(This chapter took five hours to write. I kept searching for the right emotion, and one way was listening to music. When I listened to "Journey Between Immortal and Mortal (Falling into the Mortal World)," the feeling quickly fell into place, so this chapter is best enjoyed with BGM.)
Above the execution ground.
Gray mist churned, storms gathered, and amid flashes of lightning and rolling thunder, a massive face formed from the mist emerged.
"Come fight!"
The Masked Man, clad head to toe in armor, struck first. Dark green flames surged from the gaps in his armor, engulfing his entire body.
He pointed one hand at the sky, and the flames covering his body immediately transformed into a vortex that swept upward.
Dark green flames filled the heavens, converging into an ocean that sent layer after layer of fiery ripples crashing toward the sky.
The arm formed from gray mist pressed downward at that moment.
Mist and flames collided, the two energies devouring and canceling each other out.
Terrifying power brewed in midair, unleashing wave after wave of shockwaves that sent countless civilians standing outside the execution ground flying.
The military fighters moved at that moment.
A black saber appeared from nowhere, hovering before the civilians and shielding them from the oncoming shockwaves.
Large numbers of personnel dressed in Old Days City military uniforms began organizing the civilians' evacuation.
By then, the clash of energy in the sky had reached its peak, and a cruel grin appeared on the Mist Lord's face.
The gray mist suddenly pressed down, tearing open a gap in the dark green sea of flames.
Boom!
Like thunder erupting from nowhere, the sky trembled.
The dark green sea of flames was shattered by the gray mist, scattering sparks in every direction.
The gray mist hand pierced