Chapter 349: Last Resort

The ancient wolf whined in complaint. It had just saved Varek's life, and instead of gratitude, it was berated.

"Stop whining and kill him!" Varek snapped, showing no concern for the Raijin's thoughts as he commanded it to focus on the fight.

The beast turned its head back to Sol, but all it saw was a foot slamming into its face. The impact sent it hurtling into Varek.

Rubble flew in all directions as their bodies crashed into the ruin walls.

Varek coughed up a mouthful of blood and shoved the Raijin off him with his remaining arm. Though he had taken the brunt of the collision, he forced himself to calm down and assess the situation. The conclusion he reached was grim.

'I'm fucked…'

Everything had gone wrong. Not only was the Raijin incompetent in battle due to its recent rebirth, but Varek also couldn't use his law technique for some unknown reason. And worst of all, his opponent was a monster, far beyond the A-Rankers he had encountered before. From what he had seen, Sol could only be compared to two other A-Rankers he knew, ones who had managed to comprehended three law techniques.

Seeing Sol approaching from a distance, he felt utterly helpless.

'So this is how it ends… Was it all for nothing?'

Varek's life flashed before his eyes, his family, his friends, the beasts he had tamed, the great things he had accomplished, and the even greater things he had yet to achieve. Regret twisted in his chest as he realized that his research would remain unfinished. Everything he had worked for would be lost.

'No… I refuse to let it all be for nothing!'

The thought roared through his mind, shattering any notion of surrender. If he was going to die, he would do so without regrets. His eyes flickered toward the Raijin, lying motionless beside him.

Without hesitation, he reached for the beast with his remaining arm, preparing for one final gamble.

Sol noticed the change in his eyes and was immediately on high alert. He had no intention of letting Varek do whatever he was planning. Without a moment's delay, he activated [Short Warp], the first skill of the Singularity Band, teleporting beside Varek with his sword mid swing.

But as his blade descended, Varek's glowing hand touched the Raijin.

The chamber was instantly flooded with blinding light, radiating an immense surge of energy.

A powerful shockwave erupted outward, forcing Sol back several meters.

'I need to stop him!' Sol thought urgently. He didn't know what Varek was doing, but he knew it wasn't good.

He lunged forward to interrupt the process, but before he could reach them, a violent surge of electricity exploded from the mass of light. Sol braced himself, reinforcing his body with layers of stone, shadows, and a green chroma barrier. To top it off, he activated [Unpassable Bulwark] to anchor himself against the blast.

Chunks of stone and debris tore through the air as the ruins crumbled under the pressure. Sol navigated through the destruction with precision, using his barriers and skills to shield himself from the storm of rubble, erratic lightning, and wild mana.

'What is happening?!'

His sharp eyes honed in on the tethers connected to Varek and the Raijin. What he saw sent a jolt of shock through him.

A new tether had appeared, surging from within the mass of light at an alarming rate. It shot like an arrow into the sky beyond his sight. Power flowed through it like a raging river, channeling directly into the epicenter of the radiance where Varek and the Raijin once stood.

Sol's mind raced as realization struck him.

'No… Enlightenment?!'

Enlightenment, the third type of ascension, and the rarest of them all. When Commander Zaman had taught him of the types of ascensions he mentioned this one couldn't be predicted and happened spontaneously with seemingly no rhyme or reason. Such an event would normally be considered a miracle. But the fact that it was happening now, in the middle of this battle, was nothing short of disastrous for Sol.

"Dammit!" Sol cursed under his breath, immediately activating [Lesser Channel Control] in a desperate attempt to sever, or at least suppress, the rapidly forming tether. He poured his focus into it, trying to stall the process before it fully solidified.

But it was too late.

Another devastating explosion of energy erupted outward, far stronger than before. Sol had no choice but to retreat, conjuring layers of barriers in rapid succession. Shadows thickened around him, green chroma swirled defensively, and stone walls erupted from the ground. [Unpassable Bulwark] flared to life, shielding him from the onslaught.

The sheer force obliterated what remained of the ruins, reducing the jagged peak they had fought on to a flattened platform. Dust and debris filled the air, creating a thick cloud that obscured Sol's vision.

When the dust finally settled, Sol's gaze snapped to where Varek and the Raijin had been.

What he saw made his expression darken.

Varek was gone.

The Raijin was gone.

In their place stood a towering humanoid figure, covered in sleek white fur with black stripes streaking across its body like lightning. Its frame was lean yet powerful, exuding an overwhelming aura of both beast and man. The head bore a striking resemblance to Varek's, but it had taken on a more wolf like appearance.

The most disturbing change, however, was its right arm.

Where Varek's severed limb had once been, the Raijin's head and torso had fused in its place. Its glowing golden eyes remained alive, staring with eerie intelligence, its maw slightly open as arcs of lightning crackled within.

Varek examined his new body with awe.

"To think I got it almost perfect on the first try…! This is true power! Not having to rely on beasts to protect us tamers, but making them a part of us!"

The Raijin whimpered in protest, clearly unhappy with the fusion. Whatever control it had over its body was gone. But just like before, it was powerless against its master's will.

"Quiet, you!" Varek silenced the beast's complaints with his command before turning his gaze to Sol, his lips curling into a malicious grin.

"Now that I've surpassed the limits of my taming talents… you don't stand a chance!"