The Ancestor’s Tomb lit up with Blackflame.
The black and red fire escaped through the cracks and seams of the building. They shot into the night sky like tongues.
Inside, Daji caught Orthos’s jaws with both armored hands as the Truegold burning turtle crashed into him.
Orthos’s red and black eyes were wide as he strained against Daji’s Mountainroot Iron body.
He managed to crack his jaws open as a sphere of dragon’s breath began to form, flecks of fire and destruction aura being sucked into the ball of destruction, looking like a whirlpool of black and red. Daji conjured his helmet as the bar of Blackflame blasted towards his face.
Daji let go of Orthos’s face and summoned his swords from his soulspace.
As soon as they appeared, Daji twirled them in his hands and slashed upwards, snapping Orthos’s head up and causing his spray of Blackflame to rise up and burn a line into the roof, cutting the mural of the four Dreadgods in half. Daji triggered the sword Striker bindings, and blue light streaked through the air. It hit Orthos under his jaw, lightning crackling through his Burning Cloak.
Daji banished his swords and took out his shield, raising it above his head as an army of Jai Chen’s pink Remnant dragons spun around him, their heads diving down to his face. Daji empowered his shield with the Titan’s Blade, growing it in size. The army of dragons crashed into his shield, their bodies vanishing in pink eddies.
At the same time, the edge of the expanding shield hit Orthos in the underbelly and slammed him against the wall, cracks appearing in his shell. Orthos hung inches above the floor, struggling to push the shield off.
Daji saw a burst of light out of the corner of his eye. He turned to see Jai Long launch a barrage of Star Lances at his back.
The Underlord turned around released the Forger technique on his shield, increasing its speed and allowing him to lower it in time and block the Striker techniques. As he did, he summoned a sword, lashing down. Jai Long rolled to the side even though he was far away, expecting the blade length to grow. Daji revealed it had been a feint as he spun the blade around, pointing it at Orthos just as the blade elongated with the Titan’s Blade technique.
Multiple pink Remnant dragons appeared as if they had known all along what Daji was planning.
They grabbed onto Orthos and flew away with him before the blade pierced him; it stabbed through the wall and exited out into the chilly night, the wall beginning to crumble.
A Remnant dragon wrapped around his blade like a snake and flowed to Daji, opening its mouth, and letting out a blast of pure madra mixed with Stellar Spear and Grasping Sky madra. It was madra Jai Chen had previously absorbed with the Archstone.
Daji enlarged the width of the blade and split the dragon apart. The Jade attack washed over Daji’s armor harmlessly, the pure madra barely doing anything to his spirit.
“WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT SUPPOSED TO DO!”
Jai Chen floated above on a pink dragon, controlling her Remnant army. The snowfox on Jai Chen’s shoulder stuck its tongue out at Daji, blowing a raspberry.
Daji swung his sword horizontally, cutting through the wall and pillars as he brought his sword around. Smoke and shrapnel mixed with his blade, a wave of destruction slicing through the room. Jai Long bent backwards as the blade passed his nose, debris and blue electricity weaving a network of webs behind the blade.
It froze in place above Jai Long, the electricity making sizzling noises. Like a wall, the webs of lightning and rock slammed down onto Jai Long, about to crush him to paste.
A pink Remnant dragon flowed along the floor, snatching Jai Long in its jaws and flying away as the wall of lightning crashed into the floor, shooting a plume of debris upwards in a mushroom cloud. The dragon carrying Jai Long shot up to avoid Daji’s Titan’s Blade, the sword skewering the air where they had just been in.
Daji turned to Jai Chen in the air as he dispersed his Forger technique. “You little annoying wench.”
He raised his shield like a blade, following Jai Chen flying in the air. Daji slashed the shield’s edge down, about to expand its size and hit the girl out of the air.
A pink Remnant dragon snatched the shield out of his hands, giving Jai Long an opening to stab into his chestplate. Orthos unleashed the Void Dragon’s Dance at the same time.
As Daji was pushed back into the whirlwind of Blackflame, the young Underlord flooded his Iron body, soulfire mixing in and flickering across his body. It increased his weight so much that the ground cracked and caved under him in a surge of shrapnel.
The Void Dragon’s Dance melted into the ground, but Daji was already moving.
He waded through the floor as if it were water, grabbing Jai Long’s ankle. Jai Long felt his legs bent unnaturally as he was pulled into the floor, having a view of Daji standing in the underground tunnel he was making.
Daji’s iron grip pierced into his ribcage and drew blood. Jai Long opened his mouth like a snake, screaming in Daji’s face as he bit into his helmet. Daji expanded the size of his helmet, and Jai Long’s jaws snapped open, his jaw cracking.
Still dragging Jai Long, Daji ran through the floor. Out of nowhere, a Titan’s Blade burst out of the floor like a sharkfin. The sword pierced the flying dragon holding his shield, dropping it. Daji’s armored arm came out of the floor to catch his shield, pulling it inside with him.
For a moment, Jai Chen and Orthos had no view of Daji.
The ground under Orthos exploded as Daji’s fist erupted out, punching Orthos upwards. Orthos expected that thanks to Jai Chen, biting down onto Daji’s fist. Orthos heaved with his body but he couldn’t lift the heavy weight of the young Seishen prince. Daji’s fist expanded out with the Titan’s Blade, smashing Orthos away.
But Orthos had already gathered the fire and destruction aura in the room.
Orthos made another Void Dragon’s Dance, the tornado storm forming in the ceiling in a swirling cyclone. Jai Chen’s pink dragons wrapped around the fiery cyclone as it shot into the holes Daji had made in the floor.
Instantly, the underground tunnels Daji had made filled with Blackflame and the pink dragons. The pink dragons released Grasping Sky madra, the wind fanning the flames out. The wind exploded out of the floor, shooting debris upwards.
The winds caught up to Jai Long.
Daji was too preoccupied with the Blackflame Ruler technique rushing at him as the wind shot Jai Long up out of Daji’s grip. The wounded Jai outcast flailed in the air, his body limp. Jai Chen’s dragon flew under him, and Jai Chen caught him.
“Brother!” She cried. Her fox whined as it licked Jai Long’s face. She lowered him to his feet on the dragon.
Daji screamed as the madra overwhelmed his armor, a pink dragon shooting through the tunnels like a snake, the Void Dragon’s Dance right behind it. Daji protected himself with his shield, putting everything he had into defense.
Jai Long saw his chance and threw his spear into the floor cracks, a flood of Serpent’s Shadow swarming into the tunnels, burrowing through and filling the space with razor-sharp snakes.
The combined attacks were too much for Daji and he crashed out of the floor with a roar, smoke and fire bursting underneath him. He had banished his shield, but he still had one sword.
