"Be careful there," Noel said as he casually pulled Yuanggai's sword out of the patriarch's chair. He smirked at the stunned Weh before tossing the weapon aside and returning to his seat, completely unbothered.
Weh was about to express his emotion before—
"AND HERE COMES THE FINAL RRRRROOOOOOUUNNNNNNDDDDDD!!!"
The entire coliseum shook with cheers. **Feet stomped, voices roared, hands clapped—**the air was electric with anticipation.
From the Rising Stone Sect's section, the surviving disciples rallied behind their champion, their voices cutting through the chaos.
"KILL HIM, OLDER SISTER!"
"END HIM, OLDER SISTER!"
Salma remained still at the center of it all. Calm. Focused. But her cold, sharp gaze was locked onto Kazel.
However—just as loud was the opposing war cry.
"KAZEL! KAZEL! KAZEL!"
The underdog, the mysterious swordsman, the one who defied every expectation—had now become a favorite.
The audience was divided, yet united in excitement.
Salma exhaled, her breath visible from the chill that naturally radiated from her. (This is it.)
Kazel, on the other hand, simply rolled his shoulder, grinning as if he was about to have the time of his life.
"Are you ready, Weh?" Noel's voice was uncharacteristically eager, a stark contrast to his usual composed demeanor.
Weh narrowed his eyes, noticing Noel's rare display of excitement. The man had barely shown emotion throughout the tournament, and yet now… he was grinning.
"Hmm?" Weh frowned.
Noel's grin widened. "My son is going to kill her."
Weh's smirk was immediate. "I'd like to see him try."
"Then see it clearly," Noel's grip on the armrest tightened. A faint cracking noise echoed under his fingers. "The wrath of the Immortal Sect!"
The tension exploded the moment the announcer shouted—
"FIGHT!"
Kazel vanished.
A blur. A shadow. A force.
Salma's instincts screamed at her—too fast! She barely managed to raise a wall of ice as a barrier.
But Kazel? He wasn't stopping.
The moment his feet met the ground, he pushed off, launching himself over the frozen defense.
Salma smirked. "Got you."
She raised a single hand—
CRACK!
The ground erupted, razor-sharp spikes of ice spearing toward him from all angles.
"He's trapped." Jin Shui murmured.
"That's going to sting." Mei Rong winced.
"Hmm…" Batu simply observed, his gaze unreadable.
But Kazel—
Did not hesitate.
He twisted his body mid-air, drawing his sword in a single, fluid motion.
And then—
WHIRRRRR!
The blade sang as it sliced through the frozen lances, shredding them apart like brittle twigs.
Downward. Faster. Stronger.
Like a woodcutter bringing down an ancient tree, Kazel's sword tore through the spikes, carving a direct path straight to Salma.
"Incredible!" Nobu stood from his seat.
Saya? She didn't even realize her lips were slightly parted in awe.
The crowd?
They erupted.
Cheers. Gasps. Horror.
The prodigies of the Rising Stone Sect were silent.
Salma's eyes narrowed. Her icy breath lingered in the air as she stared at the opponent who refused to fall.
Kazel, standing amidst the shattered ice, flicked the frost off his blade.
And then, he grinned.
"Kill that bitch!"
Lana's voice cut through the roaring crowd like a blade, her hood slipping off from the sheer intensity of her cheers.
Yiren, who had been watching her out of the corner of her eye, froze.
Her gaze locked onto Lana's face—no longer hidden. She didn't recognize her at first, but then—
Blue eyes.
Sharp, striking, unmistakable.
Yiren's breath hitched. "Are you… his mother?"
Lana didn't answer. She didn't even look at her. Her eyes were glued to the arena, filled with nothing but battlelust.
Salma leapt back, widening the distance between her and Kazel. Close combat was a death sentence. She needed space. She needed control.
"You're faster than I remember."
Kazel smirked. "You talk more than I remember." He tilted his head. "Fear… it brings out the other side of people."
