Round 46: The Frozen Throne (Part 1)

What kind of existence is worthy of earning the hatred and disgust of gods? Perhaps only through such a devastating winter storm can we gain some understanding. The pale, lifeless wasteland has been plunged into terrible chaos due to XuzxXuzxKer. Earthquakes, storms, boiling ice and snow falling from the sky and rising from the ground… The world’s Arctic has provided a home for the ancient children of cold, while also imprisoning them in eternal ice in another dimension—but now, they have awakened.

The miniature sun above the Revenge Ship fluctuated strangely, its sacred light compressed by the raging blizzard into a faint glow that barely covered the magic ship. Thanks to it, the passengers on the Revenge Ship were able to avoid exhausting all their strength fighting against the ice and snow storms.

“O Lord Amunra, we praise your name and ask you to grant us pride in light, to crush all weakness…” Fiona’s slender fingers were white from gripping the ship’s railing as she prayed softly. Her unique silver-white armor resonated with the power of the sun, almost merging into that holy glow.

Milia had once witnessed the formidable power of the Flame Lord from the abyssal hell in the Sleeping Forest—but compared to the towering XuzxXuzxKer before them, that disaster that destroyed the entire Hellgate Fortress was nothing more than a reckless experiment by a mage apprentice.

The cruel hurricane contained countless vortices and turbulent currents. At every moment, thousands of ice crystals and snowstones crashed against the Revenge Ship, shaking it to its core.

“Simon! Can you find a way to get closer?” Moriel shouted through the crystal window of the cockpit. Simon responded with a twisted face, shouting, “Please, Miss Moriel! I’m just one person, and this isn’t some ordinary sailboat I’m used to!”

“The Red-Clothed Girl should send her steel warriors back to this ship to control it,” Himb suggested, keeping a wary eye on XuzxXuzxKer’s movements. But Moriel looked up—the sky above was in complete chaos. Air currents refracted the light, creating wild gray-white stripes that danced around, making it impossible to spot the figure of Number 47. “That guy won’t just obediently stay put… Besides, I think using him as an engine on this ship is underutilizing his potential.”

Two points of light appeared in the storm. No, they couldn’t even be called light. Within the endless, cold, mountain-like shell, that evil, immortal, godlike will manifested before mortals in a tangible physical form.

XuzxXuzxKer had opened its eyes, staring at the Revenge Ship, which seemed like a toy in its presence, with its strange coldness and unimaginable terror.

“Hey, I guess this guy won’t start by greeting us…” Chloé stood firm against the blizzard. As XuzxXuzxKer moved, the storm it created began to advance purposefully toward the magic ship.

“Hurry up!” Xinbu stepped quickly along the ship’s side. Silver flames ignited in her footsteps, spreading in delicate strands that seeped into the deck, emerging from the intricate patterns on the Revenge’s steel armor as it tilted sideways. Then the flames leaped away from the ship, transforming into strange magical symbols, hovering and burning in the storm before gradually dissipating.

In just that short time, Xinbu had cast four or five layers of protective spells between the Revenge and Xuzexker. Energy auras with varying effects yet complementary to each other surrounded the magic ship, even dispelling the raging ice and snow storm—until the giant-like Xuzexker raised its arm.

The sound of its fists clenching together was like a series of thunderous booms. Its massive fist, filled with jagged ice spikes, struck the Revenge like a roaring giant serpent.

Saimon sat down hard on the ceiling and rolled several times along the wall—this was thanks to years of training with a highly skilled rogue swordsman when he was younger; otherwise, his neck would likely have broken on the bridge during the first spin of the Revenge.

From the magic ship, everything seemed to be spinning wildly. The spell defenses crumbled layer by layer under Xuzexker’s terrifying force forged from pure cold. Xinbu, who was responsible for defending them, could even feel the magical network of the world trembling violently due to the unbearable pressure.

