Chapter 6

Spring.

No matter which plane or continent, spring is a season that brings joy to most races.

There are always exceptions. In this world composed of numerous planes, countless continents, complex races, and billions of living beings, although exceptions are a minority, their absolute number still exceeds the computational capabilities of many intelligent races.

The world is complex, so complex that even the gods find it difficult to fully grasp. Destruction and rebirth alternate, stars and energy rise and fall in the void. The sky is also complex, with those shining stars hanging in the endless night, with countless beings gazing at them simultaneously. To different beings, the stars represent different meanings; they are hope and destruction. Some see eternal stillness, others see the trajectories that conform to the rules. To most people, the stars are symbols of the gods, while to a few wise ones, they see planes, lands, and countless bizarre worlds in the stars.

The stars are eternal, and only a few beings can foresee their destruction, or even witness their demise with their own eyes. They have been placed among the stars. The stars will also be destroyed, so they will eventually fall. But before the end comes, they often believe themselves to be eternal.

Spring is a general term. For example, in an unnamed plane, there is also a spring. However, there are only two seasons here: the season of revival and vigorous growth is spring, and the season of life's dormancy, hibernation, and death is autumn. Each seasonal change, calculated according to the main plane's law, takes twelve years. In this plane, three suns hang in the sky, and huge stars are arranged along the horizon, shining alongside the sunlight, visible even during the day. The halo composed of countless colored bands on the orbit of the giant star slowly rotates, which is the origin of countless beautiful legends in this world.

This plane is not just one continent; the carrier of life is an entire planet. Most of the planet's surface is ocean, and the land area is less than one-sixth. From the air, the entire planet shines with a deep purple light, magnificent and mysterious. A total of six moons orbit it, and on every clear night, the natives of this plane can see at least three moons, each with a different hue. The six moons of this plane are the source of the magical tides and the foundation of the entire plane's magic and civilization.

The continent has mountains, rivers, lakes, and forests, with purple still being the dominant color, but there are also other mottled colors. The terrain is undulating, with several majestic and rugged mountain ranges spanning the continent, the shortest of which is nearly ten thousand kilometers long, and peaks over ten thousand meters are common. On this continent, cities of various sizes are scattered like stars, with the most magnificent and spectacular city actually standing on the highest peak! On this mountain peak, which is two thousand meters above sea level, the entire summit is as flat as if it were cut by a knife, occupied by a grand city covering hundreds of square kilometers. In the city, spiral buildings stand tall, piercing the sky. They shine with a metallic luster, with a deep purple glow that flickers, as if life is flowing within.

At the center of the giant city stands a spire three thousand meters high. The uppermost spiral tip continuously spouts purple-gold symbols, forming a brilliant light band that dances around the spire. On the upper level of the spire, a tall being stands, with a human-like upper body, extremely muscular, and two reverse-jointed legs, with large hooves for feet. His dark blue skin does not conceal the dignity on his face, with dozens of long tentacles growing on his chin and cheeks, constantly waving as if they have a life of their own. He is clad in strange heavy armor that gleams with a metallic luster, with several key parts, such as shoulder guards, actually fused with his body.

This is an old man, whose deep wrinkles on his skin are not naturally formed but are the marks of time.

He is in a vast space, with countless glowing runes flying around the room, their trajectories seemingly chaotic but actually conforming to the rules of the stars' movements. In front of him, a ten-meter-high wall is completely transparent, turning into a panoramic screen, allowing him to see the outside world. This is a city built on a mountain peak two thousand meters high, and he stands at the highest point of the city. From here, the distant horizon is clearly curved. If one's eyesight is good enough, it would make one feel as if they have seen the entire world.

This is a place that all beings in this plane dream of standing one day, and it has a fitting name: the Hall of Overlooking. And the towering spire is the sacred site of the entire continent: the Dusk Temple.

A flash of light appeared deep in the Hall of Overlooking, and the figure of a young man appeared in the light. His body is even taller, striding forward, his hooves clashing with the all-metal floor, sending up a shower of sparks. Each heavy step he takes makes the entire hall tremble slightly. The surging power within his robust body cannot be suppressed, seeping out in threads, turning into lightning or deep black storms, only to shatter upon the heavy armor, leaving no trace on the armor's surface.

The young man rushed to the old man's back and knelt on one knee, saying in a firm and powerful voice, "High Priest! My men can no longer hold on. Please leave immediately!"

The old man did not respond, nor did he move, and even his tentacles hung softly and calmly. He continued to look at the outside world, as if no change could make him shift his gaze even a bit. It was dusk, which should be the most beautiful time of the day on this continent. The noise of the day began to subside, and the sky was filled with a light purple twilight. The two remaining suns and the three rising moons hung in the sky together, and the beautiful halo refracted colors that no being's vision could fully discern. This moment is the time when countless legends occur, and it is also the origin of the Dusk Temple's name.

