With powerful wingbeats, Alex surged toward Arceus, a grin stretching across his face.
[Destiny Points: 127/150]
He was close.
So close.
His Destiny Points were nearly maxed out, which meant that victory was within reach.
As long as his plan succeeded, he would win.
But first…
Fated Cataclysm!
The moment he activated the skill, 70 Destiny Points were consumed, and a golden sphere of energy formed in his right hand.
But unlike before, when he had immediately hurled the sphere into the sky and waited for it to explode, this time…
Grip!
Alex tightened his fingers around the orb.
He wouldn’t throw it yet.
He would hold onto it.
The timing had to be perfect.
[30 seconds until explosion.]
The countdown began.
In thirty seconds, this battle had to end.
If it didn’t, Arceus would overwhelm him with his relentless spellcasting.
The battlefield was still within the [Arcane Domain], a space where Arceus had limitless mana and empowered spells.
Here, the Grand Mage could unleash his magic freely, each attack amplified to terrifying levels.
But Alex didn’t care.
Grand Arcane Explosion! Find your next read on My Virtual Library Empire
Arceus pointed his staff at Alex, his lips curling into a confident grin.
A brilliant sphere of unstable energy crackled in front of him, charging rapidly.
This spell had a one-second cast time, meaning Arceus was finally able to release it.
And the moment the sphere finished condensing, just a meter away from Alex…
Arceus flicked his staff.
BOOOOOM!
A massive explosion erupted, tearing through the [Arcane Domain], its sheer force shaking the surrounding space.
Even the floor beneath them trembled violently.
The spell struck Alex head-on.
“Let’s see if you can regenerate from being completely annihilated,” Arceus muttered.
His grin widened as he let out a low chuckle.
He had poured immense power into that spell, expecting Alex to either revive or crawl out of the destruction in some bizarre way.
But instead…
Destiny Shift!
[Undoing Explosion.]
The explosion vanished.
The fiery blast, the shockwave, the dense smoke… it all reversed as if it had never existed.
The point of detonation reverted back to its original tiny sphere, and then…
It disappeared entirely.
“Huh…?”
Arceus’ expression shifted.
He had expected Alex to survive.
Perhaps through a revive skill or some absurd ability that let him regenerate.
But this?
Was his attack… deleted?
No, that wasn’t possible.
It had to be something else.
Some trick.
Meanwhile, Alex continued his approach, cutting through the twelve holy swords floating around him.
Every time he shattered one, he could feel his Destiny Points rising.
[Destiny Points: 63/150]
Good.
He needed more.
With another powerful wingbeat, he surged toward Arceus.
[22 seconds until explosion.]
Phantom Chains!
Arceus pointed his staff at Alex.
Immediately, dozens of ethereal chains erupted from the void, slithering toward him like living serpents, aiming to bind him completely.
But unlike before…
Destiny Shift!
[Undoing Phantom Chains.]
The spectral chains blinked out of existence before they even reached him, dissolving into motes of light.
“What the…”
For the first time, Arceus faltered.
His mind raced.
What was this power?
How was Alex erasing his spells?
But Alex didn’t hesitate.
He closed the distance.
And so…
Arceus responded with something new.
Reality Warp!
[Effect: Distorts reality for 10 seconds, causing enemy attacks to miss randomly or reflect back at them. Cooldown: 5 minutes.]
The world twisted, and Alex’s vision blurred.
The moment he swung his [Bleeding Dragon Claws] at Arceus…
Miss.
Even though his aim had been flawless, his attack curved away from its target.
And Arceus wasn’t done.
He lifted his staff, casting two spells simultaneously.
Lightning Cataclysm! Dimensional Rift!
Thunder rumbled, and the sky above Alex swirled with violent arcs of lightning, ready to crash down upon him.
But he didn’t even flinch.
Destiny Shift!
[Undoing all of Arceus’ attacks!]
Within five seconds, everything reset.
His vision returned to normal.
The lightning storm vanished as if it had never formed.
But when Alex looked up again…
Arceus was gone.
He used another spell right after Lightning Cataclysm.
It was [Dimensional Rift].
[Effect: Tears open a rift in space, allowing Arceus to teleport instantly anywhere within 10 kilometers. Cooldown: 3 minutes.]
The Grand Mage had taken advantage of the moment Alex was occupied with the previous two spells and used it to teleport far away.
‘Smart.’
Arceus understood that Alex’s skills weren’t on the same level as his.
Even the powerful ones Alex had acquired, like [Soul Flames] or [Divine Orbs], weren’t enough to truly threaten him.
He had also noticed Alex’s aggressive efforts to fight at close range with his claws.
That meant…
Arceus knew Alex needed to be near him to have a real chance at winning.
And Arceus?
His precision was so exact that even from ten kilometers away, he could still snipe Alex with devastating spells.
This was his advantage.
This was why he adjusted his strategy.
But he had made a fatal mistake.
‘You should have noticed it by now,’ Alex stared at the spot where Arceus had reappeared, ten kilometers away.
A grin stretched across his face.
‘Because if you did…’
[10 seconds until explosion.]
Destiny Shift!
‘You would know that this attempt would have been futile.’
[Undoing Arceus’ Dimension Rift.]
In an instant, Alex twisted his body, swinging his claw at the exact spot where Arceus had been five seconds ago.
And at that precise moment… Arceus was yanked back into place.
“Huh?”
His eyes widened in shock.
He had been 10 kilometers away.
Now, suddenly, he was back where he had started.
“Gotcha.”
Alex’s grin sharpened.
His claws were already swinging.
SLASH! SLASH!
Two brutal cuts tore through Arceus’ body.
567,248,200.
567,248,200.
Over one billion HP gone in an instant.
Blood sprayed from Arceus’ mouth as searing pain tore through him.
He could feel the sharpness of the claws digging deep, threatening to carve him apart.
But Alex wasn’t done.
He was still smiling.
That’s not enough to kill him.
I know that.
His gaze shifted to the golden orb still clutched in his right hand.
[Fated Cataclysm].
The final blow.
[7 seconds until explosion.]