Weh coughed, clutching his chest as he forced himself upright. His body was battered, his breathing ragged, but relief flooded his face as he saw Luo Shen standing firm.
"T-Thank you, Luo Shen," he rasped.
Luo Shen, however, merely shook his head. His cold gaze was fixed on the debris where Kazel had crashed. "This is personal."
Noel's expression darkened instantly. His battle instincts sharpened as he immediately shifted his focus.
"Luo SHEN!!" Noel's voice boomed with fury as he lunged forward, intent on cutting him down.
But before he could reach, Luo Shen's voice rang out, loud and commanding.
"The Jade Lotus Sect shall aid the Rising Stone Sect! Under direct orders of your patriarch—OBEY!"
The atmosphere turned suffocating.
From the Jade Lotus Sect's seats, elders and disciples immediately moved, their expressions firm as they descended into the battlefield.
"Tch!" Saya gritted her teeth before leaping into the chaos. "I will not stand by and watch the person who saved me DIE!"
Yiren sighed beside her. She wasn't the type to get involved in sect battles, but… her eyes landed on the sponsor's section, specifically on Pao Pao, the middle sponsor.
She wasn't the only one. Pao Pao had already noticed her gaze. He simply smirked and mouthed,
"Do what you want to do."
Yiren clicked her tongue before she stood up.
Lina, overwhelmed by everything, turned to Rui. "W-What should we do?!"
Rui, whose face was tense with frustration, clenched his fists. "This is beyond me… Sorry. I wish I could help, but…" He stopped. Then, his hands tightened before he cursed,
"Fuck it!" Rui suddenly leapt off his seat, heading straight into the battle.
"W-Wait!" Lina called after him. But her hesitation lasted only a second before she bit her lip and followed suit.
The entire arena was in chaos.
From the stands, Arhatam groaned loudly. "Damn it! He still owes me money!" He gritted his teeth before throwing his hands in frustration. "But the hell can I do?!"
A deep, guttural voice rumbled beneath the debris.
"Amplify... everything."
The Shishi spirits within him stirred.
"Are you sure?" one of them asked, its tone filled with warning.
Kazel's reply was calm, almost indifferent. "I just need to kill them before the backlash."
He pushed against the shattered stone, emerging from the wreckage like a beast crawling out of the abyss. Dust and rubble slid from his shoulders as he slowly lifted his gaze.
His blue eyes shimmered.
"This Scale Dalgona…" he muttered, his voice low and resolute. "Will mark their last."
"Understood."
And then—his aura exploded.
The Two-Tusk Boar, the very beast that amplified his strength, roared within him.
The Mustang Black Rabbit, the spirit that granted him unparalleled speed, pulsed in his veins.
And both were further amplified by the pair of Shishi.
Kazel's presence was no longer human.
His very existence sent waves of power rippling across the battlefield. His body pulsed with raw energy, muscles coiled like steel wires, every fiber of his being vibrating at an intensity that made even the strongest cultivators tense.
A suffocating silence fell over the sects as all eyes turned to him.
Batu, normally steadfast, felt something he hadn't in years—fear. He looked down at his arms, his usually unshakable defense covered in goosebumps.
(Impossible. I... I can actually feel it. A punch from him… could break my ribs.)
Mei Rong's fingers trembled as she clutched her sleeves.
"This… is he going all out?" Her voice was barely above a whisper.
Jin Shui clenched his fists. "He was holding back?!"
Kazel stood atop the rubble, one foot resting on the shattered debris. His robe was tattered, his frame covered in dirt and battle scars, but none of it dulled the fire in his gaze.
His eyes…
They were no longer just those of a warrior.
They were the eyes of a conqueror.
Luo Shen smirked, unfazed. "I knew that wouldn't take you down—hm?"
A shadow blurred.
Luo Shen's eyes widened.
Then—a wet sound echoed.
A severed hand fell to the ground.
The same hand that had punched Kazel just moments ago.
Luo Shen stared at the stump where his wrist had once been. He didn't even feel the cut.
A stunned silence crushed the battlefield.
Everyone—disciples, elders, patriarchs, even the prodigies—stood frozen in place.
Eyes widened. Jaws slackened. Hearts pounded.
They did not see the cut.
They did not see Kazel move.
Yet there it was—Luo Shen's severed hand, twitching on the bloodstained ground.
Batu's breath hitched as his entire body stiffened.
(He… He cut Luo Shen? Just like that?!)
His mind screamed at him to deny what he saw. Luo Shen was supposed to be untouchable. A monster among cultivators. But Kazel… Kazel had severed his hand in an instant.
Jin Shui gulped. His hands clenched into trembling fists.
(That wasn't speed. That wasn't power. That was something else entirely.)
Mei Rong pressed a hand to her chest, her breathing unsteady.
"This… this isn't just cultivation. He's something different."
Her fingers shook so badly she couldn't even make a fist.
The Jade Lotus Sect elders staggered back in shock. Even they, men who had cultivated for decades, could not register how Kazel had done it.
"Impossible…" one of them muttered.
"This… this isn't talent," another elder whispered. "This is a demon."
The Rising Stone Sect elders paled, their faces drained of color. Some of the disciples stepped back involuntarily, their bodies betraying their fear.
They had come to kill Kazel.
But now, a new thought bloomed in their minds.
(Can we even kill him?)
The air trembled with Kazel's every movement.
Luo Shen barely had time to scream before the second blade fell—his remaining hand severed, his blood spraying like a crimson arc.
Then—CRACK!
