The invader, for the first time, let out a bone-chilling roar.
The sound echoed violently across the ocean, sharp and guttural, unlike anything the warlocks had ever heard. It was a cry of agony—raw and primal.
Blood burst from within his mutilated body. The countless slashes Kanoru had inflicted, already carved deep into his flesh, split further. The wind blades that had detonated inside him continued to tear at his insides. His organs were shredded. His bones splintered and cracked audibly.
He staggered backward, coughing out blackened blood.
The water element warlocks dove into the ocean without hesitation. Their forms vanished beneath the crimson-stained waves, swiftly searching for Kanoru's sinking body.
Above, the other warlocks unleashed a barrage of elemental spells.
Flames roared. Lightning crackled. Ice spears rained down in a blizzard of frost and fury.
The invader, weakened beyond recognition, howled as the spells drowned him.
His body was already broken—missing entire chunks of flesh. His left arm had been blown off by the wind explosion. His torso was a mangled ruin, his belly torn open, exposing what remained of his bloodied innards.
Half of his face had melted away, blackened and scorched by Lou Chen's fire, leaving only a charred skull with a single glowing purple eye. His remaining limbs were frozen, with patches of solid ice clinging to his skin.
And finally—he fell.
The once-terrifying spirit realm invader, whose mere presence had driven the entire crew to despair, collapsed into the ocean.
The waves splashed and swallowed him whole.
The water darkened with his blood.
And then he sank—slowly, silently—disappearing beneath the surface.
Moments later, the water warlocks resurfaced.
In their arms, they carried Kanoru's limp, blood-soaked body.
His form was barely recognizable—his clothes in tatters, soaked in blood. His skin was pale, and his chest was still, unmoving.
The warlocks rushed toward the ice platform.
As soon as they laid Kanoru down, Asuna and Gu Mingzhu dropped to their knees beside him.
"Asuna…" Gu Mingzhu whimpered, her voice trembling.
Asuna's hands were already on Kanoru's bloodied chest.
Her lips parted, but no words came out.
Tears streamed down her face.
"Kanoru… wake up…" she whispered brokenly, her fingers trembling as they brushed his blood-soaked hair from his face.
Gu Mingzhu clutched his arm with both hands, her knuckles white, her tears falling onto his motionless body.
"Don't leave us…" her voice cracked.
The two women sobbed quietly over Kanoru's still form.
But then—
Lou Chen, his face bloodied and dirtied with soot, suddenly felt a faint stirring in the air.
Through his tear-blurred vision, he noticed something impossible.
The massive hole that had torn through Kanoru's belly and out his back was closing.
The flesh was knitting back together.
The exposed organs were mending.
Even the splintered ribs were slowly fusing.
Lou Chen's eyes widened, tears still glistening on his face.
"Kanoru is alive!" he shouted hoarsely.
His voice rang out over the ice.
Everyone present froze.
The warlocks, who had been mourning their commander only seconds before, suddenly turned in disbelief.
Asuna's eyes widened.
Without hesitation, she pressed her trembling hand against Kanoru's chest.
For one agonizing moment, she held her breath.
And then—she felt it.
Thump.
Her eyes widened.
Thump.
His heart was beating.
Weak—but steady.
"H-he's…" she stammered. Her voice cracked, unable to finish the sentence.
Kanoru's mother, still exhausted from the battle, knelt beside her daughter. Her hand, trembling slightly, reached out.
She placed her palm gently over Kanoru's abdomen and closed her eyes.
She released a small pulse of energy—a probing current of elemental force.
And then she felt it.
Her eyes flew open in astonishment.
"Impossible…" she whispered.
Her voice was barely a breath.
But she knew what she was sensing.
Her energy traced through Kanoru's internal channels.
And she discovered the truth.
All eight of Kanoru's gates were permanently open.
Completely linked with his chakra channels.
There was no longer any separation.
No longer any resistance.
The gates that should have killed him by draining his vitality were instead surging with power.
