Celestial Bloodline Chapter 956: What, surprised?

At the same time, within the Golden Guardians Clan, the youthful librarian who appeared familiar and was deeply immersed in his book felt a sudden shock as two enormous cocoons plummeted down amidst the soaring, suspended bookshelves.

Yet the instant the young figure attempted to approach the cocoons, an icy force repelled him backward.

The boy, seeming no older than ten, let out a groan while massaging his wrist.

"What’s going on?"

He gazed at the cocoons for an extended period, baffled by how anyone could have transported the ice formations into his spatial pocket. The library represented a realm he had forged through his command over natural law, and regardless of the opponent's might, hurling objects into his domain without consent shouldn't have been feasible at all.

Ethereal power in the vicinity converged upon the librarian's form as he examined the ice cocoons, leaving him astonished to find that despite his immense strength, he couldn't detect their contents.

Even his natural laws failed to function!

Bewilderment etched across his features as he paced around the cocoons, pondering if foes of the clan had dispatched them to inflict damage.

In mere instants, the space pocket's temperature plummeted. It started with a subtle frost near the pair of cocoons, but the chill rapidly expanded, overtaking the whole library.

The young lad shivered. He wasn't sure if he should react with astonishment and probe the reason the frost from the cocoons impacted him, a Celestial, or reach out to Ares about the odd occurrence.

In the end, his inquisitiveness prevailed.

He resolved to examine the cocoons initially. However, no matter his efforts, he couldn't draw near without getting repelled. Finally, he positioned himself close by to decipher the law that formed the cocoons, and soon he slipped into enlightenment.

The energy enveloping the cocoons proved immense— so profound that it could bestow understanding upon any observer, despite the fact that even mighty Celestials required years to grasp or uncover a solitary natural law.

The librarian remained lost in this trance when a sharp crack of something hard striking the ice resounded across the space, breaking his focus. The second his eyes snapped open, fury boiled within him—he yearned to obliterate whoever had interrupted his immersion.

Only moments earlier, he had witnessed innumerable potent natural laws within an expansive realm of crystalline ice that could encase everything in frost. Just one more advance, and he might have seized at least one of those mighty laws... but now it had vanished!

"Who dares—"

His following words caught in his throat upon spotting a soul perched on one of the cocoons, beside an ancient bracelet familiar from Clan Leader Ares. As their eyes locked, a dire premonition seized his heart.

"Guardian Zami...?"

The soul offered no words. Zami felt disoriented. Yet upon recognizing a trustworthy face, Zami—who had protected the ancient bracelet at the expense of her very being—finally succumbed to unconsciousness. Her soul's borders had already darkened to utter black.

She realized excessive dark energy had infiltrated her soul despite her resistance.

By now, transforming into a dark Celestial was inevitable, but she harbored no remorse.

At the very least, all had endured.

It was merely... a subtle pang of sorrow persisted in her core that she never glimpsed the identity of the towering silhouette—the one who materialized abruptly before her and relocated her to safety, complete with the bracelet.

***

In the Layer of Ancients, once he located and dispatched Zami along with the bracelet, Kyle stared up at the splintering, overcast dark heavens.

After some time, he advanced toward the fierce clash erupting at the chaos's core.

Kyle had merely taken one stride, but he drew so near that both Nathaniel and Azazeal—who had sensed his arrival ages ago—perceived him observing them, his stare laced with an odd hint of entertainment.

Azazeal stayed composed. He held firm belief in his ability to fell any intruder who dared meddle. But contrasting Azazeal, Nathaniel sensed mounting disquiet.

He lacked knowledge of this formidable entity's identity— a presence matching his own and Azazeal's in potency. Nor did he grasp their allegiance. Should this stranger abruptly enter the fray supporting Azazeal, the fallout would prove catastrophic.

Thus, Nathaniel covertly withdrew to uncover the enigmatic watcher's true nature during their confrontation.

That individual's stare pierced so sharply that Nathaniel sensed a desire to methodically dismantle him piece by piece. Every instinct urged wariness. In that instant, he caught sight of Azazeal's manic obsidian gaze and heard his laughter, intensifying his apprehension.

Tension hummed silently and perilously between the pair, yet it fractured under a cool, detached, yet recognizable voice reverberating across the expanse.

"How long are you two going to play?"

"It’s getting kind of boring."

Nathaniel's heart quaked at the voice's familiarity. His thoughts insisted it defied belief. It couldn't possibly be whom he suspected! That individual had perished!

Still, as he channeled his power to scan the area and viewed that recognizable, now more spectral form, shock gripped him.

This astonishment caused Nathaniel to pause briefly, allowing Azazeal to launch him airborne.

Nathaniel blinked out of sight before impact. Upon rematerializing, his startled eyes fixed on the man lounging upon an ice throne suspended afar. Radiant silver locks draped casually over his brow, and one leg draped over the other in relaxed fashion as he regarded him and Azazeal.

"How...?"

Upon hearing Nathaniel, Kyle raised his gaze.

A chilly scoff resounded through the air.

"What, surprised?"

"You thought I killed myself?"

He cast a look toward Azazeal.

"Even he couldn’t make me want to die."

"You must be dreaming if you think I killed myself just to escape dying in your hands."

His emerald eyes glinted with scorn.

"Anyway, when are you two finally going to unleash your full strength? Honestly, this little skirmish isn’t even worth watching."