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Etri's Battle Armor

The Queen of Ashes blazed like a cluster of bright fires, her long burning hair tucked beneath her crown as she held a longsword and fixed her gaze on Forseti and Eitri. "So, Asgardians and Nidavellir folk... Since you've breached my Jinlunga, you'll stay here forever."

Jinlunga's concealed location was unknown to the outside world, a key reason why she and her subordinates remained safe; otherwise, Odin would have eradicated them like he did Surtur.

Now that someone had discovered Jinlunga's location, especially Asgardians, she couldn't let them leave.

At this moment, Forseti had already dispatched the enemies near the gate. He glanced at the sealed gate of Jinlunga, a hint of hesitation flickering in his eyes.

The thought of blasting open the gate with Divine Shock crossed his mind but was swiftly dismissed.

Having seen the gate open before, Forseti knew its thickness—dozens of meters—and its position under a lava sea. The gate was constructed from remarkably robust material, nearly impervious to destruction without expending all his mana.

It seemed defeating the Queen of Ashes was the only viable option.

Forseti faced the dozens of foes across from him, holy light gleaming in his eyes as the Eye of Reckoning assessed Queen of Ashes and her cohorts.

As the ruler of this domain and Surtur's daughter, Queen Ash possessed unsurprisingly formidable strength, surrounded by seven layers of energy ripples.

Fortunately, Queen Ash, in addition to her formidable power, also inherited her father's infernal attributes, emitting a blood-red hue in the Holy Light's vision.

Aside from the Queen of Ashes, who boasted seventh-level strength, her subordinates were not to be underestimated. Three among them wielded sixth-level strength, and seven possessed fifth-level prowess.

In contrast, Forseti's only ally, Eitri, boasted only fifth-level strength. Observing this power discrepancy, Forseti felt a tinge of pessimism.

However, Aitri unexpectedly declared, "Witness the might of Nidavellir!"

With those words, he produced a set of stacked black armor, tossed it into the air, and watched as it unfurled to envelop his entire body in thick iron plating.

The sight momentarily stunned Forseti.

Aitri's battle armor resembled Iron Man's suit but had a more rugged appearance, akin to the Destroyer armor guarding Odin's treasury.

I hope its strength rivals that of the Destroyer... Forseti mused.

As Eitri donned the battle armor, the Queen of Ashes launched her attack, her longsword aiming straight for Eitri's neck.

Given Eitri's size and lack of combat experience, he was immediately struck.

"Charge!"

Fortunately, the dwarf's armor proved resilient. The Queen of Ashes' sword cleaved fiercely but only managed to create a small breach in the armor, leaving Aitri unscathed.

At that moment, Forseti swooped in, wings fluttering, and confronted Queen Ash with both blades.

Sanctions!

Queen of Ashes erupted into flames, swiftly transforming like the fire creature Forseti first vanquished, attempting to evade damage by altering her body's shape.

"Boom!"

Queen Ash's stratagem proved futile as a deafening explosion ensued, triggered by the brilliance of punishment.

The sky filled with flames emitted a scream before quickly condensing and returning to human form.

Gazing at Forseti with shock and fury, Queen Ash demanded, "What sorcery is this?"

"It's the power of Holy Light." Forseti's Holy Light wings fluttered, effortlessly evading an attack from a fire creature with a backhand swing of his sword.

Queen Ash's subordinates then engaged. Guided by Holy Light wings, Forseti moved with remarkable speed.

Meanwhile, Aitri remained clumsy and was swiftly besieged by more than twenty assailants. Flames and various weapons assailed him from all directions, catching him off guard.

Frustrated and panicking, he bellowed angrily while swinging his warhammer in a reckless manner, achieving little success. "You fireflies, show yourselves if you dare! Taste the might of my warhammer!"

"Boom, boom!"

Moments later, a series of explosions knocked Aitri back.

Though not ideal, Aitri couldn't endure for long. Many of Queen Ash's subordinates wielded Scarborough Iron weapons, sharp as Vibranium. Each strike left visible scars on Aitri's armor.

While Forseti engaged Queen Ash for a few more exchanges, he noticed Aitri being blasted away. His thoughts raced, and he pointed his fingers, unleashing the Hand of Reckoning to divert several assailants away from Aitri, compelling them to pursue him instead.

With Holy Light wings fluttering behind him, Forseti circled in the air twice, drawing dozens of pursuers who followed him like a chained procession.

"Charge!"

Forseti aimed a sword strike at Queen Ash, which she parried before he turned and flew straight toward the gate.

Queen Ash hurriedly pursued, trailed by her subordinates.

Within seconds, Forseti reached the gate, closely followed by Queen Ash and her entourage.

Turning to glance at the approaching enemies, Forseti focused on the Holy Spirit horse.

Initially hovering in the sky since the start of the battle, the Holy Spirit horse transformed into a golden streak and streaked toward them, aiming directly for Jinlunga's gate.

Queen Ash turned to observe. Upon witnessing the Holy Spirit horse transmute into a dense, pure energy mass, her expression shifted dramatically. !

Though Queen Ash issued a preemptive warning, it proved futile.

Before her subordinates could react to the alert, the Holy Spirit horse had already collided with the crowd, right before Jinlunga's gate.

Forseti activated the Holy Shield technique and extended his fingers, triggering the detonation of the Holy Spirit horse.

"Boom!"

In an instant, energy surged from the Holy Spirit horse, engulfing Forseti and everyone around him.

Golden light erupted in the sky, akin to a radiant sun, unleashing a torrent that slammed into Jinlunga's gate.

The Holy Spirit horse's explosion was short-lived but intense, the Holy Shield technique still shielding Forseti once the dust settled.

True to expectations, more than half of Queen Ash's subordinates perished in the Holy Spirit horse's explosion, leaving fewer than ten survivors.

Despite its immense power, the Holy Spirit horse's blast failed to blast open Jinlunga's gate, as Forseti had hoped.

Turning to survey the aftermath, Forseti observed a gaping hole in the gate, still standing firm against the backdrop, sealing Jinlunga from the outside world.