The 9th Class Swordmaster: Blade of Truth-Chapter 480: Final Act (3)

“It’s been a long time.”

Allen Javius raised his staff high into the air. At its tip, the distinctive violet hue of Arcane mana began to coalesce, crackling with raw power.

“I’ve always wondered how far my magic could go. Today, I’ll finally find out.”

Crack! Boom! Crackle!

As he swung his staff downward, the skies trembled. The clouds split open, unleashing jagged bolts of lightning that rained down with destructive force.

Arcane Technique – Wrath of the Mad Heavens

This was the pinnacle of his Arcane Technique, one he had never truly mastered in life, yet now executed effortlessly, without so much as a chant.

Allen marveled at himself, his curiosity as a sorcerer reigniting even in this dire moment.

“Can’t believe I still get this thrill, even while fighting gods...” he muttered to himself, his voice laced with dry amusement as he stood amid the cascading violet lightning.

“Is there a better opponent than this? A god who can take all we’ve got makes the perfect target,” said Zarka.

“That’s if she doesn’t strike back,” Allen replied, glancing at Yula.

Pierced by Toska’s blades of light, Yula remained motionless, slumped on the ground. Allen’s lightning struck her squarely, sending electric currents surging through her body. Her surroundings glowed crimson, bathed in the vivid hue of the violet storm.

Yet there was no scream. Yula’s body twitched, but she did not cry out.

As Allen raised his staff for another strike, Zarka’s voice cut through the tension.

“Something’s off.”

Clang!

In an instant, a wickedly sharp blade extended from Zarka’s hand. Its black, ominous edge seemed to radiate malice, casting an eerie aura that sent a chill through the air.

“Whatever’s going on, I’ll find out.”

Fixing his gaze on Yula, who hadn’t moved an inch from her position, Zarka prepared to charge.

Whoosh! Boom!

Black energy trailed behind Zarka like a shadow as he dashed forward, leaving a streak of darkness in his wake. His elven agility, combined with a puppet-like precision and speed that surpassed mortal limits, made him lethal.

With every step, the ground seemed to quake, his movements accelerating until he closed the gap in the blink of an eye.

“Hmph...!”

He nimbly slipped behind the crouched Yula and drove the two blades mounted on the back of his hands straight toward the nape of her neck.

Shrakkk—!

The strike was impossibly flawless.

“...”

But as Zarka stared at Yula, his expression hardened.

“Are you checking?” Yula’s voice broke the silence, her lips curling into a sinister smile. “What are you trying to check? How it feels to die?”

“...!”

Like a ruptured pipe bursting, blood sprayed from Zarka’s mouth.

Clang...!

A metallic ring echoed as the twin blades meant to pierce Yula’s neck fell to the ground, sliced cleanly in half.

Before Zarka could react, Yula’s crimson blade was lodged in his throat, skewering him with terrifying ease.

“Damn... it...” Zarka’s voice came out as a faint gurgle, his body convulsing as he struggled against the mortal wound.

“You thought you could confirm something? How foolish.”

Yula’s mocking gaze bore into him as the black aura that had trailed Zarka flickered and began to dissipate.

“Zarkaaa...!!!” Allen Javius cried out, his voice filled with alarm.

“You carry only a fragment of a god’s power. Do you truly think you can harm me with such meager strength?” Yula spat, gripping Zarka’s throat tightly, her crimson blade glowing with ominous energy.

“The only reason I allowed you to scurry about was because I knew you would come to me like moths to a flame, offering me the Dimension Spirals on a silver platter!”

“Tch!”

At that moment, Zarka spat in Yula’s face. Blood trickled down her cheek, leaving a crimson streak before dripping to the ground.

“Haha...” Despite his mangled throat, Zarka Hochi let out a strange, rasping laugh. “You think this will kill me?”

Yula frowned, her eyes narrowing as she stared at him.

“What, you thought that going back to my elven form caused me to lose my senses? Hah, think about it. This thing lodged in my neck isn’t a decorative piece meant for balance,” said Zarka, pointing to Yula’s crimson blade stuck in his neck. “How can someone who’s already dead die again?”

