The stench of blood on the shore had yet to fade. The crew of Empty Mist stood behind Pegwalsge like curses erupting from the ground itself. Each one thirsted for death, each one a silent scream echoing through the stillness.
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOkaC9ZjSoB
Opposing them stood Commander Yuhen, his five naval soldiers, and roughly twenty remaining troops. The air around Yuhen crystallized like steam turning to frost. The ground cracked beneath his feet; water particles turned to ice.
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0OT5v7pF6J
Pegwalsge stepped forward. The instant his toe touched the earth, a jagged crack spread along the shoreline. His face was expressionless, his eyes deeper than darkness. Yuhen stepped forward too, leaving behind a faint trail of frost as if each step froze memories into the soil.
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKFZMsKblcY
"You," said Yuhen, "bring only destruction."
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj6SwwfDarp
Pegwalsge lowered his head, a mocking smile on his lips. "No," he replied. "I came to save destruction."
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDlxMmK0LMU
The first attack came in silence. No scream, no battle cry. Only Xhu incarnate. Both unleashed their Whunai Zenxhus, extending their power to assert dominance.
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwRF5jeIiaX
Yuhen raised his hand. Ice crystals swirled around his fingers, absorbing moisture to form a great ring, which then turned into a spear hurled at Pegwalsge.
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡY1F5ETe6UC
Pegwalsge didn’t move. His Xhu rippled outward like a wave, turning the spear into black mist before it touched the ground. The air briefly warmed, then chilled again.
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ67OrdrSX1y
"Xhu can mimic nature," said Pegwalsge. "But how well can you purify it?"
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYfktxjkS5m
He conjured black flames in his palm and slammed them to the ground. The earth trembled. Veins of black fire surged from below, spreading across the shore. Soldiers screamed some collapsed to their knees, others shrieked as they burned alive.
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0wftDYPt2t
Yuhen lunged forward. Channeling the ice into his legs, he leapt into the air, twisting mid-flight. With both hands he brought down a massive ice axe upon Pegwalsge.
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxVBZe2lSgF
The clash shattered the stones of the coast. Even Pegwalsge’s crew lowered their heads. The collision split the sky in two: one side pitch black like death, the other crystal clear like ice.
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgo6jirxdjD
When the dust cleared, Pegwalsge remained standing. Blood dripped from his shoulder, but what flowed wasn’t merely blood it was pure Xhu, cursed by gods of the underworld. The earth beneath his feet had blackened, the shoreline decaying in retreat.
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP3Grj7QErr
“You've given up on death,” Yuhen said, eyes narrowed.
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh3gTt7wmot
Pegwalsge's eyes gleamed. “I died long ago.”
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡivfKvdAczU
The battle had begun.
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZgment5t97
Horozon would have no choice but to bear witness.
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWHiwhjyMPJ
Pegwalsge’s words hovered over the coast like a suspended curse. The waves of Xhu emitted by both sides twisted earth and sky alike. Blood from Pegwalsge’s wounded shoulder hit the ground and cracked the stone it was no longer of this world.
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBRVwxysViS
Then, the true battle began.
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDmSyFF6eHL
Yuhen signaled. Palir and Shuan rushed forward, heading straight for Pegwalsge. But before they could reach him, Narth’s eyeless face emerged from the dark. His presence alone invaded the mind. Palir froze before drawing his sword, clutching his head too late. Narth’s Norzsa Zenxhu had already pierced the vulnerable spaces of his psyche. Blood poured from his eyes as he collapsed.
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7p5C1GAH6k
Shuan screamed as he charged. Just as he aimed his blade, Karra appeared behind him like a ghost. She placed a hand on his shoulder, and her Rasa Zenxhu overwhelmed him. Shuan could no longer discern reality and dropped to the ground.
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡarGerRIDFL
“Your reality is just the shadow of my dream,” Karra whispered.
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsNt5LKjnkq
Xhu energy tangled and flared through the battlefield. Eliar and Sennre stood behind Yuhen, hesitant to move forward. But Savael had already slipped between them. His Whunai Zenxhu sent each soldier reeling with unconscious force every touch a soul-rending sob.
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDjyDFoUi12
Eizma had chosen Guroa. As he stepped forward shouting, “I do not fear,” Eizma calmly whispered:
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0QD3SSAunT
“I'll teach you to forget what fear is.”
