A flash of mirrored light rippled out as the spatial lattice unfolded across the ridge, spreading over the ground like a pool glittering with scattered starlight.
"Come back!" Aetrexa's brows furrowed as she tried to call the Holy Light Dragon King back. She didn't know what Orgod—Orson—was planning, but she was certain it was nothing good.
The Holy Light Dragon King thrashed wildly, letting out a piercing, agonized howl. It snapped its massive jaws around Crimson Lizard King's neck, tearing away a swath of dragon scales.
But Crimson Lizard King was like an emotionless war machine—cold, relentless. Her claws dug into the bones of her opponent, hooking in like steel anchors. She pinned the Holy Light Dragon King down, completely immobilizing its wings.
Orson's eyes flashed. He waited for the perfect moment.
Just before both dragons were about to fall into the spatial lattice, a new rift split open.
In an instant, Crimson Lizard King vanished, pulled back into Battle Space. The Holy Light Dragon King, however, plunged headlong into the spatial net.
"Where did you send it?!" Aetrexa's eyes were bloodshot as she glared at Orson.
"Why don't you go check it out?" Orson floated gently to the ground, wind cradling his form like a falling leaf.
"Orgod! Only death can cleanse your sins!" Aetrexa was livid. She wanted nothing more than to rip Orson to shreds.
Without her dragon mount, she couldn't execute any of her mounted combat techniques. She was just a regular King-tier fighter now.
Though she had always acted indifferent toward her dragon, the moment it was endangered, the worry on her face betrayed her.
Especially now—while the four dragon clans of the Empire were still unchecked—if the Holy Light Dragon King were to fall, it would be a blow she could hardly afford.
"Jenonis!!" she screamed, her fury now directed at the Archangel hovering in the distance.
"Commander of the Royal Guard, continue fulfilling your duty," Jenonis said coldly. His detached, high-and-mighty tone made her burn with rage.
This angel from the Celestial Kingdom—representing the will of the God of Light—clearly cared nothing for the lives of his followers.
Aetrexa shot one last furious glance at Orson, then without hesitation, leapt into the unknown spatial net.
"Dude… check the minimap!"
Viewers in the Infinite Dimensions livestream gasped.
The two large red icons—representing high-level entities—vanished from the main battlefield and reappeared inside Celestial Fortress… right where the Empire's battleships were currently clashing with Godslayer's forces.
"Wait, what? That's gotta be a mistake, right?"
"Did Orgod just send the top commander of the Imperial Guard into our own stronghold? Is he trying to get his teammates killed?"
The chat exploded. From any angle, it looked like Orson was seriously losing it.
Celestial Fortress had no functioning barrier. Empire space mages had already used pinpoint teleportation to send more than a dozen Giant Dragon Knights into the structure.
Godslayer's defenders were already under intense pressure. And now two King-tier enemies had been dropped into the mix?
"The red icons disappeared? No way—they're dead already?"
One of the female commentators froze in shock.
The King-class markers vanished from the minimap. The audience was stunned. Did Celestial Fortress house something that could instantly kill King-tier Dragon Knights?
"Not necessarily. Disappearing icons might mean they entered a hidden zone," SirLagsALot said, eyes gleaming as a realization hit him.
"…He's a genius. A bloody genius!" SirLagsALot slammed the table and jumped up, startling everyone nearby.
"Can someone explain what's going on?" the female host was totally lost.
SirLagsALot grinned devilishly. "That bastard just dumped Aetrexa into the seventh floor of Celestial Fortress's maze."
The other commentators and staff stared at him, completely confused.
"Our guild's only cleared up to the fourth floor. The monsters past that point are absurdly overpowered. On floor five alone, there are already three level 80 Saint Lord-Class bosses."
He let out a creepy laugh that made everyone's skin crawl.
"No one dares interrupt me yet? Good. Listen closely."
"Only our vice leader, Madman, has ever reached floor six or seven—he used stealth. But even he got trapped and had to suicide teleport back to town."
"And when he returned, he said just one thing. After that, we gave up."
"What did he say?" one of the staff asked, eyes wide.
"That place is a no-fly zone. No teleportation. A dead zone."
SirLagsALot's grin turned vicious. "At its deepest level, four of the Celestial Kingdom's strongest lieutenants are buried—second only to the God-Emperor and War Saint Darkbo. Trigger the traps, and they'll rise as undead to slaughter intruders."
"King-tier?" the female commentator asked, frowning.
"Exactly. Aetrexa's now facing four King-tier undead bosses." SirLagsALot's voice dripped with schadenfreude.
Everyone finally understood. Even though undead versions wouldn't have the same power as their living selves, four versus two was still a deadly equation.
There was a real chance Aetrexa could die down there.
"Oh, boss… just how dark is your heart?" SirLagsALot chuckled to himself.
Naturally, he wasn't about to spill all the secrets on a national broadcast—this was Godslayer guild intelligence. But even if Aetrexa miraculously survived, they stood to gain big.
"Go get 'em, human mount number two," Orson muttered as he closed the rift, a faint smile on his lips.
He actually hoped she'd succeed—it would save him the effort of clearing the maze himself.
From the clues Madman had gathered, Celestial Fortress was still in a "semi-sealed" state. The fact that the fortress barrier couldn't be activated made that clear.
But once the sixth and seventh floor bosses were defeated, its war potential would fully awaken—matching the unsealed state it had under the ancient God-Emperor Gaedashiram.
Above Celestial Fortress, magic flared through the skies. Dragon roars echoed as Raven's squad clashed with Imperial Dragon Knights.
"Purge the heretics!"
"This floating city belongs in the earth—kill them all!"
Over a dozen massive dragons screamed and unleashed their breath attacks, leveling every structure in sight.
Even grounded, these dragons were deadly. Everything they touched became scorched ruins.
"Stop hiding, coward! Come out and die!"
A Frost Dragon Knight snorted and thrust his lance, instantly killing a hidden Godslayer archer.
Godslayer Xiaohou: "Boss Raven! What now? These damn lizard riders are way too cocky!"
Dynasty Old Yin: "You guys gonna handle this or not? If not, we'll prioritize the climbing NPCs—the Empress side has shields for now."
The archer unit ducked into the watchtowers. Mages in the armory prepared to charge, but Raven stopped them.
Raven: "Hold your positions. Keep bombarding the fleet. Someone else will deal with the dragons."
"Focus on taking the engine room! Stop this fortress from moving!"
The highest-ranking Frost Dragon Knight pulled out an old map detailing the layout of Celestial Fortress. Clearly, they had come prepared.
Dragons roared and swarmed across the ground, heading straight for the engine room.
Just as they reached it and were about to force the gate—
The massive iron gears of the door began turning. The engine room gates slowly opened.
"Who dares trespass? Do you not know this is the home of the Celestials?"
A massive hand reached through the door.
The Dragon Knights froze. Their mounts howled in terror as an overwhelming kingly aura surged out.
A man stepped forth—long white hair down his back, face both handsome and sinister, eyes dark as dying stars.
He wore battle-worn gray armor and held a four-foot black blade, crimson energy pulsing across its surface.
In an instant, the Dragon Knights saw visions of the blade screaming—wailing souls trapped within.
He stood atop a mountain of corpses, gazing down on them as if they were children who had just learned to hold a sword.