Chapter 42: Echoes of the Scourge — Part 1
The very fabric of the Sacred Dimension screamed as the sky shattered like brittle glass. Cracks of red lightning forked across the heavens, and the serene silver petals that once danced in gentle breezes now burned in midair.
Kael stood at the front, weaponless, his fists pulsing with the raw fury of the Starforged Realm. Evelyne flanked him, her long hair whipping in the storm as her blades shimmered with lunar flame.
Across the clearing, the Shard of the Scourge Sovereign floated effortlessly, his robes flaring in windless space. Behind him, fissures widened, threatening to collapse the realm.
"This dimension bleeds for your arrogance," the shard rasped, its voice echoing with countless layers.
Kael's lips curled. "And it's about to bleed you out."
> [System Alert: Dimensional Stability Dropping — 83%] [System Combat Mode Engaged — Starforged Synchronization Enabled] [Partner Link Active: Evelyne — Lunar Wrath Unlocked] [New Skill Unlocked: Soul-Eye Appraisal — Allows host to scan the stats and attributes of scanned beings. Restrictions apply based on host level.]
Kael activated the skill immediately, his vision tinting with a crimson-blue hue as a faint glow outlined the shard's figure.
> [Appraisal Target: ??? — Soul Fragment Detected] [Warning: Full Data Inaccessible — Target belongs to Upper Realm Origin. Data is fragmentary.]
---
[ENEMY PROFILE — SHARD OF THE SCOURGE SOVEREIGN]
Realm: ??? (Estimated World Dominion Realm – Upper Realms Classification)
Soul Type: Fragmented Consciousness
HP: 999,999 (Current: Unknown)
Mana: 860,000
Strength: 936 → 281 (Power Restricted: 30%)
Defense: 902 → 270
Agility: 917 → 275
Abilities: Void Threading, Shadow Duplication, Abyssal Fire Lance, Cursed Sigils
Threat Level: Catastrophic
Scan Integrity: 34% — Many parameters remain locked due to level disparity
---
Kael's pupils narrowed. "This... thing's just a fragment?"
Evelyne's voice tightened. "That confirms it. I had my suspicions... but this thing, Kael—it's not from our realm. It's from one of the Upper Realms."
Kael turned to her in shock. "You've been to the Upper Realms?"
She nodded, slowly. "I was born there. My exile landed me in your plane. And if this fragment made its way here… someone up there wants something very, very bad."
But the shard didn't strike immediately. With a gesture, he summoned a circle of crimson light. From the earth and sky, monstrous forms burst forth—void-born creatures of various shapes, with corrupted armor, fanged maws, and eyes glowing with the remnants of forbidden magic.
> [New Objective: Eliminate the Shardspawn Vanguard (20)] [EXP Reward per Kill: 50,000]
---
[SHARDSPAWN SOLDIER — Voidborn Class]
Realm: Half-Step Sovereign
HP: 18,000
Mana: 7,200
Strength: 91
Defense: 68
Agility: 84
Abilities: Corrosive Claws, Shadow Blink, Soul Drain
Threat Level: Moderate
---
Kael and Evelyne didn't hesitate.
Kael launched forward first, his fists glowing with flaming light. His first punch vaporized a creature's upper body, sending splinters of shadow flying. Evelyne danced through the shadows, blades cutting through another with a cascade of violet moonfire.
Their teamwork was poetry in chaos—synchronized movements, shared instincts, and surging auras that pushed their enemies back.
> [Shardspawn Eliminated: 7/20] [EXP Gained: 350,000]
As the last of the monsters died with an unholy scream, the shard lifted his hand—and the battlefield was silenced.
He hovered higher, darkness coiling around him. "You will regret spilling their blood. Come, bearers of fate."
Kael wiped blood from his jaw. "You're next."
> [Shard of the Scourge Sovereign — HP: 100% — Boss Encounter Begins]
Kael dashed forward. His palm crashed against the shard's defense barrier, sending a shockwave through the dimension. The barrier cracked.
The shard retaliated, summoning a spear of abyssal fire. It hurled it with godlike precision, but Evelyne blinked into the path, slicing the projectile in half with her crescent blades. A sonic boom tore apart the terrain beneath them.
She snarled. "Stay focused. He's not at full power yet."
Kael grunted, flipping backward as the shard launched hundreds of void threads like webbing. He punched the ground. "Lunar Flash, now!"
