Why Not Use the Red Form from the Start?

"Gale, flow through me alone!"

The instant her words fell, Cartethyia looked as though the wind had sculpted her anew. Deep blue light surged from within her, washing over her from head to toe. Her long hair spread gently like a cascading waterfall, and as a breeze blew past, gemlike starlight rose from its tips.

As her skirt fluttered, even the air grew a little crisper. The wind circled around her, as though it had found its master.

This was her third form.

Rover watched intently and discerned what had happened.

The change was not just in her color, but a transformation at the very root. Under Imperator's tutelage, she had fully mastered the powers of separation and fusion.

In this state, she separated and purified the power of a Threnodian, rendering it formless before merging it into the power of a Sentinel.

The current Cartethyia was equivalent to a pure Sentinel.

"How ridiculous. You've only changed color, and you think you can stand against me?"

Gaia sneered, holding the blazing sun aloft in both hands. Its fiery light reflected off his silver-white alloy helmet, bathing his steel face in red. "Insect, it is your honor to die beneath the power of Gaia!"

He smashed straight down! The blazing sun left his hands, carrying a devastating heat wave and covering a vast area that engulfed both Rover and Cartethyia.

The air warped from the heat, and the stones on the ground turned to steam before they even touched the edge of the orb of light.

"Swift!"

Cartethyia smiled faintly, grabbed Rover by the wrist, and flashed away, dodging the attack outright.

She was unbelievably fast. Rover's vision blurred, and the next second he was already hundreds of feet away.

The power of Gaia landed wide, crashing into the mountains and sending clouds of dust billowing into the air. Half a mountaintop was sheared off, rubble flew, and dust blotted out the sky. When it cleared, only a huge, charred crater remained.

That destructive power was no joke.

But what concerned Rover most was Cartethyia's speed. It had increased by far more than a little, to the point that it rivaled an instant step.

"You're pretty quick at running away. Just right for lackeys like you," Gaia mocked, standing high in the sky with an air of superiority.

He folded his arms, his enormous steel claws gleaming coldly in the sunlight. Clearly, he was very confident in his own strength.

"Hmph, another opponent for the knight has appeared!"

Black and white light alternated over Cartethyia's body, and with a sudden flash, she appeared before him.

Compared with Gaia, she was petite, like a child facing a burly man. Even the longsword in her hand looked much smaller.

Even so, she thrust without hesitation! The tip of her sword aimed at a seam in the armor on Gaia's chest, striking from a tricky angle.

Gaia paid it no mind. His armor gleamed, radiating an indestructible aura.

A thrust like that was less than a mosquito to it!

"Watch me snap your lousy sword!"

Instead of retreating, he charged straight into it!

"Clang!!"

The sword tip was stopped, unable to advance an inch. Sparks burst from the point of contact, and the impact numbed the web between Cartethyia's thumb and forefinger, but she did not let go.

"I told you, you..."

Before Gaia could finish his taunt, a storm immediately spread from the blade, finding every opening and slipping through the gaps in his armor!

"Aah!!!" Gaia was shaken and retreated with a shout. Crimson liquid flowed from the gaps in his armor.

Clearly, his defenses had been breached!

"Still talking?"

Cartethyia raised an eyebrow and put a hand on her hip, looking immensely pleased with herself.

"How is this possible? My defense..." For the first time, Gaia's voice carried disbelief.

"That move is called Wind-Erosion Annihilation. No matter how hard the rock, the power of the wind will turn it to dust. You can't stop it!" Cartethyia rested her sword on her shoulder and lifted her chin slightly.

"Playing clever!"

Gaia flew into a rage. The fiery red mane on the back of his neck bristled toward the sky like flames, and explosive power surged beneath his body!

He stepped forward, the claws on his left hand piercing the air as they struck at Cartethyia's neck. But they hit nothing more than an afterimage. Cartethyia's figure faded from where she had stood, and Gaia's claws passed through it, grasping empty air.