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXQeWXrBrxW
Her eyes turned black as she unleashed her Rasa Zenxhu. In front of Guroa appeared the rotting corpse of his mother, then his own grave, and finally his own lifeless body. Guroa gripped his throat his mind forcing him to dig his own grave.
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF9a8tiHr0c
Meanwhile, Yuhen and Pegwalsge clashed again.
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVCKG4o5UqL
Using the Glacial Orb, Yuhen summoned crystal shards from the sky. The waves retreated they refused to touch Pegwalsge.
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi6Ves9hKyb
“Your Xhu opposes life,” Yuhen said. “Mine is its essence.”
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdSHem2sd9m
Pegwalsge smiled. “Essence? Then let me rewrite it.”
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiV2XbUlnyd
Black stones cracked behind him. Vorun hurled his chain. It wrapped around a soldier’s neck, and when tightened, the bell tolled and the man’s head burst. The Death Bell still rang.
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbGdx9Mu75k
Yuhen lunged, forming a massive ice spear. Pegwalsge met it with black flames. The flames shattered the spear, but fragments pierced Pegwalsge’s body.
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKYKjhF3zTr
The reinforcements sent by Aswang had yet to arrive.
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfvCuPtrnsU
But even if they did, the soul of the war had already been forged.
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeZxWSTKTy4
Yuhen’s knees buckled. Pegwalsge advanced, his steps echoing betrayal against nature. Stones cracked, shadows shifted, and the gods reflected their wrath.
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCW8SUbNsgn
Then the sky... finally began to weep.
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7xCrg7M5u4
Rain fell, dark as blood.
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfBRvbdmJKY
And the war stepped into a path with no return.
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9OQL8mwBOQ
Crystals from Yuhen’s Glacial assault still echoed in the sky, while Pegwalsge stood unwavering. The wound on his body deepened, but what flowed from it was not blood it was cursed Xhu. The shoreline shriveled beneath him.
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkXnEA14NWX
The first sound to pierce the silence was Pegwalsge’s punch.
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxaKU8GNgD9
Yuhen didn’t dodge. He took the blow to his chest it shook the air behind him. But his eyes showed no fear. He grabbed Pegwalsge by the neck and slammed him to the ground. The earth cracked. Pegwalsge rose with a grin.
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc0xA2yBBZL
“Are your words finished now?” he asked.
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmwrJmtVXUX
Yuhen did not reply. He attacked. Each punch carried Xhu's weight, thunderously cracking the ground and dimming the sky. Pegwalsge struck back jaw, ribs, legs. Each hit tore flesh, dulled consciousness.
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9KugWIHKvD
Yuhen retaliated. His ice-covered fist split Pegwalsge’s brow. A second hit knocked a tooth loose. But Pegwalsge only laughed. “Death isn’t an answer, Yuhen. And if it is, it won’t answer to me.”
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYHE6Goo75S
The fight transcended physical brutality. Their Xhus collided. One of Yuhen’s blows sent Pegwalsge flying. As he hit the ground, Pegwalsge pushed his Xhu into it causing an eruption from below. Shards of rock buried Yuhen’s feet.
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡldGXz1uRCb
The crew still battled. Karra blinded Shuan without even looking into his eyes. Eliar’s eardrums burst under the pressure of Savael’s overwhelming Xhu. Sennre attacked Savael with his sword, but Savael blocked it with his daggers. Upon contact, Sennre heard the screams of souls the daggers had taken and he began to fear.
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFnzLBrpbXT
When Yuhen freed himself, Pegwalsge was already there. Their fists met again. Ice and flame clashed. This time, harder. Bones cracked. Flesh tore. Xhu spiraled.
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5MGCjMrqqL
Pegwalsge landed a final punch to Yuhen’s face. Yuhen slid back, falling to his knees only to rise again, ice forming once more around his body.
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzKmbu8Vjzd
“It’s not over,” said Yuhen. His voice was cold, but carried a volcano inside.
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW1hDWfgGsm
Blood ran from Pegwalsge’s forehead as he spread his arms.
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGshlwsTxKf
“I don’t want it to be.”
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8rfJHdrAe0
A bolt of lightning split the sky.
35Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4lOJoXLVZV
The war had been consecrated with blood, with ice, with flame, and with curse.
ns18.191.203.35da2
然後按「加至主畫面」