In the main material world, the Dawn War was raging on intensely.
Thanks to the intervention of the Primordial Shadows, the Primeval Wild Gods, who had been on the verge of total defeat due to the invincible Otherworld Dragon Legion, finally caught a break and had a moment to breathe.
However, the Wild Gods were still at a disadvantage.
The Primordial Shadows excelled in stealth and ambush but were not suited for frontal combat. There were only nine of them in total, while the Otherworld Dragons summoned by Garon to the main timeline were relatively more numerous. Even so, the number of these Dragons was not significantly higher than the Shadows.
The arrival of the Primordial Shadows merely slowed down the Wild Gods' inevitable defeat.
This respite was exactly what the Primeval Wild Gods needed.
As long as they could drag the war on until the Dawn War concluded and the main material world collapsed prematurely, the Wild Gods would be considered victorious despite their severe losses. Once they returned to the Primeval Era, they could quickly recover from the losses suffered in the Dawn War. Fallen or sealed Wild Gods would rise again.
Across various different material worlds.
The Otherworld Dragons, with their exceptional abilities from different dimensions, the Primeval Wild Gods born with this multiverse, the ancient Primordial Shadows predating even the creation, and the ruling gods of the multiverse, these four extraordinary forces clashed fiercely, and the flames of war spread everywhere.
The river of time flowed steadily.
After a period of intense fighting, the Primordial Shadows shifted their focus from attacking the Otherworld Dragons. The Dragons were formidable and difficult to kill under constant vigilance. Repeated ambushes by the Shadows were either deflected or only resulted in minor injuries to the Dragons, while the Shadows themselves nearly got counterattacked multiple times. This frustration made the Shadows reconsider their strategy.
Realizing why the Night Goddess Shar had called upon them now, the Shadows acknowledged the challenge posed by the Otherworld Dragons.
The Shadows' primary objective was not the Otherworld Dragons but to assist the Wild Gods in winning the Dawn War.
Thus, upon recognizing the difficulty in killing the Dragons, some Shadows shifted their focus.
Six Shadows continued to engage the Dragons, while three Shadows began targeting the gods, executing highly efficient ambushes.
The gods found themselves in grave danger against these elusive Shadows, masters of stealth and ambush. Some gods were killed instantly, while others suffered severe injuries, rendering them unable to continue.
The Shadows, with their specialized skills, had a high efficiency in eliminating specific targets. Their elusive nature made them nearly impossible to guard against. Just three Shadows were enough to cause significant trouble for the gods.
Meanwhile.
In one of the main material worlds.
Thick fog enveloped the entire world, creating an impenetrable white shroud. Everything within the fog seemed to decay rapidly, as if being corroded.
Flesh, stone, wood, even steel and metal were all unable to resist the corrosive power of the fog.
Amidst the fog, numerous strange, human-sized fleshy orbs flew about, densely packed and omnipresent.
Boom! A blazing red divine sword pierced through the fog, surrounded by a dazzling divine glow, and swung heavily.
The flames ignited the fog, turning it into a sea of fire.
Within the inferno, millions of strange fleshy orbs squealed and converged toward the center, merging into a massive, grotesque, and terrifyingly swollen orb of flesh, several hundred meters in diameter.
Despite forming, the massive orb couldn't extinguish the flames burning on it. The orb expanded and contracted repeatedly, spraying thick fog to douse the flames.
On the other side.
The God of Fire, radiating scorching divine light, charged toward the monstrous flesh orb, resembling a blazing comet.
The massive orb retaliated fiercely, generating billowing fog that solidified to clash against the God of Fire.
Before long, the God of Fire gained the upper hand, relentlessly attacking the grotesque flesh orb. The divine sword left crisscrossed blackened marks on the orb, with flames lingering and refusing to extinguish.
Hiss! The red divine sword pierced through the massive orb, and with a flick of the God of Fire's wrist, the already scorching blade's temperature surged further.
Boom! With a deafening explosion.
The grotesque flesh orb of the Primeval Wild God shattered into pieces, scattering charred fragments in all directions, burning like falling stars.
