The Heartless One raised her arms, summoning her deadly attack.
A massive surge of energy erupted, taking shape into a blinding, radiant sphere.
Her skill, [Celestial Annihilation], pulsed with a terrifying light, building power before it would release destruction upon everything in its path.
Stark's eyes went wide, realizing the deadly force behind it.
Everyone else on the battlefield looked up, dread washing over them as the raw energy humd louder, ready to consu everything.
Even the boss monsters knew they couldn't be hit by that thing.
Sora instinctively reached into her inventory, pulling out her [Protection Amulet].
It was her one plan—a way to shield them from the blast.
But just as she was about to activate it, Stark's hand shot out, gripping her wrist tightly.
"DON'T USE THAT!" he shouted.
His grip was firm, too firm, but he couldn't afford to be gentle right now.
"That's for later," he added, his tone urgent.
Sora stared back, wide-eyed, but she trusted him.
She tucked the amulet back, watching as Stark prepared for what ca next.
Without another word, Stark scooped up Sora and Lilith, holding them securely with [Asura's Arms].
Then, he aid a [Crimson Ball Transmission] just behind the blast radius, snapping his fingers.
In an instant, they teleported out of the blast's range, landing safely a good distance away.
The three of them watched from afar, and Stark let out a tense breath.
Now it was up to the others to survive on their own.
The Mayor stood his ground as the [Celestial Annihilation] hurtled toward him, his face calm.
He crossed his arms, activating his skill, [Giant Utensils].
The knife and fork in his hands enlarged, gleaming with energy as he positioned them before him.
As the deadly blast struck, he swung the utensils, deflecting the energy to the sides, letting it split and crash into the ground around him. He stood in the center of the storm, unfazed.
In the shadows, Follower watched, his dark form blending perfectly with the surroundings.
He didn't even flinch as the blast neared.
He simply lded further into the shadows, the attack passing over him as if he weren't even there.
He stayed completely hidden, waiting for his perfect mont.
The Butler Trio stood close by, but without any special defense in their arsenal, they faced the brunt of the blast head-on.
The blinding light washed over them, their bodies disintegrating instantly.
Yet, only seconds later, their forms began to reappear, reforming themselves with eerie resilience.
Not too far away, the Tornted One remained still as the blast surged toward him.
It struck him directly, the imnse power rippling over his body.
-0!
But there was no effect—no damage registered.
Even when Clever had toyed with him earlier, punching him around, he hadn't taken a single hit.
The others could only wonder if he had been through so much pain and torture that he'd beco completely immune.
Either way, the attack didn't harm him.
He stood there, untouched.
Clever, however, decided he wasn't going to just stand still.
Though he didn't yet feel like using his power yet, [100-Golden Arms Statue], he wasn't going to leave himself exposed, either.
With a quick command, he activated [Ironclad Defense].
Five massive golden hands appeared, each one of them positioned around him in a protective formation.
The blast hit the hands, dispersing against their glowing surfaces, but Clever stood safely behind, unhard.
All eyes now turned to one remaining participant: CEO.
He froze, seeing the massive blast bearing down on him, and quickly scanned through his skills.
There had to be sothing that could protect him…
But as he ntally flipped through each one, he felt panic rising.
Most of his skills were for attacks—countless powerful beams, destructive waves—but very few were defensive.
In desperation, he activated [Diamond Defense] first, a barrier of glittering, diamond-hard energy forming around him.
He added [Infinite Cascade], sending a barrage of beams forward, hoping to weaken the blast.
Then he launched [Endless Beam], followed by [Beam Genesis], firing everything he could into the oncoming energy.
His beams clashed with the annihilation blast, struggling to hold it back.
But after a few monts, he realized it was useless.
His eyes widened.
"AH, FUCK THIS!" CEO shouted, activating every attack skill he had, throwing everything at the blast, hoping to create an impenetrable wall of energy.
But the blast continued, ripping through his beams and defenses.
BOOOOM!
It hit him dead on, a searing wave of energy enveloping his form.
He activated a few last-ditch life-saving items—[Protection Enhancent] and [Instant-Healing Orb]—just barely clinging to life.
After what felt like an eternity, the light faded.
He stood there, smoke rising from his body, his HP dangerously low.
[CEO: 12,832/235,000]
"Heh…" he breathed, trying to keep his composure, "Looks like I'm still good to go—"
He joked around, wanting to prove his superiority, but before he could even finish his sentence...
Knife Slash!
The Mayor materialized behind him and swung.
Without warning, the Mayor's knife sliced through CEO's torso, cutting him clean in half.
The two halves of CEO's body fell to the ground, lifeless.
"You went out the sa way as your subordinate, how does it feel," Mayor laughed so hard that everyone else stopped what they were doing to look at him.
Even people in the outside world had chills go down their spines as they saw just how quick he had died.
CEO, real na Miles Volkov, an extrely wealthy businessman that could have anything he wanted, had died, just like that.
Money and power didn't save him.
The world was getting more scared by the second.
The more they watched this trial and the participants die, the more scared they beca.
[If all participants die, a terrible event will happen]
And to rub the salt in the wound, the panel that they feared appeared back.
Ding!
["CEO" has been killed by "Mayor"]
[5 Participants Alive]
The blast from [Celestial Annihilation] had left a massive crater behind, almost destroying half of the Hollow Tower Square.
Mayor glanced around the wreckage with a grin before looking up at the sky, "The area's too small, moons," he called out, barely able to contain his amusent.
"Deal with it," the cold voice of the moons replied, cutting off his complaint. "And kill the rest of them quickly."
Mayor shrugged, casually seating himself on the ground. "Alright, alright," he replied with a smirk. "But I think I'll rest a bit for now."
He watched the remaining participants, eyes gleaming with anticipation.
anwhile, Stark set Sora and Lilith down, both of them looking worn from the encounter.
He took a mont to catch his breath, then grinned.
"Stay here," he told them, a fierce look in his eyes. "I'm getting rid of that bitch."
He turned his gaze to the Heartless One, who stood across from him, watching him with a mocking smile.
"How foolish," she said, eyes narrowed. "Deciding to fight ? Alone?"
Stark cracked his knuckles, his grin widening. "I don't need anybody to kick your ass."
But he wasn't reckless.
He knew her stats were likely a match for his, and she had powerful skills that could turn the tide if he wasn't careful.
He glanced back at Sora. "Pass the [Double Speed Token]," he said, holding out his hand.
Sora quickly pulled it from her inventory and handed it to him.
[Double Speed Token: Doubles your speed stats for 5 minutes.]
With his current speed of 28,000—and boosted further by his [Domination Buff]—this would push him well over 60,000.
That is how he always dominated with [Double Assault] except if the monsters had counterasures.
With that kind of speed, he could outmaneuver even powerhouses at level 800 or 900.
"Let's see if I can manage..."
He crushed the token, feeling its power surge through him, a thrill of energy filling his veins.
[Speed stat doubled for 5 minutes.]
Stark clenched his fists, feeling the sheer speed pulsing in his limbs.
He looked up at the Heartless One, his grin turning into a determined glare.
"Alright," he said. "Let's do this, you ugly monster."
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