Jai Long jumped off the pink dragon and landed on the floor next to his spear. He plucked it out of the stone floor and flicked it upwards to shoot a stream of Star Lances. Orthos added in his dragon’s breath.
Jai Chen rode her dragon above him, the dragon preparing another Striker technique as it prepared to rain down on Daji.
He was about to be caught between three attacks while airborne.
With nowhere to dodge in midair, Daji pointed his blade down to the floor.
It pierced into the ground as it elongated, and continued growing, pushing Daji up into the air on a growing pillar of steel and madra. As Daji shot up into the air, the Star Lances and dragon’s breath exploded underneath him.
Daji looked up, rising to Jai Chen. She sat on her dragon, holding on to its hairy neck as it rolled away to avoid Daji. In that split second, he had a view of Jai Chen’s terrified face as she hung upside-down from him, the dragon still in the process of rolling away. Her fox whimpered, grabbing onto her neck. Daji smirked as he summoned his second sword, pointing it at her.
He activated the Titan’s Blade and began to use it like a Striker technique.
Jai Chen’s eyes widened as Daji elongated and retracted his blade in a continuous chain, bolts of steel flashing everywhere as it elongated before snapping back to normal size. Her Remnant dragon barrel-rolled away, dodging the bursts of steel and the sparks of lightning it produced as it evaded in the air thanks to Eithan’s bloodline ability.
Daji dispersed the Titan’s Blade on the sword that was piercing the ground. It returned to normal size, and Daji was once again hanging in midair. He now pointed both of his swords at Jai Chen, adding to his attack as she was forced to dodge two swords now.
Jai Long and Orthos shouted out. Serpent Shadow’s burst from the ground like long ropes, wrapping around Daji’s limbs and pulling him to the ground in a crash of smoke.
The prince strained his strength against them, lifting his arms and swords above his head slowly as the snakes stretched and broke apart.
Jai Long was already rushing at him, his eyes wide in rage as he kicked out with one leg.
Daji stepped backwards as he dodged it. A Serpent’s Shadow burst from Jai Long’s foot and wrapped around Daji’s neck, its tail stretching into the air like a long whip. Before Daji could rip it away, Jai Chen’s dragon caught it like a rope in its jaws. They pulled Daji off his feet, right into the path of Orthos’s dragon breath.
Daji increased his Mountainroot Iron body and he fell to the ground. Thanks to Jai Chen, Jai Long rolled to where Daji was about to land. Jai Long braced the end of his spear against the floor, the point about to stab into Daji’s chest. The speed that Daji fell was increased by his weight, and the momentum would be enough for the spear to pierce his armor; Jai Long about to use Daji’s weight to his advantage as the spear angled to where his heart was.
Daji deactivated his Iron body and raised his swords up. They extended and stabbed into the ceiling. It stopped Daji in his fall and he flipped himself up in a handstand as he dodged Orthos’s dragon’s breath. He continued his flip, his swords digging trenches in the ceiling and slamming down on Jai Long. The impact sent Jai Long’s spear flying in the air and stabbing into the ceiling.
Daji’s armor activated and yellow light poured into the ground. Loose chunks of yellow rock shot out in deadly projectiles, pelting the air like bullets. Jai Long climbed up to the ceiling as dragons offered him footholds, reaching up for his spear.
Daji yelled as he summoned his shield, throwing it. The disc sliced through the air, growing bigger. Jai Long was forced to jump back on a dragon as the shield stabbed into the ceiling, blocking his way to the spear.
Jai Long turning to a wall of projectiles rushing at him.
Jai Long may not have had his weapon, but he was not out of options.
With Jai Chen instructing him telepathically, Jai Long closed his eyes. His fingertips glowed white with the Star’s Edge. As his hands flowed, they left white lines in the air as he caught all the projectiles. He dropped the rocks in front of the dragon he stood on, and it shot a burst of Grasping Sky madra. The bullets of rocks shot right back at Daji, who met the wave with his own projectiles.
CLAP!
As the smoke cleared, Daji lost sight of Jai Long.
Daji had always been overshadowed by his older brother, Kiro. No matter how he advanced, how he beat dozens of students his own stage into the ground, his father had always looked down upon him. He was never good enough for King Dakata. Even Meira, the royal garden caretaker, was more feared than him.
That would all change tonight.
The air spun above him with pink Remnant dragons, and his projectiles shattered them to pieces. Jai Chen fell to the floor, her hair flying above her.
As she landed, Jai Chen closed her eyes, using Eithan’s bloodline ability to predict the Underlords movements. She managed to dodge most of the projectiles, but some poked holes in her body, spraying blood. Jai Chen cried out and her fox yelped in sympathy. Jai Chen ignored the pain, knowing she had to communicate through Whisper’s dream aura.
She had to keep Orthos and her brother alive.
Daji is about to slash at your side, Orthos. Roll away.
As Daji did as she predicted, Jai Chen created a living pink Remnant dragon that shot into the air, growing bigger and bigger as she pooled her madra. When it looked like it would burst like a balloon, it let out a shriek and millions of tiny dragons exploded out in a firework display. They continued to collect information and combine them into Jai Chen’s bloodline ability.
Daji turned to Jai Chen with annoyance, raising a hand to shoot a spray of gray needles.
Jai Long’s glowing white spear knocked his wrist aside, the needle volley assaulting the floor.
The Jai Truegold had retrieved his spear.
The spear glowed with the Star’s Edge, leaving lines of white light behind as it moved in a circle, throwing Daji’s wrist aside. The shaft of the spear hit Daji’s other wrist, and it sent his sword flying up and stabbing in the ceiling. Daji only had one sword left as Jai Long Forged a Serpent’s Shadow. The Forged white snake was as thick as his arm and razor sharp. It shot at Daji’s helmeted face.
Daji kicked the snake in the face, his boot splitting it apart. His boot continued through and smashed into Jai Long’s chest. The Truegold grunted as he slid backwards, blood blooming from his chest.
Daji swung his remaining blade, activating his Titan’s Blade. Jai Long held it off with his spear held vertically, the blade biting into his wooden shaft.
Daji screamed as he pushed forward. The force caused the ground under Jai Long to crack as he slid to the left. The strength of the Underlord was too much for Jai Long, and he jumped over the sword, his back rolling on the edge of the Titan’s Blade sword as he landed on Daji’s right.
The Flowing Starlight spread across Jai Long’s limbs, his Enforcer technique creating a pattern in glowing, serpentine lines covering his skin. Jai Long’s unhinged mouth hung low as he breathed heavily, his Stellar Spear madra moving in a pattern in the air that Daji matched with his own fists and sword. As they fought, Daji twirled his sword as he showed off, knocking Jai Long’s spear away every time. Their clashes made the ceiling start to shake, and it dislodged Daji’s second sword and shield.