Crunch!

Zarka reached up and snapped his own neck with a sickening crack. His head fell to the ground. Then, black mist swirled around him, and as the mist condensed, a new head formed in its place.

“We may carry only one Dimension Spiral, but that doesn’t mean we’re weaker than you.”

VOOSH...!

Zarka crossed his arms in a slashing motion, unleashing razor-sharp waves of black energy toward Yula.

Slash!

A thin, sharp cut appeared on Yula’s cheek, blood trickling down her face. Yet she remained unfazed, her expression as cold as ever. In one swift motion, she retaliated, her blade slicing toward Zarka.

“Haaah...!!”

Zarka cried out as he charged at Yula once more. His twin blades clashed against her sword, sending sparks flying. Using the momentum from one strike, he drove the other blade toward her.

Fwoooosh...!

A crimson flame erupted from his sword, flickering like a fire fueled by the remnants of a specter’s life force. The flames spread outward, scattering embers that seemed to burn the very air around them.

Zarka pressed his assault relentlessly, his strikes growing fiercer with each swing.

“You see, we aren’t afraid of death. We’ve already faced it. But you...” Zarka grinned as he dodged Yula’s sword, bending backward at an impossible angle before crossing his blades for a counterattack.

“You’re different. You’ve lived through eons. That’s your poison. Your fear of annihilation will be your downfall!”

At that, Yula slashed at Zarka’s throat, but he twisted just enough to narrowly evade the blow. Crossing his arms, he swung both blades in a wide arc, unleashing a glowing crescent of energy aimed at her.

“Hah... hah...!”

Zarka’s chest heaved as he took a step back to assess his opponent.

“Annihilation... Indeed, even to a god like me, it’s terrifying.”

Yula’s voice was icy as she locked her gaze on Zarka.

“But look at you. You’re already dead, yet you pant and gasp as if you were alive. Why? Is it painful?”

“Ha... Haha...”

Zarka’s pale face twitched, and a bead of sweat rolled down his temple. For the first time, his body betrayed signs of weakness.

Sizzle... Sizzle...

The area around his neck, where Yula had grabbed him earlier, began to bubble and blister, emitting a faint hissing sound.

“God’s Venom.” Yula’s voice dropped to a whisper, her words carrying a deadly weight. “This world is my creation. No matter how much Divine Power you wield, as long as you’re in this realm, you cannot escape my rules.”

“Kuh...” Zarka staggered, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. In doing so, he smeared his cheek with dark blood.

As he began to tremble, a viscous, glowing green liquid dripped from his lips, staining the ground beneath him.

“You claim to not fear death? That’s a sentiment for creations, not creators. None of you have experienced true death. True death is annihilation.”

Yula’s voice was filled with disdain as she gently ran her fingers through Zarka’s hair, her expression a mask of cruel satisfaction.

“Your master would have said this, wouldn’t he?” she whispered. “One down.”

“Stop...!!”

Toska’s voice thundered as he raised his hand, and from the heavens, a bolt of lightning struck the battlefield.

Yet Yula stood unflinching, gazing calmly into the blinding light.

“Toska,” she began, her voice carrying a hint of nostalgia. “You, along with the Platinum Dragon, were the closest among my creations to true divinity. I gave you the power of light and him the power of darkness. To you, I granted heat. To him, cold.”

Her body, once shrouded in crimson energy, now glowed with an eerie translucence, like a polished gem.

“You both defied me in your own ways. But what can you hope to achieve as an incomplete being, missing a crucial half?”

She extended her hand toward the descending lightning, her expression serene.

“You’re mistaken if you think the light of your sun creates the darkness. You hold no darkness. Just as the Platinum Dragon’s cold cannot harm me, neither can your light.”

BOOM! BOOM! CRASH!!!

Hundreds of blades of light rained down, their force enough to split the earth. However, an opaque barrier formed around Yula before they could reach her, absorbing the magic entirely.

