CHAPTER 10

Chapter 10: Shadows Unleashed

The battlefield lay drenched in moonlight and fire, the clash of gods and mortals echoing through the night. Hwang Yi and Princess Xuan stood back-to-back, surrounded by a relentless tide of spirit-warriors pouring from the rift torn open by the Governor of the Tiger Realm. Their combined power crackled like a storm, but the enemy's numbers seemed endless.

The Unseen EnemyAs the fight raged, a sudden chill swept through the air. From the shadows emerged a new threat—neither spirit-warrior nor deity, but something far more sinister.

A figure cloaked in darkness, with eyes like burning embers, stepped forward. It was Zhao Ling, the ancient tiger god whose spirit was imprisoned within the relic Hwang Yi carried.

"I have waited long for this moment," Zhao Ling's voice echoed, cold and commanding. "The realms shall burn, and I will rise."

The ground trembled as Zhao Ling's presence warped the very fabric of reality. Spirit-warriors faltered, and even the divine challengers hesitated.

Betrayal in the RanksAmidst the chaos, a shocking betrayal unfolded. One of Xuan's trusted guards, General Wei, revealed himself as a double agent, swayed by promises of power from Lord Kano.

With a cruel smile, Wei struck at Xuan, wounding her deeply. The princess gasped, pain and shock mingling in her eyes.

Hwang Yi's roar shattered the night as he tore through the ranks to protect her. But the betrayal cut deeper than any blade.

The Rift WidensZhao Ling's influence grew, and the rift between realms expanded, threatening to swallow the mortal world whole. Dark tendrils of Abyssal energy snaked across the land, corrupting forests, rivers, and skies.

Villages fell silent, their inhabitants vanished or transformed into twisted shadows.

Xuan, weakened but resolute, gripped Hwang Yi's arm. "We must close the rift… before everything is lost."

The Moon-Shaman's ReturnFrom the depths of the shadows, Wu Shen reappeared, his eyes gleaming with dark triumph.

"The tiger's curse is mine to command," he declared. "And soon, the mortal world will bow to the Abyss."

He unleashed a wave of lunar magic that sent shockwaves through the battlefield, forcing even the gods to stagger.

The Twist: The Governor's Secret WeaponAs hope waned, the Governor of the Tiger Realm revealed his trump card—a colossal beast, ancient and terrifying, unleashed from the depths of the Abyss.

The beast's roar shattered mountains and sent shockwaves through the realms. It was a living embodiment of destruction, a force beyond even Hwang Yi's power.

The Cliffhanger: A Desperate PactCornered and outmatched, Hwang Yi and Xuan faced a grim choice.

To save their world, they must forge a pact with the very spirit imprisoned within the relic—Zhao Ling.

But such a pact came with a price that could consume their souls.

The fate of the mortal and divine realms hung by a thread, as shadows threatened to devour the light.