As his weapons fell, Daji acted as if he had known all along. He was in the middle of batting Jai Long’s spear away when he spun around and caught his other sword, slashing up. It made a line of blood slice into Jai Long’s torso, the blood splattering on Daji. He banished his second sword and caught his shield, continuing the fight.
During the exchange, Jai Long raised his hand. A twisting Serpent Shadow sprung from his palm. It wrapped around Daji, draping around his helmet.
Daji tore through the snake and grabbed Jai Long’s neck. Jai Long grabbed Daji’s face, his fingertips lighting up white with the Star’s Edge. The light hissed and knocked Daji’s head back, causing him to let go of the Truegold. Jai Long made a fist, the Star’s Edge making his entire fist glow. Daji met his Star’s Edge with his own armored fist. The weight behind the punch was so great Jai Long could see the very wind itself streaming past the fist.
At the last second, Jai Long changed the trajectory of his punch, dodging. Daji’s fist passing over his shoulder as he sidestepped. Jai Long punched his Star’s Edge powered fist into Daji’s stomach. Jai Long wasn’t finished as he slashed a razor-sharp Enforced palm at his armored neck. Jai Long finished the combo, shoving the spear into the ground to steady himself as he kicked the Underlord in the face. The force of the attacks pushed back Daji, but he fed madra into his Mountainroot Iron body and he moved not an inch more.
Jai Long was spinning around for another kick, but Daji was ready. He caught the kick with his own kick, and their legs strained against each other in a deadlock. Daji won, knocking Jai Long’s kick away and then kicking the Truegold in the face. Jai Long was lifted into the air, allowing Daji to headbutt him in his wounded chest.
As Daji pushed Jai Long back, he was caught in the claws of Jai Chen’s dragon as it lifted him away from Daji. That was when Orthos unleashed a tornado of flame unto Daji, the Void Dragon Dance unleashing.
Daji raised his shield up and enlarged it around him in a dome of gray madra reinforced with soulfire. He hunkered down from the hellstorm above.
Orthos canceled the attack, revealing the second Void Dragon’s Dance he had been building right next to him. This second tornado shot out sideways from the wall, striking the side of Daji’s shield and melting the floor he stood on.
Jai Long shot Star Lances at Daji’s feet, further destroying the floor to mulch. He was dropped to the ground and he ran up to the Underlord.
Jai Long stabbed down with his spear into the hissing molten stone, and Serpents Shadows burst from the ground under Daji’s shield. The white snakes lit up the shield he was under. Daji swept at them under his shield, his sword slashing through one that had dashed at him, cutting its body in half in a crackle of lightning.
Orthos bit down on his shield and pulled him off his feet before he could activate his Iron body, allowing Jai Long to stab into his chestplate. Daji shot backwards like a ballista bolt, his shield banished back into his soulspace.
In the air, Daji pointed his sword up and enlarged his blade with the Titan’s Blade technique. It stabbed into the ceiling and stopped him as he hung from one hand. His armor began to glow yellow with earth aura, beginning the Ruler technique.
The ground underneath Daji glowed yellow, and it began to swirl like a whirlpool.
Everything was being drawn in under Daji, the ground like quicksand as Jai Long and Orthos began to sink.
As Orthos was pulled in, Daji summoned his shield and threw it at the turtle. Orthos snarled as the shield’s edge bit into his shell with a sickening crunch. He roared and shot a torrent of Blackflame. Daji caught it in one hand, enlarging his glove to cover his entire body. Blackflame stream past his soulfire-infused hand in waves.
Jai Chen stood on her dragon above the quicksand floor as more dragons swooped in to pull Jai Long and Orthos out. One of the dragons ripped the shield out of Orthos’s shell and spat it to the floor. Orthos continued to breathe Blackflame onto Daji.
When the dragon’s breath cut off, Daji sneered under his helmet as raised his hand. The quicksand floor shot up under his shield, and his shield was thrown up to his hand.
“Nowhere else to run.”
He infused his shield with the Titan’s Blade, soulfire burning inside. A curved gray wall appeared from the floor to ceiling of the Ancestor’s Tomb, cornering Jai Chen, Orthos, Jai Long and all the Remnant dragons. They stood on the floating dragons, making sure to not touch the floor. Orthos tried to burn through Daji’s wall, but Daji had reinforced it with too much soulfire.
It shoved forward, pushing Orthos, Jai Long, and Jai Chen into the walls. Orthos turned to blast through the walls behind them, but they too were shining with the Ruler technique. Any attacks would be absorbed and pulled under. They could not smash through the walls or else they would suffer the same fate.
Daji dropped from the ceiling and hit the floor, his boots shining golden as he walked across his Ruler technique. He knew eventually Blackflame could burn through his defense. He had seen what Lindon had done to his brother. So, when he reached the gray wall, he rested his hands on the wall and Forged needles of gray madra began to form on the inside of the wall, about to rip apart his opponents.
Inside, Jai Long hopped over to Jai Chen and wrapped his arms around her.
She was trying to stay strong, her eyes wet. “What are we going to do?” She whispered, her body shaking.
Orthos let out a shout of frustration, his dragon’s breath running out.
As the needles grew from the wall, they began to thrum with soulfire. They were as thick as Jai Long’s forearm, and he was sure they were about to elongate.
He looked down at his sister. Ever since the Jai clan had cast her out, she had been left alone. Only Jai Long had been there to take care of her. She had barely been able to walk, barely able to even lift herself out of bed due to her injuries. But then Lindon had saved her. Now that this miracle had occurred and he had her back, she was about to be taken away again.
Jai Long gripped his spear tightly.
He would never let anyone hurt her again.
His soulfire resonated, and his eyes shot open.
Jai Chen looked up. “What is it?” She asked with wide eyes. Her fox cocked its head, its ears perking up.
Jai Long smiled down at Jai Chen. He put his hand on her head.
“It’s okay. You’re going to be fine.”
She hugged him tighter. Her fox mewed, clawing at Jai Long’s chest as it looked up at him with wide eyes.
I don’t want to lose you, Jai Chen said telepathically.
“You won’t.”
Jai Long stepped away from Jai Chen and nodded over at Orthos.
The Blackflame turtle understood.
“When all seems lost, that is the time to find your way.”
Jai Long turned towards the wall, closing his eyes. With the halfsilver badge around him, he was able to cycle like normal. Out of his soulspace he grabbed four treasures that floated around him. They represented water, fire, life, and death; all was perfectly balanced.
The Jai Truegold spoke.
“I practice the sacred arts to never let my sister suffer again.”
His soulfire resonated, and he felt the unity of aura.
And the dragon advanced.
