Titan King: Ascensio Chapter 488: Clymene’s resolve

Bottomless Abyss, Underworld.

The fierce battle had been raging for a long ti—it was brutal in every sense of the word.

Crunch!

Grendel was ambushed by a terrifying spiked worm, sent hurtling through the air. Another giant, concealed bug suddenly burst out of the ground, snapping its jaws at Grendel's head.

"Grendel, watch out!"

Thanks to Clyne's shout, Grendel tilted sideways and barely dodged the lethal strike. Even so, one of his arms and half his shoulder were still torn off by the oversized bug.

With a thud, Grendel hit the ground and rolled a good thirty feet or so before steadying himself. Clyne leaped down from the arrow tower, made her way to Grendel's side, and helped him up.

"How bad is it?"

Grendel shook his head. As a skeletal knight, he felt no pain. Yet he knew all too well that the deathly energy within him had plumted. Not only was his fighting strength impaired, but even his long-term potential was likely diminished.

Clyne raised her right hand. A suction force radiated from her palm; in the blink of an eye, a nearby skeletal warrior was pulled toward her. With a sizzle, she tore away the warrior's entire arm—shoulder and all.

Clyne handed the arm to Grendel, who, without a second thought, attached it to his own missing limb. At once, the bones in Grendel's body began writhing and extending at high speed, quickly assimilating and strengthening this newly grafted skeletal arm.

"Make do with that for now. Once you've recovered a bit, get back into the fight. After the war's over, maybe we can find your original arm."

Grendel nodded without speaking. On the battlefield, arms were expendable—and so was this newly continued life. If it was for the horde, Grendel was prepared to lay down everything.

After calming Grendel, Clyne turned and headed back to the arrow tower.

Right then, a piercing screech ca from within the swarm, bringing the entire battlefield to a montary halt. At once, a bolt of red light flared up from the mass of crawling enemies and ford a blurred worm-shaped silhouette, streaking straight for Clyne's unprotected back.

In that split second, Clyne, even at Alpha level, had no ti to react. But at the critical mont, a deep rumble akin to thunder rolled out: the will projection Orion had placed at Clyne's forehead appeared once more.

A lightning trident shot forth, only to be swallowed whole by the worm phantom. Yet in a duel between will projections, victory or defeat depends on whose transcendent power and resolve are stronger—so nothing was decided yet.

Hovering in midair, the crimson worm phantom let out a pained screech, and its shape grew steadily larger. It swelled and swelled, until it could no longer hold itself together. Finally, like an overfilled balloon, it exploded.

The resulting blast wave ford an enormous shockwave that wiped out almost every living thing within a thousand-foot radius. Only a handful of exceptionally strong creatures survived, though most of those were badly wounded. Among them were three Dark Worms that had been hiding in the swarm—one perished outright, and the other two were gravely injured.

Naturally, Clyne and Grendel, caught near the center of the explosion, were also sent flying.

Although Clyne avoided critical injuries, she had still taken so damage. Grendel, who was already wounded, collapsed where he fell, his soul energy obviously exhausted. It was clear he wouldn't be able to continue fighting.

In the surrounding areas, nearly all skeletal warriors, cave spiders, and dark worms were wiped out—apart from a few who were naturally gifted enough to survive.

Because of the sudden blast, the fierce battle between the two sides paused. A crater-like depression now marred the battlefield, a gaping void where the explosion had occurred.

Roaarrr!!

Squeeeak!!

But within two breaths, both armies' cannon fodder once again hurled themselves into the fray with frenzied roars. The battlefield's at grinder whirred to life again.

After a brief respite, Clyne, holding Grendel in her arms, jumped back onto the arrow tower to survey the chaos.

Only now did she realize how extraordinary Orion had been—challenging a Legendary level powerhouse while at Alpha level was more than just luck or raw talent. It was sothing neither words nor simple explanations could fully capture.

Another thing weighed on her mind: Orion's will projection had completely dissipated.

"What should I do now? Will Orion make it back in ti? Can we hold off that otherworldly lord?"

Clyne stared at the battlefield, her eyes brimming with anxiety.

"Is this fear I'm feeling? Dread?"

"Am I ready to face death again? This ti, I may not even have the chance to fall into eternal darkness."

"I am Clyne, from the Giant Tribe!"

"That matters!"

"Because even if I fall, soone will rember !"

"…"

She didn't know how much ti passed before the turbulent emotions inside her finally settled.

Death. Clyne had tasted it once before—it was anything but pleasant. Still, for the Horde, and for Orion, she wouldn't hesitate to die a second ti.

That was Clyne's resolve!

"Rooar!"

Standing atop the arrow tower, her hair blowing in the wind, Clyne let out a thunderous howl—a sort of dirge for the soul, broadcasting her determination to every Skeletal Knight in earshot.

Vargrum, Mordak, Zorn, Balgor, Desdemona, and the others all sensed Clyne's will and responded with their own hoarse howls. Even Grendel, lying behind Clyne, opened his jaw in a silent roar.

…

Erald Dream Realm, Red Moon Valley.

Loska, lord of the Red Thread Clan, opened his eyes, light blazing within. Through his renewed efforts, he'd finally worn down the enemy's lingering will projection, depriving the distant foe operating the teleportation array of their final trump card.

"Caution. Yes, I must remain cautious."

"There's no rush—now is not yet the ti to descend in person."

Muttering to himself, Loska soothed his excitent in a tone almost as if he were coaxing a child. Closing his eyes again, after a few monts, another will projection split away from his body and hid itself inside a Dark Worm near the teleportation array.

However, compared with the previous two tis, this will projection was much weaker. That was because it was being sent on a probe mission—to test whether the enemy still had anything left up their sleeve. Put simply, it was dood to die. Thus, Loska had no intention of investing too much power into it.

Suppressing the agony of rending his soul yet again, Loska channeled his transcendent power. The teleportation array flashed, and the Dark Worm vanished, transported away.