For the strong, the concept of a timeline is nothing like it is for regular folks. Unless you’re a mountain giant who dumped all your points into brute force, most powerhouses find their reflexes get a little sharper as their strength grows. With faster reflexes, even a few seconds can stretch into a dozen rounds of attack and defense.
When the big shots clash, it could turn into an epic all-nighter, or life and death could be decided in a flash.
Outside Mount Doom, in clusters of buildings, the White Alliance and the remnants of the monster army are still duking it out. Elven archers nock their arrows, spider-mutants roar and brandish their blades—these moves should happen in a split second, but from the perspective of the strong, this ‘long’ moment is enough to pull off all sorts of maneuvers.
Like scouting for a route, luring monsters, throwing a punch here and there to keep aggro, jogging a bit to wait for the right moment—anything to avoid losing track of that guy who looks like a flaming bull demon.
Deep beneath the crust, in the blazing rock layers, Jill Young and the Balrog were already racing toward the heart of Mount Doom. In no time, the cave network branched out in all directions, and the cracks glowed with more and more lava. Sulfurous, blood-red light seeped from every nook, weird howling echoed everywhere, and the heat would knock out any normal person in seconds. This was the closest thing to hell in Middle-earth.
"You can't run from me!!" The Balrog’s roar thundered from behind, echoing through the cavern and making the air shake. "I am immortal, relentless. You might escape for a moment, but you’ll never escape forever. In the end, you’ll die by my hand!"
Jill Young ignored it. While sprinting at top speed, she suddenly skidded to a halt and stopped in a huge lava-filled chamber.
"Whoa, so many tunnels?" In front of her was a massive rock wall peppered with a dozen different caves. From the echoes, you could tell each tunnel led somewhere else—some had the clang of metal, some had gut-wrenching screams. Clearly, these caves all connected to important places.
But Jill only needed to find one spot. If she picked wrong, not only would she waste time on a wild goose chase, she’d have to drag the Balrog along for the ride—and that would be way too much hassle. Time is money, especially since those two are still hauling around something way scarier than the Balrog. No way she’s wasting a second.
So, with all these tunnels, which one’s the right way? If Jack Young was online, he could just switch to energy vision and check. What a pain!
"Ah, forget it, whatever—I'll just pick one!" Jill grumbled, scratching her head. She stuck out her right index finger, pointing at the caves and muttering a sneaky rhyme: "Eenie meenie miney mo, catch a thief by the toe—ugh, that one’s ugly! The sounds coming from inside are creepy as heck. Nope, let’s go with the one next to it—alright, you’re the winner!"
Boom! The Balrog, charging like a raging bull, rounded the corner. Its hooves slammed into the ground with a thunderous rumble. Before it could even catch its breath, Jill Young had already darted into a tunnel and vanished in a flash.
The Balrog checked which way the tunnel led and instantly cheered up. At first, it was worried this woman might pick the right path—if she headed toward the lava lake and spooked Sauron, things could get messy. But the cave she dove into clearly wasn’t going there; it actually led somewhere much more advantageous for the Balrog.
"Hahaha! You’re just a rat running into a dead end—you're toast!" Not wanting Jill Young to escape, the Balrog stomped the ground with a crash and leapt into the tunnel at full speed. Hellish energy filled the cave, thicker and stronger than anywhere else. The swirling power seeped into its body, so no matter how wildly it burned energy, it never felt tired.
Boom boom boom—the Balrog’s hooves left flaming prints wherever they landed, belching clouds of black smoke. The hellish wind hit it head-on, making it feel absolutely exhilarated, blood pumping, like it could go out and slay a god. It wasn’t worried anymore, because it knew this path to hell was a one-way street.
And at the end of this one-way street, the opening led straight into the volcano’s main shaft—up above was the vast mouth of Mount Doom, and below, the churning, boiling lava.
In a blink of real time, the elven archer loosed an arrow, and the spider-mutant swung its cleaver.
In the time it takes for ten big strides, the Balrog barreled forward, rounded a bend, and saw the end of the road.
There she was—the white-haired woman, Jill Young, just standing there! Look at the lava gushing from the volcano’s mouth, like a thousand fire dragons belching flame into the sky. What’s the matter, stunned? I’ll admit, for a human, you’re strong, but no matter how tough you are, you’re still human. You can’t handle the heat from the lava. Even that Ring of Fire on your hand won’t save you. Go dive into the lava lake and die!
Thud thud thud—the Balrog unleashed its battle skill, doubling its speed until even it could barely control itself. Its wild power pulled all the hellish energy in the tunnel into a raging torrent, flooding toward Jill Young like a tidal wave.
Jill Young stood at the cave entrance, not even glancing at the Balrog. She looked up at the sky, then down at the ground, and suddenly slapped her thigh with glee: "This is it! My gut feeling is so good, it even scares me sometimes. Bwahahaha!"
Now that she’d reached her destination, Jill Young dropped the act. She spun around, glaring fiercely at the charging Balrog. "If I hadn’t lured you here on purpose, do you think you’d still be bouncing around?" She planted her feet, fists at her waist, left arm raised—finally ready for battle.