Soulfire flooded out of him and passed his clothes with burning them. It burned up his natural treasures, adding to the colorless blaze surrounding Jai Long. Everywhere the soulfire passed, his body was reborn. His madra channels were burned away and rebuilt, his spirit was scrubbed clean and cleansed, and his bones cracked and regrew stronger than ever, feeling like they were reinforced with iron.
Outside, Daji noticed the swell in power as his needles stabbed out, making a wall of spikes impossible to dodge.
Crack.
Out of the corner of his eye, Daji saw his wall began to blow away. He began to turn his head slowly.
BOOM!
Daji turned completely as the wall exploded, smoke enveloping the room. Out of the dark gray smoke, a man with a spear jumped out, landing lightly on a pink dragon.
He blazed with the power of an Underlord.
Jai Long held his spear on his shoulder, his eyes on Daji as the last of his red bandages fell from his face.
Daji sensed Jai Long’s Underlord spirit. He smirked. “I thought you would be dead.”
“Who decided that?” Growled Orthos.
As the wall began to break away, Orthos and Jai Chen were revealed to be safe, standing on pink dragons. The needles had been blown away by Jai Long’s power, protecting them all.
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The Flowing Starlight began to Enforce the outcast Jai, his Underlord body moving faster than ever.
His spear tip glowed white, and it blinded Daji as it lit up the room.
Daji began to laugh. “You ready for another round? Alright then! I’ll etch into you the difference between royalty and—"
Then the Star Lance shot forward at the speed of light.
Daji was blasted upwards into the ceiling.
He landed on the cracking roof with his feet first, glowing golden as he avoided being sucked into his Ruler technique. Below him Jai Long was running up to him on the falling pieces of debris from the ceiling.
Daji focused the Titan’s Blade on his whole armor set, his Guardian Steel madra making his body shake with its weight. His armor grew to the size of a small giant, his feet touching the ground and his helmet scraping the roof.
The prince turned his massive shield sideways and swung it at Jai Long’s head. The edge of his colossal shield passed over Jai Long’s head as he ducked, the shield crashing through the walls. Jai Long put his hands on the chunk of falling rock he stood on and kicked up with his legs like a coiled snake, kicking Daji under his helmet.
Daji may have increased his armor to a colossal size, but his body was still normal sized inside. The shockwave from Jai Long’s kick made Daji bite his own tongue, tasting blood. The shaft of Jai Long’s spear hit Daji on the side of his ribcage. On its own it barely felt like anything, but Orthos jumped in and smashed into his side as well, and Jai Chen made a fist of wind madra that hit his side.
Daji flew sideways, destroying the room around him. The damage he was causing broke his Ruler technique, and the room returned to normal.
Jai Long, Orthos, and Jai Chen appeared in front of him and smashed him into the ground. The damage they had been doing to the room before was child’s play to what was occurring now. When Daji hit the floor, all four walls of the Ancestor’s Tomb shattered like glass. The pillars crumbled to dust. The ceiling rumbled as it fell inwards.
Daji rested on the floor on his back, watching the building fall all around him. He lay in a spiderweb of cracks. He raised a giant hand that glowed with yellow madra, but Jai Long, Orthos, and a pink dragon beat it away.
Growing the entire armor had been a mistake on Daji’s part. He was slower now, and easier to attack.
Daji yelled curses as Jai Long and Orthos grabbed his armor and began to run. A group of pink dragons bit into his body and pushed him with wind madra.
Together, they dragged Daji across the floor as sparks shot out from the resistance. The floor under Daji was turning to dust as he tore through it. His fingers dug into the ground, but the whole floor exploded away as Serpent’s Shadow snakes and dragons shot out. They lifted Daji’s body off the floor just as Jai Long and Orthos threw him into the collapsing ceiling.
Daji turned in the air to see thousands of roaring pink dragons and snakes smash into him like arrows.
He crashed through the ceiling, the falling chunks of roof exploding away from him on impact.
The prince felt the frigid cold outside as he got a view of the starry sky expanse and the full moon. Samara’s Ring glowed brightly above in a halo. He barely had time to appreciate the view before Jai Long raised his spear.
Daji held out his shield to block the millions of shrieking Star Lances pouring into him from below, looking like a thick pillar of light.
As Daji flew back into the air, he roared in anger as his armor turned yellow with earth madra. A giant rock the size of a small cloudship formed above his head and shot down.
Jai Chen Forged her biggest pink dragon yet, looking so lifelike it had whiskers growing from its nose. Standing on her head, Jai Chen’s fox raised one paw in the air and let out a cheer.
The Forged dragons blew smoke as it opened its mouth. It caught Orthos in its jaws and pointed its head up at Daji, wind madra building up. Orthos began to retract his limbs inside his shell as Jai Long hopped onto the head of the dragon and added in his Stellar Spear madra and soulfire. The dragon’s cheeks bulged like a chipmunk as it swelled with wind madra, green aura swirling around its mouth like a smoky beard.
Jai Chen’s fox let out a squeak as it swiped a paw down as if to signal go.
Orthos shot out like a cannonball.
WHOOOSH!
Orthos crashed through the giant cloudship-sized rock, smashing it to pieces. He continued rocketing up like a blazing meteor, Stellar Spear madra and soulfire reinforcing his Burning Cloak.
Daji barely had time to blink before Orthos smashed into his chest. He hadn’t even had time to bring his shield up.
The Seishen prince screamed inside his armor as his ribcage cracked, his femurs snapping. His giant armor began to fade away as he dropped the Titan’s Blade, shrinking back to normal size.
Jai Long was suddenly next to him in the night air, running across the debris.
Daji grit his teeth in pain as he grew the inside of his armor in size slightly, the force of the expanding metal snapping his femurs back into place. He still stayed normal sized, only the inside of his armor slightly expanding. His ribcage was too busted to be healed without Meira’s help, but he could still move as his armor reinforced his bones.
Daji lifted his flailing sword and pointed it at Jai Long. The Titan’s Blade flared out, elongating and about to stab Jai Long through the head. Jai Long was still in midair and had nowhere else to go.
Jai Long caught the sword with the tip of his spear, throwing the blade aside as he used its momentum to push himself up and land on Daji’s oversized sword. He ran across the Titan’s Blade as it burst into electricity, but Jai Long was too fast with the Flowing Starlight running through his body. He looked like a white blur as he stabbed Daji in the chest with the Star Lance, blowing him further back into the night sky.
Daji activated his Mountainroot Iron body to increase his weight, and he began to fall to the snow before he was thrown back too far.
Jai Long began Forging white spears behind him. The fan of seven Forged spears hovered above him, circling above him in an arc of spears. Each held his full Underlord power and shivered with sword aura. They would strike like bombs, able to peel meat from bone.
