Asuna stood on the ice, her knuckles trembling as she clutched the hilt of her sword. Her eyes remained fixed on the distant battle, watching the green and purple flashes violently collide in the darkening expanse. Each clash sent towering waves surging into the sky, the ocean churning with the force of their battle.
Her vision blurred with tears.
She could barely see them anymore—only faint streaks of green and purple light clashing amidst the endless water. The battle was moving farther and farther away.
Asuna's heart pounded painfully in her chest.
'He's taking the fight away from us... away from the ship...'
Her hands clenched tighter.
'He's... trying to die alone.'
Beside her, Gu Mingzhu approached slowly. Her steps were hesitant and unsteady. She stopped next to Asuna, her hands trembling slightly, her lips pale.
Her voice cracked as she whispered, "Sister... tell me... husband did not..."
Her words caught in her throat, unable to finish.
Asuna didn't look at her. She couldn't. Her eyes remained on the flashes in the distance.
Her voice came out hollow.
"Yes," she whispered. "He opened the Eighth Gate—Death Gate."
Gu Mingzhu's breath caught. Her eyes widened slightly, then filled with tears. She stared silently at the battle, her lips trembling.
Suddenly, from the edge of the ice, Asuna's mother's voice rang out sharply.
"All higher-ranked, follow us!" she commanded, her voice steely and unyielding. "If Kanoru cannot take the invader with him, then we will avenge him!"
Her voice was filled with resolute fury.
But there was hesitation in the group.
Some of the higher-ranked warlocks exchanged uneasy glances.
One of them muttered, "The commander took the enemy away from us... now we can escape."
Another quickly agreed. "He gave us the chance to survive. If we run now, we can live!"
Several nodded in agreement, their faces pale with fear.
Asuna and Gu Mingzhu remained silent.
Their faces were cold, expressionless. They didn't say anything.
They didn't plead for anyone to follow them.
Kanoru was their husband.
They didn't expect anyone else to follow them to their deaths.
Asuna's heart was already set.
'Even if I die... I will take revenge for him.'
But suddenly, Pan Lian's voice rang out, sharp and mocking.
She scoffed loudly.
"Do you fools really think that if the commander loses... you'll escape?" she spat, her eyes narrowed with disdain. "Do you believe you can run from a Spirit Realm being?"
Her cold, biting words rang through the group.
The hesitant warlocks stiffened slightly.
Pan Lian's voice was filled with scorn.
"You'll just die tired," she sneered.
Before anyone could respond, Hou Li suddenly stepped forward, his face grim and resolute.
His fists clenched tightly, and his eyes blazed with unwavering determination.
"Even if the commander doesn't kill the invader," he declared, his voice strong and defiant, "he will still seriously injure him."
He turned sharply toward the group.
"Which means... it will be easier for us to finish the bastard off!"
Without waiting for a response, Hou Li turned and sprinted across the ice, running toward the distant battle.
Asuna's eyes flickered toward him.
Her heart clenched slightly.
'He's going.'
Then, one by one, the warlocks who had remained silent—the ones who wanted revenge—began to move.
They clenched their weapons and ran after Hou Li, their eyes sharp with bloodthirsty resolve.
The hesitant ones, who had wavered moments ago, stood frozen.
They glanced at one another, their eyes flickering with uncertainty.
Then, one of them clenched his jaw.
"Leader Hou Li is right," he muttered through gritted teeth.
Another hesitated briefly before speaking.
"If I don't take revenge for the commander..." he rasped, his voice filled with bitterness, "I won't be able to sleep for the rest of my life."
Another suddenly growled, his eyes hard with resolve.
"If I run... my family will disown me."
The hesitant warlocks glanced at each other again.
And then, from the ship behind them, a voice suddenly rang out.
"Go!"
The warlocks turned sharply, their eyes wide.
The family members—wives, husbands, children, and friends—stood on the deck of the ship.
Their eyes were filled with tears and desperation.
"Go!" they shouted again. "Go fight with the commander!"
The hesitant warlocks' eyes hardened.
Without another word, they turned and ran.
Their hesitation vanished.
They charged across the ice, their feet pounding against it, their eyes fixed on the distant flashes of green and purple.
Asuna's breath hitched as she turned slightly.
She saw them running—dozens of them.
The hesitant ones who had faltered moments ago were now running with unwavering determination.
Her lips parted slightly.
Her hands tightened around the hilt of her sword.
Her eyes were firm, unyielding.
She turned back toward the battle, her expression cold with fierce resolve.
Even if she lost her life...
Even if her body was torn apart...
She would take revenge for Kanoru.
The battle raged on.
