Chapter 95: Ashen Claws, the Barrier of Star Dust, and the Choice of Despair

The hand emerging from the rubble was covered in lifeless, ashen keratin; its sharp nails resembled venom-coated hooks, and the dark purple veins knotted and writhed across its back, exuding a chilling aura of decay and ill omen. Accompanied by a labored, bellows-like gasp, the pile of shattered stone violently trembled!

"Sister Ai Li...?" The wrench's voice trembled with disbelief, his pea-sized eyes filled with terror. He wished desperately that it was Ai Li, driven by sheer willpower, crawling out—but that hand... that presence... could not possibly be alive!

Copperbeard's mechanical ocular flashed blue in frantic bursts, instantly locking onto the anomalous energy readings on the hand; his face darkened: "No! It's corruption! High-concentration decay contamination! Fall back!"

Before he could finish speaking—crash! —the rubble was violently ripped apart by a brute force!

A figure staggered to its feet.

It was Ai Li—but no longer the silver-haired warrior they knew.

Her once-damaged light armor was nearly entirely corroded away, revealing vast patches of skin beneath, covered in ashen keratin like dried tree bark. At the wound on her left arm, the dark purple tumor had swelled to the size of a fist, its surface split with countless tiny fissures, oozing thick, viscous purple-black pus that hissed as it dripped onto the charred earth. The purple-black侵蚀纹路, alive and creeping, spread from the tumor, crawling across her left side, even invading her left cheek, turning half her face into a mask of withered crystal—lifeless and grotesque. Her once-icy blue right eye now had dilated pupils veiled in a murky gray haze; the remaining silver hair on her right side had lost its luster, turning brittle and ashen white.

Most chilling was her gaze—cold, hollow, filled with utter indifference to all life and a hunger for destruction. Only occasionally, a faint, fleeting flicker of Ai Li's own agony surfaced deep within the gray veil, like the last bubble of a drowning soul.

"Huh... kill... thorns... annihilation..." Her voice rasped, broken, laced with inhuman hissing. Her ashen right hand clenched tightly, sharp nails piercing the ashen keratin of her palm—yet what oozed out was thick, purple-black blood.

"Ai Li! Wake up! It's us!" The wrench screamed, voice cracking with tears, trying to awaken whatever remained of her consciousness.

In response came a roar of pure savagery! Ai Li snapped her head up, her gray-veiled right eye locking onto the nearest target—the wrench! Her hand, sheathed in ashen keratin, shot upward; five condensed, decay-laced purple-black energy claws instantly tore through the air, shrieking shrilly as they slashed toward the wrench!

Too fast! Too close!

The wrench had no time to react—he could only stare in despair as the lethal claws expanded rapidly in his pupils!

"Watch out!" Copperbeard roared, his massive mechanical arm shoving the wrench aside. Simultaneously, his stout body unleashed its final strength, throwing itself between the claws and the wrench!

Splat—

Five purple-black claws slammed into Copperbeard's left shoulder and chest! His tough dwarf skin and muscle tore effortlessly; deep wounds curled and blackened instantly, edges sizzling as horrific corruption energy surged violently into his body! Copperbeard grunted, his body thrown backward by the force, blood and purple-black pus gushing wildly!

"Master Copperbeard!" The wrench, thrown to the ground, stared in horror at the monstrous wound on the dwarf's chest.

"Ugh... won't die..." Copperbeard's face was as white as paper; agony made his temple veins bulge. He fixed his gaze on Ai Li as she raised her ashen claw again, his mechanical eye flickering erratic red light from overload and damage. "She's controlled by corruption! Don't approach! Find a way... to contain her!"

The two rotting flying dragons overhead, drawn by the same yet purer decay aura emanating from Ai Li, let out excited screeches, lowering their circling altitude. Their crimson compound eyes swept between Ai Li, Lin Mo, Xiang Lingna, and the wounded Copperbeard, as if choosing the easiest prey.

