I am the Archmage

Chapter 144 Destinatio

The second layer, Lucifer’s dark barrier, had the ability to absorb external free energy. However, under the relentless strikes of the “Dimensional Blade” I emitted with both hands, creating small spatial rifts, I managed to carve out a portal in the barrier. With a flash of movement, I dashed inside, with Linsa and the others quickly following suit, not daring to lag behind.

As soon as we entered the barrier, an overwhelming wave of power struck us head-on. Before us, the King of Gods and Lucifer, each extending their twelve wings, stood roughly a hundred meters apart, fully focusing on gathering their purest light and dark energies. Radiant, crystalline holy light shimmered around the King of Gods, while deep, oppressive darkness emanated from Lucifer, creating a stark and dazzling contrast.

Behind the King of Gods, about fifty meters away, hovered over twenty “Divine Warriors,” led by Owa. Their expressions were solemn, and they stood poised and ready for action.

Suspended in the air behind Lucifer, Yu Yi, her eight pitch-black wings spread wide, kept all her attention locked on the two divine and demonic giants before her. She was so focused that she didn’t even notice our arrival.

The vast light energy surrounding the King of Gods condensed into a nearly tangible state before abruptly contracting into more than twenty radiant orbs that hovered around her. This was her most refined creation: the ultimate holy magic of the light system, “Judgment,” in its complete form—“Swords of the Sun.”

The mere sight of this spell, which had nearly erased me from existence before, sent a chill running down my spine, a primal instinctive fear. I quickly shifted my gaze to Lucifer, eager to see how he intended to counter this “Judgment.”

Lucifer’s behavior at this moment was incredibly unusual. Based on the standard protocol for dark magic’s ultimate spell, “Hell’s Cataclysm,” the dark energy should have condensed into a highly compressed energy sphere in front of him by now. However, Lucifer had entirely altered the spell’s final phase. Instead of compressing the dark energy, he expanded it like a black shroud, spreading it in all directions. Within moments, the shroud encompassed a radius of over a hundred meters and continued to expand rapidly, threatening to envelop even the King of Gods.

A look of alarm flashed across the King of Gods’ flawless face. Frowning, she caused three of the twenty radiant orbs around her to suddenly explode and transform into a glowing screen that encased her body, resembling a suit of armor forged from pure light.

Just as the light spheres formed a protective screen around the King of Gods, the black shroud consumed her, and in an instant, the entire barrier was flooded with dark energy. Every living being within the barrier, without exception, was ensnared by this overwhelming force.

The moment the dark energy made contact with me, I immediately sensed something was wrong. My spiritual energy, magic, and vital qi—all forms of power within me—began to pour uncontrollably outward. Alarmed, I hastily erected the “Holy Light Spirit Array” barrier for defense. Yet, even this absolute defense spell could only slow the rate of power leakage; it couldn’t stop it entirely.

This was almost unbelievable. Setting aside the absolute defensive capabilities of the “Holy Light Spirit Array,” theoretically, someone like me, who possessed the highest level of dark attributes, should not have been affected by external dark energy. Yet, the current situation completely defied that logic.

Everyone within the barrier was in a state of panic, each erecting their own defensive barriers. However, if even I couldn’t completely halt the loss of energy, they were in an even worse position. Except for Yu Yi and Shannon, who managed to barely hold on, the others had already lost more than half their energy within a mere moment. Linsa, Lahart, and Rowe were the first to falter; their barriers collapsed, and they plummeted from the sky.

Alarmed, I quickly used “Dimensional Reversal” to teleport their falling bodies to my side. I then unfolded the fiery “Undying Phoenix Wings” to envelop them and began transferring my energy to stabilize them.

At this moment, the “Undying Phoenix Wings” appeared as an extension of my twelve divine and demonic wings. Regardless of whether they were white or black, the outer layers of the wings were shrouded in crimson flames, through which my energy flowed into their weakened bodies.

“Thud…”

One by one, over twenty “Divine Warriors” fell from the air. The golden glow that once adorned their wings had completely vanished, and their power had been entirely siphoned into the surrounding dark space. The absorbed energy now swirled chaotically, colliding violently and forming streams of destructive force that filled the entire barrier. The intensity of these chaotic energy streams grew exponentially with each passing second.

A smug smile spread across Lucifer’s lips. In a calm voice, he said, “It seems we think alike, both keeping a trump card for ourselves. So, how do you like my creation, ‘Annihilation,’ which I derived from the prototype of ‘Hell’s Cataclysm?’ No power can escape the siphoning force of ‘Annihilation.’ Not even you are exempt!”

The King of Gods furrowed her crescent-shaped brows slightly and replied, “You’re right. Even I can’t fully resist the siphoning power of ‘Annihilation.’ However, your ‘Annihilation’ has a fatal flaw: it lacks the instant-kill capability of ‘Hell’s Cataclysm.’ That’s why my ‘Judgment’ is its perfect counter.”

As soon as she finished speaking, the radiant orbs around her transformed into over a dozen miniature “Swords of the Sun” and shot toward Lucifer. However, as the “Judgment” was unleashed, her protective energy was sharply diminished, and all forms of energy within her body began to spill uncontrollably into the surroundings. The turbulent energy streams in the space, now infused with her immense leaking power, grew even more violent, turning the entire barrier into a scene of pure chaos, like a living hell.

Lucifer’s situation at this moment was far less composed than he made it seem. He had converted all of his power into the unique siphoning force of “Annihilation,” leaving nothing in reserve. In other words, even a simple high-level spell could completely obliterate this great Demon King, let alone the “Judgment” unleashed with the full might of the King of Gods.

