Outside the stage, both Eldrin and the instructors looked gobsmacked as various shades of emotions swept past their faces. The instructor especially looked as if he had taken a bitter pill, his face unsightly from the miscalculation he had made. Every time he saw Liam unleash another powerful attack, he felt his ego and pride take another hit and his face turned redder.
However, all of it changed when the golem stopped and the runes disappeared before the whole thing lit up from top to bottom.
The instructor instantly became dumbfounded. He knew that he had to do something immediately and intervene somehow. This was no longer about his pride and ego. This was about the genius standing atop the stage!
That's right. The man on the stage at the moment was a genius!
To make the golem completely activate all the runes was unheard of!
Even he lacked such capabilities. Only the eccentric academy head who founded this place centuries ago possessed such a deep understanding of the dao. But it did not matter. The young man in front of him was clearly not the powerful founder. There was no way he would survive this ordeal. The golem would slaughter him and the barrier prevented him from interfering in any way.
There was only one way this was going to end and it was tragedy! It would be a waste of a one in a million genius to die ! Why did the golem even activate completely? Something was not supposed to happen!
Panic appeared on the instructor's face as he hurriedly tried to activate some sort of talisman. Eldrin, on the other hand, not understanding the seriousness of the situation let his tongue run some more.
"Woot! Woot! Look at that. My Lord has made your entire golem glow like a doll. I wonder what is going to happen next! Does your academy have another substitute in case this one blows up? Hmmmm? I hope it is not too expensive to create one of these dolls?"
Eldrin's taunting words hung in the air, his tone light and mocking, unaware of the gravity of the situation unfolding before them. The instructor, hands trembling as he fumbled with the talisman, barely registered Eldrin's jibes. His focus was entirely on the stage, where the fully activated golem stood as a beacon of impending doom.
The fully lit golem was not a sight of victory; it was a prelude to catastrophe.
Suddenly, the talisman in the instructor's hand glowed, signaling his desperate attempt to contact higher authorities within the academy for immediate intervention. Shocking Eldrin completely, the guy started screaming at the top of his voice.
"How did all the runes activate? Get the golem's main controller now! Shut it down! Shut it down! This is an emergency! Emergency!"
However, before anyone could react, the golem began its final attack. A pulse of energy so vast and consuming radiated from it, threatening to obliterate everything in its path. The protective barrier around the stage shimmered violently, straining under the force of the unleashed power.
Seeing this for the first time Eldrin couldn't remain so confident in Liam's abilities. Fear was apparent on his face as he could feel the rattle of the tremendous power in full display in front of him, despite being controlled by the stage defensive mechanism.
There was no way Liam would be able to handle this! Was this really going to be their last run? Oh fuck! They were going to get kicked out of the Spire for sure!
Meanwhile, on the stage, Liam's face was completely pale. He was not unaware of what was happening. The moment his attack crashed through the defensive barrier of the golem and still failed to stop its attack, he knew this was going to be difficult. Probably the toughest opponent he had faced yet.
Moreover, the circumstances were also unique. He was extremely limited in his repertoire that he could actually use to attack the golem. The best attack he summoned did not yield result and now it was the golem's turn. Liam clenched his fist. He had to block. He had tried everything he had to attack and it was not enough and now he had to block. He needed to do better. But, there was no time now. There was no time to think about anything. There was no time to improve or strategize. There was simply no time to do anything. This was the end of his Spire run. Liam knew he was staring at death and this was not the first time he was doing that. Even though this death might not be a real death, something deep inside him ignited and with all of his soul, body and mind, he did not want to die.
He did not want to become nothing. He did not want his path to end.
In a final burst of effort, Liam extended his arms forward, palms out, as if to physically block the incoming wave of destruction. Waves after waves of mana congealed in front of him forming one barrier after another. But none of it was enough.
The golem's attack was simple but it was the truth. No barrier he erected could stop something like that. It was as if the attack had a will of its own.
His mind raced through every piece of knowledge, every technique he had ever learned, searching for a way to transcend his current limits. The barriers he erected became stronger and stronger but it was simply not enough.
The attack was crashing through faster than he could block it. He was merely a fraction of a second away from utter annihilation. He was desperate. However, desperation was not enough to block an attack of that caliber.
With a grunt and a final push, Liam brought out the full power he could muster and the next second…
An explosion bellowed out, completely enveloping the stage in blinding light and a shockwave that reverberated through the entire auditorium.