The four beams of blue light met in the sky above the city, creating a spectacle that captured everyone's attention.
At the convergence point, a sphere formed.
Where the sphere was, energy began expanding like a luminous spider web, smaller rays extending in perfect geometric patterns while covering an ever-growing area.
"Must be the new barrier," Mei observed the phenomenon with scientific intensity. "The one God mentioned we'd have to feed with a million points per deposit."
But something in the way the light sphere pulsed, in how it seemed almost... alive, made Elio feel a knot in his stomach. That sixth sense that had saved his life so many times screamed that something wasn't right.
"We should return to the city," he began, but Kriz interrupted him with a laugh.
"Come on, boss! Where's your adventurous spirit?" Brok nodded, supporting his friend. "God was exaggerating about the fire Artromus. We didn't even have to try!"
The argument died on their lips when a tremor shook the ground beneath their feet. It wasn't like the small vibration produced by the statue's crystal emerging; this was different, deeper, more intense and more... rhythmic.
What remained of the sea of cores began behaving erratically, as if responding to some invisible force.
Those huge formations they had discovered after reducing the number of cores: four massive and symmetrical elevations that divided the space between deposits.
They began to move.
If someone had drawn an aerial view of the carbon tunnels they had built, the first conquered ring would have looked like a pie cut into four equal parts.
In the pie's center would be the city.
But when consuming the cores, they would have had to draw 4 more lines.
In the center of those 4 'slices', another 4 lines divided the pie into 8 slices, those perfectly symmetrical protrusions that rose gently toward the sky.
Mei and Ren had spent entire days debating theories about their origin. The symmetry was too perfect to be natural, but who or what had created them? Their calculations had only served to determine that the amount of available cores would be much less than expected due to these formations.
Now, as the tremor intensified, those same elevations began to move.
Before them, emerging from the ground with the majesty of a nascent mountain, the new divine wall rose until connecting with the energy barrier that the rays had woven in the sky.
Saving them just in time from the new tide of monsters.
These walls were different: taller, more massive, designed for a scale that made their current protection seem tiny.
The structure blocked their view of the approaching horror, but the monsters' roar still resonated as a reminder of what lurked on the other side.
"Four million points..." Mei murmured, remembering God's words. "Now I understand why we'll need so much mana to maintain this barrier."
Elio observed the new wall, his mind calculating dimensions and resources. It was magnificent protection, yes, but also a monumental responsibility. Four deposits, four million points, and beyond... an army of monsters that made their previous "sea of monsters" seem like a pond in comparison.
"That sea of monsters must have been there from the start," Taron reflected while the group observed the new wall. "Only now we can see it... or at least we could see it for a moment."
"No one in the city will believe this!" Valeria let out a laugh, though there was a touch of nervousness in her voice. "Can you imagine? 'Oh yeah, we saw another giant sea of monsters, a wall being born from the ground, and a second barrier falling from the sky'. They'll think we're crazy."
The initial tension began dissipating. Several builders were already animatedly discussing the technical aspects of what they had just witnessed, as if the horror they had glimpsed was just another trivial problem to solve in the future.
Elio, however, frowned while contemplating the light beams that still connected the deposits with the barrier. "We don't know how the deposits' interface will work," he murmured, more to himself than to others.
"You're right," Mei approached, her analytical mind already working on the problem. "We'll need to establish an efficient system. Bring people to help with maintenance, organize shifts..." She stopped, her eyes shining with possibilities. "We could use the existing tunnel structure..."
Brok approached Elio, rescuing the blue sphere from Kriz's hands, who had been tossing it in the air like a toy. "I think this belongs to you, boss."
Elio took the core, remembering God's words about a surprise in the city's statue. "Maybe we should return first and..."
A buzz cut through the air like a whip.
"WATCH OUT!"
Elio's eyes blazed with crimson intensity, his perception expanding just in time. He ducked, feeling the air displace above his head where, a fraction of a second before, his neck had been. Something had tried to decapitate him and snatch the Fire King's core.
The calm of victory shattered in an instant.