They overfilled with Jai Long’s soulfire and launched into the air as Jai Long unleashed the technique that his predecessor, Jai Daishou, had called the Fall of Seven Stars. Daji was met with seven screaming missiles.
An explosion of light blossomed in the night sky, and small mountains all around collapsed inwards.
The seven spears continued through, smashing into a mountain in the distance. It struck and hit the mountain with a thunderous clap, tearing a chunk of rock from existence.
As the smoke cleared, Daji was revealed to be alive.
His sword dropped from his hand, his armor cracking to reveal his skin. He had lost his helmet, revealing his sweating angry face as he glared down at Jai Long. A gash of blood fell across one eye, swollen and bruised.
Jai Long landed on the stairs of the crumbling Ancestor’s Tomb as Orthos and Jai Chen climbed up behind him. Jai Long’s spear began to glow white, preparing another Star Lance. It was the fastest technique he had, and now with the power of an Underlord, it was practically instantaneous.
The Jai Underlord jumped into the air, the steps cracking under him. As he flew past Daji, Jai Long drew the spear up as it trailed a wave of Serpent’s Shadow behind it, forming together into one giant white snake behind Daji, opening its jaws. At the same time, Jai Long’s Star Lance blasted into Daji’s chestplate and shot him into the snake’s jaws.
Daji screamed as the snake bit down, blood gushing from his wounds. He had dropped his first sword, but he still had one more in reserve. He summoned it and Forged a Titan’s Blade that split the snake’s head in half.
Before the snake dispersed, it threw Daji up into the air. Jai Long was waiting for him as he shot up to Daji, his spear tip glowing blindingly bright like a shooting star as it left behind a stripe of white illumination. The light reflected off the snowflakes, and they shone brightly like fireflies, their blinding light forcing Daji to close his eyes.
It blasted through Daji’s smoking shield, and the prince was launched up to Samara’s ring.
He hit the ring and bounced across the surface like a pebble on water, his armor peeling off his skin from the contact. As he skidded across on the light surface, Jai Long landed and ran after him.
The sparkling surface was hot and immediately began to burn Jai Long’s shoes. He washed his feet in Stellar Spear madra, protecting himself against the dazzling light aura. Daji had no protection against the light, his armor dissolving away.
Underneath them, Sacred Valley spread out.
They were high in the summit of Mount Samara, the peak seeming to stab into the full moon above; the corona of light encircling the mountain shone brighter than the moon. Snowflakes swirled around them like a cyclone, glowing just as brightly as Samara’s Ring. The light energy floor was solid under their feet, vibrating with energy, the width of the white halo miles long.
Daji continued to slide across the white-hot ring, his melting glove digging into the halo as his Iron body slowed his movement with its increased weight. He stood up in a fury, shouting curses. He quickly raised his shield as he expanded it in size.
Stellar spear madra was a mix of sword and light aspect, and Jai Long greedily called on the light aura around him. Sword and light madra formed, the white and silver aura braiding along his spear tip. His spear shone and expanded into a blade as wide as an axe blade. It met the prince’s shield in a clash of madra and light.
Daji held him off in pure strength, unmovable due to his Mountainroot Iron body.
Jai Long glared at this boy who had threatened his sister. Tried to kill her. After everything they had been through. No, he would not be allowed to live any longer. Jai Long would never let Daji hurt anyone ever again.
The Jai Underlord began to call upon the abundant light aura around him, activating his Ruler technique.
Daji fumbled for his sword as he realized what Jai Long was doing.
Jai Long spoke coldly, icy rage creeping into his voice. “What’s wrong, my prince? Where was that confidence you had minutes ago?”
Daji snarled, “Do you realize who you’re talking to? You should be groveling at my feet, you worm! I am the prince of the Seishen Kingdom, and I will have my revenge for my brother—”
Samara’s Ring around them shifted as it turned into a snake.
Daji turned around as he was face to face with a missile of fangs. The snake head shot up and snatched him in its jaws, shooting up in the sky.
From below, Jai Chen and Orthos watched the astonishing display.
All around Sacred Valley, the population that numbered a million stopped and stared as the light source that had always lit up the night now shot up towards the stars and moon like a glowing worm. It was miles long, so thick it looked bigger than their forearm even from where they stood. It pierced threw the snowy storm, its nose slicing through the snowflakes. Its light reflected off the snowflakes, and all the people of Sacred Valley were treated to what looked like glittering rushing stars flying overhead.
At the tip of the snake’s jaws, an armored boy glinted in the moonlight.
Daji screamed as his ribs cracked, the snake’s fangs tearing into his body. Once again, he had activated the Titan’s Blade on his entire armor until he was a giant. Yet, the snake’s fangs were still bigger than his forearm, stabbing into his flesh and bones with razor-white sharp light.
Daji shoved his shield into the snake’s jaws and expanded the shield with Titan’s Blade until it grew so big it cast all of Sacred Valley in a shadow as it covered the moon. The snake’s jaws broke open, allowing Daji to free himself and tumble down.
As he fell, he shoved his massive sword into its spine and began to split it down the middle.
Daji passed by Jai Long, his mouth-filled needle-sharp teeth seeming to smile as he clung to the snake’s back.
He caught Daji around the neck and fell with him. Daji was too slow to block as Jai Long slammed his face into the snake’s razor-sharp skin.
Before Daji’s face made contact, he summoned his helmet again. As he slid down the snake’s back, the white light began to burn through his helmet, their descent causing a spray of white light to shoot into the night like silly string. Jai Long kept him there, skidding along Samara’s Ring.
The pain became too much for Daji, and he lost control of the Titan’s Blade; his shield and sword were banished back to his soulspace. He shrunk down to his normal size, his remaining armor falling apart as Jai Long began to rip it off his body.
When they reached the end of the miles-long snake, Daji finally turned around to look at Jai Long with hateful eyes.
Half of his helmet was melted off and his skin was burnt. Jai Long looked down at him as they fell, the snake coiling behind Jai Long and coming around, its head reforming. The snake hissed and bared its white fangs, causing Daji’s ears to hurt.
Daji roared in Jai Long’s face, his face turning red. He would kill this man with his bare hands. He would rip him limb from limb, displaying his corpse to all that dared to look down on him.
Below on the stairs of the Ancestor’s Tomb, Jai Chen had Forged another giant dragon. Its cheeks bulged before wind madra burst out. Once again, it shot Orthos through the moon-lit sky and up to Jai Long.
A blast of dragon’s breath from Orthos hit Daji in the back. It burst through his chest, streaming out past Jai Long.
Daji opened his mouth to scream, but nothing came out. Jai Long pressed his spear against his neck.
The Jai outcast stared down at Daji; his eyes were colder than the night.
