Chapter 236: Rocky

The team moved together.

Five figures slipped down the rocky slope toward the canyon entrance, with Emric in front with his shield ready. Renna followed with her bow already strung. Lyra stayed close behind them with her spear, while Cora and Sera guarded the rear with their short swords drawn. Emric’s was already mapping the path ahead, guiding them toward the service tunnel without wasting time.

Holden watched until they all disappeared into the rocky terrain. He waited a few more seconds, making sure their energy signatures were far enough away before standing.

Then he walked to the canyon rim.

Three hundred feet below, the foundry continued its work. Furnaces roared. Pipes pulsed and assembly lines moved. Guards marched between the buildings while enslaved soldiers worked beneath the ground.

The entire place existed to produce weapons for a war that would kill countless people.

Holden activated the Abyssal-Bone Wings.

The wings unfolded from his back. He stepped off the edge and let the wings carry him into the canyon.

For a moment, Holden hovered above the foundry.

Three hundred guards below became thousands.

Fifty Rank 3 enforcers waited among them.

And somewhere inside the central forge stood Korr, a Rank 4 metal manipulator who believed his fortress made him untouchable.

Holden summoned the Eclipse-Sun Sword.

The black and crimson blade appeared in his hand, its dual-element flames rising around the edge.

Holden raised the sword.

The flames suddenly grew.

FWOOOOOSH!

A pillar of black and crimson fire erupted above the canyon. Its light and darkness washed across the walls, turning the entire foundry into a strange mix of red, black, and orange.

Every guard looked up.

Furnace workers stopped.

Patrols broke formation.

Heads turned toward the figure floating above them.

Holden pointed the sword toward the main barracks.

The building was the largest structure on the canyon floor after the central forge. Eight hundred guards were housed inside it, most of them currently resting, eating, or sleeping.

Holden swung.

The Hellfire Cleave tore away from the blade in a massive horizontal wave. It crossed the three hundred feet between Holden and the barracks in less than a second before slamming into the roof.

BOOOOOOM!

The explosion shook the canyon.

The roof vanished in a flash. The walls buckled, the iron frame twisted, and the entire building collapsed as flames swallowed the structure.

For a heartbeat, everything went silent.

Then the canyon erupted.

Alarms screamed. Soldiers shouted. Doors flew open as guards poured out of every building, weapons already in their hands. Some tried to form ranks, but the sudden attack had thrown the entire foundry into confusion.

Waaah. Waaah. Waaah.

Holden folded his wings.

Then he dropped.

Three hundred feet disappeared beneath him in seconds. Wind tore past his armor as the furnace heat rose from below. The canyon walls blurred around him while the floor rushed closer.

Holden hit the courtyard.

BOOM!

The impact cracked the iron plating under his feet and sent a shockwave racing across the ground. The nearest guards were knocked off their feet while loose equipment flew through the air.

Holden rose from where he landed.

The Eclipse-Sun Sword burned in his hand. His Abyssal-Bone Wings folded behind him while the Phantom-Weave Armor’s dark surface shifted with every movement.

Then he looked around.

He was surrounded.

Thousands of guards filled the courtyard, the walkways, and the spaces between the buildings. More poured out from the damaged barracks, storage areas, and assembly lines. Some stared at him in fear. Others looked ready to attack.

Three thousand soldiers.

One man stood in the middle of them.

Holden slowly looked across the crowd.

Then he smiled.

It was the kind of smile that said he had just destroyed their barracks and had absolutely no regrets about it.

"Room service!" he shouted.

His voice carried across the courtyard.

"Who ordered the fire?"

Nobody answered.

The guards simply stared.

Three thousand people stood frozen, apparently trying to understand why the man who had just blown up their barracks was now acting like he had arrived to deliver dinner.

Holden raised the Eclipse-Sun Sword.

The black and crimson flames climbed higher, pushing against the orange furnace light.

"Now that I have your attention," he called, his voice carrying across the entire foundry, "bring me your boss."

He pointed the burning blade toward the central forge.

"Tell him Vespera’s disciple is here."

His smile disappeared.

"And I’m not leaving until every chain in this place is broken."

They all charged at Holden.

There was no formation this time. Three thousand bodies surged into the courtyard from every direction, shouting as they rushed toward Holden. They poured between the furnaces and assembly lines, climbed over the wreckage of the barracks, and flowed around the crater where he stood like a river splitting around a stone.

The first wave reached him in less than five seconds.

Holden swung.

FWOOOOOSH!

The Eclipse-Sun Sword carved through the front rank in a wide arc. Its black and crimson flames tore through the guards’ Rank 2 armor as if it were paper. Metal vanished under the heat, followed by flesh and weapons. Five guards were reduced to ash before they even reached the ground.