Despair! True despair blanketed the still-smoldering ruins!

Before them: Ai Li, corrupted and out of control; above: the circling flying dragons; behind: Lin Mo and Xiang Lingna, unconscious and near death; Copperbeard, gravely wounded!

The wrench's mind went blank. Fear coiled like a cold venomous snake around his heart. He was just a timid goblin technician—what could he do? Repair a broken probe box? That would take time! He had no weapons! What could he use against Ai Li, who tore through Copperbeard's defenses so easily? What could he use to drive off the flying dragons?

"Huh... die..." Ai Li's gray-veiled right eye swept over Copperbeard, as if identifying him as the obstacle. Her left arm's tumor pulsed violently; purple-black pus erupted like a geyser! Slowly, she raised her ashen right hand again—this time, a more condensed, more terrifying decay claw began to coalesce. This time, the target was Copperbeard's skull!

Copperbeard gritted his teeth, enduring the searing pain of corruption and the dizziness of spreading toxins, his massive mechanical arm straining upward; the energy circuits on the arm flickered with unstable light, preparing for his final stand. He knew he couldn't block this blow—but he could not retreat! Behind him were his comrades!

At this critical moment—

Hum—

A soft yet resolutely firm milky-white light erupted suddenly from Lin Mo's chest within the藤兜—the pure Star Dust Crystal!

Stimulated by the terrifying decay aura and killing intent of Ai Li, and guided faintly by Lin Mo's own will to survive, the Star Dust Crystal seemed to activate! Pure order-light rippled outward like waves, instantly forming a translucent milky-white barrier, several meters in diameter, around Lin Mo's body!

The edge of the barrier just touched the back of Copperbeard, who stood before Lin Mo!

Hiss—

Ai Li's terrifying claw struck the Star Dust barrier!

No earth-shattering explosion—only a piercing, acid-eating-metal screech! The purple-black decay claws and the milky-white Star Dust barrier violently annihilated each other. The barrier quivered violently, its surface rippling with dense waves, its glow dimming visibly, as if about to shatter at any moment!

Yet—it held.

The Star Dust barrier, at the last moment, bought Copperbeard and Lin Mo precious breathing room! The pure order-energy also temporarily suppressed the rampant corruption spreading from Copperbeard's wounds, easing his agony slightly.

Blocked by the barrier, Ai Li's gray-veiled eyes flickered with rage and confusion. She instinctively loathed and despised this order-force that obstructed her "annihilation of thorns." She growled, her left arm tumor swelling again, preparing a more violent strike!

The two flying dragons overhead, drawn by the sudden Star Dust barrier, let out greedy screeches. They sensed the pure, irresistible energy emanating from Lin Mo within the barrier! One dragon, unable to contain itself, dove sharply downward, its sharp claws slamming into the wavering Star Dust barrier!

Wolves ahead (Ai Li), tigers behind (the flying dragons)—the Star Dust barrier, under dual assault, teetered on the brink of collapse!

The wrench stared at this hopeless scene—at the wounded Copperbeard, the unconscious Lin Mo and Xiang Lingna, the corrupted and twisted Ai Li, the diving dragon... Extreme fear drenched him like ice water, making him shudder. But the next instant, a goblin's madness and cunning, born of utter desperation, erupted like a volcano in his pea-sized eyes!

"Fuck! You're all pushing me, are you?!" The wrench leapt to his feet, ignoring the lethal claws and the diving dragon, and lunged toward his probe box, its casing torn open, parts scattered everywhere. His hands became blurs as he frantically manipulated the broken wiring and exposed energy core, muttering maniacally: "Energy overload... Thorns-steel particles... Chaotic frequency... To hell with it! Let's go out together!"

He yanked out two thick energy conduits, glowing dangerously orange-red, and without hesitation jammed them into a skull-marked interface on the probe box's core. Simultaneously, he slammed down another red button on the side—never used before, permanently welded shut!

"Eat this—'The Wrench's Final Fireworks'!!!"