One Piece: The Unrivaled Dragon Man: I am God's Agent!

Chapter 275: The Guardian of the Anchor of Fate

On the other side of the portal of light, the guardians found themselves in a completely different world. The space here seemed beyond their comprehension—the rules of time, space, and energy intertwined to form a vast network of light, at the center of which stood a colossal temple floating in the void.

“That is the Anchor of Destiny.” Ares gazed at the distant temple, its shape seemingly composed of countless runes, each slowly rotating and releasing incredible energy fluctuations.

“These runes… they seem to constitute the core rules of the universe,” Selena said after analyzing them with a scanner. “The Anchor of Fate may not just be a physical entity; it may be the embodiment of the rules themselves.”

Wagner looked up at the temple, a cold smile playing on his lips. "Sounds complicated enough, but we only need one objective—to protect it, or to crush any who dare to approach."

“Be careful,” Ares cautioned. “Since the rift brought us here, it must have been prepared. Don’t underestimate any details.”

The three cautiously approached the temple, but before they had gone far, complex arrays of runes suddenly lit up the ground. These runes resembled an ancient defensive mechanism, intertwining to form an energy net that trapped the guardians within.

"This is... the chains of time!" Selena exclaimed, her body unable to move, as if time had been frozen at a certain moment.

"These runes are absorbing our energy!" Ares felt the light of the rune sword gradually dimming. He gritted his teeth and tried to mobilize all his power to break through the constraints of the rune array.

“I hate all this fancy stuff!” Wagner roared, swinging his battle axe with all his might and slamming it into the runes on the ground. The powerful impact caused a brief crack in the rune array, but it wasn’t enough to completely break the bindings.

"Wait!" Ares suddenly felt a faint tremor in the rune sword. He closed his eyes and concentrated on sensing the energy flow of the runes. He discovered that the rune array was not random; it had a fixed energy cycle.

"The core of the rune array is at the ten o'clock position ahead," Ares shouted. "We just need to destroy the core, and it will collapse!"

Upon hearing this, Wagner charged in the direction Ares indicated without hesitation. He leaped into the air, channeling all his power into his battle axe, and slammed it into the ground. With a deafening roar, the core of the rune array shattered, and the surrounding binding force instantly dissipated.

"Done!" Wagner panted, hoisting his battle axe. "This damn thing was really tough to deal with."

Selena quickly adjusted her equipment and warily scanned her surroundings. "This is just the outer defense; there must be a much more powerful force waiting for us inside the rift."

As they finally approached the temple, a massive barrier blocked their path. This barrier was not made of ordinary energy, but of pure power of rules, every inch of it shimmering with the brilliance of cosmic runes.

“This barrier seems to be filtering… it’s not allowing anything that doesn’t conform to the rules to enter,” Selena said, frowning. She tried to analyze it with a scanner, but the data was a jumbled mess. “It’s actively interfering with our technology.”

“In other words, it doesn’t welcome us.” Wagner sneered as he swung his battle axe at the barrier, but the powerful recoil sent him flying several meters.

Ares raised his rune sword, feeling the repulsive force emanating from the barrier. He tried to channel his energy into the sword, attempting to resonate with the barrier. At that moment, a phantom suddenly appeared in the center of the barrier.

"You should not have come here." The phantom's voice was majestic and cold, as if it came from the depths of endless time. "The anchor of destiny cannot be desecrated, and you have brought uncontrollable variables."

"Who are you?" Ares gripped the rune sword, his gaze fixed coldly on the phantom.

“I am the guardian of the Anchor of Destiny,” the phantom replied. “My existence is to maintain the rules of the universe, and your arrival will destroy all of that.”

"Destruction?" Selena sneered. "The will of the Rift has infiltrated this place, and it is tampering with your so-called rules! We are here to protect the Anchor of Destiny!"

"The will of the rift is inextricably linked to the flaws in the rules," the Guardian's voice was deep. "The essence of the rules is constraint, while the essence of the rift is breakthrough. Your existence cannot repair the rules; it will only accelerate the awakening of the rift."

"Then we'll have to use force!" Wagner roared as he charged toward the barrier, attempting to force his way through.

The phantom smiled coldly, its figure instantly solidifying into a fully armed warrior, wielding a spear made of pure rule power, blocking Wagner's attack.

The Guardian's power was beyond imagination; each of its attacks carried an extremely precise strike of the rules. Wagner's every swing was perfectly deflected by the spear, while the Guardian's counterattacks were almost too much for him to handle.

“It’s not just powerful, it represents the absoluteness of the rules.” Selena fired while searching for an opening, but her bullets were all neutralized by the power of the rules when they touched the Guardian’s body.

Ares wielded his runeblade and clashed head-on with the Guardian. He discovered that the Guardian's fighting style wasn't entirely proactive; its attacks were based on feedback from the enemy's actions. This counter-attack mechanism made it virtually defenseless.

“Its power comes from reacting to the rules,” Ares said, panting. “We can’t deal with it in the conventional way; we must make it unpredictable in our actions!”

“Then we’ll have to resort to some crazy tactics!” Wagner grinned. He suddenly changed his offensive approach, abandoning direct confrontation and instead using seemingly chaotic movements to disrupt the Guardian’s rhythm.

Selena immediately understood Wagner's intention. She used her sniper rifle to create multiple false targets, forcing the Guardians to divert their attention in multiple directions.

Ares seized the moment when the Guardian was distracted, concentrating the power of his rune sword to its limit and slashing towards its core. The Guardian attempted to retaliate, but the energy of this strike far exceeded its expectations, tearing through its defenses.

The guardian's body gradually disintegrated, its voice echoing in the air, "You may have passed the trial, but the power of the Anchor of Destiny will not easily accept any external force."

As the guardian vanished, the temple's barrier slowly opened, revealing a staircase leading deeper into the temple. Countless intricate runes were engraved on the walls on either side of the staircase, radiating a soft glow.

"Finally here." Wagner breathed a sigh of relief, hoisting his battle axe. "Hopefully, there won't be any more strange things inside."

Ares gazed into the depths of the staircase, gripping his rune sword tightly, his voice low and resolute: "Whatever lies within, we must stop the will of the rift. The Anchor of Destiny is the universe's last barrier; we cannot fail."

The three of them stepped onto the stairs and walked deeper into the temple. Every step they took seemed to be watched by an invisible gaze, waiting for them to uncover the ultimate secret of the universe's rules.

The core of the Anchor of Destiny is within reach, yet the will of the Rift has already seeped into it. The Guardians must not only face the trials of the rules but also uncover the ultimate truth between the rules and the Rift. The fate of the universe is about to undergo a decisive turning point within this temple.