In the " Strife Ruins " of Castrum Kremnos, the hunt for the " Flame Reaver " has officially begun!
The perspective shifts to directly below the " Spear of Divine Retribution." At that Anaxa single-handedly restrained the Flame Reaver, using his spear to deflect the Fire Thief's blade, and took a step back, finally waiting for Xing and the others' reinforcements.
Without the slightest hesitation, Xing flicked her wrist, and the quill pen in her hand drew a mysterious trajectory.
Mimi, standing nearby, understood immediately, and the two of them worked together to activate the power of " Remembrance ".
In an instant, illusory light and shadow surged and solidified like a tide—the once bustling and prosperous Castrum Kremnos, which had not yet been swallowed by the eternal night, was vividly recreated on this ruin!
Phainon drew his greatsword with a flourish, "Repent in the memories of the dead—executioner!"
"We've been waiting so long... If you hadn't arrived soon, this Titan might have sacrificed me."
"Ha~ Frail human... Ensuring you survives the blade is more difficult than understanding the ultimate truth." Thus spoke the "rationality" Titan Sersis residing within that Xia's body.
Xing glanced at the breathtaking single-handed restraint from before and couldn't help but tease, " Teacher Anaxa, is this the fighting power of the 'weak scholar' you spoke of?"
As she spoke, she gripped the bat tightly again, her fighting spirit rising.
The battle erupted amidst the recreated light and shadow of the old Castrum Kremnos!
Phainon's greatsword was powerful and heavy, and he launched the first attack. At that Anaxa's pistol fired points of cold light, which, together with his precise calculations, blocked the Flame Reaver's retreat.
With Tribbie gripped his bat and seized the opportunity to join the fray.
However, despite their relentless onslaught, the Flame Reaver remained remarkably composed. His movements, though seemingly casual, always allowed him to evade their attacks with the slightest margin.
The black blade seemed to come alive in his hand, parrying and deflecting attacks with ease.
The Flame Reaver even glanced with interest at the recreated street scene around him, showing no doubt about this battlefield constructed from " Remembrance," as if everything was under his control.
"Relentless harassment."
A deep voice came from beneath the visor, carrying a hint of... helplessness?
After being besieged twice, he couldn't fight freely, mainly because he couldn't bear to, as they were all promising talents who could join the " Church of Eternity."
With a flick of his wrist, the Flame Reaver suddenly split his black sword into several solid afterimages.
These afterimages, like hunters with independent will, precisely pounced on Phainon and Anaxa, instantly constructing a series of oppressive barriers that forcefully isolated the two from the outside.
Xing turned around and realized she had completely ignored Teacher Tribbie standing next to her!
At this moment, at the very bottom of the " Spear of Divine Retribution," only Xing and the Flame Reaver opposite her, whose aura was unfathomable, remained in the core area of the battlefield.
"...!"
Xing's pupils contracted slightly, but her movements did not falter in the slightest.
She seized a slight opening created by the opponent's splitting of power, and her bat blazed with light, sweeping out with lightning speed!
clang--!
A piercing clang of metal rang out! The long-awaited strike had precisely hit the spine of the black sword, sending it flying out of the hand and spinning as it embedded itself deeply into the stone slab that had reappeared in the distance!
The Flame Reaver seemed slightly taken aback, and his movements paused.
"It staggered!"
Xing seized the opportunity, pressed forward, and intended to expand his gains, but reality is often cruel.
The Flame Reaver simply flipped his wrist, and a weapon with a completely different design instantly appeared in his palm.
It was a ceremonial short sword emitting a soft glow, curved like a crescent moon, pure white and flawless, the very sacred artifact used to seize the " Core Flame."
Without the slightest hesitation, with a resolute air as if it had been rehearsed, the Flame Reaver thrust the crescent-shaped ritual sword toward Xing's heart!
Pfft--
The icy touch pierced through the hourglass necklace's attempt to defend itself, stopping the blazing Core Flame within the star's body that represented " Strife."
Star Pupil's pupils trembled; he hadn't expected the ritual sword to inflict real damage! Even the hourglass necklace couldn't stop it!
The ceremonial sword shone brightly for a moment, and a powerful suction force came, as if it wanted to forcibly strip away the Core Flame.
However, just when the Flame Reaver thought he had succeeded...
Xing's lowered face revealed a sly smile playing on her lips.
"Finally... they took the bait."
Almost at the same instant Xing's lips curled into a smile, Tribbie's eyes, which were obscured by the afterimage, flashed with a sharp light.
" The World-Splitting Gate —Open!"
Buzz!
Space groaned under its own weight, and a portal, composed of countless rhomboid light grids and seemingly connecting countless dimensions, burst open behind the Flame Reaver.
This is no ordinary " World-Splitting Gate," but a " World-Splitting Gate " enhanced by milk tea, with endless void turbulence and violent spatial energy inside.
An overwhelming force of repulsion surged out from the door, like an invisible giant hammer, slamming hard into the Flame Reaver's back!
"Ugh!"
The sudden impact caused his body to lurch forward, forcing the ritual sword piercing Xing's body to be pulled out, and the suction force that was trying to seize the Core Flame stopped abruptly.
The Flame Reaver staggered, forcefully pushed away from Xing's side by this pure spatial power, and fell towards the dangerous " World-Splitting Gate ".
"Run!"
Tribbie maintained the hand seals, and the repulsive force of the World-Splitting Gate instantly transformed into a powerful pull, violently drawing Xing, Phainon, and Anaxa towards herself.
The light and shadow distorted, and the recreated scene of Castrum Kremnos peeled away piece by piece like a shattered mirror.
Before the Flame Reaver regained his footing and his icy gaze locked onto them again—
Whoosh!
The figures of the group were completely swallowed up by the " World-Splitting Gate " and disappeared into this fragment of spacetime constructed from Remembrance, leaving only violently fluctuating spatial ripples and the light and shadow of the slowly closing gate.
In the center of the battlefield, the Flame Reaver stood silently, his gaze beneath the mask fixed on the spot where everyone had vanished, unfathomable and profound.
He raised his hand, and the jet-black blade that had been knocked away transformed into a stream of light and flew back into his hand, while the pure white crescent-shaped ritual sword quietly disappeared.
The Flame Reaver glanced down at the tip of the ritual sword, where a trace of " Eternity " seemed to linger.
"Hmm~ Something feels off about the plot..."
He scratched his head. He hadn't originally intended to take the " Strife " Core Flame from Xing's body; it was truly her who had come to him of her own accord.
The hourglass necklace was, after all, an " Eternity " sacred object bestowed by Lord Yite, which ordinary objects could not penetrate; only those who had received His blessing could touch it.
The Flame Reaver fell silent, hoping that his earlier 'mistake' wouldn't be noticed by Xing, thus exposing his identity...
Prematurely revealing their identities would mean telling Amphoreus the whole truth, and it's impossible for the Astral Express Crew to go to the " Iron Tomb " unprepared.
Currently, the Astral Express has only Trailblaze less than half of Amphoreus. To suddenly be told that everything here is an illusion—who could accept that?
Sigh~ It's not just the Astral Express that's practicing the path of " Trailblaze "; Blake feels his own path of " Trailblaze " is also very long.
After the story of Amphoreus came to a temporary end, he still had to rush to " The Dual-Phase Paradise " without stopping, his schedule was packed.