The Stonehearted Knight
Chapter 184: Against the Calamity (3)

Chapter 184: Against the Calamity (3)

"They live up to their fame."

For the first time, since watching from afar, Old Gargoyle’s fury ebbed and awe appeared in those gem-embedded eyes.

In a rare instance, the Duke agreed with him. "To manifest the might of their souls through the surrounding energy is proof of their indomitable will and undying spirit. They should be close to taking that next step."

"Indeed. We might have a chance to witness the ascendance of a new Transformed Knight." Old Gargoyle’s voice seemed genuinely gleeful at the thought.

The Duke glanced at him. "Close to the next step, taking the next step, and surviving that step are all three different concepts."

"I know," Old Gargoyle rolled his eyes at the Duke. Apparently, the sight of the three Knights having their manifestations filled him with some hope. "The Transformed stage turns humans into demigods but reaching that stage requires people to overcome death. These three might even fall here today."

...

’This thing...’

Hex stared at the tool on the floor. The destruction this thing caused when used was vivid in his mind. For some reason, seeing this thing here, a wild and suicidal idea took root inside Hex.

He sensed the energy in the air turning violent. He didn’t turn to look at the four powerhouses behind him, his senses were enough to determine it. But instead of running away, like the others, Hex picked up the tool and shuffled toward the back of the pile of rubble he just left.

He barely reached it when the air exploded. The broken pieces atop the pile flew off, hitting the distant walls and buildings and tremors ran through the ground. Hex gasped for breath as the pressure in the air increased, making it difficult to breathe. But he didn’t leave.

"Arg."

It seemed standing up under such pressure was next to impossible. No matter how hard he tried, he buckled under the heavy pressure exerted by the surroundings.

’Fuck. If you guys want to play like that, no problem. I can play too.’

A crazy smile hung on his lips as sweat streamed down his face to the floor. Hex went on all fours and crawled from behind the pile.

He peered from behind but ducked quickly. A broken wall flew right past his face and slammed behind him. Whatever it had hit, didn’t exist anymore, destroyed on impact.

’I nearly lost my head and joined Marzo in the headless corpse corp.’

If someone could read his mind they would be convinced that Hex had lost his mind. But he hadn’t. His dark humor reminded him of the difficult situation he faced.

After a short pause, Hex peeked once more.

The manifestations clashed against each other, causing turbulent airflows and airblasts. The figures beneath the massive outlines moved at a speed Hex couldn’t follow.

Hex’s eyes prickled and turned teary looking at the energy manifestations but the sight enthralled him extremely.

Gronke’s boar phantom wore the nebula as armor and punched the black orb in the air. But the orb seemed to disrupt the momentum behind the punches and even pulled the surrounding people toward it.

Hex couldn’t track the Calamity’s moves. He only realized it had attacked once he noticed the nebula burst out. Luckily, it seemed to reform at a speed surpassing the creature’s, intercepting the following attack.

’Oh shit.’

Hex pressed his body against the floor, only to prevent being blown away by the resulting shockwaves of the clashes occurring in the air.

The ambient pressure increased, causing Hex to gasp and grunt. The air weighed more than boulders. With gritted teeth, Hex crawled forward. Sweat rolled down and exhaustion settled in but Hex didn’t stop until he reached the corpse of the Disaster he killed.

The mutilated corpse of the Disaster easied the process of retrieving its crystal. Otherwise, he would suffer greatly due to his exhausted and weakened body. Hex’s immense willpower pushed him through.

With bloodied hands, Hex fumbled inside the corpse, trying to find its crystal. The acidic black liquid burnt. Hex groaned with clenched jaws through the pain of his flesh melting.

’Found it.’

He grabbed the crystal and jerked his hand out of the corpse. The return journey took longer as the ambient pressure rose even more during the time he spent searching for the crystal.

When he leaned with his back against the pile, the impulse to close his eyes and just lie down overwhelmed him. His eyes drooped and his body felt devoid of energy.

