The masterpiece rose again from a pile of flesh and bones. Black veins trembled on its body.
New muscles appeared from nothing. Bones locked into place with a dry, irritating sound.
Lian watched without blinking. His eyes were no longer on the monster’s body.
They were on the core.
On that same point that appeared for a fraction of a second during regeneration. On that same thing that drove this entire nightmare.
The masterpiece let out a short roar and attacked again.
But this time, Lian did not wait for the attack. He was only waiting for the core. Waiting for that brief moment. Waiting for that same opportunity. He pushed the masterpiece back with a strike from Cataclysm Pulse.
Its body was dragged across the cracked floor of the hall. Its bones shattered. Its body collapsed again.
And at that moment... Lian saw it.
The core.
In the center of the flesh pile, pulsing, commanding. His eyes lit up.
"Now." Thunder Calamity was released.
A blue lightning bolt lit up the entire hall. The thunder was born not from the sky, but from Lian’s own mana.
A column of lightning shot directly toward the core. An explosion occurred. Blue light swallowed all vision.
The shockwave from the impact shook the ground. Even the massive Broodmother on the ceiling moved.
For the first time, the white-eyed man lost his smile. But only for a moment.
The light faded. The core was still there.
Lian frowned.
A few seconds later, the cracks closed. The core’s surface repaired itself. And the surrounding flesh started moving again.
The masterpiece was reborn, as if nothing had happened.
The white-eyed man clapped quietly.
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
Then he laughed.
"Finally saw it." He pointed at the core.
"You found the core." His smile deepened.
"But it’s useless, hahaha..." His laughter echoed through the hall.
"You can’t even destroy the core. Did you think I didn’t think of that?"
"Did you think I would leave a weakness for my creation like those wastes?"
"If that’s the case, then you’ve really disappointed me..."
"My child is the pinnacle of perfection! Unique and flawless! His regeneration power comes from every point, from every cell, from every molecule."
"No matter how powerful you are! You cannot defeat my child! And the more time passes! The stronger he becomes! My child will be the final victor!"
"My offer still stands! Surrender and serve as the final material, and I will give you a painless death."
Lian did not answer, but his mind was working fast. Why wouldn’t this damn core be destroyed? He had tried all kinds of ways and still failed.
He had not expected the core to be able to regenerate repeatedly as well.
The answer slowly formed. The core was not a body part. Not a heart. Not a brain.
It was something beyond that. An engine. A production center. A living factory.
Practically an absolute intelligence. All the main organs were condensed into this core.
As long as it remained active... it could create new flesh, produce new bones, and recreate the masterpiece’s body, rewriting it and making it stronger.
Physical destruction was not enough. He had to stop it.
The masterpiece attacked again. This time faster. Much faster. Lian barely dodged.
The monster’s claw passed by his neck and split the wall behind him. Stone and metal tore like paper.
A moment later, the creature appeared again.
Second strike. Third strike. Fourth strike. Its speed increased every moment.
Suddenly, a kick came from nowhere and hit Lian’s stomach, throwing him back dozens of meters. Fortunately, his armor and Diamond Skin absorbed most of the attack, and he was not injured.
"I can’t let this continue. I have no choice but to try the last option." He whispered to himself.
And then he activated Thunder Calamity.
But the masterpiece predicted the attack’s path. For the first time, it dodged the lightning.
Lian’s eyes narrowed.
The monster had managed to dodge his attack, and before he could react, it charged at him...
A few minutes later, the hall had become a hell of destruction. Massive pillars had collapsed. The floor had cracked.
But the masterpiece was still alive. For the first time in a long while, he had not been able to kill this monster.
And they were exchanging blows and strikes back and forth. And that was when he understood that this monster had reached his level!
In less than two hours, this monster had managed to reach his level! This growth rate was even more terrifying than his own.
Suddenly, lightning emanated from the monster’s body, and a strand of lightning was thrown toward Lian.
"Damn it!" He quickly dodged, and the strand passed by him.
"It can even learn to use abilities?" He did not know whether to laugh or cry.
Lian took a deep breath and reviewed his options for the first time.
Killing? Useless.
Complete destruction? He had tried it, and it had not worked.
Killing the white-eyed man? The monster would still remain.
Only one way remained. Stopping it. He sighed. He had to try freezing.
Lian made his decision. For the last time, he released his power.
Thunder Calamity, Glacial Reaper Claw, Cataclysm Pulse.
One after another, without pause and without saving. The hall trembled under his strikes. The masterpiece was destroyed again and again.
But this time, Lian would not let it regenerate itself.
He pushed the monster back, forced it to regenerate, forced it to consume energy. Until finally, the desired moment arrived.
The final strike.
The final explosion. The masterpiece’s body exploded.
Bones were reduced to powder. Flesh scattered throughout the hall.
Nothing remained... except the core.
A core that was issuing a new order for regeneration and was bringing back a new body.
And at that moment, Lian smiled.
"Found you."
The air suddenly stopped. The sounds went silent. Even time seemed to slow down. All of Lian’s mana gathered in one point.
The entire hall shook. And for the first time...
The white-eyed man’s face lost its color. He did not know what this bastard was about to do, but he felt a very bad feeling.
His eyes widened.
"No!" His scream echoed through the hall. But it was too late.
[Eternal Frozen Apocalypse]
The entire underground hall froze. Not just the masterpiece. Not just the core. But everything.
The cold spread like the end of the world. It burst from the center of the explosion. The pillars froze. The walls froze.
The ceiling froze. The air froze. The mana froze. Everything within a hundred-meter radius was trapped in white, shining ice.
The massive Broodmother on the ceiling remained in that state. The giant eggs were trapped in the ice.
And the white-eyed man... was frozen in the thick layers of ice. His face was still in shock. His white eyes were still open.
But he could no longer move. He could no longer speak. He could no longer laugh.
Silence. For the first time since the battle began, complete silence. No roar, no regeneration sound, no laughter. Nothing. Just silence.
Lian walked quietly through the frozen hall. His breaths formed steam in the air.
He approached the massive ice block. To its center. To where the core was frozen.
And at that moment, he saw something. The core was still there.
Motionless, but not completely.
Thump.
Thump.
Another pulse.
Very slow. Very weak. But still alive. Lian’s eyes narrowed, and he understood the truth.
He had not killed the masterpiece.
He had only bought time. Even this had not been able to completely stop this thing.
Lian quietly placed his hand on the frozen core and whispered under his breath.
"Finally stopped you."