Hearing those words, the two winged beasts' minds actually went blank for an instant.
High above the sky was Aquila, dazzling like a giant sun.
Beneath it was Stelle, like a moth flying into the flame.
But when it came to presence, the winged beasts did not feel that Stelle lost to Aquila in the slightest.
That line, "Why should I avoid its edge?!," made the audience's scalps tingle even more.
At the same time, Phainon, Hyacine, Dan Heng, everyone's gaze focused on Stelle's back.
Shock, worry, fear, and concern all surged at once. Even time, in this extremely tense environment, seemed to slow down.
The camera pulled back.
Aquila, bursting like a blazing sun, had almost become an afterimage in the shot, and everything around it was covered by blinding light.
That light was like ripples on water, pushing toward everyone bit by bit.
Standing at the front was Stelle with the Lance of Preservation.
She gripped the flaming lance with both hands and charged toward the incoming "ripples" with a thrusting motion.
Crimson flames danced across Stelle's body. But compared with the ripples spreading across the entire sky, those flames were so tiny.
Because that explosion, relative to the whole sky, could indeed be called a ripple. But to humans, it was a tsunami!
Only after the audience clearly saw the difference between the two did the slow motion suddenly return to normal.
The "tsunami" came crashing head-on. Stelle charged straight into it.
In an instant, the two collided!
With a thunderous boom, the entire environment changed color!
The entire screen shook violently! The audience held their breath, not daring to blink as they stared at the screen.
From the very beginning, this battle had been filled with tension. At this moment, they only wanted to find Stelle within that sea of light.
Finally, amid the piercing radiance, they saw Stelle! A fiery-red meteor was shooting upward against the current!
The tail of that meteor protected everyone, and protected the platform shaking in the sky.
"Flaming Lance! Charge!"
Within the flames, Stelle's roar overwhelmed the force of Aquila's helium flash.
The camera zoomed in.
Everyone saw Stelle at that moment. She was gritting her teeth tightly. On that perfect face was written a stubborn refusal to yield.
As the flames burned around her, illusory cracking sounds kept ringing out.
That was the power of Preservation protecting her. If not for the power of Preservation guarding her, just that terrifying force alone would have been enough to knock Stelle unconscious, and turn the only foothold everyone had in the sky into ash.
Too fierce! Too fierce!
The moment the audience set aside their worry, they were once again fired up from the bottom of their hearts!
This was our Stelle! Normally, she would joke and laugh with everyone. Call her a little raccoon, and she'll play along. But during a serious situation, you can count on her to back you up.
In short, because of Stelle's words and the sight of her charging forward, everyone's fighting spirit was completely ignited!
"We'll help you!"
The two winged beasts snapped out of their shock, flapped their wings, and rushed toward Stelle's two sides.
Hyacine and Dan Heng also came to Stelle's side, one on the left and one on the right, placing their hands on the flaming lance.
The support of her companions, along with the stubborn unwillingness to give in that was carved into Stelle's very bones, made the flames of the lance burn brighter and brighter.
And at that moment, a white figure flew over Stelle's head.
It was Phainon!
He leapt into the sky. Just as he was about to lose momentum, he stepped onto Solabis' body.
Using that brief foothold, he curled up, then suddenly unfolded, flying out like a spring.
"I will cleave down… this false sun!"
The patterns in Phainon's pupils shone brighter and brighter. Facing the scorching great sun head-on, he raised Dawn high and let out a furious roar.
Under the gaze of Aquila's two eyes, and amid Stelle's charge, this sword strike tore through the clear sky, carving a vertical black line through the pale-white skies.
"*****!!!"
A deep wound was cut into Aquila's rugged body by this strike, and it could no longer maintain the form of the helium flash!
It let out a miserable scream and fell downward. The effect of the helium flash was still continuing on Aquila's body.
Its body was still emitting a blinding light.
And so, everyone saw it. The sun had fallen!
…
: Holy crap… this battle was way too shocking!
: miHoYo is breaking through its peak again and again!
: I watched it without even daring to breathe.
: Aquila's presence and attacks are truly explosive! But what's even more explosive is Stelle. Damn! This lady is seriously fierce!
: The music has also reached a new peak. The vocal chanting has such a wild, ancient feeling.
: Yes, ancient and wild! Aquila's boss design and fighting style are especially like an ancient deity, sacred yet terrifying!
: But no matter what, it was still defeated!
: Stelle is way too domineering! My god! She's so cool!
