Rain began healing Valeria using the blood essence that she stole. Although she had enough to revive the dead, it worked very little to heal Valeria’s giant wound. Kar’s blood was preventing her regeneration.
“You are the same as before,” Valeria said with a smile as she averted her gaze, looking at the ceiling. “Always placing others before you.”
Rain bit her lower lip as she pouted. Kar was screaming something from the other side, but Sapphire rushed to stop him. She pulled the harp’s strings to send countless blades of force.
Spade began creating a portal to let them escape, but Rain knew that Valeria would not survive the trip. The spatial strain on her fragile body would kill her. Therefore, she could not leave.
“I cannot leave her here,” Rain said to Spade, who turned toward her with confusion. “Leave without us. We still have a few people coming to save us.”
“What meaning would my earlier actions have if I just leave?” asked Spade with a sigh as he canceled the portal. “There is no other way, then. We have to beat the Sin of Gluttony.”
Rain had to admit that the words sounded nonsensical in her ears. Kar was more powerful than any of them imagined. He could tear them apart with his bare hands, and it wouldn’t be long before he did.
“There isn’t a way to beat him,” Rain said with a frown. Even if Oren came here with Nyx and the rest, they would not be able to win against Kar.
At that moment, Kar clapped his hands, and countless blood weapons appeared around Sapphire. Rain watched the scene unfold with helplessness. Sapphire threw a barrier of force around her to stop the weapons.
“Show me your blood,” Kar said with a grin as he twisted his hand. The countless weapons came raining down as Sapphire pushed her barrier to the limit. Rain could see the weapons clash against the barrier and disappear, but they were endless.
Kar began responding with attacks of his own. Each droplet of blood turned into a new monster created out of blood. Blood birthed blood, and his powers were growing every second.
Rain witnessed his powers firsthand. She understood that her own powers of stealing the life essence out of people were pathetic compared to the Sin of Gluttony. Kar was not only powerful but adaptive.
His authority over blood was unmatched, and each droplet of his contained the essence of people that he has devoured as a vampire. Rain felt her own powers were
pathetic compared to his. Even Deluge, who could cast wide hypnosis over people, was lacking.
Sapphire slammed her palms together, generating a field of force around her. Rain felt her hair fluttering as an unknown force appeared.
“Ancient Domain,” Sapphire muttered as her domain expanded around her, creating a sphere of strange symbols radiating with an ashen glow. Countless arms emerged from the domain, destroying anything they touched.
“I remember your ancestor,” Kar muttered with a smile. “The Supreme Guardian could bring down meteors from the sky using a fraction of his force. I defeated him just the same.”
After revealing such a disheartening truth, Kar raised his sword. The blood domain appeared again, this time expanding further than before. Sapphire retreated while reaching forward with her force field to kill Kar from a distance.
Rain watched as blood clashed with the ancient hands. Blood scattered before being reborn, multiplying and surrounding Sapphire and her domain. Her clasped hands began shaking under the effects of the relentless blood creatures.
A thousand monsters, ten thousand, twenty thousand… their numbers multiplied no matter how many she destroyed. The giant cave now looked cramped. As the domain was about to break, Kar pulled his hand back.
Each blood creature exploded into a mist of blood. It began gathering in front of Kar, forming a long red spear. Kar smiled as he stared at Sapphire, whose domain was about to break. “Let’s see if this is your limit.”
Boom!
The red spear flew toward Sapphire after letting out a sonic boom. It traveled faster than their eyes could follow, striking the Ancient Domain and sending Sapphire flying. “Sapphire!” Rain shouted as her friend turned into a broken kite and slammed into the walls. The ancient domain crumbled as the red spear flew toward Kar again. Sapphire fell to the ground, slamming into the walls. Her force began to fade.
“Humans are too fragile,” Kar said with a disappointed sigh. “I have no more time to play. First, let’s take out this nuisance!”
Kar aimed his spear once again at Sapphire. Rain knew that she needed to save her friend, but Valeria would die the moment she let go of her. She turned toward her recent enemy. “Spade, please save her.”
“Kar has placed a blood mark on her. Even if I teleport her here, the spear would follow her,” Spade answered as he fell to his knees, his hands stretched out before him. “I can’t do a thing”
“Then teleport her elsewhere!”
“I don’t have enough mana for that,” Spade explained with a shake of his head. “I’m sorry, Rain.”
Rain could not accept it. She turned back toward Sapphire, who was still collapsed on the ground. Kar was about to hurl his spear toward her, ending her life. However, if she let go of Valeria, she would die instead.
Despair crept into her heart as she realized that she couldn’t do a thing about this situation. The life essence that she once stole was useless now because that’s all she could do: lure men and steal their powers.
“Stolen strength can never be yours,” Valeria once reprimanded her, but Rain never understood why. It was the last thing she said to her before Rain left the ship and embarked on her own journey.
“Bid your friend farewell, little girl,” Kar said as he sensed her troubled emotions. “Stare as I kill her.”
Rain felt a surge of rage as she stared at the calamity. He was vile beyond any redemption, and she wished that he would drop dead. As the unknown emotions took over her mind, she heard a whisper in her ears.
“Call my name,” the feminine voice demanded. “And I shall reach you.”
Rain was confused for a moment before remembering the owner of the voice. She gritted her teeth as she called out her name. “Nyx Netherborne!” Rain shouted. A surge of black lightning surged from her body and rushed toward Kar.
Nyx materialized out of the wrath within Rain’s heart, teleporting to their location in an instant. She flew over the edge while holding a sword crackling with black
lightning.
“Apologies for the late entrance,” Nyx said with a grin as she flew toward Kar. “But I’m here now.”