For Pei Guang, the experience felt incredible. Fighting what was essentially a late-game boss in only the second map—and without resorting to tedious grinding—was the kind of thrill he'd always dreamed of.
Despite acting as more of a support player for now, he was thoroughly enjoying the moment. And, of course, he still had backup plans.
But just as the battle raged on, Pei Guang suddenly received a message from March 7th.
The moment he read it, he shouted to the others: "Everyone! Get away from Phantylia!"
Without hesitation, the entire team scattered, retreating toward Pei Guang.
Phantylia sneered. "Fleeing won't save you from the descent of destruction, insects!"
Pei Guang ignored her completely, leading the group in a full sprint away from her position.
Phantylia's smugness faltered. Something felt off.
Pei Guang had been mocking her nonstop until now. Why wasn't he throwing insults this time? Why wasn't he taunting her? Was he… scared? Did he finally fear destruction?
That didn't make sense. Pei Guang was too chaotic to show fear!
As Phantylia pondered this, an uneasy sensation crept over her.
She felt it—destruction.
But it wasn't the Aeon of Destruction. Nor was it another Emanator.
Instead, a brilliant blue light appeared.
The moment Phantylia laid eyes on it, she knew it was too late.
The light fell toward her like a comet. But instead of detonating with a catastrophic explosion, it simply stopped—calmly and quietly—right at her chest.
Despite the calm surface, Phantylia felt her body falling apart. It was as if she'd been shattered into pieces, and if not for the remnants of her life force held together by the Path of Destruction, her body might have completely collapsed from that impact.
Yet it was precisely this sliver of life that gave her one last chance to turn the tables. As her body rapidly regenerated, terrifying energy from the Path of Destruction flooded the space.
However, Jing Yuan wasn't about to let her seize this opportunity. He couldn't understand how a minecart—no matter how fast—had nearly destroyed Phantylia's supposedly indestructible body. According to his assessment, this body could have crushed entire planets without any Emanator standing in the way. And yet, here she was—barely holding together after a single hit from a minecart.
But no matter the absurdity, this was his chance.
Jing Yuan had been waiting for this exact moment. Outside the domain, the true form of his Lighting Lord had been lying in wait. As Phantylia's body struggled to regenerate, the Lighting Lord broke through the domain's seal and struck from behind, its weapon aimed straight at her weakened core.
If nothing went wrong, Phantylia's end was certain.
Her fall wouldn't be undeserved. The team's strategy had combined Silver Wolf's Aether Editing, March 7th's Six-phased Ice, Bailu's powered-up support, and Seele's relentless clearing of roots that obstructed their movement.
Add to that the frontline battle with Jing Yuan, Dan Heng's precision strikes, and Pei Guang's endless harassment—no ordinary Emanator could have survived. And yet, Phantylia had managed to endure despite her incomplete adaptation to her new body.
But now, Jing Yuan seized the moment of vulnerability. He summoned the true form of the Lighting Lord, which had only ever appeared in fragmented projections before.
What he'd summoned in earlier battles was merely a fraction of its strength—a reflection imbued with his power and talismans. But this time, it was the genuine article, fully manifesting his authority as an Arbiter-General of the Xianzhou.
Given even a sliver of time, Phantylia's regenerating body could potentially recover. But against the full force of the Lighting Lord, she had no chance.
Phantylia felt nothing but rage. She knew her defeat wasn't due to Jing Yuan, but to Pei Guang—the player who had turned the tide of battle.
"Pei Guang! Mark my words—one day, I will bring you true destruction!"
She spat out her final threat, but before the Lighting Lord could finish her off, something unexpected happened.
Just as the Lighting Lord's weapon was about to pierce her core, Stelle's golden Light Cone—always carried on her person—began to glow intensely.
At that moment, Phantylia saw her master—the Aeon of Destruction, Nanook. A fragment of Nanook's golden blood flowed into her broken body.
In that instant, Phantylia understood.
Nanook had acknowledged her will. The Aeon had granted her power to unleash true destruction upon this world. Without another word, Nanook withdrew, leaving Phantylia to fulfill her purpose.
The Lighting Lord's weapon was caught mid-strike. Phantylia gripped it tightly, stopping it in its tracks.
"Heh… Not bad, General of Xianzhou. Your timing was perfect. But too bad for you—I have been blessed by Nanook's power. Today, none of you will leave this place alive!"
Jing Yuan gritted his teeth. "Damn it!"
As Phantylia crushed the Lighting Lord's weapon, golden cracks spread across the massive figure until it crumbled into fragments.
Yet as it fell apart, Jing Yuan's tense expression shifted into one of calm confusion.
He stood still, strangely at ease.
Because he realized something—the Lighting Lord hadn't been destroyed. It had simply… vanished.
His power as an Arbiter-General of the Hunt was also gone. At that moment, Jing Yuan was no longer an Emanator but just an ordinary man of Xianzhou.
And yet, he remained completely unfazed, standing his ground as if he were waiting to see how Phantylia planned to destroy Xianzhou.
No—he was waiting to see how Phantylia, newly infused with Nanook's power, was going to self-destruct.
Meanwhile, back in the Alchemy Commission, the Cloud Knights cleaning up the battlefield discovered something bizarre—the severed heads of the Disciples of Sanctus Medicus's, which Pei Guang had used as offerings to the Reignbow Arbiter, had all mysteriously vanished in the blink of an eye. The startled Cloud Knights immediately reported the anomaly to their superiors…
As a "minor" disturbance unfolded in the Alchemy Commission, Phantylia, now wielding the blessing of Nanook, prepared to unleash a devastating attack against Pei Guang.
From the moment Nanook granted her power, Phantylia knew her purpose—destruction. Total annihilation. No need for theatrics or elegance—just equal, unrelenting destruction for every life aboard the Xianzhou.
Jing Yuan's expression changed drastically: he could feel the shift in Phantylia's aura—a surge of destructive energy far beyond anything he could counter with his current strength. Her body, once on the verge of collapse, had now merged perfectly with the fruit of the Ambrosial Arbor.
Terrifying energy poured out across the Xianzhou. The artificially controlled skies darkened, and tremors shook every planet in the star system as if the universe itself was moments away from ruin.
Phantylia stood tall, her body reborn under Nanook's blessing. She now possessed power surpassing any Emanator before her—the absolute force of destruction.
Her gaze locked onto Pei Guang, and waves of devastating energy focused entirely on him. Pei Guang's instincts immediately screamed danger.
His interface flashed a system notification that made him narrow his eyes—Skill Lock Activated.
Phantylia's newfound strength had locked onto him with an unavoidable, unblockable death sentence. By game logic, this was clearly an "instant-death attack" based on causality—a skill that couldn't be dodged or defended against.