"Let's get this over with, Jack," Alfie said, his tone sharp and unshaken. His eyes narrowed as he slid his sword back into the scabbard, not out of surrender but resolve. His fingers flexed and cracked as he shook his hands loose, the knuckles already hardened from countless battles. "I'll hold them off. You break the formation. You're smarter than me—some things don't need brute force to destroy. Go do your part while I handle mine."
The words struck the air heavy.
Jackson glanced at him, a faint grin pulling at his lips despite the tension. "Tch… Just don't die with those big words." Without waiting for an answer, he broke into a sprint, heading straight toward the Shadow assassins heading towards the pulsing Renshi formation that hummed like a living heart.
The shadows reacted instantly. All eighty moved together in terrifying unity, their footsteps pounding like war drums against the earth,Alfie lands a powerful punch on one the effect destroying the other one just behind it. They immediately split their assault—forty launched themselves high into the sky, bodies arching downward like meteors as they dove for Jackson who's running to the formation, while the other thirty-eight swarmed in from the ground toward Alfie.
Alfie roared, his body exploding forward. He slammed into their ranks, fists flashing like iron hammers. Within the first heartbeat, two shadows were struck down again, their bodies crumpling under the force of his blows,they turns to dust. He planted himself firmly between the horde and Jackson who's already close to the formation, making himself the wall that would not fall.
The assassins instantly reassessed. Half of them shifted their attention fully to Alfie, blades twisting in the dim light. Their movements were sharp, precise, but Alfie's fury burned hotter.
From above, the forty descending shadows streaked downward, closing in on Jackson. Their speed was merciless—like black arrows raining death. Alfie's instincts roared. "Not on my watch!" he bellowed, surging forward with impossible speed. His body blurred, his fists intercepting them mid-air, his knuckles crashing against their blades body with deafening clashes.
The assassins came in sets, timing their strikes two to three seconds apart to overwhelm him. Alfie's body twisted and turned, each movement fueled by sheer instinct and raw muscle. His arms ached, aches across his forearms, but still he blocked, still he struck.
Behind him, Jackson's voice echoed. "I'm counting on you, Alfie!"
Alfie didn't reply—his entire focus was locked into survival. His heart pounded, each beat matching the storm of attacks closing in on him.
Then came the break. Alfie slammed his foot into the dirt, coiling his entire frame like a spring. With a savage roar, he unleashed a punch that ripped through the air. The force detonated outward like a bomb, splitting the ground open beneath them. The shockwave blasted twenty-two shadows away in a single strike, their bodies scattering through the dust and rubble. The very earth trembled.
But there was no pause.
The remaining shadows swarmed him. Five dropped directly above, blades glinting as they fell toward his skull. Alfie's eyes snapped upward. His body jerked left, right, weaving through the flashing swords by inches. The moment their blades pierced the ground, he launched himself skyward.
He met them mid-air, his body twisting like a whip. His legs lashed out, the kick cracking two assassins' necks as he smashed them into their comrades. His fist followed, slamming the last one down with brutal force. The impact sent shockwaves tearing through the earth, cracks ripping wide as dust exploded into the battlefield.
Jackson's boots pounded against the ground, circling the glowing barrier of the formation. His eyes raced across the flow of Renshi lines, sweat dripping down his brow. "Damn it… where's the loophole? They're channeling their Renshi into him—there has to be a connection point somewhere…"
His breath was ragged, but his mind spun. "It's just like our bloodline… like tentacles. The head is always the source. Kill the head and the rest collapse. But this time… the head is not here."
Jackson clenched his jaw, realization striking him. "No… wait. Papa's words… every barrier has a flow of RENSHI. If I disrupt that flow… reverse it… it'll collapse from the inside."
He dropped low, sword in hand, gathering his RENSHI until the blade pulsed with white heat. With a savage cry, he struck the barrier. Sparks and energy crackled violently, but the wall held strong. He struck again, harder, sweat rolling down his face. His Renshi surged through his veins, pouring into each blow.
Meanwhile, Alfie was drowning in shadows. Blood ran down his arms, but his grin widened. "it would have been easier with Renshi… this is the best damn training I could ever ask for concerning my growth!" His fists became a storm, each blow a thunderclap, each dodge a razor edge. His body blurred with speed, dodging, weaving, and countering the relentless blades.
Then he exploded. His fist met one assassin's skull with such ferocity the ground shattered beneath it, an earth-rending shockwave blasting outward. Dust filled the field, turning everything into a fog of chaos.
Alfie vanished inside the cloud. His fists became ghosts, striking from every angle. Shadows crumbled one after another, their swords missing by fractions of a second. His body burned, lungs screaming, but he did not stop.
Jackson gritted his teeth. His blade sank deeper into the glowing barrier. "Come on… come on… break!"
Alfie's chest rose and fell, his fists dripping blood as he crushed another shadow to the ground. But as he looked up, his face twisted.
The battlefield froze for a heartbeat.
Because what neither of them knew was the cruel truth—when the last shadow falls, their bodies would return… doubled in number, stronger than before.