Endless Evolution: Last Star

It seemed that the fall of the Midnight Crystal was a gift of fate for the monsters living near the Fume Cathedral.

The monsters and the Citadel had yet to figure out why Midnight Crystal had decided to fall here at this moment because it wasn't Midnight Zone, so there had to be some serious and specific reason for it.

Midnight Crystal couldn't have fallen in a random place just due to luck, because no Midnight Crystal had ever fallen near the Citadel or in the newbie areas. Midnight Crystals could only fall in Midnight Zones, not because it was some magical place, but because the conditions were right for it.

It wasn't Midnight Zones that attracted Midnight Crystals, it was the conditions that caused Midnight Crystals to appear in certain places.

This was also the reason why there were no Midnight Zones in Blue Threat Level areas. Midnight Zones started appearing beginning from Purple Threat Level areas.

Thus, even the fall of a single Midnight Crystal near Fume Cathedral could be a real feast and massacre for the monsters.

Sure, many of them would die, but dozens or even hundreds would be able to benefit from this event.

Midnight Crystal was a solid, monolithic object, but that didn't mean that only one monster could absorb it.

A lot depended on the size and energy density of the Midnight Crystal, but if one took this Midnight Crystal and Light Yellow monsters as an example, this one Midnight Crystal would help several dozen of them evolve.

If there were some, not particularly strong Purple Threat Level monster here, a tiny fingernail-sized shard would be enough to start the evolution process.

True, someone like Essence Thunder Demon would need a lot more energy, but even Plague Reaper didn't need to absorb the entire Midnight Crystal. The energy was excessive, after all, it was believed to be a shard of the Last Star whose fall had created a new world from the ashes of the old one.

But... even though hundreds of Light Yellow monsters were facing something that could change their lives and make them dramatically stronger, only one creature stood in their way.

Strangely enough, it wasn't some powerful Phantom but a monster just like them, even from a lower Threat Level.

"Holy Shit..." Katrin muttered, waves of shivers went through her body, following the goosebumps.

Her gaze traveled panickedly from one corpse to another, unable to believe that each one of these monsters could be a formidable opponent to defeat which they would have to work hard to defeat.

Naturally, some monsters managed to survive. They were either smarter or luckier than the others, as they immediately realized what needed to be done. Some moved away from the black air to a safe distance, others used their abilities to protect themselves, and some decided to hold their breath without taking a single sigh.

Most of the surviving monsters were quite strong, for all the weak ones were already lying on the ground with empty, lifeless eyes. Their muscles trembled in postmortem spasms, making the scene even more gruesome than it was originally.

It looked as if they had all died because of some calamity, because of a disease that killed 90% of the living creatures in its path, but Plague Reaper was the cause of it all.

He had a satisfied smirk on his face, but his gaze wasn't as bright as before. It was obvious that using this ability had taken a significant amount of his strength.

It was unlikely that this degree of fatigue would have any effect on Plague Reaper's abilities or physical capabilities, but he wouldn't be able to make the plague spread this far and wide once more.

There was no need for that, though. The jaws growing from the inky streams like eerie flowers continued to spread black air.

"ROOOOAAAAAAAAAARRRR!!!!"

One of the surviving monsters, which was only 10% of the original number, roared furiously, bringing its long claws down on the jaw-flower.

This monster was similar to the gray one that Plague Reaper had killed earlier, crushing it with his superior mastery. They were similar not in appearance, but in the fact that they possessed some unique abilities, not just the physical features of their powerful bodies.

Scarlet flames covered the monster's shoulders, descending in four lines to its claws. By sheer will, it could ignite the claws to the limit, making them so hot that they were comparable to plasma blades.

It didn't matter if it was Plague Reaper, Adam, or Katrin, if any of them were hit by those claws at the moment of attack, the claws would cut their bodies into several pieces before burning them and turning them into clots of lonely ash.

Obviously, the jaw-flower wouldn't be able to withstand such damage, the flames would simply burn it, destroying one of the main sources of black air.

"Fhga..."

Plague Reaper let out a strange sigh before thrusting his scythe into the ground, taking his weapon aside.

Then, he stretched his arms forward, and his coat shuddered, sending the same tremble throughout the nearby inky streams.

Tremble. Tremble. Tremble.

At the same moment, out of the streams next to the jaw-flower, came a multitude of black vines quickly heading towards the monster, which had already practically brought its fiery claws down on the jaw-flower.

In a heartbeat, the black vines twisted the monster's body, tightly and firmly like powerful chains, holding the monster in one place.

"ROOOAAAAAARRRR!"

The monster roared furiously, aggressively showing its long fangs, clenching its powerful jaws, but its efforts were clearly not enough to break the black vines.

Whoooooosh.

Plague Reaper jerked his right hand, sharply raising his palm upward.

The inky stream shuddered again, releasing two particularly thick vines at the end of which were wide-open jaws, hungry and cruel.

Crackle. Crackle. Crackle.

The jaws dug into the monster's flesh like desperate piranhas, tearing off piece after piece of flesh. The monster's hide was tough, thick and provided a good defense, but... in front of these jaws, it was all just useless.

"RRRRRGGHHHH!!!"

Quite soon, there was a desperate cry from the monster, more like a painful cry. It was trying to get out of this hellish trap, but it just seemed impossible.

All that was left for the monster to do was endure and wait for the jaws to tear off the last bit of its body.

The other monsters watching this gruesome scene turned their heads fearfully in Plague Reaper's direction.

Their eyes were wide open. They couldn't believe that the Purple Threat Level monster had so many terrifying abilities. They couldn't understand why they had offended fate so much that it had sent this 'monster' here, condemning them to an ignominious death, in agony and vivid piercing pain.

Thump.

After about thirty seconds, the monster with flaming claws finally fell to the ground with empty, lifeless eyes. Part of its body was stripped of flesh, bones peeking out, internal organs visible through its ribs.

The monsters, as if looking at a common enemy, began to group together, dividing into squads - all to deal with the scourge that Midnight Crystal had decided to take only for itself.

Step.

At the same moment, Katrin stepped forward with a confident look, holding her staff tightly.

''We can't keep looking at this any further. The black air is getting bigger with every second. I'm going to destroy all the jaw-flowers." Katrin stared intently at Plague Reaper as the flames of battle flashed in her eyes.