BOOOOOOM!
The instant the colossal claw tore through the spatial gate and crushed into the plaza, the shockwave rippled outward like a violent storm. Stone shattered. Defensive formations flared instinctively. Dust and fractured runes spiraled into the air.
Every cultivator present retreated at least one step. Weapons flashed into existence. Spears, blades, spiritual constructs. Those with formidable cultivation opened their soul gates fully, their auras rising in layered waves of readiness.
The pressure radiating from that claw alone was suffocating. Ancient. Vast.
It was not merely powerful.
It was superior.
"Wait!!" Rinara's voice cut through the chaos. She raised a hand sharply, then began descending with deliberate calm. "Don't attack. Do you feel that?!"
The tension paused.
"…?"
Gradually, the gathered elders and hall masters focused again on the aura pouring from the portal. Confusion replaced hostility. Then disbelief.
That aura…
