The frozen wasteland stretched endlessly beneath a moonlit sky, vast and unforgiving. Jagged shards of ice jutted from the ground like the remnants of a shattered mirror, each one reflecting the cold silver light in deadly glints. A biting wind howled across the plains, whispering with the voices of the dead, or perhaps with the anticipation of death to come.
Kai landed softly, the frost beneath his boots cracking like brittle glass. Behind him, the flickering remnants of fiery wings pulsed weakly—ghostly and dim. The energy borrowed from the sword spirit was nearing its end, and with every heartbeat, Kai felt the power flicker further out of reach.
The air was heavy with spiritual tension, thick enough to feel on the skin. Sparks of raw energy danced unseen between the cracks in the ice, as if the land itself was saturated with anticipation. It was not just a battlefield—it was a crucible, waiting to see who would be broken and who would rise.
Across from him stood Master Lu, demonic and resplendent in his fury. Black flames coiled and twisted around his frame, contorting the air, warping reality itself. Where he stood, snow hissed and evaporated, revealing cracked earth beneath the ice. His aura pressed outward like a black tide, suffocating and vile, corrupting even the light of the moon above.
To Kai's left, So Yun stood with her arms raised slightly, every muscle taut. To his right, Belozar dug his spear into the ice, steady as a mountain. Both of them radiated a quiet ferocity—no words needed, no hesitation. The three of them formed a triangle, a wall of resistance against the oncoming storm.
Lu sneered, his voice laced with venom."You think you can stop me, boy? You dare stand against destiny?"
Kai's fingers tightened around the hilt of his sword. The blade hummed softly in reply, flickering with the last vestiges of primal flame."I'm not here to stop you," Kai said coldly. "I'm here to trap you."
A pulse of heat exploded outward from Lu.
Six burning blades of black fire erupted around him, spinning rapidly like orbiting moons. They crackled with demonic energy, moving with surgical precision and lethal intent. The very air screamed in protest as they tore through it, warping and distorting the light.
Then he moved.
In a blur, Lu crossed the icy field in a heartbeat. It wasn't speed—he bent space around himself, each movement a tearing violation of physics. His arm was already mid-swing, a blade of black fire howling through the night toward Kai's throat.
Instinct screamed. The sword spirit surged to life.
A burst of fire exploded beneath Kai's boots, propelling him sideways with explosive force. The ground where he had just stood ignited in a crater of molten ice and shattered stone. The blast of heat and Qi left a sonic crack behind him.
He reappeared behind Lu with a streak of flame, blade already in motion. The sword sliced forward, slipping past demonic defenses and piercing Lu's shoulder. Corrupted Qi hissed and recoiled, the wound spilling not blood, but threads of black flame.
Lu bellowed in rage. His aura erupted like a solar flare gone mad. He spun, lashing out with a vortex of dark fire. The explosion shattered nearby ice, turning it into a storm of deadly shrapnel.
Kai vanished again in a flash of light, a pillar of flame marking his exit. The strain on his body was immediate. His vision blurred. His arms trembled from overuse. The sword spirit's energy was fading fast—too fast.
"Kai! Keep him distracted!" So Yun's voice cut through the chaos.
She lifted her hands, and the air responded.
The temperature dropped like a falling blade. Winds screamed across the plain. Black snowflakes began to fall—large, slow, and unnaturally heavy. Each flake pulsed with spiritual energy, drawing in light and warmth and devouring them.
The sky itself darkened. The moon disappeared behind a swirling tempest of shadow. The Black Blizzard had arrived.
So Yun's domain consumed the battlefield. Visibility dropped to zero. The wind slashed like knives. Every breath felt like inhaling razors.
Lu stumbled, his steps suddenly sluggish. His flames flickered erratically as the cold began freezing his demonic Qi from the inside."This... This is blasphemy!" he roared. "They promised me power beyond death!"
The blizzard didn't answer. It simply screamed louder.
So Yun's voice came through the storm like a whisper across ice."You're not the only one who made promises."
The black snowflakes sharpened mid-air, transforming into countless blades of frozen death. They sliced through Lu's protective aura, peeling it away layer by layer. His black flames, once invincible, sputtered like candles in a hurricane.
Then Belozar moved.
With a roar that cracked the sky, he slammed his spear into the frozen earth. Blue light pulsed from the point of impact, running like lightning through the ground. A heartbeat later, jagged ice spears erupted from beneath Lu's feet—dozens of them, precise and merciless.
"No one escapes the hunter," Belozar growled. "Not even you."
Lu tried to evade, but the storm resisted him. The wind pushed back. The snow bound him. The spears struck—one grazing his leg, another piercing his thigh. The black flames tried to burn the ice, but the cold was deeper than fire.
Amidst it all, Kai felt the sword respond. The Requiem was waking.
He closed his eyes and reached deep—past pain, past exhaustion, past fear. He poured everything he had left into the blade.
A single word escaped his lips, filled with command and finality."Still."
The world obeyed.
The black flames froze mid-motion, suspended like ink in water. The howling wind stopped. Even time seemed to hesitate.
Lu's eyes widened in horror."What… what is this?!"
Kai opened his eyes, golden fire blooming from his sword like the rising sun."It's Requiem."
With a final cry, Kai surged forward. Every muscle burned. Every bone screamed. But he flew through the air like a comet of divine fire.
The sword plunged into Lu's chest—deeper than steel, cutting through spirit and soul.
For one terrible moment, there was silence.
Then, like a crumbling statue, Lu's body turned to ash. His scream was lost in the wind. His power scattered.
The blizzard swallowed his remains.
Kai collapsed to his knees, the sword crumbling in his hands. The cold bit into him like a hundred daggers. He could no longer feel his fingers. His breath came in ragged clouds.
"Did… we win?" he gasped.
Belozar stepped beside him, voice flat but respectful."He's dead. And now you must be, too—at least to the world."
Kai looked up in confusion."What…?"
So Yun approached, eyes heavy with sorrow."We'll say you died fighting him. I'll guide you to the portal. It's the only way."
"But the others—"
"No time," Belozar interrupted. "Your clan won't forgive this. They'll hunt you. Let them believe you fell here."
Kai stared at the shattered blade in his hand.
Everything was ending—and beginning.
He clenched his jaw."You're right."
Belozar tossed a backup sword at his feet."Take it. No Sword Pavilion disciple walks empty-handed."
Kai picked it up, slid it into his ring, and turned toward the storm.
The black blizzard still raged—his cloak, his shield, his last chance.
He would disappear into the cold.
But he would return. One day.