“Never threaten my family again.”
Behind Jai Long, Samara’s Ring exploded into millions of snakes. It rained down past Jai Long, streaming like millions of shooting stars that tore into Daji’s body.
The blades of light ripped into his spirit.
When the lightshow ended, Daji’s looked up at Jai Long.
“You… freak… impossib…”
Prince Seishen Daji’s head slipped off his shoulders.
The giant snake reformed under Jai Long as he landed on its neck, leaving Daji to continue falling into the darkness. The prince’s body broke apart into pieces that tumbled down in the air.
As Jai Long caught Orthos on the snake, Daji’s remains littered the snow below.
A Remnant started to form, looking like an armored giant. It had a smooth boulder for a face, and its flesh was twisting ribbons of metallic madra. Before his Remnant had finished forming, Jai Chen sent a spurt of stellar spear and pure madra that decimated it to pieces.
Her fox hopped over and began urinating over the spot.
Jai Long and Orthos rode the snake down to the summit of Mount Samara.
The snake let out a victory cry as it wrapped around the mountain, turning back to the original nimbus of light the people of Sacred Valley called Samara’s Ring.
Jai long jumped off and landed in the snow, carrying Orthos.
Orthos shivered as his feet touched down on the snow. “I hate heights.”
Jai Long smiled. “Some dragon you are.”
Orthos bumped his shell against Jai Long. “You did this dragon proud tonight.”
Jai Chen rode on a pink Remnant dragon that dropped her off next to Orthos. She hugged her brother, her tiny fox running alongside her as it played in the snow.
“You’re alive.”
She looked up to him with sparkling eyes.
Jai Long hugged her back.
“Who else is going to keep you safe?”
Orthos laughed from deep inside his throat. “I can’t wait to tell Lindon about this.”
He nudged Jai Chen’s hair with his nose. “I’m glad you’re safe as well. We may not have survived very long without your help.”
Jai Chen smiled at him. “You were very brave. Today, you flew.”
Orthos stood up proudly. “A dragon may choose to fly every so often.”
Her fox barked as it rolled over, looking up at Orthos, its tongue sticking out.
“You were brave too, little one.”
Orthos picked up the fox in his mouth and placed it on his shell. Its tails squirmed in delight as it warmed its feet on his hot shell.
Together, the three of them walked back to the Ancestor’s Tomb remains, the white madra in the sky slowly fading away as the moon outshone everything, the stars blinking down.
***
Elder Whisper stood, his tails moving in arcane patterns as if drawing scripts in the air. Meira’s blood dripped from his black lips.
Kelsa stepped forward with her mother.
“…What is she?”
Meira stood in the center of a towering tree of life madra that stretched from the floor to the ceiling. Its branches and leaves were spreading outwards along the ceiling, writhing. Her body floated above the floor, her armor falling to the floor. Her ripped flesh was knitting together, blood trickling away from the Underlady.
She was healing herself.
Kelsa put her hand on Whisper’s wounded neck. “Can she even be killed?”
Whisper looked over at her, the snowfox’s smile sly. “Step back. We’re about to find out.”
As Kelsa and Seisha retreated, Whisper closed his eyes.
The life tree thrashed around Meira, and she looked up, glaring. The pink flowers in her hair were glowing. She raised a ball of life madra and it shot out in a beam which Whisper dodged. From the green tree, life energy burst out in the shape of vines, about the tear the Truegolds to pieces.
Whisper continued closing his eyes, focusing.
In his youth, he had visited a mysterious location in Sacred Valley. It was a field of condensed fiery energy, where surviving it allowed a sacred artist to harvest enough to vital aura to fuel advancement to the Gold stage. He had been unable to bear the torments of that place for that long.
As Whisper focused on that feeling, he cast his Ecstasy of Madness technique. The technique laughed in his head, images flashing around his eyes as he began to rewrite reality. This labyrinth room was not a room in the labyrinth.
It was the Torchyard.
Meira’s life tree was consumed as the room in front of Whisper was incinerated in flames, covering the room in a cube of molten lava.
The fire screamed so loud it made their Truegold ears hurt. Meira wailed even louder, the pain making her scream bloody murder.
“It burns! IT BURNS!”
Kelsa and Seisha shrank back, the fire aura making their robes start to sizzle. Whisper stood in front of them, his tails continuing to move in patterns as he weaved the Ruler technique, foxfire trailing behind his tails.
Finally, he released the technique, sweat drenching his fur. Slowly, the Torchyard began to wither away.
Meira was revealed standing, her Underlady body covered in burn marks.
She could barely stand, her limbs shaking from the pain. She looked around, traumatized, unable to focus enough to use her madra. As her eyes found Whisper, she began to smile crazily.
“You will all pay. I will not rest until I kill you, your family, your friends. I will shower in your blood and water my garden with it. I WILL DESTROY EVERYTHING THAT MATTERS TO YOU, JUST LIKE THEY DID TO ME—"
Riyusai Meira screams died out as Whisper dashed past her.
Her fiery green blade of her scythe died out. She dropped her wooden scythe, and it clattered across the ground.
Whisper landed behind her, holding something in his mouth.
As her body fell to the ground, Whisper spat out her head.
It rolled across the ground, her pink Goldsign flowers withering away.
Her face was frozen in a smile, her eyes wide and reflecting the fading flames.
The fires died out.
***
Wei Jin Sairus, the Patriarch of the Wei clan, stood in his home.
He was a man with a barrel-chest, his hair a silver mane. He wore purple and white robes wrapped elegantly around him.
Paper sliding doors surrounded the room, foxfire candles giving the room a purple tinge. In the corners of the room rested statues of a golden foxes, their eyes purple amethysts.
On a table behind him, Sairus had a jar of candy that looked like bamboo, currently holding one in his hand as he looked down at the prisoner kneeling at his rug. His filth was making Sairus want to get this execution over with.
The Wei man wore a blindfold, his cane on the ground. He was held back by two Wei clan members, one of them being Sairus’s grandson Amon.
Sairus stood with his barrel chest puffed out, putting his hands behind his back.
“Wei Shi Jaran, you are sentenced for your crimes against the Heaven’s Glory School and all of Sacred Valley. You have hosted your coward Unsouled son even after he was wanted. Then you had the nerve to resist arrest and escape into hiding for three years along with your daughter, Kelsa. Now that we have finally caught you, I sentence you to death. There will be no trial.”
Jaran laughed in his face. “I will be avenged. My daughter will never stop until you are dead.”
Wei Jin Amon hit Jaran in the head. As Sairus’s grandson, he had recently achieved the status of Jade.
Sairus sneered. “After I find her, I’ll be sure to send both you and Kelsa’s heads to your prisoner wife.”