Salma's expression darkened. "You think I'm afraid of you?!"
Her voice carried through the arena, fueled by conviction.
"I need to avenge my brethren!"
At her words, her Snow Fox manifested.
A burst of frigid air surged through the battlefield. The ground froze over in an instant, spreading outwards like a creeping death.
The frost caught everything in its grasp.
Jin Shui, Xie Lian, Batu, and Mei Rong—all of them felt the icy grip locking their feet in place.
"Tch." Jin Shui grimaced. "I should have lifted my feet a little."
"Me too." The others groaned.
But Kazel?
He had already done it.
The moment the frost spread, he had subtly jumped.
His feet remained free.
But now, the battlefield was a new challenge.
The ground was ice and slippery.
The terrain was treacherous.
And yet—
Kazel merely smirked.
"This is bad. It's going to be hard for Kazel to utilize his insane agility," Saya muttered, her brows furrowing as she watched the battlefield turn into a frozen deathtrap.
"This is bad. My money is at stake here," Yiren groaned, gripping the edge of her seat. "C'mon, pretty boy! Do something!"
Salma stood tall, her breath visible in the freezing air. "Goodbye, Kazel."
She extended her arm forward.
Above her, the air shifted. Ice crystals gathered, swirling together until they condensed into a massive frozen spear. Its jagged, uneven form glowed under the sunlight, the tip razor-sharp, gleaming as it pointed directly at Kazel.
A killing move.
"So this is the second skill of that fox?" Kazel muttered, tilting his head.
From the patriarchs' row, Weh leaned forward, a cruel smirk spreading across his face.
"Say the word," he sneered at Noel. "If not, your son is dead... for good!"
Noel's expression darkened. His jaw tightened as he gritted his teeth.
Then, he took a deep breath.
"KAZEL!!"
Kazel glanced over his shoulder.
His father wasn't panicked. He wasn't screaming for him to run.
Noel just gave him a look.
"You got this?"
A beat of silence.
Then—
Kazel smirked. "Hah."
Noel exhaled, his grip on the armrest loosening as he leaned back into his chair. He sat back down.
The entire crowd froze.
Not because of the ice.
But because Noel had just put his full faith in Kazel.
"Y-You're..." Weh's laughter started off quiet, but then it grew.
"Hehehe... Hahahaha! HAHAHAHAHA!"
He threw his head back, howling with twisted glee.
"Do it! Do it, Salma! END THE IMMORTAL SECT!"
Salma, however, remained silent.
She closed her eyes.
A moment of hesitation.
A second of weakness.
"I did regret it."
Her voice was barely above a whisper.
Kazel blinked. His smirk faded for just a second.
Then—
It returned.
"Snow Fox Second Skill: Ice Spear."
The frozen spear descended.
"Do you know the true power of a Shishi in a pair?" Kazel's voice rang out, unwavering against the incoming ice spear.
In a swift motion, he summoned his spear and drove it into the frozen ground. Using it as a foothold, he leapt up, perching himself atop the hilt with effortless balance. The cold wind howled around him as he drew his sword, the metal gleaming sharply under the frozen battlefield's light.
"It's the infinite possibilities of hosting beasts due to their love for peace," Kazel continued, his blue eyes gleaming with confidence. "But one needs to have a strong, strong vessel of a soul to utilize it... luckily for them, I am one of those very, very few."
Salma's breath hitched. Her pupils shrank.
She had fought Kazel. She had watched him battle. And yet, she still didn't know the full extent of his power.
Pao Pao suddenly burst into laughter, clapping his hands in sheer amusement.
"Hahaha! Kazel, you naughty little bastard!" he cackled. "You have more, don't you?! YOU HAVE MORE THAN THREE BEASTS ALREADY! OF COURSE YOU DO!!!"
The realization crashed over the crowd like a tidal wave.
Gasps rippled through the spectators. Even the patriarchs sat up rigidly in their seats, their expressions flickering between shock and disbelief.
