Curse Severance

Flames scorched the sky, and Black Flame surged unchecked through the streets. As the city collapsed, the Grand Cathedral's magnificent spires fell from the sky amid thousands of shards of glass, tumbling through the light of Final Ash before crashing onto the melting streets.

The city wailed.

Thick smoke raced with the wind. The dying moaned faintly, the defiant screamed themselves hoarse, and the sobs of those who had broken echoed through the air. The clang of clashing blades beat like drums, while brief screams and the dull thuds of shattered flesh added a bloody flourish to the hellish symphony.

The Beam piercing the heavens shimmered with tens of thousands of brilliant golden threads. Black Flame and anguished cries surrounded it, yet it stood unmoved, like a throne above a sea of fire, looking down on all things.

"Drip. Drip. Drip."

In stark contrast to the apocalyptic chaos beyond the Beam, the Royal Palace was as peaceful as another world.

On the deep-red carpet of a palace corridor, Renee knelt as though resigned to her fate. She pressed both hands to her chest, closed her eyes, and prayed, her lips moving soundlessly.

Soft light spilled through the window, illuminating the girl's trembling lashes and the fine down along her cheeks.

"Look at the Black Flame outside. That was once Tombdeep's power." The King watched the spreading fire and collapsing city with keen interest. "Xia Lun's power now rivals Tombdeep's. Truly incredible."

Renee said nothing. She only kept praying. But no miracle answered her. All she received was her father's merciless mockery.

"Stop praying, Renee. Your prayers worked before not because anyone answered them, but because the Authority I gave you took effect. You were answering yourself all along."

"There are two kinds of people in this world: those whose fates