Path To Godhood Begins With Marrying Wife And Gaining SSS Rank Skill Chapter 729:A Puppet?

An overwhelming force swept across the battlefield.

Ethan crossed his arms before him as the blast struck.

Heliana was thrown backward despite her defense.

The remaining Transcendent Knights were sent flying through the air while broken rocks and shattered ice rained down around them. Dust completely covered the battlefield as the mountains continued trembling beneath the terrifying force of Haster's final explosion.

The deafening explosion slowly came to an end.

The violent shockwaves gradually faded while the blinding light disappeared from the sky.

Thick clouds of dust and ash still drifted through the air, covering everything as far as the eye could see. The once towering mountains had completely vanished. In their place remained only endless broken land filled with enormous craters, shattered rocks, and scorched earth. Nothing green remained alive. The entire area had become a barren wasteland covered in ash, soot, and blackened stone.

The ground was cracked beyond recognition.

Deep ravines stretched across the land like giant scars while countless pieces of broken rock were scattered in every direction. The air still carried the smell of burning flesh, scorched earth, and lingering miasma. Small flames flickered here and there before slowly dying out beneath the falling ash. Even the sky above had turned gray as thick smoke continued rising from the ruined battlefield.

For several long moments...

Everything remained completely silent.

No roars.

No clashes.

No voices.

Only the sound of loose rocks rolling across the broken ground and the soft whistle of the wind passing through the destroyed valley.

Amid the endless debris, a pile of broken rocks suddenly shifted.

Rumble...

A dusty hand slowly pushed the heavy stones aside.

Another hand followed.

"Damn!"

A figure painfully crawled out from beneath the wreckage.

"Damn!"

"That fucking piece of shit!"

Ethan stumbled out from the collapsed rocks while coughing heavily. Dust covered his entire body and several tears could be seen across his armor. His clothes were burnt in several places while small cuts covered his arms and face. Although he had escaped the center of the explosion, the terrifying blast had still thrown him across the battlefield for several miles before burying him beneath the collapsing rocks.

He clicked his tongue in annoyance and rubbed the back of his aching neck.

"What a damn lunatic."

He slowly stood up and stretched his sore body.

His muscles still ached from the impact while dust continued falling from his shoulders.

The self-detonation of a Transcendent Rank Knight had created an unimaginable level of destruction. If such an explosion had struck a populated region directly, it would have been enough to annihilate an entire province. Even after surviving it, Ethan could still feel the terrifying power lingering in the air.

He slowly raised his head.

His eyes swept across the surrounding land.

The moment he saw the battlefield, he could not help taking a deep breath.

The mountain range that had once surrounded the valley was gone.Every peak had been flattened into broken stone and dust.

The forests had completely disappeared.

The rivers had been buried beneath countless tons of shattered earth.

Even the enormous cliffs had vanished as though they had never existed.

As far as he could see, there was nothing left except endless gray ash, black soot, and ruined land stretching toward the horizon.

"This place is done for."

Ethan let out a long sigh.

He stood there quietly for a few moments while looking over the destroyed battlefield.

Then he slowly shook his head.

Without wasting any more time, he stepped across the broken earth and began searching through the endless wreckage, looking for the others who had survived the devastating explosion.

Ethan quickly moved across the devastated battlefield.

The thick ash crunched beneath his boots while broken rocks and shattered pieces of armor lay scattered everywhere. The once mighty valley had become almost impossible to recognize. He carefully searched through the endless wreckage, his eyes scanning every corner for signs of survivors.

A faint groan suddenly reached his ears.

Ethan immediately rushed toward the sound.

Beneath a pile of broken rocks lay one of the Transcendent Knights. His armor was cracked in several places while blood continuously flowed from deep wounds across his body. His breathing was weak, and one of his arms hung limply at his side.

"You are alive."

The knight forced out a weak smile.

"Barely..."

Ethan immediately knelt beside him.

A warm holy light gathered within his palm before he gently placed it over the knight's chest.

Soft white light slowly spread across the wounded body.

The deep cuts gradually closed while the bleeding stopped. Several broken bones slowly returned to their proper position, and the knight's pale face regained a little color.

After a few moments, Ethan withdrew his hand.

He frowned slightly.

The injuries had only partially healed.

The knight was no longer in danger, but he was still badly injured.

"My Law of Light can only do this much for now," Ethan quietly muttered.

His understanding of the Law of Light had greatly increased, but healing severe injuries still consumed a tremendous amount of power and he didn't want to waste his energy here.

Soon, more groans echoed from nearby.

Ethan quickly found the remaining Transcendent Knights buried beneath the rubble.

One after another, he used his holy light to heal them.

Their wounds slowly recovered, and their bleeding stopped, but none of them returned to full strength. Every one of them remained exhausted and badly injured.

One of the older knights slowly sat up while leaning against a broken boulder.

He looked toward Ethan and gave a grateful nod.

"Thank you, Sir Ethan."

Another knight slowly shook his head.

"If not for Lady Heliana protecting us..."

He lowered his gaze toward the ruined battlefield.

"...we might not have survived that explosion."

The others quietly nodded.

Even now, they could clearly remember the endless walls of ice standing between them and the explosion.

Although every barrier had eventually shattered, it had greatly weakened the blast before it reached them.

"But where is she?"

One of the knights suddenly muttered.

His words caused everyone to freeze.

The surrounding battlefield instantly became quiet.

Ethan's expression changed.

He immediately looked around.

The others also began searching through the endless wasteland.

After several moments, one of the knights suddenly pointed into the distance.

"There!"

Everyone followed his finger.

Far away, a strange area remained untouched by the explosion.

A massive dome of ice still stood there.

Its surface was covered with countless cracks while cold mist continuously drifted around it.

Without wasting another moment, Ethan immediately ran toward it.

The others followed close behind.

As Ethan reached the cracked ice barrier, his footsteps slowly stopped.

His pupils suddenly shrank.

He stood there in complete silence.

What sat within the broken ice made even him feel shocked to the core.

Heliana quietly sat on the ground.

Her body was covered with countless thin cracks that spread across her skin like broken porcelain.

The cracks did not look like ordinary injuries.

Instead, they looked as though her entire body had nearly shattered from within.

Even the crystal staff beside her was covered with fine cracks.

She slowly raised her head.

Her expression remained as calm as ever.

Seeing Ethan standing there, she spoke in her usual emotionless voice.

"Sir Ethan."

"Can you hold the others back so they do not see me?"

Ethan immediately understood.

Without asking another question, he turned around.

He quickly raised one hand toward the approaching knights.

"Stop."

The others immediately halted.

"What happened, Sir Ethan?"

One of them asked with a worried expression.

Ethan calmly replied,

"We can't go ahead."

"There is a problem."

"What problem?"

For a brief moment, Ethan remained silent.

Then he awkwardly cleared his throat.

"Wardrobe dysfunction."

"..."

The surrounding knights instantly fell silent.

They looked at one another with strange expressions before quietly turning their faces away without asking another question.