The God of Fire extended his left hand and swung it fiercely.
A vast sea of fire erupted, enveloping all the scattered fragments, burning them with intense flames.
At the current pace, it wouldn't take long for the God of Fire to destroy the Primeval Wild God he was battling.
The flames blazed brightly, and the God of Fire stood majestic.
However, where there is light, there is shadow.
Under the sway of the flames, clusters of shadows moved silently.
Just as the situation seemed under control, the shadows struck unexpectedly.
A sharp, slender shadow spike emerged from the shadows beneath the flames, silently yet swiftly piercing between the God of Fire's legs.
The God of Fire's expression twisted in pain as flames roiled violently around him, and his divine glow flickered like a faulty lightbulb.
Hiss! In an instant, the shadow spike penetrated the God of Fire's divine body, entering between his legs and emerging from the top of his head, presenting a ghastly sight.
"Ah!"
The God of Fire roared.
Extraordinary divine power erupted, and the God of Fire became a blazing flame, transforming into a streak of fire to escape the shadow spike that had impaled him.
Within the God of Fire, shadows corroded his divine essence, dimming his divine light and cooling his flames, weakening his aura.
While flames circulated within him to burn away the shadows, the effect was minimal.
The God of Fire's flames couldn't easily dispel the shadows of the Primordial Shadows.
Ambushed by the Shadows, the God of Fire, though not killed instantly, was gravely injured.
The flickering flame streak tried to evade, but the Shadows relentlessly pursued.
A shadowy claw extended from the shadows beneath the fire, aiming for the God of Fire's head.
At that moment.
Time suddenly stopped. The flames, shadows, and even the thinning fog all froze in place.
The shadows twisted violently, resisting the time-stopping field, with the shadowy claw still reaching for the God of Fire.
Simultaneously.
A mighty silver dragon leapt from the river of time, hovering high above, overlooking everything, casting its gaze upon both the God of Fire and the Primordial Shadows.
With wings interwoven from the aura of ancient times and the radiant solar wings, the Time Dragon loomed.
"In my presence, you dare to kill a god?"
A deep, resonant voice echoed across the world, reaching the ears of the Primordial Shadows.
Upon hearing this, the shadowy claw thrust more urgently toward the God of Fire.
To the Time Dragon, this act was a challenge to his authority.
Buzz! Behind the silver dragon, the solar wings unfurled, expanding and shining brightly, covering the sky and blocking out the sun.
With a sweep of the solar wings, a flood of brilliant, dazzling light poured down like a waterfall, instantly covering the entire world.
The dragon wings stood tall, and in the midst of the radiant white light, the silver dragon appeared like a sun emitting light.
The God of Fire's flames couldn't dispel the shadows.
But the light from Garon's sun could.
Under Garon's will, the concentrated light focused intensely on the Primordial Shadows, becoming almost solid, resembling a crystal of radiant white light.
In the next moment, before the shadowy claw could touch the God of Fire.
The solar brilliance enveloped the Shadows.
Sizzle. Like ice meeting fire, the shadows melted away inch by inch.
The Primordial Shadows reacted as if struck by lightning, their surrounding shadows twisting and shaking violently.
Whoosh! The Shadows abandoned their attempt to kill the God of Fire, twisting their body to dodge the incoming solar light.
The shadows trembled and vibrated, the Primordial Shadows' senses reaching out, searching for any place to hide.
However, the radiant light from above was so intense that it eliminated nearly all darkness and shadows. Even deep valleys, narrow crevices, underwater chasms that should have been unreachable by the light were filled with Garon's brilliance.
In this world bathed in light, the Primordial Shadows had nowhere to hide.
The Primordial Shadows could traverse shadows freely, even cross planes in their shadowy state, making them elusive and hard to trace. But now, all shadows were dispelled by Garon's light.
"Cursed sun!"
The Primordial Shadows screeched, their voice filled with resentment and rage toward the sun.
In the post-creation era, the Primeval Era began in darkness and silence. The Shadows were undisturbed in their slumber until the birth of the first light, which seared them awake.
