Wrath of the Abyss
The air grew heavy. Yue Rin's pulse pounded in her ears as the masked warrior stepped forward, his golden eyes burning with a newfound intensity. The rubble around him trembled, floating in the air before crumbling into dust.
Yue Rin gripped her spear, her body tense, her muscles screaming from exhaustion—but she refused to fall.
The masked man tilted his head, brushing the blood from his lips with the back of his hand.
"You almost had me," he admitted, his voice unnervingly calm. "But you made one mistake."
Yue Rin narrowed her eyes. "And what's that?"
He spread his arms.
"You didn't kill me."
Boom!
A sudden eruption of energy shattered the ground beneath him. The sky above twisted, turning an unnatural shade of black as tendrils of dark energy coiled around his body. The very air shuddered, as if reality itself was struggling to contain the power he was unleashing.
Yue Rin braced herself, her spear burning hotter, but something felt... wrong.
Too much power. Too much darkness.
The masked warrior vanished.
Her eyes widened.
Before she could react—
CRACK!
A fist slammed into her gut, sending her hurtling backward. She crashed through the ruins, her body skidding across the dirt before she barely managed to stop herself. Pain exploded through her ribs, and she coughed, blood dripping from her lips.
Footsteps.
Slow. Deliberate.
She looked up—only to see him already standing over her.
"Too slow," he murmured.
A hand shot forward.
She twisted, barely dodging as his fingers grazed her cheek, leaving behind a burning sensation.
She retaliated—her spear lashing out in a blazing arc.
But he caught it.
With one hand.
And then—he snapped it in half.
Yue Rin's heart stopped.
The flames that once raged around the spear flickered and died.
The masked warrior smirked. "What will you do now?"
Yue Rin took a step back. She had relied on her spear for everything. Her strength. Her victories. Her identity.
And now, it was gone.
The masked man lunged.
Yue Rin reacted on instinct. She ducked, narrowly avoiding a strike that split the air apart. The shockwave sent the ruins around them collapsing, debris falling like rain.
She spun, her hands burning with raw energy.
No spear. No weapon. Only herself.
A deep breath.
Her aura ignited once more, flames roaring from her palms. She charged, faster than before, her fists glowing like molten gold.
The masked man laughed, delighted.
And then—they clashed.
Fist met fist.
Flame met darkness.
The ruins became their battlefield, the sky above their only witness.
One would stand.
One would fall.