96: Chapter 96 The Thunder of Titans and the End of the Bone Realm
The forbidden space at the deepest level of the Iron Hive.
Thump!
Thump!
Thump!
A heartbeat so heavy it was stifling, not transmitted through air but transformed into a tangible physical shockwave, emanating from the depths of the earth's core.
This sound possessed a tyrannical penetrative power, ignoring all obstacles, resonating directly at the soul level.
The entire ground of the divine realm trembled in time with this fixed rhythm.
At the center of the newly expanded, mountain-swallowing [Titan Incubation Pool], stood a colossal egg over a hundred meters tall.
Its shell was not of flesh and blood, nor of rock, but a deep purple prismatic crystal, as if compressed from pure thunder energy.
The crystal shell had an eerie, semi-transparent quality, with internal light refracting through countless facets, emitting a bizarre halo.
Through the thick crystalline layer, a curled-up, vaguely outlined massive shadow occupied all the space within.
It was breathing.
With each inhalation, the countless purple electric arcs on the eggshell's surface would dim, as if being devoured whole.
With each exhalation, billions of even more violent bolts of thunder would erupt anew, writhing, biting, and colliding like frenzied serpents across the crystal surface, emitting crackling, shattering sounds.
Each heartbeat triggered a violent resonance with the never-dissipating storm of thunderclouds above the divine realm.
BOOM!
Ten thousand cascades of lightning fell from the heavens, striking the giant egg with pinpoint accuracy. Far from causing any damage, they were completely absorbed, transformed into nourishment for its growth.
"This is the oppressive might of a planetary-scale biological weapon..."
Su Chen hovered above the edge of the incubation pool, his body appearing minuscule and disproportionate before this world-shaking power.
That pure, primal, star-rending aura of destruction spilled forth unabashedly from the giant egg.
This aura even caused Su Chen's soul to tremble slightly, but deep within his electronic eyes, the fanatical light burned even brighter.
Having devoured the vast, ocean-like essence of flesh and blood from the Radiant Star Whale.
Fused with the [godhead of strength] left behind by Hercules.
Stripped and implanted with the Star Whale's most core [Thunder Manipulation] gene.
Once this [Abyssal Thunder Beast - Titan] hatched, it would represent a true world-ending cataclysm!
Su Chen's consciousness probed into the incubation pool, reading the stream of life data from the giant egg.
[Estimated Incubation Time: 168 hours]
[Current Status: Skeletal framework preliminarily completed, nervous system and energy core fusing...]
"It still needs time."
Su Chen withdrew his consciousness, forcibly suppressing the all-consuming fanaticism and transforming it into a frigid, razor-sharp rationality.
His gaze shifted, piercing through the layered structures of the Hive, landing on the edge of the divine realm.
There lay a newly incorporated territory, a dead and pale world.
[White Bone Divine Realm].
The God of White Bones's soul-fire had been completely devoured by Theodore during the previous purge, becoming nourishment for its ascension.
But the territory that deity had cultivated for thousands of years still retained its final appearance.
Millions of skeleton soldiers, having lost their master's control, wandered aimlessly across the desolate plains.
Temples constructed from massive piles of bones stood in silent vigil.
In the eyes of other deities, these low-tier undead, devoid of soul-fire, were utter trash, not even worth serving as cannon fodder.
But for the eternally hungry, frantically expanding Zerg Swarm, this was the highest quality "calcium supplement."
Su Chen's will transformed into icy commands, instantly spreading throughout the entire Nid Hive Network.
"Order all Drone units."
"Initiate 'Full Reclamation Mode.'"
"Target: White Bone Divine Realm."
"Mission Requirement: Dismantle, pulverize, and transport all bone constructs—whether mobile skeletons or stationary structures—back to the Hive Conversion Pools."
"Not a single speck of residue is to remain!"
Hiss—
The instant the order was given, from various exits of the Hive, tens of thousands of massive Drones surged forth like a black tide.
Their metallic-thin wings vibrated, emitting a scalp-numbing hum as they converged into a torrent of steel and chitin, surging towards that pale world.
The Drones showed no hesitation or delay.
They wielded massive biochemical pincers, capable of shearing alloy, precisely clamping onto the still-dazed, wandering skeleton soldiers.
CRACK! CRACK!
The crisp sounds of bone fracturing merged into a continuous chorus.
The once-feared sea of skeletons, which had made countless lower planes tremble, proved as fragile as biscuits before the Zerg Swarm's extreme violent aesthetics and industrial efficiency.
They were easily dismantled into their most basic components, then picked up by the Drones like workers hauling bricks, transported back to the Hive in uniform fashion.
One after another, bone temples collapsed with thunderous crashes under the coordinated ramming and dismantling efforts of hundreds of Drones.
Vast, ghastly white seas paved with skulls were dug up from three feet deep, packaged, and hauled away.
In the giant biochemical furnaces at the Hive's base, these grim white bones were fed into churning vats of potent acidic digestive fluid.
Acrid smoke billowed upwards.
The white bones rapidly dissolved, undergoing a series of complex biochemical extraction and purification processes, ultimately transforming into two entirely new substances.
One was a faintly glowing green [Biological Calcium Essence].
The other was a liquid with a metallic sheen, [Bone Alloy Solution].
Two new pipelines extended from the biochemical furnaces.
The [Biological Calcium Essence] from one pipeline was continuously conveyed to the Titan Incubation Pool, injected into that purple giant egg, used to strengthen its forming, terrifying skeleton—one capable of supporting the weight of a planet.
Meanwhile, the [Bone Alloy Solution] from the other pipeline was intercepted by Su Chen.
He turned, looking behind him.
There, a behemoth lay prostrate on the ground, visibly restless.
The Bio-Bone Dragon Theodore.
Its massive body rose and fell slightly, its mechanical draconic head lowered, but its two deep blue optical sensors were locked intently onto Su Chen's hand.
Hovering in that metallic palm was a crystal-clear fragment of a divine portfolio.
[divine portfolio of white bones].
This was the core authority stripped from the God of White Bones's godhead.
After devouring the God of White Bones's soul-fire, Theodore's power had already surged to the threshold of the Legendary Rank.
Now, its life instinct, every one of its cells, craved this authority before it with wild desperation.
By consuming it, it could complete its final metamorphosis, ascend to a true Mythical Rank being, becoming a dragon that wielded the authority of white bones.
"Patience, Theodore."
Su Chen's voice rang out, carrying the cold, metallic quality unique to him.
He reached out, stroking Theodore's cold, massive head, pieced together from countless metals and bones.
Fingertips met draconic skull, producing a crisp, metallic clinking sound.
Theodore's enormous body trembled slightly. That instinctual restlessness was forcibly suppressed under the Dominator's soothing touch.
A grim arc curled at the corner of Su Chen's mouth.
"Merely inheriting the authority of a failure is not enough."
"Since you are to be my seventh Saint, I will give you the very best."