Kazel, still standing above the battlefield, smirked.
"Let me show you the beast that my father used so much!"
Kazel's voice boomed across the frozen battlefield.
From behind him, a powerful manifestation surged forth—a massive Two-Tusk Boar. Its hooves cracked the ice beneath as it snorted, releasing thick, white mist from its nostrils. The sheer brutish strength radiating from it made the spectators shudder.
Noel, still seated among the patriarchs, raised a brow in amusement.
( There were plenty in Heir Forest, so I snatched one. ) Kazel grinned to himself before lifting his hand. "But here's more!"
A dazzling radiance erupted.
In an instant, the pair of Shishi manifested beside him, their ethereal presence causing the air to tremble. The crowd gasped in shock, their eyes darting from one beast to the next.
Even Salma, standing firm despite the chilling battlefield, felt her grip on reality waver.
Three beasts.
No—four.
Impossible.
"AMPLIFY!" Kazel roared.
The Shishi pair glowed brilliantly, their divine energy flooding into him. His muscles tensed, power swelling within his limbs. He raised his sword with one hand, his grip firm and absolute.
The Diamond Ice Spear streaked toward him.
With a single, devastating SWING, a flash of brilliance tore through the battlefield.
The crowd shielded their eyes—some out of awe, others out of sheer disbelief.
A clean, razor-sharp gap split open at the spear's very point.
And then—
CRACK!
The spear fractured. Shattered. Fell.
Its two halves descended uselessly, crashing into the frozen arena with a dull, defeated thud.
The battlefield fell into silence.
The once-deafening cheers of the Rising Stone Sect vanished.
Kazel exhaled. His blade still hummed with energy, his stance relaxed as he let his smirk deepen.
Salma's eyes widened in sheer disbelief.
Her spear—her ultimate technique—had been cut down like it was nothing.
She had no time to process it, no time to react—because Kazel wasn't done.
Using the spear planted beneath his foot, Kazel kicked off with a devastating leap. The air cracked around him as he propelled himself forward. His blade gleamed, amplified by the Shishi's power.
He was going for the kill.
A wave of pure, suffocating killing intent washed over the arena, thick and inescapable, like jam spread over bread—smooth, thorough, and inevitable.
Salma's breath caught in her throat. She couldn't move.
The crowd gasped.
Noel leaned forward. His eyes flicked toward Weh—who had already launched himself from his seat.
Noel smirked. (Too late.)
Weh's robes billowed as he soared toward the battlefield, his face contorted with urgency.
"She yields!" Weh's voice boomed, his desperation ripping through the stunned silence.
But Kazel's sword was already falling.
"I DON'T!"
With a single, monstrous strike, Kazel amplified the drive of his sword.
The blade pierced clean through Weh's chest.
It didn't stop.
The tip of his sword **burst out from the other side—**heading straight for Salma's throat.
Silence.
The kind of silence that felt unnatural.
The blade slid free, a wet, sickening sound following as Kazel twisted it out of Salma's throat with both hands, his grip firm, his expression unforgiving.
Blood sprayed onto the cold arena floor.
Weh's body hit the ground first. The great patriarch—**powerful, revered, feared—**was now just a dying old man gasping for breath, his hand twitching weakly toward Salma.
But Salma never saw him.
She only saw Kazel.
His stance was relaxed, his sword dripping, his blue eyes shining with the glow of absolute victory.
(W-What happened... I can't... speak...)
Her body swayed, her knees buckled.
Blood dribbled down the corner of her lips.
The cheers that once shook the arena were now nonexistent. Even Noel's soft landing from his jump was audible in the dreadful stillness.
Salma's vision blurred—but she forced herself to look one last time.
At him.
Kazel.
The boy she once knew.
(I'm... sor... ry...)
Her lips trembled, but no sound came.
Her body finally gave in.
She fell.
Backwards.
Eyes wide open.
Dead.
The sky above stretched endlessly, cold and indifferent.