Evelyne obeyed. Their combined auras surged, exploding in brilliant white. Light met darkness as their power slammed into the enemy's chest, driving him back through one of the cracks.
> [Shard Health: 78%]
The shard roared. "I will consume this plane and turn your soul into fuel."
Kael laughed, blood running from his brow. "Try it, shadow. I've got more soul than you can burn."
The battle escalated. Evelyne danced through the air like moonlight incarnate, her blades singing death into every shadow. Kael absorbed blasts with hardened skin and returned punches that cratered the battlefield. But with every second, the realm destabilized further.
> [Dimensional Stability: 57%] [Critical Breach Risk in 9 Minutes]
Suddenly, the shard unleashed a cursed sigil that detonated underneath Kael. His body was thrown into the sky like a ragdoll, blood spraying from his mouth. He hit the ground hard, bones cracking.
> [Warning: HP at 24% — Critical Injury Detected]
Kael tried to rise, but his legs failed him. Evelyne screamed and flew into a berserk frenzy, cutting through void beasts summoned by the shard. Her energy began to wane under the endless barrage.
Kael's eyes fluttered. Memories of his harem, of his journey, and of Evelyne's tear-streaked smile flooded him. He clenched his fists.
"I'm not done... not yet...!"
With a surge of willpower, Kael activated Bloodline Burn, his dormant bloodline awakening for a brief instant.
> [Emergency Trigger: Bloodline Surge — Starforged Core Ignition]
Energy exploded around him as he stood again, body glowing red with barely contained power. Evelyne blinked in shock. "Kael! Your core—"
He didn't wait. His foot shattered the earth as he launched into the air, trading blows with the shard in mid-sky. Each strike broke the air apart. Each impact split space.
The shard summoned a second form—a mirrored duplicate—and stabbed Kael through the shoulder.
> [Warning: HP at 6% — Vital Stabilization Engaged]
Kael roared. He summoned every ounce of strength and, with Evelyne combining her power, launched a lunar explosion point-blank into the shard's chest.
> [Shard Health: 12% — Fragment Core Exposed]
The shard unleashed a final, desperate move — a gravitational well that distorted space, pinning them both to the ground.
Kael's bones creaked. Evelyne screamed in rage as her blades cracked from the force. "Kael—!"
> [Emergency Trigger: Lunar Soul Thread Initiated]
With a primal shout, Kael activated the Soul Thread. Evelyne's essence surged through him, and he shattered the space between them. He appeared behind the shard and, with every ounce of his combined strength and resonance, drove a burning punch straight into its back.
The shard howled in agony, cracking but not breaking. Instead, it fled, retreating into the deeper folds of the Sacred Dimension, its form flickering like a shattered illusion.
> [Warning: Shard Not Eliminated — Enemy Escape Imminent]
Evelyne dropped to one knee beside Kael. "We almost had it... but it's not over."
Kael coughed blood and smiled faintly. "Round two, then."
> [System Notification: Dimensional Integrity Stabilizing — Pursuit Optional] [Partial EXP Gained: 1,750,000 (Monsters + Shard Damage Bonus)] [EXP Needed to Level 14: 3,276,800] [System Level: 13 — EXP: 1,750,000 / 3,276,800]
---
[STATUS WINDOW: KAEL VIREN]
Level: 13
EXP: 1,750,000 / 3,276,800
Realm: Starforged Realm, Tier 4/9
HP: 6100 / 6100
Mana: 4800 / 4800
Strength: 188
Endurance: 172
Willpower: 196
Charm: 218
Intellect: 164
Dexterity: 176
Bonded Partners:
Selene — Love: 96% (Celestial Flame Realm, Tier 7/9)
Thalaria — Love: 91% (Sovereign Realm, Tier 6/9)
Vaeloria — Love: 94% (Crown Saint Realm, Tier 9/9)
Evelyne — Love: 100% (Worldbreaker Realm, Peak)
Traits:
Embersoul
Combat Sync (x4 Bonded)
Flame Tether (Selene Only)
Lunar Flame Synergy (Evelyne Bonus)
Soul Thread (Unlocked)
Sacred Dimensional Traveler (Unlocked)
Soul-Eye Appraisal (NEW)
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End of Chapter 42 — Part 1 (To be continued...)