The mist cleared, but the path ahead did not get any easier.

  Abyss Layer 9 — "Eye of the Storm."

  There was no solid ground here, only countless massive boulders suspended in a black hurricane. At the center of the storm lurked a "Storm Titan."

  This Titan was colossal, its body composed of rock and living lightning. Every swing of its massive hammer triggered local thunderstorms, weaving nets of destructive electricity.

  The Slayer stood on a floating rock, his Yin Yang Super Shotgun still venting cold mist.

  He attempted to draw the Crucible from his back.

  *Zzzzt—fizz...*

  The hilt of the energy sword flickered twice, then spat out a dim, pathetic blade of energy less than half a foot long.

  Out of juice.

  Throughout this long Abyssal crusade, the Crucible, as his core melee finisher, had been running at high capacity. The Argent Energy reserves were depleted, and the Abyssal environment had extremely low efficiency in replenishing this foreign energy source.

  The Slayer’s hand froze in mid-air.

  He stared at the "light dagger" that looked like it had snapped in half.

  Rage.

  He shook the hilt violently, as if trying to shake the energy out of it. Aside from a few sparks, nothing happened.

  The Storm Titan opposite him let out a mocking rumble of thunder, sending a thick bolt of lightning toward the Slayer.

  The Slayer was forced to sidestep, raising his shotgun to return fire. But he could clearly feel that without the deterrent of the Crucible's instant bisection capability, dealing with such heavy units had become extremely troublesome.

  ...

  Netherworld, Control Center.

  Singularity stared at the red [ENERGY CRITICAL] warning, distressed.

  "Argent battery is dead... and there's no gas station around here."

  Singularity turned around, his gaze falling on the massive black iron canister behind him, plastered with yellow sealing talismans (the very thing that nearly blew the control center sky-high just moments ago).

  Sealed inside was a stock of "Nine Heavens Mystic Thunder."

  This was a divine lightning bolt left behind by the Thunder Gods during Sun Wukong's havoc in Heaven eons ago, later contained by the Netherworld.

  A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

  But this thing was too dangerous.

  "This is extremely unstable, high-energy thunder element. Just to keep this can from exploding, the Netherworld spends 30% of its fiscal budget on suppression talismans every year," King Yama had complained countless times. "It's literally a time bomb that we pay rent to keep!"

  Singularity looked at the canister, then at the screen where the Slayer was forced to play tag with the Titan due to a lack of a sword.

  A bold idea (or perhaps a budget-saving plan) formed in his mind.

  "Since the maintenance cost is so high... why not turn it into a 'consumable'?"

  "Gifting it to the Slayer solves the Netherworld's safety hazard, saves a ton of money, and gives the Slayer a new battery!"

  "This is called... optimized allocation of state assets. I definitely need to have a word with that warehouse manager later."

  Singularity hesitated no more.

  He manipulated the robotic arms to carefully peel off the seals on the canister.

  *BOOM!*

  A beam of purple lightning instantly burst through the seal, causing the lights in the entire control room to flash violently.

  "Whoa, that's got some kick!"

  Singularity immediately activated the cross-realm teleportation array.

  "Slayer! Catch! This is your... 'Year-End Bonus' from the Netherworld!"

  ...

  Abyssal Battlefield.

  The Slayer had just shattered a flying boulder with a Blood Punch.

  Suddenly, the space above his head cracked open.

  Without warning, a pillar of purple lightning struck down from the rift, precisely hitting the dim hilt of the Crucible in the Slayer's hand.

  *ZZZZZZZZZTTTT————!!!*

  The Slayer’s arm jerked downward heavily.

  He felt a surge of energy—violent, wild, and almost scalding hot—flood into the hilt.

  The original red Argent Energy was instantly assimilated and devoured by this purple Mystic Thunder.

  *HUMMMM!*

  The hilt emitted a high-pitched, piercing shriek it had never made before.

  Then, a ten-meter-long blade of "Thunder Light," pure purple and wrapped in countless arcs of electricity, erupted forth.

  This was no longer simple thermal cutting.

  This was Thunderous Judgment.

  The Slayer gripped the reborn sword. The terrifying energy fluctuations made the armor on his arms vibrate.

  The Storm Titan froze. It was an expert in lightning itself, but it sensed a higher-dimensional law of thunder in that sword—the Divine Punishment Thunder from Heaven, specifically designed to execute demons.

  The Slayer didn't give it time to be surprised.

  He gripped the sword with both hands.

  Thrusters engaged.

  Like a streak of purple lightning, he charged straight at the Titan.

  The Titan raised its hammer to block.

  *SLASH!*

  No impact sound.

  The blade of thunder light sliced through the lightning hammer as if it were air.

  Then, it sliced through the Titan's neck.

  *BOOM!!!*

  The Titan's massive body stiffened for an instant, then erupted with countless purple arcs from the cut, exploding into powder from the inside out.

  The Slayer landed.

  The Thunder Sword in his hand was still humming, the arcs on the blade igniting the surrounding air.

  He looked at the sword.

  A bit "shaky" in the hand, but the power...

  The Slayer twirled the sword.

  Purple afterimages lingered in the air.

  He hung the sword back on his back. Even in standby mode, the sword occasionally spat out a spark or two, appearing extremely restless.

  But that was exactly what he wanted.

  In the Netherworld control room, Singularity let out a long sigh of relief looking at the empty black iron canister.

  "Phew... finally got rid of that hot potato. Yama will definitely give me a bonus for this."

  Singularity looked at the screen, at the Slayer now fully decked out in god-tier gear.

  Demon Dragon Thorn Armor.

  Yin Yang Shotgun.

  Auto-Targeting Shoulder Cannon.

  Nine Heavens Thunder Sword.

  And the Tiger Soul Chainsaw.

  "This look... isn't it a bit too flashy?"

  The Slayer stood in the center of the storm, every piece of equipment emitting a different colored light: red thorns of reflection, gold-blue shotgun glow, purple thunder sword aura, white chainsaw spirit.

  He looked like...

  "A walking neon arsenal?"

  Singularity smiled.

  *Next Chapter: Fully Armed. The Slayer's 'God Set' is finally complete. He now looks like a 'Pay-to-Win' player, walking with special effects everywhere.*