The Revenge was flung far away, with its “sun” appearing like a meteor speeding away. Blue-white electric flames flashed everywhere, from the bow’s ram to the stern’s stabilizing sails. If it weren’t for 47 reorganizing the entire ship with his own energy, even the protective spells might not have been enough to withstand Xuzexker’s attacks—the shock alone would have shattered the Revenge.

Morriel stabilized herself using her “Spider Walk” ability, which allowed her to move on any smooth surface at any angle, her ears ringing from the noise. She now felt utterly helpless. Kayro had somehow hidden inside Xuzexker, and neither Morriel nor Xinbu could do much against this earth-shaking giant—just as the strongest mouse is still just a mouse in front of an elephant.

But what about 47?

Xuzexker took a step forward. In fact, its knees and below were buried in glaciers, and the white plume raised by that step almost covered the Revenge. The ice field cracked into countless fragments colliding with each other, releasing deep-seated cold energy that hissed out like steam from a boiling pot, further intensifying the ice and snow hurricane surrounding Xuzexker.

A fierce flash of lightning streaked through the swirling clouds.

The reason 47, soaring high in the storm, did not launch an attack right away was not because he was frozen stiff or disoriented by the wind. On the contrary, his mind was razor-sharp—probably never as clear as it had been since he left the bloody battlefield of the Abyss. It was the coldest command after discarding all distractions, the most direct instinct after suppressing all emotions. 47 circled around the storm, even shutting down most of his engines to conserve his nearly infinite energy. The roar of the Steel Dragon sounded somewhat muffled amidst the fierce blizzard, and 47, unusually, remained calm rather than his usual aggressive demeanor, gathering strength in an unusual silence. Whether in the burning interstellar spaces or the twilight worlds where gods clashed, 47 was born for war and existed for war—and on a macro scale, war itself rejected all irrelevant elements; wherever it passed, only ashes remained. When everything was adjusted to its optimal state, 47 dove downward. To be honest, attacking a space fortress the size of an entire city, fighter mechs like 47, operating at the forefront, could not pose a significant threat without a sufficient number of them. He had seen the entire fleet of mechs get wiped out by intense defensive fire before they could even get close. Perhaps ZuxXuzxKer did not have such precise, impenetrable crossfire, but 47 also lacked nuclear torpedoes that could end things in one strike. So he even gave up his usual breath-of-dragon suppression tactic. In this world where magic had replaced science and even surpassed it in some aspects, facing a true Godzilla-level monster like ZuxXuzxKer, the lack of a devastating weapon remained an undeniable reality. When the giant dragon was reduced to something akin to a falcon, pecking out the enemy’s eyes was far more effective than spitting a few drools. Thus, 47 descended upon ZuxXuzxKer with lightning and flames, the sound of countless blades clashing together. He began with his roaring chainsaw claws—compared to his usual iron fists in his giant form, this configuration was practically like an excavator. The chainsaw claws left deep scratches on ZuxXuzxKer’s jagged, glacier-like head. If he did this on the streets of Deepflow City, he might even dig into the sewers. But this heavy strike, causing massive ice and snow explosions, seemed to merely tickle ZuxXuzxKer. The giant shook its body—though it might be entirely made of ice that had lasted ten thousand years, even if it could move its head, it would be difficult not to disturb the whole body. The storm howled around ZuxXuzxKer’s body, pushing 47 away like some legendary protective energy. He quickly assembled twin-barreled arm cannons and fired at the giant’s fist swinging toward him, knocking off two of its fingers while using the recoil to leap out of its reach, like Sun Wukong escaping from Buddha’s palm.

Forty-seven noticed the giant’s eyes fixed on him. Its blurred face held only two dim, cold glows, like two bottomless wells. The information emanating from them was far more than mere primal fury and hatred; even Forty-seven’s attempt to show off in its presence wasn’t enough to truly anger it. Its real target wasn’t him, nor was it the Vengeance.

