meters from the crater!
Earlier, the Human Allied Forces kept a safe distance, protected by Gandalf from the shockwave, so other than the visual effects and vibrations, there was no direct sensation.
But now, witnessing this scene of a catastrophe up close, looking at the dark red magma still glowing in the pit and the lingering black smoke everywhere,
They felt the terror of that strike!
Nearly no orcs survived nearby.
Those in the middle were completely vaporized, and the ones farther away were torn apart by the shockwave, with no bones left intact.
Tao Yu followed the team to re-examine his own handiwork and was quite satisfied.
“It’s equivalent to a certain magnitude of a nuclear explosion, a human nuclear bomb is nothing compared to this.
This is what a Catastrophe Level should be like; otherwise, what’s the point if you can’t go all out in destruction…”
Although he had not fully digested his own power, Tao Yu now could officially use this level of ability in actual combat.
This Black Gate served as the most direct demonstration of his prowess…
Not to mention Tao Yu’s jubilant mood at the moment, even the others had their own reflections.
The Ninja team from Village Hidden by Clouds that had followed along, analyzing this brute force attack that surpassed levels of Ninjutsu, felt their scalps tingle.
The Third Raikage, with a solemn face, looking at the giant crater and the spreading cracks and remains of the Black Gate, couldn’t help but sigh.
“If this strike were to hit our village, it would be unimaginable…”
The walls were a solid defense fortress made of stone!
And most of the buildings within Village Hidden by Clouds were made of wood.
If they were to take a hit, the outcome wouldn’t be as simply shown here; the ravaging shockwave could easily level many houses.
Ai and Kirabi also remained silent, not knowing how to respond.
As the first to encounter Tao Yu, their initial skirmish felt like an even exchange.
But ever since he returned from their Current World, everything had changed.
He repeatedly shattered their worldviews.
And now, they felt completely like bystanders, as if nothing else he could pull out would surprise them…
“So, why did we let him throw this thing at our village?
Can’t we just follow along?”
Ai, who was normally proud and unrestrained, expressed a sentiment from the bottom of his heart in a matter-of-fact tone…
Elsewhere, not far from them, Boromir, having ridden past this ‘Meteorite Crater’, also felt an unreal euphoria.
Just the notion of counterattacking the Black Gate was something he wouldn’t even dare to dream of!
He had come confidently because he had witnessed the miracles created along the way, thinking it would take the pressure of a great army to take down the Black Gate.
But who could have imagined that this Black Gate, which seemed impregnable in his eyes, would be destroyed so easily!
It was utterly unbelievable…
As the soldiers of the Human Allied Forces passed by the huge crater on their way, each one felt a sense of awe and solemnity in their hearts.
For this marshal who could enhance their capabilities, they felt an increasing trust.
As for any thoughts about the pit and the shockwave produced by Sauron’s earlier move, they no longer mattered…
Barad-dûr was the main fortress originally where Sauron resided, not far from the Black Gate, adjacent to Mount Doom.
Barad-dûr, forged over many years out of solid granite, the fortress was a true marvel of such scale that it took one’s breath away, a living spectacle.
Behind it lay the vast plains of the Land of Darkness.
But due to the absence of sunlight over the long term, the once fertile ground behind now also lay dark, inhabited only by Orcs who shun the light.
Atop Barad-dûr previously, there constantly lingered a massive eyeball formed by Sauron’s magical power, seemingly overlooking all of Middle-earth.
But now, this eyeball was conspicuously gone!
Sauron had abandoned his physical form and left this base, merging with the volcanic clouds in the skies of the Land of Darkness, becoming formless and invisible…
Arriving at the foot of Barad-dûr, Tao Yu raised an eyebrow to find the place seemingly deserted, leaving only a solitary fortress.
It appeared as if the Orcs had vanished along with the great eyeball that used to be atop.
“This…, what exactly is his scheme…”
Tao Yu pulled out a coin and began divining, and feeling it was not intuitive enough, he drew a set of Tarot cards.
Beside him, Gandalf watched the shuffling of the cards and said somewhat speechlessly,
“Is there a possibility that this place felt the impact when the Black Gate was blasted open?”
Are we not leaving, standing by to get blown up?
Although he could faintly sense Sauron’s presence, he hadn’t struck with full force at the Black Gate previously, so he probably also wouldn’t here…
Tao Yu silently put away his Tarot cards, nodding in agreement with the divination’s outcome.
“What you say makes sense, I’ll go straight to the top of the tower to see if I can use The One Ring to lure him here, and you will cover for me down here.”
Tao Yu had asked Gandalf and the others to come for the very purpose of ganging up on Sauron.
Worried about interference from the Fortune Thief or that ‘Priest’.
Pull everyone out for a group fight, soldiers against soldiers, king against king.
But now, it seemed due to Sauron’s mad state, there had been no decent coordination with those on the other side.
And this guy was ready to abandon even his own home!
The disappearance of the Orcs here, aside from noticing the activity at the Black Gate, who knows how many Sauron himself had killed…
Given his previous displays of madness, the possibility was not small.
Tao Yu entered the Magic Tower of Barad-dûr alone, not flying straight up, but ascending step by step up the stairway wrapped around the tower.
At the top of the tower of Barad-dûr, where once stood a platform that bore Sauron’s Magic Eye, the closer Tao Yu got, the more he felt the scorching heat on his finger from The One Ring.
It seemed that even though the Magic Eye had left, Sauron’s presence still corrupted the place.
“Sauron, I know you can hear me, come out, it’s just me alone, let’s talk properly about the ownership of the Magic Ring.”
As The One Ring grew hotter and hotter, Tao Yu also called out loudly, issuing his invitation to Sauron.
Your most treasured possession is here, and here I am, on my own, you wouldn’t refuse to even show your face, would you!
And as Tao Yu stepped onto the top of the tower,
The heavy clouds in the sky that seemed close enough to touch began to deform severely, once again condensing into a giant eyeball.
Within this eyeball was an overwhelming sense of madness and chaos, staring intently at Tao Yu, or rather, at The One Ring in Tao Yu’s hand…