: In high-level fights, it still has to be the flaming lance! All those fancy tricks aren't as useful as the Amber Lord!
: Preservation only shows up in high-pressure battles!
: This is the eternally blazing amber! This is the will of Preservation!
: So satisfying! That was awesome!
: Wide and powerful movements, this is the kind of Titan battle I imagined!
…
The comments finally increased.
Just now, because the audience had been too tense, there had barely been any comments on the screen.
And as Aquila fell, everyone also landed back on the platform.
"Are you all right, Stelle?"
After landing, Hyacine asked anxiously, afraid that what happened when they first arrived in Amphoreus would repeat itself.
"Mem! You scared me to death! Next time, next time you can use Oronyx's power to block it, partner!"
"Don't just grab the flaming lance and charge upward again!"
Mem was also stomping her feet anxiously at the side.
When she saw that Stelle was preparing to go head-to-head with Aquila, she had already desperately tugged at Stelle's clothes from behind.
But she simply could not hold her back!
Was this really the strength a beautiful girl should have? Such monstrous strength!
"I'll heal you." Hyacine quickly began treating Stelle from the side.
"I'm fine. My clothes are just a little dirty."
Surrounded by so many people, Stelle could hardly hide her pride.
What could be more satisfying than pulling off an explosive move in front of your teammates and then enjoying their gazes afterward?
However, after finishing her show-off moment, Stelle finally came back to herself.
"Where's Aquila? Aquila was struck by Phainon and fell down."
Hyacine replied while treating her. After hearing that, Stelle looked not far away.
The two winged beasts were carrying Phainon as they had just landed.
But before Stelle could call out, the platform beneath their feet shook once again.
Stelle's expression changed, and she abruptly raised her head.
At some point, the sky that had become cloudless because of the helium flash was now covered in dark clouds, with lightning flashing and thunder roaring.
"It's not dead…" Phainon's gaze turned grave as he looked straight ahead.
Aquila's enormous body climbed up from below, rushing directly toward the celestial dome.
The thunder became increasingly violent, turning directly into a thunderstorm!
Rampaging currents of electricity wreaked havoc in the air. Amid the chaos, several bolts of lightning cut across the sky and struck the platform!
The platform, already on the verge of collapse after the helium flash, could no longer hold on and finally shattered completely!
The people standing on the platform watched in shock as the platform beneath their feet plummeted. Their bodies were briefly lifted into the air because of it, before falling along with it.
The music also became more dangerous and urgent at this moment. The vocal chanting grew more and more merciless.
As everyone and the platform fell into the elevator shaft together, within their sight, the layers of the elevator shaft had already become blurred from the speed of the fall. Lightning flashed and thunder roared all around them, constantly striking the elevator shaft.
They watched the place collapse as they fell. And Aquila, in its frenzy, also burrowed into the elevator shaft, covered in lightning, and smashed down onto the platform.
Aerial combat, falling, a giant creature, merciless music.
Not only did the battle not stagnate because of its brief defeat, it instead became even more oppressive!
...
: It's still coming?!
: Why does it feel like the boss has entered berserk mode?!
: No way, bro, there are still two phases here?!
: Damn! That falling shot is giving me a sense of weightlessness!
: This is so shocking, the way they made this!
: Top-tier special effects, top-tier presentation!
: This battle really is pure technology and sheer intensity!
: Too exciting, too exciting! Aaaah! I can't take it anymore!
...
The comments boiled over once again.
And the people on the platform would not necessarily fear Aquila in the slightest just because of its might.
At most, they would just kill it one more time!
"Stand firm! It's a long way down... Let's end them before we crash into the pool of gold!" Phainon shouted angrily.
This elevator shaft ran through the entire Eye of Twilight. If they fell all the way to the bottom, they would reach the Golden Pool that had smelted all the Skyfolk.
Boom! Several more bolts of lightning struck toward everyone from all directions.
And this time, Dan Heng stepped forward!
His brows were tightly furrowed, not out of worry, but from the natural severity he showed when exerting his might.
The incoming lightning, as Dan Heng raised Cloud-Piercer high, seemed to gain intelligence and forcibly changed course!
"Thunderstorms, tempests, they too stand with me!" Dan Heng stared straight at Aquila, not giving an inch!
The thunderclouds in the sky, following Dan Heng's command, surged in all directions.
Some drifted toward Aquila, while others drifted toward the place pointed at by the tip of Dan Heng's spear.
And the thunder released from the clouds near Dan Heng actually struck toward Aquila as well!