Xuzexker opened its mouth, resembling a twisted crack in a mountain cliff. Howling icy winds burst forth from the dark fissure, a thousand times colder than the chill rising from the earth’s crust. The conical beams of cold energy froze the air, rushing toward Forty-seven with a blue edge, engulfing him completely as it spun him backward, quickly encasing him in frozen space to form an irregular ice mass.

“What’s this thing trying to do?” On the Vengeance, which was already pressed against the nearly icy ground and continuing to retreat, people couldn’t see what was happening above due to the chaos. All they could see were countless huge ice blocks pouring down from the storm—byproducts of Xuzexker’s icy breath solidifying the sky.

“It’s moving forward! It wants to get away from here!” Morriel shouted, gripping the ship’s railing. She sensed just a glimpse of Xuzexker’s vast and immense will. This time, with preparation, the cold didn’t penetrate her soul or attempt to freeze her brain, but instead conveyed more voices that only a divinely powerful being could fully comprehend: twisted, bizarre, terrifying. It sought to spread its power of suffering and destruction to all living things even further, finding satisfaction in this devouring of everything.

“We have to stop it! We must not let Xuzexker enter the main material world!” The female mage stumbled into the cockpit, ignoring the pale-faced, cursing Simon, and placed her hands on the cubic control panel.

Though the process was bumpy, Morriel finally managed to establish a connection with the Vengeance, spreading her mind across most of the ship’s systems. Without Forty-seven’s ease of control or the extensive experience of the Archmages of the Agus Council, the power turbines at the back of the Vengeance had restarted, spewing flames and hot air that generated tremendous thrust, pushing the ship forward against the storm under Simon’s reluctant control—and that was enough.

Forty-seven shook off the remaining ice shells from his body as he transformed, and the reactors inside him, extinguished by Xuzexker’s breath, reignited one after another. Though the extreme cold made his joints stiff, that was about it. The biggest problem was his inability to inflict fatal damage on his opponent—just as those fools who had fought him before had struggled with.

At least six of the sharp, long horns arranged in rows around the steel dragon’s neck and under its wings shot out simultaneously. Under Forty-Seven’s control, they transformed into shapes more suitable for flying and piercing, while trailing long plumes of flame as they flew toward XuzxXuzxKer’s head. The Abomination raised its arm-like walls to defend itself, with a series of explosions creating towering columns of fire on its arms—only to be extinguished almost instantly by the bitter wind. Layer upon layer of ice walls quickly formed on XuzxXuzxKer’s uneven, damaged arms, restoring the natural armor destroyed by the flying spears and bombs.

Annoyed, it leaned forward at high speed. Given its size, even a slow movement like that of a turtle would be enough to shake the ground, let alone its ability to leap like a leopard now. The air, combined with countless ice and snow fragments, was nearly solid due to the extreme cold. As XuzxXuzxKer compressed it, thousands of thunderous explosions erupted in rapid succession. Even the glaciers in front of it suffered a series of volcanic-like explosions as a result of these violent changes, spreading far and wide.

“Wrap around it!” Morriel sent a message to Forty-Seven using the energy resonance of Retribution. If XuzxXuzxKer continued to move around chaotically and strengthen its cold storm, it would be impossible not only to get close to it but even to stay in the air.

Himb stood at the bow, trying to weaken the storm. She had already used up many spells and a powerful spell scroll given to her by Dailuo. This scroll allowed her to control the weather within a certain range at will, but right now it only managed to slightly reduce the intensity of the gales. Chloé and the holy warriors stood around Himb, helping her fend off the oversized or overly fast ice fragments that could break through her magical defenses.

Forty-Seven suddenly rolled past Retribution at high speed, nearly hitting the magic ship. But he immediately returned along the same path with even greater urgency, determined to discuss further with XuzxXuzxKer the issue of being rudely thrown down.

