Louskas stood frozen for a moment, weighing his options. Escape? That was possible, thanks to his Teleportation Shard and the spirit stones stored in his ring. He could disappear before anyone noticed.
But he hesitated.
His gaze shifted toward his father. Valrik was battling two second-stage opponents at once. Louskas knew his father's strength well, but fighting two cultivators of that level at the same time was no easy feat. Any interference from him would be suicidal. He erased the thought from his mind—he was still in the first stage, and his core was completely black. He would only be a burden.
But before he could make a decision—
A storm of wooden spikes tore through the air toward him, howling like a furious beast ready to devour him whole.
« Damn it! »
He focused on a point in the distance, took a deep breath—then vanished.
The Grand Elder wasn't blind. His fury burned like wildfire, but his senses were sharper than ever. He felt a surge of spiritual energy gathering behind him. He reacted instantly.
With a swift motion, he swung his branch-covered arm—and clashed against a steel blade!
When he turned his gaze to his attacker, his eyes widened, and his anger reignited like an inferno.
The purple sword…
His grandson's sword.
The weapon Kailos had trained with so diligently, the one he had always been so proud of. And now—a filthy slave wielded it as if it were his own.
Louskas stood there, his expression cold and unreadable. His Teleportation Shard had drained him. Even though he had moved only a short distance, his soul ocean had been significantly depleted—and he was already using some of it just to wield the sword.
He had no chance against the Grand Elder.
That much was clear. The old man wasn't just a mid-stage first-rank cultivator, but his multi-functional shard and red core made him a monster in prolonged battles. Even if Louskas used every single spirit stone he had, he would still be crushed.
Escape? Or a surprise attack?
But as if the Elder had read his mind, wooden armor sprouted from his body, covering him like a living shield. More branches erupted from the ground, twisting and writhing like venomous snakes.
« Shit… I can't break through this. »
And then—the Elder attacked.
His speed was monstrous. His strikes were brutal, relentless. Each blow shook the ground like a meteor crashing down. Louskas barely had time to react before roots burst from the earth and coiled around him like iron chains.
« Damn it… he can sense spiritual energy gathering! »
That was the major flaw of Louskas' Teleportation Shard. He had to concentrate his spiritual energy at a target location, making it easy for a sharp opponent to detect.
But he wasn't the type to give up.
He vanished again.
Reappearing among the dense trees, he staggered slightly, withdrawing several spirit stones and crushing them to absorb their energy.
But the Elder did not give him a moment's rest.
« I haven't even touched him once! »
Louskas dodged the roots, weaving between them with an agility that made it seem effortless.
But it wasn't.
Sweat trickled down his forehead. He needed to find a weakness.
His eyes scanned everything—the Elder's movements, the way his roots moved, the wooden armor shielding his body. Nothing. No clear weakness.
The easiest option? Fire.
But he didn't have a fire-based shard.
Gritting his teeth, he slashed through the incoming roots with his sword. He was fast—physically, a first-stage cultivator wasn't weak at all.
But exhaustion was creeping in.
« I have to take a risk! »
And so, he did.
He teleported—suddenly appearing right in front of the Elder.
It was a reckless move. Louskas had barely concentrated his energy at the target location, reducing his presence to almost nothing until the last second.
It was incredibly dangerous. If he failed, his body might not fully transfer—or worse, he might not teleport at all.
But he had forgotten something—he was still in a young boy's body.
The Elder's wooden face contorted in shock, and Louskas smirked coldly.
His sword slashed toward the Elder's throat.
BOOM!
A surge of purple energy exploded from the blade—but he didn't hear the sound of flesh being torn apart.
His sword was stuck.
A thick root had wrapped around the Elder's neck, gripping the blade before it could penetrate the skin.
« Shit… »
And now—it was the Elder's turn to smirk.
The ground beneath Louskas exploded.
Roots—thick and monstrous—wrapped around him like iron chains and lifted him into the air as if he were a sacrificial offering to the gods.
« Damn it… I'm dead. »
He focused, trying to teleport away—
BOOM!
A fist slammed into his stomach, forcing a gush of blood from his mouth.
« Your death won't be easy, slave. »
A new branch sprouted, twisting violently—forming into a sharp wooden spear.
« I'll torture you first. Until you beg for death. »
Louskas smiled, blood coating his teeth. Torture? If only they knew what real suffering was.
But the next strike erased his grin completely.
BOOM!
And another.
And another.
Bones cracked. Pain shot through every nerve in his body. His vision blurred.
Somewhere in the distance, the Elder turned his gaze toward Valrik's battle. One of the demon cultists had been badly wounded, while the other kept retreating and attacking from afar. Their leader wasn't in perfect condition either—but he was still winning.
« Sorry, slave. Looks like our fun ends here. »
The spear spun rapidly, gaining momentum.
Then—it launched.
Straight toward Louskas' heart.
But suddenly—
The world froze.
Everything stopped.
The roots.
The wind.
The spear of death.
Only one person could still move. Louskas.
His pupils shrank as he felt a familiar energy. He didn't hesitate—he teleported out of the frozen space, collapsing to his knees, coughing blood.
And above him—
Nyktos stood, smirking coldly.
« Took you long enough, bastard. »