Chapter 1114: The Remnant Will

The forest that should've been engulfed in darkness and in decline was

filled with the orange-red light of dusk. The light was intense and

burned like fire, but it couldn't help but carry a sense of brilliance

with it that couldn't be ignored.

With the Unshadowed Crucifix that seemed like pure light condensating in

his hand, Derrick Berg slowly walked ahead. The grizzled Demon Hunter

Colin, who was walking behind him to the left, held two straight swords

in his hand. Haim, who was walking behind him to the right, held the

Thunder God's Roar hammer. This two-meter-tall half-giant was prepared

to switch the hammer for the Sealed Artifact with Derrick at any time.

The radiance emitted by the Unshadowed Crucifix became increasingly dim,

as though the sun had already set in the horizon, leaving only a sliver

of golden light.

Of course, no one from the City of Silver had ever seen such a scene

before. They could only use the descriptions from ancient literature to

imagine it. Similarly, this was the first time they understood what a

sunset meant.

Whoosh!

As the exploration team ventured deeper, a wind began to blow in the

nearly frozen Waning Forest. It was as if countless living beings were

weeping deep within the forest.

However, Derrick and company didn't feel any effects of the wind.

Whoosh!

The sound of the wind intensified, making his heart tremble. Derrick

suddenly felt a chill run down his neck, causing his hair to stand on

end. His body and mind turned cold.

Generally speaking, it was human instinct to shrink their necks, raise

their arms, and defend their backs at such moments in time. They would

then half-turn their bodies, observe the situation, and be ready to

attack. However, Derrick didn't do so, because in a dangerous

environment, rashness would often result in terrible situations.

Furthermore, he had the Chief and his teammate behind him. He had full

faith in them that they would react in time; thus, he had handed his

life to them.

With a swoosh, a silvery-white blade wrapped by a small snake-like

electric bolt flew across the side of Derrick's neck, vaporizing a

blurry and twisted figure into the light of dusk.

At the same time, the Unshadowed Crucifix was triggered by something. It

suddenly broke out of its gloomy and dim state, making the light it

emitted to once again become bright and pure.

Dawn seemed to come to the surrounding area immediately as indescribable

black shadows began to show themselves in the light of dawn before

quickly melting away.

After everything calmed down, Derrick looked ahead and asked curiously,

"What are these? They don't look like wraiths, shadows, or evil

spirits..."

Demon Hunter Colin surveyed the area and slowly said, "A remnant aura of

some sort... They seem to have combined with the power of dusk, causing

a certain anomaly."

I've never seen such monsters... Derrick tightened his grip on

the Unshadowed Crucifix and moved his other finger, which hadn't been

stabbed, onto the thorns.

Relying on the Unshadowed Crucifix which was the nemesis of the evil

around them, the expedition team proceeded rather smoothly. Before long,

they arrived deep in the Waning Forest. Through the trees, they could

vaguely see a cliff and orange-red clouds in the distance.

The damage here wasn't too serious. The branches and leaves remained

suspended in midair, blocking the frozen dusk, making the environment

darken.

After carefully circling around the place, the area before Derrick's

eyes suddenly lit up. He saw two grayish-white, mottled tombstones.

Before he could carefully observe them, the rays of dusk that shone

through the gaps of the leaves had produced a strange refraction effect

at the same time, interweaving themselves into a gigantic figure that

was nearly ten meters tall.

This figure was very blurry and contained an everlasting and

imperturbable air to it. It was like a reflection from a mythical era.

Its skin was grayish-blue, and it wore silver-gray armor that seemed to

be stained with blood. Its face was glowing like the setting sun, as

though it was a manifestation of its eyes. Just its existence alone had

caused the surrounding trees and the void to bend, making everything

around it to begin waning uncontrollably.

Upon witnessing this scene, a thought surfaced in everyone's mind

without any explanation:

Giant King, Ancient God Aurmir!

Goosebumps appeared on the skins of the members of the expedition

team---Joshua, Haim, and Antiona. Bit by bit, the goosebumps emitted

grayish-blue colors. At the center of their eyebrows, flesh and blood

were squirming, as if a monster was about to bore out.

They had collectively been put into the state of being on the verge of

losing control.

They didn't even see the Mythical Creature form. Merely approaching the

figure had led to signs of losing control as the severity of it

increased.

Derrick Berg was relatively alright because the pure light of the

Unshadowed Crucifix had enveloped him, giving him a warm feeling,

allowing him to temporarily withstand the waning effect.

At this moment, Colin Iliad had already bent down. He held two swords

that were smeared with ointment, and he ran towards that terrifying

figure like a hurricane at high speeds.

However, this Demon Hunter didn't charge in a straight line. His

footwork was ingenious as he moved left and right, approaching his enemy

in a zigzag-like manner.

The gigantic figure that stood in the twilight looked at everything with

its sunset-like eyes. It seemed emotionless, like a statue carved out of

stone.