Now, the King of Gods had already lost most of her power and was swept into the energy currents, while Lucifer, under the attack of “Judgment,” had no ability to resist. Their fates were set: mutual destruction. And everyone else trapped within the barrier would be buried with them.

Yet, in the final moment before they perished together, their gazes met. All jealousy, hatred, and resentment vanished as if they had never existed, leaving only the deep affection and longing they held for one another. Only then did they realize that they were each other’s most important person, the one for whom they truly existed.

They smiled—a smile free of regret. For them, dying together was a satisfying ending, one without any lingering regrets.

However, both the King of Gods and Lucifer overlooked one person—a person whose power rivaled theirs: me, the “Demon God King,” Wu Lai!

The “Divine Warriors,” who had lost their power, were already torn to pieces by the destructive energy currents, leaving no trace behind. Shannon and Yu Yi, protected respectively by “Sacred Combat Aura” and the “Holy Light Spirit Array,” were on the brink of collapse, being hurled about chaotically by the violent currents.

I quickly used “Dimensional Reversal” to bring them to me and enveloped them within my protective barrier. Upon seeing me, Yu Yi’s face lit up with overwhelming joy. However, the dire situation left no time for emotional reunions.

Even I, while enduring the impact of the violent, destructive energy currents and simultaneously transferring large amounts of power to Lahart and the others, found myself reaching my limit. Seeing Lucifer and the King of Gods poised for mutual destruction pushed me into a state of panic. Clenching my teeth, I unleashed “Dark Dragon Armor,” which detached from my body and transformed into a six-colored energy barrier to shield Linsa and the others. Then, with a long roar, I charged forward with my sword toward Lucifer and the King of Gods.

The moment my body launched forward, I summoned all my remaining power. “Demonic Battle Aura” flared around me, vibrating at high frequency, while “Aya” emitted a sword aura over ten feet long. The violent energy currents that collided with the sword aura were instantly neutralized, fading into nothingness.

Rushing into the area between Lucifer and the King of Gods, I let out a furious roar. The sword “Aya” in my hand, as if carrying an immense weight, moved in slow circles through the void. With each arc of “Aya,” a perfectly rounded, seamless force of flexibility and resilience emerged. The surrounding violent energy currents, Lucifer’s “Annihilation,” and the King of Gods’ “Judgment” were simultaneously drawn toward this circular force.

This was the Tai Chi technique of borrowing force and gathering energy. Typically, it uses the motion of a blade to absorb all the surrounding energy into an infinite circle and then unleash it in a devastating attack. This time, I adapted the method to draw in all the surrounding forces, even the absorbing power of “Annihilation.” The circular motion traced by “Aya” became akin to a bottomless black hole, pulling in all forms of energy without exception.

The light and dark energies drawn in separated into black and white streams. As they intertwined under “Aya’s” guidance, they formed a perfectly spherical shape. Although intertwined, the black and white streams did not merge; instead, they created the classic Tai Chi symbol—the Yin-Yang Fish.

Despite their dire circumstances, both Lucifer and the King of Gods displayed their extraordinary abilities. As the forces threatening them subsided, they reacted instantly. Lucifer let out a loud shout, furiously flapping his twelve fallen angel wings to escape the range of “Judgment.” Though his “Dark Demon Armor” was shattered, and his body was covered in wounds, he narrowly survived.

The King of Gods, in contrast, moved with the grace of a mermaid, navigating through the diminished energy currents with remarkable agility. Her movements, synchronized with the currents, made her appear like a small boat drifting atop stormy waves—buffeted but never sinking.

While they had narrowly escaped danger, my situation grew increasingly perilous. As the black-and-white energy sphere grew larger, the pressure on me multiplied exponentially. The combined forces of Lucifer, the King of Gods, and over twenty “Divine Warriors” were simply beyond what I could contain.

The energy sphere, growing increasingly unstable, began to tremble violently. The experienced giants of light and darkness instantly recognized my struggle. Despite their own depleted strength, they exchanged a meaningful glance and, with unwavering resolve, flew toward me together.

I had already expended all my strength to control the energy sphere, but the forces I had drawn in were far too immense. The dark and light energies began to tremble violently, and I knew that their collision would unleash a destructive force several times greater than a “Polar Blast,” annihilating everything within miles.

I mustered all my remaining strength and shouted, “Get away! I can’t hold it any longer—”

Instead of retreating, Yu Yi, Shannon, Lahart, and the others rushed toward me. The souls of the sacred beasts protecting them reached me first, transforming once again into the “Dark Dragon Armor” to shield me.

Lucifer and the King of Gods also arrived, immediately attempting to reclaim their respective forces from the energy sphere. However, it was too late—the light and dark energies broke free from my control and collided, triggering an explosion.

At this critical moment, I poured all my remaining power into a “Dimensional Blade,” using my spirit energy to widen the resulting spatial rift. I lacked the strength for a “Grand Dimensional s***h” and had to settle for this alternative. As the rift connecting to an unknown space expanded, a black hole-like suction force emerged, drawing in both me and the nearly exploding energy sphere. The rift vanished as it lost the support of my spirit energy, leaving only traces of residual energy swirling in chaos.

In the final moment, I threw “Aya” from the collapsing space. In a flash of darkness, she returned to her human form and joined Shannon, Yu Yi, and the others, screaming my name in despair.

“NO—”

Inside the otherworldly dimension, I felt an unexpected calm, utterly fearless as I awaited my demise. Perhaps vanishing into this realm was the final destination for me, Wu Lai.

The light and dark forces finally detonated, creating a breathtakingly beautiful explosion. The last thing I saw was an incredibly radiant brilliance. So beautiful…