Celia kept her eyes on Isaac, silent as the spirits continued gathering.
She could hear the whispers around her, the disbelief, the frustration, but none of it mattered.
She already knew Isaac wasn’t normal.
She had known since the start.
Seeing him like this only proved it again.
Isaac’s voice cut through the air at that moment.
"Create a storm."
The Zephyrs moved in unison.
Wind howled. Dark and heavy clouds gathered. The forest trembled under the sudden pressure.
Even the puppets faltered, staring up at the sky.
Two more puppets emerged in desperation, rushing at Isaac to stop him. But it was already too late.
A tornado formed above the mansion.
And then, his flames joined it.
Golden fire wrapped around the spiraling wind, merging into a roaring vortex of destruction.
The tornado descended like the anger of the sun god.
The puppets braced as their barriers shone with frantic light.
The ground trembled as though the heavens themselves had turned against the mansion.
The forest in the distance was bathed in golden flames, forcing the trial participants to move back.
The sheer strength of the storm lifted several puppets into the air.
They felt the heat crawling over their bodies and realized this was no illusion.
The awakener before them truly had the power to fight them head-on.
But they were not panicked.
There were ten of them now. The last two puppets had joined the battle.
Even if Isaac was strong, a single accurate strike from their united strength could end him.
One puppet holding a spear launched forward, aiming for a clean kill.
But before the weapon reached him, Isaac used Voice of the Seraphim skill.
The air shook.
The puppets froze mid-step, stunned.
Their bodies were locked in place as the divine resonance of the skill held them down.
They could not move for five seconds.
That was all Isaac needed.
He yanked his Infernal Fang Spear from the ground, spun once, and threw it with all his might.
The weapon blazed with golden fire as it tore through the air.
In the next instant, the monolith at the mansion’s center cracked and shattered into countless fragments.
The puppets’ eyes flickered with realization.
They had been tricked.
Isaac hadn’t been recklessly clashing with them.
He had been waiting, forcing all ten to gather in one place so they could all be within the range of his skill.
As soon as the monolith collapsed, the golden flames around Isaac surged forward, rushing into the mansion.
Visibility dropped to nothing inside as the flames flooded the halls.
The puppets panicked and immediately conjured a massive dome of ice to wrap around the mansion, hoping to seal it from further damage.
But the moment they did, they felt something else.
Space element mana flickered.
A teleportation point was forming inside the mansion.
Their heads snapped toward it, eyes widening.
The children were being kidnapped!
They understood instantly.
Isaac wasn’t alone.
He had a partner inside.
Before they could charge in, the ground beneath them split open.
Gigantic roots erupted and coiled around the ice dome, layering it in a protective cage of wood and bark.
The dual protection of ice and wood slowed the puppets’ advance.
But it wouldn’t hold forever.
The teleportation mist inside needed five seconds to stabilize.
After that, Celia would have to step out, grab one of the dolls, and bring it back into the teleportation cloud.
The cycle would take nearly half a minute.
It was enough time for puppets to stop her.
The puppets rushed forward, desperation making their movements sharper.
Isaac blurred into their path with Phantom Steps skill. His figure appeared in front of them like a ghost.
They had to stop due to his arrival.
The puppets’ mechanical eyes flared with anger.
How many skills did this trial participant had!?
The spear-bearing puppet struck with all its strength, aiming for Isaac’s throat.
The blow carried enough force to shatter dark stone.
But Isaac lifted his hand calmly, and used Phantom Ward skill.
A giant translucent shield manifested in front of him.
The puppets eyes widened.
Another skill?!
The spear crashed into it with explosive force.
The shield rippled, cracked, then shattered.
The momentum carried through.
The tip of the spear was already inches from Isaac’s neck.
The puppet thought the fight was over.
But Isaac moved smoothly, as if he had predicted this exact outcome.
He grabbed the puppet’s wrist, twisted slightly, and used its own momentum against it.
With a sharp turn, he lifted the puppet clean off its feet and slammed it over his shoulder.
The impact shook the ground.
Dust and stone burst into the air.
Spiderweb cracks spread across the earth.
Before the puppet could even recover, Isaac raised his leg and stomped down.
With Daybreak Incarnate enhancing him, every step of his carried shockwave force.
The stomp ripped through the puppet’s body, tearing it apart in an instant.
The puppet was destroyed.
The remaining nine puppets were shocked!
This was the first time one of them was destroyed!
Nothing like this had ever happened in the countless trials of the past.
Isaac straightened with spear in hand.
His golden aura burned hotter.
His breathing was steady, but the light in his eyes was sharp.
The puppets hesitated, but only for a moment.
They split, rushing toward the mansion from different directions.
They couldn’t allow the teleportation user to escape with the dolls.
But with their number reduced, their combined strength weakened.
Could they stop Isaac now when they couldn’t stop him before?
Absolutely not.
"Attack them," Isaac commanded.
His voice carried through the flames.
From the sky, hundreds of Zephyr spirits stirred.
They opened their mouths and fired.
Air bullets rained down, merging with golden flames.
A storm of burning projectiles was born.
The sky was filled with countless burning bullets falling like a fragment of the sun.
It was majestic yet utterly terrifying.
The golden fire bullets tore into the puppets.
Their bodies were pierced and shattered, fragments of armor scattering across the burning ground.
But still, they pushed forward, step by step, refusing to stop.