In the dark expanse, hundreds of lavender magic circles, each about ten centimeters in diameter, hovered in the air, unleashing a relentless barrage of light beams into the sky.
Among the ceaseless artillery fire, dozens of blue ghosts darted swiftly through the gaps between the beams, living up to their name.
Navigating through the intense onslaught, the ghosts struggled to avoid the beams. Many were struck and dissipated, leaving them unable to reach their target. Instead, they scurried aimlessly, pursued by the relentless light beams.
Below the magic circles, a fierce clash of light and shadow unfolded.
Ophis effortlessly evaded a skeleton's weapon thrust and drew a golden sword from her treasury, dispatching another skeleton with ease. As two more skeletons with spears leapt toward her, Ophis deftly leaped backward, avoiding their attacks. The skeletons attempted to follow, but were repelled by a volley of treasures from her arsenal.
With casual precision, Ophis threw the sword at one of the skeletons, then conjured magic cannons to neutralize two incoming energy attacks. She quickly devoured two skeleton mages and retreated, avoiding energy cannons firing from all directions.
As she halted, three more skeletons armed with bone blades approached from different angles. Ophis frowned, swiftly dodged two of them, and then drew a long sword to slice through the third. She maneuvered to keep the two remaining skeletons in front of her, allowing one to disarm her, before she jumped back.
The treasure she had launched into the air erupted in a dazzling burst, transforming into meteors that crashed to the ground, shattering the two skeletons into pieces.
Without pausing, Ophis summoned hundreds of her king's treasures, which fired a barrage of projectiles at the advancing skeletons.
However, two skeletons bearing massive bone shields charged forward, sacrificing themselves to shield their comrades from the onslaught.
A skeleton wielding a spear and sword leaped high into the air, aiming to strike Ophis.
"Mode switch."
Ophis waved her hand, and the golden ripples behind her transformed. She launched her treasures at the airborne skeleton once more. Although the power of the launch seemed reduced, the speed of the treasures increased exponentially.
In an instant, the golden light engulfed the skeleton mid-air.
Ophis then conjured a whirlwind of magic, which formed a barrier before her, intercepting the incoming energy cannons.
"Detection completed."
With a snap of her fingers, a magic circle appeared above the sources of the energy cannons, unleashing a rain of purple cannon fire.
All the skeleton mages were annihilated in her perception.
Turning her attention back to the remaining skeleton warriors, Ophis prepared for her next move.
Gilgamesh, the heroic spirit Ophis replaced, was known as the first Hero King, the earliest recorded 'Original Heroic Spirit' to claim the title of hero.
This wasn't because he was truly the world's first hero, but because he was the first hero to be recorded in epic tales, making him the first in the heroic annals.
Many heroes existed before Gilgamesh, but they faded into obscurity, never reaching the status of Heroes.
Nevertheless, these forgotten heroes' spirits flowed into the underworld, their skills and abilities claimed by Ereshkigal, now standing as Ophis's foes.
Their strength might be diminished from their mortal days, but their sheer numbers were still formidable.
The ghosts above were nearly eradicated, and the mages relying on artifacts for magical power were also mostly defeated. The remaining warriors posed no real threat.
[You are to be commended for handling this level of challenge. How about this?]
As Ophis contemplated, Ereshkigal's voice resonated from all directions.
In response, the ground around Ophis began to tremble violently.
"Roar—"
Three enormous bone dragons erupted from the ground, their throatless roars echoing through the space.
At the same time, the remaining skeleton warriors surged forward.
Ophis regarded the three bone dragons with a light smile and drew a long sword, but refrained from using any additional weapons.
Instead, a colossal golden ripple appeared, parallel to the ground, spanning dozens of meters in the air.
From the golden ripples, a giant made of strange stones descended.
The giant's landing caused a tremor comparable to that of the bone dragons' emergence, unsettling all enemies.
The giant, unaffected by the disturbance, drew a massive sword from the golden ripples and slashed through the bone dragons with ease.
[Shit, wait, this isn't fair…]
Ereshkigal's surprised exclamation, seemingly unaware of the microphone, accompanied the giant's swift destruction of the three bone dragons.
This was the giant's only feat.
As Ereshkigal's reaction time was calculated, countless explosions erupted around the giant, turning it to dust in an instant.
After dispatching the last skeleton warrior, Ophis smirked.
"What about opening the way now?"
With her weapon sheathed, Ophis muttered to herself.
[You seem to have misunderstood, King of Uruk. Defeating all enemies is not the condition for passing. This level is a test of wisdom. First, you must—wait, let me reconsider. These old tricks are for the past. It's time for the new generation to make changes. I'll open the door now… Don't cause any trouble!]
Ophis shrugged, sheathed EA, and made her way toward the space door before her.