That first light was the light of the sun.
The sun's light was the natural enemy of the Shadows, the object of their deepest hatred.
Gods wielding the power of the sun or primordial-like forces were beings the Shadows usually avoided.
At this moment, the radiant light of the sun caused the Shadows immense pain.
Under Garon's will, the concentrated, almost solid light was lethal to the Shadows, forcing them to evade.
Initially, the Shadows thought they could challenge the Time Dragon.
But now, seeing the radiant silver dragon, that notion had vanished entirely.
Meanwhile, taking advantage of the distraction of the God of Fire and the Time Dragon.
The scattered pieces of flesh quietly gathered, and the monstrous flesh orb of the Wild God cautiously tried to break through the plane barrier and escape from this dangerous material world, where Garon's arrival posed a significant threat.
However, its subtle movements did not escape Garon's perception.
Just as the grotesque orb was reassembling, it was suddenly shattered into countless pieces as if sliced by countless invisible threads, breaking apart into charred fragments once more.
Click, click, click. Layers of semi-transparent temporal amber formed around it, ignoring the Primeval Wild God's resistance, sealing its fragmented body piece by piece.
Simultaneously.
Under the relentless sunlight, the surrounding shadows of the Primordial Shadow had thinned considerably, revealing a grotesque, humanoid creature beneath. The Shadow's true form emerged as a bipedal figure covered in iron-gray lizard-like scales. Its face was distorted and fierce, with two curved black tusks protruding from its mouth like scimitars, and a serrated gray-black horn growing from its forehead.
Evil, dark spikes jutted out from its chest, arms, and head. Its clawed hands were menacing, and where its eyes should be, there were only shallow indentations.
The shadows that cloaked its body were an extension of its own essence.
As the shadows dissipated, the creature's physical form began to deteriorate, tied intrinsically to the vanishing darkness.
The Primordial Shadow had been evading Garon's concentrated, solid light, which was deadly to it. However, the broader, pervasive sunlight continued to sap its strength, causing a slow, inevitable decline.
The natural darkness and shadows of the world had been entirely dispelled by Garon's light.
In this illuminated world, the Primordial Shadow was left without refuge, facing a gradual, inexorable death.
When the light finally eradicated the shadows enveloping its body, the ancient Shadow entity would meet its end.
Under the illumination of Garon's light, the mid-level deity, the God of Fire, began to recover. The shadows within him were gradually dissipating, and he prepared to assist Garon in pursuing the Primordial Shadow.
"Lord Garon, let me assist you!"
The God of Fire addressed Garon with a respectful tone.
Despite being of the same mid-level divine tier, the God of Fire understood he was no match for Garon. Moreover, having just been saved by Garon, it was only appropriate to show deference.
Whoosh! As the God of Fire spoke, flames flared up.
The tangible light of the flames joined Garon's concentrated solar brilliance in chasing down the Primordial Shadow.
However, just as there are distinctions among gods, not all light holds the same power.
Not all light could completely dispel shadows.
As the flames flickered, shadows began to form beneath them.
In an instant, the Primordial Shadow saw an opportunity.
Its body blurred and phased through the flames, diving into the shadows formed under the fire, and using its shadow traversal ability, it vanished from the material world.
"…"
The silver dragon, Garon, remained silent, gazing at the God of Fire.
"Uh? I…"
For a moment, the God of Fire was at a loss.
The saying, "It's not the formidable enemy but the inept ally that you should fear," proved true, even if this "inept ally" was also a true god.
Garon found himself hindered by the very god he had just saved.
It seemed that the Dawn War's infamous evil god might indeed find a successor in the future.
"Lord Garon, I didn't expect this to happen."
The God of Fire's divine light dimmed slightly as he spoke.
"What's done is done; there's no need for further words."
In the face of this unexpected development, the silver dragon remained composed, redirecting his focus and closing his eyes.
He concentrated on the river of time, pinpointing the time signature to lock onto the coordinates of the Primordial Shadow's escape.
Despite their ancient existence predating the multiverse's history, the Primordial Shadows could not escape Garon's time-marking ability.
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