Chapter 4386: The Difference

While dodging the continuous barrage of lasers, Harksha drove the airplane straight into the tunnel ahead. The moment the vessel crossed the threshold, Senkiyu and the other Aura Gods immediately moved into position at the rear compartment, their Godly Energy already circulating as they prepared their coordinated strikes against the structural pillars indicated earlier by Roan.

*Rumble!*

The combined attacks landed in sequence, and the already fragile underground support system gave way almost instantly. The tunnel began to collapse with a deep, violent groan that echoed through the entire passage system, forcing the pursuing guardians outside to abruptly halt their advance.

For a brief moment, their silhouettes could still be seen gathering at the entrance, but they did not linger. Instead, they scattered in multiple directions, clearly attempting to locate alternative entry points into the tunnel network rather than wasting time brute-forcing through a collapse that even they couldn’t immediately bypass.

Inside the tunnels, the situation grew even more tense.

Harksha and the others could clearly hear the Celestial Thrusters beginning to fail under sustained strain. The sound was no longer a stable roar but an uneven vibration, as if the propulsion system itself was struggling to maintain coherence. Even so, the airplane continued forward, barely stabilized by the remaining functional arrays.

Their flight did not last long in that unstable state. Only about a minute passed before the collapsing pressure behind them finally slowed and stabilized, indicating that the first cave-in had fully sealed that section. Shortly afterward, another minute of tense navigation through narrowing passages brought them to the exact location Roan had previously marked on the 3D map.

The airplane descended into the designated area, landing with controlled instability as Roan immediately stepped out to survey the surroundings. His decision to choose this place had been deliberate. "This place is significantly deeper compared to the other underground tunnel layers, and it only has two viable access paths leading here. One of those paths has already collapsed behind us, sealing the route we used to arrive, while the other remains structurally intact."

Without hesitation, he projected the updated 3D map data directly to the group through the RCs, highlighting the remaining tunnel structure and its weak points. "Senkiyu, Cantra, Fohui, you three come with me. We are going to destroy the pillars supporting the remaining path."

Harksha was visibly taken aback by that order. "Wait, you want to seal us in completely?"

Roan nodded without hesitation. "Yes. There is no meaningful escape route left at this point. All we can do now is buy time and hope Rean’s Disguise Array succeeds in stabilizing the Core extraction process."

He did not elaborate further, though there was a brief pause in his tone that suggested he had additional contingencies in mind. Truthfully, Roan did have at least one more escape plan prepared in case everything collapsed completely, but that option required sacrifices he was not yet willing to reveal to the group.

Instead, he continued issuing orders. "The rest of you will reinforce this section of the tunnel. Once we destroy the pillars on the other side, the resulting collapse will likely propagate back toward this location as well. We cannot allow the airplane to be crushed before Rean finishes his work."

Senkiyu swallowed nervously. "But... will we be able to return here in time before the collapse reaches us?"

"That’s where your best friend comes in," Kentucky replied casually as he reverted back into his original Black and White Minokawa form. His wings spread wide with a confident flap. "I’m flying back with you. Speed won’t be an issue."

"Alright, let’s go," Roan said without delay. He immediately jumped onto Kentucky’s back, signaling for Senkiyu, Cantra, and Fohui to follow.

The three of them instinctively glanced toward Harksha, and only after she gave a firm nod did they follow. Even now, Roan was still structuring his decisions in a way that preserved her remaining energy reserves. It was obvious he was counting on her if battle became unavoidable. That said, there was no point in questioning him further.

With that, Kentucky took off, his wings slicing through the confined underground air as he shot toward the opposite end of the tunnel system.

As for those who remained behind...

"He told us to reinforce this section so the collapse doesn’t reach us... but how exactly are we supposed to do that?" Rico’the asked while looking around the unstable surroundings.

Harksha narrowed her eyes as she assessed the structure. Her gaze swept across the walls, the ceiling supports, and the faint stress fractures spreading through the ancient stonework.

For a moment, she considered using Earth-element techniques to rapidly construct temporary reinforcement pillars, a basic approach most cultivators could manage regardless of their affinity, albeit with less efficiency than specialized users. However, before she could fully commit to that plan, something else drew her attention.

Nearby, Celis’s body suddenly shifted.

His humanoid form dissolved as he transformed back into his true state, the World Swallowing Cedar. Massive roots and dense vines erupted outward from him, spreading rapidly across the ground and into the surrounding stone structure.

