Game World: I Can Share Talents

Even with Westheid's current perception and vision, he could only barely make out a general form within the flowing river of stars. The Dragon God Illusion's eyes were the two largest and most brilliant stars in the entire Star Sea.

One was a crimson vortex, the other an abyss of deep blue. With these star-sized eyes, the Dragon God Illusion looked down upon the world. Any being swept by that tremendous gaze felt a tremor shoot up their spine.

"So this is Star Abyss Wings... And it's just a condensed projection? Are you kidding me? What the hell kind of joke is this?!"

Westheid began to laugh. Though his body trembled as he faced the divine might, this primal tremor, far from inspiring fear, only made him more excited.

Reiya, however, was in immense distress. Faced with this tangible bloodline suppression, the Silver-haired Princess, who had always used her pure bloodline to dominate the Dragon Race, was experiencing the sensation of being suppressed for the very first time.

It was a powerlessness and obedience that welled up from the depths of her soul. Before the Dragon God Illusion, she couldn't muster a single shred of hostility... No, just managing to stand before this entity left Reiya pale and swaying unsteadily.

Westheid pulled Reiya into his embrace, preventing her from falling from the sky.

"West..."

Shame and helplessness appeared on the Silver-haired Princess's exquisite face, which was normally devoid of any hesitation or doubt. She said:

"I'm sorry, I'm afraid I can't fight alongside you anymore. I... COUGH, COUGH, COUGH..."

Westheid gently patted Reiya's back, feeling the White-haired Dragon Lady's body trembling uncontrollably. This warrior with a will of steel had never displayed such "weakness" before.

But this was by no means her fault. Any creature bearing Dragon Blood would react this way before the Dragon God Illusion. Reiya at least had her Holy Tree Bloodline to partially counteract the effect; the other members of the Dragon Race were already grovelling before the illusion, trembling as they frantically fled the battlefield.

"It's alright. Of course this isn't your fault... You need to fall back now."

Westheid said, steadying himself.

The sudden appearance of the Dragon God Illusion on the battlefield had changed the very nature of the war. With the emergence of a Celestial God's projection, all the powers of the Mortal World paled in comparison, rendered utterly meaningless.

The one piece of good news, if it could be called that, was that this manifested illusion of a Celestial God didn't appear to have a will of its own. It looked incredibly stiff and hadn't spoken a word. This was hardly surprising; simply sealing a portion of its power was already a monumental feat. If it could also host a will, how would that be any different from a Celestial God descending to the Mortal World?

After revealing its form, the "body" of the Dragon God Illusion began to flow. High in the firmament, the Dragon God's massive claws seemed to scoop up countless stars. Then, innumerable meteors began to fall.

They came like fire, like lightning, like brilliant flashes of light. They were falling stars, a heavenly conflagration.

Incandescent starfire rained down like a deluge, arriving in an instant. Anything struck by the searing meteors—be it a Floating Battleship, a Chaos Demon, a Dragon Beast used as cannon fodder, or any kind of Barrier—was instantly incinerated, reduced to the purest form of elemental energy.

"Starfire Falls!"

Someone cried out the name of this legendary Technique in a hoarse shout.

Compared to the heavenly fire of Scorching Wings, the Magic released by the Dragon God Illusion was far more overpowering and terrifying. From the seething, deep-blue firmament, it rained down countless resplendent objects.

RUMBLE—

In a short span of time, the canopy of Chaos that had covered the entire airspace was purged, leaving behind an iridescent afterglow.

Faced with such power, even Mivana lost her urge to be reckless, instead saying with rare composure:

"This projection seems to have a time limit. The best strategy is to keep our distance and wait for it to fade on its own."

"Exactly. The catch is, that's assuming this thing will let us leave."

Westheid shrugged, gave a wry smile, and then said to Mivana:

"Take Reiya and get back to the fleet. We've pushed a little too far ahead. That's both a good thing and a bad thing."

"The good thing is that the Dragon God Illusion's attacks won't reach the main fleet behind us. If this projection of Star Abyss Wings had unleashed its ultimate attack back there... the mental image is too horrible to contemplate. Half our forces would have been wiped out in an instant, and the whole expedition would have been over before it truly began."

"The bad thing... is that we don't have any cannon fodder left to draw its fire."

Westheid could already sense that, with the Chaos minions cleared away, its attention was now focused on him.

The sensation of being locked on was like a dagger to his back, as if divine retribution could descend at any moment.

This projection's operational logic seemed to be to "eliminate" all non-Dragon entities. After purging the Chaos Forces, it would prioritize the nearest and strongest target.

Westheid was first in line.

Reiya asked weakly, "West? What about you?"

Westheid smiled, his body still trembling slightly.

"I have to stay behind and buy some time, otherwise you won't get away. Don't worry, it's pretty hard to kill me... Besides, it's a rare chance to experience the vast might of a Celestial God. How could I possibly pass up seeing it for myself?"

Duke Qinghui had always been one to chase power, even at the risk of his own life. Seeing the projection of a Celestial God, he was practically rooted to the spot, absolutely insistent on experiencing that vast, magnificent power for himself.

Of course, he also had a perfectly valid excuse: buying time for his army to retreat. Such a self-sacrificing reason—wasn't that justification enough?

"Be very careful."

Though she was deeply uneasy, Reiya's trust in Westheid made her nod, a cold sweat beading on her brow. Even Mivana had no objection. If she had also been promoted to a Demigod, she would never have let Westheid take such a risk. But as things stood... only Westheid was qualified to be the one to hold the line.