[Location - Ancestral Temple of the Phoenix Clan]
What a journey this has been, Libinea mused as she harnessed the overwhelming, stifling power of the volcanic core to maintain the opening of the Nirvana gateway.
The path that had led her here was indeed a long one. Reflecting on her past, she could hardly have foreseen such a transformation in her life. In her youth, she fully expected to remain within the confines of that border shrine forever. At the time, she didn't mind; fulfilling the wishes of her people provided a quiet and simple solace to her spirit.
That was, until she encountered Raiking.
Because of him, I finally discovered what true happiness means.
Initially, she had thought of him as merely an... unusual mortal, to put it mildly. He was a man of few words, who spoke in cryptic riddles, and unlike most humans who were understandably terrified of the Void Realm, he nonchalantly fished in its most perilous, abyssal waters.
He was undeniably peculiar.
Yet, despite his behaviours, his presence was a calming refuge:
When her wings were harshly clipped, he was nurturing.
When she requested vengeance for her exiled kin, he provided her with the strength and means to seek it herself.
When she eventually made her way back to the Divine Realm, he was there, a steadfast shadow at her side, every step of the journey.
And in their thousand years together, he never once asked for anything in return.
So I hope I can finally offer him my heart. Nirvana, please fulfill my wish...
This was a historic, monumental moment. Typically, Nirvana was strictly reserved for the Phoenix Queen to grant the desperate wishes of others. For Libinea to attempt to use it for herself was completely unprecedented. The real question was whether the cosmic phenomenon would actually listen to a selfish plea.
Despite the heavy, oppressive silence of Nirvana, Libinea's resolve never wavered for even a moment. She had come with a purpose, and she was determined to see it through to the very end—even if it meant enduring the excruciating pain of tearing the Azure Queen Crest from her own feathers.
---
[Location - Azure Phoenix Clan Village]
While Libinea's relentless quest for personal happiness soared above, deep below, Ellomon's unwavering commitment to the survival of his people was just as resolute.
This was evident in his fierce, hyper-efficient maneuvers. Each taxing, bone-rattling swing of his twin shadow blades chipped away at the towering crystalline beast. Despite the apparent absence of visible damage to its impenetrable body, retreat never crossed his mind.
His attack was an overwhelming flurry of speed. Whenever the Void Guardian effortlessly blocked a strike, shattering his shadow blades into a cloud of dark mist, Ellomon would instantly summon a new pair, maintaining his relentless assault.
Novice warriors might have assumed that channeling all their mana into a single, earth-shattering spell was the best tactic against such a formidable foe, but Ellomon, a seasoned Chieftain, knew better.
His goal was not to conquer; it was to endure.
As the intense, high-speed battle continued, Ellomon noticed the Void Guardian's glowing, hollow eyes occasionally shifting away from him. It was subtly tracking the terrifying, volatile spiritual energy being generated on the ground by Neihina and Venae's Elemental Fusion.
It knows. It wants to evade.
Ellomon would not allow it that chance. He propelled himself backward, violently dissolving his conjured weapons as he landed firmly on the very air. Spreading his arms wide like a dark cross, he let out a guttural, soul-wrenching roar, invoking his most potent binding spell:
"Shadow Wraith's Enclosement!"
The Crystalline Void Guardian braced itself to charge, but abruptly, the shadows cast on the ravaged terrain began to tremble violently. The darkness warped and transformed into slithering, Wraith-like entities that wasted no time before shooting skyward toward the crystalline creature.
The Guardian succeeded in slicing most of these entities into ribbons, though a few clung to its limbs like dark ink stains on a pristine canvas. An increasing number of Wraiths swarmed and adhered to its form, multiplying until they formed a massive, pitch-black sphere of pure, impenetrable shadow.
While this dome lacked offensive capabilities, it served as the ultimate trap. However, the vast amount of passive mana required to maintain it was not advantageous for Ellomon. Containing such a formidable adversary placed a significant strain on his core, especially as the creature relentlessly battered the sphere's interior in its effort to break free.
Ellomon considered there was only one alternative. Channeling a surge of mana, he vanished into thin air.
In an instant, he reappeared within the enclosed dome, confronting the Void Guardian once more—but this time, he fought within his natural domain, surrounded by an inexhaustible supply of shadows.
Their confrontation was nothing short of catastrophic.
Ellomon skillfully manipulated the shadows, effortlessly summoning a diverse arsenal of weapons as required by each passing moment.
From a sharp spear.
To a sturdy shield.
To a swiftly firing bow.
He was relentless in both offense and defense, pushing his mortal limits until he finally sensed it: the volatile, apocalyptic pressure of the Elemental Fusion fully charged beneath them.
But he wasn't alone in noticing this. The Void Guardian's core flared, channeling its Void Magic aggressively to shatter the domain.
Ellomon didn't allow it the opportunity. He lunged forward, tackling the towering beast and wrapping his arms tightly around its crystalline waist in a desperate grip. Simultaneously, he contracted his massive shadow dome, shrinking it until it enveloped them both in a suffocating, pitch-black mummification, physically ensuring the monster couldn't explode into shards to escape the impending strike.
Meanwhile, outside the diminishing shadow dome, Neihina stood poised on a shattered rooftop. Her bowstring was drawn taut against a deadly, soul-piercing arrow—a jagged bolt of pure lightning encased in a swirling vortex of Wind Essence.
While Lightning Magic possessed the highest raw destructive capability among the five basic elements, its attacks were inherently heavy, making them notoriously slow over long distances.
However, with the absolute fusion of Air Magic, the fearsome arrow was now propelled by a slipstream, granting it a velocity that surpassed any Peak Divine Stage warrior.
And she was ready to release it.
"Ellomon remained steadfast," Neihina whispered, a solitary tear vanishing in the crackling of lightning around her. "And so must we."
A thunderous BOOM erupted as the bowstring was released, sending a shockwave resonating across the village. The enchanted arrow soared through the air, carving a radiant path of blue and gold as it climbed to destroy the crystalline monster.
But that was exactly what the creature had been waiting for.
Unbeknownst to Neihina and Venae, a sinister force was silently emerging beneath the damaged main hall.
In an instant, a colossal, jagged silver crystal erupted violently from the ground.
Warm, crimson blood splattered across Venae's face. His eyes widened in sheer horror as the battlefield seemed to freeze. He turned his head with excruciating slowness, witnessing Neihina struggling for breath, her eyes wide with shock as the lethal, jagged Void crystal pierced cleanly through her chest.