No matter how difficult it was, this god-like force of the Abomination was finally held back for now. It stopped, waving its terrifying claws and throwing huge ice balls that exploded like meteor showers at Forty-Seven, who in turn used punches, stomps, and bites to tear large chunks of ice off XuzxXuzxKer’s body, occasionally firing steam-filled craters with the cannons on his arms.

Under Morriel’s control, Retribution struggled to approach XuzxXuzxKer. Monsters like this, which needed to be imprisoned in a dimension nearly as vast as a plane, generally did not awaken on their own. So Morriel believed this was the work of Kayro—or perhaps… she now had to admit it was the work of Lady Mist, who had fully awakened.

Since Lady Mist could hide inside it, there must be an entrance.

Morriel didn’t believe the recently revived Goddess of Lies could fully control such a powerful ancient being. Although she didn’t know how the goddess had entered XuzxXuzxKer’s body, she might try to explore the traces left behind by divine power… After all, this was the most common task she had undertaken since leaving the Agus Empire.

The Punishment Ship climbed with difficulty, nearing the giant’s waist. Ximb at the bow turned to Jen and said something, then her figure blurred and disappeared into the snowstorm rushing toward her—Jen took her place, her white light wings mirroring the sun above to form a new shield. Before long, Ximb crashed into the observation window of the cockpit, shattering the already cracked crystal completely. Supernatural winds rushed into the cockpit, forcing Simon and Morriel to turn their heads and close their eyes to protect themselves. The wind spun in the corners, throwing out Ximb, who had disassembled herself to avoid harm and shed impurities. “Even if we touch it, we can’t penetrate! Its power is too strong!” Ximb wiped the corner of her mouth. “If this continues, we’re doomed!” “Wait…” Morriel directed all the propulsion engines of the magic ship to blast downward, continuing to ascend. “I’m trying to find the entrance through which Lady Mist entered.” ZuxxXuzxKer seemed to notice the Punishment Ship approaching silently. He lowered his head, gathering massive amounts of cold energy in his mouth, then unleashed another terrifying blast. The blast halted the Punishment Ship’s movement instantly, and the cold air hitting the ice field caused the ice and snow to recondense, rapidly forming a spiky ice peak that was about to freeze the magic ship firmly to its summit… Forty-seven descended like meteorites, hitting Hatred’s head. The iron fists formed by crossing their fingers and delivering a full-force strike might be a severe test for an ordinary person’s finger bones, but it was merely a necessary step for Forty-seven to assemble his fists into a destructive hammer. His arms, already nearly as thick as his waist, even had several small jet turbines built into them. The energy released by this strike shook the entire storm area, with lightning flashes pushing the clouds outward until the edge of the world. The largest crack even extended downward from ZuxxXuzxKer’s eyes to almost his jaw, with cold breaths flowing out from numerous ruptures in his neck—accompanied by his earth-shattering roar and Morriel’s sudden insight. “It’s right there!” Forty-seven’s full-force strike nearly knocked ZuxxXuzxKer aside, and the resulting shockwave ran through Hatred’s entire body—enabling Morriel’s spirit to scan and finally discover a faint vulnerability on its chest. The Punishment Ship sped forward, and Morriel transmitted the location of the possible passage to everyone’s mind. Forty-seven flipped over and transformed into an Iron Dragon, diving downward. Hatred’s giant hand struck just above him, missing him by a hair’s breadth. The rarely used White Dragon Breath finally showed its power, with continuous heat waves shattering the ice that was harder than any metal, clearing a path for Morriel and the others. “Leave here, Simon!” With that, Morriel tore open the scroll she carried, channeling its energy into herself. While resisting the cold, she blurred her form and flew out through the window with Ximb, heading toward the mysterious door at ZuxxXuzxKer’s chest, unknown where it led.

“Damn it! Ladies! Don’t leave me alone! How am I supposed to operate this thing—Damn! It seems to be broken!” Amidst Simon’s frantic screams, the Vengeance, having fulfilled its mission, tilted and began to fall.