In technical terms, this was called: The thunderclouds contested by our side attacked the incarnation of the sky.
In the game, this was a mechanic. But from another angle, it also depicted Dan Heng using his authority to wrest control of the sky from Aquila.
But in the series, of course, it had to consume resources and be shown with full force. Seeing this scene, the audience was naturally extremely surprised and delighted.
...
: 6666!
: Dan Heng is showing his power!
: The Xianzhou Vidyadhara have called clouds and summoned rain since ancient times! You think only Aquila can do it?
: That line from Dan Heng is so cool!
: Hahahaha! Its second life is about to be thrown away!
: It ran right into the spearpoint!
: When it was in its blazing sun form, Stelle and the others really didn't have many good options, but now it's different!
: Didn't expect that, did you! Your lightning got stolen by Dan Heng!
...
The comments excitedly swept across the screen.
And the Chrysos Heirs' morale was greatly boosted because of this!
Aquila probably never expected that an outsider from beyond the sky would be able to contest its authority.
When the thunderclouds could no longer effectively attack the enemy, Aquila tried to repeat its old trick.
It once again waved its wings, wanting to use a copied version of its blazing sun form's move.
But Dan Heng was here!
The influence of the lightning was reduced to the lowest level by Dan Heng.
At the same time, the struggle for the thunderclouds also forced Aquila to divide its attention.
It did not even have a way to use the "helium flash" of this form. Because it simply could not gather enough thunderclouds!
"Storm clouds are gathering..."
"Are you ready to sever the lightning?"
The resolve in Phainon's eyes had reached its peak.
As the thunder summoned by Aquila collided with the thunder seized by Dan Heng, Phainon, Stelle, charged toward Aquila at the same time with perfect tacit understanding.
Stelle raised her flaming lance and leapt high, thrusting it into the organ, or perhaps device, beneath Aquila's right wing that was used to gather energy.
On the other side, Dan Heng almost simultaneously drove Cloud-Piercer into the device beneath Aquila's left wing.
Aquila cried out in pain and violently flapped its wings, sending the two of them flying away, while its massive body also leapt back a great distance.
But as if unwilling to leave just like that, Aquila turned and abandoned all of its flashy tactics. It simply stretched out its neck, aimed its drill-like head at the platform, and its entire body suddenly accelerated, hurtling toward everyone like a cannonball.
"Titan-"
Gazing at Aquila as it descended from above, Phainon squeezed those two words out from between his teeth.
He bent his knees, assumed his stance, fixed his eyes on the instant Aquila crashed down, and suddenly leapt up!
Holding his sword with both hands, he stabbed straight into Aquila's neck.
He dragged Dawnmaker along, using the force of Aquila's dive and his own upward leap to tear open the Titan's neck by brute force.
In a flash of lightning and sparks, the sword edge that could rip through everything traveled straight down Aquila's neck and reached the eye on its chest and abdomen.
With Phainon's furious roar, Dawnmaker effortlessly cut open the eye.
The screen first went black. Then it exploded in an instant!
Aquila's chest erupted in a violent explosion.
This Titan had finally, thoroughly, been gravely wounded! It could no longer even maintain its posture and crashed straight onto the platform.
Its unimaginable weight caused the already rapidly falling platform to suddenly accelerate.
Before everyone could steady themselves, they were thrown back into the air once again.
Amid the chaos, everyone finally discovered that the Golden Pool at the bottom was already right before their eyes.
Just as the others were panicking about the Golden Pool, Stelle instead jumped towards the pool.
Her hands desperately trying to reach a bracelet falling into the pool.
It was Aquila's final relic.
Stelle stared fixedly at the bracelet and stretched out her hand with all her might, wanting to grab it in midair.
The bracelet was not far from her. But no matter how hard she tried, that short distance seemed as though it could not be crossed.
Outside the screen, the audience's eyes were overwhelmed.
Too much had happened in this single instant.
First, Phainon's strike had gravely wounded Aquila.
Immediately after that came the platform and everyone on it, about to fall into the Golden Pool, along with Aquila's bracelet that had scattered free.
They could not even react. They could only watch helplessly as everything in the shot was about to fall into the Golden Pool.
It was also at this moment that the music suddenly changed. The merciless vocals were replaced by a warm chant.
The bracelet suddenly erupted with dazzling golden light.
Countless golden threads burst out from the bracelet, and at the critical moment, they firmly bound the platform, allowing everyone to land safely.