Dragon Monarch System

Chapter 1188: Chapter 1188:- Last Stage of Absorption [II]

Another ten minutes passed.

『Ding! 『Crimson Sun Annihilation Orb』 absorption — 88.5%』

However, Aditya was no longer aware of how much of the 『Crimson Sun Annihilation Orb』 he had absorbed.

At this point, the agony had reached such an extreme level that his mind could no longer properly register the System’s voice. The notifications continued appearing, and the System continued informing him about his progress, but none of those words truly reached his consciousness anymore.

There was only pain. Endless, unbearable pain that consumed every part of his mind and body.

Aditya could feel his consciousness constantly threatening to slip away. His thoughts were becoming increasingly unclear, and maintaining his meditative state was becoming more difficult with every passing second.

Yet somewhere deep within his mind, his instincts were desperately warning him. Something catastrophic would happen if he lost focus now.

Aditya did not know exactly what would happen. He did not have enough mental strength remaining to think about the consequences. All he knew was that he absolutely could not allow himself to faint.

What Aditya did not know was that his instincts were completely correct.

The enormous amount of fire-element mana that he had absorbed from the 『Crimson Sun Annihilation Orb』 had not completely stabilized within his body yet. The System had compressed what should have been several days of cultivation into barely more than an hour, forcing an unbelievable amount of energy into him within an extremely short period.

Right now, Aditya was essentially containing an enormous amount of unstable fire-element mana within his own body. If he lost consciousness at this critical moment, his control over that energy would collapse.

The consequences would be catastrophic.

All the unstable fire-element mana that Aditya had already absorbed, combined with the remaining energy still contained within the 『Crimson Sun Annihilation Orb』, would be released almost simultaneously.

The resulting explosion would possess enough destructive power to wipe out the entire city in an instant.

The Harrington mansion would disappear first. Everyone inside- the Harrington Family, the Goddesses, the servants, and all of Aditya’s loved ones currently waiting for him- would be caught at the very centre of the explosion.

The mana barrier surrounding the mansion would not be enough to contain something of that magnitude. And Aditya himself had absolutely no idea that so many lives were currently depending on his ability to remain conscious.

Whether it was for his own survival or for the lives of the people he loved, there was only one thing that Aditya could do.

Endure.

No matter how unbearable the pain became, no matter how badly his mind begged him to surrender to unconsciousness, Aditya could not allow his consciousness to fade, not even for a second.

–

–

Meanwhile, the people who had remained inside the living room were quickly reaching their limits.

The heat trapped within the Harrington mansion had risen to such a terrifying level that even Fifth Order and Sixth Order cultivators were beginning to struggle. The mana barrier surrounding the mansion had successfully prevented most of the heat from escaping into the city, but this also meant that almost all of that terrifying heat was now being trapped inside the barrier.

The mansion had essentially turned into a gigantic furnace. Athena was the first to realise just how dangerous the situation had become.

She could feel the heat beginning to overwhelm even her Sixth Order body. Her skin constantly stung as if countless tiny needles were piercing it, and every breath she took felt increasingly hot and uncomfortable. Judging from how rapidly the temperature was still increasing, Athena immediately understood that they had very little time remaining.

Another minute or two. That was her estimate.

If everyone continued remaining inside the mansion beyond that point, even powerful cultivators could begin suffering serious injuries. As for the weaker servants, remaining there would become outright deadly.

“Everyone, evacuate the mansion immediately.” Athena did not hesitate for even a second.

Her voice immediately attracted everyone’s attention. “Get outside the mana barrier. Now.”

Hearing the seriousness in Athena’s voice, nobody questioned her order. The Harrington Family members, the Goddesses, the servants, and everyone else still inside immediately began evacuating.

Fortunately, the mana barrier had been designed to contain the heat rather than completely prevent people from passing through. One after another, everyone rushed outside the mansion before moving beyond the barrier that Malakor, Boris, Wahid, and the other cultivators had constructed.

The difference was immediate.

The moment Athena stepped beyond the mana barrier, the crushing heat surrounding her drastically decreased. Only then did she finally look down at herself and realise just how dangerous remaining inside had actually become.

Small burn marks had appeared across her forearms. There were similar marks on her legs, face, and several other exposed parts of her body. Even with the durability of a Sixth Order cultivator, the heat inside the mansion had begun physically burning her skin.

