Earth's Greatest Magus

Chapter 2848: Time

”Wait—!”

Jinkan’s voice tore through the fractured sky, sharp with panic and desperation, but it arrived a heartbeat too late to change anything.

The High Inspector had already moved, stepping across space itself as though distance were merely a suggestion, his figure vanishing from one point and reappearing directly above the colossal wolf-beast pinned beneath the divine cross.

Cosmic pressure descended with him, heavy and absolute, crushing the surrounding air as power gathered around his raised hand, intent condensing into something unmistakably final.

Execution loomed.

That was when reality rippled.

A figure emerged from thin air, a cloaking artifact dissolving into motes of light as someone forced himself into view between him and the beast.

”Eeshoo!!” Jinkan shouted, her heart dropping.

The Nephilim genius had apparently been staying behind all this time and was ready to put himself on the line for Emery.

His posture remained firm, gaze locked directly on the High Inspector.

”Honored Inspector... I have witnessed everything... and from the moment the eclipse end, the beast has been weakening.”

With a sharp motion, he flicked his wrist, releasing a memory crystal that spun through the air before activating mid-flight.

”Please give him time,” Eeshoo continued. ”If all hostility ceases, I believe he will return on his own.”

The High Inspector caught the crystal without effort, his divine sense piercing into it for a brief, measured moment.

”Too risky,” the Inspector replied coldly. ”This entity has exceeded all acceptable parameters. Step aside. Now.”

He did not wait for obedience.

Both arms rose, and the air screamed as a vast crescent-shaped saber of condensed cosmic force tore itself into existence, its edge warping space as it descended straight through Eeshoo’s position.

”Eeshoo—move!” Jinkan screamed.

He did not.

Instead, Eeshoo roared and unleashed everything he had. Thirty-six advanced Soaring Shuttles burst from his spatial ring, locking together into a spiraling drill formation as sun-aspected energy rotated at impossible speed, forming a barrier meant to resist even cosmic authority.

The impact shook the sky.

The saber ground forward inch by inch, shattering the formation layer by layer as spirit weapons exploded into fragments, backlash tearing through Eeshoo’s meridians and forcing blood from his mouth. He was hurled backward, wings flickering violently as he barely managed to remain airborne.

The High Inspector lowered his arm slightly.

”That was mercy,” he said. ”The next one will not be.”

The second attack gathered instantly, its aura far denser and far more lethal than the first. Yet Eeshoo did not retreat. He remained where he was, blood staining his lips, wings trembling but unyielding, his resolve hardening as the weight of his promise settled fully upon him.

Jinkan surged forward at once, desperation flashing across her face as she tried to reach him, but the High Inspector flicked his hand without even turning his head. A violent gust of condensed cosmic wind slammed into existence, forming an invisible barrier that stopped her mid-step and forced her backward through sheer force alone.

”Eeshoo—move!” she shouted, her voice cracking.

Instead of retreating, the Nephilim genius roared and unleashed the full power of the Soaring Sun. Blazing light erupted around him, solar runes igniting as his aura flared to its peak, forcing the incoming attack to slow for a single heartbeat. But the gap in strength was merciless.

The wind sabers shattered the sunlight apart piece by piece, breaking it into scattered gusts that immediately reformed and continued their charge toward the restrained beast.

That was when space itself tore open.

A jagged spatial rift split the air, and a figure burst out at terrifying speed. Raw physical force rippled outward as the humanoid form slammed into the path of the attack, its body covered in intricate golden runes that blazed to life upon impact.

The incoming wind sabers shattered on contact, ripped apart to pieces.

Gasps echoed across the battlefield as everyone finally saw it clearly—a white humanoid golem, it’s the super golem controlled by VIA.

Within Emery’s inner domain, chaos had reached its peak.

The Star-Devouring Beast’s rampage tore across the land like an unending catastrophe, its howls shaking mountains and ripping through the spiritual fabric of the world itself. Entire regions trembled beneath its steps, rivers boiled, and the sky fractured under the pressure of its existence.

At the heart of the domain, the Dark Avatar strained with desperation. His hands trembled as he just successfully forced open a small, unstable spatial rift to send the super golem through. At the same time, shadowy chains extended from his body toward the four Khaos Gates, desperately suppressing the torrent of energy flooding outward.

”We don’t have much time,” he growled, veins of darkness crawling across his arms as he fought to hold everything together. ”Do it faster!!”

Across the domain, the Light Avatar sat cross-legged before the towering Elysian Tree, his posture unmoving despite the devastation around him.

Jade-green sigils spiraled from his palms and wrapped around the trunk as he invoked [Jade Thread Binding], an ancient inheritance of the Day Wolf lineage. Countless translucent threads emerged, weaving through space itself as they sought to restrain the Star-Devouring Beast’s rampaging will, sever Khaos’s corruption, and pull Emery’s true consciousness back from the brink.

Every second mattered.

Outside the domain, the VIA-controlled super golem stood like an unyielding fortress.

The Inspector’s first strike slammed into its chest with enough force to shatter mountains, yet only staggered the golem. It’s golden runes flared across its white frame, absorbing and dispersing the impact through layers of absurdly dense material.

The second blow followed immediately, heavier and more refined. The air screamed as it struck, yet once again the golem held. Its armor fractured on the surface, but the core remained intact, its defensive matrices roaring at full output.

The Inspector’s eyes narrowed.

So brute force wouldn’t be enough.

Without warning, he changed tactics.

Instead of striking from the outside, he twisted his fingers and released a compressed wind spell—silent, precise, and lethal. The invisible currents slipped through microscopic gaps in the golem’s structure, bypassing its outer defenses entirely.

Inside the construct, pressure detonated.

Violent gusts erupted within its core, tearing through internal conduits and crushing stabilizing runes from the inside out. Smoke burst from its joints as its internal frame began to implode.

Crack—crack—CRACK!

The sound echoed like bones snapping.

Golden light flickered, then dimmed. The golem’s legs buckled, its body trembling before finally collapsing in a thunderous crash.

The Inspector did not hesitate.

He surged forward at once, closing the distance toward the restrained beast. But as he raised his arm for the finishing strike, his path was blocked once again.

Eeshoo stood before him, battered and bleeding, yet unmoving.

”I promised,” he said hoarsely, wings flickering weakly behind him. ”And I will keep it.”

The Inspector’s gaze hardened.

”Then you are charged with obstructing justice.”

As he prepared to strike, space shimmered—and Jinkan appeared beside Eeshoo, teleportation light still fading around her. She placed herself squarely between him and the Inspector without hesitation.

”Duchess... what are you doing?” the Inspector asked, genuine surprise breaking through his control.

Jinkan turned to Eeshoo, her expression was soft, eyes filled with sincerity.

”I can’t let you die....”

For a moment, the battlefield held its breath.

The Inspector hesitated.

Then the Papal Cardinal’s voice rang out, steady despite his injuries. ”Inspector, there is no need to rush. With the Divine Cross, I can restrain the beast for at least fifteen more minutes.”

Relief flickered across both Jinkan’s and Eeshoo’s faces.

But the moment did not last.

The High Inspector exhaled slowly. ”Ten minutes” he said. ”No more.”