The Balrog barreled forward with unstoppable force, roaring as it crashed in. Jill Young’s brows shot up, lightning flickered in her eyes. Powered by martial emotions, her spirit surged to levels far beyond normal. Her Power Matrix erupted, stretching her subjective timeline even longer than the Balrog’s. In that split second, the Balrog, the wild wind, and the raging hell energy all seemed frozen in amber—while she alone could move freely inside it.
Crack! The Power Matrix lit up across her body, dragon power exploded skyward—Hyaah!
She stepped forward—ground shattered—and in a blur, slipped into the opening right in front of the Balrog. Her right fist shot out like a dragon bursting from its cave, roaring with the force to shake the heavens and earth, smashing through all obstacles—energy, matter, spirit—and slammed into the Balrog’s chest.
In that instant, the Balrog didn’t even have time to change its expression, but its eyes bulged out on instinct.
Crack crack—the fractured lines spread through the air. The force of this punch didn’t scatter like when she fought the mountain giant, but was tightly focused. Snap! The Balrog’s ribs shattered in a blink, and in that split second, the punch drove deep—deep—into its chest.
There seemed to be something special hidden in that fist…
At that moment—boom!—a flash of lightning streaked across Mount Doom’s mouth, and the flow of hellish energy suddenly became chaotic.
At that moment, Jill Young raised a finger and declared firmly, "One minute."
At the same moment, the Great Winged Demon glanced suspiciously at the volcano’s mouth. Even though its features were hidden behind a mask, it was clearly puzzled by the strange changes at Mount Doom. Without a powerful opponent to hold it back, it would have rushed straight to the volcano, sensing a terrifying shift—one that could affect everything, even Sauron's quest for godhood.
It couldn’t understand the cause of the change, but it absolutely refused to let it happen. With a single flap of its wings, it prepared to fly off at full speed.
But at that same moment, Jasper Xiao’s face grew stern and resolute as he realized his mission. He flipped his right hand, slamming his warhammer to the ground. Holy Light rippled out across the earth, creating a temporary sanctuary in the midst of hellish energy.
Gripping the hammer with his right hand, Jasper Xiao knelt on one knee and chanted a sacred phrase. At the same time, his left hand shifted through seals, sending one Holy Seal after another flying from his body.
"I grant you a moment of brilliance, to guard the temple in your heart!"
Seal of Protection!
"I grant you a lifetime of integrity, to defend the faith in your soul!"
Seal of Discipline!
"I grant you a hundred years of renown, to be a model for all living things!"
Seal of Justice!
Whoosh—Holy Light exploded, and Jasper Xiao’s eyes were now nothing but burning brilliance. Holy Light surged in all directions, forcefully pushing aside all negative energy and creating a sanctified domain where nothing evil could survive.
The sanctified domain spread out, enveloping the Great Winged Demon. It felt like it was soaking in acid, its whole body burning in Holy Light, unable to absorb a single drop of hellish power. After just coming back to life, the Great Winged Demon’s body was too strong to control, and the wraith’s soul struggled to suppress its instincts. This sudden change made it hesitate for a moment.
And in that brief moment, two men seized the opportunity and shot skyward.
"Go! Who cares if it’s immortal—we’re here to beat the immortal!" Jasper Xiao leapt high, his warhammer blazing, moving like a phantom and striking with the weight of a mountain, smashing down on the Great Winged Demon’s head. "Forget about that ‘one minute’ stuff—we can’t let a girl steal the show, let’s finish this!"
Jill Young didn’t say a word, just smiled and soared even higher. Her body flashed into icy jade, she spun and kicked, dragon shadows curled around her leg, and a classic Dragon Tail Sweep landed squarely on the Great Winged Demon’s face.
Boom—the attacks collided with the Great Winged Demon’s skull, sending infinite light blasting in all directions like a newborn star. Light crashed down from the sky, slamming into the earth—it looked like the Great Winged Demon was knocked down.
But when the light faded, the outcome was unexpected. The warhammer struck the back of its head, the heavy kick landed on its face, a double attack to the skull—yet the Great Winged Demon didn’t fall. Its helmet was dented, but quickly returned to shape. It cracked its neck, then slowly raised its sword, the black-red energy boiling more violently than ever.
Looks like it barely took any damage!
Whoosh—Jill Young and Jasper Xiao landed side by side, standing together.
"Okay, maybe I talked too big—this guy is seriously tough." The sanctified domain was draining too much energy, so Jasper Xiao dispelled it, wrapping himself in a mist of light. Three Holy Seals floated around him as he hesitated, "I still have a trump card, you know the one. But…"
"No rush. That move of yours is powerful—might even take this guy out—but for now, it’s probably only good for one shot, so save it for Sauron. Besides, my plan is about to work, don’t waste our strategy." Jill Young pointed, "Look, it’s already working."
In the sky, thick volcanic clouds began to churn uneasily, their flow shifting from chaotic to strange, and finally pouring back toward the volcano’s mouth.