Chapter 53: The Inquisitor’s Wrath
The Abyssal mist had barely settled before **the next enemy arrived.**
Sai turned toward the distant ridge, his body still thrumming with abyssal energy. The **Hidden Order was here.**
And they had brought someone dangerous.
A **woman in silver robes** stood at the center of the approaching army. Even from a distance, Sai could **feel her presence**—cold, suffocating, and **completely different from the assassins and warriors they had fought before.**
His system **pinged.**
**[Hidden Order Commander Identified: Inquisitor Valeria.]**
**[Threat Level: Apex.]**
Sai exhaled slowly. "That's not good."
Lena adjusted her grip on her chakrams. "Understatement of the year."
Kael rested his greatsword on his shoulder, his golden abyssal eyes narrowing. "This one is different."
Ezren nodded. "She is not just a soldier. She is a purifier."
Sai frowned. "Purifier?"
Ezren's gaze remained locked on Valeria. "The Hidden Order's **most dangerous warriors.** Unlike the others, they do not kill to silence the Abyss. **They kill to erase it.**"
Sai clenched his fists. **So that's what she was.**
Not just an assassin.
Not just another hunter trying to wipe him out.
She was here to **burn the Abyss away completely.**
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### **The March of the Hidden Order**
The Hidden Order's army **descended from the cliffs.**
Rows of armored soldiers moved **in perfect formation**, their weapons gleaming under the dim abyssal light. Behind them, **war priests** chanted in unison, their voices ringing through the ruins like a ritual meant to **cleanse the darkness.**
Valeria walked at the head of it all, her silver robes **untouched by the dirt and blood** around her. A long, curved blade rested at her side—**but she hadn't drawn it yet.**
Sai's instincts screamed at him.
She was **waiting.**
She wanted him to move **first.**
Ezren's voice was calm but firm. "Do not let her dictate the battle."
Sai exhaled. **Right.**
They had the advantage—**this was their ground.**
And he wasn't about to give it up.
He turned to his forces.
"Hold the line."
Kael nodded. "Finally."
Lena smirked. "Let's see if the Order can bleed."
Sai activated **Abyssal Command.**
And the battle **began.**
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### **The Clash of Wills**
The first wave of **Hidden Order soldiers** **charged.**
Sai's forces **met them head-on.**
Kael's blade **tore through armor**, abyssal fire igniting along its edge. He moved like a warrior who had fought this battle **a thousand times before.**
Garrik led a group of abyssal survivors, his makeshift army of rogues and hunters cutting down the enemy with brutal efficiency.
Lena flicked her chakrams, the spinning weapons slicing through the ranks with precision. **Each throw returned to her like an extension of her own will.**
And Sai?
Sai **was everywhere.**
He flickered through the battlefield, **using Abyssal Step to strike and vanish before the enemy could counter.** His daggers found the weak spots in their armor, his attacks sharp and decisive.
But even as they fought—**Valeria did not move.**
She simply **watched.**
Then—**she raised a hand.**
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### **The Purge Begins**
The war priests **shifted.**
The chants **stopped.**
And then—**a wave of silver energy erupted from Valeria's position, washing over the battlefield.**
Sai **felt it instantly.**
It wasn't just **power.**
It was **erasure.**
The abyssal creatures **howled in pain.** The mist **began to thin, burning away wherever the silver light touched.**
Sai's system **flashed a warning.**
**[Abyssal Field Weakened.]**
**[Foreign Energy Counteracting Domain.]**
Sai gritted his teeth. "What the hell is this?"
Ezren's expression remained unreadable. "The **Sanctum Veil.** It erases all traces of the Abyss within its reach."
Sai cursed.
This wasn't just an attack.
It was **a complete counter to everything he was.**
Valeria finally spoke.
Her voice was **calm, controlled.**
"You do not belong here."
Then—**she vanished.**
---
### **Sai vs. Inquisitor Valeria**
Sai barely had time to react before **she was in front of him.**
Faster than anyone he had ever fought.
Her curved blade **flashed.**
Sai blocked—**but the force behind the strike sent him sliding backward.**
Valeria didn't pause.
She pressed forward, her attacks **unrelenting, precise, merciless.**
Sai dodged left—**but her blade curved unnaturally, slashing across his side.**
Pain flared.
Sai **grimaced.** He had fought powerful enemies before—but **this was different.**
Her blade didn't just **cut flesh.**
It **burned the Abyss out of him.**
Lena flung her chakrams—**but Valeria flicked a hand, and the weapons stopped midair, thrown aside by an unseen force.**
Kael moved to intervene—**but Valeria didn't even look at him.**
She simply **stepped forward, closing the distance with Sai again.**
"You are unnatural," she murmured.
Her blade **descended.**
Sai's instincts **screamed.**
And for the first time—**he hesitated.**
---
### **The Abyss Fights Back**
The moment of hesitation **cost him.**
Valeria's blade **pierced his shoulder**, searing through flesh and bone.
Sai **gasped in pain.**
The silver energy around the weapon **flared**, and for the first time—**the Abyss inside him recoiled.**
Sai **felt it.**
Something **was wrong.**
The Abyss **was afraid.**
Valeria **leaned in**, her silver eyes cold.
"You are an infection," she whispered.
Sai's vision blurred. **He couldn't move.**
He **was losing.**
Then—**a pulse of energy erupted from the gate.**
The Abyss **screamed.**
And Sai's body **reacted.**
His blood turned **black**, abyssal mist **rising from his wounds instead of bleeding.**
His eyes **glowed.**
And for the first time—**he heard it.**
A voice, layered and ancient.
**"Rise."**
The Abyss didn't just **respond.**
It **unleashed.**
---
### **Sai Awakens**
Abyssal fire **exploded outward**, shattering Valeria's grip on him.
The silver energy **snapped, burning away against the sheer force of the Abyss.**
Valeria staggered, her expression unreadable.
Sai **stood tall.**
His wounds **sealed instantly.**
The pain was **gone.**
And when he opened his mouth—his voice was layered, **just like the abyssal whispers.**
"You cannot erase me."
Valeria's eyes narrowed.
For the first time—**she looked uncertain.**
Sai raised a hand.
The abyss **roared.**
And the battlefield **changed.**
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