Athena’s expression immediately became serious.

And she was not the only one. When she turned toward the others, she noticed that the Fifth Order cultivators had suffered considerably worse injuries.

Riya and Sasha were among them. Several areas of their exposed skin had become badly burned. Their injuries were significantly worse than Athena’s, with some areas resembling severe second-degree burns and others approaching third-degree burns.

Yet they had only remained inside for a relatively short period after the temperature became unbearable.

Athena immediately looked back toward the Harrington mansion. If this was what the heat had done to Fifth Order and even Sixth Order cultivators simply by being inside the same mansion, then the temperature inside the room where Aditya was currently cultivating had to be on an entirely different level.

And unlike everyone else, Aditya could not evacuate. He was still sitting directly at the source of all this terrifying heat.

“Aditya…!!!” Athena stared at the Harrington mansion with extreme worry written all over her face.

Only after escaping from the unbearable heat did she fully realise something that made her heart tighten painfully.

Aditya was at the very centre of all of this.

If she, a Sixth Order cultivator, had suffered burns merely from staying elsewhere inside the mansion, then what about Aditya? He was sitting directly beside the 『Crimson Sun Annihilation Orb』, continuously absorbing its terrifying fire-element mana into his own body.

Just how much heat was he enduring right now? More importantly, just how much pain was he experiencing?

Athena could not even imagine it. The thought alone made her heart ache.

For a brief moment, Athena blamed herself. She felt stupid for allowing Aditya to begin cultivating with the 『Crimson Sun Annihilation Orb』 without taking more precautions beforehand.

They had been too focused on the benefits. They knew that the 『Crimson Sun Annihilation Orb』 contained an enormous amount of highly concentrated fire-element mana, yet none of them had properly considered what might happen if Aditya attempted to absorb all of that energy within such a short period of time.

They should have been more careful. The absorption process should have been divided into multiple stages. Aditya could have absorbed a portion of the fire-element mana, stabilised it within his body, rested, and then continued later.

Or at the very least, he should have absorbed it much more slowly. If they had done that, perhaps the pain Aditya was experiencing right now would have been far less severe.

But it was already too late to change anything. None of them could simply enter the mansion and interrupt his cultivation now. Doing so without understanding what was happening inside his body could make the situation even worse.

Athena clenched her fists while continuing to stare at the mansion. “Aditya… please be safe.” She murmured quietly.

Although her voice was soft, the girls standing beside her heard every word. Riya, Sasha, Amelia, Lilith, and the others immediately understood why Athena had said something like that.

Their expressions changed almost simultaneously. Until this moment, most of their attention had been focused on escaping the terrifying heat. But now that they were safely outside the barrier, they finally realised the same thing Athena had.

They had barely been able to endure the heat from a distance. Aditya was still at its source. Suddenly, the burns covering their bodies felt insignificant.

None of the girls said anything. They could only stare toward the Harrington mansion with growing worry, silently hoping that the man inside would safely endure whatever unimaginable pain he was currently experiencing.

『Ding! 『Crimson Sun Annihilation Orb』 absorption — 99.5%』

『Ding! 『Crimson Sun Annihilation Orb』 absorption — 99.7%』

『Ding! 『Crimson Sun Annihilation Orb』 absorption — 99.9%』

『Ding! 『Crimson Sun Annihilation Orb』 absorption — 100%』

The final trace of fire-element mana contained within the 『Crimson Sun Annihilation Orb』 was completely pulled into Aditya’s body.

『Ding! Everything contained within the 『Crimson Sun Annihilation Orb』 has been successfully absorbed into the Host’s body.』

『Ding! The Host has reached the requirements necessary to attempt a breakthrough to Beginner Sixth Order.』

『Ding! Does the Host wish to initiate the breakthrough to Beginner Sixth Order?』

Before Aditya could respond, another notification immediately followed.

『Ding! Warning! An excessive amount of unstable Crimson Flame-element mana is currently contained within the Host’s body.』

『Ding! Refusing to initiate the breakthrough may result in the accumulated Crimson Flame-element mana becoming uncontrollable.』

『Ding! If the Host fails to stabilize this energy, there is an extremely high possibility of the Host’s body exploding.』

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