“Hmm...” She nodded in satisfaction.

“Could it be...?” Allen Javius’s voice trembled as he watched the scene unfold. “She deliberately let herself be hit by the magic...? To absorb its power?”

Yula’s strength had undeniably waned after her clash with Karyl. Yet now, after enduring two of Toska’s magical attacks, she stood revitalized, her aura more vibrant than ever.

Rumble... Crack!

With a single step forward, the ground shook and cracked into a web that kept spreading.

Screeeech!

Black tendrils erupted from the gaping cracks, their ends splitting like the mouth of a serpent—each lined with jagged, razor-sharp teeth.

“Shit...!” Allen quickly raised his staff, using it to deflect the oncoming tendrils while gathering his Arcane mana.

Crackle... Boom!

Violet lightning burst from his hand, scattering the tendrils and leaving trails of acrid smoke in their wake. But the assault was relentless. Protecting Karyl while fending off Yula’s endless attacks was a monumental task.

The tendrils surged forward in waves, overwhelming Allen’s defenses and gradually pushing him back.

Thwack! Crunch!

One tendril broke through his guard, clamping down on his arm with terrifying force.

“Ghh...!”

He ripped the tendril away, but the wound throbbed and oozed, refusing to heal.

“Her venom,” Karyl muttered, his voice strained but resolute. “She can shift between light and darkness at will. Only someone who wields both can challenge her.”

“So only a human.” Allen gave a brief nod. “Even so, don’t even think about going in by yourself. I told you, it’s us, the dead, who’ll create the opening. With my Arcane Technique, I too can wield both light and darkness.”

He clutched his staff tightly. “Wait for me to create an opportunity.”

“Hold on.” Karyl reached out and stopped him.

“...?”

“You, Zarka, Toska... It’s fine that you’re stepping up, but it feels like you’re underestimating the living.”

“What do you mean?”

“The might of the dead is undeniable, but that doesn’t mean the living are just sitting idly by, waiting for the future you’re carving out.”

Karyl’s gaze drifted to a distant point.

“Just wait. The dead may create an opening, but another living soul will step in to seize it.”

***

“Guh... Urgh...!”

Yula’s blade, lodged in Zarka Hochi’s chest, carried the very solar power that Toska had unleashed just moments earlier.

The dark tendrils coiled tightly around his body. At the tip of the blade protruding from his back, an emerald shard glowed.

“Zarka...!” Toska shouted, desperation creeping in as his solar power failed to damage the tendrils.

“Time to finish this,” Yula declared.

Zarka Hochi trembled all over, yet he mustered the last of his strength to swing his blade at her.

Whoosh!

Unable to support his own weight, he collapsed onto Yula. Startled, she tried to pull her blade free as he fell against her.

“The power of the gods is light and darkness?”

At that moment, a voice spoke from behind Zarka, obscured from Yula’s sight.

“There’s one here who holds both.”

“You...”

Crackle—BOOM!!!

A hand reached for the Dimension Spiral embedded in Yula’s blade.

“Who...” Her eyes twitched.

The divine light emanating from the hand was something no human should possess.

Yula looked over at Miliana, who lay on the ground, her chest heaving irregularly. Yurin Huygar and Anchar were barely keeping her alive with their combined blessings. She no longer radiated any Divine Power.

Has the fragment moved?

Yula pushed Zarka’s limp body away and turned her gaze forward.

“Kungen.”

A familiar name reached her ears.

Crackle—BOOM...!!!

Two swords flashed with blinding brilliance.

Thunder carried light and heat, moved freely within water, bore the freedom of wind, and held the darkness of storm clouds.

Aidan Hamil stood there, his golden eyes gleaming with otherworldly radiance. Divine lightning surged through the twin blades he held, his entire being now brimming with Divine Power.

Crunch...!!

But even that wasn’t enough. He grabbed the Dimension Spiral embedded in Zarka Hochi’s heart and shoved it into his mouth, biting down hard.

“...Thunder Lord!” Yula growled her enemy’s name.