Jaran snarled, but the two Jades held his body back. He was still only Iron, after all.
Sairus’s fist lit up with foxfire, balls of the fire spinning around his fist. Foxfire produced no actual heat, being an illusion of flame. When it touched flesh, it caused burning agony like that of real fire. The white flames began to give off illusions, the white flames edged with purple.
“I should have killed your Unsouled ages ago.”
He punched out and Jaran cringed.
A hand caught his fist, stopping it.
A girl appeared crouched on the rug in front of him, catching his fist as the foxfire washed over her in a wave.
His foxfire dispersed in embers as the girl looked up. Around her neck was a halfsilver badge. She wore a white robe with a white hood. At the top of the hood were Remnant fox ears, looking like watercolor paintings. The detail was so fine Sairus could see individual white strands of fur; the ears even twitched and turned.
Sairus recognized the girl.
“Kelsa?”
This was impossible. The last time he had seen her she was only Iron. His foxfire should have affected her. But she had caught his punch, taking the brunt of his full Jade power!
Sairus scanned her spirit, expecting to feel her Jade spirit. Instead, he found something far, far greater. More powerful than he thought possible.
Jaran had switched places with Kelsa, now standing behind Sairus, looking just as surprised.
The two Jade guards had been frozen for a moment. They finally sprang into action, rushing forward.
While remaining crouched on the floor, Kelsa moved her head to the side as she dodged Amon’s punch. Her leg shot up straight, her robes billowing. Amon’s groaned as the kick hit him under his chin, snapping his head back and his saliva spraying out in a mist.
Two clones of Kelsa split away from her. They flickered with the Foxtail, and both of Sairus’s guards were smashed through the paper sliding doors into the snow outside. An icy wind came into the room carrying snowflakes as the clones lowered their hands and disappeared.
Sairus gaped. Kelsa was supposed to be a Ruler! Yet, she had made the Fox Mirror Technique as easily as he could. And she had made two of them, so life-like they could fool him!
“What… what the…. You dare!” Sairus advanced on Kelsa, but a voice behind stopped him.
“Have you any manners? You should at least look at people when you are talking to them.”
Sairus turned around, breathing heavily. There was no way. No way she could have fooled him with a Fox Mirror technique. She wasn’t even a Forger.
There, next to Jaran, he saw her real body.
Kelsa leaned against Elder Whisper as the snowflakes washed over her. Her arms were crossed, wearing loose white robes. Her Remnant ears twitched on her hood as she chewed on one of Sairus’s bamboo candy, the end sticking out of her mouth.
Elder Whisper’s five tails moved in the air, blowing the snowflakes around them in a frenzy.
Sairus choked as he went on his knees and bowed. “Elder Whisper, what brings you here?” His voice trembled.
Behind him, the Kelsa clone that had caught his punch vanished away.
Next to Sairus, a flaming turtle growled, its eyes glowing in the dark. Sairus flinched. He hadn’t even felt the turtle’s presence.
Nor the rest of the people on the room.
Next to Orthos, a man with red bandages stood next to the turtle, his spear strapped to his back. A girl in blue robes, looking like his sister, stood to his left.
Orthos blew smoke into the living room, lowering his head and taking a bite out of the sofa.
The snowfox on Jai Chen’s head put on its best mean face, the corners of its mouth turning down and its fur and ears rising. It made angry growling noise, making punching motions with its tiny paws, yowling.
Seisha stepped into the room, ignoring Sairus as she looked over at Jaran.
Sairus gulped. He had been the one to personally hand her to the Heaven’s Glory School. How had they escaped?
And more importantly, what was going to happen to him?
Jaran recognized his wife as she knelt with him, grabbing his hands. She smiled at him even though he couldn’t see.
“….Seisha…”
“Surprised? Don’t worry, I took this pill that allowed me to reach Gold. There are still more so you can take—”
Jaran hugged his wife. “Thank you for being alive.”
Seisha blinked her tears away, never having seen her husband so emotional. She hugged him back.
“I missed you.”
With a sinking feeling, Sairus peered up at Elder Whisper from the ground.
“Elder Whisper, you must understand. These are traitors to the people! The Heaven’s Glory School came for them directly! What else was I supposed to do?!”
The sacred fox said nothing, his black eyes seeming to stare into Sairus’s soul.
Kelsa stepped away from Whisper, crouching on her knees in front of Sairus.
He had sold her family away to the School of Heaven’s Glory. He had allowed her father to be blinded. He was the reason no one in the Wei clan had supported Lindon.
Wei Shi Kelsa chewed around her bamboo candy.
“We need to have a little talk.”
***
The Grand Elder of the Heaven’s Glory School crawled through the snow.
His mind was delusional after being attacked by the Underlords Daji and Meira, never having seen such power. After his school had been attacked, he had managed to escape on his own. His insides felt like they were freezing, and his body was numb. A burning fever raged inside him.
Above him, the moon shown. He realized he was starting to lose his mind. For a moment there, he had thought he had seen Samara’s Ring turn to a giant snake that flew into the air. But that was crazy. Maybe this was all a bad dream, and he would wake up soon.
Barely thinking straight, he was making plans in his mind. He had to get everyone he could to destroy the Wei clan. All the four schools had to gather and march down on the Wei clan. They were the source of all his troubles.
“Why hello there, good sir.”
The Grand Elder stiffened. A shadow stood over him, blocking out the moonlight.
The voice was charming and light, sounding like the speaker had no care in the world.
The Grand Elder looked up.
A man with long blond hair and a smile beamed down on him, holding an umbrella. “If I may ask so kindly, what are you doing down there, my strange old friend with strange habits?”
The Grand Elder had never seen this man in his life, nor did he ever want to meet him.
[Maybe it’s his mating call], said a strange voice the Grand Elder heard in his head.
“Dross,” a boy’s voice sighed, “that’s not what a mating call is.”
The Grand Elder looked over and noticed the rest of the group. Two of them were girls, one of them hooded and the other one resting a hand on their sword.
Among them was an oddly familiar boy wearing a halfsilver badge, his hair black and his face looking like he was scowling. Over his back rested a large brown backpack. Resting on his shoulder was a blue spirit in the shape of a small woman, a Sylvan Riverseed.
The Grand Elder felt the memory start to return.
That boy was Wei Shi Lindon, the Unsouled.
Three years ago, he had been the embarrassment of the Wei clan. He was an outcast, trash that would never amount to anything. His crime was being born. He would never marry, for no clan would ever allow him to pass on his defects. The boy was an abomination that would never advance in the sacred arts. He would offer nothing to his clan.
He was worthless.
And the Grand Elder had thought he was dead.
The boy had cheated his way into the Heaven’s Glory School and had escaped with the Sword Sage’s disciple. There was no way someone as weak as him could have survived the wilderness outside of Sacred Valley.
