Infinite Paths: The Raging Phoenix-Chapter 1328: Machine gods

"Hahahaha! You truly are like a cockroach," A familiar voice echoed in the area. "Even after this, you are still alive? I guess I underestimated you, considering that you are someone from the same period of time."

From the middle of the crater, Rain emerged while holding the ominous sword that had been attached by the core of the chained beast... thanks to their combined powers, the weapon endured the impact of the giant meteor and also decreased its power that was supposed to be enough to destroy the whole world in a few moments... Rain pierced through it. However, he wasn’t unscathed.

Just like the other time, Rain emerged from the crater completely beaten up... the previous fights had taken a toll on him already, so the meteor could only do so much damage. Regardless, aside from his skull, Rain could tell that most parts of his body had cracked bones or heavily damaged muscles.

Rain looked around in hopes of finding the dragon god, but the asshole was nowhere to be seen... he had some nerve to kill steal Rain’s prey and still laugh as if that was the best joke in the world. It seemed that the dragon god had the chance to get rid of the monster at the very moment Arel used all of the energy in the world... that had dissipated the barrier that enveloped the whole thing.

"Where are you, asshole?" Rain asked.

"What are you going to do with that information?" The dragon god asked. "You are still weak. Usually, I would kill you right on the spot since I don’t do things half-assedly, but since you gave me a hand in settling an old grudge, I will give you and your pals a chance to survive the end of the prison. You will only have a couple of minutes, though."

Upon hearing the dragon god’s words, Rain’s gaze shifted from the crater’s center to the surrounding world, revealing a scene of apocalyptic turmoil. The planet itself seemed to writhe in agony, convulsing under the weight of the destruction. Fissures cleaved through the ground, rendering the landscape into a shattered mosaic. Geysers of molten lava erupted in all directions, casting an ominous glow that intensified the catastrophic ambiance.

The once-stable environment now bore the scars of a dying world, each tremor echoing the torment it endured. The very fabric of the realm seemed to unravel, and the air vibrated with the unsettling symphony of a world in its final moments. Rain, standing amidst the chaos, realized that the dragon god’s actions had set in motion a cataclysmic event that extended far beyond the confines of their immediate battleground. The seconds ticked away, and the window for survival appeared to narrow with each passing moment, leaving Rain and his companions with little time to contemplate their next moves in the face of impending doom.

"Since you all are useful retards, I will give you some tips that will help you survive for a bit longer," The dragon god said. "Get on their way as much as possible in order to give me the chance to kill them. Although that bitch still is alive."

"Fuck you," Rain said.

"I thought you were smarter than that, but I guess I can’t expect reason from someone who looked like shit in your current state," The dragon god said. "Anyway, you are in their territory now, and they have been ruling the cosmos for millions of years. They are essentially invincible, but perhaps you can work well as a distraction or bait for me. The final piece of information is that you are running out of time. I call them: the machine gods."

"What the...?" Rain said, completely stunned by confusion.

Rain stood amidst the chaos, utterly speechless at the dragon god’s weird revelation about the "machine gods." The term sounded insane, defying the logic of the struggle Rain had been mixed in. The concept of beings ruling the cosmos for millions of years and being deemed "essentially invincible" shocked him, especially in the midst of a collapsing world.

The confusion deepened as Rain grappled with the weirdness between Arel’s takeover of a body and the dragon god’s mention of machine gods. The pieces of the puzzle refused to align, leaving Rain with more questions than answers. As the dragon god’s words echoed in the chaotic air, Rain’s analytical mind desperately sought to comprehend the gravity of the situation.

Simultaneously, a realization struck Rain. The mana in the world was undergoing a profound transformation. The dragon god’s mana presence disappeared, and it heightened the urgency. They were running out of time, and the cataclysmic events unfolding around them showed the need to escape the dying planet. As the seconds ticked away, Rain’s focus shifted from the perplexing notion of machine gods to the immediate task at hand, survival in a world that teetered on the brink of annihilation.

Even in that battered state, Rain used his domain, alongside lightning magic compressed around his body to increase his speed... he flew as fast as possible toward the others. Fortunately, he found them in the middle of the path... Esmeralda, Branden, and the others were with them. A bunch of members of the group were half dead, and the others barely had any mana to heal them.

"What happened?" Terra asked. "The monsters suddenly fell dead, and then that massive tremor..."

"We can talk about that later," Rain said. "Buckle up. We will have to leave this place in a hurry. I will leave the defense job for you all."

Rain summoned his domain and then enveloped the whole group. The whole thing began to shake before it propelled itself toward the sky... and it crossed the atmosphere in a matter of seconds. Everyone felt the pressure of the speed, and they felt like their bodies were being crushed, but soon the trip became more stable as they left the world... but soon massive explosions began to take place on it...