"No!"

A muffled shout escaped his mouth. Despite his body’s eagerness to give up, Hex pushed himself back on his feet. His stubbornness to persist regardless of the adversaries he faced was forged in the dark chasms of the Endless Mountains.

Through his barely-opened eyes, he looked at the raging battle. Hundreds of meters of the area stood devastated.

Gronke broke his trunks at some point but it wasn’t his worst injury. Admiration flashed through Hex’s eyes at the sight of the man standing with a missing arm and his ribcage partially visible to the naked eye. His injuries seemed insignificant before the Warlord’s wounds.

The Star Sword’s Technique clashed against the Calamity, hitting and cutting into it, but the Paladin was on her knees, short on breath and gritting her teeth to keep her attack active. She had all her limbs but her pale face indicated she was close to collapsing.

Only the Stellar Shield remained uninjured but the lack of shields on the battleground was proof that he too was at the end of his rope.

The three representatives of their respective factions failed to kill the Calamity but their combined effort wasn’t without results. The Calamity’s dangling arm, missing eye on one side, and body riddled with wounds proved their worth.

Even someone like Hex guessed their strength. The simple fact that the other Refined Knights maintained a safe distance from the battle and refrained from assisting was proof of their powers.

’They won’t hold on for much longer.’

The attack of the Calamity sent Gronke flying and the Paladin coughed out blood. Hex gritted his teeth and lifted the tool left behind by Quid and mounted it on top of the pile. After that, he picked the Disaster crystals he had out of his robe.

’I have enough of that black swirling gas to fill three of these.’

He took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. Opening his eyes, he focused on the monolith, activating it while putting his hand on top of the first Disaster crystal.

Instead of slowly pulling the chaotic energy and refining it, he pulled a small amount of the energy out and injected the black swirl in it. He sensed the strong vibrations occurring inside the crystal at once.

The small amount of energy he pulled out, prickled and hurt him but he moved his hand to the second and third crystal in quick succession, repeating the process with all three.

"ARG!"

The potency of chaotic energy inside Disaster crystals was incomparable to the ones in Demon and Fiend crystals. Hex, with all his treasures, required a long time to refine such an amount. But time was the one thing he lacked at the moment.

He groaned and gritted his teeth so hard that blood flowed out his mouth.

’I hope this works.’

Hex lacked experience in operating such tools. He only saw Quid use it once. Yet, he decided to gamble everything on it. The chaotic energy wreaked havoc inside his body. Even his superior regenerative powers couldn’t keep up with the destruction.

The pain blurred his mind. His legs barely kept him standing while he leaned forward on the pile. Hex pulled the tool and aimed at the Calamity. His mind was blank. At this point, his body operated on its own.

Luckily, the moment he finished repeating the steps as he remembered them, the tool in his hand glowed red. But activating the tool caused the three Disaster crystals to vibrate with increased intensity, turning the air around him chaotic.

A change in the air didn’t escape the sharp senses of the Calamity and the Commander up in the air. Both turned their gazes toward Hex.

"What the hell is that kid up to!"

The Commander exited the smoke cloud and shot toward Hex. At the same time, the Calamity, aware of the danger it sensed, screeched and shot also toward Hex. The three Refined Knights’s weary and wounded bodies failed to obstruct the creature.

Hex only saw the creature disappear and appear before him. His blank mind didn’t even register the pressure and bloodlust radiating from the creature. His heart thumped loudly in his chest. The moment the creature appeared before him, Hex’s body reacted by pulling the trigger.

SCREECH!

The Calamity sensed the danger and shrieked, bursting Hex’s eardrums. His eyes turned white and he slumped, losing consciousness.

"IDIOT!"

BOOM!

The Commander’s shout disappeared in the explosion. He ignored the Calamity and wrapped a giant bird-shaped phantom around Hex and himself. In the next instance, everything and everyone in the market district was blasted away by a sudden shockwave. The blast burst the smoke cloud away, clearing the sky.

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