Niđhöggr turned his head and saw that it was indeed Sellen who had just attacked Radahn.
Sellen nodded at him, her expression even more righteous.
He didn't dwell on it and looked at Radahn, who was trying to get up after falling to the ground. He raised the Dark Moon Greatsword, intending to finish him, when he heard a dragon's roar in the air.
Niđhöggr looked up and saw the wounded Glintstone Dragon flapping its wings as it flew.
It barely descended low, snorted at the lower part of Radahn's body, and exhaled its icy crystal dragon breath, freezing half of Radahn's body to the sand dunes.
Radahn had first been suppressed by the force of Niđhöggr's sword wind, then attacked from behind by Sellen, and then frozen by the Glintstone Dragon.
Three consecutive assaults caused the enraged Starscourge General to fall on the spot, struggling for a while, unable to rise.
Niđhöggr seized the moment, transforming into a golden light as he flew closer. He produced the Unalloyed Gold Needle, passed under Radahn's raised head, pierced his rough skin with the needle, inserted it into his body, and it vanished.
Radahn's eyes suddenly turned crimson, and he roared at Niđhöggr, but still broke free from the frozen dragon's breath and rose.
It seemed he felt something piercing his body. The infected Scarlet Rot reacted violently, causing him intense pain.
The Scarlet Rot was attempting to completely seize his sanity.
Radahn even dropped the Starscourge Greatsword from one hand, and his fingers were already about to claw at the spot where the Unalloyed Gold Needle had just disappeared.
Niđhöggr immediately understood that the Unalloyed Gold Needle was indeed playing a role in suppressing the Scarlet Rot, but the Rot was also trying to influence Radahn to dig out and destroy the needle.
He definitely could not let the Scarlet Rot have its way. With a dull thud, he landed before Radahn, and the tip of the Dark Moon Greatsword stabbed straight into the ground. Three dark waves erupted from the sword tip and raced towards Radahn's legs.
Boom, boom, boom—
The three gravitational dark waves struck Radahn's legs, causing him to lose his balance again and fall to the ground, successfully blocking his intention to dig out the Unalloyed Gold Needle.
And the struggle between the Unalloyed Gold Needle and the Scarlet Rot within Radahn's body also reached its peak. This time, the Starscourge General collapsed to the ground, not even thinking of getting up again, but writhing on the spot and roaring in pain.
"Lord Radahn!" Niall and Jerren dared not disturb Niđhöggr, so they could only call out their king's name from a distance.
Sellen crossed her arms over her chest and watched in silence.
The severely injured Glintstone Dragon flew not far away, landed to the side, folded its wings, and watched quietly.
Niđhöggr watched Radahn struggle, knowing that now only Radahn's indomitable will and the role of the Unalloyed Gold Needle would determine the outcome.
But he waited at the ready, and if it turned against him, he would grant Radahn the final vestiges of dignity.
Finally, after a long fifteen minutes, Radahn ceased struggling. He knelt, breathing heavily, and the other Starscourge Greatsword in his hand also slipped silently away.
Niall and Jerren noticed that the fierce aura of Lord Radahn had completely disappeared.
They exchanged glances and both cautiously stepped forward, once again calling out the name of the King of Caelid.
This time, Radahn slowly lifted his head and looked at the two Redmane veterans. It seemed to take him a long time to recognize them before he weakly uttered, "Niall? Jerren?"
The two veterans couldn't help but be overjoyed.
Lord Radahn recognized them! This meant that, with the help of Niđhöggr and the others, the Unalloyed Gold Needle had indeed suppressed Lord Radahn's Scarlet Rot and awakened his sanity!
Then, Niđhöggr landed on the ground and could finally relax.
"Level Up! LV152 → LV156"
"Obtained: Radahn's Great Rune. Raises maximum HP, FP, and Stamina."
Elden Ring (3/7)
"Blessed Lands acquired: Caelid, Ainsel River, Siofra River"
"Junction has acquired 6 major territories."
Before Niđhöggr could check this information, he felt the entire space begin to vibrate.
Rumble——
This powerful earthquake drew everyone's attention.
Immediately after, on the edge of the sky and earth, a silver light surged in like a tsunami, rapidly engulfing all the ruins of Redmane Castle and the Wailing Dunes, swallowing everything in the blink of an eye!
Rumble——
The silver light even burst forth through the spatial rift, greedily consuming the Scarlet Rot and ruins of the royal capital from the outside world, and continued to spread until it covered most of the royal capital that was infected with the Scarlet Rot.
The next moment, the silver light dissipated.
Most of the royal capital had vanished, leaving only a huge, sunken pit in its place.
---
At the same time, far away in the depths of the Western Sea, the sea area where Junction and the Fairies' Island were located also experienced the sign of a massive earthquake!
The epicenters originated from Liurnia of the Lakes, Limgrave, and the open sea to the east of Limgrave.
Everyone on Junction and the Fairies' Island came out.
Many who had survived the last Golden Tree Day felt a familiar sensation.
Rumble——
Finally, after some time, the earthquake subsided.
Melina, who was in the Roundtable Hold, was the first to notice what was happening.
Because within the Grace-Given Light above the round table, there were three new Sites of Grace: Redmane Castle in Caelid, Nokstella in the Ainsel River, and Nokron in the Siofra River.
Although she was shocked that two places besides Caelid—Nokstella and Nokron—had suddenly appeared, she quickly calmed down and did what she had to do.
Through the guidance of the Sites of Grace, Melina sequentially informed Ranni at Raya Lucaria Academy, Kenneth Haight in Limgrave, Edgar at Castle Morne, and then Dannan and the others on the Fairies' Island.
The residents of Limgrave, the closest of the three main epicenters, were surprised to discover that a new continental shelf had appeared on the eastern side of Limgrave, bordering it.
Many residents who had originally been at Junction were even more familiar with the name of this land—Caelid.
Very few knew where Niđhöggr had gone, but after observing Caelid's return to Junction, they knew that Niđhöggr must have defeated "Starscourge" Radahn.
Besides the joy in everyone's hearts, they didn't know what had happened to Radahn, alive or dead, let alone the other two epicenters.
After a brief discussion, the main members of the Roundtable Hold decided to teleport together to Redmane Castle in Caelid to see what was happening.
When they teleported to the Site of Grace at Redmane Castle, they saw the ruined walls buried in red sand, and it seemed the entire world had been destroyed and torn apart by something.
While everyone was still pondering, a group of figures approached from the Wailing Dunes.
The most conspicuous were, of course, the massive Starscourge General Radahn and the Glintstone Dragon Adula.
And walking alongside the giant and the flying dragon were Niđhöggr and the others.
Radahn was alive and made no move against Niđhöggr and the rest. He even calmly followed them in this direction.
Ranni sensed this and understood that Niđhöggr must have used some method to suppress the Scarlet Rot within Radahn's body.
Even Ranni could hardly believe it. He had actually kept his promise once more, giving her elder brother a chance to wash away the Scarlet Rot and return from rebirth.