Kanoru's twin swords slashed relentlessly, carving through the invader's flesh. Blood sprayed into the air with every strike, staining the ocean crimson. Deep gashes crisscrossed the invader's body, exposing muscle and bone beneath the pale, stitched skin.
But for every wound Kanoru inflicted, he suffered in return.
The invader's fists and feet struck him like battering rams.
A kick slammed into his ribs—his body whipped violently through the air, crashing into the waves.
Before he could recover, the invader appeared behind him.
A sharp punch struck his back, sending him spiraling forward again.
Kanoru coughed violently, blood splattering from his mouth. His chest heaved with every labored breath.
From a distance, it appeared as though they were evenly matched—their blows equally vicious, their movements equally swift.
But Kanoru knew the truth.
*I'm losing.*
The invader's strength was relentless.
He could fight for hours—perhaps even days—without tiring.
But Kanoru's time was slipping away.
His veins burned. His muscles screamed in agony. His body was being consumed at a terrifying speed.
He could feel his vitality withering—fading rapidly with every second.
He slashed again. His swords cut through the invader's chest, slicing through flesh and muscle down to the bone. The invader's blood splattered across the ocean's surface.
But Kanoru's vision was already blurring.
*I'm running out of time.*
Even as he fought, he knew the truth.
His slashes were powerful—his blades tore through the invader's body mercilessly.
But it still wasn't enough.
*Even if I die... my members might be able to finish him off.*
He could only hope that the wounds he inflicted now would give his people a chance.
But he knew the cost.
*Even if they can kill him... many of them will die.*
His chest heaved violently as he staggered back.
The invader's stitched face twisted into a lifeless, mocking sneer.
Kanoru's eyes narrowed.
He felt the burning pain in his chest, the trembling in his legs.
*I have one hour left...*
His gaze hardened.
*No choice... I have to use it.*
His grip tightened around his swords.
The twin blades suddenly began to vibrate violently in his hands.
A sharp, whistling sound cut through the air.
The ocean surface quivered.
The wind elemental energy from the surroundings stirred violently.
The air rippled.
From every direction—far beyond the battle—wind elemental energy surged toward Kanoru.
The very currents of the world shifted.
Wind essence from kilometers away rushed toward him, twisting into a violent cyclone above the battlefield.
The swirling tempest climbed higher and higher into the sky.
The clouds churned and the wind elemental energy gathered—merging together into a single, colossal form.
In the sky, a massive sword of wind began to take shape.
The sword was enormous, its form stretching across the sky like a divine executioner's blade.
But Kanoru didn't stop.
He channeled more energy.
The colossal sword glimmered with countless razor-sharp currents.
It wasn't just raw wind energy.
He fused it with **Nature-Cut** and **Nature-Sound**—the unique elements he had honed over years of mastery.
The **Nature-Sound** spell pulled on the wind elemental energy by manipulating sound that was imperceptible to the human ear. The inaudible vibrations mobilized the wind energy from every direction, making it impossible for the invader to sense the buildup.
The **Nature-Cut** spell then condensed the gathered wind, forging it into a devastating blade with the cutting force of countless storm currents.
But Kanoru knew the risk.
The move was unstable.
He could never control it.
And now, he didn't need to.
*I'll use him as the coordinate.*
His blood-soaked eyes locked onto the invader.
The colossal sword in the sky began to fall.
It plummeted rapidly, shrinking smaller and smaller as it descended.
The enormous sword condensed, its massive form shrinking into a smaller and smaller shape.
It became invisible to the naked eye—moving faster than even the invader could perceive.
The invader didn't see it.
Not until it was too late.
Kanoru's feet suddenly burst off the water's surface.
His body blurred forward with unnatural speed.
Before the invader could react, Kanoru crashed into him—his arms locking around the invader's body in a sudden, desperate embrace.
The invader's eyes widened slightly in surprise.
But then he felt it.
A sudden piercing sensation.
A thin, almost transparent blade had silently pierced through Kanoru's back.
The tip of the sword jutted out from the invader's chest.
The invader's purple eyes widened in disbelief.
Kanoru gritted his teeth.
His arms tightened.
He didn't let go.
Then—
The sword exploded.
A brilliant flash of green and silver erupted from Kanoru's back.
The invader's body shook violently as the sword burst into countless wind blades, slicing through his body from the inside out.
The explosion of wind energy tore into the invader's torso, shredding muscle and flesh, sending a rain of blood into the air.
Kanoru's eyes fluttered slightly.
He felt himself weakening.
His grip loosened.
His breath faltered.
And then—his body fell.
His bloodied form slipped lifelessly from the invader's arms and plummeted toward the ocean.
His broken body struck the waves.
The water splashed violently around him.
And then—he began to sink.
Slowly, silently, his bloodied figure disappeared beneath the surface.
The ocean swallowed him whole.