However, the current dusk seemed like the end of the world. Flashes of light occasionally appeared in the mountains, followed by columns of fire rising into the sky, slowly turning into rolling smoke. Now, the dark smoke has already obscured half the sky. But within sight, countless small points could be seen swirling and dancing in the sky, chasing and colliding with each other, and from time to time, someone would fall burning. The transparent magical barrier blocked the sound but could not stop the vibrations, and the Hall of Overlooking continued to tremble.

A blood-red planet in the distant sky occupied most of the sky, and against its backdrop, dozens of huge black shadows could be seen floating in the sky, moving as if on flat ground, slowly sweeping across the horizon. They were far apart, seemingly insignificant, but in reality, they were extremely large, each almost the size of an entire city! These huge black shadows had sail-like fins on their backs and large bone wings on their sides, extending and spreading, like ancient beasts that once lurked in the deepest parts of the ocean, incredibly vast.

They slowly swayed their bodies, shedding flames. Each flame could cover an entire city. It was not magical fire or divine flames, almost without temperature, but it could burn everything and could not be extinguished. Under them, cities began to burn, and the cries of the dying were continuous. In this fire, non-living matter burned fiercely until it was completely consumed, while life could last for a long time, a painful and prolonged death.

A strange red cloud occasionally flashed in the distant sky, indicating the appearance of another ancient beast.

Figures rose from the mountains, rushing towards the huge black shadows in the sky. The High Priest and the young man both knew that these were the brave warriors of their race, now fighting a desperate battle against an unseen enemy at the cost of their lives. Their attacks were brave and fierce, but had little effect. Most of the warriors had not even approached the enemy when they were set ablaze with an unquenchable fire, screaming as they fell from the sky.

Flames, ice darts, and lightning also rose from the ground, crossing kilometers to bombard the enemies floating in the sky. Those who could send magical attacks such a great distance were not unknown in the entire continent. Although the range of these flames and lightning seemed very small, their power was enough to level entire mountains. Behind the seemingly monotonous light and shadow, there were deep blue roars, void penalties, extreme heat beams, dragon breaths, and neutral cuts, names that left one breathless.

However, these powerful magical, divine, and skill attacks only caused ripples on the bodies of the beasts, shattering a few flames and creating small mushroom clouds of black smoke on their surfaces. But the flight paths of the beasts remained unchanged, indicating that they had not been damaged at all.

The young man remained on his knees but also looked up at the silent apocalyptic scene outside the screen. He had already deeply experienced the unprecedented enemy. Just a moment ago, he himself was one of the fearless warriors who flew into the sky, but he survived and returned to the earth, and then to the Hall of Overlooking. It was not that he lacked the courage to fight to the death, but there was a greater responsibility that needed to be fulfilled by him.

So when he spoke again, his voice carried a hint of despair: "High Priest, only the attacks of peak warriors can harm them. The magic and divine powers of legendary mages and priests are completely ineffective! Even the divine penalties invoked with the power of the gods are the same! But to them, the damage caused by peak warriors is completely insignificant. High Priest, the gods have abandoned us..."

"Do not be hasty, we still have the war beasts," the High Priest said slowly.

"But..." The young warrior did not continue, but turned his head to look at the apocalyptic world outside.

The earth trembled, and a silver dragon rose from the distant mountains. It was elegant and beautiful, its radiance almost illuminating the mountains. This was one of the few peak war beasts, a plane guardian, the Frost Dragon Sera. Over the long years, countless invasions by extraplanar beings have been thwarted because of her existence.

Even in the silent Hall of Overlooking, it seemed as if the Frost Dragon's earth-shattering roar could be heard. She directly pounced on the back of a huge enemy, attacking with her claws, horns, and breath. Compared to the enemies floating in the sky, even the Frost Dragon seemed slender and small, but under her attack, the unknown enemy began to struggle violently for the first time and slowly fell towards the mountains below, unable to stop.

At the same moment, cheers echoed from various corners of the continent. Since the start of the apocalyptic war, this was the first time an enemy had been brought down.

"But... Sera is the only one," the young man said, almost uttering a sacrilegious statement, but the High Priest only sighed deeply. This young man was the most outstanding genius on the entire continent in the past decade, his strength already reaching the peak of legend, and he was the only survivor after the deadly battle with the apocalyptic messengers. His judgment would not be wrong.

The wrinkles on the High Priest's skin deepened, as if he had aged several decades in an instant. He shook his head and sighed heavily. A few tent