The courtyard of the Eternal Ice Fort was a graveyard of shattered hopes and scorched frost. Its once-pristine walls of enchanted ice now bore blackened streaks, marred by demonic fire that refused to die. Rubble littered the ground, twisted pillars rising like broken bones from the battlefield. The air hung heavy with smoke, blood, and sulfur, a suffocating mixture that seeped into the soul.
Kai knelt on the icy ground, his arms trembling as he held Aina close. Her silver-streaked hair was tangled and soaked with blood, her breath shallow, her skin ghostly pale.
"Come on, Aina," he whispered, voice cracking. "Don't you dare leave me…"
He clenched his jaw as a sickening laugh echoed through the courtyard.
Master Lu stood at the heart of the chaos, wreathed in black flames that twisted unnaturally around his body. His eyes—once filled with wisdom—now glowed with madness, a demon in a human's skin.
"Kai!" Lu called mockingly. "Still trying to save the girl? How quaint."
Kai ignored him.
His rage simmered under the surface, but he didn't let it explode. Not yet. Not while Aina was slipping away in his arms.
With a shout, he thrust his hand forward.
"Requiem of Heavenly Flame!"
A golden shield of fire burst from his core, flaring outward to deflect the demonic torrent. The flames swirled, pure and sacred, forming a cocoon around him and Aina. Within that shelter of light, the Flame of Life pulsed—gentle, warm, and steady.
Kai didn't waste a second. He reached into his spatial ring and pulled out every last healing pill he had.
"All of it… You can have it all… Just stay alive…"
He crushed the pills, turning them to dust, and fused them into a flood of Qi. The energy surged into Aina's broken body, weaving through her damaged meridians. But the demonic poison fought back, burning her from the inside like acid.
Kai gritted his teeth and pushed harder. His spiritual sense focused, precise as a blade. He forced his Qi to cleanse the darkness, guiding light into every tainted vessel.
Aina trembled.
Behind him, the ground quaked with violence. So Yun and Belozar clashed with Lu's overwhelming might, their attacks meeting wave after wave of hellish fire.
So Yun's formation circles shimmered in the air, fragile as glass. Belozar's spear flashed with icy arcs, but they were clearly being pushed back.
Kai wanted to join them.
Every instinct screamed at him to fight.
But his eyes stayed on Aina.
She needed him more.
"Come on…" he murmured. "Just one breath… That's all I need…"
Then, her chest rose. Just a little.
A shudder.
A weak breath escaped her lips.
"She's breathing…" he whispered, voice trembling. "She's alive…"
Relief hit him like a tidal wave. He wrapped his arms around her carefully and stood.
"I'm getting you out of here."
With the shield still glowing faintly, he dashed toward the shelter beneath the courtyard. Inside, a group of disciples huddled together, their faces pale with fear, some injured from stray blasts of demonic energy.
Kai didn't hesitate.
"Hold still."
He raised both hands.
"Flame of Life—spread."
Golden fire erupted from his palms, sweeping across the chamber. The disciples flinched—then gasped as warmth filled their bodies. Cuts closed. Bruises faded. Bones snapped back into place.
One girl clutched her arm, now fully healed.
"Senior Kai…" she whispered, eyes wide.
But he was already moving.
He left Aina gently with the disciples, wrapped in healing warmth, then turned back toward the battlefield. His eyes locked onto the figure in the sky.
Lu hovered like a demon king, arms stretched wide, summoning a vortex of black flame above his head.
A storm was coming.
Kai's gaze fell on his sword—lying half-buried in shattered ice.
He stepped toward it and grasped the hilt.
The moment his fingers touched the metal, something inside him awakened.
The sword pulsed. Its spirit resonated with him, vibrating with fury—his fury. Not just a weapon anymore, it became an extension of his soul.
The air cracked.
Fiery wings burst from his back, made of pure divine flame. The power of the Primal Phoenix ignited within him, defying the heavens.
For a single breath, he felt it.
Transcendence.
He shot into the air, faster than thought, blade aimed straight at Lu.
Lu twisted aside, moving like a shadow, but Kai didn't care.
He grinned.
"You want me, traitor?" he shouted. "Then come get me."
With a roar, he soared skyward, baiting Lu to follow. Black fire trailed behind them as Lu gave chase, enraged by the mockery.
So Yun and Belozar didn't hesitate—they surged after them, hammering Lu with attacks from below.
Kai's chest heaved.
The sword's divine power was fading.
But ahead, past the shattered fort, a glimmer of hope appeared—a frozen wasteland, untouched by war, gleaming beneath the moonlight. The Qi there was cold and pure. The perfect battlefield.
He narrowed his eyes.
There, the real fight would begin.