Suddenly, the glow on its face flashed.

It then bent down and heavily pounded its fists on the ground.

Boom!

The ground shook violently as a fissure opened up. It made Derrick and

the others lose their balance as they staggered and almost fell.

As for Demon Hunter Colin, he had leaped up ahead of time to a height of

more than ten meters, and he cleaved downward with his two swords in a

domineering manner.

At that moment, the figure that seemed to come from a mythical legend

pulled out an illusory sword from the fissure in the ground. The giant

sword that seemed like a manifestation of dusk itself was suddenly swung

forward.

The orange-red storm of light suddenly took form and swept towards Demon

Hunter Colin, as well as Derrick and company who were right behind him.

Wherever the light passed, the trees would wither and the soil would

turn to sand. Everything began waning in an irreversible manner as a

path was drawn out.

Boom!

The twilight storm was blocked by invisible walls, causing the forest to

shake.

At some point in time, Shepherd Elder Lovia had appeared beside Derrick.

In front of him was a tall and illusory figure covered in silver armor.

The figure with a dark red glow near its eyes genuflected and stabbed an

illusory greatsword into the ground, creating an unusually strong and

invisible wall.

Bam!

At this moment, Demon Hunter Colin's two swords slashed at the nearly

ten-meter-tall figure that possessed the aura of an ancient god, sending

off countless sparks.

The silver-white figure didn't suffer any damage. The silver-gray armor

that was covered in blood spots only dimmed a little.

With the force of the rebound, Colin once again soared up. He flipped in

midair and launched his attack again.

In the Waning Domain, he didn't dare release his Mythical Creature form,

because it was very likely that there was no way of reversing it.

Seeing that the phantom that stemmed from a mythical legend had been

blocked, Derrick hurriedly followed the sudden tremor and heat from the

Unshadowed Crucifix in his palm, and he pressed his finger against a

spike.

His blood surged into the cross along with the pain. A vigorous and

bright light churned out, flying into the air and turning downwards,

instantly enveloping the figure in silver-gray armor. His eyes were like

a miniature setting sun.

In the holy, solemn, and pure light, the gigantic and illusory figure

stopped moving, as if it had encountered its natural enemy, and the

silver-gray armor that was tainted with the light of dusk began to melt.

Seizing this opportunity, the evil spirit knight in front of Shepherd

Elder Lovia pulled out the illusory greatsword from the ground. With

several silver rifts that oscillated between disappearing and

reappearing, they instantly struck the enemy.

Demon Hunter Colin's two swords cleaved downward, as though they were

emitting rays of the light of dawn that enveloped the head of the

ancient figure.

Joshua, Haim, and the others didn't hesitate to unleash their strongest

attacks.

After three rounds, the illusory figure that seemed to have

transmigrated from time had finally begun to crumble, being reduced to

burning orange dots of light.

When Demon Hunter Colin landed on the ground, he deliberated and said,

"That should've been the remnants of the Giant King's will to protect

this area. After many years of melding with the environment, it has a

certain degree of strength and a form. It's a type of evil spirit.

"What secrets are hidden here..."

Upon hearing the Chief's words, everyone cast their gazes forward,

towards the place where the terrifying phantom had barred their way. The

atmosphere was rather heavy.

*Fortunately, it was only an evil spirit that was restrained by the

Unshadowed Crucifix... It was just a tiny portion of its remnant will

and had almost no strength left. After thousands of years, it's still as

terrifying as ever. What would a real ancient god be like... Uh, why

would "He" have such a strong will to protect this? Is it because it's

where "His" parents are buried?* As Derrick heaved a sigh of

relief, he followed the Chief and company towards the tomb while being

plagued with puzzlement and curiosity.

*Phew... There's no need for me to do anything... I have to say, this

Unshadowed Crucifix really is very useful in the Giant King's Court.

It's so good that I'm wondering if it's Adam's goal...* Above

the gray fog, Klein heaved a sigh of relief and lowered the Sea God

Scepter that had been raised higher.

He then cast his gaze at the place where the Giant King's remnant will

had continued protecting for over thousands of years.

The first thing he saw was two ancient mottled tombstones. On them were

the words "Father" and "Mother" in Jotun.

They contained a mysteriousness that could stir the powers of nature. It

allowed one to directly feel the mixed emotions of nostalgia, sadness,

pain, and guilt without realizing that they were infected and making

them feel depressed.

Behind the stone pillar was a grave, but it had already been destroyed,

revealing two black coffins underneath.

It was unknown who had opened the lids of the coffins, as though a

confirmation had been made. This made the two grayish-white skeletons

lying inside become bathed in the light that penetrated through the

leaves, dyeing them with an orange-red color that resembled blood.

These two skeletons had the shape of humans. One was less than 1.9

meters tall, while the other was less than 1.8 meters tall.