The chamber burned crimson with the memory of battle—its jagged stone walls carved from ancient red obsidian, the arched ceiling a slick sheet of dark basalt veined with molten cracks. Dim lanterns, once hanging still, now flickered wildly from the heat waves still clinging to the air like ghostly fingers. At the center of the chamber, surrounded by the remains of war and sacrifice, Zhou Rui stood hunched, breath shallow, the weight of what had just happened sinking into his bones.
"It's getting too strong," Zhou Rui muttered, gasping. The Cerebrus mode was fading. His beast-like feet slowly morphed back into human ones, his claws retreating, his mana running dry like a cracked stream. His muscles trembled with exhaustion.
Serena and Saya weren't much better off. The archer's breath hitched with each movement, and sweat rolled freely from her forehead. She had already depleted her elemental arrows—her quiver nearly empty, her mana even more so.
Julius, far from them, sat collapsed in a corner, back pressed against a cracked pillar. His staff rested in his lap, glowing faintly. He had just enough mana left to cast the most basic of spells, and even that felt like lifting mountains.
"If Ms. Anna were here, this wouldn't be half as hard," Julius muttered under his breath.
"Yeah… Who knows where that bastard sent her," Zhou Rui said weakly, catching the words.
"Can you two stop chatting and focus?" Serena snapped.
Saya charged next, her body surging forward with all the fury of a final stand. She led with her black katana, absorbing the magic from the Tyrant's flaming blade. She swung her white katana next—this time without any elemental infusion, conserving what little mana remained. Her strikes were fast, deliberate, but the Magma Tyrant, burning like a walking volcano, parried effortlessly and hurled her away like a ragdoll. Saya crashed into the ground at Serena's feet, her chest rising and falling with ragged, pained breaths.
As she landed, her breasts bounced slightly, and Serena quipped, "Be careful, or they'll spill out of your kimono."
"I'm not worried about that right now," Saya gritted out.
"How many water arrows left?" she asked quickly.
"Just one," Serena replied.
"Perfect. I've got a plan. Listen closely…"
As Serena leaned in and they whispered, Zhou Rui sprinted toward the Magma Tyrant again, engaging him in a desperate clash. He wasn't trying to win—only to keep the monster away from the orb, now exposed behind it.
But the air turned blistering hot.
"Flame's Rule," the Magma Tyrant declared.
Its sword roared alive, blazing brighter than ever before. With one powerful horizontal swing, the fire slash erupted from its blade like a tidal wave of molten fury. Zhou Rui leaped, barely escaping. The slash smashed into the gates behind him, melting them instantly, and carved through the passageway beyond, vaporizing everything until it hit the snow-laced blizzard outside—where it finally vanished.
The dungeon trembled violently. Cracks raced along the walls. The entire structure threatened to collapse.
Saya acted.
She dashed forward, Serena following her lead. At the perfect moment, Serena launched her final water arrow, and Saya slashed it mid-air with her black katana—absorbing its essence.
"Foolish woman, you destroyed your own ally's attack," the Magma Tyrant barked.
"Let's see who's really foolish," Saya responded.
She channeled the absorbed water into her white katana and, without hesitation, struck diagonally—cutting into the Tyrant with a burst of icy, blue force. Steam exploded from the wound.
But it wasn't enough. He began to regenerate.
"We don't have much time! Mr. Zhou Rui, please take Master to the orb—NOW!"
Zhou Rui obeyed instantly. He sprinted to Julius, hoisting his limp body over his shoulders, and bolted toward the orb, now glowing a deep, threatening red.
The Magma Tyrant, newly reformed, raised his sword.
"Don't stop!" Saya screamed.
Zhou Rui and Julius arrived just behind the Magma Tyrant—mere feet from the orb.
Julius, gasping for air, extended his right hand. A crimson sphere of heat formed in his palm, surrounding it like a sun in miniature. The intense light licked the surface of the orb, and it began to crack.
But the Magma Tyrant turned, roaring.
It swung its sword with full force—backwards, horizontally—toward both Zhou Rui and Julius.
Saya threw herself in front of them.
The blade tore into her waist—right side first, slicing through flesh and bone.
Blood spilled like ink on the crimson stone floor.
"SAAAAYAA!" Julius screamed.
"Don't… stop…" Saya whispered, voice trembling.
And then—in one brutal stroke, the Magma Tyrant cleaved her in two.
Her upper half collapsed at its feet. The lower half rolled beside Zhou Rui and Julius.
The cyan screen blinked before Julius' eyes:
[Saya has died in the battle against the Magma Tyrant.]
A roar erupted from Julius' throat, primal and broken.
"AGHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!"
The crimson light flared even brighter in his palm.
The Magma Tyrant struck again.
But it was too late.
The orb shattered into glowing shards.
Blood pooled around Saya's body—until it began to disintegrate, her remains turning to skeleton, then to ash, scattering into the stale, burning wind.
The Magma Tyrant, stunned, dropped his sword and fell to one knee. He raised a hand to his face—then his entire form turned to steam and vanished.
Julius could no longer hold on. He collapsed unconscious on the spot.
A new message appeared before him:
[You cannot summon Saya before the time limit of 23:59:12. She died in the last battle.]
But he never saw it.
Serena, linked to Julius, vanished into white particles.
Zhou Rui, no longer able to sustain Cerebrus mode, panted heavily. The heat that once smothered the chamber was finally cooling.
He sat, drenched in sweat, next to Julius—blood, ash, and victory staining the floor.
And then, a shadow stepped through the melted gates.
Eyes wide, heart hammering, Yu Zhen stood frozen at the threshold, staring at the ruin before him—Julius unconscious… Zhou Rui alone.