This time I chose Paladin.

Chapter 256 "Those who commit evil are not human, kill them and eat them—!"

Those who commit evil are not human; kill them and eat them.

These eight characters, like an ancient decree, carry the resolute determination to freeze all things and the most primal sense of judgment.

This is not an ordinary skill incantation, but the most steadfast and cruel belief deep within Han Jiangxue's heart!
In her view, once one chooses to do evil, especially evil like Star Ember that bewitches people and destroys civilization, one has already alienated oneself from the realm of humanity.

There is no need for pity when dealing with inhuman villains. Only the most thorough destruction, even to the point of annihilating their existence, can deter evil and comfort the souls of the dead!
No one knows what Han Jiangxue has seen or experienced, or why she possesses such a terrifying belief. Her belief even attacks herself; it's a massive time bomb…

And now, everyone saw a winged and slender ice dragon, a dragon that was definitely not human!
—Girl, holy crap…no wonder you never use your Faith skill!
Yi Jian frantically dodged a star strike, scratching his head frantically as he fired while subconsciously thinking about how to improve Han Jiangxue's social relationships and public reputation. Even though he knew that if they couldn't win today, they probably wouldn't need to think about this issue anymore, he still instinctively considered these things for the people around him.

Han Jiangxue slowly opened her eyes. Her dragon eyes were like two burning golden flames. Although she was looking up, it seemed as if she was looking down at [the origin and destruction of the stars].

The dragon's might, combined with substantial extreme cold, caused the originally scorching temperature in a vast surrounding area to plummet, almost freezing the air itself.

Meanwhile, on her profile panel, which she almost never showed to anyone, her profession, which had been hidden for so long, finally revealed its true form.

That was a name that sent chills down your spine just by looking at it—

[The Ice Age Extinction]

"Roar--!"

The ice dragon raised its head and let out a deafening roar, the sound waves mixed with cold air shattering the scattered starlight around it.

Without any hesitation, she flapped her enormous dragon wings. Although she was unfamiliar with this body and her own mobility was barely adequate, especially her huge frost dragon wings, which were not yet able to effectively generate airflow to allow her to truly soar.

But at this moment, Han Jiangxue, with the imposing force of an icy river, leaped up and pounced straight at the statue in the sky!

I learned to move forward after following someone...

...She was no longer willing to be hindered by anything!

A dragon's roar echoed between heaven and earth. Han Jiangxue decisively abandoned her clumsy attempt to fly and the huge dragon claws gripped the base of the statue!
That was the outer structure depicting the ascension of the winged beings, and also the perfect point of leverage. Like a ferocious beast climbing a precipice, the ice dragon used its sharp claws and immense strength to begin its ascent up the steep statue—as if scaling an iceberg!
The ice dragon's eyes burned.

Yes, I am very bad at sports.

—But I have overcome icebergs, and today, I will overcome you!
Along the way, the ascended winged statues became her stepping stones. Her enormous dragon claws slashed down, tearing the various star-stone statues from their bodies without a second glance, and hurling them into the darkness into the distance!

Pebbles flew everywhere, stardust scattered, her actions were savage yet efficient, full of primal destructive power.

She wasn't climbing, she was destroying! She was going to dismantle this statue, a symbol of despair and destruction, inch by inch, starting from the bottom!

Is it painful when hatred burns?
Then tear the enemy apart!

With each tear, the dragon's body rose one step higher. Amidst the protective glow of the skill effects, the ice dragon surged upwards along the statue, leaving a trail of destruction in its wake.

Her goal was clear—the core of the statue, the place where Ping Xingdou, the 'core,' was sealed! Faced with Han Jiangxue's overwhelming hatred and the terrifying destructive power brought by the transformation into a dragon, the Star Ashes were not afraid at all. Instead, the overlapping voices of countless dead souls burst into an even louder and more ear-piercing roaring laughter, full of sarcasm and the meaning of 'as expected'.

"Behold! This hatred! This destructive desire!"

"This is the essence of life! It's not about right or wrong, but about power and choice!"

"Your current state, the fire of hatred in your heart, is the very state that I and others have witnessed in countless worlds!"
"Embrace it! This is the real you! It is also the manifestation of the laws of the stars!"

Their proselytizing intensified, attempting to incorporate Han Jiangxue's act of revenge into their logic of 'the strong define reality,' thereby undermining the meaning of her actions.

Han Jiangxue's reply was: "Shut up!"

Each attack, each ascent, perfectly embodied her extreme and ruthless belief—[Those who commit evil are not human, kill and eat them]. That cold method of destruction not only impacted the Star Ember Statue, but also stirred a violent echo deep within her own soul.

This belief is a double-edged sword, especially after she personally killed Yun Shu. When she judges Xing Jin and those believers by the standard of 'inhuman evil,' isn't her past self—decisive, efficient, and ruthless towards threats—also 'non-good' in another sense?
Her former decisiveness turned into an irreversible cruelty the moment Yun Shu fell. The pain brought by this self-examination was like countless ice needles, piercing her will with the surge of power, making even her dragon-transformed body feel waves of tremors originating from her very soul.

Self-judgment and self-attack begin the moment one's beliefs waver.

But she won't stop.

"I'm going to...kill them!"

All past experiences became fuel; suppression gave way to an explosion, the most violent rage burning within the coldest soul. Han Jiangxue roared inwardly, all sins, all rights and wrongs, would be settled one by one after the enemy before her was utterly destroyed!

While spontaneously assisting and covering Han Jiangxue's ascent, Yi Jian and the others were also deeply shocked by this scene.

They never imagined that Han Jiangxue, who was always calm to the point of being indifferent, actually harbored such a terrifying and resolute belief.

Hatred transformed into power, and sorrow forged scales and claws. The ice dragon, transformed from Han Jiangxue, rampaged through the statues, its claws shattering star stones wherever they touched, and the winged statues symbolizing ascension fell like insects with their wings torn off.

As a piece of the winged human's shell was torn off, the ice dragon climbed onto the massive black rock in the center. It took a deep breath and, amidst the storm, forcefully unleashed its unfamiliar dragon breath!
This is no longer an ice spike or icefall released in human form, but rather like the arrival of an ice age!

Wherever the breath passed, even the wind seemed to freeze. The star stones on the surface of the statue were covered with ice the moment they touched the dragon's breath, and then were smashed into pieces by a claw!

This irrational and primal destructive approach clearly touched a nerve with Star Ember.

Their tone, which had always carried a certain superiority and seemed to be proclaiming the truth, finally couldn't be maintained.

"You're going to die—!"

The light of countless stardust converged into a roar that was a mixture of anger and madness.

The nebula surrounding the colossal statue began to swirl at unprecedented speeds, emitting a chilling roar! In this force, matter was worn away, ice shattered, scales and claws were abraded, and life hung in the balance!
"You will all die—this is a fact yet to come! This is a fact yet to come!"

(End of this chapter)