Endless Evolution: Last Star

Chapter 1836: Crystal, Iron Tree and Farewell

Four Phantoms tried to free Lakma, but they all fell to her energy.

It’s unlikely that something like this would have happened to Adam. He had enough power to defeat Lakma, not in a confrontation, but in a battle of attrition.

But he chose a different path.

The Glass Root, the real one, was in his hand, emitting dense streams of energy that radiated along the rift.

Every Cloud Elemental couldn’t help but notice them. It was an exceedingly rare treasure. For the Glass Root to appear, extremely specific conditions had to be met, and only another Phantom could obtain it.

Even the Kind Elemental was astonished.

[You’re the first to have ever done this… How…? How did you manage that…? How great is your power, young man?]

Adam shook his head with a bitter smile.

“Not this time. I was weaker, and I won not because I killed my opponent, but because I made her my ally.”

[Agh…?]

The King Elemental was confused.

Soon, the first crack appeared in Lakma’s crystal, releasing a powerful gust of wind filled with energy.

Her entire world had been trapped within that crystal for many years, even though she had been dead for over a hundred years.

Now that Lakma had lost everything, her energy and the Glass Root, the time had come for her to leave this world entirely.

Crack. Crack. Crack.

Cracks ran through the crystal as it shattered into countless fragments, along with Lakma.

Her body had long since ceased to be flesh and blood. She was a statue infused with energy for many years. Essentially, she had become one with the crystal and thus shattered into pieces along with it.

Adam didn’t look away. He wanted to see everything, from beginning to end. Still, he couldn’t help but think that the same thing might one day happen to Queen Elisa.

“I don’t know what happened to Queen Elisa or how she managed to stay alive, but… as soon as I imagine Queen Elisa here instead of Lakma, I get goosebumps.”

Thump! Thump! Thump!

As the crystal crashed to the ground, slowly disintegrating into bright particles, it was the iron tree’s turn.

The roots, trunk, and branches began with a slight tremor until they made the ground around them shake.

Tremble! Tremble! Tremble!

The Cloud Elementals rose, alarmed. Nothing like this had ever happened in their rift, but Adam and the King Elemental remained calm. They understood what was about to happen.

Adam smiled faintly, pressing the Glass Root to his chest.

“Farewell.”

At that very moment, the iron tree glowed brightly before exploding in a blinding flash of light.

The blue flash streaked across the Silent Hills as a final reminder of a Phantom like Lakma.

Adam looked at the Glass Root as he nodded.

“That wraps up my work here, elemental. Do you have anything to say?”

[No… This light… It’s said enough, hasn’t it?]

“Yeah, I think you’re right.”

Then, Adam took one last look at the rift before his frame began to tremble.

In the shadows, he rose to the very top, where the mist met him. During the time he had spent in Lakma’s inner space, the mist had managed to partially regenerate.

The tigers and their yellow eyes were visible through the mist, but none of them dared to attack Adam. Not because they couldn’t or were afraid of him, but because Adam was no longer an enemy of this land.

If the Cloud Elementals had accepted him, then the mist tigers had no reason to attack him.

“Well, I didn’t think it would happen this way, but everything turned out much better than I expected.”

Adam smiled, holding the Glass Root in his hand.

“Krador, you really are an excellent mentor. You made me go out of my way to get you such a unique item just for a compass. Though I doubt I would’ve been able to reach the Great Abyss without it.”

Varreyn was Adam’s next stop. He was supposed to return to the city and meet up with Laroza and Krador, but he wasn’t in a hurry.

“Huh, now that the tigers aren’t trying to attack you anymore, this place is surprisingly peaceful.” Adam smiled as he walked through the fog. “Alright, then I’ll take my time.”

…

Adam’s journey through the Silent Hills had ended, but for someone else, it was just beginning.

After the space was shattered and a bright flash, Lakma found herself in a completely different place.

As soon as she opened her eyes, she saw a scene that had been inaccessible to her for over a hundred years, the Evolution Tree, brimming with power and energy.

“Agh…!” Lakma gasped.

Tears streamed from her eyes as she couldn’t believe what she was seeing.

For a dead Phantom like her, seeing the living, powerful Evolution Tree was like a resident of a dead planet seeing the bright sun.

After all, the Lakma Adam had been fighting wasn’t the real Lakma. It was her energy, which could only attempt to mimic Lakma’s actions and personality.

Sure, over the long years without the real Lakma, this energy form of Lakma had managed to forge its own identity and develop a mind, but only now could she breathe a sigh of relief.

Adam was right. Lakma knew that even if she defended her inner space and absorbed the energy of every Phantom that invaded her territory, her time was limited.

With the next World Wipe, both the real Lakma and this one would vanish.

She had thought countless times about how she could survive, not only for her own sake, but also for the legacy of the real Lakma.

But she couldn’t find a way out.

Only Adam’s arrival and his plan could change everything.

“He not only saved me, but finally set me free from this crystal…” Lakma gulped, her voice trembling with emotion.

Step.

Footsteps sounded from the side, causing Lakma to turn around.

The Silver Weaver looked her over, a kind smile appearing on his face, a rare sight for him.

“Hello, nice to see you, Miss Energy.”

“You… Will you help me…?” she asked hopefully.

The Silver Weaver looked at the Evolution Tree.

“Yeah, not just me, but this old man, too.”