Chapter 54: Into the Flames

Chapter 54: Into the Flames Shiao Yi made up his mind. There was only one way left. Dominic suddenly looked at him, his eyes wide in alarm. He reached out his hand to stop him. But just as Shiao Yi had asked, Aaron pulled Dominic away by force and ran with him. Shiao Yi burned the sight of Dominic’ face into his memory, then activated his teleportation skill. For safety, he aimed his jump into the sky above. Even so, the powerful energy from the magic circle’s field quickly pulled him in. Beneath him, huge red flames formed a giant ring, rising up in a wide circle. In addition to that, dozens—maybe hundreds—of blue flames flickered in rings within rings, arranged in complex layers of small and large patterns. However, there was no heat. These flames were cold. Maybe they weren’t flames at all. It seemed like the power being released had taken a visible form, glowing and swaying in the air. In the center, surrounded by hundreds of cold flames, there was a bottomless hole. Inside it swirled a black, twisting force. It was a darkness so deep, it felt like it could pull someone down endlessly—down to the very bottom of the world and even beyond. From inside that darkness, one by one, strange creatures began to crawl out. Each one was coated in the same dark color as the void they came from. Shiao Yi felt a powerful pulling force. Invisible tentacles stretched out from the hole, trying to drag him in. They grabbed at him, wrapping around his body. Even though he was using telekinesis to keep himself floating, he couldn’t stop the slow, steady pull dragging him down. It felt like a black hole. He threw the twenty sticks of dynamite, aiming them at the largest of the blue flames rising around him. Then he tore open the metal box. The fifty kilograms of compressed flour inside burst out with force, instantly turning the air around him into a thick, blinding white cloud. Without delay, he released the high-powered bomb he had created and by using telekinesis, he triggered the detonation. At the same moment, he activated his teleportation skill. It felt like time stopped. A fraction of a second stretched into something endless. But the teleportation wasn’t working right. The energy of the magic field had caught him and was blocking his escape into the void. Beneath his feet, the high-powered bomb exploded. The backup magazine released its massive stored energy, activating the high-molecular organic azides, which exploded in a violent blast. The force of the explosion surged outward in every direction with growing speed. The pressure swelled. The temperature rose higher and higher. The flour released into the air ignited in a dust explosion. Then, on the ground below, the twenty sticks of dynamite began to explode one after another. Even in this slowed-down moment, Shiao Yi could clearly feel the incredible heat surging up with unstoppable force. And he knew what was coming next—the shockwave. He understood that he was about to be caught in the blast and blown apart into pieces. "Don’t die!" "You must not die, Shiao Yi!" "Please don’t die!" He thought he heard voices—familiar ones. The voices of his comrades from the B.O.W. The voices of those who had already died. "Live for us!" "Stay alive!" "Be happy for all of us!" "Someone is waiting for you." Dominic! Shiao Yi saw his face clearly in his mind—the strong smile, the shining hair, the honest, deep-blue eyes. My Dominic. I wanted to live. He wanted to stay alive and live beside him. "This was my dream. Make it come true for me." "Don’t give up!" The strength returned to his body, which had been on the verge of giving out. Fighting against the force pulling him down, Shiao Yi activated telekinesis. At the same time, he triggered teleportation. The shockwave hit. The heat rushed over him. Everything turned completely white, glowing like a sun at its hottest ... Inside the magic circle, a blinding light burst forth. It was so bright that it felt like it could burn the eyes. In the very next moment, a terrifyingly massive fireball was born. GAAARGHHHGOOOHHHHHHH! With a deafening roar that could shatter eardrums, the fireball grew bigger and bigger. It swallowed the entire summoning ground, covering everything, and still kept expanding without stopping. BOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMM!!! Dozens of overlapping explosions thundered out and the violent shockwaves grabbed hold of their bodies, lifting them off from the ground and hurling them away. Dominic’s body was flung hard through the air, and even after landing, the force dragged him along the ground, gouging into the earth before finally coming to a stop. He sprang to his feet at once—what he saw before him took his breath away. The land had been ripped open, the ground cracked and lifted high. The chunks of dirt and stone shot into the sky. But even that was nothing compared to the wall of flames—hellfire rising with enough force to scorch the heavens. The red flames and blue flames that had formed the magic circle were gone. The summoning ground, the magic circle—none of it remained. Only the terrifying wreckage of pure destruction still burned wildly in its place. "Shiao!" From Dominic’s throat came a scream—raw and panicked. "Shiao!" "Shiao! Shiao! ...!" "UAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!" Dominic ran toward the burning wreckage and sparks that was flying around him with every step. But someone grabbed hold of him, stopping him in his tracks. "Captain! You can’t go!" "Captain Dominic!" The hands grabbing his shoulders, his waist, his arms—several people tried yholding him back, restraining him with all their strength. "Let go of me! Shiao is in there! I have to get to him—let go!" "You mustn’t, Captain! It’s too dangerous!" "Please calm down, Captain!" "Shiao!" —Shiao was burning. His Shiao. He had to save him. He had to save him right now. But all those hands kept holding him back, preventing him from moving forward. "Let go! Let me go!" —Why are they stopping me?! Shiao is burning alive! "UAAAAHHHHH!"