The sound of bone shattering and his blade breaking rang across the battlefield as Kazel's fists tore into flesh, hammering down like a relentless storm.
Punch. Luo Shen's ribs collapsed inward.
Punch. His jaw snapped, his skull caving under the brutal force.
Punch. His eye socket shattered, blood bursting outward.
Each impact echoed like gunfire, leaving nothing but ruin in its wake.
The once-proud genius of the Jade Lotus Sect, the feared Luo Shen, now dangled limp in Kazel's grip—his mangled body beyond recognition, his blood dripping between Kazel's fingers.
He was still alive. Barely.
Kazel clicked his tongue in annoyance.
(Still breathing? How bothersome.)
Without hesitation, his fist cocked back—
BOOM!
Luo Shen's head exploded, sending a spray of gore into the wind.
The battlefield froze.
A collective shudder ran through both sects as they stared in pure horror.
The Jade Lotus Sect had been proud, arrogant, powerful.
And yet—one boy had erased their greatest warrior in mere moments.
A wet, gurgled whimper escaped one of the disciples.
That was all it took.
Panic spread like wildfire.
"EEK! GO AWAY!"
Screams erupted as the disciples of the Jade Lotus Sect turned to flee.
But Kazel did not allow it.
His figure vanished, only to reappear in front of them.
Before they could react, before they could even beg—
Blood sprayed outward.
A head rolled. A body collapsed.
Weapons were ripped from their fallen hands, becoming Kazel's tools instead.
A disciple slashed desperately at him—but his own chakram ended up lodged in his throat.
Another lunged with a spear—only to have it stolen, turned, and driven straight through his gut.
Each step Kazel took, three more men fell.
It didn't matter what weapons they wielded.
It didn't matter if they activated their abilities.
By the time they even realized where he was—
It was already too late.
Weh staggered back, watching in absolute horror as Kazel jumped to the next pool. The Rising Stone Sect.
(This… This isn't a cultivator. This isn't even human.)
Kazel wasn't fighting.
He wasn't struggling.
He was hunting.
A one-sided slaughter.
Every disciple, every elder, everyone that once stood proudly under the Rising Stone Sect banner—
Falling like wheat before the scythe.
One elder collapsed to his knees, hands trembling, his lips quivering as he muttered prayers to a god that would not answer.
His vision blurred as he saw the ruination of his sect unfold before him.
A massacre.
A nightmare.
A boy bathed in blood, cutting through their ranks like a reaper.
And nothing could stop him, soon, the echoes of battle faded, leaving behind only the whispers of the dead.
Amidst the ruined battlefield, the last, desperate cry of a Rising Stone Sect disciple calling for his patriarch was met with silence.
Then—Weh finally realized.
He was alone.
The last of the Rising Stone Sect.
His legs trembled, his breath ragged, his once-proud sect erased in a single day.
"You decided to kill me," a voice cold as steel rang out.
Before Weh could react—
BANG!
A blow from nowhere sent him crashing into the wall, embedding his body into the cracked stone.
"GUHAA!" Blood splattered from his lips, his vision spinning as he saw Kazel approaching—slow, deliberate, inevitable.
Each step echoed in his ears like a war drum, his heartbeat matching its rhythm.
"P-Please... forgive me!!" Weh gasped, his body barely responding.
Kazel's gaze remained cold.
"That's all they say," he muttered.
Then—SNAP!
A sharp flick of his fingers.
His spear manifested.
In the blink of an eye—it flew.
The blade buried itself deep into Weh's heart.
A gurgled breath.
His body twitched once.
Then—stillness.
The last surviving member of the Rising Stone Sect dangled lifelessly, his blood painting the ruins below him.
And with that—the Rising Stone Sect and the Jade Lotus Sect had been erased from existence.
Pao Pao exhaled slowly, watching the scene with an unreadable expression.
"The power of a pair of Shishi..." he muttered.
"Their love for peace, yet their terrifying potential when wielded by one who understands true battle..."
He rubbed his chin, his sharp eyes flickering with intrigue.
"And that amplifying skill… even among all the cultivation techniques in existence, that alone makes him invaluable."
A slow grin spread across his lips.
"But even then... I never thought he would end two sects in a single day."
His fingers tapped the armrest of his chair.
"Dear old friend, you must be laughing your back straight up in heaven, huh?"
His gaze settled on Noel, standing firm amidst the battlefield, blood staining his robes.
"The rise of the Immortal Sect is now inevitable."
Kazel, however, did not linger.
His sharp eyes scanned the surroundings—past the horrified sect leaders, the stunned prodigies, the disbelieving audience.
Then—he spotted her.
His mother.
Without hesitation, he sprinted toward her.
"Mother!"
His voice carried no arrogance, no cruelty.
Only urgency.
Reaching her, he scooped her into his arms.
"Father, take care of the rest!" he barked before vanishing with Lana.
Lana barely had time to process what had happened before she found herself inside their home—
Kazel moving frantically.
She was about to ask him what was wrong when—
He ripped off his robes.
"K-Kazel?" Lana's voice wavered.
Then—
"Kh?! AAAHHHHH!!!"
His body convulsed violently.
Blood poured from his nose.
His muscles cramped so hard his veins bulged.
He collapsed to his knees, his breath ragged, his entire body shaking uncontrollably.
"KAZEL!!!" Lana screamed, lunging forward to catch him.
Her hands trembled as she held onto him, his skin burning hot, his pulse erratic.
"Kazel... Kazel, hold on!" she pleaded, panic seizing her chest.
The aftermath of his rampage had finally caught up to him.
And now—his body was breaking apart.