Shhhk. Shhhk. Shhhk. Shhhk. Shhhk.

[Imperial Guard (Rank 2, 1-Star) Defeated! x5!]

[+2,000 KP each! 2x Booster! +10,000 KP!]

The next group was already coming. Twenty guards charged shoulder to shoulder, halberds pointed forward as they formed a wall.

Holden’s 10,000x processor picked apart the formation almost instantly. Every weapon, every opening, every gap between the halberds became clear. There was no need for Void-Step. His 8-Star body was fast enough.

The Eclipse-Sun Sword flashed.

Once.

Twice.

Then again and again.

Holden moved through the formation in a blur, his blade striking from different angles before the guards could even react. Ten of them dropped almost at once, leaving the others swinging their halberds at empty air. Their formation collapsed as the center of their charge disappeared.

[Imperial Guard (Rank 2, 1-Star) Defeated! x10!]

[ 2x Booster! +20,000 KP!]

There was no time for the guards to regroup. Holden pushed forward, the Eclipse-Sun Sword sweeping through the crowd in wide arcs. Compressed bursts of fire tore through clusters of enemies, while quick vertical and horizontal strikes cut down anyone who got close enough to attack.

FWOOOSH! FWIP! FWOOOSH! FWIP! FWIP!

The courtyard became a storm of fire and steel. Guards rushed forward only to be thrown back or reduced to ash seconds later. More kept coming, but Holden never gave them the chance to surround him properly.

[Imperial Guard (Rank 2, 1-Star) Defeated! x20!]

[2x Booster! +40,000 KP!]

[Imperial Guard (Rank 2, 2-Star) Defeated! x15!]

[2x Booster! +55,500 KP!]

The notifications appeared one after another, almost too quickly to follow. Ash drifted through the air from the bodies consumed by the Eclipse-Sun Sword, mixing with the black smoke still rising from the destroyed barracks.

A squad of fifty rushed from the eastern side.

Holden turned toward them.

One wide Hellfire Cleave swept across the courtyard.

FWOOOOOSH!

BOOM!

The front of the squad was swallowed by the attack while the rest were thrown backward by the force of the blast. Bodies, weapons, and pieces of armor crashed into the furnaces and assembly lines.

Another squad came from the west.

These guards were stronger. Rank 2, 4-Star fighters wearing heavier armor and carrying enchanted shields. They charged together, confident that their equipment could withstand attacks from weaker opponents.

Holden raised his left arm.

The Kinetic-Nova Bracer had been absorbing the blows thrown at him. Halberds, swords, punches, and kicks had all added to the energy stored inside it.

A red glow spread across the bracer.

It wasn’t anywhere near the amount of energy it had held during the fight with the Iron Juggernaut, but it was more than enough for what Holden wanted.

He pointed his fist toward the approaching squad.

Then released it.

BOOM!

A powerful shockwave exploded from his arm.

The fifty guards were lifted off the ground and thrown backward. Their enchanted shields shattered under the force while armor cracked around their bodies. One after another, they crashed into the far side of the courtyard.

None of them died.

But none of them were getting back up either.

[Imperial Guard (Rank 2, 4-Star) Neutralized! x50!]

[Non-lethal takedown. KP Awarded!]

[+17,000 KP! 2x Booster! +30,000 KP!]

Holden didn’t slow down.

More guards rushed him. More fell as well.

The System notifications kept appearing as the numbers climbed higher.

[+8,000 KP.]

[+12,000 KP.]

[+6,000 KP.]

[+18,000 KP.]

[+10,000 KP.]

[+24,000 KP.]

[+15,000 KP.]

[+9,000 KP.]

The courtyard slowly began to empty.

Three thousand guards became two thousand.

Then fifteen hundred.

Then a thousand.

The survivors stopped charging blindly. They backed away and formed a loose circle around Holden. They had watched hundreds of their comrades fall in minutes, and the courage that had brought them rushing forward was beginning to disappear.

Nobody wanted to be the next one.

Holden glanced at the System.

[KP Earned: 252,500]

[Multiplier: 10,000x]

[KP Booster: 2x Active]

[Fighter Rank: Rank 3 (8-Star)]

He had earned over two hundred thousand points in minutes.

Then the ground moved.

Holden’s eyes snapped downward.

The floor beneath his feet split open.

The metal plates pulled apart, revealing the bedrock below. A deep grinding sound rolled through the courtyard as the stone itself began to separate.

A pillar of earth rose from the opening.

It wasn’t natural. Korr had shaped the stone with his power, forcing it upward until it formed a twenty-foot-wide platform nearly fifteen feet above the courtyard.

A man stood on top.