These roots did not simply extend; they anchored themselves deeply, reinforcing structural stress points and forming living support columns that adapted continuously to pressure changes within the tunnel. Celis didn’t hesitate to consume and expend Godly Crystals, channeling energy directly into his growth to ensure the stability of the entire area. "This should be sufficient for now..."

Rico’the gave a bitter smile, feeling a faint sense of uselessness compared to Celis’s overwhelming efficiency. "Good work, friend."

Harksha ignored the exchange and instead focused her attention on the environment. The deeper structural design of the ruins felt subtly different from others she had encountered before. The markings along the walls were irregular yet strangely ordered, resembling runic engravings or perhaps some form of ancient directional carving.

She could not fully interpret them, but she had the sense they were not decorative. "These were likely used for some kind of transportation system in the past," she murmured to herself.

However, before she could investigate further, a sudden tremor cut through the tunnel.

*Boom!*

The sound echoed from the direction Roan and the others had gone, followed by a violent shaking of the ground. The collapse they had initiated had fully begun, and its destructive wave was now propagating through the tunnel system. At the same time, they could see Kentucky returning at full speed from the distance, weaving through falling debris.

Behind him, Roan and the others coordinated attacks mid-flight, striking down unstable rocks and collapsing fragments that threatened Kentucky’s trajectory, ensuring he could maintain maximum speed without evasive slowdown.

*Zush!*

*Crang!*

Soon after, the second tunnel section also began to give way completely. However, just as the collapse reached the reinforced zone, it abruptly stalled. Celis’s living root structure held firm, absorbing and redistributing the pressure while preventing the destruction from spreading further into their temporary refuge.

Kentucky landed moments later, reverting back into his humanoid form as he stepped forward with a slow exhale. "Well... now we are truly locked down."

Roan nodded slightly. "I’m not sure how quickly the guardians can dig through the collapsed material, but it should still buy us several more minutes at least."

Celis detached his main body from the root network. Even without him, it would sustain. "If nothing interferes, this should hold for quite a few days."

"That’s good enough," Roan replied.

Without wasting time, everyone returned to the airplane to assess Rean’s progress. Inside, Rean remained fully immersed in his work. The Guardian Core was suspended in the center of multiple layered arrays, each one pulsing intermittently as he adjusted them in real time.

Although he was clearly managing to extract small portions of energy from it, the reaction was unstable, and the output seemed far from satisfactory. Even the slightest fluctuation in Godly Pressure caused ripple distortions across the surrounding arrays.

Celis’s roots still coiled around the Core, preventing any possible movement.

No one interrupted Rean. They simply observed in silence, understanding that any distraction could cost them precious progress.

Still, Rean didn’t seem very happy. Anyone could see he wasn’t getting the results he wanted. It was hard to tell if he was going to succeed ot not, but it looked more and more like he wouldn’t.

At that moment, outside the airplane, something subtle began to change—unnoticed by everyone.

The faint markings Harksha had observed earlier along the tunnel walls began to glow with a dim, almost imperceptible light. At first, it was so weak that it could easily be dismissed as a trick of reflection, but gradually, the glow intensified. Godly Energy seeped out from the engravings, flowing along hidden channels within the stone until it converged behind one of Celis’s bigger root pillars.

There, the gathered energy began to condense.

It formed something small at first—barely a centimeter in diameter—but unmistakable in structure.

A Core.

Not just any core, but one nearly identical in nature to the ones inside the guardians, including the swirling runes. Yet before it could continue stabilizing or growing further...

’Red Death, Crimson Stellar Piercer!’

A sudden breach tore through the root pillar. A Crystal Void Spear shot through the opening with devastating precision, striking the forming Core at point-blank range.

*Bang!*

*Crack!*

*Plang!*

The Core shattered instantly into fragments of unstable energy, scattering before it could fully solidify. In the aftermath, Roan extended his hand and calmly caught the remnants mid-air, checking them closely.

Celis stepped forward from the side, his tone cold. "Hmph. Trying to manipulate energy right under my nose without being detected? Dream on!"

Surprisingly, Rean also appeared at that moment. However, he ignored both Celis and Roan entirely. His attention was fixed on the glowing runic patterns along the walls, his eyes narrowing with genuine interest rather than concern.

"I see..." he muttered. "So that’s where the difference lies, huh?"

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