The loss of his life force is being replenished.
She felt it clearly—the flow of Wind elemental energy.
It was rushing into Kanoru's body from the world around him.
The wind itself was filling his empty channels, making up for his lost vitality.
And it wasn't a conscious effort.
It was happening on its own.
Asuna's mother's eyes widened with comprehension.
Her voice was barely a whisper as she muttered in disbelief.
"...He did it…"
She looked down at Kanoru, her eyes filling with awe and thought.
"At the last moment… his understanding of wind elemental energy reached 1%."
"Which means…" she breathed, her eyes shining with realization, "...he can now absorb wind elemental energy and convert it into his vitality and power... even without being aware of it."
"His body will continue to absorb the wind around him… and it will sustain him... forever."
The warlocks stood frozen, stunned into silence.
They stared at Asuna's mother in disbelief, their minds still processing her words.
They had only caught the faint, trembling phrase: "He did it."
But they didn't understand what Kanoru had done.
Yun Ming, slumped against a piece of floating ice with his left arm missing and his face streaked with blood, weakly lifted his head.
His voice was hoarse, barely above a whisper.
"W-what… did he do… Mother?" he asked through labored breaths.
Asuna's mother turned to him, her eyes shimmering with relief and awe.
Her voice was soft but clear, carrying through the crowd.
"Kanoru… at the last moment…" she said slowly, her lips trembling into a smile, "advanced and entered the spirit realm."
For a heartbeat, the entire battlefield was utterly still.
No one spoke.
No one moved.
The only sound was the faint lapping of waves against the ice and the ship creaking in the distance.
And then—
A sudden eruption of joy swept through the warlocks.
Someone let out a ragged cheer.
Then another.
Suddenly, voices rose all around them.
A wave of ecstatic roars burst from the crowd.
"We won!"
"Commander's alive!"
"He's still with us!"
"H-he advanced! He advanced to spirit realm!"
Warlocks threw their arms around each other, gripping their comrades tightly.
Some wept openly. Others laughed with wild relief.
They had been certain their commander would die. They had braced for his loss, for the grief that would follow.
But now—he was not only alive—he had broken through the mortal barrier.
And with Kanoru's strength having reached this level, their safety would increase tenfold.
Lou Chen turned toward the others, his voice rough but filled with elation.
"Let's go back to the ship…" he rasped, barely able to contain his joy.
A faint, tired smile pulled at the corners of his lips.
"…and share the good news."
A few warlocks knelt and gently lifted Kanoru's unconscious body from the ground.
Careful hands cradled him, treating him as if he were the most precious thing in the world.
Though the massive hole through his belly was completely healed, the warlocks still carried him delicately, almost reverently, as if afraid he might still break.
Asuna knelt beside them, wiping the tears from her eyes with her blood-streaked hands.
But as she watched Kanoru being lifted, her eyes hardened with sharp resolve.
Her voice, still hoarse from crying, rang out clearly.
"Someone get the head of the invader."
Pan Lian, who was crouched nearby catching her breath, snapped her head toward Asuna in surprise.
She blinked, her eyes slightly wide.
She hadn't expected Asuna, after nearly losing her husband, to still have the presence of mind to think of the spoils.
Asuna wiped her face, her eyes sharp and unwavering.
She turned to Pan Lian, her voice firm.
"The head of the invader is worth one golden merit," she explained evenly.
Her hands clenched into trembling fists, but her eyes remained clear and determined.
"With that merit, we can exchange it for resources."
She glanced over her shoulder toward her mother and Lou Chen.
Her voice lowered, but her tone was filled with conviction.
"Enough resources for Mother and Lou Chen to also advance to the spirit realm."
Pan Lian's eyes widened slightly at her words.
But then—her lips curled into a sharp grin.
She slapped her fists together and barked out a sharp command.
"You all heard Madam Commander! Let's go!" she roared.
Without hesitation, she and her team dove into the ocean.
They vanished beneath the waves in pursuit of the invader's mangled corpse.