By the time Lumine and the others came back to their senses, Lora had already subdued the Abyss Herald.
"S-So strong…" Paimon stared at Lora's back in shock. "I already knew she was powerful—she can even suppress a god as strong as the Overlord of the Vortex—but seeing it again is still so shocking."
Dainsleif remained where he stood, watching her deal with the Herald with effortless ease. Yet his expression showed little surprise.
For a god, defeating an Abyss Herald so easily was only natural.
The Abyss Herald beneath her foot howled in pain. Lora looked down at him expressionlessly and asked,
"Where is your 'Prince'? Where is your headquarters? And where is Rhodeia?"
The Herald gasped painfully, struggling to break free from her restraints.
But Lora was a god. How could an Abyss Herald possibly escape her control?
The water arrows embedded in his body suddenly burst open, streams of water spreading through his limbs.
The Abyss Herald's screams grew even more agonized.
"Answer my questions," Lora said coldly.
The Herald gasped for breath and spat through clenched teeth.
"Hmph… I will never betray His Highness the Prince! You… you will never find where your kin are, Hydr—"
Before he could finish his sentence, Lora smashed his head apart with a water hammer.
Lumine and the others hurried over.
"Lora, are you alright?" Lumine asked with concern.
Paimon also noticed Lora's mood and quickly said,
"Don't be upset! We'll definitely find Rhodeia, don't worry!"
Lora looked down at the Abyss Herald's body slowly dissolving on the ground and let out a quiet sigh.
"Don't worry. I'm not going to lose my composure over this," she said calmly. "Let's go. We should check what's happening in that room."
"Okay!" the others nodded.
However, as Lora passed by Dainsleif, she noticed him step slightly backward, putting some distance between them.
Noticing this, she spoke softly,
"With what you just saw… if I really wanted to deal with you, do you think you could dodge my attack?"
Dainsleif said nothing.
Lora didn't press him further and simply followed Lumine ahead.
When they returned to the room with the purification pool, they saw that the machine placed there by the Abyss Order had already begun operating.
A massive beam of golden light shot upward into the pool, drastically amplifying its cleansing power.
Across the entire inverted city, both the Black Serpent Knights and the Hilichurls began to writhe in agony.
Even Dainsleif was clearly enduring immense pain.
Lora noticed his condition and said firmly,
"We have to shut down that machine. Otherwise, both the Black Serpent Knights and the Hilichurls will suffer even more!"
Dainsleif clenched his fists.
Even now, he still harbored a deep resistance toward the Seven. Though he knew the direct cause of Khaenri'ah's destruction had been the Abyss, the moment he saw the Seven Archons descend upon Khaenri'ah and destroy both the Abyss and the nation itself, the seed of resentment had already been planted.
At that moment, Halfdan appeared before them.
He walked toward the machine step by step.
Then he suddenly threw himself forward, using his own body to block the beam emitted by the device.
"Is it over?" Paimon asked anxiously.
Dainsleif shook his head.
"No. Halfdan is only blocking the machine. It must be completely shut down."
Just as the group prepared to act, a bolt of purple lightning suddenly shot out from somewhere unseen.
It streaked past them and slammed into the wall behind them, leaving a scorched crater.
"Ah! Who was that?" Paimon cried out.
A tall purple figure slowly emerged before them.
"Another member of the Abyss Order," Dainsleif said with a frown.
Paimon quickly floated behind Lumine, clutching her shoulder.
"It's an Abyss Lector! First an Abyss Herald, and now an Abyss Lector… just how many Abyss Order members are here?!"
"The kingdom is about to awaken. I will not allow anyone to interfere with its rebirth," the Abyss Lector declared coldly.
His gaze fell directly on Lora.
"Especially you—the executioner who destroyed the kingdom."
Lora said nothing.
She simply raised the weapon in her hand, "Judgment of the Raging Sea," and swung it toward the Abyss Lector.
Seeing the attack coming, the Lector immediately slipped into another dimension and teleported away.
But the moment he emerged from the portal, countless chains formed from condensed water pierced through his body.
They hoisted him into the air, completely immobilizing him.
Under the stunned gazes of everyone present, Lora slowly walked up to the suspended Abyss Lector.
In a voice only the two of them could hear, she said quietly,
"Allowing one of the Seven Archons to walk into your base was your greatest mistake."
"I was originally planning to ask you about Rhodeia."
"But thinking about it, none of you would answer anyway. It would just be a waste of time."
"I'll find out myself."
"So you might as well die."
After saying that, Lora raised "Judgment of the Raging Sea" and cut off the Abyss Lector's head.
The head rolled across the ground as the body began dissolving.
Lora put away her weapon and looked back at the others.
"What are you standing there for? Go shut down the machine."
Only then did the others snap out of their shock.
Without hesitation, they rushed to the surrounding rooms and began shutting down the mechanisms one by one.
After a period of frantic work, the machine finally stopped.
Lora looked at the device, then lifted her head toward the purification pool above and let out a quiet sigh.
The curse imposed by the Heavenly Principles was something even she could not undo.
The Hilichurls were destined to bear that burden.
This was the price Khaenri'ah paid for choosing the Abyss.
Lora did not regret destroying Khaenri'ah.
Nor did she regret that the Hilichurls had become what they were because of it.
Dainsleif walked over to Halfdan.
He stared silently at the lifeless body of his former comrade for a long moment.
Lumine and the others remained quiet behind him, allowing him this moment with his old companion.
But just as Dainsleif turned to leave—
Halfdan's body slowly began to emit a sky-blue glow.
Ribbon-like streams of light spread throughout the entire room.