Another fifteen minutes passed, and the sacrificial formation on the ground was finally completed. The torchbearers sprinkled some kind of blue powder along its lines.
Then they positioned two cables on either side and, as electric sparks shot out, a deep blue flame surged from the metallic lines.
Ancient chanting emanated from the player set to one side.
"High-tech chanting..." Li Ming said wordlessly, feeling an inexplicable sense of déjà vu.
Caroline took a deep breath and then pushed Li Ming into the midst of the formation.
"Wait, we’re starting already? Aren’t you going to retreat?" Li Ming asked in a panic.
Caroline entered as well, not responding but simply sneering.
Next, what unnerved Li Ming was that Caroline actually split open her own chest and took out a crystal the size of a thumb, which twinkled with a brilliant light.
"What is that thing?" Li Ming asked, trying to fish for information.
Caroline paid him no heed, fervently holding the shining crystal and chanting. The crystal shimmered even more intensely.
The surging blue flames around them enveloped the two of them.
In a trance, a vast and grand consciousness seemed to descend upon the place.
Everyone could distinctly sense that it was a life form at the pinnacle of the evolutionary path looking down upon them.
Feder, with all ten fingernails peeled off, trembled all over, and his eyes were filled with despair.
Meanwhile, the torchbearers around them knelt down, shouting fervently.
The two in the center of the sacrificial formation felt it even more acutely.
Li Ming’s body was nearly stiff, unable to move. He had already switched all his control related to enhancing development speed.
A dissatisfied snort seemed to ring in his mind. Li Ming felt a blow to the back of his head, his vision blurred, nearly losing consciousness.
Caroline was in a worse state, letting out a piercing scream. Cracks suddenly spread across her body, blood gushing out, and the few scales she had left shattered.
The torchbearers outside the circle of flames eagerly awaited the vast power of Superpower Istanbul to descend upon them.
However, before the power to rend the planet came, they heard an incredulous shout: "How can this be!"
"Impossible, this can’t be happening!"
It seemed to be Caroline’s voice. The crowd exchanged bewildered looks as the deep blue flames suddenly dispersed. Caroline roared even more miserably, her hands desperately holding the shimmering crystal.
Feder gasped for air, confused.
"Why is it again, why has the sacrifice failed again, why!" Caroline was at a loss. The failure of the sacrifice to Thunder Hormuz might have been an issue with the Dark Magnetic Titanium.
But why did the sacrifice of Superpower Istanbul fail as well?
Suddenly, her gaze sharpened as she looked at Li Ming, who was staggering to his feet.
"It’s you, you aren’t a level sixteen developmental potential!" Caroline realized suddenly, her face turning exceedingly ugly.
"Didn’t you say it was no big deal if the sacrifice failed?" Li Ming’s head throbbed lightly. Observing the more severely injured Caroline, the corners of his mouth slowly curled upward.
"You’re courting death!" Caroline shouted in rage. The plan was just one step away, but it had gone awry. Her irritation was impossible to contain.
"You’re useless now!"
The two of them were within arm’s reach when Caroline raised her hand to strike, booming a sound, and Li Ming flew backward, transforming into a streaking shadow.
He crashed into the wall, the aftermath kicking up a cloud of dust.
"Cough cough, you truly live up to a B-level life form: so gravely injured, yet still so powerful," Li Ming remarked.
Caroline’s pupils constricted. The dust in the room was swept away by an unseen force, revealing Li Ming standing in place, seemingly unharmed.
The torchbearers looked shocked. Caroline was a B-level life form, and even with sustained serious injuries, her lethal power should not be something a D-level life form could withstand.
All were amazed at this, yet no one noticed a piece of battered armor had disappeared from the floor.
[Thunder Master: An interstellar life form that controls thunder and possesses [Thunder Element Affinity] as well as [Thunderstorm Fervor] abilities.]
[Thunder Element Affinity: Receives a 200% Thunder Element boost.]
[Thunderstorm Fervor: Once a day, can convert all data boosts in the Control Bar into stackable Thunder Element boosts.]
A smirk started playing on Li Ming’s lips, growing wider.
[Thunderstorm Fervor] was too powerful, and Li Ming guessed that this job was probably not of the B-level but rather an A-level one.
Only because the Philos Battle General Armor was so damaged had it dropped a tier.
[Philos Battle General Armor]’s [Overlimit] ability provided three boosts: strength, speed, and defense.
As time passed, each boost could reach up to 500%.
All three together would be a fifteen-fold Thunder Element boost, and that was just from this single Controlled Object. If the data boosts from other Controlled Objects were added, it would be even more terrifying.
Worthy of being a Thunder Master, long yearned for, it did not disappoint him.
The smile on Li Ming’s face grew richer, but in Caroline’s eyes, it was filled with mockery.
"A mere D-level life form, even if I’m heavily wounded, I can still kill you!" Caroline’s inner fury, stoked by the series of unexpected events, was now uncontrollable.
Ripples spread around, condensing into watery chains crisscrossing in the air, heading straight for Li Ming to strike.
This seemingly harmless water flow left gashes on the metallic walls wherever it passed.
Li Ming immediately began to run, darting into a room.
As Caroline issued the attack command, the torchbearers were not idle either. They picked up their firearms or launched elemental attacks and even threw grenades.