Pfft—
The Burial Blade carved through the pack of grotesque demons that lunged forward, severing their twisted bodies in half.
As the Sky Demons wailed in agony, their fading life force dissolved into pure Nen, all of which flowed back into Germain, leaving nothing behind.
Crackle, hiss, crack—
The countless horrifying wounds across his body began healing at an unnatural speed.
Shattered bones fused back together.
Torn flesh stitched itself whole.
Everything returned to its original state.
Then, only a breath later, a towering figure loomed over Germain.
Germain raised his head.
Descending with a head twisted like a coiling whip, the being known as Blood Moon appeared.
It lifted a finger, pointing straight at Germain.
And then, it spoke.
The voice echoed by his ear—a string of unfamiliar syllables, like chaotic whispers from the void.
Yet somehow, instinctively, he understood the meaning.
"I shall take your power."
Germain's pupils shrank.
Immediately, he felt a portion of his strength being stripped away, torn from his body and condensing into a mist that drifted toward Blood Moon.
He frowned.
He wasn't about to sit there and let it happen.
Swinging the Burial Blade, he expanded it into a colossal edge and cleaved downward!
Boom—!
A wave of black slashing energy ripped through the air, aimed directly at Blood Moon.
But after devouring that fragment of Germain's power, Blood Moon leapt lightly into the sky.
Its movements were eerily graceful, dodging the strike with inhuman agility.
The slash tore through the horde of Sky Demons behind, shredding them into dust that scattered like ash in the wind.
Blood Moon didn't even glance back.
Those expendable creatures—there would always be more.
Once again, it raised a finger toward Germain, preparing to unleash its dreadful incantation.
But in that instant, the sky split with a shrill, piercing screech that grated against the teeth—chiii, chiii, chiii—
Deep Sea arrived.
Its countless tentacles tore apart the Sky Demons blocking its path, while the many gaping maws along its body devoured flesh in chunks.
Now drenched in blood, it descended like a demonic god.
Earlier, when the two demigods had joined forces to fight Blood Moon, the battle had reached a fever pitch—until Deep Sea was ensnared in a swarm of Sky Demons.
That was when Blood Moon turned its full attention toward Germain.
"Deep Sea" quickly understood what "Blood Moon" meant.
In his judgment, among the two demigods present, the greatest threat was Germain. That meant Germain had to be dealt with first.
Although "Deep Sea" felt displeased with "Blood Moon's" assessment, he could not deny the truth in it.
If "Hunter" fell before him and was slain by "Blood Moon," then this divine battle would already be lost.
He had endured countless years, abandoned his selfish desires of "Curse of Resentment" and "Flesh," and it was never for the sake of witnessing such a miserable outcome.
So, after clearing away the massive wave of "Sky Demons," he rushed to the battlefield without hesitation.
When he saw that "Hunter" had not suffered grave injuries, he did not waste words. Instead, he directly took over the fight against "Blood Moon," giving "Hunter" a brief chance to breathe.
Germain, the "Hunter," used this moment to scan his own body, sensing just how much power "Blood Moon" had stolen away.
He soon realized that the portion tied to the SacBlood Moonlight Greatsword and the Ring of Thunder had already vanished.
In other words, he could still conjure these weapons in form, but the true powers that once belonged to them were gone.
After grasping this truth, Germain steadied his breathing and calmly threw himself back into battle.
Together with "Deep Sea," he pressed the assault on "Blood Moon," and amidst the furious clash, he relayed his discovery to his newfound ally.
Only when "Blood Moon" deliberately withdrew, leaping away like an antelope into the distance, did the two demigods halt their offensive.
At that moment, "Deep Sea" turned to Germain and spoke his understanding.
"Our power originates from being chosen by the 'Blood Moon.' That power manifests in a way most suited to each of us."
"That is why I am the 'Deep Sea,' and you are the 'Hunter.' That is why demigods differ so greatly from one another."
"But in the end, our strength grew far too quickly, far beyond the normal cycle. That is why this power is unstable."
"For us older demigods, it is not as dangerous. We've had decades—centuries—to refine and solidify it. Like changing blood, this power has long become ours."
"But you… you did not have that much time. That is why He can so easily strip away a portion of your strength. Be careful. Do not let yourself fall into His snare again."
Germain nodded slightly.
"I understand."
At that moment, the distant figure of Blood Moon, who had flown off earlier, suddenly stirred again.
Its whip-like head and limbs twisted violently, and in the next instant, its entire body swelled at a terrifying speed.
Then—without warning—it burst apart.
But rather than scattering into pieces, its form transformed into something entirely new.
Blood Moon expanded to the size of a massive beast.
It rose into the air, reshaping itself into a giant, pitch-black bat.
Its wings unfurled, vast enough to blot out the sky.
Beneath its colossal frame, countless black tendrils writhed restlessly, giving it the appearance of a nightmarish jellyfish, crowned with enormous horns like those of a raging bull.
Beside Germain, the many eyes covering Deep Sea all opened at once.
"This… this is its third form. It no longer cares about maintaining the planetary barrier—it's decided to kill us first."
As if to prove his words, the swarm of Sky Demons that had been gathering above the sky began plummeting one after another, descending like paratroopers onto the earth below.
Blood Moon could no longer allow them to linger here.
But that decision carried a price.
The creatures falling from the sky would plunge the entire world into chaos—a catastrophe that threatened to engulf every living being.
Germain clenched his fists.
He forced himself not to think about Shizuku, Bisky, Ging, Netero, or Kurapika.
Worry would only break his focus.
His reason told him there was only one path forward: defeat the source of the Sky Demons.
Only by striking down Blood Moon itself could this calamity truly end.
Running back to save his friends now wouldn't rescue anyone.
It would only buy them a brief delay before death caught up again.
It was just like the choice he had made before—ignoring the Darkness.
Because even if he didn't seek it out, the Darkness would eventually come to the New Continent to find him.
Better to face it head-on.
Better to push beyond the walls and confront the darkness in a final battle.
A piercing screech ripped through the air.
Blood Moon, in its monstrous bat form, unleashed a cry so sharp it rattled the bones of even demigods.
Germain and Deep Sea nearly lost control of their powers, barely withstanding the first wave of sound.
They braced themselves and tried to advance closer.
But Blood Moon shrieked again.
The second wave, layered atop the lingering echo of the first, struck like a crushing weight.
The two demigods faltered—unable to move forward, their senses and minds thrown into chaos.
The dreamlike mists closed in.
In the blink of an eye, they were about to fall once more into the nightmare woven by the Blood Moon.
At that crucial moment, Germain seized the fleeting opportunity and unleashed the Dark Badge.
*******
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