"Big guy, if that's all you've got, then this battle can be declared over."

As soon as she finished speaking, six Cartethyias appeared in the sky, surrounding Gaia from every direction.

"Gale, sacred thousand slashes!"

The six figures attacked at once, their sword lights weaving into an impenetrable net. There was nowhere to dodge and nowhere to flee. This was clearly a finishing move!

For an instant, Gaia seemed to have been driven into a corner. Yet he merely froze for a moment and chuckled.

"How rude of me, how rude. My apologies for not giving you my full name. Now, I acknowledge your strength!"

He straightened his body and stood proudly. "Hear my true name! I am [Qian Gaia]!"

As his words fell, a brilliant light shone from his body. Pale golden patterns appeared on the surface of his silver-white alloy, as though some ancient inscription had been activated.

"[First of Qian, hidden dragon, do not act]."

In an instant, his body became transparent, like a cloud of smoke that gathered without dispersing. The six sword lights fell at once and passed straight through him, as though striking empty air, without doing the slightest damage!

"How could this happen?" Now it was Cartethyia's turn to be shocked.

"What's so surprising? My great father forged me from 'Qian Alloy.' Against you, I am like an existence attacking from a higher dimension.

"Your only chance of survival is to surrender without resistance and submit!" Gaia's body solidified once more, and he carried himself with a lofty certainty.

"Dream on!" Cartethyia's face darkened, and her sword trembled. The six figures became one, and her form immediately blurred as she charged at him again at extreme speed.

"No matter how fast you are, can you be faster than light?" Gaia said with a smile. The next moment, the aura around him changed again.

"[Second of Qian, dragon appearing in the field]!" He reached up casually and seized the sunlight above his head, turning it into a solid blade.

This move turned the intangible into the tangible!

With a casual throw, he sent a deadly host of lights rushing toward Cartethyia, blotting out the sky and falling thick as rain.

"Three swords as one!" Cartethyia met him head-on, sweeping her greatsword sideways. Three sword lights overlapped and cut through the radiance, shattering the blades of light into countless points across the sky. But his next move followed close behind.

"[Third of Qian, vigilant at dusk as if in peril]!"

In an instant, her longsword shook violently, buzzing as though something were stirring inside it. The next moment, it flew from her hand, forcibly disarming her.

The longsword spun twice through the air before embedding itself in a distant mountainside.

"Now that you've lost your weapon, how will you fight me?" Gaia laughed, thinking victory was in his grasp. He crossed his claws and scraped their steel blades against each other, making a piercing sound. They were capable of tearing steel apart.

"With that clumsy body of yours, you think you can catch me?" Cartethyia moved lightly, about to use her speed to dodge.

"You can't escape!"

"[Fourth of Qian, perhaps leaping in the depths]!"

In an instant, within a radius of a thousand zhang centered on Gaia, the air seemed to solidify, forming a motionless domain that forcibly suppressed Cartethyia's speed! It was as though she had plunged headfirst into amber. Her movements became incredibly sluggish, and even lifting a foot took effort.

"You're finished!"

Completely unaffected, Gaia strode toward her and thrust at her throat. His steel claws cut through the air, stopping just three feet from her neck.

"She's in danger!"

Rover frowned and was about to act, but just then, the aura around Cartethyia abruptly changed!

She instantly changed from blue to red, switching to Fleurdelys's form! Her red hair flared out, her skirt billowed like flames, and her raging power was on full display!

"Get lost!"

Violent force surged as she broke free of her restraints and punched straight at the steel claws.

Fist and steel claws collided. With a crack, the steel shattered and fragments flew everywhere. A single punch turned Gaia's entire left claw into scrap metal, twisting his arm to an unnatural angle.

Gaia staggered backward, disbelief written all over her face. She looked down at her shattered claw as though she had seen a ghost.

Even Rover was stunned. At this moment, Cartethyia could unleash terrifying destructive power. The aftershock of that punch made the loose stones on the ground bounce.

In that case, why not use the red form from the start?!