But here he was, walking in the flesh and looking healthier than ever.
Lindon had come home.
[What, I’m wrong again? Aw, dang it! Was I at least close?]
The hooded girl with purple eyes smiled, closing her eyes as she tilted her head to the side. “You are getting closer this time!”
Dross gasped.
[I am! Yes, fist pump! Oh… air fist pump!]
Lindon met the Grand Elder’s eyes. He frowned in concern, walking over next to Eithan. He put his fist in his hand and bowed.
“This one humbly requests to know what has happened in the valley. Is there any word from the Wei clan? Have you any news of how they are doing?”
The Grand Elder did not say anything. Lindon’s mother had been imprisoned, and his father and sister were in hiding. They were probably already killed by Daji and Meira. He did not want to know how Lindon would react when he found that out.
[Mooooo! Moooo! What, you like my mating call? Mooo! Wait, that’s not it either? Okay, I’m not going to stop until someone tells me what a mating call is! Lalalalalala, I’m not listening to you!]
Lindon ignored Dross. “Yerin, do you recognize him?”
The last person in the group was a girl with long black hair, her black robes loose in the wind. She stared down at the Grand Elder.
He remembered her right away.
Yerin, the disciple of the Sword Sage. The school had attacked her and her master, managing to kill the Swore Sage after teaming up on him in his sleep.
She looked down at him with narrowing eyes as she recognized him.
Yerin set her jaw. “Heaven’s Glory School.”
The Grand Elder shivered.
Realization came unto Lindon. He dropped his polite manner, frowning. “What happened to you? Were you attacked?”
Seeing Lindon drop his manners caused the Grand Elder’s fury to return. His pride had been destroyed as his school was destroyed. He had nothing left now. Now, he didn’t even have the respect from the young ones?
The Grand Elder felt his lip curl. These brats thought they had the standing to talk down to him like this? No, he was the most powerful Jade in all of Sacred Valley.
He began to unveil his spirit, about to teach them all a lesson.
An ocean of power loomed over him like a mountain.
The Grand Elder’s eyes widened, his mouth open.
This could not be happening.
What was this power he was sensing? When Daji and Meira had attacked, he had been powerless to stop them. He now sensed that same power from the entire group.
Lindon had only been an Unsouled three years ago! But now, the power coming from the boy shook the Grand Elder to his core. It surrounded him like a bonfire, ready to blaze out in a fury.
The girl with the purple eyes felt like a bundle of nightmares, her body giving off the aura of something poisonous and dark that surrounded him in a sea of night.
Yerin bristled with sword aura, feeling like thousands of swords pricking the Grand Elder’s body.
The smiling man stood out even among the whole group. There was a sense of danger around him hidden behind his sparkling blue eyes and carefree smile. Something absolute and vast, a power so deep that it felt like one could sink in its power and never hit the bottom. It made the Grand Elder want to curl up and hide in the snow.
This man was not someone to get on the bad side of.
The smiling man was humming under his breath, his umbrella catching the snowflakes, still waiting for the Grand Elder to respond.
“Mmhhmm, are you deaf? Oh dear, this is a little troublesome. Well, that sucks for you!”
The girl with purple eyes went over to look at the Grand Elder. She was dressed in a black furry coat, the hood too big for her and covering her face in shadow. Her purple eyes glowed underneath.
“Hi, I’m Mercy! This is Eithan here! You probably already know Lindon and Yerin! Oh, wait it’s like a family reunion, right?”
Dross joined in. [What! Lindon, is that your grandfather! This truly is a joyous day!]
Mercy clapped her hands, cheering. “Yaaay!”
The Grand Elder closed his eyes and wished he were dead.
Mercy looked at him closer. “Oh, wow hey are you okay, mister?”
She bowed down and squinted at him before covering her mouth. Her gloves were covered in snow from the snowballs she had been throwing earlier.
“Oh my gosh you’re not looking too good! Are you actually ok?”
[Oh wait, we actually care?] Mused Dross.
Eithan patted the Grand Elder’s head, brushing the snow from his hair.
“Eh, he looks half-dead! Looks like he’s sleeping already. Doubt we’d be able to save him.” Eithan pointed forward, never losing his jubilant tone. “Onwards, men! To Orthos!”
Mercy gave him a sympathetic look as she passed.
Lindon shifted his backpack straps, glancing at the Grand Elder. Lindon held no love for the Heaven’s Glory School, but he had no quarrel with the school anymore. He walked away.
“You…” The Grand Elder croaked.
Lindon stopped.
Dross gasped. [He speaks! Oh, he does know you! Wait, are you related for real?! Wow, I think I can see the resemblance! Yeah, maybe if you were a little older and …. you know, had a better more friendly face?]
Lindon looked down, looking confused.
“Unsouled.” The Grand Elder managed.
Lindon gripped his backpack straps as he straightened his back. His hair fell in his eyes, and he turned away.
“Apologies, but I don’t know who you’re talking about.”
Lindon walked past the Grand Elder.
Only Yerin stayed behind.
The Grand Elder felt his heartbeat increase as Yerin crouched in front of him. Her face was calm, her eyes as sharp as her blade.
She had been there when they had killed her master. They had attacked him in his sleep after he had been poisoned by the Jade Elders. The Grand Elder himself had driven the sword in that had killed Adama.
“You killed my master.” Yerin mumbled.
The Grand Elder understood. Yerin had come for her revenge. He saw her Goldsigns emerge from her back, six gleaming blades sticking out of her back. The same Goldsigns her master had used. She stared at him coldly, her hand resting on a white sword.
The Grand Elder bowed his head, accepting his fate.
“Kill me then. I don’t care anymore.”
The Sword Sage’s disciple said nothing, staying crouched.
“Yerin?”
She looked up.
Mercy and Lindon stood in the snow. Lindon clutched his backpack straps, frowning in concern. Mercy looked over from the side, her eyes wide.
Dross floated out of Lindon, the mind spirit looking at Yerin with one big eye.
Even Eithan had stopped, looking over with a curious smile.
“You coming?” Mercy asked.
Lindon held out a hand. On his shoulder, Little Blue peeped.
Behind them, the sun was beginning to rise over the mountains.
Yerin looked back down at the Grand Elder, looking down at the pitiful man who had dragged himself through the snow, barely alive. This man had taken someone very special away from her.
But killing him wasn’t going to change anything.
The silence ticked away into seconds. Finally, her Goldsigns sank back into her back. A lopsided smile crept on her face as she stood up.
“Let’s go find Orthos.” She stood up, patting her knees. “And then go meet your family.”
Yerin walked over and joined her friends.
The Grand Elder was left alone in the snow.
END OF PART 3
THE END